This winter didn't feel too cold, maybe because the whole family was together. With their beloved granddaughter, daughter-in-law, and soon-to-be-born grandchild, Ren's parents were constantly overjoyed.
No wonder, since at their age, what mattered most was enjoying family life and cherishing the moments of happiness together.
As the New Year approached, the family began making dumplings.
Ren and his mother were in the kitchen, while Yueyue stood on a small stool, hands on the backrest, watching her dad and grandma make dumplings.
After watching for a while, Yueyue tugged on her grandma's clothes. "Grandma~~ I want to knead too~~"
She thought kneading the dough looked fun, and after watching for so long, she figured she could do it too!
"Can you do it?" Ren's mom gave her a skeptical look. "We can't waste food."
Though she adored her granddaughter, she couldn't stand seeing food wasted, especially since she knew the hardships of growing food.
"Hmph hmph~~" Yueyue puffed out her chest and made a pose. "I've just learned the secret technique of Tian Chao's white cooking: the White Snake Spin Refining~~"
"What white snake?" Ren's mom looked puzzled.
"Oh, it's a move from the manga I draw," Ren added, which finally made his mom understand.
She then felt a generational gap with her granddaughter and thought she should catch up on the manga to have more in common with her.
With this thought, she handed a big lump of dough to Yueyue. "Alright, go ahead and practice."
If she kneaded it poorly, they'd just let Ren eat it.
"(ω)y~~~" Yueyue happily struck a pose, washed her hands, and started kneading the dough just as she had seen earlier.
To be fair, she was doing a decent job of imitating, but being a child, her flour-sprinkling was messy, and she couldn't keep it up for long. Soon, her forehead was sweaty, and she wiped it with her flour-covered hands, turning herself into a little flour-covered kitten.
"Aiya~~ so tired, I'm done!" Yueyue, who had been enthusiastic for all of three minutes, realized that kneading dough wasn't as fun as she thought and that her kneaded dough wasn't as good as her dad's or grandma's.
"Hmph~" Ren's kneading was much more skilled than Yueyue's. He kneaded with more force while chatting, giving Yueyue a disdainful look. "Hmph, little girl, you think you can become a magical girl? Giving up just because you're tired... Well, you might as well drown in your dreams. You were just saying you wanted to be a magical girl, but I guess it was all talk."
(」゜ロ゜)」
"Who? Who said that? I'm just resting for a bit!" Yueyue, who loved magical girls, couldn't stand hearing her dad's teasing. Her face flushed as she stood back on the stool. "I've rested enough! Here I go again!"
She then launched into another round of energetic kneading.
And then—
"As expected of someone who wants to become a magical girl." Ren's praise made the initially uncertain Yueyue puff out her chest, but his next words deflated her again.
"You've combined the magical girl's Ora Ora punches with kneading techniques. Even if you were butchering lambs, they'd calm down from the rage and despair of their impending death after receiving this move. Even lifeless dough feels at peace in your hands. In the realm of dough kneading, I, Ren, consider you the best."
Although Ren's long speech confused Yueyue, she could still sense the heavy sarcasm. She pouted and continued kneading the dough.
But Ren felt something was off. The artistic part of him noticed that the dough was starting to look different. "Yueyue, why does this look like a face?"
"Really!" Yueyue innocently smiled. "It looks like a big villain! I, Magical Girl Yueyue, will defeat him!"
She grabbed the rolling pin, ready to pound the dough face.
But before she could, Ren's actions and words diverted her attention. "No, no, this villain should have a ponytail and wear a red down jacket. Here, add some vegetable powder to make it red…"
Yueyue was initially curious about the vegetable powder Ren took out, but then she noticed something odd. "Hey, wait a minute, it looks like me!"
"Ahh, bad dad, who are you making?!!!"
Yueyue yelled and pounced on Ren.
Watching the playful interaction between her husband and daughter, Jada smiled happily.
However, her smile didn't last long. Suddenly, her expression changed as she felt a sharp pain in her belly.
She slowly clutched her belly and sat down.
Ren's mom noticed and quickly ran to her side. "What's wrong?"
"It's time!" Jada gritted her teeth through the pain.
This time she was sure. This was much worse than the false contractions.
Her words threw the whole family into a frenzy.
...
After arriving at the hospital, the doctors immediately examined Jada. They confirmed that this was indeed not a false alarm—she was really going into labor!
However...
"Contractions are a normal sign of approaching labor. These will continue, occurring every twenty to thirty minutes," the doctor explained to Ren, who was visibly tense.
"Don't worry. Each one will last only a few seconds. If the intervals shorten to about eight to ten minutes apart, that means she's about to deliver, and we'll take her to the delivery room. For now, let her rest and conserve her energy…"
In summary, Jada was indeed going to give birth, but the exact timing was uncertain. It could happen anytime within the next 24 hours.
Given the situation, everyone could only wait, but they couldn't just sit idly by, so they started discussing post-birth matters, like the baby's name.
This was a significant topic for Ren's parents.
However, Jada didn't keep them waiting too long. While everyone was debating baby names, Jada was moved to the delivery room, and the moment of truth finally arrived.
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