Once the vaccination record book was sorted out, the next step was to wait for the babies to return from their bath and go get their vaccinations.
Since idle hands are the devil's workshop, Lin Feng began seriously pondering what names to give the children.
Meanwhile, Zhang Hui pushed the babies off toward the bathing area, asking for directions along the way and taking a leisurely stroll.
Along the path, she intentionally took a wide detour, reaping plenty of envious glances from passersby. Even in the Maternal and Child Health Hospital, where babies were a dime a dozen, Ping'an and Ruyi were one of a kind as a boy-girl twin pair.
Upon reaching the bathing area, a family member even took the initiative to strike up a conversation: "Oh, twins?"
"Mhm," Zhang Hui added proudly, "a boy and a girl, too."
With that, she looked at the baby in the woman's arms and asked with a smile, "Is yours a boy or a girl?"
"A boy."
A faint sorrow clouded the woman's gaze: "My first was a boy. With this one, I was hoping for a daughter, but it turned out to be another little rascal!"
"I'm so envious of you having both a son and a daughter in one go."
Zhang Hui felt quite flattered inside, though she didn't show it on her face, and comforted the woman instead: "Two boys aren't bad either! Sons have their perks."
"Once they grow up, they're strong and good for heavy work."
The woman shook her head: "That's an old-fashioned mindset. Nowadays, daughters are the precious ones."
"That thoughtful little cotton padded jacket isn't just an empty saying; boys are so rough around the edges!"
"They won't tune into your thoughts, they won't care if you're lacking anything, and they don't know how to keep you company..."
Listening as she nodded, Zhang Hui chimed in: "That boy in my family is just like that. So exasperating."
With someone egging her on, the woman grew more and more spirited, though as she spoke, she sighed:
"Still, having a son does have one real advantage: they don't get easily taken advantage of in relationships."
Zhang Hui frowned. "How so?"
The woman looked left and right, then lowered her voice: "I'll tell you some gossip..."
"Yesterday, a female college student came in to give birth. The doctors asked her to have a family member sign the papers, but she said she had no parents and told them to call the baby's father. Guess what happened?"
"The baby's father was also a college student, and he flat-out refused to acknowledge the child, claiming he barely knew the woman."
"Tell me, what kind of person does that? Tsk tsk tsk... Isn't that hilarious?"
Zhang Hui: "..."
The hilarious part was that the person in question was her own son, and she simply couldn't laugh.
Unaware of Zhang Hui's changing expression, the woman went on lamenting: "College students nowadays are just running amok. Instead of studying properly, when they're still kids themselves, they go and pop out a baby. Public morals are really going downhill."
Zhang Hui gave a dry laugh: "A college senior is already an adult. What's wrong with having a baby?"
"Since they decided to have the child, it means they were already prepared to raise it."
"Without knowing the whole story, shouldn't we avoid making rash judgments?!"
The woman: "??????"
Pausing, she glanced at the boy-girl twins in the stroller, as if realizing something, and quickly forced out a couple of dry laughs to mask her awkwardness.
Fortunately, it was their turn for the bath, so she hurriedly rushed inside with her baby.
The children weren't given individual rooms for their bath; instead, there was a large, constant-temperature pool with several nurses standing along the edge like an assembly line—undressing in the front, washing in the middle, and dressing in the back.
The nurses were all seasoned veterans with extremely proficient techniques, taking no more than ten minutes from start to finish for each baby.
Yet, watching their rough handling, the parents felt their hearts leap into their throats.
Could you really toss and turn such delicate newborns about like that? "Nurse, gentle please."
Seeing Ping'an and Ruyi being hoisted up, Zhang Hui couldn't help but speak up.
"We've washed anywhere from a thousand to eight hundred babies through these hands, rest assured!"
The nurses' hands moved with absolute efficiency.
This broke Zhang Hui's heart with distress. No matter how experienced they were, you couldn't wash babies as if they were little piglets! But since the children were still in the other party's hands, she had no choice but to suppress her feelings.
Once the children were bathed, Zhang Hui pushed the little ones back to the hospital room with an indignant huff.
By now, Lu Qingxue had finished her breakfast and tidied herself up. Seeing Zhang Hui, a smile blossomed on her face: "Auntie, you're back so soon?"
"Mhm..."
Zhang Hui swallowed down the urge to vent. If she, a grandmother, couldn't bear to watch, it would certainly distress young parents even more.
"The bath is done. I'm going to buy groceries and cook. Qingxue, what would you like to eat?"
Not daring to be picky, Lu Qingxue softly replied: "Auntie, I have no dietary restrictions. Anything is fine."
Lin Feng thought for a moment and said to Zhang Hui, "Mom, Qingxue's complexion is stark white; she must be lacking *qi* and blood. Could you stew some soup to nourish them?"
Hearing this, a wave of deep emotion washed over Lu Qingxue. She hadn't expected Lin Feng to notice such a minor detail.
Zhang Hui felt a sense of comfort as well; the brat was finally showing some sense.
Nodding at Lin Feng, Zhang Hui looked at Lu Qingxue: "Qingxue, Auntie will definitely get your health back into top shape. You just rest, I'm heading out."
"Thank you, Auntie."
A warm current surged through Lu Qingxue's heart as she watched Zhang Hui leave.
Meanwhile, Lin Feng crouched down in front of the stroller, gazing earnestly at the babies.
Whether it was through the filter of paternal love or because the children had truly unfolded a bit, Lin Feng felt that the two little darlings looked much more relaxed than yesterday—especially Ruyi, whose face vaguely carried a hint of Lu Qingxue's features.
Utterly adorable...
Unable to help himself, Lin Feng extended a finger and gently poked his daughter's little cheek.
"Pfft pfft~"
Little Ruyi blew a couple of bubbles and cracked open her previously shut eyes just a tiny slit.
"Ah!"
Startled, Lin Feng exclaimed, "Qingxue, Ruyi opened her eyes!"
At these words, a brilliant smile instantly bloomed across Lu Qingxue's face. "Let me see?"
Lin Feng hastily scooped up his daughter and placed her in Lu Qingxue's arms.
"A tiny slit—you call that opening her eyes?"
Though her words feigned disdain, Lu Qingxue gazed at her daughter with eyes brimming with affection.
"Books say newborns usually take seven days to open their eyes. Our Ruyi is simply a prodigy!"
Lin Feng boasted triumphantly.
"Why do you believe everything in textbooks?"
Lu Qingxue smiled softly. "Mothers today are much better nourished than in the past. Plenty of single babies open their eyes just hours after birth."
Hearing this, Lin Feng turned his head to look at Ping'an, who was still sleeping quietly with his eyes closed, a pang of heartache welling up in his chest.
"You... had a hard time during the pregnancy."
For the two babies to be so tiny and frail meant Lu Qingxue certainly hadn't received adequate care and her nutrition hadn't kept up.
Lu Qingxue looked slightly bewildered for a moment before sudden understanding dawned on her:
"What nonsense are you imagining? If twins were the same size as singletons, how could they possibly... be born?"
By the end of her sentence, a blush had already crept across Lu Qingxue's cheeks.
Lin Feng looked somewhat unnatural as well.
"Ahem, let's not dwell on it. I'll take the babies for their shots."
Placing his daughter back into the stroller, Lin Feng pushed the babies out of the hospital room.
Ping'an slept like a little piglet, while Ruyi tried hard to widen her eyes.
Fearing the sunlight was too glaring, Lin Feng thoughtfully used a towel to shade little Ruyi.
"Mm-mm, mm-mm~"
Little Ruyi struggled to make small sounds, almost melting Lin Feng's heart.
There were very few people in the vaccination room, and it was soon Lin Feng's turn.
"Both babies need the exact same vaccine. Which one should we do first?"
The doctor picked up the syringe.
Oblivious to what was about to happen, little Ruyi waved her hands and legs about, going "Mm-mm~".
"Looks like it's you."
The doctor smiled at little Ruyi, gesturing to Lin Feng, who was watching the needle with a heart-wrenching expression: "Stop agonizing over it. Whichever one you pick, a single jab is guaranteed to make them cry."
Lin Feng: "..."
What kind of underworld-level dark humor was this??