Pregnant
"W-what? That's impossible..." I even had my period last month.
Yun Su heard this from outside, walked in, thought for a moment, and said happily, "Master, your period hasn't come yet this month."
Li Qingping stared in disbelief.
If that's the case, this pregnancy is only a month old at most. Prince Xuan came a few times last month, but not every time to do it.
Princess Yue asked, "Should we ask the court doctor to come and see us?"
"...Not right now. A routine pulse check is in a few days, so we'll talk about it then." Li Qingping thought for a moment and shook her head. Although she also wanted to know the result, today was a lucky day for Yuzan and Liu. If she was pregnant, it would definitely steal the spotlight from Liu and her daughter, and Li Qingping didn't want to antagonize Liu.
Princess Yue thought so too, and her smile deepened. She then warned, "Although we still don't know if you are pregnant, you should be careful during this period. Besides these girls, you also have a nanny by your side, right? You are both inexperienced, so let the nanny take care of you."
Li Qingping clenched his handkerchief and nodded.
When the banquet was over and they were about to leave, Princess Yue thought for a moment and walked to the end and called out to Princess Xuan: "Sister-in-law."
"What's wrong? Is your waist hurting? Or should we ask a few more maids to help you walk?"
When Princess Xuan saw that it was her pregnant wife, she immediately became nervous, thinking that she was unwell. Her face looked a little anxious, and she wanted Huixin to call the court doctor over.
Seeing her anxious look, Princess Yue couldn't help but burst out laughing and said, "I'm fine, I just want to have a few more private words with my sister-in-law."
After the sisters-in-law in front of her had gone far away, Princess Yue approached Princess Xuan and said softly with a smile, "Qingping ate a lot of my sour jujube cakes in the back today."
There was no need to say more. Princess Xuan was extremely surprised, her eyes lit up a little, and she still remembered to lower her voice: "Really?"
"It looked real to me. Later, she ate a few more sour plums, and the maidservant beside her also said she hadn't had her period yet." The Princess of Yue sighed, "But she didn't want to make a scene today, saying she'd wait until she could check her pulse. If it's true, it's not appropriate to make a big fuss after only a month."
The sign of good news was enough. Princess Xuan smiled and said, "Thank you, Fourth Brother's wife."
After seeing off Princess Yue, Princess Xuan suppressed her excitement and instructed Huixin, "Pay more attention to Madam Li's food these days."
Huixin hadn't leaned over to listen to the two princesses' conversation just now. She had moved away from them with the others to make it easier for the masters to talk, so she looked as if she was facing a formidable enemy. "Master, what happened to the Madam?"
"Yes, there is something going on. It might be a big happy event." Princess Xuan said with a smile.
Hui Xin understood in just a moment, and couldn't help but smile: "I understand."
Li Qingping could hide the happenings in the courtyard from others, but not from Yu Jin, the girl who often came to eat for free.
Boys in the backyard had to move to the front yard when they turned seven, and girls could live there until they got married, but after they turned ten they had to live in their own little courtyard. After all, a ten-year-old knew what they were supposed to know, and it would be embarrassing if they overheard what the adults were doing in bed.
Yu Jin had been living alone in a small courtyard since the beginning of this year. She only needed to go to the clan school occasionally to hand in her homework, and she also began to learn housekeeping from Princess Xuan, but she still often came to Li Qingping's place for meals.
Eating alone is not as delicious as eating with my aunt!
But recently, Yu Jin discovered something was wrong! Something was very wrong! Something was extremely wrong!
"Yunsu, tell me quietly, is the bitter summer this year that severe?"
One day, while Li Qingping was taking a nap, Yu Jin pulled Yun Su and whispered, "Auntie is already using sauerkraut to whet our appetite?" God knows how confused she looked when she saw a table full of sauerkraut stewed with tofu, sauerkraut minced meat, and sauerkraut spareribs today.
Yun Su said, "Don't worry, Miss. Recently, the master only likes to eat sour food and can't eat anything else."
Yu Jin subconsciously asked back: "Why do you suddenly like to eat sour food when you can't eat? And why don't you see a doctor if you can't eat? Auntie didn't..."
Suddenly, the girl got stuck.
He can't eat anything else but only likes sour food, but no one is in a hurry to find a doctor, which means everyone knows he's not sick. Now the whole courtyard is guarded like an iron barrel...
"Aunt, aunt, do you have a child...?" Yu Jin widened her eyes.
After receiving a positive answer, Yu Jin was happy for Li Qingping at first, but then she couldn't help feeling disappointed.
As she grew older and saw more clearly what the mansion looked like now, Yu Jin began to understand why she had been raised in Li Qingping's courtyard. Of the three Li sisters, Li Qingping was the one who followed behind them, and having an adopted daughter was a blessing. But even after learning the truth, Yu Jin didn't really care. The affection they had developed over the years couldn't be faked, and Li Qingping was very protective and loving of her. Yu Jin felt that they were no different from biological mother and daughter.
But soon, this aunt who loved him so much was going to have her own child.
Yu Jin couldn't help but fall into confusion and anxiety.
She has been abandoned once. Although this statement may not be correct, Yu Jin can't find any other explanation for the time being. Princess Xuan paid less attention to her after she had her own child. On the one hand, Princess Xuan knew that Li Qingping was taking care of her on a daily basis. Princess Xuan trusted Li Qingping very much and would not interfere too much. On the other hand, Yu Jin and Princess Xuan were not that close. Even though Yu Jin's jade disc had long been under the princess's name, it was understandable that Princess Xuan favored her own child.
But Yujin and Li Qingping are different. The relationship between them is much deeper. If Li Qingping loves his own child more...
Well, then she had no choice but to love the child too. After all, she was the eldest sister in the mansion. As long as she and her aunt didn't become estranged like she and Princess Xuan, it would be fine. Yu Jin thought so melancholy.
But Li Qingping still noticed that something was wrong with Yujin. How could he not understand the girl he had raised for several years?
After knowing the reason, Li Qingping burst into laughter.
But Li Qingping really couldn't guarantee the problem of partiality. On one side was his adopted daughter who he had been with for several years, and on the other side was his biological child. It could be said that both sides were equally important.
"Then I'm really biased. What are you going to do?"
Yu Jin said: "I am the eldest sister, it is my duty to give way to my younger brothers and sisters."
She was a very sensible child. But Li Qingping smiled and touched her head and said, "Yujin, your status as the eldest sister is not a constraint. You have been with us the longest, so sometimes you can be a little willful."
"Brothers and sisters can take away some of the elders' attention, but they cannot take away the love that belongs to you."
Yu Jin kept thinking about these words until she went back to her own yard and went to sleep at night, and she couldn't calm down for a long time.
A few days later, the palace came to take Li Qingping's pulse as a routine. When the palace doctor came to Li Qingping, he felt her and considered for a moment. After confirming, he congratulated Li Qingping, "Congratulations, Madam. Your pulse is very strong and flowing, like beads rolling on a plate. It is undoubtedly a pregnancy pulse. It has been over a month since you last had the baby."
It’s true!
Yun Suyun and Madam Hu, who were serving on both sides, could not hide their joy. Li Qingping was also very happy and asked, "Is my pregnancy going well?"
The court doctor said that Li Qingping's pregnancy was safe and she could just treat it normally.
Princess Xuan had been waiting for news from the very beginning. As soon as she got the confirmation, she immediately asked Huixin to deliver all the things that had been prepared long ago.
But the news she received made her smile fade away.
Concubine Yang is also suspected to be pregnant.
The court physician reported back that Concubine Yang was too weak and her pulse was weak. He was unsure and could only report to the mistress, the Princess of Xuan, and ask her to ask the gynecologist among the imperial physicians to come and take a look.
Princess Xuan thought of the two children that Concubine Yang had failed to keep. Even though she was unhappy, she still asked the imperial physician to take Concubine Yang's pulse.
The imperial physician who came was not Liu Rongxing, but another imperial physician, Sun, who was also an expert in gynecology.
Princess Xuan sent Huixin to check on her. When she returned, she whispered, "Imperial Physician Sun said Concubine Yang is almost three months pregnant. The maidservants beside her don't seem to be unaware of the situation. However, Concubine Yang's pregnancy doesn't look good, and she's even had some spotting. If she had called a doctor in a month or two to take care of the pregnancy, perhaps the baby would be stronger now, and her pulse wouldn't be so weak at three months."
Hearing this, Princess Xuan raised her eyebrows and said angrily, "Foolish woman! Is that hair on Yang's neck for nothing? How could you keep this a secret?! You failed to find Ping An's pulse twice before, what a loser!"
The servants in the room all shrank back and pretended they didn't exist.
After she calmed down, Princess Xuan sneered and said, "This is Yang's third child, and if she still can't keep it...so what's the point of getting pregnant?" One child died, one couldn't be born, and who knows what will happen to this one.
Li Qingping also got the news. At that time, Concubine Li came to congratulate her sister with He Xian in one hand and Yu Lang in the other, so she naturally heard it.
"It's almost three months? She's not pregnant yet and she's still hiding it? Is she crazy? No one in the backyard is too idle to harm her!" Concubine Li was dumbfounded. "Why did Concubine Xian choose such a fool to come in!"
To be honest, ever since the incident with the eldest son, Princess Xuan has been cleaning up the backyard. No matter how much they fight in the backyard, they can't possibly harm the children.
Li Qingping laughed on the side and didn't say anything, saying that Concubine Xian was not necessarily that smart.
Concubine Li counted on her fingers, amazed. "But this Yang...how come she gets pregnant so easily? The last one died in April, and this one's almost three months old. Doesn't that mean she got pregnant again not long after her confinement?" When it comes to pregnancy, no one in the backyard can compare to Concubine Yang. But it's no wonder people say Concubine Yang is unlucky. She's been pregnant so many times, the first two didn't last, and this one's still bleeding all the time.
Li Qingping sighed, "She's already weak. Her first child was born prematurely due to a fall, and she wasn't properly cared for. Then, with the second, she had severe morning sickness and couldn't eat. Add to that her frail body, and it's not uncommon for her to not be able to keep the baby. This one... I'm afraid it'll be difficult as well."
She got pregnant again not long after her confinement, and her body hasn't recovered yet. This is not a good thing. Concubine Yang has been hiding it until now...
"Let's not talk about her. The most important thing for sister now is to take good care of the baby. Don't worry about what's going on outside. The Empress and I will take care of everything." Concubine Li said excitedly.
He Xian on the side: "And me!"
Although Yulang, who was over one year old, didn't understand, he was unwilling to fall behind: "Ah! There's me too!"
Li Qingping smiled and touched the two children's heads.
When Prince Xuan finished his work and returned to the main courtyard to have dinner, Princess Xuan told him about the incident of taking Ping An's pulse today.
"Congratulations, Your Highness. Today, Concubine Yang and Madam Li were diagnosed with pregnancy." Even if she disliked the stupid-brained Yang, Princess Xuan still had to mention it.
Prince Xuan was delighted: "Great!" and planned to visit Concubine Yang tonight.
Princess Xuan knew exactly what he was thinking. This was one of the reasons she was upset when she heard the news. If anyone in the backyard got good news, Prince Xuan would go visit them that night, barring any unexpected events. Otherwise, Concubine Yang would have been Li Qingping's tonight. However, now that they were both diagnosed with pregnancy, given their status, Prince Xuan naturally wouldn't skip Concubine Yang to visit Li Qingping, and would have to go later. Wouldn't that mean Qingping would have to take a back seat?
Yang is really annoying.
But this time, Princess Xuan did not intend to let Prince Xuan go.
Seeing that Princess Xuan looked uneasy, Prince Xuan frowned and asked, "What's wrong? What happened?"
Princess Xuan immediately stood up and knelt beside him. Prince Xuan was startled and was about to help her up when he heard Princess Xuan say, "I have failed in my duty. Concubine Yang is three months pregnant, but..."
After explaining the situation clearly, Princess Xuan continued to apologize: "For the past three months, Concubine Yang has been claiming to be ill and bedridden. It was my negligence. I should have asked the imperial physician to see her sooner. Perhaps this pregnancy would have been safer... Please punish me, Your Highness."
After hearing this, Prince Xuan's face turned cold, and Huixin and others who were serving in the room broke out in cold sweat.
"Get up, I understand."
Princess Xuan stood up with the help of the big hand handed to her by Prince Xuan, glanced at the man's face, and felt uneasy.
It was not until Prince Xuan said he would stay in the main courtyard tonight that Princess Xuan breathed a sigh of relief.
Well, it's better to stay in the main courtyard than to go to Concubine Yang's place. Otherwise, Concubine Yang will find an opportunity to make trouble when she sees someone.
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