Reluctance Outside the Birthing Suite

Evans Manor.

Cynthia Wu was already in labor, crying out in pain, while Mark Hunter paced anxiously outside the delivery room, his heart nearly in his throat.

Leonard Li wandered boredly around the courtyard. These days, Tudan was rarely home, and without that insufferable "broken sleeve" around, no one was constantly pestering Leonard Li. The young lord suddenly felt a bit lonely.

Usually at this time, Xiao Yun would forcibly drag him to take a walk by the village, but today that person wasn't here, making it feel very strange.

As Leonard Li strolled, he arrived at the gate of Cynthia Wu's courtyard and heard a woman's piercing cries inside, which made his hair stand on end.

Leonard Li knew Cynthia Wu was about to give birth, but as an outsider, he wasn't interested in gossip nor was it appropriate to interfere, so he hadn't paid much attention. Hearing the woman's cries now, he suddenly remembered that Cynthia Wu was in labor and Evans Manor should be helping inside.

Thinking of Evans Manor, Leonard Li's feet moved on their own toward Cynthia Wu's courtyard.

Just turning a corner, Leonard Li saw Mark Hunter pacing under the corridor, looking like he was about to set the house on fire from anxiety.

Then Leonard Li saw Evans Manor and Belle approaching, their faces full of worry, with Alexander Hayes following behind them.

"The young lord is here too?" Evans Manor was surprised to see Leonard Li. It was rare that the "broken sleeve" young lord wasn't hanging out with Tudan today.

Leonard Li scratched his nose, glanced at Alexander Hayes's cold face behind, and Evans Manor's enthusiasm instantly felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over it.

Evans Manor was worried about Cynthia Wu and had no time to pay attention to Leonard Li, so she and Belle went inside.

But Leonard Li wasn't willing to just have a brief encounter; he wanted to chat with Evans Manor, so he called out, "A Li, do you need ginseng? I have a hundred-year-old root in my room. If you need it, I can bring it to you."

This ginseng was brought by Leonard Li after Evans Manor nearly drowned last time, which had scared him half to death. When he got home, he took the thickest root from his collection.

Evans Manor paused and said, "Thank you, young lord, but we don't need it for now. If we need ginseng, I'll come to you for it."

"Alright, alright, A Li, just ask if you need anything," Li Yanhao said.

Evans Manor smiled gratefully at Leonard Li and then went inside with Belle.

Mark Hunter, seeing the young lord so generous to offer ginseng for his wife's delivery emergency, cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you, young lord."

Li Yanhao had plenty of ginseng at home and didn't mind giving away a root or two, so he waved generously, "It's nothing, just a small favor."

After speaking, Leonard Li hesitated, reluctant to be too far from Evans Manor, thinking he might catch another glimpse of her at the door, so he stood there with Mark Hunter.

Alexander Hayes naturally couldn't enter the delivery room either, so he waited outside as well.

So the three men stood guard outside the delivery room, each lost in their own thoughts.

Inside, when Evans Manor entered, she saw Cynthia Wu already lying on the bed.

Madam Wang was too exhausted to stay and had gone back to rest; Madam Chen was watching over here, and when Madam Wang woke up, she would take over.

The two midwives were also present, standing vigil by the bedside.

Cynthia Wu's face was pale. Seeing Evans Manor, she bit her lip in pain and cried out, "A Li, why does giving birth hurt so much? I'm in so much pain, I feel like I'm dying."

Evans Manor felt her heart tighten and quickly sat at the head of the bed, tightly holding Cynthia Wu's hand. "Ah, there's no way around it. Caiwei, you have to be strong. Once the baby is born, the pain will stop."

As she spoke, another wave of intense pain hit. Cynthia Wu couldn't help but cry out, the sound so miserable that Evans Manor felt the pain herself just by hearing it.

Outside, Mark Hunter, hearing Cynthia Wu's cries, had red-rimmed eyes from the distress of a man in pain.

It was Alexander Hayes's first time hearing a woman in labor. He hadn't expected it to be so difficult. Listening to the sounds, it was as if the woman was being torn in half. He shivered and thought: If A Li ever has his child, won't the pain be just as bad? Suddenly, he felt reluctant to let her go...