At the start of sumr, the villagers of Satarara were busy working. Everyone was out in the rice fields to start planting rice, including the Laus family of three n, who remained enthusiastic despite the sweat pouring down their faces.
The sumr sun was scorching hot, but the Laus family, who were farm laborers and their two children, didn’t complain at all. Working as farm laborers was their primary source of inco, allowing them to make ends et.
"Dad, take a break. Drink so water so you don’t get dehydrated," said Leo, Laus’s eldest son, handing his father a water bottle.
Laus shook his head slowly, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "It’s okay, son. We have to finish this plot today. Tomorrow we have to move to the next rice field," he replied, his voice steady, though his breathing was a little labored.
Leo took a deep breath. He knew his father’s stubbornness when it ca to work. "Okay, Dad. But if you feel dizzy, take a break."
It was already late afternoon, but because there was still plenty of rice left to plant, the three of them didn’t stop working until all the fields were finished for the day.
From the edge of the rice field, Leksin, Leo’s friend and Laus’s eldest son, shouted loudly. "Leo! Leo! Listen to ! Tell your father to co ho quickly! Your mother is about to give birth at ho!" she shouted loudly, waving her arms frantically.
"What?! Now?!" Leo shouted back, his eyes wide.
"Yes! Call your father quickly! Grandma Lena ca to your house earlier!" Leksin replied breathlessly.
Upon hearing that his mother was about to give birth, Leo walked toward his father in the middle of the rice field with wide strides, almost running.
"Dad! Daddy Laus!" Leo called loudly, waving the rice seedlings he was holding. "Mom is about to give birth now! Grandma Lena is ho!"
Laus’s face turned pale instantly. "What?! Now?! But it’s still a week later than expected!"
"Dad, Mom’s about to give birth. You should go ho now. Let Lan and I handle the rest of your work," Leo said wisely, taking the rice seedlings from his father. "Don’t worry about this rice field; we can handle it."
Upon hearing that his wife was about to give birth, Laus handed the rice seedlings he was about to plant into Leo’s hands. "Thank you, son. You’re truly a reliable child," he said, his voice trembling.
With long strides, he hurried upstairs and ran ho, constantly praying for the safety of his wife and the unborn baby.
anwhile, inside a simple house with gedek walls (woven bamboo used for walls or fences), a 30-year-old woman was struggling to deliver her baby. Her face was flushed with pain, and sweat was pouring down her entire body.
"Hang in there, Lura. The baby will be out soon. Take a deep breath, then push with all your might!" said Grandma Lena, gently stroking Lura’s forehead.
Clinggg!
A bright golden light suddenly entered the belly of the woman, who was waiting for her baby, her face pale and covered in sweat. This stunned Grandma Lena, the midwife who had assisted in the delivery.
"God! What was that?!" Grandma Lena muttered, her eyes wide. "I hope whatever it was isn’t bad for Lura and the baby. Oh God, protect Your servant..."
When Isabella woke up, she found herself surrounded by a warm fluid, and sothing seed to be pushing her to move. A strange sensation tingled throughout her body, which now felt incredibly small and cramped.
"Phoenix System, where am I now?" she asked, confirming in a voice only she could hear in her mind. "Why do I feel so cramped and cramped?"
[DING!!!]
[Host is currently inside the womb of a 30-year-old woman nad Lura, who will soon give birth to Host. The birth process will begin soon.]
Isabella, hearing what Phoenix System had to say, was shocked. "What?! I’m becoming a baby?!" she scread in shock. "How is that possible?! This doesn’t make sense!"
[Yes. The Host was born as a baby into a poor farmworker family, the fourth child. This ti, the Host’s mission is to lift the Host family out of poverty and bring them to glory. This is the Host’s second chance at a better life.]
Isabella, hearing the Phoenix System’s voice growing softer and softer, beca anxious. "Phoenix System, why is your voice getting softer and softer?" she asked suspiciously. "Don’t leave !"
[Sorry, Host. The Phoenix System will soon be dormant as its ti has expired. You can reactivate the Phoenix System after you have perford 100 good deeds. This is a rule that must be followed.]
Hearing that the Phoenix System was about to disappear, Isabella, who didn’t know where she was, naturally felt extrely panicked. Her heart was beating fast.
"Phoenix System! How could you leave like this? What will happen to if you don’t accompany in this strange world?!" Isabella said anxiously in a pleading voice. "Please, don’t go yet!"
If she hadn’t been born a baby, performing one hundred good deeds so that her Phoenix System could awaken and help her would have been very easy. But now, as a baby who can’t even walk or talk, how can she do good deeds if she can’t even support herself?
The Phoenix System, sensing Isabella’s tension, offered her so comfort.
[Don’t worry, even though the Phoenix System is gone, Host won’t be alone. In this world, besides the special abilities Host possessed in the previous world, Host also has the ability to predict the future.] The Host also has a dinsional space that the Host can enter at any ti. There, the Host can train and also seek various information about the current era. While the Host is in the dinsional space, in the real world, the Host is as if asleep because only the Host’s soul can enter, not the Host’s physical body. Use all these abilities wisely.]
What the Phoenix System explained brought Isabella so peace of mind. At least she wasn’t completely alone in this new world.
After saying this, the Phoenix System completely disappeared, leaving Isabella in a tense silence.
Isabella, seeing a bright light before her, instinctively moved with the current, and soon after, she was born with her first, muffled cry.
Grandma Lena, the midwife who assisted Lura in her delivery, imdiately patted the plump bottom of the newborn baby girl when she couldn’t hear her crying. "Why aren’t you crying? Co on, baby..."
Plak!
"Oekkkk! Uwaaaahhh!"
The baby’s loud cry broke the silence of the room, causing Grandma Lena to breathe a sigh of relief. A bright smile spread across her wrinkled old face.
"Thank God... Thank God, the baby is healthy," said Grandma Lena, wiping away the tears that had welled up in her eyes.
After examining all the baby girl’s limbs—both hands, feet, and fingers—completely intact, the old woman imdiately wrapped the blood-stained red baby outside to be cleaned.
"You wicked old woman! How could you smack my little bottom so hard!" Isabella exclaid angrily, even though all that ca out was a baby’s normal cry.
Lura, hearing the sound of a little girl cursing in her head, imdiately swept the entire delivery room, looking for the child who had entered her room with a frightened expression.
"Who’s there? Is anyone there?" she asked weakly, turning her head left and right.
Finding no one, Lura imdiately lay down, feeling extrely weak. "Maybe I’m so exhausted from giving birth that I’m hallucinating," she muttered to herself, her breath still labored. "Because there can’t be ghosts this late in the afternoon. Oh God, protect us..."
No longer hearing the suspicious voice, Lura, who had just given birth and was a little exhausted, tried to close her eyes for a mont while waiting for Grandma Lena to clean her baby behind the house.
After bathing the newborn and burying the placenta, Grandma Lena rushed into the room and handed the beautiful newborn baby girl to Lura to nurse.
"This is your child, Lura. What a beautiful girl. Her skin is so white," Grandma Lena said in awe.
Although reluctant to breastfeed, Isabella, feeling she couldn’t refuse because her tiny body now needed the first milk to strengthen its immune system, imdiately suckled at the source of nourishnt greedily.
"Okay, I have to accept this," Isabella muttered to herself as she continued to nurse. "This is my new life now."
While Lura was breastfeeding her beautiful daughter, Grandma Lena, the old woman, cleaned Lura’s body and put all the dirty, blood-stained clothes into a plastic bucket she had brought from behind.
After the birthing bed and Lura’s body were clean, Grandma Lena helped the woman change her clothes after her tiny, well-fed baby had fallen asleep.
"Get so rest. Don’t forget to tell your husband to brew the herbal dicine later," said Grandma Lena, covering Lura with a clean cloth. "Drinking the herbal dicine is important for your recovery. I’ll go back to put these dirty clothes away and wait for your husband to arrive."
Laus, who had just arrived ho, panting, imdiately cleaned himself in the bathroom and changed before going in to see his wife and newborn child. His hands were shaking as he opened the door.
As soon as he left the bathroom, Laus ran into Grandma Lena, who was carrying Lura’s blood-stained clothes.
"Just put them beside the well, Grandma. I’ll wash them in a minute," Laus said, rushing into the house with a worried expression.
"Wait a minute, Le!" Grandma Lena called, stopping him in his tracks.
Shortly after, the 35-year-old man ca out and handed an envelope to the old woman in front of him, his hands still slightly trembling.
"Grandma Lena, thank you for helping with my wife’s delivery," Laus said sincerely, bowing. "I’m so grateful. Without Grandma Lena, I don’t know what I would have done."
Besides greeting Grandma Lena, Laus also brought the old woman so of his produce, packed in a bamboo basket.
"Here’s a little of our produce, Grandma. I hope you like it," he said, handing her the basket filled with fresh vegetables.
Grandma Lena accepted it with a warm smile. "Congratulations, Le. Your daughter is very plump and beautiful. Her skin is as white as porcelain," she said, her eyes sparkling. "Because she was born on a Sunday, Pon, she will have extraordinary intelligence and good fortune. God willing, your family’s fortune will flow abundantly from now on, because your baby girl will bring great luck throughout her life."
Laus frowned deeply, scratching his head. "Isn’t it still Saturday, Grandma? Why is her weton (birthday) Sunday?" he asked, confused.
"It’s already after Asr, Le. According to parents, babies born at this ti of the year have their weton (birthday) the next day," Grandma Lena explained patiently. "Trust , this is a good sign."
Laus could only nod his head. As a knowledgeable young man, he listened to all the advice his elders gave him and valued it, if it was helpful.
Even though Laus had four children after his daughter was born, Grandma Lena continued to give him advice on the dos and don’ts.
"Rember, Le. Don’t let Lura leave the house for 40 days. Don’t let her get exposed to the night air. And the herbal dicine must be taken every day without fail," Grandma Lena advised at length.
After giving her many words of advice, Grandma Lena hurried ho, while Laus hurried inside to check on his wife and beautiful baby, unaware that a pair of eyes had been watching them from behind the lush corn vines in the field next to the house.
Sensing important information, the middle-aged woman hurried away, smiling broadly as she imagined how much money she would soon earn.
***
As soon as he entered the room, Laus saw his wife lying on the bed, her face pale and weak. Her lips were dry and her eyes were half-closed.
Beside her, wrapped in a patched blanket, was a beautiful, tiny baby with pure white skin.
His beautiful little daughter was sound asleep with her eyes closed, a bright, slightly dazzling light emanating from her tiny body, startling Laus for a mont before his expression returned to normal after rembering what Grandma Lena had told him earlier.
"This is my daughter," Laus murmured joyfully, feeling tears welling in his eyes. "My fourth child. My little flower..."
Laus rubbed his hands together, his heart nearly lting at the sight. He walked slowly to the bed, not wanting to wake his beautiful wife and daughter.
His baby’s skin was so white and soft. The baby in the blanket was unlike most babies, whose skin was red and slightly wrinkled.
His tiny baby, besides having very white skin, was also very smooth. A complete contrast to his three rough sons. His cheeks were plump and his nose was sharp.
"Subhanallah, so beautiful," he whispered softly.
Laus would never admit that he had developed a bias toward his children without realizing it.
The thirty-five-year-old man stood beside the bed, gazing at his beautiful, plump daughter with a face full of joy.
Even at the corners of his eyes, clear tears welled up; if he blinked, they would imdiately flow freely.
Lura, awakened by the presence of soone, couldn’t help but smile at the sight of her husband’s foolish face as he gazed at their daughter in awe.
"What a man! He’s so easily swayed by a little beauty!" he muttered sarcastically, though his voice was weak.
Although his mouth was sarcastic, deep within him, there was joy radiating from his heart because they had been hoping for a daughter for a long ti.
Hearing his wife’s curt remark, Laus didn’t get angry; instead, he smiled broadly, showing his pearly white teeth at his wife.
"I’m so happy, Lura. Thank God, you and our baby are safe," he said, his voice trembling with emotion. "Finally, there’s a beautiful flower in this house. After three boys, we finally have a daughter."
Although his three children weren’t particularly naughty, having four boys and one girl in the house ant the house was never tidy.
His three sons always found a way to make the house a ss. Laus hoped that his daughter would be soone who would lighten his wife’s workload around the house.
At least a girl would be less disruptive than a boy, who was more energetic and difficult to control.
"What should we na her, Lura?" Laus asked, gently patting his wife’s head.
Lura smiled weakly. "We’ll think about it together later. The important thing right now is that I want to rest."
"Okay, get so rest. I’ll take care of you both," Laus said affectionately.
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