Northeast: My Absurd Woman

Liu Fengying put down the dummy in her arms and leaned over to touch Yang Wuni's belly.

"Wu Ni, the reaction you described should mean you're pregnant."

However, with your belly so big, will you be able to fit the baby as it grows bigger?

I've heard of a disease called "big belly disease," but I've never seen one. I didn't know it was this big.

Why don't you go to the health center to get checked out? Enduring this isn't a solution."

Liu Fengying pressed Yang Wuni's belly through her clothes and was shocked by its firmness.

"Fengying, the shaman in my family says it's not a big belly disease."

She said I ate something I shouldn't have and offended the spirits.

This is the punishment the old immortals gave me, making my stomach explode and causing me to die.

I'm terrified that if I'm pregnant, my belly might explode and the baby would just die!

Yang Wuni spoke with tears welling up in her eyes, raising them to stop the tears from falling.

"Wu Ni, then don't wait for your belly to explode, give birth to the baby first."

"Once the baby is born, no matter what happens to his stomach, it won't hurt him."

After hearing what Yang Wuni said, Liu Fengying was at a loss and could only advise her to give birth to the child first.

"Yes! As long as the baby isn't born and the belly doesn't burst, then everything will be fine."

Yang Wuni nodded repeatedly, completely trusting Liu Fengying's words, and the two of them played with the hapless little boy together.

This seemingly insignificant idea led Yang Wuni to develop feelings for Liu Fengying.

"Wu Ni, why aren't you going to eat?"

Zhang Changyao doesn't drink alcohol and eats quickly. He came over to find Yang Wuni to have dinner.

"Zhang Changyao, I can't stand the smell of cooking oil, I'm not eating."

"Let's bring Mendun to our house for the night. Zhai Qingming and Fengying are newly married today, and it's inconvenient for the child to stay."

Yang Wuni chuckled and picked up Mendun'er, who was quite friendly with her.

The little head rested on Yang Wuni's shoulder, nodding repeatedly.

"Changyao, you hold Mendun'er. Your wife is pregnant and her body is heavy, so it's inconvenient for her."

Liu Fengying said this deliberately in order to make Zhang Changyao pay attention to Yang Wuni.

"Okay!

Zhang Changyao paused for a moment, then returned to normal and went to hug Mendun'er.

With Yang Wuni following behind him, Mendun'er wasn't afraid of Zhang Changyao.

Two little arms wrapped around his neck, and one hand reached out to touch Yang Wuni.

The two men carried the chubby boy back, and Zhang Changyao poured half a basket of corn kernels on the kang (a heated brick bed) for him to play with.

They were stacked up one by one, until they were taller than the muffled figure, until they collapsed.

After it fell down, it buried the little penis of the dummy.

"Oh dear! My little penis is gone! Let me see where it went."

Zhang Changyao started rummaging through the corn kernels.

It made the idiot giggle and laugh, covering his little penis.

When Mendun got tired of playing, he lay down on Zhang Changyao's lap and fell asleep.

"Wu Ni, Qingming's wife said you're pregnant, is it true?"

Zhang Changyao put Mendun'er into his own bed, then grabbed Yang Wuni's hand and asked her.

"Zhang Changyao, I don't know if it is or not, Fengying said yes."

The problem in my stomach wasn't a baby.

My dad told me not to tell anyone, afraid that no one would want me.

I was afraid my stomach would explode and hurt the baby, but Fengying said that if I gave birth before it exploded, everything would be fine.

After the baby is born, just hold him and stay away from me, so that it doesn't blow up yourselves.

The shaman said I wouldn't live past seven days, but I don't know why, I'm still alive.

Maybe it'll be fine as long as I don't eat the wrong things, or maybe it's just not my period yet?

Yang Wuni explained to Zhang Changyao, afraid that he wouldn't understand what she meant.

Yang Wuni spoke calmly, but Zhang Changyao was heartbroken.

After months of being inseparable, the feelings we have for each other cannot be explained in just a few words.

He didn't know how to comfort Yang Wuni for a moment, so he simply held her in his arms.

He used his warm chest to soothe her heart, which had grown cold.

"Wu Ni, don't just listen to the shaman's empty words. I'll take you to the health center in a few days."

It might just be a minor ailment that can be cured with a few dollars' worth of medicine.

Zhang Changyao touched Yang Wuni's belly; the hard skin made his heart sink.

His thoughts were the same as Liu Fengying's; Yang Wuni's belly had reached its limit.

How can I let go of my child who's growing up so much?

"Zhang Changyao, don't try to reassure me."

I know what's wrong with my own stomach.

I'm afraid if I don't go to the clinic, they'll cut my stomach open and sew it up.

By then, I'll be completely helpless, with no one to turn to for help.

Yang Wuni pushed Zhang Changyao away, lay down on her side, and didn't cover herself with a blanket.

She was angry with Zhang Changyao because he wanted to take her to the health center.

She was also angry with herself, angry that she had gotten pregnant without realizing it.

It makes the already cramped stomach even more crammed, and you never know when it might burst.

Zhang Changyao sat for a while, then covered Yang Wuni with a blanket and lay down himself.

With his face turned toward the roof, he pondered how to persuade Yang Wuni to go to the health center with him.

After thinking it over, I decided to go to the health center to ask first.

Don't wait until the baby is too big to fit in her belly; otherwise, Yang Wuni's life might really be in danger.

Before dawn, Zhang Changyao got dressed and went to the town's health center.

The health center hadn't opened yet, and the courtyard was quiet with no one around.

He leaned against the corner of the wall near the main entrance, squinting as he waited.

He was afraid that if he fell asleep, he would miss the time to see the doctor.

He didn't know how much time had passed when the squeaking sound of the bicycle woke him up.

He stood up and looked at the person pushing the cart in.

The man was in his thirties. He glanced at Zhang Changyao, ignored him, and walked past.

Then, one after another, dozens of people passed right under Zhang Changyao's nose.

Neither of them had the surgeon Dr. Wang that Zhang Changyao was looking for.

Just when Zhang Changyao thought that Doctor Wang wouldn't come.

A person walking out of the health center stood next to Zhang Changyao and looked at him.

Zhang Changyao sensed someone behind him, so he took two steps back and turned around to look.

"Dr. Wang, I've been looking from the doorway, but I didn't see you come in." Zhang Changyao grinned foolishly.

"I'm on duty and I'm always in the room, so it's normal that you can't see me come in."

Young man, is there something you need? Is your leg injured?

Dr. Wang remembered Zhang Changyao and assumed that Zhang Changyao had come to see him about his leg.

"Dr. Wang, it's not my leg, it's my wife's belly."

Zhang Changyao recounted all the foods Yang Wuni had eaten from childhood to adulthood.

The shaman told Yang Wuni's father that Yang Wuni had offended the spirits and her stomach would explode.

As Yang Wuni's belly grew bigger and bigger, she told Doctor Wang in detail that she was pregnant.

He wondered if Dr. Wang would be like everyone else.

Some people believe that Yang Wuni offended some deity, causing her to have a large belly. They wonder if it might actually explode.

"Young man, I am a surgeon, and I dare not make any definitive conclusions about what you have said."

"I'll take you to our internal medicine department to see Dr. Qiu; she's more experienced in this area than I am."