Chapter 640

·

·

·

Main Character:

Shen Yao

Mansion Back Courtyard

"Ah"

Shen Yao raised her hand and lightly stroked her round, bulging belly, a breathy sound escaping her lips unbidden.

As childbirth drew near, the child in her womb grew ever more active; even using her demonic power to soothe it had little effect — every day it churned and tossed inside her belly, refusing to stop until it exhausted itself completely.

For this reason, Lin Xingzhi chose to stay by Shen Yao's side all day long, not leaving her side for a single step; his dark circles were so heavy they could scare a person to death.

"Yao Niang"

Lin Xingzhi hurriedly brought the decocted medicine the physician had prepared; the bitter liquid made Shen Yao frown involuntarily — there was no help for it, carrying too many offspring at once brought all sorts of discomforts, and even though Shen Yao was a demon, the later it dragged on, the weaker her body became.

She turned her head and leaned against Lin Xingzhi's chest, letting him spoon the medicine into her mouth one spoonful at a time.

"Cough, cough, cough cough"

A sudden violent stirring from below made Shen Yao spit out the medicine she had just swallowed, soiling her front lapel and sleeves, and nearly knocking over the bowl with most of the medicine still in it.

"Not drinking anymore"

Shen Yao buried her head in Lin Xingzhi's embrace, suddenly throwing a little tantrum.

Lin Xingzhi set down the medicine bowl with a face full of heartache, his words gentle as he soothed the wife in his arms; after a while, seeing her body had improved considerably, Shen Yao — belatedly realizing — rallied her spirits and finished the remaining medicine.

"Xingzhi"

Shen Yao felt somewhat embarrassed; recently her emotions had been obviously volatile, and the slightest dissatisfaction would make her act willful, while Lin Xingzhi's indulgence only worsened her symptoms.

"Yao Niang"

Lin Xingzhi patted Shen Yao's shoulder, indicating there was nothing to be embarrassed about: "Yao Niang bearing sons and daughters for Xingzhi is no easy matter; a few cross words are nothing — if I held it against you, that would truly be heartless and ungrateful."

Childbirth has never been an easy thing for a woman; for all that Yao Niang has done, he harbors deep gratitude.

"Wow, King Jing is truly a good man! Host, this time you didn't pick the wrong person."

Shen Yao:...

Before Shen Yao could speak, the system in her mind was already moved to tears.

"When have I ever picked the wrong person?" Even in the previous Beast Taming World, the cub's father died early, but the cub's birth mother was very powerful — no matter how you looked at it, the cub didn't lose out.

System:...

The system was choked speechless by the host's retort; thinking it over carefully, it really was true — wow! The host truly lives up to being the Chosen Worker it selected; they can still cooperate for a long time.

The couple stayed in tender intimacy for a good while, until Shen Yao's body grew weary and she rubbed her eyes frequently; only then did Lin Xingzhi help her into the room to rest.

These days Shen Yao's sleep had not been good; she basically relied on daily catnaps to replenish energy. The children in her womb frolicked for a spell and finally quieted down — though with their abilities they wouldn't stay docile for long.

The catnap lasted barely an hour before Shen Yao was woken by the children in her womb.

Propping up her belly, she sat up slowly from the bed; Shen Yao mobilized the demonic qi within her body to soothe them — the effect wasn't obvious, but it lessened the pain somewhat.

Seeing this, the system hurriedly reminded the host to prepare the relevant childbirth matters.

"No rush; demons differ from humans — earlier, to guarantee the children's bloodline purity, I used some methods that damaged the body.

Wait a bit longer; persist until the agreed-upon date, and it will be a permanent solution."

Mixed-bloods struggle to survive in this world — outcasts acknowledged by neither the Human Race nor the Demon Race.

Shen Yao never doubted Lin Xingzhi's sincerity toward them, mother and child; but Jingcheng is a nation's capital, home to many High Monks and Big Shot Daoren — she could not leave trouble for the few children.

System:...

"Host, can you hold on?" Pain is secondary; this is inherently going against heaven — as a balancing measure, the host's cultivation realm and demonic power must both be sacrificed.

Shen Yao forced the corners of her mouth to twitch, her gaze indifferent and devoid of emotion: "Wasn't this the plan set from the very beginning?" Her goal was never to achieve enlightenment and ascend; she is merely a passerby in this world — completing her own main mission is the real business.

With that said, she no longer cared about the system; Shen Yao took out a pill from her space and swallowed it — the pill instantly transformed into a stream of pure energy concentrating on her entire abdomen, making the children inside even more active.

Gritting her teeth and persisting like this every day, combined with the medicine Lin Xingzhi sent over, Shen Yao finally dragged it out to the originally agreed-upon delivery date.

As the sun outside climbed higher and higher, Shen Yao felt the children's urgent desire to come out.

She pulled Lin Xingzhi's arm beside her and instructed him to send her to the delivery room to prepare; Shen Yao cried out involuntarily, the pain forcing her whole body to curl up.

Lin Xingzhi:!!!

Lin Xingzhi was so frightened by Shen Yao's state that he froze in place; it was her cry that brought him back to his senses.

He immediately ran outside to summon servants to prepare, then sent people to fetch several physicians; afterward, he personally carried Shen Yao to the delivery room next door that had been arranged.

"Host, King Jing's body has recovered well," — looking at him, he doesn't have that short-lived look from before.

The system cracked jokes at the most inappropriate times; some of its words were simply baffling.

Shen Yao:...

Shen Yao couldn't be bothered to pay it any mind, only gritting her teeth and enduring wave after wave of physical shock.

"My Lord, you cannot stay for the delivery," the midwives and maids in the delivery room carefully persuaded him, terrified that one slip would cost them their lives.

Lin Xingzhi flung his sleeve; his words were firm: "This King stays here to accompany the Consort; you need not say more — hurry down and prepare."

Lin Xingzhi held the highest status in the Mansion; what he decided, no one dared to refute.

Shen Yao clutched Lin Xingzhi's wrist with all her might, sweat pouring down both temples, dripping patter onto the clean bedding.

Lin Xingzhi held a handkerchief, wiping Shen Yao's sweat while urging the others to deliver the baby as soon as possible.

Shen Yao turned her head slightly; with her free hand she brushed her lips while simultaneously swallowing the prepared Shun Chan Wan in one gulp.

Soon, the medicinal power took effect inside her body; the children in her womb moved downward.

The several physicians hired at high price by King Jing had originally thought this delivery would be extremely difficult, even preparing for the possibility of death.

Unexpectedly, this Imperial Consort was so fortunate that she smoothly gave birth to the child in her womb in less than an hour.

"Born, born, congratulations, Prince, it is a young prince."

"Wah wah wah wah wah"

The infant's cries accompanied by the doctors' congratulations, Lin Xingzhi's raised heart settled slightly; this was a good start.

"Once the Imperial Consort gives birth safely, this king will reward generously!"

The doctors and midwives were encouraged, and subsequently threw themselves into the delivery even more excitedly.

After another half hour, Shen Yao gave birth to another two children, one male and one female.

Her originally protruding abdomen became flat, and her whole person was exhausted as if she had just been fished out of the water.

Lin Xingzhi made way, allowing the attending servants to help tidy the bedding and wipe her body, while the three children beside were wrapped in small blankets and placed by the bedside in a row.

Lin Xingzhi lowered his eyes to look at the red, wrinkled child that looked somewhat like a monkey, and his heart melted into a pool of water.

Shen Yao, exhausted from it all, had already fallen into a deep sleep; Lin Xingzhi waved for the others to leave to receive their rewards, and he himself stood by the bedside, tightly gripping Shen Yao's wrist.

The poverty of words could no longer describe his emotion; at this moment, Lin Xingzhi was even more grateful to the heavens, that such a scene which would not even happen in a dream was actually playing out in reality, and Yao Niang was his redemption.

…………

In a daze, Shen Yao heard someone speaking softly by her ear.

She struggled to open her eyes, and before she could speak, she saw Lin Xingzhi excitedly ordering someone to fetch the doctor.

"Yao Niang"

These past few days, Lin Xingzhi could be said to have been on a roller coaster, with emotions soaring and plummeting; if not for several doctors repeatedly confirming that Shen Yao's body had no problems and was merely sleeping without waking due to exhaustion from childbirth, he would probably have summoned all the doctors in the city to the mansion.

"Xingzhi"

Shen Yao opened her mouth, her voice low and hoarse.

Warm clear water was brought forward and fed to her mouth bit by bit.

Lin Xingzhi did not bother to tidy his own disheveled appearance; while holding Shen Yao's wrist, he recounted the situation in the mansion during the days Shen Yao had been unconscious.

The first thing mentioned was the three children; Lin Xingzhi had read many books and ancient texts, carefully selecting several names with extraordinary meanings.

Since Shen Yao was not present, he had not decided alone, "Yao Niang suffered hardship in childbirth, the names should be nodded at by Yao Niang."

Shen Yao smiled weakly, "The words chosen by Xingzhi must be good."

Moreover, the royal family's naming had a specific order; among Lin Xingzhi's offspring, the middle character was Cheng, leaving only the last character for them to decide.

Before giving birth, the couple had discussed for several days; now that the children had been born safely, it was merely a matter of finalizing the names and submitting them to the Capital.

"Chengyan, Chengjue, Chengjing"

Shen Yao felt these three words had good meanings and were worthy of the three children she had given birth to.

Lin Chengyan, Lin Chengjue, Lin Chengjing... Lin Xingzhi nodded in satisfaction; indeed, they were good.

…………

Whether human or demon, childbirth is an extremely draining matter for Qi and Blood.

Shen Yao not only suffered postpartum coma, but also endured consequences such as stagnation of her cultivation realm and unsmooth condensation of demonic power.

Fortunately, her blood bar was thick enough, and the variety of pills in the space was numerous; these problems could all be slowly recovered through subsequent recuperation.

The plan to leave Jiangning was delayed again and again along with the situation of Shen Yao and her children.

With letter after letter arriving from the Capital, after the three children's full moon, Lin Xingzhi finally put the matter of returning to the Capital on the agenda.

By this time, the three children had already shed their red, wrinkled monkey-like appearance, becoming white and tender, soft and glutinous little dumplings.

Lin Xingzhi completely transformed into a doting demon of doting on children; every day upon opening his eyes he would run to the room to accompany the three children, wishing to cling to his wife and children at all times, wholeheartedly immersed in the warm bed of family, and having no interest at all in government affairs.

The subordinates were all anxious, but Lin Xingzhi was content and enjoyed it, occasionally analyzing the situation in Jiangning City with Shen Yao; the meaning expressed was that they would not stay here for long, so some matters should be turned a blind eye to.

"Imperial Brother long knew of the situation outside the Capital; the farther one leaves the Capital, the more obvious certain problems become."

Lin Xingzhi is Prince Jing; this time, acting on the Emperor's orders for travel, it was more about deterrence.

If he truly stood out too much in government affairs, the first to suspect would be the Emperor.

Even siblings born of the same mother will turn against each other, let alone brothers of different mothers.

Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger; it is no different than this.

…………

When coming to Jiangning, it was only a convoy of carriages; when leaving Jiangning, the number of carriages had doubled.

The three children and the wet nurses and maids responsible for daily childcare, all the food and drink supplies needed by everyone, and various indispensable things scattered about.

Shen Yao once again sat in the spacious carriage compartment; the three children were laid down one by one on the spread blankets, with pastries and drinks within reach at hand.

'Host, are we just leaving like this?'

The system mentioned Jiang Sheng, and also the fox demon Hua Yue who temporarily left Jiangning City; these are all potential enemies.

Shen Yao:...

'Jiang Sheng will take the imperial examination and will surely go to the Capital; if the fox demon is smart, she won't cause me trouble,' she raised a hand to touch her own daughter's little cheek, Shen Yao turned her head to look out the window.

The demonic aura that was originally unhidden had now converged greatly; these were the consequences caused by that fox demon's pounce.

'Among the demons in Jiangning City, the one they hate most now is the fox demon; if she dares to come back,' Shen Yao couldn't help but snort softly, thinking to herself to prepare for a beating.

Demons are unreasonable; even if the fox demon is not afraid, being sought out one after another would be enough to make her suffer.

The carriage compartment beneath her moved forward slowly with the horses' walking; Shen Yao took advantage of the situation to loosen the curtain beside her, at the same time also covering the gaze hidden in the distance.

"Left?"

"Left, left."

"Speaking of which, it's all because of that fox demon, forcing us to hide here and there!"

"Hurry and don't say it; how can we fight it? Be careful of being heard and having it come find us for trouble."

"Hmph! Truly unfair; do little demons like us who finally managed to transform deserve to be bullied by them? Pity my clansmen and Qi Qi Ba, they died so miserably."

"……"

These words never reached Shen Yao's ears, but with the System, this chatterbox, even though the car fleet had already left Jiangning City, she could still hear the aftermath of the scholar and the fox demon.

The fox demon ultimately still returned to Jiangning, but its luck wasn't very good; it was currently being surrounded by those innocently implicated demons.

The scholar, spending the fox demon's money, had clung to a new patron, and was currently planning the matter of going to the capital to take the imperial examinations.

Shen Yao: ……

"Not far ahead is An Ning City; this place is already a hundred li from Jiangning City."

The implication being, the story of the scholar and the fox demon could now be turned over; if you want to hear the same type of gossip, look, there's fresh material up ahead.

System: ……

Shen Yao called over the maidservant waiting outside the carriage to take the child away to be fed and coaxed to sleep.

Traveling with a young child, their daily marching speed was not fast, so Shen Yao and Lin Xingzhi had plenty of time to appreciate the scenery along the way.

The two novice parents, after experiencing a period of flustered chaos, became composed.

Lin Xingzhi was no longer as nervous about the child as before, gradually shifting the focus of his life back to daily government affairs.

Shen Yao looked at this fellow; he clearly wanted to save up more family assets for the three children.

"Yao Niang, there's no one usable by Imperial Brother's side; although my health is poor, I also cannot sit by and do nothing," appropriate flattery, when the occasion calls for it, does them no harm.

Although Lin Xingzhi had previously been accustomed to doing as he pleased, basically giving face to no one.

But right now he has a family and children; he must make more efforts for the sake of his own small household.

Speaking of the Emperor far away in the Capital, Lin Xingzhi couldn't help but feel wronged on behalf of the three children, expressing that after returning to the capital, their family would immediately enter the palace to pay respects to the Emperor.

"Imperial Brother's offspring are flourishing, but the other brothers and sisters' offspring are withering; now that we husband and wife have happily obtained heirs, we must let Imperial Brother see them."

It would be best if he could bestow rewards according to the official salary of Imperial Children, so as not to let their rushing about all this way be in vain.