Qiao Zhao gripped the sharp knife tightly, keeping her voice as steady as possible: “You know that Ma Fei San only exists in legends. Even after Physician Li’s decades of research, he achieved no success, so now we can only rely on luck. The only advantage at present is that Her Highness the Eldest Princess has fallen into a deep coma, which might allow her to endure this…”
As Qiao Zhao spoke, the sharp blade steadily cut through the Eldest Princess Changrong’s belly. Blood immediately gushed out, even splattering onto Chi Can’s clothes.
Chi Can clenched his fists tightly to suppress the impulse to snatch the sharp knife from Qiao Zhao’s hands.
“Scissors!” Qiao Zhao shouted.
Chi Can almost instinctively hand over the scissors.
Using the opening she had just made with the sharp knife, Qiao Zhao cut downward with the scissors. Seeing the churning flesh and blood inside, it was impossible to say her heart felt no turbulence at all. However, at this moment, she had no time to think further. She threw aside the scissors and forcefully pulled open the wound to observe the abdominal condition.
Chi Can couldn’t even speak anymore, staring intently at Qiao Zhao’s every move.
“The third knife from the left!”
Chi Can silently hand it over.
Qiao Zhao took the knife and looked up at Chi Can with a serious expression: “Big Brother Chi, now I need you to hold open the wound just as I did. I’m going to cut open the womb that encloses the fetus.”
“I—” Chi Can bit down hard on his lower lip.
“You can do it!” Qiao Zhao’s expression was resolute as she urged, “Quickly!”
Chi Can closed his eyes, then opened them again. His hands trembled as he reached out, but after pressing against the Eldest Princess Changrong’s belly, he calmed down and followed Qiao Zhao’s instructions to widen the wound.
Qiao Zhao gripped the knife in her hand tightly. Fine, dense beads of sweat had already seeped from her smooth forehead, rolling down like dewdrops.
She had no time to wipe them away. Steadying her mind, she carefully cut through the womb with the knife.
Physician Li had specifically instructed her about this step, emphasizing that she must be extremely careful, otherwise the sharp blade would injure the fragile fetus.
Time seemed to pass quickly, yet it also seemed to drag on forever. Qiao Zhao threw aside the knife and reached her hand inside.
“Third Miss Li—” Chi Can felt his chest tighten. He wanted to say something, but after opening his mouth, he found his mind completely blank.
Just as he was in a daze, the baby’s head had already emerged.
The baby’s fetal hair was fine and sparse, wet and still streaked with blood. Chi Can watched intently, somehow feeling his eyes grow warm.
He watched as that tiny baby gradually revealed its little head, followed by its small body.
The baby was so small, so fragile, just like a little puppy.
“The second scissors from the right!”
Chi Can freed one hand to grab the scissors.
But Qiao Zhao didn’t take them. While squeezing the mucus from the fetus’s mouth with her hands, she urged: “Big Brother Chi, you cut the umbilical cord!”
Looking at the bloody scene, Chi Can seemed to have become numb. Following Qiao Zhao’s instructions, he made the corresponding response.
As the umbilical cord was cut, the baby’s weak crying immediately filled the air.
Qiao Zhao breathed a sigh of relief and instructed: “Give the baby to the midwife waiting outside to handle, then come back immediately to continue helping me. Remember, after your hands touch the door, you must clean them again with strong liquor.”
Chi Can carried the newborn baby and rushed to the door, kicking it open with one foot and handing the child to the expectant midwife outside. Then he hooked the door closed with his foot, pushed the door bolt shut with his face, and quickly returned to Qiao Zhao’s side.
Exclamations came from outside, and someone pounded on the door forcefully: “Young Master, how is Her Highness?”
“Whoever dares to enter, I’ll take their life!” Chi Can roared fiercely.
At this moment, Qiao Zhao was quickly inserting silver needles around the Eldest Princess Changrong’s wound to stop the bleeding. Large drops of sweat rolled down from her forehead, sliding over her delicate, upturned nose tip and disappearing into her neck.
Her back was already soaked through, the clothing clinging to her body, making her appear even more slender and delicate.
“What, what else can I do?” Chi Can asked in a hoarse voice.
Qiao Zhao’s voice was calm and steady: “Help me wipe away the sweat. The sweat drops cannot fall into the wound.”
Chi Can looked down at his blood-stained hands, hesitated for a moment, then took out his handkerchief to wipe away the sweat beads on Qiao Zhao’s forehead. Then he watched as she again extracted something from the Eldest Princess Changrong’s abdomen.
“What is this?” Chi Can couldn’t help but ask.
Qiao Zhao placed the extracted object on a tray on the side table and explained: “This is the afterbirth, also known as the placenta.”
Chi Can’s expression quickly contorted.
He had heard of the placenta before.
“I need to suture Her Highness’s wound now. Big Brother Chi, I still need your help…” Qiao Zhao carefully explained the important points.
Since multiple layers needed to be sutured, the process was naturally difficult. They used countless pieces of gauze soaked with blood. When the final stitch was completed, Qiao Zhao looked as if she had been pulled from water, completely drenched.
Chi Can wasn’t in much better condition at this time.
Although he had only assisted throughout the process, the psychological pressure from such a scene was unimaginable. Even an iron-willed man couldn’t endure it.
He couldn’t help but glance at Qiao Zhao. Seeing her pale face and disheveled appearance, yet with her spine still straight, his emotions became particularly complex.
“My mother, she—” Looking at the Eldest Princess Changrong, who had kept her eyes tightly closed throughout, Chi Can felt as if he were standing on a beach in the night, with unknown waves rushing toward him.
Qiao Zhao carelessly wiped her hands on her dress, then immersed both hands in a basin to wash them quickly before drying them. She took out a white porcelain bottle from the medicine box, poured out a pill, pried open the Eldest Princess Changrong’s teeth to feed it to her, and only then did she have time to answer Chi Can’s question.
“The danger for Her Highness is not now.” Qiao Zhao’s legs were now weak, and she was too exhausted to stand steadily, leaning against the screen as she spoke.
“What does this mean?” Chi Can pressed.
“Could you give me a cup of water?”
Chi Can immediately poured a cup of warm water and handed it over.
Qiao Zhao took it, but the hand holding the water cup trembled uncontrollably.
She drank it all in one gulp, and the cup accidentally fell, instantly shattering into pieces.
At this moment, neither of them could spare attention for this small incident. Qiao Zhao pressed her lips together and continued: “Just now, Her Highness and the fetus in her womb were in extreme danger. Delaying even for an instant could have resulted in both their deaths, so I had no time to explain.”
“Mm, then tell me now.” Chi Can gazed into Qiao Zhao’s eyes, listening attentively.
“Her Highness’s condition just now was beyond the help of normal midwifery methods.”
Chi Can nodded: “That’s what both the midwives and imperial physicians said.”
The Eldest Princess Changrong’s pregnancy had always been problematic, so seven or eight midwives had been prepared early on, all experienced experts. Among them, two or three knew the special technique of correcting fetal position, but their previous attempts had all failed.
“In such circumstances, the only option was cesarean delivery. Normally, without pain relief methods, it would be almost impossible for the mother to survive this procedure. But because Her Highness fell into a deep coma, it provided convenience. Everything went relatively smoothly now. With careful care, Her Highness should be able to eat normally within ten days, but to get through the dangerous period will require two months.”
“Why is this so?”