Life of Being a Crown Prince in France

Chapter 1579: Chapter 1485: Having a Baby Is No Simple Matter

Joseph immediately wanted to lift his wife and spin her around a few times, but he suddenly remembered, quickly and carefully helping her to sit down on a nearby chair: "See, I was too excited, almost forgetting that the early stage of pregnancy is the most dangerous. Be careful, you must be careful."

Well, he’s experiencing becoming a father for the first time in two lifetimes, so it’s only natural that he seems a bit clumsy and overwhelmed.

Unexpectedly, after Alexandra sat down, she suddenly started sobbing.

Joseph hurriedly and nervously wrapped his arms around her shoulders, gently asking, "What’s wrong? Relax, I’m here, everything will be fine."

The Crown Princess wiped her tears and choked, "I, I recently ate two double-yolk eggs and last week had grilled eel, what am I going to do now..."

"Ah?" Joseph stroked her back, comforting her, "These are very nutritious foods, there’s no problem eating them."

Alexandra cried even harder, "It’s all my fault, I should have been careful in my daily diet..."

Joseph looked at Doctor Pinel on the side with a questioning gaze.

The latter hurriedly leaned over and said, "Your Highness, eating double-yolk eggs might cause... ahem, polydactyly. And eel could lead to deformities."

Joseph rubbed his forehead helplessly, "Who concocted these absurd theories?"

"Well, everyone says so, Your Highness."

Joseph very confidently assured his wife, "I promise you, these foods are quite healthy.

"Well, in fact, no matter what these foods look like on the plate, when they enter our stomach, they are basically broken down into similar proteins, fats, and vitamins.

"And there is the placental barrier between the mother and the fetus, which can block most germs and harmful substances.

"Rather, your tension could affect the child."

Alexandra was startled, hurriedly wiped away her tears, and tried to smile, "I’m not nervous, well, I’m very relaxed."

She paused for a moment, still troubled and said, "But, from Saint Petersburg to Paris, everyone says pregnant women shouldn’t eat those things."

Joseph shook his head, "They also said that horse manure and rat soup can cure smallpox. Yet, smallpox has been rampant for thousands of years until the cowpox vaccination was used."

Alexandra blinked her eyes, suddenly remembering that in every ten heavyweight papers published by the Royal Medical Society of France, at least three would be co-authored by her husband.

Therefore, if he is so certain, then there shouldn’t be any problem.

Well, if not for Joseph’s own request, only three of the ten papers might not have him as the first author.

Doctor Pinel, on the other hand, suddenly brightened up and took out a notebook to record. People in the medical circle all know that the Regent King often brings new theoretical breakthroughs to the academic world with just a few words. This might just be his chance.

Joseph then asked about Alexandra’s physical examination results, and upon learning that all her indicators were normal, he eagerly ordered the servants to return to the Palace of Versailles immediately.

Even the steam locomotive was instructed under his command to reduce its speed by a third.

Inside the carriage, Alexandra talked to Joseph about various pregnancy precautions she knew, which made him frown repeatedly.

Things like not eating rabbit meat because it would cause the child to have a cleft lip.

Not eating figs because it would lead to labor difficulties.

Not eating oysters would cause the child development issues.

Not eating pepper would result in the child having a bad temper.

Not even touching the bridle of a horse, as it would cause umbilical cord around the neck.

Must remain quiet on a full moon night to avoid the Night Wraith targeting the fetus...

Previously, Joseph held French obstetrics in high regard, after all, France started large-scale professional training of midwives as early as the mid-18th century. There might not be doctors in rural areas, but there would certainly be midwives.

Even the world’s first obstetric forceps were invented by a French doctor a decade ago.

But now it seems, most of the obstetric theories in France are very unscientific.

He immediately began worrying about his wife’s future childbirth.

He remembered that historically, Alexandra died from childbirth.

He must do everything possible to prevent this from happening!

At twilight, the Regent King’s convoy stopped at the Marble Courtyard.

Versailles remained tranquil as usual — according to French tradition, pregnancy is not publicly announced, usually only direct relatives and maybe a few close friends know.

Even the Crown Princess would only be noticed when the months were advanced.

Joseph first had dinner with Alexandra, then accompanied her for a half-hour walk in the garden, settled her down to rest, and went to the reception room himself.

Jean-Louis Bodlock, the French Royal midwife and also the chief obstetric physician of the Paris Main Hospital, had long been waiting there, and upon seeing the Regent King, hurriedly bowed in salute.

Joseph gestured to the sofa, "Please have a seat. I’d like to know about the development of birthing techniques."

Bodlock paused for a moment, not expecting that the Regent King would call him over at night to discuss this topic.

Being the finest obstetrician in France, he didn’t need any preparation and quickly introduced the current state of obstetrics in France systematically.

"... After the acceptance of the ’germ theory of disease,’ obstetric scholars have demonstrated the direct relationship between puerperal fever and bacterial infections.

"I and some doctors have tried using surgical standards during childbirth, such as ensuring midwives thoroughly wash their hands and sterilizing obstetric instruments with phenol, which significantly reduces the incidence of puerperal fever."

Joseph nodded, "Your attempts in this area are extremely correct. In future, attention must also be paid to the cleanliness of the mother’s own body and clothing, and even the room should be kept as clean as possible."

Bodlock carefully noted this and continued:

"Another important measure is the nationwide promotion of improved obstetric forceps. My improved forceps are more fitting to the baby’s head compared to those designed by Mr. Levray, and combined with my invented pelvic measurer, it can greatly increase the success rate of delivery and reduce harm to the child.

"Oh, there’s also fetal position correction technology, but only midwives in big cities have the conditions to train for this. You know, it requires incredibly expensive models for practice..."

The Royal midwife spent more than an hour discussing, and Joseph finally got a general understanding of the current level of obstetric technology in France.

At least there’s no need to worry about puerperal fever, obstetric tools and some theories exist.

Thinking about it, he asked, "If the mother has severe hemorrhage, what means do we have to address it?"

Bodlock spread his hands, "In such cases, there’s only praying to Jesus, Your Highness."

"And if there’s wound infection or severe tearing in the birth canal?"

"Ah, likewise, only praying..."

"What about labor difficulties?"

Bodlock finally raised his head, "You can proceed with a cesarean section, Your Highness."

Joseph was somewhat pleasantly surprised, "There’s already cesarean section technology now?"