For every two sentences from Mrs. Gao Sr., An Ning could snap back with five.

Coupled with the gleaming cleaver in Lin Cuihua’s hand, she was a bit intimidated.

’But... when did the An family get so fierce?’

Gao Guifen stepped out from behind Lin Cuihua and An Ning.

"Cut the crap. Spit it out."

"If you’re not going to talk, then get out!"

Gao Guifen’s tough stance gave Mrs. Gao Sr. an even worse feeling.

"I’m only here today for your own good. My Guangzong has taken a fancy to your family’s—"

"Ahhh—my stomach hurts!"

The moment Gao Guifen cried out about her stomach, no one was listening to Mrs. Gao Sr. anymore.

Even without hearing the rest, everyone could guess what she was going to say.

This was precisely why Gao Guifen had cried out; she didn’t want An Ning’s name to be associated with Gao Guangzong in any way.

’Gao Guangzong wasn’t worthy!’

"Ohhh—I can’t take it, my stomach hurts so bad!"

"Coming to our home to bully us during the New Year, are you?!"

"Oh, my stomach—"

Supported by Lin Cuihua and An Ning, Gao Guifen kept wailing that her stomach hurt.

If she hadn’t given Lin Cuihua a quick wink beforehand, Lin Cuihua would have been scared to the point of tears.

"Eldest, hurry and carry your wife inside."

As soon as Lin Cuihua shouted, An Guoqing swept Gao Guifen into his arms. His voice trembled as he said, "It’s okay, it’s okay, honey. We’ll drive to the hospital. We’ll go to the hospital."

Meanwhile, Lin Cuihua spun around, grabbed her cleaver, and swung the flat of the blade at the mother and son by the door.

"Get out! You old hag and you little brat! You’re the reason my daughter-in-law’s stomach is hurting!"

"Get out! And if you ever dare come back, I’ll bring this cleaver to your house and chop you into mincemeat!"

An Ning finally had her hands free. She was no longer the naive girl she’d been when she first arrived.

She now understood what Mrs. Gao Sr. had been getting at.

The old woman had her sights set on her.

Deciding to settle this once and for all, An Ning grabbed a large chopper with one hand. She extended her arm, holding the chopper perfectly level and pointing it at Gao Guangzong without the slightest tremor.

"You want to lose those eyes?"

"A scrawny thing like you? I could snap you in half with one hand."

To prove she wasn’t bluffing, An Ning grabbed Gao Guangzong’s shoulder with her free hand and hoisted him up single-handedly.

Gao Guangzong felt his feet lifting off the ground.

"Here’s a stone."

Jiang Xia cheekily dragged over a large stone. An Ning casually stepped onto it, lifting Gao Guangzong’s feet completely off the ground. He struggled, but there was no escaping her grip.

The firewood chopper in An Ning’s other hand suddenly swung down, embedding itself in the large stone at her feet.

"Is your head harder than this stone?"

"For someone like you, I could do this eight times a day. Still got any funny ideas?"

Gao Guangzong frantically shook his head.

He had no idea. No idea that An Ning was this formidable, this strong.

He’d been kicked by her once before, but he’d written it off as a fluke.

This display today proved him wrong.

Gao Guangzong was rotten to the core, but he was also incompetent—a coward through and through.

"Get out!"

With a one-handed toss, An Ning sent him stumbling. Gao Guangzong scrambled to his feet on all fours and grabbed Mrs. Gao Sr., who still looked like she wanted to argue.

"Mom, I’m not interested anymore! Not interested!"

"Mom, let’s just go! Hurry!"

He was terrified of getting hit again.

’It seemed even his own mother wasn’t much use here.’

Mrs. Gao Sr. had a million things on her mind, but they all revolved around Gao Guangzong.

Having been beaten and berated without even stating their purpose, the pair scurried away in disgrace.

In the courtyard, Lin Cuihua put down her broom. She had just taken a breath to speak when An Guoqing burst out of the house.

"Mom—"

"The baby’s coming!"

An Guoqing’s cry left Lin Cuihua stunned.

’Wasn’t she faking it?’

"What? She’s really in labor?"

"Yes, really! Her water broke."

An Guoqing didn’t know what that meant, only that his wife’s lower body was covered in a sticky fluid.

The second Lin Cuihua heard that, she bolted into the house.

"Second Brother, start the truck! Youngest Brother, grab the bedding!"

"I’ll get the money!"

At this critical juncture, An Ning remained perfectly calm. Everyone else in the yard scrambled to prepare.

Jiang Xia sprang into action as well, helping to open the main gate, move the large stone, and clear the path.

The truck’s engine roared to life and it pulled up to the front gate.

An Guoping carried out several quilts, while An Sancheng laid down several layers of straw in the truck bed.

Once everything was ready, An Guoqing emerged carrying Gao Guifen, with Lin Cuihua following close behind, holding a bundle.

An Ning, money in hand, leaped onto the truck bed. Standing firm, she carefully took her sister-in-law from her brother.

"Sister-in-law, don’t be scared. We’ll be at the hospital in no time."

Gao Guifen’s contractions had already started. She smiled through the pain, her brows furrowed. "I’m not afraid."

She truly wasn’t. Being with the An family put her mind at ease.

An Ning helped lay Gao Guifen down on the quilts, then covered her with another one.

Lin Cuihua and An Guoqing climbed into the truck bed as well. An Ning banged on the roof of the cab, signaling An Guoming to drive, and they sped off.

An Sancheng and An Guoping went with them. An Sancheng tossed the house keys to Jiang Xia.

"Jiang Xia, lock the gate for your uncle."

Jiang Xia took the keys, nodded, and watched the truck drive away.

The trip from Shili Gou to town took about ten minutes.

An Guoming jumped out first and ran into the hospital to get a doctor.

Fortunately, even though it was the second day of the Lunar New Year, there was a doctor on duty.

An Guoming came back out with a wheelchair. An Ning and An Guoqing carefully lifted their sister-in-law down from the truck and settled her into the chair.

The whole troop of them swarmed into the hospital. But after an examination, the doctor announced she was only one centimeter dilated.

"She needs to be dilated to ten centimeters to deliver. This is her first baby, so it’ll be slow. You’ll be lucky if the baby is born by tonight."

Hearing this, everyone understood they were in for a long wait.

Lin Cuihua took charge. "An Ning, Guoqing, and I will stay. The rest of you can go home."

In the end, An Sancheng and An Guoping headed back. An Guoming stayed behind with the truck, just in case they needed someone to run errands.

All that was left to do was wait.

Just as the doctor had predicted, Gao Guifen’s first labor was a very slow process.

They had arrived at the hospital around eleven in the morning, but she wasn’t moved to the delivery room until after eight that night.

Outside the delivery room, An Guoqing paced back and forth anxiously. An Ning sat in a chair, feeling incredibly tense herself.

Lin Cuihua was praying to every deity she could think of, her lips moving in a constant mutter. It was a textbook case of last-minute bargaining with the heavens.

At ten minutes past ten that night, the sound of a baby’s cry finally echoed from the delivery room.

An Ning shot to her feet. Lin Cuihua unclasped her prayerful hands. An Guoqing looked like he wanted to fuse with the delivery room door.

CLANG.

The delivery room door opened, and An Guoqing, who had been leaning against it, nearly tumbled inside. An Ning’s quick reflexes saved him as she grabbed him just in time.

"Family of Gao Guifen?"

"That’s me, I am!"

An Guoqing shot a hand high in the air. Even though he was the only man outside the delivery room, he was terrified the nurse wouldn’t see him, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

"What’s your name? What’s your wife’s name?"

"My name is—Wait, what’s my name again?"

An Guoqing’s brain was complete mush. Prompted by An Ning, he finally managed to say clearly, "My name is An Guoqing, and my wife is Gao Guifen."

The nurse was just following protocol; they were the only family delivering a baby that day.

"Congratulations. Mother and son are both safe and sound. It’s a boy, seven pounds and eight ounces."