Chapter 63

Chapter 63

At 3:50 PM Beijing time.

The three people outside the operating room each had their own way of waiting, not a single electronic device in sight. Xi Wang stood against the wall, hands pressed tightly against his chest. Bian Jiacheng paced up and down the corridor with his hands in his pockets, occasionally resting against his wife’s shoulder.

Bian Han sat on the long bench, hands covering her face, motionless as a statue.

"Swish—"

A nurse walked out of the operating room.

"The surgery was very successful."

"We’ve already confirmed everything is okay with both fathers."

"Three thousand three hundred grams, exactly six pounds and six ounces. It’s a girl. Who wants to come with me to the neonatal department first? Mr. Fu said he’ll come over in a moment." The nurse, wearing a floral medical cap and a blue mask, smiled with curved eyes, skillfully cradling a small, milky-white bundle in her arms.

Just then, another nurse walked out pushing an empty bassinet.

Bian Jiacheng and Xi Wang surged forward, but they watched as Bian Han left her bag and car keys behind, walking up to the nurse and immediately asking, "Can he come out yet?"

"They’re already stitching him up, it’ll be soon." The nurse handed the baby to Bian Han, who was closest. "Our chief surgeon is famous for his suturing skills. Here, hold her for a bit. You should know, my colleagues’ eyes lit up when they saw the little one just now."

Bian Han raised her hands, then lowered them again.

Xi Wang, stepping past Bian Jiacheng, who was staring intently at the newborn, thoughtfully handed her a wet wipe.

Bian Han wiped her hands and then carefully cradled Dou Ya'er.

The nurse pulled back the swaddle, revealing a round little face with a perky nose. After her hair was dried, it turned out to be quite thick. Most importantly, her little face was pink and fair, with some light, short fuzz. She was perfectly clean.

So adorable!

Bian Han immediately regretted wearing makeup today—she couldn’t even press her cheek against this precious little darling. During the brief time she held her, she only let the other two look briefly.

When the nurse took the baby back, Bian Han felt reluctant to let go.

"Wangwang, you take Bian Jiacheng and go with the nurse." Bian Han took a photo with her phone, the feeling of Dou Ya'er’s soft little body still lingering on her arms. Knowing the baby was healthy put her mind at ease. "I’ll wait for Ning Zai and the others to come out. Go ahead."

Xi Wang pulled Bian Jiacheng along and replied solemnly, "Okay."

"A girl?"

"Are you sure it’s Fu Yuze’s baby? A little girl?"

Bian Jiacheng held onto Xi Wang, asking persistently, shifting from stunned disbelief to a wide grin. He asked Xi Wang, "So she still has to call me uncle, right?"

Xi Wang looked at the little one and answered his silly question, "Yes."

This was the most beautiful baby he had ever seen.

Dou Ya'er was really so adorable.

Much, much cuter than she looked in the ultrasound photos.

Fu Yuze came out ten minutes earlier than Jiang Jining.

Bian Han didn’t question or show any dissatisfaction with Fu Yuze, whose temples were damp with sweat and whose fingers were pale from being trapped in sterile gloves. She took a tissue from her bag and handed it to him, asking, "Are you okay?"

Fu Yuze accepted it and asked her, "Did you hold her?"

"Of course I did. She’s absolutely adorable." Bian Han told him the directions and procedures to follow. "The two of them are watching her now. Why don’t you finish up and go back to the room to shower first?"

"No need, it’s fine." Fu Yuze strode away.

He returned just in time for Jiang Jining to be wheeled out of the operating room.

Jiang Jining had felt relieved upon hearing his daughter’s first cry in the operating room. After taking a look at the baby he had given birth to, he realized that loving such a little thing also takes energy—he couldn’t hold on much longer. Soon, he grew drowsy from the anesthesia.

"Were there any unexpected issues?"

Bian Han stayed behind to ask.

The chief surgeon, hands in his pockets, smiled and said, "Everything went smoothly. Mr. Jiang’s abdomen was in even better condition than I expected. Although there were slight structural differences, they were within controllable limits. The placenta detached easily, and after the baby was born, she only cried to let her dad know she was safe before falling asleep."

Dou Ya'er was so well-behaved.

Hearing this, Bian Han wanted to go see the little one again. "Thank you!"

The chief surgeon waved it off with a smile. "No problem."

Back in the hospital room’s living area—

Fu Yuze temporarily handed his daughter over to Bian Jiacheng and Xi Wang. One of them sat on the sofa, while the other leaned over the bassinet, murmuring together. The older one kept teasing the baby, unable to resist reaching out to poke her or play with Dou Ya'er’s little pink fists.

So fun!

Two people in their fifties combined were here playing with the newborn Dou Ya'er, truly experts at finding their own amusement.

But Xi Wang was much more rule-abiding.

Watching Bian Jiacheng poke and prod, he felt worried and quickly grabbed his wrist. "Be gentle."

Bian Jiacheng wanted to say he was being as light as a tickle, but unexpectedly, Fu Yuze, who had been in the room the whole time, suddenly opened the door and entered the living area. The two of them stepped aside, watching as he naturally gave the little one’s hand a gentle squeeze.

Warm and soft.

"Why does he get to squeeze her?"

Bian Jiacheng was really smooth with this kind of remark.

Xi Wang still doted on his silly boyfriend. "He’s Dou Ya'er’s dad. If the baby were uncomfortable, she’d cry."

But Dou Ya'er didn’t cry.

Fu Yuze spoke very little today. After sparing a moment to look at his daughter, he was about to leave, leaving the other two even more puzzled. Just then, Bian Han walked in, closing the door behind her. "I asked, everything’s fine. He just needs to sleep for a few hours and will wake up on his own."

Only then did Fu Yuze stop in his tracks.

It was still Bian Han who reminded him, "Take a shower and change your clothes. When Ning Zai wakes up, don’t let your smell bother him."

Fu Yuze followed her instructions like a robot.

Bian Jiacheng was starting to get used to his good friend losing his composure over his wife giving birth. He didn’t plan on making any snide remarks—after all, if Xi Wang could have a baby, he wasn’t sure he’d handle it as well as Fu Yuze.

"Mmm…"

Dou Ya'er let out a soft, kitten-like sound.

Xi Wang immediately went to get a nurse, learning that the baby needed a few sips of milk to get her started, which made him quite nervous.

Seeing that Bian Han was the only lady present, the nurse smiled and said, "Once it's in her mouth, the baby will swallow on its own. It's not difficult."

Bian Han was nervous but didn't hesitate to remove all her watches and jewelry, rolled up her sleeves, washed her hands, and prepared for the real deal.

Dou Ya'er was as fragile and soft as her name just suggested—tiny and delicate. After being swaddled in a thin blanket, she was as tender as a block of tofu, soft and softly clinging to the adult's arm.

Just a little lump.

Bian Han's heart was practically trembling as she held her, but on the surface, she remained calm. Under the nurse's guidance, she fed the little one formula with a small silicone spoon—less than ten milliliters—even that was a very challenging task.

Once her little red mouth found the milk, she began to sip slowly. Her tongue was tiny and looked incredibly soft. Her two small white fists rested on her little chest, in a very well-behaved feeding pose.

Bian Jiacheng held onto Xi Wang's arm tighter and tighter, resting his chin on his shoulder. They pressed close together, watching the newborn baby drink milk, and couldn't help but say, "This is so fascinating."

Xi Wang nodded in agreement.

So adorable!

Fu Yuze didn't miss his daughter's first meal after his shower. He fed her the last two sips himself, holding her against his shoulder and patting her back to quickly bond with his daughter.

"You're brave to hold her!"

Bian Jiacheng felt a moment of admiration for him at that instant.

The newborn was like a kitten; held in her father's arms, you wouldn't even notice her from just a short distance away. A missile seemed bigger than this little one, Dou Ya'er.

And Fu Yuze's posture was textbook perfect.

"I've held a newborn Xingxing before. That was only two years ago; I haven't forgotten how." Fu Yuze gently held his daughter's delicate little foot, feeling the small, soft pressure as she pressed against his hand. His love for Jiang Jining welled up inside him. "I'll take her to A Ning."

His daughter and Jiang Jining still needed some bonding time.

"Alright, I'll call my parents."

Bian Han felt like she had been reborn over the past hour or so.

Jiang Jining's sudden delivery had left her stunned, but she felt much better now. Completing the task of feeding Dou Ya'er filled her with a sense of accomplishment. She took her hands off her hips to grab her phone and said to Fu Yuze, "Remember to notify the family."

It wouldn't be appropriate for her to do it.

If Fu Yuze didn't fess up today, he'd probably be bombarded with criticism.

Sure enough.

In less than forty minutes, family members trickled in one after another in the living room of Jiang Jining's integrated ward, surrounding Fu Yuze, who had just stepped out holding Dou Ya'er.

"Look at what you've done—"

"Don't say that. Can't you see the baby is sleeping?"

"Keep your voices down. A Ning is still resting. Stay quiet, quiet."

One by one, they spontaneously maintained order.

Dou Ya'er, who had just been picked up from Jiang Jining's arms, felt a bit unsettled now that she was away from her warm, familiar source of security. She whimpered from time to time but didn't cry out loud.

Take turns holding her?

No one could bear to put a newborn through that.

In the end, Fu Yuze placed her in the bassinet and pushed it to the center of the largest area for everyone to see.

Jiang Jining hadn't woken up yet.

Visiting hours were currently prohibited.

Fu Yuze used his adorable little daughter to divert everyone's attention, afraid of disturbing the little kitten's recovery.

Zhou Yeying, upon hearing that Jiang Jining had given birth, immediately stood up from the massage chair at the beauty salon. Then, upon learning it was a granddaughter, her mood bubbled like the photon water column steaming in the facial machine.

Now that she was here,

she couldn't get enough of looking at the baby, tilting her head this way and that.

"Ya Bao has such thick hair?"

"There's not a single unattractive feature on this little face."

"Her eyes will definitely be super beautiful like Ning Zai's, though it's hard to tell now. Hey, does her mouth look like Xiao Fu's? She seems to have taken the best features from both of them."

Ji Huan smoothed her hair, bent down, and gently pinched Dou Ya'er's chubby little hand with her ring-free right hand. Immediately, the baby lightly grasped her finger, and Ji Huan laughed, saying, "A Ning really knows how to give birth."

This little girl is going to grow up to be absolutely stunning.

Fu Huaisheng held his son, who was clinging to his arm to get a look at his sister. "Are you trying to crawl into the bassinet and sleep with your sister?"

"Want to touch her?"

Fu Yuze lifted Xingxing into his arms.

Hearing Xingxing's milky voice say he wanted to, Fu Yuze leaned closer to his daughter and taught him to touch her gently. "When you sleep with Ningning, you touch his belly. This is the same little sister. Do you remember?"

Xingxing couldn't believe what his little hand was touching.

So soft!

Like the little dough ball his uncle gave him when making bread, but even softer than that, and it moved, and it was warm!

"Ningning is amazing," Xingxing said shyly, leaning against Fu Yuze. "He can give me a little sister to play with."

Fu Yuze was amused by his adorable praise.