Ye Yu nodded vigorously, and after exchanging goodbyes with Ye Huan, she got on the army’s big truck. Since she was pregnant, she could lie in the back; the front was occupied by Ji Huzi’s n, who took good care of her throughout the journey.
After sending Ye Yu off, Ye Huan stood at the intersection for a long, long ti, only leaving when the truck was out of sight, with Tong Zhan holding her shoulder: "Don’t worry, they’re experienced drivers, and they’re not driving continuously. Although this area is desolate, there are supply stations from our troops every so often, so don’t worry about them not having a place to stay overnight."
Ye Huan sighed, "Xinjiang is so vast. The thought of her traveling so far to see makes want to cry. I need to ti it right; when she’s close to giving birth, I’ll see if I can find a way to swap shifts with Doctor Zeng or sothing. It’s tough to get through confinent without family around, and I’m worried about her not getting enough nutrients. Are they living in earth caves over there too?"
"Maybe they’ve switched to adobe houses by now? Earth caves are usually built when they first arrive, but over ti, everyone moves above ground. Though, you never know. Didn’t you ask?"
Ye Huan sighed in self-reproach, "I’m so muddled. I forgot about such an important thing. Although I packed so clothes for the baby, they’re all worn out. I need to make a few more clothes for the baby in the coming days; we’re sisters far from the mainland, far from parents and brothers. If I don’t care for her, who will?"
Speaking of which, Tong Zhan and Ji Huzi are both kids who grew up without parents, so they find it hard to understand the bond between siblings. If Ye Huan wasn’t worried about attracting attention, she would’ve given Ye Yu more; unfortunately, the bag wasn’t big enough. After stuffing in those items and a few clothes, it was full. Hey~~.
Little did she know, the things she gave Ye Yu had already moved the pregnant woman to tears on the spot.
Out of boredom on the road, Ye Yu wanted to look at the baby clothes, only to find money, tickets, and boiled eggs hidden within them.
She didn’t even know when her sister went out to boil eggs or when she hid them here—not to ntion the brown sugar and Milk Essence. In an instant, Ye Yu felt the warmth of family, a warmth her husband could never provide. She clutched the tiny clothes tightly, seemingly still able to sll the milky scent of a child.
Ye Yu had thought her sister would give her the usual cornbread they ate, but was surprised to find soft white bread and cornbread made from cornal inside—both refined grains—even big chunks of at in the sauce, obviously made by her sister. Her love hid within the food she sent along, making Ye Yu cry while eating, drawing puzzled looks from the young warriors around her.
"I’m okay; I just felt like crying. I miss my sister, I miss my parents. I’m sorry, I can’t share these things with you because my sister made them—I want to eat more. Let’s have your regint leader treat you all to a al when we return. Don’t worry about , let cry for a bit..."
The two young warriors were panicking, quickly assuring her they wouldn’t eat—they wouldn’t dream of competing with a pregnant woman for food. Besides, Commander Tong had already commanded the Cooking Class to prepare rations for them, so they wouldn’t be snatching food from the sister-in-law.
Though her words assured them, seeing her alternating between crying and laughing had them worried sick. Finally, while nervously escorting her back to the station, they handed the emotionally low sister-in-law over to the regint leader, then retreated in trepidation.
Later, learning from so of the sisters-in-law that pregnant won tend to have unstable emotions, the young warriors realized why the sister-in-law was crying and laughing that day, scaring them half to death—won truly are made of water.
Rembering Ye Huan’s words, upon returning to Hetian, Ye Yu would go out for walks and collect stones wherever she went—just three or five pieces, only collecting pretty ones. She carried a small basket, and if anyone asked, she’d say she wanted to tidy up the yard and pave a cobblestone path.
After all, as she saw it, hiding the truth was impossible, so she might as well be upfront. Anyways, stones plowed up during farming are often randomly thrown onto the ground or at the end of the field.
Pregnant won need to walk more before giving birth, as it aids delivery, so Ye Yu walked everywhere, even collecting stones until the day before giving birth, steadily increasing the stone pile at their ho at a rate Ye Huan couldn’t imagine. Finally, one night in mid-August, she suddenly went into labor, and was carried to the clinic, where after a night’s work she gave birth to a five-jin baby boy at dawn.
Before fainting, Ye Yu said with a delighted expression, "Wonderful, my little sister has a brother now, Ji Yeluo, congratulations on being born."
Around August 20th, Ye Huan sat on the troop supply truck, traveling for seven or eight days, finally arriving in Hetian to see her sister.
(Note: The distance from Altay to Hetian is approximately 1800 kiloters; in the story, it’s fictionalized, set to only seven or eight hundred kiloters, please be aware).
Ye Huan’s arrival excited Ye Yu greatly, so she spent her confinent period quite comfortably.
With her sister bringing plenty of supplents, Ye Yu was physically rejuvenated, and had enough milk for the baby, ensuring the little one didn’t lack nutrients.
Ye Huan worked tirelessly for half a month to serve Ye Yu during confinent, knowing she’d probably have to make up about twenty days of work when returning.
However, she didn’t regret it, for this confinent period was crucial for her sister, and must be attended to properly.
To better serve the child, Ji Huzi moved to the room next door to sleep, while the sisters and the child slept in the hall.
"Your little farmhouse is great; you can grow vegetables and fruits, much better than where we were."
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