Zu Mo looked at his daughter sleeping on the bed. Her round little face was as rosy and cute as an apple, and even her faint snoring was endearing. He knew that in this life, he could not let them down again.
Reborn, starting over, he would become a good father and a good husband.
In the middle of the night, Zu Mo was awakened by crying.
The crying was right next to him, coming from his daughter, Zu Zuo.
Zu Mo was extremely tired, but still gently patting her, trying to soothe her back to sleep.
But the little one was relentless, crying incessantly, her voice particularly loud.
Zu Mo couldn't sleep at all. He had to get up, pick up the little one, gently sway her, sing songs, tell stories, but nothing worked.
Zu Mo suddenly remembered the letter from the child's mother, reminding him that babies need to be fed at night, so he thought his daughter might be hungry.
But as a bachelor, there would be no baby formula in the rented apartment.
He thought about going out to buy some, but the child kept crying, so he could only rush out with the baby in his arms.
From the 6th floor to the 1st floor, the corridor lights were sequentially illuminated by Zu Zuo's crying.
It was late at night, and most mother and baby stores were closed. Zu Mo ran three blocks and found a 24-hour convenience store. There was only one kind of infant formula left, so he had no choice but to buy a bucket of it.
Returning to the rented apartment, he realized he didn't have a baby bottle.
Zu Mo could only mix the formula with a cup.
Mixing formula milk powder also requires many precautions, such as the water temperature should be around 45 degrees Celsius, too high or too low is not acceptable; different brands have different requirements for the ratio of water to milk powder; the milk powder should be fully dissolved without vigorous shaking or stirring, it should be gently swirled to avoid producing a large amount of bubbles that might cause bloating after the baby consumes it.
Zu Mo, while referring to the letter, also searched the internet, attempting three times before successfully preparing a cup of qualified milk. However, when he tried to feed the little one, she adamantly refused to take a sip.
Oh heavens, this made Zu Mo somewhat frantic. Unable to hold back, he tried a bit forcefully, causing the little one to cough violently and burst into tears.
Zu Mo thought, could it be that she doesn't like the taste?
Kids are indeed hard to handle.
Zu Mo could only hold her and pace around the room in confusion.
Now that he couldn't buy the brand of formula milk his daughter was accustomed to, what should he do?
Zu Mo remembered the letter mentioning that his daughter liked to eat noodles.
So he rummaged through the refrigerator, found the leftover half of a steamed bun, heated it up, and gave it to the little one to satisfy her hunger.
As expected, the little one enjoyed eating noodles. Upon seeing the bun, she grabbed it and stuffed it into her mouth. Unexpectedly, she bit off more than she could chew, choking on it. Her face turned red, her eyes widened, and she seemed unable to breathe.
Zu Mo immediately panicked.
What to do?
What to do?
He knew that choking was very dangerous. Even adults could die if not rescued in time.
He told himself to stay calm, then turned the little one over with her face down and used the heel of his palm to pat her back. Luckily, with his deep understanding and mastery of human anatomy and the application of force and breath, after about five pats, the little one let out a "wah" sound and spat out the unchewed steamed bun from her mouth.
The little one resumed normal breathing but continued to cry loudly.
Zu Mo breathed a sigh of relief, feeling weak all over. Even when surrounded by a thousand troops and horses in the star field, he had never been so nervous and scared.
Eventually, the little one cried herself to sleep.
Zu Mo collapsed onto the bed.
Just as he was about to fall asleep, he suddenly opened his eyes wide. Something was wrong with the little one's breathing!
He listened carefully, and her breathing was uneven, more rapid and louder than before.
Zu Mo reached out to touch the little one's forehead... it was burning hot!
Then he touched her cheeks and neck... they were equally hot!
The little one had a fever!
Probably due to the sudden chill and shock she experienced earlier.
Zu Mo called out, "Zu... Zu Zu, are you feeling unwell?"
The little one wasn't asleep; she just lacked energy, unable to even cry.
Earlier, when the little one cried, Zu Mo was somewhat annoyed. Now that she wasn't crying, Zu Mo was even more worried.
Being able to cry loudly indicated that there wasn't anything seriously wrong.
If she couldn't even cry, then that would be a big problem.
Zu Mo quickly picked up the little one and rushed to the hospital. This time, he was more careful, wrapping her in a blanket to prevent her from getting chilled again.
In the middle of the night, there were few cars, and he finally managed to flag down one, although it cost him a lot.
Anxious about his daughter, Zu Mo could only let the driver charge whatever he wanted.
When they arrived at the city children's hospital, Zu Mo was surprised to see so many people seeking medical attention, just as bustling as a daytime market.
Registering, waiting in line...
It took almost an hour before they finally saw the doctor.