"Doctor, what's wrong? Is she okay?" Pei Wenfeng was anxious. When he saw the doctor coming out, he walked quickly towards him, his worry evident in his words.
The old doctor, with gray hair and a kind face, waved his hand and replied with a smile, "Don't worry, sir. Your relative isn't suffering from heatstroke; she's pregnant. She's over two months pregnant." The doctor, accustomed to this, casually said, "Congratulations."
"What?"
"What did you say?"
Pei Wenfeng was stunned. His entire body shuddered as if struck by a bolt from the blue. He was stunned and dazed, asking incoherently, "How could she be pregnant? Doctor, have you diagnosed her clearly? She's actually—actually—over two months pregnant?"
The old doctor was stunned by the question and paused, not even a hint of anger. He looked at the young governor, who was clearly in pain and displeasure, with surprise and sympathy. He replied kindly, "I have been practicing medicine for most of my life. I wouldn't make a mistake in diagnosing a pulse as obvious as that of pregnancy."
"More than two months, more than two months pregnant..." Pei Wenfeng muttered to himself, his eyes wide open. Caught off guard, he stumbled a few steps, slumped down in his armchair, lost in thought, thinking:
Congratulations?
If the doctor said "Your Madam is pregnant", that would be happiness; but now it is "Mrs. Guo is pregnant", where does the happiness come from?
The trusted servants were terrified and, without prior agreement, quickly stood side by side, shielding the young master with their bodies. They pretended to be delighted and shouted, "Oh, it turns out that the cousin is not sick, but pregnant!"
"It's too hot today, and everyone almost got heatstroke. Ugh, our young master is dizzy from the sun, please prescribe a dose of medicine to relieve the heat."
The doctor, a seasoned man, naturally saw through some of the clues, but wisely kept silent. He feigned ignorance and tactfully replied, "Alright. I'll write the prescription right away. Later, when you go get the medication to maintain the pregnancy, you can also get the anti-heat medicine."
"Oh, okay." Cai Chun and Wu Liang forced a smile. The former took care of the devastated Pei Wenfeng, while the latter quickly asked the doctor to leave, fearing that he would attract criticism from outsiders.
At this time, Cuimei ran out from the inner room with a happy look on her face, but when she saw Pei Wenfeng, she subconsciously restrained her joy - as a servant, she, like Cai Chun and Wu Liang, was powerless to control the situation, and she felt embarrassed and sighed.
Cuimei knelt respectfully and said, "My cousin."
"I heard from the doctor," Pei Wenfeng sat there with a dull expression, like a wooden sculpture, his eyes dark, "Yushu is more than two months pregnant, is that true?"
Cuimei shrank back, lowering her head, not daring to look directly at the other person. She stammered, "The doctor checked my pulse repeatedly. He said I'm pregnant, so I must be pregnant."
"Oh?" Pei Wenfeng slowly turned his head and asked coldly, "It's only been over a year since the death of Marquis Jingyang and his son. Logically, we should observe three years of mourning, yet Sister Shu is pregnant?" His face suddenly changed, and he slammed the table in anger. Veins bulged on his forehead and neck, and hatred surged as he gritted his teeth and cursed:
"Guo Honglei violated filial piety and is a beast! A beast!"
"Sir, calm down, calm down." Cai Chun and Wu Liang were startled and hurriedly persuaded:
"Please keep your voice down. Magistrate Gong is a relative of the Guo family. If this kind of talk gets out, it won't be good."
Cuimei was startled and retreated in fear, trembling with trepidation. Since this was a matter of the family head's reputation, she had to muster up her courage and explain, "You misunderstood. A few months ago, the young lady and her son-in-law—" She stopped abruptly, thought for a moment, and then changed her words, "The young lady and the second son of the Guo family actually consummated their marriage early on the orders of Madam Guo, for the sake of an heir. The ceremony was formal, and it was definitely not a private act."
Son-in-law? Offspring? Wedding consummation?
It was like three sharp knives stabbing Pei Wenfeng's heart, making it bleed. His face turned ashen, and he suddenly sneered, his head held high, and he spat out words from between his teeth, "You call Guo 'son-in-law' so easily, why change it?"
Cuimei's face was pale, her eyes red. She knelt down in frustration and choked up, saying, "Two years ago, I could never have imagined that everything would turn out like this. After the incident, the young lady cried day and night, and wrote to you for help. We servants were responsible for mailing the letters, because the government didn't allow it. We had to go to great lengths each time to secretly send the letters."
"Who knew that none of the letters we sent would be answered, and we never saw a single person from the Pei family. We were grounded, waiting every day for news, waiting and waiting, until the bridal sedan from the Marquis of Jingyang's mansion arrived. What can we do? We can't fight, we can't escape, there's nothing we can do."
Cuimei wept and pleaded, "The young lady attempted suicide several times, but fortunately she survived. Now she is pregnant with Second Master Guo's child... My dear cousin, I beg you to stop disturbing her. It must be so painful for her to be facing each other."
Pei Wenfeng slumped to the ground, his fists clenched, and said nothing. He turned abruptly and rushed into the inner room, but after two steps he paused, staggered, turned again, and rushed out of the room without looking back.
"Young Master?"
"Young Master, please calm down!" The two servants immediately chased after him.
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The next moment, Zou Gui, who had gone to the kitchen to fetch water, returned. He was startled when he entered the room and asked nervously, "Sister Cui, what's wrong with you? Why are you kneeling?"
"nothing."
Cuimei came back to her senses, wiped her tears, stood up, took out her purse and handed it to her companion, took the hot water, and warned: "Xiao Zou, the doctor is writing a prescription, you should go find him quickly. Be careful when you go to the street to get medicine, I have to take care of the young lady."
"I understand!" Zou Gui stuffed the purse into his arms, hesitated for a moment, and asked cautiously, "Was it Master Pei who punished you to kneel? Just now, I saw him from afar, and he seemed furious."
Cuimei avoided the question and replied vaguely, "No, he didn't punish me. Don't just stand there, go get the medicine."
"Oh." Zou Gui scratched his head and left with his purse.
It was very stuffy inside on a hot summer afternoon.
Jiang Yushu was woken up and gradually regained consciousness. She felt sleepy and weak, then slowly sat up and called out, "Cui Mei?"
"Why!"
Cuimei hurried back to the inner room and asked with concern, "Finally woke up! How are you feeling? Are you feeling unwell?"
Jiang Yushu leaned against the soft pillow, her face pale. She couldn't wait to ask, "Was my cousin outside just now? I was half asleep and half awake, and I seemed to hear you arguing?"
"We didn't quarrel. We just talked about the past, and my cousin got a little excited."
Jiang Yushu frowned, her hands subconsciously cupping her abdomen, and she said softly, "I listened briefly and roughly guessed. I'm sorry to have wronged you."
"Why are you feeling wronged? Not at all." Cuimei sniffed, smiled, poured some water and brought it closer, saying cheerfully, "Congratulations, young lady! The doctor said you're over two months pregnant."
child!
Jiang Yushu couldn't believe it. She gently stroked her abdomen, feeling a mixture of surprise and joy. She asked anxiously, "Really? But I haven't felt anything yet. Could the doctor have made a mistake? I just vaguely heard an argument outside, saying 'I'm pregnant'. I was so dazed I thought I was dreaming."
"Of course it's true! The white-bearded doctor we invited is a famous doctor in the county. How could he even misdiagnose a pregnancy pulse? She must be pregnant." Cuimei firmly believed it and leaned closer and said, "Didn't your period come? I suspected it a while ago, and it turns out you are really pregnant."
Jiang Yushu was so excited that she looked down at her belly and whispered, "Ever since arriving in Xicang, I've been having irregular periods, probably because I'm not used to the climate there. Besides—"
"Besides what?"
Besides, the last time he visited his relatives, every night... Oh, I wonder if it would hurt the fetus?
Jiang Yushu was worried, her face flushed, and she was too embarrassed to speak, so she answered awkwardly: "Nothing."
"Oh, oh." Cuimei and Peng Changrong were engaged. Although they had not yet married, they had become aware of love affairs. She had some vague guesses but was too embarrassed to think about it.
"Xiao Zou has gone to get the medicine. You should lie down and rest first. Wait until the medicine is boiled before you get up and drink it."
Jiang Yushu nodded, and lay on her back obediently, stroking her belly with both hands. Sometimes she blushed and smiled, sometimes she frowned and worried, and sometimes she had a serious face... She was about to become a mother, and she was flustered. Her mind was full of the child, and she had no time to think about anything else.
That night, Pei Wenfeng was depressed and in pain. He drank to drown his sorrows and got drunk. The servant tried to persuade him in vain, so he forced him to stay in the inn.
"Why? Why on earth?"
"I don't understand. What did I do wrong?"
"Sister Shu, it's obviously mine." The frustrated man was drunk, tears streaming down his face, and he stammered with a slurred tongue:
"Yushu is mine! Guo, who the hell is Guo Honglei? That dandy, that bastard, that bastard, stole my wife."
"I will not be a human being if I don't avenge this!"
The two servants stayed by her side all the time, and no matter how they tried to coax, deceive, or even kneel down and kowtow, it was of any use. They were extremely frustrated.
As a result, the next morning, Pei Wenfeng was drunk and fell asleep, and missed the farewell party.
Zhuang Song was a colleague, and sooner or later he would be unable to hide the news, and occasionally he would need the other party's care, so the Guo family quietly revealed the good news.
When they came, they had two old carriages, one big and one small, but when they returned, they had one new and one old.
The morning breeze blew, Cuimei lifted the curtain and put the bundle inside. She saw that the new carriage was clean and spacious, and the chairs, backrests, and rear side walls were all covered with cushions. It was obviously arranged for Jiang Yushu on such a hot day.
"The county government has specially sent a carriage for you to use from now on, so that you can travel between Yuehu and Liangang towns." Zhuang Song said with a smile.
Jiang Yushu was naturally grateful, "Thank you, everyone."
"She is a twin now, so don't rush. It's better to go slowly than to ride roughshod." Gong Yipeng ordered sternly with his hands behind his back.
Zhuang Song said respectfully, "Don't worry, now that I know, I won't rush the journey. Even if it's urgent, I won't care about a few days or three."
"That's good."
Gong Yipeng tilted his head and gave a look, and his attendant understood and hurriedly presented two food boxes. His official robe was straight and straight, and he spoke in a friendly manner, saying, "There are a few pastries in the food boxes. If you don't mind, you can have some on the way. Don't go hungry."
Jiang Yushu hurriedly thanked him, "How could I dislike it? Thank you, cousin-in-law."
"I'm always busy with official duties in the provincial capital. I've only visited the old lady twice so far. I haven't been able to find time to visit you. I'm really sorry." Gong Yipeng sighed sincerely.
Jiang Yushu also sighed and smiled bitterly, "What? You've already taken enough trouble! Since our family separated, we've never visited relatives in Changping. We usually only communicate through letters, which is far inferior to you."
"I have no choice, so I can't blame you." Gong Yipeng promised solemnly: "When Honglei's child is born, remember to announce the good news. Then, no matter what, I will take Xiaodie to Yuehu Town for the wedding!"
"OK."
Jiang Yushu had a good impression of the kind-hearted man in front of her, and said apologetically: "Speaking of children, we are even more sorry that we were unable to attend our niece's full moon banquet."
Although Gong Yipeng regrets not having a son yet, he smiles happily when talking about his daughter. "My little girl can already roll over. When Honglei's baby is born, I'll see if I can bring her along to show you."
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“Let’s wait and see!”
Zhuang Song looked up at the sky. Gong Yipeng understood and said, "You guys need to hurry, so I won't keep you here in vain. We'll meet again next time. Let's get going."
Jiang Yushu bowed and said, "Well, goodbye then."
"Be careful on your journey and take care of yourself." Gong Yipeng walked a few steps forward.
"We'll talk some other time."
Zou Gui put the stool in place and said, "Please go slowly."
Jiang Yushu stepped onto the carriage using a stool, sat down next to Cuimei, opened the curtain, and said, "Goodbye."
Gong Yipeng waved his hand and tried his best to take care of the wife of his old friend.
Soon, a team of officials with swords escorted two carriages heading north back to Yuehu Town.
On the way, Cuimei curiously opened the food box and muttered, "Huh? Didn't you say it was cakes? What is this?" She picked up the wooden box, opened it and took a look. "Oh, it's ginseng!"
Jiang Yushu turned her head and saw three ginseng roots in the box, the ginseng fragrance wafting through her nose. She sighed with emotion, "My cousin-in-law is really, really—Alas, we owe him a favor again."
"That's all right. I'll repay you slowly in the future." Cuimei beamed, saying happily, "This must be for your health. Zou Gui rushed to the pharmacy yesterday and couldn't find any good ginseng. I was in need of it, and Lord Gong sent it over just in time."
Jiang Yushu leaned against the cushion, closed her eyes and rested. Her hands couldn't help but touch her belly from time to time, and whispered, "I heard that my cousin was drunk last night?"
"Yes." Cuimei closed the box and carefully put away the precious herbs. "According to Wu Liang, my cousin got very drunk and vomited until his face turned blue. He didn't come home all night and stayed at the inn."
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Jiang Yushu sighed, feeling helpless, and said solemnly: "I got drunk. I hope he has given up and will cheer up from now on and find a like-minded beauty as soon as possible."
"I hope so too." Cuimei sighed in distress.
After five full days, the group finally returned to Liu Village, exhausted.
Unexpectedly, as soon as they arrived at the village entrance, they saw several corpses lying on the road, blood all over the ground, and the deaths were miserable.
Liu Tong was horrified, looked out and asked, "What's going on?"
"No, I don't know."
“Someone’s dead!”
"I recognize them. They are the family that lives at the entrance of the village."
The officers reined in their horses, looking at each other in panic. Suddenly, they heard the faint neighing of horses from the village, mixed with the sharp sound of swords and weapons clashing.
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