Xia Xi gave birth in early October, two days earlier than the date estimated by the imperial physicians. He felt a faint pain in his abdomen after supper, but he didn't expect it to birth pain so he endured it to the point where he couldn't anymore. He grabbed Chu Lan's hand and said, "My Lord, I think I'm about to give birth."
Chu Lan flew around like a headless fly but forgot to tell the servants. He stood up and hurriedly ran out of the outer hall to call the imperial physicians and midwives in. After a rush of preparations, Xia Xi experienced unbearable abdominal pain in the middle of the night. There were beads of sweat on his forehead, his lips were white, and his body simply couldn't bear it. Chu Lan had never seen him look like this, he was so frightened he couldn't be peeled away from his side, he was finally persuaded by the midwives to go out.
Among the Barbarians, men witnessing a birth were considered unlucky, they could only wait outside. Even the imperial physicians had to "assist with the birth" through a curtain. These people had already known about Xia Xi's physique, so the midwives weren't surprised when they saw his lower body but were more anxious to safely deliver him.
The Palace was brightly lit for almost the whole night, people everywhere were eagerly looking forward to hearing the baby's first cry. Xia Xi's palace was even busier, several maidservants couldn't help kneeling and praying towards the sky after hearing his pain.
The most anxious person was Chu Lan. He wanted to break in many times but was stopped by prime minister Sang Sangmu and Tan Tianxia who came after hearing the news. Xia Chun sneaked in when no one was paying attention and kept guard by Xia Xi's side.
It was like torture. He didn't know how long he had been suffering. Xia Xi mustered the last of his power and couldn't even feel the pain of his lower body tearing. The cry of a baby resounded all over the world: he felt as if he had lost his strength and finally fainted.
Chu Lan stood outside, like an ant jumping on a hot pot, feeling deeply anxious. Every time he heard Xia Xi's painful groan, he only wished that he could replace him. When he heard the baby's cry, he was startled for a moment and broke in subconsciously. He had just walked in when the midwife happily presented a blood-stained newborn to him, saying excitedly: "Congratulations, Great King, you've a healthy little Prince."
Chu Lan had no patience to see the newborn child, he ran directly into the bedroom, bypassing the midwife. When he saw Xia Xi lying on the bed in a lifeless manner, he felt like he'd been punched in the chest. He was in pain; it was as if his internal organs were being twisted. He said in panic: "Imperial physician! Imperial physician, come in quickly, how's Xi'er?"
He called eagerly, but the imperial physicians dared not eagerly come in. Fortunately, the midwife had already covered Xia Xi tightly with a quilt before Chu Lan came. Chu Lan pushed away the crying Xia Chun and eagerly tidied up¹ Xia Xi. He called the imperial physician again to come in and see him. The eldest imperial physician hurriedly approached, he took a sniff and then opened Xia Xi's eyelids to take a look, after looking he breathed a sigh of relief and said: "The King shouldn't be too anxious, the Queen is exhausted and has fallen asleep due to weakness. It's good to first nourish the body with a bowl of ginseng soup." Chu Lan hurriedly asked some people to bring in the ginseng soup. Medicinal materials had already been prepared in advance, and Lan Duo'er sent in the soup after a while. Chu Lan refused her assistance, he hugged Xia Xi and wanted to feed him with a spoon, but it was only when he picked up the spoon did he realize that his hands were shaking so much and his grip so tight. It was difficult to get mastery over his body, so he had to let Lan Duo'er come feed Xia Xi.
Xia Xi was probably very lethargic. Lan Duo'er fed him by spoonfuls, but almost all of the soup escaped out from the corners of his mouth, this repeated itself after two more spoonfuls. Chu Lan looked on anxiously, he simply grabbed the bowl, took a sip, and then sent it to Xia Xi's lips.
His behaviour caused everyone watching to become shocked. The inner and outer halls were full of people, but Chu Lan didn't seem to care. He fed a few mouthfuls in this mouth-to-mouth manner and unconsciously discredited a lot of wild rumours.
It may have been because he didn't receive the attention of his biological parents, but the newborn baby was still crying loudly and heartily. The midwives wiped his body and wrapped the baby carefully, but they were still unable to coax him to stop crying.
Maybe it was because the ginseng soup really had an effect, or maybe it was because the mother and the child finally met, but Xia Xi gradually came back to the world. Chu Lan watched him open his eyes with a look of ecstasy on his face, he devoutly chanted: "Xi'er, Xi'er..." Xia Xi looked at him like this and felt a little guilty in his heart, he thought that he had worried him too much, but before he could mutter any words of comfort, his attention was drawn to the baby's wailing. He looked away and went to find the source of the noise, whispering: "Child..."
Chu Lan was startled for a moment and Sang Sangmu hurriedly reminded him: "Your Majesty, Your Highness wants to see the child."
It seemed that it was only then that Chu Lan remembered that there was still a child. The midwife handed over the baby in her arms and said with a smile: "My Leige, let Your Highness take a look, the little prince is very handsome."
Chu Lan held the child stiffly with both hands. Xia Xi was lying down and could only see a part of the baby, he was forced to sit up. Xia Chun wanted to help him but couldn't, Lan Duo'er's eyes and hands moved quickly, she came and supported his body. Xia Xi's hair was still wet and his face was as pale as snow, but when he saw the baby for the first time his face bloomed with a stunning and touching smile. After a while, the smile on his face gradually softened and he asked softly: "Is it... a boy?"
Chu Lan hadn't answered yet. Lan Duo'er, who knew of Xia Xi's worries, replied first: "Your Royal Highness, it's a boy; a healthy boy." She emphasized the word "healthy" and Xia Xi instantly understood her meaning. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, his smile coming back to his face again. He slowly moved closer to take a look at the newborn baby boy, the baby's facial features were a little wrinkled, and he couldn't see who he looked like. He was crying loud, even while being held by Chu Lan. Astonishingly, he stopped crying the moment Xia Xi approached him, his palms moved around like he was trying to grab something. Xia Xi stretched out his fingers and gently held his little hand.
The baby's hands were small and soft. Xia Xi didn't dare to use force, he only held it loosely and gently tickled it with his fingertips. After a while, he couldn't help but shed tears.
Xia Xi had a hard time giving birth but after that he received the best care. He had chosen a nanny before the child was born and didn't have to worry about breastfeeding, but three days after the child was born, his chest began to swell and hurt unbearably. After being rubbed by an experienced nanny, they began to secrete milk.
Xia Xi was a little surprised. Although his breasts had indeed begun to swell and develop after he became pregnant he didn't expect them to actually be able to produce milk. When he saw the milk flowing out, Xia Xi subconsciously wanted to hide it with his clothes. The nanny laughed and said, "Your Highness, don't be shy, this is a normal thing. If you don't want to nurse your child you can just ignore it, after two days it'll naturally stop flowing, but there'll be some pain and you'll need to be patient."
Xia Xi's face was flushed with embarrassment and he whispered: "I- I'm not afraid of pain..." He was taught by his mother since he was a child that he was a man, that he would stand upright against the wind and rain and start his own family. Although he was soft-tempered, he had never thought that he'd be married off one day. And after marrying, he had never thought that he'd conceive a child. Although he wasn't very bothered by being pregnant, the matter of breastfeeding really shocked him.
The nanny was of course reliable. Xia Xi didn't want to breastfeed, it would be too strange, so he endured the pain for a day. Even though his swollen chest seemed to be filled with rocks, he didn't dare to massage it, lest it exude a fishy liquid and dye his base coat through. But when Chu Lan came back that evening, he noticed the abnormality on his chest and wanted to check immediately.
Xia Xi covered his chest and shook his head repeatedly, "It's nothing, no, no need to look..."
Chu Lan saw that he acted differently and firmly spread his hands apart, he whispered: "Let me see, is it uncomfortable there?" He was strong, Xia Xi couldn't compete with him at all. His clothes were forcibly taken off to reveal his rounded breast.
Xia Xi's breasts weren't as big as the nurse's. The nurse had plenty of milk and because of feeding both the little Prince and her child, she produced even more, her pair of breasts were heavy enough to hang down, Xia Xi's was only half her size at most. However, Xia Xi's breasts were firm and round, his complexion was fair and without any blemishes, and even his nipples were reddish and full of emotion. Chu Lan just looked at his chest and began breathing a little chaotically. When he noticed the white liquid hanging on the brilliant red nipples, blood all over his body surged uncontrollably to his head. He stretched out his hand and gently touched the nipple. He fiddled with it and asked in a low voice, "Xi'er, what's the matter?"
Xia Xi's face was as red as blood, he was so embarrassed he couldn't even look at his face, so he kept his head down and whispered: "I'm l-lactating..."
Chu Lan only felt that his throat was infinitely dry, he stared at the tender breasts without blinking and his voice became even lower. "Didn't the imperial doctor say before that you couldn't produce milk?"
Xia Xi replied embarrassedly: "Yeah, I- I also thought..." He was a little anxious, worried that Chu Lan would dislike it, he then quickly said: "But the nurse said that as long I don't stimulate it, the milk will naturally stop a few days later."
The nipples became harder after being exposed to cold air, and the curvature of the breasts was indeed larger than when he was pregnant. Chu Lan spread his hands and grasped them gently but Xia Xi still felt a little pain, a bit of a painful moan escaped his throat. Chu Lan didn't dare to move anymore, but after enduring for a long time, he still couldn't help but ask, "Xi'er, can I taste it?"
Xia Xi was stunned for a moment, as if he had heard something extremely strange, "Taste what?"
Chu Lan swallowed, "Of course, I want to taste your milk." He didn't wait for Xia Xi to answer, he couldn't help but lean forward, burning holes at the white liquid secreted from the nipples. He then inhaled vigorously, breathing in the sweet smell into his nasal cavity. The smell fully stimulated him, Chu Lan murmured: "It should be possible, right?"
Xia Xi flushed, trying to push him away but he didn't really know how to answer². The Xia Emperor don't drink human milk, and he had never heard of a husband who drinks his wife's milk, so he was a little embarrassed. But after seeing Chu Lan's strong desire he gradually suppressed the restlessness in his heart. He whispered: "Y-You can try..."