Chapter 217: Amber Gives Birth

Granny Sang settled into life at the staff housing compound.

She was a sociable person, and within just a few days, she’d made quite a few friends in the compound—some her age, some younger.

Gu Jianing returned to work at the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) department.

As soon as she was back, patients flocked to her for treatment.

In comparison, the other two doctors in the TCM department, Dr. Zhou and Dr. Lu, found their clinics much quieter.

But they didn’t feel jealous—after all, Gu Jianing’s skills spoke for themselves.

Especially now that Gu Jianing held the title of Professor, while they were still just attending physicians.

They understood why patients all wanted to see Gu Jianing.

If they were in the patients’ shoes, they’d want to be treated by the most skilled doctor, too.

They weren’t jealous.

They were just worried that Gu Jianing, with her big belly, might overexert herself.

Old Dr. Chen was worried too. When he came by and saw the long line of patients waiting for Gu Jianing, while the other doctors—and even other departments—were all calm and quiet, he felt this wasn’t right.

He quickly made some changes.

Unless it was an emergency or a particularly serious case, only then would Gu Jianing see the patient; otherwise, the other doctors would handle it.

The patients weren’t thrilled, but they also didn’t want Gu Jianing to tire herself out.

In the end, everyone cooperated with the new arrangement.

Gu Jianing’s workload was immediately lightened.

“Thank you, Master,” Gu Jianing found a moment to thank Dr. Chen.

“Silly girl, I’m your teacher. Of course I’ll look out for you.”

Ever since Gu Jianing returned to work, Granny Sang would often bring freshly made snacks to her office.

It was like afternoon tea.

“Thank you, Grandma. I’ve been getting hungry so easily lately.”

Maybe it was because of the two babies in her belly, but Gu Jianing was always hungry these days.

No matter how much she ate, she never felt full.

She’d been eating a lot more lately.

But aside from her belly, she hadn’t gained weight anywhere else—she was still slender.

She worried that eating so much might make the babies too big.

Fortunately, the system assured her that because of the pills she’d taken earlier, that wouldn’t be a problem.

She was told to eat as much as she wanted, to give the babies as much nutrition as possible.

Gu Jianing scanned her belly herself and found everything was still within a healthy range.

So she stopped worrying.

Lately, she’d been eating a lot, and Granny Sang would come by to “feed” her from time to time.

As she ate, Gu Jianing thought, “My sister-in-law back home must be due soon. Maybe we’ll get news any day now.”

But before any news came from her hometown, something happened at home.

Not to her, though.

It was Amber!

That night, while Gu Jianing was sleeping, she suddenly heard Amber’s voice outside.

She listened carefully, immediately woke up, and got out of bed.

“What’s wrong?” As soon as she sat up, Sheng Zexi woke up too.

“I think Amber’s about to give birth. I need to go check.”

“I’ll go with you.”

“Okay.”

Sheng Zexi got up first, threw on a jacket, and hurried to get clothes, a scarf, and shoes for Gu Jianing.

“It’s chilly in the middle of the night. Bundle up, don’t catch a cold,” he reminded her as he helped her dress.

“Mm, I know.”

Soon, they were both dressed and headed out toward where Amber was.

In the yard, Sheng Zexi had built a doghouse for Amber.

Worried Amber might get cold, Gu Jianing had lined it with plenty of soft cotton fabric.

“Sis…”

As soon as Gu Jianing came out, Amber, who’d been pacing anxiously in the yard, called out to her.

It’s normal for a dog to be restless and pace before giving birth.

But as soon as Gu Jianing appeared, Amber came over.

Gu Jianing, with her big belly, couldn’t bend down, but luckily Amber was a large dog. By leaning forward a bit, she could still reach to pet Amber.

She gently stroked Amber’s back.

“Amber, how are you feeling? Don’t worry, I’ll stay with you.”

“Sis, thank you. I’m okay for now.”

“Do you want something to eat?” Gu Jianing asked.

“I think I could eat a little.”

“Alright.”

Gu Jianing immediately asked Sheng Zexi to get some food.

Amber had been anxious, but with Gu Jianing’s soothing presence, she calmed down a lot.

It seemed that just sitting beside Gu Jianing made her feel safe.

Gu Jianing knew that some dogs become aggressive during labor, while others become clingy to their owners. Amber was clearly the latter.

Sheng Zexi knew a bit about this, so at first he was worried.

But seeing how attached Amber was to Gu Jianing, he felt reassured and went to prepare food for Amber.

After Amber ate what Sheng Zexi brought and peed a few more times, her abdominal muscles started contracting more frequently.

Gu Jianing knew Amber was about to give birth.

This time, Amber returned to her doghouse to prepare.

At that moment, Granny Sang, hearing the commotion, got up too.

But Sheng Zexi sent her back to bed.

After all, she was elderly, and it was best not to tire her out in the middle of the night.

Amber’s labor went quickly.

In just half an hour, she gave birth to four puppies.

Two were orange and white, one was pure white, and the last one was also white but with four orange paws—the youngest and the prettiest of the bunch.

“Amber, you did great. Get some rest now.” With her own big belly, Gu Jianing couldn’t help much, so she directed Sheng Zexi to help clean up Amber and the four puppies.

Amber, feeling clean and refreshed, was exhausted. After nursing her puppies, she quickly fell into a deep sleep.

Just then, the system’s voice sounded in Gu Jianing’s mind:

[Congratulations, Host, for successfully assisting Amber with her delivery. You’ve earned: 100 points and 10 Animal Strengthening and Intelligence Pills.]

Huh?

There’s a reward for this too!

By now, Gu Jianing had accumulated several thousand points. As she treated more people, her points increased every day.

She was used to the points rolling in.

But these pills…

Were they specifically for animals?

They could make animals healthier and smarter?

Gu Jianing thought for a moment. While Sheng Zexi went to get water, she took out five pills.

One for each dog—she popped one into each of their mouths.

“I hope these pills help you all grow up healthy, strong, and smart.”

According to Amber, her puppies would one day help protect Gu Jianing’s children.

Gu Jianing knew, given her current physique and high fertility, she’d definitely have more children in the future."