Chapter 179 Sending Meows
Lou Yue: "Ah? Oh, I made brown sugar steamed cake this morning and asked Guard Nie if she wanted some, and she ate it."
Everyone knows how delicious freshly steamed brown sugar cake is; no one can resist it.
Yao Qingling: "..."
Lin Qiao, Nie Yun... um... they're the same, specializing in eating and martial arts.
I thought I could finally settle down and get some work done after entering Hui Ba Fang, but then someone else came to visit.
The visitor was a merchant, accompanied by a handsome young man.
"Madam Yao, you should enjoy life even after having a child. You're so young, the long nights must be so hard..."
As the merchant talked about what happened in the room, his fat face became increasingly greasy, and lewdness almost dripped from his eyes.
If it were any other woman in business, he wouldn't even give her a second glance, and would even say they were ruining the business, but this one is different. Yao Qingling has no husband's family, is rich and powerful, and her status as a noble lady is far higher than that of these merchants.
He tried his best to flatter her and win her favor.
If it were the young mistress of the past, Yao Qingling would have given the cold shoulder and sent the guests away long ago. But now that she's in business, she has to be shrewd and deal with all sorts of people, even those she dislikes.
She listened absentmindedly, resting her chin on her hand, thinking to herself that this Master He really knew how to provide her with enjoyment.
Such a handsome young man is being sent into her room to be raised and observed. Once she has given birth and is past the postpartum period, she will be eager for a man, like a parched land receiving rain.
However, most women don't have this kind of situation, where men eagerly offer them male concubines.
There was no such thing as a woman keeping a male concubine.
Ha, she's actually seen as a noble woman, and men fawn over her like this?
Yao Qingling glanced at the merchant, and seeing the trembling fat on his face as he spoke, she couldn't help but touch her own face.
He's so chubby, I wonder if he'll end up as greasy as him?
I need to lose weight quickly after giving birth...
Xia Chan couldn't stand it anymore and said coldly, "What kind of person do you think my young lady is! You men like—"
Yao Qingling snapped out of her daze and interrupted her, "It's alright. This young man is quite good-looking, and he seems to have good stamina too. Let's accept him."
Xia Chan opened her eyes wide: "Miss!"
After seeing the merchants off, Xia Chan asked, "Miss, why did you keep that man here?"
Qing Ling's lazy smile vanished, a cold glint flashing in her eyes.
"'Yao Qingling came from a divorce from the Duke's mansion, and her standards have been raised by the Duke's family. If she were to remarry, she would only consider a family of equal status to the Duke's. Unfortunately, why would such a prestigious family marry a woman who has been with another man? Unless she is willing to become a concubine, but Yao Qingling is domineering and proud, how could she agree to be a concubine?'"
“‘A family of low social standing, would they dare marry the young mistress of the Duke’s mansion? It’s not worth offending the Duke’s mansion for her sake.’”
"The child in her womb is a descendant of the Duke's family, of noble birth. It seems she will never be able to remarry."
"'Zhan Xingzhuo will be a high-ranking official of the third rank when he returns. They've made such a mess of things; whoever marries Yao Qingling can expect to be dealt with as well.'"
Xia Chan frowned as she listened to Qing Ling repeating the gossip from the outside world: "Miss, you don't need to take what outsiders say to heart."
Qingling shook her head: "I didn't take it to heart. But they were just saying what they really thought."
"Even my aunt, who was eager to use me as a bargaining chip to get benefits, didn't dare to make that idea again."
"They thought I couldn't get married anymore. With my status and wealth, I would inevitably have to find a way to relieve my needs, just like men. Men keep concubines, and women keep male lovers. It's a kind of... respect for me."
Qingling gave a self-deprecating laugh.
Although businessmen are worldly, they are always very direct in currying favor with the powerful and influential, and often manage to cater to their preferences.
"Didn't you notice that the young man looks somewhat like Lin Shiyuan?"
Xia Chan thought back carefully. She had only been focused on Master He's blatant words and hadn't paid attention to the young man's appearance. She just thought he had slicked-back hair and looked like he came from an opera troupe.
Qingling guessed that the reason why Master He sent her such a young man was because he had heard about Lin Shiyuan and her parting ways.
The outside world believes that Yao Qingling took in Lin Shiyuan, who had nowhere to go, because of his good looks; he was even more handsome than Zhan Xingzhuo.
The outside world also assumed that Yao Qingling, who was divorced, must be feeling empty and lonely, and that she needed a caring man by her side.
Lin Shiyuan left, but sent a substitute to comfort her wounded heart.
Xia Chan's eyes widened: "How can that person be compared to Physician Lin? He was the General Who Guards the South before!"
Qingling looked at her mischievously: "Oh, you're speaking up for Lin Shiyuan? I thought you two didn't get along."
"That's because—" Xia Chan gasped, wanting to say that she simply disliked Lin Shiyuan's frequent nighttime visits to Mulan Courtyard, which disregarded the proper separation between men and women. But then she thought again, Lin Shiyuan had clearly stated that he had feelings for the young lady. And the young lady didn't seem to care about the boundaries between men and women. If the young lady knew that she had said those things to Lin Shiyuan, she would probably get scolded.
She quickly changed her tune, saying, "I don't dislike Dr. Lin."
Qingling didn't argue with her and said, "Regardless of whether that young man looks like Lin Shiyuan or not, if the news gets out that I'm keeping a male concubine, guess what will happen?"
Xia Chan thought for a moment, then gasped: "Isn't this implying that Miss is licentious?"
This is ruining someone's reputation!
Qingling: "Let me think about it some more."
She pointed out: "They think that I can't marry this one, and I don't want to marry that one, so who in this world can marry me without taking any risks?"
"Second Master Zhan...remarrying?"
Qingling nodded.
This was her second move.
Previously, when she wanted to deal with Madam Ma, she directly brought up the Grand Princess and admitted that this was Zhan Xingzhuo's child. The Grand Princess would then protect the child in her womb and prevent her from being forced to drink the abortion soup by the Marquis's mansion.
The Grand Princess kept a close eye on Zhou Zhining, signaling that no one connected to Zhou Zhining, including Zhou Zhining herself, should provoke her.
But when Zhan Xingzhuo returns, the Grand Princess will have designs on getting her back together with him.
The Grand Princess has made so many concessions for the sake of the Duke's family's offspring; if she wants Qingling to reunite with Zhan Xingzhuo, Qingling cannot refuse.
But since her relationship with Zhan Xingzhuo was irreconcilable, she had to find another way.
Xia Chan frowned and said sadly, "This is too unfair to Miss."
I hope Lin Shiyuan can be granted a title of king or general soon. If he can get the emperor to grant him a marriage, even the Grand Princess will not be able to stop him.
Qingling smiled and said, "What's there to be sad about? The fact that I keep male concubines means that those people respect me and put me on the same level as men."
Women who keep male lovers wield power, wealth, and status, acting domineeringly and intimidating a few petty people with their small displays of power.
It was just a sacrifice of a little reputation; there are gains and losses. You can't expect everything to be perfect or have everything.
"Just take that young man to Tongluo Lane."
Now everyone knows that Yao Qingling has a private residence in Tongluo Lane, and she will spread the news about her male lovers when she needs to.
That's the end of that.
In the evening, Qingling returned to Mulan Courtyard.
After dinner, He Yin took Qing Ling's pulse.
The midwife that Qingling invited touched her belly and adjusted the baby's position.
Everything was proceeding smoothly, and all that was left was to wait for the day the baby would be born.
The midwife said that the baby's position was correct and told her to move around more to build up her strength.
She kept saying that giving birth requires a lot of strength.
The midwife added, "The baby should be born in the next few days. It would be best for you to take a bath first, and you shouldn't get wet for a month after giving birth."
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