Chapter 412: How Could Such an Ugly Child Be My Daughter with Chen Yan?

"How is it! How is it?"

Li Tai is rather plump; although he set out at the same time as Chen Yan, he obviously arrived a bit later.

"I still don't know; my husband is inside, and the midwives are also inside," Li Lizhi clasped her hands tightly, her gaze never leaving the tightly shut door for a second.

Even the usually rowdy Sizi and Cheng Yang, those two little rascals, stood quietly beside Li Lizhi at this moment, their small faces full of worry.

"Chen brother is inside!" Li Tai immediately felt much more at ease.

Chen Yan's medical skill is famed throughout the Imperial Palace as almost divine; the frail Sizi, raised from childhood, has become plump and healthy, the frequently ill Empress Changsun now enjoys a robust phoenix body, and even Du Ruhui, stricken with a terminal illness and with one foot already at the brink of the ghost gate, can be pulled back by sheer force.

Solving a childbirth issue, I suppose, is not a problem at all.

Seeing the tense atmosphere, the Princess of Yue jokingly said, "Weren't you at odds with Sister Gao Yang before? Why are you so worried now?"

"That was all childish nonsense when we were young," Li Tai sighed. "Between blood siblings, there's no real hatred. Don't think of me as being petty."

The Princess of Yue comforted, "The midwives sent by Her Imperial Highness the Empress have served the palace for decades; with the Marquis of Weinan present, everything will be fine."

"Mm!" Li Tai and Li Lizhi, brother and sister, nodded together.

Meanwhile, in the side chamber, the midwife spoke gently, not sounding hurried: "Your Highness, don't rush; please don't force it, take it slowly, okay?"

"Mm!" Gao Yang forced the word out between her teeth; she felt as if her whole body were being torn apart, her other hand gripping Chen Yan's hand so tightly her nails were about to embed in his flesh, and beads of sweat on her forehead had already soaked her sideburns.

Chen Yan let her hold him, remaining completely still; his other empty hand used a warm towel to gently wipe the cold sweat from her forehead repeatedly.

"Zhao Tang, do you remember the breathing game we've been playing these past days?" Chen Yan leaned forward slightly, meeting her gaze.

Gao Yang didn't understand why Chen Yan brought it up, but she nodded laboriously, indicating she remembered.

"Very good, shall we play it again?"

Chen Yan slowly guided her through the Lamasé breathing method: "Breathe, follow me, inhale... exhale... Yes, just like that, you're great, very great..."

"Breathe to this rhythm, don't stop."

Because of her trust in Chen Yan, Gao Yang quickly fell into the rhythm. A portion of her attention shifted, and the intense pain eased slightly.

Chen Yan's peripheral vision kept watching the midwives, and he had to admit they were indeed experienced, especially after his brief instruction, they performed fairly well.

At least under the conditions of this era, Chen Yan could find no fault.

Ah!!!

Gao Yang let out a suppressed, painful groan from her throat. She had been raised in luxury, never suffering any grievance; even when Chen Yan once spanked her in front of everyone, she only felt humiliated and never shed a tear.

But now, the unbearable physical pain, mixed with fear of the unknown and worry for the child's safety, finally broke through her defenses; crystalline tears mingled with sweat fell uncontrollably.

"I... I can't... Chen Yan... it hurts..." she sobbed, her voice full of fragility.

"You can do it, Zhao Tang! Look at me!" Chen Yan tightened his grip on her hand, his voice more gentle than ever. "You are my wife, the proud Princess Gao Yang of Chang'an City; how could we possibly not get through this difficulty? Our child is working hard to come out to see his mother—can you, in good conscience, give up?"

"Keep holding on a bit longer, okay?"

He said this while signaling the midwife with his eyes.

The midwife understood and hurried, "Princess! I see the head! The hair is jet‑black, a blessed child! If you push a bit more, you'll succeed soon!"

"Did you hear that? The child is waiting for you!" Chen Yan's voice softened, his eyes reddening: "Now, when the next pain comes, push hard! Even if you break my hand, it's fine!"

Ah!!!

Another low groan sounded; Chen Yan couldn't articulate what he felt, his jaw clenched, though he could have kept encouraging his wife, he could no longer utter a single word.

In that moment, his sense of superiority as a transmigrator and his calm as a physician completely collapsed. He was merely a husband watching his wife struggle at the brink of death, able to offer only encouragement and companionship, unable to share any of her pain.

He pressed Gao Yang's hand against his own forehead, hot tears silently sliding down his face.

This is the most primal inheritance!

This is a mother's hymn!

This is the most radiant miracle in the world!

A miracle born of life!

Waaah—!!!

A cry brimming with vigorous life suddenly rang out, announcing the official arrival of a new life.

Gao Yang heard the sound; her whole body seemed to have its strength drained, collapsing completely, only her chest rising and falling violently, yet her gaze was urgent and full of longing toward the direction of the cry.

The midwife deftly took care of everything, wrapping the baby—still covered in vernix, its little face flushed from crying yet limbs strong—in soft swaddling cloth, then beaming, she presented the infant before the two of them:

"Congratulations, Lord Bo! Congratulations, Princess! It's an extremely healthy little lady! Listen to that cry—how resonant! Mother and daughter are safe! Everything is smooth!"

"Did you hear? Zhao Tang, our daughter is born!" Chen Yan tightly grasped Gao Yang's hand again, the trembling of a life saved and the immense joy, the heart that had been soaring now finally settled.

Gao Yang's breathing was rapid; her gaze shifted from the infant to her husband, and a smile suddenly blossomed on her pale face.

"Chen... Chen Yan... you... you cried!"

"Haha... you cried!"

"I... I want to laugh at you... for... for a whole year!"

Chen Yan: "......"

His expression stiffened for a moment, the corner of his mouth twitched; seeing Gao Yang fine, he took the swaddled daughter from the midwife's arms.

He glanced, then leaned forward slightly and said, "Zhao Tang, look, this is our daughter—she's quite beautiful, isn't she?"

Gao Yang twitched her nose, "I was just thinking, did you maybe pick up the wrong one?"

"How could such an ugly child be the daughter of me and Chen Yan?"

"Look at her all wrinkled, the nose isn't a nose, the eyes aren't eyes, the head... why is the head still..."

Chen Yan: "......"

"......"