Midwifery

Chapter 31

This was the most difficult period for Sha Niu’s Mother since arriving in Xinghua Village.

Sha Niu woke up on the third day, but she had truly become a fool now.

“Ah… ah…” Her gaze was vacant, and she could only make senseless sounds with her mouth.

In the past, Sha Niu had been simple-minded, but back then she was more like a five or six-year-old child who could communicate with her mother and understand what others were saying.

Now, Sha Niu had become a mute simpleton. She could not recognize people; she cried when she was hungry, and she cried when she saw anyone. She understood nothing, knowing only how to eat and sleep besides her constant weeping.

Ming Wen had to change her bandages every day and observe her condition. Li Qingqing also kept watch here daily. Over the last two days, her tears, like those of Sha Niu’s Mother, had nearly run dry.

Sha Niu’s Mother could no longer cry. Looking at her daughter in this state, she wanted to die. Once again, she was tempted by the peace that death promised.

It would be better to just die and be done with it.

Ming Wen seemed to read her mind. She said, “Wait a little longer. I have a way. I will take you both away.”

How could they leave?

The Village Chief already knew the method for her ascension. As long as she saved an animal, he would kill it.

She couldn’t accumulate any merit at all. How was she supposed to ascend? How was she supposed to become an immortal?

If she couldn’t become an immortal, how could they escape?

Ming Wen understood the anxiety of Sha Niu’s Mother. Knowing this, she repeated once more, “I need you to trust me.”

“Don’t lose heart. Sha Niu will be fine, and I will return to the heavens. Even if I cannot become a goddess, I will notify the immortals in heaven to come and save you.”

Sha Niu’s Mother knew Ming Wen was only comforting her. If it were truly possible to notify the immortals in heaven, how could there be no movement at all by now?

They were truly at a dead end.

“You must believe me. Whatever you do, don’t do anything foolish,” Ming Wen continued to soothe the woman’s emotions.

Ming Wen already knew what was in the mother’s heart. From the first time she met this woman, she knew the other had no desire to live.

Ming Wen continued, “If something happens to me, you must still find a way to leave this place. After you leave, do not report it to the police here in Guangcheng. When the time comes, go to Ping City. Report it to the police in Ping City. Once you reach Ping City… tell the police you know Yun Song.”

As she spoke, the wooden stick in her hand unconsciously traced the two characters for “Yun Song” on the ground. Looking at those characters, she suddenly burst into tears.

It was a moment of fragility that only a common human would possess. In the past, even if Ming Wen shed tears, they were the tears of a deity, not the helpless weeping of this moment.

At this instant, she no longer seemed like a goddess descended from heaven to undergo tribulation, but had truly become a young girl abducted into the mountains.

Sha Niu’s Mother felt a sense of panic. Something terrible was approaching, something seemingly more horrifying than anything before.

She could only numbly memorize the words of the Immortal Lady.

If something happened to the Immortal Lady, she would go to Ping City. Go to Ping City and find a policeman named Yun Song. She simplified and summarized the Immortal Lady’s instructions in her mind.

–

Soon, the Village Chief’s eldest daughter-in-law was about to give birth. Ming Wen was as good as her word; she went to help.

The Village Chief had likely concluded that it was impossible for Ming Wen to ascend now. He was also certain that someone like Ming Wen would never do anything to harm a pregnant woman or a child, so he let her inside.

It was impossible for Ming Wen not to feel anxious. She was extremely worried about accidents. In this environment, delivering a baby was only possible if everything went perfectly. If even a small problem occurred with the mother or child during the process, it would be difficult for her to handle.

Fortunately, they were lucky. Perhaps because the fetus was relatively small, the baby came out in just an hour, and the mother was in stable condition.

Holding this tiny life, Ming Wen felt it was miraculous. A little life had been born just like that, with tiny hands, tiny feet, and a tiny face.

Ming Wen used sterilized scissors to cut the umbilical cord and treated the wound properly.

The mother kept asking, “Is it a son or a daughter?”

Only then did Ming Wen say, “It’s a daughter.”

She handed the child to the mother.

On the seventh day, the daughter died.

When Sha Niu’s Mother heard the news, she was stunned and couldn’t process it.

Ming Wen learned the news from Sha Niu’s Mother.

When she heard it, she felt as if she had been punched in the face. she went through every possibility in her mind, including things like tetanus, but she was certain she had handled everything perfectly at the time.

Even if she wasn’t a goddess, she was still a medical student.

In a sense, this was the first life she had ever handled in her career.

And it was gone, just like that?

She wanted to see the child’s body. She had to know exactly how the child died.

Hearing her plan, Sha Niu’s Mother immediately said, “They definitely won’t let you see.”

It didn’t matter; she had her own ways.

“Where was she buried?”

Sha Niu’s Mother said, “Children in the village who die young are all buried next to the Bodhisattva Temple.”

Ming Wen immediately shook her head. “Impossible. There are no graves up there.”

Sha Niu’s Mother hadn’t actually noticed, but she found it a bit strange. “How do you know?”

Only after asking did she realize that the Immortal Lady’s temple was up there. Naturally, the Immortal Lady would be familiar with every blade of grass and every tree on that mountain.

Ming Wen didn’t answer the question, but instead asked, “Are you sure it’s up there?”

“Of course.”

Sha Niu’s Mother didn’t notice the young deity’s state of mind; she was still feeling miserable herself.

Ming Wen was an immortal. In these mountains, injured animals would seek her out to heal their wounds. She could even heal a turtledove with a broken wing.

Now, no injured animals came to Ming Wen for help, and the child she delivered had died.

A goddess, and the child she delivered had died.

Sha Niu’s Mother knew that Ming Wen had failed her tribulation. She could never be the Immortal Lady again. She had become an ordinary person.

Ming Wen likely knew this herself. She was in a terrible state, locking herself away for the entire day. No one knew what she was thinking.

Sha Niu’s Mother and Li Qingqing took turns bringing her food, but she didn’t eat. Neither of them knew how to comfort her.

That night, Sha Niu’s Mother looked toward the Zhang family courtyard, her heart filled with profound sorrow.

Even if she were an immortal reincarnated, come here to be undergoing tribulation, she would die here once all hope of ascension was lost.

Night descended, accompanied by a rising mist. Sha Niu’s Mother looked up to see the darkness closing in from all sides.

They could not escape.

This place was not only destined to bury these trafficked brides, but it was also about to bury an immortal.

And of all this, the world knew nothing.

Yun Song had another nightmare.

In the dream, within a pitch-black room, a young woman was held captive.

Various voices echoed in the young woman’s ears. They called her Ming Wen, over and over they called her Ming Wen, telling her to settle down and stop thinking about running away.

Others wept in her ear: “Immortal Lady, we can never escape in this lifetime.”

“Immortal Lady, I want to die, I really want to die so badly.”

“Immortal Lady, if I die, can I become your child attendant?”

“Immortal Lady, save me, save me…”

The weight of all those voices made it impossible for the young woman to breathe. She curled her body into a ball, struggling to calm herself.

In the darkness, after an unknown amount of time, the young woman began to move.

She stood up and walked to the wall.

Yun Song saw the young woman holding a charred stick, writing something on the wall over and over again.

Yun Song leaned in to look. The entire wall was covered in just two words.

“Yun Song”

“Yun Song”

“Yun Song”

Yun Song jolted awake from the dream.