The Side Character Wants to Lie Flat

Chapter 399: Chapter 401: It’s All My Fault

Li Ji found a clinic nearby and jumped off his horse with Hua Manman in his arms.

Due to the rebellion, all the shops in the city were closed, and this clinic was no exception.

Li Ji strode forward and kicked the clinic’s main door open.

The doctor and his assistants inside the clinic were all terrified.

They saw a tall man walk in carrying a woman. The man’s expression was grim, and he was wreathed in a murderous aura. A single glance was enough to tell he wasn’t someone to be trifled with.

When Li Ji said he was looking for a doctor, no one dared to delay. They quickly cleared a space and let him place Hua Manman on a low couch.

An old, white-bearded doctor sat by the couch. He first glanced at the blood-stained hem of Hua Manman’s skirt, then took her pulse.

Li Ji demanded impatiently.

"How is my wife?"

"Judging from her pulse, your wife is one month pregnant. However, the pregnancy has been threatened, and the fetus is unstable. There are already signs of a miscarriage."

The old doctor trailed off, shaking his head and sighing. "What a pity."

Li Ji was first stunned by the news of Manman’s pregnancy. Then, the news of a potential miscarriage horrified him so much that his head spun and his ears rang.

It took him a moment to regain his senses.

He grabbed the old doctor by the collar and snarled.

"I don’t care what you have to do. You *will* save my wife and my child!

If anything happens to them, I’ll take all of your lives!"

’This isn’t just my and Manman’s first child. It’s one of the only blood relatives I have left in this world.’

’I can’t let this child die before it’s even born.’

The old doctor was far too old to withstand such threats from Prince Zhao. He was so frightened his legs began to tremble and his face turned deathly pale, as if he might faint at any moment.

He stammered.

"If you had brought your wife in sooner, I might have been able to save the child.

But she’s already bleeding. There’s no way to save the child now.

There’s nothing I can do, even if you kill me!"

But Li Ji was in no state to listen.

’All he could think about was Manman and their child.’

’If they lost the baby, how heartbroken would Manman be?’

Li Ji’s eyes were bloodshot. He looked as fierce as a starving wolf, ready to pounce and kill at any moment.

"I don’t care about any of that! I just want the mother and child to be safe and sound!"

The old doctor cried out in silent misery.

’What terrible karma is this? Why did I have to run into a living demon king?!’

Hua Manman’s voice finally rescued the poor old doctor.

"Prince, stop pressuring him."

Hearing Hua Manman’s form of address, everyone in the clinic finally realized that this intimidating "Evil God" before them was actually a prince.

Which prince in the city was this fierce and cruel?

They knew who it was without even having to think.

Everyone scrambled to their knees.

"We greet Your Highness, Prince Zhao!"

Li Ji shoved the trembling old doctor aside and strode to the low couch.

In his haste, he tripped on a footstool by the couch and nearly fell. Fortunately, he caught himself on the edge of the couch just in time to avoid falling on Manman.

He paid no mind to how flustered he looked; his eyes were locked on Hua Manman.

"Just hang on. I’ll send for Feihua Zhenren immediately. His medical skills are superb; he’ll definitely be able to save our child."

Fighting through the pain, Hua Manman said softly, "Make them all leave."

Li Ji immediately turned and roared.

"GET OUT, ALL OF YOU!"

Terrified, they all flinched and practically scrambled out of the room.

In the blink of an eye, only Hua Manman and Li Ji remained in the clinic.

Li Ji clutched Manman’s hand.

Her hand was cold, but his was even colder. His fingertips trembled—he was clearly in a state of utter panic.

He hadn’t been this panicked even when he’d fallen into an enemy ambush and nearly been killed by an arrow.

His voice was shaking uncontrollably.

"I’m sorry. I failed to protect you and our child. I’m useless. This is all my fault."

Hua Manman had also been startled when she first learned she was pregnant.

’At first, I thought it was just an upset stomach, or that my period had started.’

’I never imagined I was actually pregnant.’

’But I’ve been taking birth control pills! How could I possibly be pregnant?’

’Don’t tell me the birth control pills Feihua Zhenren gave me were fakes?’

’If that’s the case, I swear I’m going to pin Feihua Zhenren to the ground and beat the crap out of him. I’ll show him what happens when you sell fake medicine!’

Beneath her shock and anger, she also felt a great deal of anxiety.

’This body is only sixteen years old. I’m not ready to be a mother.’

’Isn’t it too soon for me to be having a baby?’

Then she heard the old doctor say she was going to have a miscarriage.

She was completely stunned.

’Fuck, fuck, fuck! I’ve barely had time to get used to the idea of this baby, and now it’s just going to be gone?’

Even though she felt it was too soon to be pregnant, the thought of not wanting the child had never crossed her mind.

Now, learning she might lose the baby, her heart clenched painfully.

That was when the system’s voice piped up in her mind.

"Don’t you still have Fetal Protection Pills?"

Only then did Hua Manman remember that she had Fetal Protection Pills hidden in her sleeve.

’I thought it was a total rip-off when I got this from a lucky bag, but it looks like the system had some real foresight, preparing abortion prevention medicine for me in advance.’

With great effort, she raised her hand and took the Fetal Protection Pill out of her sleeve.

There were three pills in total.

Li Ji was still lost in his grief over losing their child. His eyes were red-rimmed, and if one looked closely, one could even see the glint of tears in the corners.

He was actually crying.

The thought of Manman, pregnant and alone, facing so much danger made his heart ache. He was nearly consumed by overwhelming guilt and self-blame.

"Manman, this is all my fault. If I had known you were pregnant, I never would have left your side."

"If you’re in pain, you can cry. Or you can hit me. Whatever you need."

With that, he took her hand and guided it toward his face.

"Don’t move," Hua Manman said quickly. "You’ll make me drop the medicine."

Li Ji looked up, his eyes red, and only then did he notice the three pills clutched in her hand.

He asked in a hoarse voice, "What is this medicine?"

"It’s abortion prevention medicine," said Hua Manman. "Go get me some water."

The moment Li Ji heard it could save the pregnancy, he rushed to pour a cup of warm water without a second thought.

He helped Manman sit up and fed her one of the pills.

Hua Manman swallowed the pill with the warm water.

’Please let this work.’

Li Ji held her tightly, his voice trembling as he whispered in her ear.

"Even if we can’t save this baby, don’t be too heartbroken. We’re still young. We can have other children..."

His words were meant to comfort Manman, but it seemed he was also trying to comfort himself.

By the end, he was choking up again, unable to continue.

Hua Manman had never seen Prince Zhao like this before. For a moment, she didn’t know how to react.

...

A quick note from the author.

I originally didn’t want our girl to get pregnant so early, but considering what’s needed for the plot later on, I had to put her through it. My apologies to my girl.

Fiction is fiction, and reality is reality. Please read with a clear head and remember not to confuse the two.

In the real world, getting married and pregnant at sixteen is wrong, no matter the circumstances!