Chapter 937: Chapter 915: Top Student in the 1980s (Part 43)
Is it really that easy to say? Are you really going to give it up?
Hou Jun canât bear it.
Xiangling clutched her belly with both hands, "No way, I want them all, I must give birth to them."
Zhang Heping looked at Anning, then at Xiao Yuan.
No matter how much trouble the kids cause, or whether what they say is right or wrong, their intention is good, which makes Zhang Heping reluctant to scold them.
"Okay, you two, how much can you learn if you start studying medicine now? Besides, we have a hospital here with plenty of doctors, thereâs no need for you to get involved, so calm down, apologize to your teachers tomorrow, and behave well in the future."
Anning stubbornly replied, "Why canât we learn much? We understood how to feel a pulse just from reading on the first day; why isnât that possible?"
Xiao Yuan said calmly, "Uncle, why donât you ask the teacher to give us leave? Anyway, the school knowledge is the same whether we attend or not. We want to learn some medicine now to feel more assured; if you donât let us go, weâll keep worrying, even if we attend school, we wonât be able to concentrate, wouldnât that just waste time?"
Zhang Heping had no idea what to say to that.
Xiao Yuan even promised him, "Our grades definitely wonât drop. If we donât get first place in the next exam, weâll obediently return to school to attend classes."
Secretary An tugged Zhang Hepingâs hand, "Tomorrow, ask for leave for the kids."
Zhang Heping hesitated for a moment, then saw Secretary An signaling to him.
He instantly understood.
These two kids are not ordinary; theyâre smarter than usual, and the family canât control them.
If you really try to control them strictly, theyâll agree nicely upfront, but who knows what theyâll come up with later, so itâs better to go along with them.
If they fall behind in their studies, they will definitely return to school obediently without needing the adults to tell them.
If their studies arenât affected, attending classes at the Medical College is fine too; theyâre not doing anything bad, and after some time, they might really learn something.
However, Secretary An was a bit confused, "If you go to the Medical College, will the teachers let you attend classes?"
"Why wouldnât they?" Anning blinked with a look of disbelief, "The teachers are nice, they didnât kick us out, and even asked us questions later, which we answered. We even met an old Chinese medicine practitioner at school, and when we asked him questions, he patiently answered us."
Zhang Heping waived his hand, "Okay, I canât control you two, Iâll speak to your teacher tomorrow."
The next day, Zhang Heping and Hou Jun went to the school to ask for leave for Anning and Xiao Yuan.
Meanwhile, Secretary An took Xiangling to the hospital for an examination.
Upon reaching the obstetrics department, Secretary An asked the doctor, "Doctor, comrade, is there a way to find out how many children are in my daughterâs belly?"
The doctor had never encountered such people.
Most come for examinations to confirm pregnancy or understand the motherâs health, not to ask how many babies there will be. Itâs as if theyâre treating childbirth like piglets, having multiple at once.
However, since the pregnant womanâs mother asked, she answered truthfully, "Then do an ultrasound examination."
The doctor wrote up the order, and Secretary An and Xiangling went to pay for the examination.
At this time, there were very few pregnant women having ultrasounds in the obstetrics department; generally speaking, most pregnant women only come for examinations if they feel uncomfortable or have bleeding.
The two went to the ultrasound room where there were few people, and Xiangling didnât have to wait long before she went in for the examination.
The results came out quickly.
Secretary An took the results to find the doctor.
The doctor looked it over, "Oh, this is quite rare; good thing you came for the examination, otherwise you would have missed a big issue."
Secretary An carefully asked, "How many babies are there?"
The doctor replied, "Quadruplets."
Secretary Anâs legs went weak immediately, her heart raced, and she broke into a cold sweat, "Doctor, my daughter isnât in good health, these quadruplets, my daughter..."
She trembled, struggling to speak.
Seeing the situation, the doctor had to tend to Secretary An first, helping her recover her senses after a good while.
"Carrying quadruplets will be exceptionally challenging and dangerous; you should discuss it carefully back home. If youâre truly afraid, you can consider terminating the pregnancy. If you decide to keep them, you must have frequent check-ups, and later may need to be hospitalized."
"Okay, okay."
Secretary An steadied herself at the table.
She was terrified, and Xiangling couldnât calm down either.
They dared not take the bus home; instead, they hired someone at the hospital entrance with a tricycle to take them home.
When they returned, Zhang Heping and Hou Jun were already waiting at home.
Seeing their states, it was obvious the examination results were unusual.
"How did it go?"
Zhang Heping hurriedly asked, "Did you find out?"
Secretary An sat down to catch her breath, "They found out, they say itâs quadruplets."
This time, Zhang Heping and Hou Jun were also shocked.
Hou Jun immediately said, "We wonât keep these babies."
He was truly scared.
Hou Jun was quite young then; heâd only seen a woman being dragged out for a public trial, which resulted in a miscarriage, the woman in unbearable pain and blood everywhere. He remembered the scene vividly even now.
He was genuinely afraid, with Xiangling carrying four babies, if anything happened, it would be life-threatening.
But Xiangling couldnât bear it.
She protected her belly with both hands, "These are four children, how could I bear to not want them, how could I have the heart to give them up, even if it costs my life, I must give birth to them properly."
"Donât say such ominous things." Zhang Heping angrily slapped the table, "No mentioning that again, you canât bear your kids, but can your mom and I bear losing ours?"
With just one sentence, tears streamed down Xianglingâs face.
"Dad, Iâm so tormented inside. After my two daughters died, I thought of not having kids anymore, but now I have them, how can I not want them? Dad, my kids are my life, losing them felt like heart-wrenching pain, if this time again... I really canât go on living."
Xiangling cried, and Hou Jun cried along with her.
Hou Jun comforted Xiangling, and the couple wept together, "Then weâll have them, weâll stay in the hospital, alright? There are doctors in the hospital, theyâll surely let us deliver safely."
Seeing their childrenâs plight, how could the parents not feel distressed?
They felt heartbroken.
Secretary An went to the side to wipe her tears; she couldnât bear to watch this.
Even Zhang Hepingâs eyes were red.
Xiao Yuan coughed, "Well, tomorrow you should ask the hospital if they can perform fetal reduction surgery."
"Whatâs fetal reduction surgery?"
With that, all four of them were stunned.
Xiao Yuan carefully explained, "For multiple pregnancies, if the motherâs body canât handle it, and some babies might not develop well, a fetal reduction surgery can be done, removing one or two, so the mother can safely deliver the well-developed babies."
The four had never heard of this; they glanced at each other and felt unsure.
Xiao Yuan thought to himself, maybe such surgery canât be done at this time.
Indeed, even years later, this type of surgery carried risks.
Too bad he was young in this lifetime and didnât study medicine; otherwise, he could perform the surgery himself, sparing them such worries.
Xiangling paused for a moment, then asked Xiao Yuan, "How do you know so much? I think you can do everything except give birth yourself."
Anning turned her back and laughed quietly, thinking her sister was wrong: he could give birth, and not just to one child.
But could she say that? No way, Uncle Xiao was also mindful of appearances.