At dawn, when the whole mansion was still half awake, hurried footsteps were heard on the winding corridors.

"Doctor Zuo, please hurry up." Zhou Jingyuan wiped the sweat from his head, turned around and urged Doctor Zuo, who was woken up early in the morning and still looked a little wolfish, to go inside.

It's no wonder that he was anxious. After all, a big thing happened this morning. If there was even the slightest mistake, he would not be able to make up for it even if he worked hard in the mansion for another ten years.

After crossing the hanging flower gate, Zhou Jingyuan breathed a sigh of relief as he saw the eaves of the main courtyard getting closer and closer. Maids and servants kept coming and bowing to him, which reminded him of the scene this morning: he had just gotten up and was about to arrange the day's affairs when An He, the maidservant in the lady's room, ran over and said, "The lady has had a poor appetite recently and has been vomiting frequently. She suspects that she may be pregnant. The Marquis happened to be away from home this morning, and the lady asked me to find Steward Zhou, saying that she wanted Steward Zhou to find a doctor to take a look."

Zhou Jingyuan was immediately excited when he heard this: Madam is pregnant! This is a great event that the entire mansion has been looking forward to for a long time. He immediately wanted to inform the old marquis and the princess. An He saw his thoughts and hurriedly said, "Don't worry, Chief Steward. Madam said it, and I am just guessing. I don't know if it is true, so I don't want to make it public for the time being, for fear that it will be a false alarm and disappoint the old marquis and the princess. Please help find a doctor to check it out first."

Zhou Jingyuan thought it made sense and was about to go out to find a doctor when An He said, "By the way, Madam also said that she wanted to ask the same doctor who treated the princess when she gave birth to the Marquis. She said that this is the only way to make an accurate diagnosis. I wonder if Chief Steward Zhou can help."

Zhou Jingyuan hesitated for a moment, then quickly agreed. After all, this was a very important matter, and since she had asked, it wouldn't be too difficult to move the left imperial physician here, so he quickly asked the mansion to prepare a car, rushed to the left imperial physician's house, and dragged him over without saying anything.

When he came to his senses, the two of them were already standing in the main courtyard. An He had been waiting there and immediately brought them to Yuan Xi. Doctor Zuo was also a little excited after hearing what Yuan Xi said, and hurriedly felt her pulse. Who knew that the longer he felt her pulse, the more serious his expression became. Zhou Jingyuan knew something was wrong when he saw his expression, but he still held on to a glimmer of hope and said, "Doctor Zuo, what is Madam..."

Doctor Zuo retracted his hand, shook his head slightly, and sighed, "Based on this pulse, Madam should not be pregnant. But Madam, don't worry, I will prescribe some medicine for you now, and you should be pregnant soon."

Yuan Xi drooped her lips in disappointment. Zhou Jingyuan, who had been busy all morning, couldn't help but look depressed. At this time, Yuan Xi turned to him and said, "Uncle Zhou, I'm sorry. It's all my fault for thinking too much. Who knew it would turn out to be a blunder and make you work in vain." Her eyes became red as she spoke. Zhou Jingyuan knew that his wife must be upset that she had to apologize to him. He waved his hand and said, "Madam, what are you talking about? These are my responsibilities." He paused and comforted her, "Madam, don't be too disappointed. No matter how early or late, we will have this child."

Yuan Xi forced a twitch of her lips, but still couldn't hide the dejection on her face. She raised her head and said, "Since it's just a false alarm, I won't bother you, Uncle Zhou anymore. You should go and do your thing first. Imperial Physician Zuo is here, and I want to ask him something alone." She emphasized the word "alone" very much. Zhou Jingyuan thought she wanted to ask about conception, and knowing that it was not convenient for him to be present, he quickly took his leave.

Yuan Xi asked An He to send Zhou Jingyuan out the door. She turned around and saw the Imperial Physician Zuo spreading out paper and ink, carefully writing a prescription for her. She walked over and said casually, "If I really get pregnant in the future, I will have to trouble Imperial Physician Zuo. By the way, I wonder what kind of medicine my mother-in-law took when she was pregnant."

The left imperial physician raised his head and smiled at her, writing without any confusion, saying as he wrote: "The princess is a blessed person. Although she is weak on weekdays, she is pregnant with a very stable pregnancy. Therefore, she only took a few common herbs such as Danshen, Fushen, and Angelica. Later, some soups were added to regulate and calm the stomach. In the later period, she stopped taking tonic medicine."

Yuan Xi carefully observed his expression and saw that his eyes were open, his words were clear, and even his handwriting was consistent. He did not show any panic. He could not help but wonder if his previous guess was wrong.

She then asked again: "Does the Imperial Physician Zuo remember when the princess gave birth to the Marquis?"

The left imperial physician finally finished writing the prescription, blew gently on the rice paper, and then raised his head and said, "I remember that the princess' pregnancy should be full-term in May, because there were no problems. When the princess was more than six months pregnant, the old marquis asked me to take care of the palace affairs. I don't need to worry about it all the time. If there is any problem, let me take care of it."

"That is to say, he did not see the princess give birth." Yuan Xi thought secretly in her heart. Here, the Imperial Physician Zuo had already begun to explain how to take those medicines and what to pay attention to in daily life. He was old and had the heart of a doctor, so he even told her how to have sex to improve her luck. Yuan Xi immediately lowered her head in embarrassment, but she also secretly took note of it. After all, she really hoped to get pregnant soon.

After the doctor Zuo finally finished explaining and left, Yuan Xi sat in the room in a daze. She thought about all the clues again, but still couldn't figure out the key. Was the princess really pregnant at that time? The doctor Zuo's expression just now didn't seem fake, which showed that he really took care of the princess's pregnancy. But her due date was clearly May, so why was Xiao Du born in April when the cherry blossoms were still in bloom? Yuan Xi was upset and confused, but in the end she just sighed and said to herself: I still have to find more evidence before I can make a conclusion.

In any case, this little disturbance passed quietly, and the next day was the Lantern Festival. The mansion was filled with various lanterns and decorated very festively. But unlike the lively atmosphere outside, Yuan Xi sat in Xiao Zhixuan's room, looking a little depressed.

Xiao Zhixuan had just finished making the necklace in her hand. She handed it to Yuan Xi with a smile and said, "Sister-in-law, today is your birthday. I am only good at these handicrafts, so I can only give you this necklace to wish you a happy birthday. You won't think it's too shabby, will you?"

Yuan Xi looked at the exquisite red necklace in her hand with some surprise, and said happily: "It's rare that Xuan'er still remembers it. This necklace is so beautiful. Of course I like it very much." Then she seemed to remember something, and her eyes dimmed again.

Xiao Zhixuan tilted her head and looked at her for a while. She understood why she was having a hard time smiling. She quickly held Yuan Xi's hand and said, "I don't know what my elder brother has been busy with recently. He didn't even stay at home today. But don't worry, he will definitely come back in the evening. How could he forget such an important day?"

Seeing that she was trying to defend herself, Yuan Xi said hurriedly, "He is not at home because he has something very important to do. Birthdays happen every year, so he doesn't care about this one." Although she said this, she did not look happy.

Xiao Zhixuan looked out the window at the sky and said, "How about this, we won't wait for him. You can accompany me to watch the lanterns. When he comes back and doesn't see you, he will be very anxious."

Yuan Xi hesitated for a moment, and before she could open her mouth, Xiao Zhixuan pulled her up, held her arm, and said coquettishly, "Sister-in-law, please accompany me to see it. I have been waiting for the Lantern Festival lanterns for a long time. Now that mother is gone, only you can accompany me to see it."

When Yuan Xi heard her mention Aunt Cai, she felt a little sorry for her, so she nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go with you."

The two of them then went to the street market together. Although it was night, the street was full of bright lights and the lanterns were as bright as day. The street was crowded with people watching the lanterns and vendors selling all kinds of toys. Xiao Zhixuan looked around with great interest, but Yuan Xi seemed a little uninterested and could not muster up any energy.

At this moment, Xiao Zhixuan grabbed her arm and said, "Sister-in-law, look at what that is. It's very interesting."

Yuan Xi looked up and saw a piece of paper in front of a stall. On the paper were many small fish made of iron sheets. The most surprising thing was that the small fish could swim on the paper with the help of the stall owner's hand, looking like real fish swimming in the water.

A large crowd had already gathered around the stall, all exclaiming in admiration at the magical sight before their eyes. The stall owner said proudly, "I am willing to bet five taels of silver that no one present can guess the secret. If anyone guesses it, I will give it to you with both hands. If no one guesses it, you can just leave some reward money."

When the audience heard this, they immediately became excited and rushed forward to guess, but no one could answer correctly. Yuan Xi smiled and shook her head, pulling Xiao Zhixuan to leave, but Xiao Zhixuan raised her arm and shouted: "My sister-in-law can guess it!"

Yuan Xi was immediately embarrassed. She could see through the trick, but she didn't want to expose it and cut off other people's livelihood. Who knew that Xiao Zhixuan would put her on the stage at this moment? She was so embarrassed that she didn't know whether to move forward or retreat. At this time, people around her started to make a noise, shouting: "What do you know, ignorant woman? Go back to breastfeed your child..." Even the stall owner showed contempt. Yuan Xi was so angry that she simply stood still and said: "If you want me to guess, it's because you, the stall owner, put a magnet under the table, and your other hand was hidden under the table to control the magnet, so these fish made of iron sheets can swim in the direction you control." She put on a harmless smile and said: "I don't know if I, an ignorant woman, am right."

The stall owner's trick was exposed, his face turned red and white, and he reluctantly took out five taels of silver. At this time, Yuan Xi waved his hand and said, "I just made a random guess. I don't want the silver. Today is the Lantern Festival. Go home early to celebrate the festival."

The stall owner seemed very grateful, and took out a small package from his back and handed it to Yuan Xi, saying, "This is something a young man asked me to give to you. He said that he would only give it to you if you could crack my trick."

Yuan Xi was a bit confused. She took the package blankly and opened it to find a small compass inside. She was even more dumbfounded. She didn't understand what it meant. She looked carefully and found a piece of paper next to the compass. It was written in Xiao Du's handwriting. There was a line of words on it: "Birthday gift. You can interpret it yourself. Is it interesting?"