Hattori Masao was dead.
The news gripped the whole globe in shock. All sorts of wild guesses and conspiracy theories began to appear on mainstream media. Some commentators had even boldly hinted at the possibility of World War III. The commentator had even tried to explain the similarities of Masao’s inexplicable death to the assassination of the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife that led to the outbreak of World War I.
History seemed to have repeated itself. The world blamed China for the death of the Japanese Land Defense Force’s general, Hattori Masao. Public opinion and analysis had directed their attention to China. It was no secret that the two countries bore unresolvable historical conflicts. A little military friction at a time like this could very likely cause the outbreak of a third world war!
Despite that, no matter how hard the media tried to sell the news, no matter how exaggerated the opinions of the military commentators were, America, Japan and China had kept their composure. They could not risk war at a critical time like this one.
Humans had come a long way since the dawn of their existence. War was no longer a good solution to conflicts. Economic attacks were more common among countries in modern society. In the past, America was able to use their fleets and advanced battle aircraft to gain leverage over China and force them to heed their demand. But things were much different now. With the Jing Ke and Phantom drones offered by the Thunder Horse Organization to China, these drones posed a high risk of it bombing America with no warning whatsoever. The Phantom drone was even able to obliterate America's best F35 fighter jet. All circumstances considered, what else could America use against China?
America’s tried and tested strategies were no longer working for them!
The Thunder Horse Organization had instilled huge fear in America, not to mention Japan as well. Japan’s current woe would be the possibility of the Phantom drone flying into their territory undetected and taking aerial photographs above Tokyo. It would be a blatant statement of how China could bring about destruction any time it pleased. What else could they do to such an opponent?
Hattori Masao’s assassination felt like the beginning of a storm but no war was about to take place. What would happen at most would probably be an intense battle of words between American and Chinese media.
In the midst of chaos, Xia Lei welcomed the most important day of his life.
“Ah…” In the middle of her walk around the garden, Fan Fan suddenly pawed at her swollen stomach and slumped to the ground. Cold sweat began to bead along the span of her forehead, her features scrunched up in pain.
“What’s the matter?” Xia Lei frantically rushed over to tend to her. “Are you feeling unwell?”
“I think I’m about to give birth soon. The baby is kicking me, it’s so painful.” Fan Fan widened her mouth to swallow more air.
Xia Lei quickly picked her up. “Calm down. I’m bringing you to the hospital right away!”
“I’ll drive!” exclaimed Long Bing as she waddled over to the garage like a penguin. She really intended to run but her big belly was a hindrance.
“No, you shouldn’t drive. Let me do it instead.” With Fan Fan in his arms, it did not take him more than a few strides to surpass Long Bing.
“I… I’ll go phone the hospital to have them on standby!” Liang Siyao was panicking now, quickly reaching for her phone.
Panic erupted and a few minutes later, a XIV Knight under the escort of several military off-road vehicles was rushing off to Jingdu city. Qin Xiang was the one behind the wheel instead of Xia Lei.
“Crap… Crap… The child seems to be arriving soon. This hurts like hell! Why does it hurt so much to give birth to a child?! I don’t wanna do this anymore…” Fan Fan continued to whine in agony.
To be fairly honest, the pain she felt was far from unbearable. It was only because of her hypersensitive physique that magnified the pain to this extent.
Xia Lei was clear about her situation. He wrapped his arm firmly around her in an attempt to provide her with some form of comfort. “Hang in there, Darling. We’re reaching the hospital very soon. The doctors are prepared and they’ll take good care of you.”
The other three pregnant ladies comforted her too.
“Don’t fret, your water hasn’t broken yet. You won’t be giving birth in the car,” said Jiang Ruyi softly.
“You’re only in this state because of your pain tolerance. Hang in there, it’d be over soon,” encouraged Long Bing.
“Yeah, grit your teeth and endure it. There’s no need to be afraid.” Liang Siyao chimed in.
Despite that, Fan Fan was close to tears. “Easy to say. You’re not the ones in pain. When it’s your turn, you’ll understand how much pain I’m in now… Ah…”
There was not a moment of silence in the car.
“Sister Fan, you have no idea how envious I am.” Qin Xiang, who was driving the Knight XIV, spoke up. “Giving birth to a child is one of the happiest things in a woman’s life. You should treat this agony as the many forms of joy in life. Think about happier times and you’ll feel better.”
“Feel better my fucking ass…” hissed Fan Fan. “How about you try giving birth for a change?!”
Qin Xiang stuck his tongue out and focused on the road.
At this very moment, Liang Siyao too palmed her stomach. “Shit! I think I’m about to give birth too! Ow…”
Xia Lei was about to piss himself. “How could there be such a coincidence? You’re about to give birth too?!”
“Ah... God… It hurts, I think the baby’s moving.” In that split second, Liang Siyao turned pale and started to sweat. Her expression looked excruciatingly painful.
If it wasn’t for the cold beads of sweat dotting her forehead and her pained expression, Xia Lei would think she was joking. But it really did seem like she was about to give birth soon.
Xia Lei quickly reached over to comfort her. His heart was screaming in utter confusion, “What the fuck is going on?! Fan Fan was the first to get pregnant so it’s no doubt she would be due first. But Liang Siyao only got pregnant after some time. Why would she be giving birth on the same day as Fan Fan?!”
His four wives had gotten pregnant at different times. Despite that, he had to admit that the timing was rather close to one another. The longest gap would be one month at most. It was natural for human gestation to last for ten months, which was the case for the length of Fan Fan’s pregnancy. Liang Siyao was only nine months pregnant but it was not uncommon for this to happen early. Xia Lei decided to not overthink this, seemingly arriving at a conclusion that this was merely a coincidence. After all, to welcome two children in a day was a joyous occasion!
“Siyao, please hang in there. I’ll give your father a call as soon as we reach the hospital and have him come over right away,” said Xia Lei.
“I don’t want him, I want you,” Liang Siyao pouted.
Xia Lei relented, “Alright, alright. I’ll be in the labour room with you. I promise I won’t leave, okay?”
Qin Xiang giggled. “Damn, Lei Zi! Congratulations! Two of your wives are giving birth, you’ve got two bundles of happiness arriving soon! Remember to make me their godmother, okay?”
“Ah!” Jiang Ruyi screamed out of the blue. “My stomach hurts! The baby is kicking me! Does that mean it’s coming out soon? Ow ow ow…”
Xia Lei froze. If Fan Fan and Liang Siyao going into labour at the same time was a coincidence, having Jiang Ruyi added to the mix wavered the deduction. This level of coincidence was too bizarre!
No matter what, Xia Lei had to fulfil his duty as their husband. He quickly climbed over and caressed Jiang Ruyi gently. “Hey, relax. There’s no need to be scared, we’re reaching the hospital really soon.”
“I’m not scared but I’m… in… pain…” Jiang Ruyi grabbed Xia Lei’s elbow and squeezed hard. Her fingernails were digging into his flesh painfully. This response was no joke, she really was about to give birth too!
“Haha!” Qin Xiang couldn’t help but laugh at Xia Lei’s predicament. “Did the three of you plan to go into labour on the same day?!”
“Shut the fuck up, you fuckin... Ouch! Crap…” Liang Siyao wished to curse at him but the waves of pain were cutting her off.
“Haha… Ow!” Qin Xiang’s boisterous laugh was immediately halted by a punch to his head, courtesy of Long Bing.
Right after delivering her punch, Long Bing suddenly went tense. Her hands flew down to her stomach and her expressions shifted into something weird. She looked very constipated.
Xia Lei stared at her. “Ah Bing, seriously?”
Without warning, she seized his other arm with gritted teeth. No longer able to maintain her composure, she wheezed, “Ow… I… I…! I think I’m about to give birth too!”
Even the pain of giving birth had proved to be too much for even a tough woman like Long Bing.
Everything had happened so abruptly. Xia Lei was driven to a panicked state, unsure of what to do with the chaos in front of him. It felt like a coincidence when Fan Fan and Liang Siyao had screamed out in pain. When Jiang Ruyi too broke out in cold sweat, he was beginning to find things odd. Now with Long Bing feeling painful contractions too, Xia Lei was convinced that this was no longer a coincidence.
However, if that wasn’t the case, how else could this be explained?!
With a twitch of his left and right eye, Xia Lei went into his superbrain mode. He used the X-ray vision on Fan Fan first. In her womb, a little girl wiggled around with unease. Her little palms and feet were grabbing and kicking the edges of her amniotic sac. No wonder Fan Fan was having such a difficult time.
Just as Xia Lei was about to peel his gaze away, his daughter had changed her position. Her original ‘standing’ position that had her legs directed to the birth canal opening was fixed with a few wiggles so that her head was pointing downwards instead.
“What…” Xia Lei gaped in shock.
The little princess inside Fan Fan’s belly flashed him a faint smile.
Xia Lei was spooked. He thought he was seeing things but another look had confirmed that his unborn daughter was indeed smiling. It felt almost as if the little girl was congratulating herself after her successful change of position that would benefit her birth.
How on earth was a baby in her mother’s womb able to have feelings?!
Following that, Xia Lei peered into Liang Siyao’s stomach.
Inside of her was a little boy, whose position was just right for birth. Despite that, the little fella was crazy energetic. His son’s patience seemed to be running thin, filled with the burning desire to see the world as soon as possible.
Xia Lei quickly took a look into Jiang Ruyi and Long Bing’s stomach. The state of their babies was about the same. Both of them wiggling against the opening, eager to enter this big world.
Xia Lei’s heart was suddenly supplied with an unorthodox thought. “Could it be… Could my four children share some sort of mental connection and decided to share birthdays?”
The thought of it alone was enough to send him into cardiac arrest.