After fleeing the famine, my older sister and I married the brother next door.

"Big brother, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting for so long." Chen Xiaohe jogged over, his forehead still damp with the fine sweat from his earlier work. "When Father and Mother got there, another group of people came to look at the goods at the stall, so I helped sell a few bamboo baskets before I could leave." As he spoke, his gaze immediately fell on his wife, Su Xiaoqing. Seeing that she looked alright and was being supported by his sister-in-law, he felt relieved.

Chen Dashan nodded: "It's alright, the timing is perfect. I just had a small bowl of hot wontons with them at that stall over there, enough to tide them over." He looked at Su Xiaoyin, seeing that she looked alright, and said, "Let's go, let's go to the clinic first. There are a lot of people on the road, be careful."

Chen Xiaohe immediately understood and stepped forward to firmly support Su Xiaoqing's other arm. The two brothers, one on each side, protected their respective wives, carefully avoiding the throngs of people, and headed towards "Renjitang," the most reputable medical clinic in the county.

Upon arriving at the clinic, they found a queue already formed, with about three or four families ahead of them. The clinic's apprentice, noticing two heavily pregnant women, quickly led the four of them to a long bench against the wall to wait, protecting them from the crowds and sun. After waiting for about half an hour, it was finally their turn.

The doctor in charge was an elderly man with gray hair and a kind face. He first took Su Xiaoyin's pulse, placing his fingers on her wrist, closing his eyes and concentrating for a moment, before carefully inquiring about her recent diet, sleep, and fetal movements. Next was Su Xiaoqing. After the examination, the old doctor stroked his beard, a relieved smile on his face.

"Both ladies' pulses are steady and strong, and the babies in their wombs are doing well, so there's no need to worry," the old doctor said slowly, his voice gentle yet carrying a convincing strength. "However, twin pregnancies naturally place a heavier burden on the body than single pregnancies. From today onwards, you must not leave them unattended, and you must be extra careful in your movements. As for the postpartum period," he paused, looking at the two doctors who looked anxious, "I suggest that they complete the full postpartum period. Proper care and replenishment of qi and blood will prevent damage to their foundation and greatly benefit their future health."

Chen Dashan and Chen Xiaohe listened intently, nodding repeatedly, memorizing every word. Chen Dashan then asked, "Doctor, if... if there are any complications during labor, could you please come to our aid?"

The old doctor pondered for a moment and said, "If there is a real emergency, you can take slices of the best ginseng to keep your vital energy up, and then come to the clinic to find me as soon as possible. However," he looked at the men and women dressed as farmers in front of him, "if your residence is far from the county town, I'm afraid it will be too late for me to help. To be on the safe side, when your due date is approaching, you can make arrangements with the midwife or someone with some medical knowledge in the village, and ask them to come immediately once labor begins. If there are any complicated situations that they cannot handle, then send them to the city, or come and call me."

The arrangement was reasonable, and the Chen brothers noted it down, thanked him repeatedly, paid the consultation fee, and then carefully helped their wives out of the clinic.

It was nearly noon when they left the clinic. The market was less crowded than in the morning, but still bustling. No longer in a hurry, the four slowed their pace and walked back along the street. The warm autumn sun dispelled the subtle tension that had lingered in the clinic.

Passing by a pastry shop, the sweet aroma wafted out. Chen Dashan stopped and looked at the neatly arranged mung bean cakes and osmanthus cakes in the window, their colors enticing. Remembering that Su Xiaoyin seemed to have a fondness for sweet and soft things lately, he went into the shop and bought a small package of each.

Su Xiaoyin followed her in, watched her husband pay, and whispered, "Why did you buy all this? It's so expensive, we have plenty of food at home."

Before Chen Dashan could answer, Chen Xiaohe chimed in with a grin, "We're already here, it's a market day, we should buy something nice to sweeten our mouths! Sister-in-law, look, there's a stall selling sesame candy over there, it smells so good! Come on, Xiaoqing, let's buy some too!" With that, he helped Su Xiaoqing walk towards another stall.

Finally, in addition to the pastries, the two brothers also had a packet of fragrant sesame candy wrapped in oil paper.

When they returned to their stall, Mr. Chen was happily collecting his last few coins—the last two wooden horses had been sold. Mrs. Chen, who had been watching them intently, rushed to greet them, anxiously asking, "How did it go? What did the doctor say?"

Chen Dashan smiled the most relaxed smile he had shown in days. He placed the pastries and sweets in the empty basket at the stall before saying, "Mother, don't worry. The doctor said that both mother and child are fine, and their pulses are stable." He then carefully recounted the old doctor's instructions regarding the need for care, the need for double postpartum confinement, and contingency plans in case of any unforeseen circumstances.

Mr. and Mrs. Chen nodded repeatedly, their faces beaming with relief and joy. Mrs. Chen clasped her hands together and whispered, "Amitabha, may the Bodhisattva protect us." Then, remembering something, she took two strings of bright red candied hawthorns, coated with glistening sugar, from the basket on her back and handed them to her two daughters-in-law: "Here, an old man was selling them with bundles of straw on his back. Your father thought they looked interesting, so he bought them for you. Try them!"

Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing took the candied hawthorns; the cool, hard, and crunchy sugar shells glistened in the sunlight. Neither of them ate a bite themselves, but instead, they each offered one to their husbands. Chen Dashan and Chen Xiaohe couldn't refuse, so they each took a small bite from their wives' hands. The sourness of the hawthorn mixed with the sweet crunch of the sugar melted in their mouths. The two brothers frowned slightly, clearly not used to the sour taste, and quickly waved their hands, telling them to eat it themselves.

As they were chatting and laughing, Chen's mother returned carrying her large bamboo basket on her back, a satisfied look on her face. The basket looked quite heavy.

"Mom, what good things did you buy?" Chen Xiaohe asked curiously.

Mother Chen put down the basket, lifted a corner of the coarse cloth covering it, revealing a large piece of fresh-looking pork with alternating layers of fat and lean meat, several cleaned large bones, and a set of offal. "We were lucky to get there; the butcher's stall was about to close, so these were the leftovers, and the price was much cheaper. This meat is very fatty, and we can render a lot of oil. The bones will make soup, and the offal will be delicious—it's all substantial stuff." As she spoke, she took out a small package wrapped in lotus leaves. "We also ran into a tofu seller, so I cut two pieces of soft tofu. We'll stew it with the bone broth tonight to help you guys recover."

The family looked around the basket, their faces beaming with smiles. With a good harvest and some extra money, they could enjoy more meat at their meals; life was truly moving forward.

Everything was sold out, and a few other things had been bought. The sun was already beginning to set. Chen's father and Chen Dashan rolled up the wooden planks and burlap, while Chen Xiaohe dismantled and tied up the bamboo frame with the hair tie. The family packed up everything they had gained that day—the money from selling the goods, the items they had bought, the old doctor's advice, and the two strings of candied hawthorns that they had only eaten one or two pieces of and were carefully held up.

Father Chen and Chen Dashan pushed the cart, Chen Xiaohe helped Su Xiaoqing, and Mother Chen supported Su Xiaoyin as they embarked on their journey home.