Chapter 9 If the lady has done nothing wrong, what is there to be afraid of?
Bai Xiuming's interruption did not dampen Achan's anticipation for dinner. Although the pancakes she made were not very tasty and had a slightly burnt flavor, the smoked chicken was really delicious.
As night fell, Achan wrapped herself in her newly bought soft and thick quilt and fell asleep, still savoring the taste of smoked chicken before drifting off.
Meanwhile, in the main house of the Zhao family.
After the maidservant finished helping Madam Lin with her washing up, she respectfully withdrew. Zhao Ming, the master of the house, was sitting at the table reading a letter.
"What are you looking at, my husband?" Madam Lin asked, supporting her back as she approached Zhao Ming.
Zhao Ming casually placed the letter on the table, got up to help Xiao Lin, and said, "You're in your late pregnancy, be careful."
"I remember, but you keep bringing it up all day long." Although she complained, she couldn't hide the smile on her face.
In the entire capital, it would be difficult to find another man who could be more considerate than her husband.
Zhao Ming helped Xiao Lin sit down at the table. Xiao Lin glanced at the unfolded letter, which read "Zhao Lang," but she only recognized the first character, Zhao.
She was a concubine's daughter. Her aunt had been favored for a few years. When she was young, her aunt begged her father to send her to her elder sister's place so that she could start her education together.
The female teacher always praised her elder sister, saying that she hadn't put her mind to studying at all. After only two months of listening and recognizing a few characters, she begged her aunt to stop studying. She only recognized the character "Zhao" because it was her husband's surname.
"My husband hasn't said whose letter this is yet?" Kobayashi asked.
"A letter from your parents back home, asking how you are doing." Zhao Ming glanced at the letter and a gentle smile appeared on his face.
"Oh," Kobayashi replied indifferently, losing all interest in asking further questions.
She didn't have a good relationship with her parents-in-law. Her husband was gentle and considerate in every way. Although he wasn't particularly handsome, he was very talented and knew how to cherish her.
However, she still harbors resentment towards her mother-in-law for what she did back then.
She was kind-hearted and listened to her husband, so after giving birth, she brought her parents-in-law to the capital to live with her.
At first, things were fine, but after she gave birth to two children, her body was damaged, and after two years she still couldn't conceive. Her mother-in-law was secretly instigated by someone to arrange for her husband to take a concubine.
That's not all; they brought the person home without even informing her, the mistress of the house, at all.
How could Ms. Lin tolerate this? She immediately had a huge argument with her parents-in-law and kicked them out, along with the cousin of her so-called husband whom they had their eye on.
After Zhao Ming returned home, he had a fight with her, and Xiao Lin was so angry that she went straight back to her parents' home.
Just a few days later, her husband came to her house and took her back. He apologized to her, saying that he was so angry that he had argued with her without understanding the whole story.
I heard that he asked someone to send his parents back to their hometown, and the woman they had hired was also driven away, and that's how the matter ended.
Later, Kobayashi encountered that woman twice more in the capital. At that time, the woman was already pregnant. She recognized Kobayashi and came over to greet her, but Kobayashi ignored her and left directly.
From then on, Madam Lin became too lazy to care about her husband's parents' affairs. The gifts sent back to her hometown during festivals were handled by the housekeeper, and she rarely inquired about them.
Zhao Ming was already used to Xiao Lin's coldness towards his parents, so he didn't say anything, but carefully folded the letter and put it away.
Mrs. Lin then complained to him about their daughter: "I don't know what's so good about Xue Mingtang that he's bewitched that silly girl Wen Yue. Don't you, as her father, have anything to say about it?"
Zhao Ming came up behind Madam Lin and massaged her shoulders, saying gently, "Mingtang is a very ambitious person and is favored by his superiors. Given time, his future is limitless."
Madam Kobayashi, however, was not buying it at all. She sneered and said, "What time is 'giving time'? Does she expect my daughter to marry him and wait for him to get promoted more than ten years later? Besides, he's a widower. It sounds like bad luck."
Zhao Ming coughed lightly and said, "It won't take that long. Marquis Jinyang also values the Mingtang. If he can make a contribution in the Ministry of Justice, he won't have to worry about being promoted."
Madam Lin rolled her eyes at him: "That Xue Mingtang is the brother-in-law of the Marquis of Jinyang, and you're his brother-in-law too. Have you ever seen him help you out? Yet you still eagerly try to get close to him."
Zhao Ming was somewhat embarrassed by what she said, and could only awkwardly explain: "I know that Madam is doing this for Wen Yue's sake, but the marriages you showed her before, although the men's families were prominent, they themselves were not very capable. Some of them had not even passed the imperial examination, and most of them were playboys."
"Didn't my husband just tell me that it's good to take shelter under a big tree? The sons I chose are all favored sons at home. If they really want to pursue an official career, they don't necessarily have to take the imperial examination. They were dissolute before marriage, but they will restrain themselves after marriage."
The couple disagreed on their daughter's marriage, and neither could convince the other. It was almost midnight when Ms. Lin finally yawned and went to bed.
She was in a bad mood and wouldn't let Zhao Ming sleep in bed, so she sent him to the outer room.
Zhao Ming was already used to his wife's capriciousness, so he took his quilt and went to sleep on the couch in the outer room.
After the candles were blown out, Ms. Lin drifted off to sleep. In the middle of the night, she vaguely felt an uncomfortable throbbing in her stomach. She wondered if the baby was kicking her, but she was too tired to pay attention.
But in her hazy state, she seemed to hear the cry of a baby, a sound that was particularly piercing and startled her so much that she sat up abruptly.
When she opened her eyes, the room was quiet. Just as she was wondering if she was dreaming, the crying sound came again.
This time, she heard it more clearly. The sound seemed to be coming from outside the window. After listening for a while, she felt that the sound was shrill and piercing, and did not sound like a newborn baby at all.
Terrified, and remembering that her husband was in the outer room, she groped her way out of bed in her embroidered shoes, calling out as she walked towards the outer room, "Husband, husband?"
The outside was so quiet it was as if no one was there at all.
After she finally found the door, before she could even step out, she heard the window bang open, and the baby's cries grew clearer and clearer.
Ms. Lin felt her scalp tingle with fear, and her stomach started to hurt. She held her stomach with one hand and held onto the door frame with the other, slowly sliding down and collapsing to the ground.
Just then, candlelight appeared outside.
Zhao Ming, with his hair loose and wearing an undergarment, hurried over carrying a candlestick.
Seeing his wife sitting on the ground, he quickly called the maid who was on night watch outside to fetch a doctor, while he went forward to help Xiao Lin Shi up.
Seeing her husband help her to bed with a normal expression, as if he hadn't heard the baby crying at all, Xiao Lin couldn't help but grab his wrist tightly: "Husband, didn't you hear it?"
"What did you hear?" Zhao Ming asked, puzzled.
“The baby’s crying is right outside the window.” She pointed to the open window. “Right there, the window just opened by itself a moment ago.”
After helping her back to bed, Zhao Ming walked to the window and even peeked out, but saw nothing.
He closed the window and went back to Kobayashi's side, comforting her, "There's nothing outside. The window probably wasn't properly closed last night and was blown open by the wind."
"But I can still hear the baby crying. What's going on?" The baby's crying seemed to have subsided a lot after her husband appeared.
Looking at the bewildered and uneasy Madam Lin, Zhao Ming said, "We scholars say that if you have a clear conscience, you have nothing to fear, even in the middle of the night. If you have done nothing wrong, what is there to be afraid of?"
Kobayashi slapped his hand: "How do you know that ghost heard those words?"
The crying had stopped when she spoke to her husband. Looking at her husband's gentle face in the candlelight, she couldn't help but wonder if she had misheard.
That night, the lady was startled when she got up in the middle of the night, which caused her to have a miscarriage. The servants in the mansion were busy all night.
It wasn't until dawn, when Zhao Ming had to go to court, that Lady Lin finally fell asleep.
Achan was unaware of what had happened at the Zhao residence that night. Remembering her promise from the previous day, she went to the Zhao family with the sachet when it was almost time.
The gatekeeper didn't dare let her in without permission, but only announced her arrival.
Not long after, Mrs. Sun rushed over. Mrs. Sun, who was usually very neatly dressed, looked rather casual at this moment, and even her hair was not properly styled.
Upon seeing Achan, the worry on Madam Sun's face lessened somewhat: "It's really unfortunate that Miss Chan has had to make this trip today. Last night, Madam had a miscarriage and is still resting. She really can't see anyone."
"My aunt has had a miscarriage? What happened? Didn't the doctor say during the day that she just needed to rest?" Achan asked in confusion.
She didn't think this was an excuse for Kobayashi to refuse to see her. Given her aunt's personality, she wouldn't need to make up an excuse if she didn't want to see her.
Madam Sun sighed, "Who says otherwise? Last night, Madam said she heard a baby crying, but the master and the maid on night watch both said they didn't hear it. We don't know what's going on. The master has gone to his shift, and Madam is still fast asleep. This old servant doesn't know what to do."
After thinking for a moment, Achan said, "If you only hear the sound of a baby crying, it may not be a baby. I have read some strange tales and legends. The books say that some insects or spirits that have become sentient may make sounds similar to a baby crying. If Aunt wants to investigate, you may want to look in that direction."
Madam Sun's eyes lit up, and she nodded repeatedly: "Young lady, you are so knowledgeable. This old servant will have someone investigate."
Ah Chan then handed the sachet to Mama Sun: "The incense in this sachet was just mixed yesterday. It's for repelling mosquitoes. I didn't use any precious spices, so I'm giving it to you, Mama Sun. Please remember not to put the sachet next to your aunt, as smelling spices for a long time is not good for her health."
"Don't worry, young lady, I've remembered. Please go home and wait patiently. In a few days, when Madam is fully recovered, I will come to fetch you."
"Alright, please take good care of Auntie, Auntie."
Since she didn't see Ms. Kobayashi, Achan's purpose for coming today can be considered accomplished.
After saying goodbye to Mother Sun, she walked along the wall of the Zhao residence towards the back street.
Not far from the back gate of the Zhao residence, she unexpectedly saw her cousin from the Zhao family again. This cousin was holding a fish basket, which seemed to contain live fish, which were still moving.
However, the fish had a strong fishy smell; it could be smelled even from more than ten meters away.
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