Chapter 28 Pregnancy Care.
After he left, the old lady instructed Granny Shen to prepare several rooms, choosing the most secluded spot in their courtyard, yet also the innermost one, so that no one could enter without alerting the people in the courtyard.
Before noon, Qin Lie sent someone to bring the person over. The person carried only a bundle and a small sedan chair, which was brought directly into the courtyard through the back gate.
When Granny Shen reported, she said, "It seems that the Third Young Master is only concerned about the child. He is quite indifferent to her and doesn't even bring a maid. She is all alone like this."
The old lady, fingering her prayer beads, closed her eyes and asked, "How is he?"
Granny Shen said, "She is truly a beauty of unparalleled grace and charm. After the Third Young Master returned, he did not see her, but only sent someone to bring her here. It seems that he did not explain things clearly to her, as she has been making a fuss about seeing the Third Young Master ever since she came in."
The old lady frowned: "What do you think my Prince's mansion is? How dare she throw a tantrum here? Find a few strong maids to tie her up, gag her most of the time, and take her out when she eats. Take care of her every need, and she'll live until the child is born!"
Granny Shen knew that she was feeling frustrated, which was why she said those things out of spite. She neither did as she was told nor did she respond.
Sure enough, after a moment, the old lady put down her prayer beads and said, "Let's go, take me there to have a look."
Granny Shen is always reliable in her work. The three rooms on the east side have been uninhabited for a long time, and now they are clean and tidy.
It was neither extravagant nor lacking in the grandeur of a royal residence; all the items were designed for pregnant women, and the arrangement was very thoughtful.
Despite knowing that the princess was exceptionally beautiful, the old lady was still taken aback at first glance.
Beautiful women are easy to find; every smile and frown of a young woman is captivating. What standard is there? When a man is aroused, spring flowers and autumn moons are all pleasing to the eye, and plump or slender beauties are all pleasing to the eye. Having found the bright and beautiful, he also desires the delicate and graceful; having found the pretty, he also desires the pretty and the demure. He is not truly satisfied until he kicks his horns and lies in his coffin.
But the princess's beauty was overwhelming; her eyebrows, eyes, nose, and lips were all exquisite, and her waist, hair, neck, and back were all graceful.
Even with her large pregnant belly, her dignified bearing, cultivated over time, was something most people could not match.
And this body has skin that is both naturally fair and delicate, and also has the translucent and flawless complexion that only a princess could have.
If this is just a physical appearance, then it also has a pair of expressive almond-shaped eyes.
In its clearest parts, it resembles an autumn lake; in its most melancholic parts, it's like stars dripping on a clear night, endlessly scattering, threatening to soak one's clothes and leaving no place to hide.
What's most captivating is her innocent and delicate nature.
There are many gentle and innocent women in the world, but this gentleness is like grass on a wall, which can only be passively swayed by the wind.
When it came to the princess, it was as delicate as a morning dewdrop, trembling and lying on the grass, crystal clear and pitiful. It was just a pity that if the wind was too strong or the sun too intense, it would disappear if shaken or exposed to the sun.
No wonder his grandson couldn't bear to leave his hands.
The first to see the old lady were the two maids newly assigned to the princess, who immediately knelt down to pay their respects.
Upon learning the identity of the visitor, Lingyi immediately clutched her stomach and took two steps back, adopting a defensive and protective posture.
The old lady sat down on the couch unhurriedly. "You want to see Qin Lie?"
Lingyi said, "He doesn't know I'm here yet. Please be lenient and let him know."
The old lady said, "If it weren't for his instructions, how could I dare to confine you in this palace?"
Lingyi was silent for a moment, then said, "Then please tell him that I only want to see him once and have a few questions for him."
"What are you asking? Are you asking him why he suddenly sent you here? Or do you want him to take you out?" The old lady said, "You should know my grandson's temperament—if he wants to see you, no one can stop him. Since he's not coming, it means he doesn't want to."
Lingyi didn't understand. Just yesterday he had been tender and loving towards her, so why had things changed so drastically overnight?
The old lady noticed her confusion and said, "Granny Shen, tell her what happened."
Granny Shen then recounted Cheng Hui's story in detail. Before she could finish, the princess's body stiffened and all color drained from her face.
The old lady asked, "Do you understand now?"
Lingyi replied blankly, "I understand."
She was merely using her looks to please him; it was only a novelty. How could she be compared to his first wife?
At this moment, Qin Lie not only didn't want to see her, he probably even had the thought of killing her. The existence of the child in her belly showed his debt to his deceased wife. He probably even hated himself, let alone her and the child.
She felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave, her limbs and bones were frozen, and all that remained was despair.
The old lady said, "Since you are a smart person, then stay here and prepare for childbirth. If you cause any more trouble, I will not protect you."
Preparing for childbirth? So, she can still give birth.
As if waking from a nightmare, Ling Yi quickly bowed and said, "Thank you for your advice, Madam. I will definitely behave myself and never step out of my room."
Lingyi then settled down in the Prince's mansion, and as she had said, she never stepped out of her room, so as not to offend anyone.
The old lady did not give her any special treatment. As she lived alone, Lingyi changed her previous routine and started getting up at dawn and eating breakfast at dawn every day. She went to bed early at night, and her presence was as faint as air.
Nevertheless, the princess still came to ask the old lady to hand over the princess to her care.
"Handle? How should we handle it?" the old lady asked. "The Great Han Dynasty still reigns supreme, and she is still a princess. What do you intend to do?"
The princess scoffed, "Nowadays, the states are constantly annexing each other, and wars are breaking out everywhere. The Seventh Prince is unpopular, and no one trusts Geng Qing. The Great Han Dynasty exists in name only. What kind of princess is she?"
The old lady patiently advised, "As long as Da Han is alive, we are still his subjects. If your words get out, wouldn't the world think that our Dingbei Prince's Mansion has disloyal intentions?"
The princess didn't take it seriously: "In this world, everyone has rebellious intentions, not just in our Ji Province."
When Qin Shiyan got married, General Qin had only recently arrived in Jizhou, and he had chosen daughters of his former subordinates for his sons. At the time, he thought it would strengthen family ties and help them jointly resist foreign enemies, but now he realizes it was all too hasty. If they could go back in time, the old lady would definitely disregard kinship and, even if she didn't choose a noblewoman from the capital, she would at least choose someone from a scholarly family with a long tradition of learning, like Cheng Hui.
Women from such backgrounds are sensible and know their place; in times of peace and prosperity, the difference is not so obvious.
But in times of chaos, the difference in ability becomes immediately apparent.
The old lady didn't want to argue with her and said bluntly, "You are the princess. I don't care what happens to Jizhou. The princess is my guest because she lives here. No one can take her away."
"Mother!" the princess cried out in anguish, "Have you forgotten how Xi'er died? And why Hui Niang was forced to jump off the cliff?!"
"I haven't forgotten!" the old lady gasped. "But I also know that the princess is carrying Lie'er's child! If it were only two or three months and she wasn't showing, that would be one thing, but now the child is almost born. You are her grandmother, can you really bear to do this?"
The princess said, "Lie'er already has sons and daughters, why would she need to be born again?"
The old lady said, "You need to ask Lie'er yourself about this. I was entrusted by him. As long as he speaks, I will immediately hand the person over to you."
The princess's expression changed several times before she finally made up her mind, bid farewell, and prepared to leave.
The old lady knew at a glance that she was going to find Qin Lie, and sighed, "I know you've always favored Xi'er and Xu'er. They've been obedient and easy to manage since they were little. You wanted them to befriend your nephews and nieces, and they did. But Lie'er is naturally mischievous and has his own ideas. He looks down on those scheming and opportunistic people. He didn't associate with them much when he was young, and now that he's older, he refuses to give them any official positions in the army..."
"Mother!" The princess felt as if someone had struck a nerve, and quickly stopped her from continuing.
The old lady continued, "Xi'er married your niece, and Xu'er married your niece. You once wanted to marry your second brother's daughter to Lie'er, but he refused and instead asked to marry Hui Niang. After Hui Niang came into the family, although you were not harsh to her, you were not exactly kind either. Fortunately, she was extremely virtuous and intelligent, which is why you accepted her and reluctantly treated her the same as Zhen Shi. In addition, because of the Qin Ying incident, you felt guilty towards Lie'er and became even more distant from him."
The old lady pleaded earnestly: "Ever since Xi'er left, you've been depressed and listless. But you still have eyes and ears; can't you see who's supporting the Jizhou army? Count on your fingers how many times Lie'er visited you when he came back? He's always been rebellious; the more others try to stop him, the more he'll listen. He's become so estranged from you; do you really want to kill his child now?"
The princess's face turned pale and then red as she listened to her words, and finally she burst into tears: "He is my child, how could I not love him? But if he cares about me, cares about his elder brother, how could he let the Liu family girl get pregnant? I will never allow that bastard to be born!"
The old lady knew that she never had any bad intentions, but was just prone to going astray. Now that she was crying, it meant she knew she had made a mistake, so she offered her a way out, "When Lie'er went to the capital to marry the princess, it was to save our Qin family from the crime of disobeying the imperial decree, not out of her own free will. Now that she has been brought back to Jizhou, she is not an object, how can we just throw her away? Our Qin family does not have the kind of heinous and vicious methods to force-feed someone dangerous drugs, which has led to the situation we have today. I will handle the child after it is born, and I will not cause you any trouble. Since things have come to this, you might as well pretend you don't know anything, and Lie'er will remember your kindness in her heart."
After coaxing and frightening the princess until she finally left, the old lady rubbed her temples wearily and asked Granny Chen, "What has she been doing lately?"
As Granny Shen massaged her shoulders, she replied, "It's the same as always. She spends all day either reading in her room or copying Buddhist scriptures."
The old lady had seen the Buddhist scriptures copied by the princess. "Her handwriting was sparse and ordinary, but her temperament was remarkably calm."
Granny Shen said, "There's one more thing. The maid who serves her said that she heard her stomach rumbling in the middle of the night, probably because she hasn't eaten enough."
The old lady frowned: "She lives on bland food with me, which can't support two people. Didn't I ask you to add some desserts and meat dishes a few days ago? What? Is she becoming picky about food?"
Granny Shen sighed, "She doesn't dare to eat it."
It is only those elderly people who have been cared for for decades who dare to directly say the word "I dare not".
The old lady said angrily, "Since I said I would protect her, even if it's something I wouldn't eat, would someone poison her? If she doesn't dare to eat it, then let her go hungry. Don't bother sending her any food at all!"
Knowing the old lady's temper, Granny Shen remained silent. Sure enough, after a while, she said, "Send her some bird's nest every day, and make some soup at night. Make sure she drinks it all."
Before Granny Shen could even leave after receiving the order, she heard her say, "She's in her late stages of pregnancy, and staying indoors all the time isn't good for childbirth. Let her move around outside a bit."
The princess was extremely obedient. She would eat and drink as she was told, and when she was allowed to move around outside, she would only do so for a short while after noon, when the old lady was taking a nap and no one was around. Although the sun was strong, she was not afraid of running into anyone.
But there are exceptions. On this day, as the sun was slowly turning, he suddenly felt a gaze.
She turned around and saw Qin Lie standing not far away, looking at her expressionlessly.
This is really not a good time to meet.
In the past, to please him, she would wear light makeup even when she was pregnant whenever he came to visit. Because he would not inform her of his return beforehand, she would put on full makeup in the evening when he was expected to come back after ten days or so. Even her clothes were seemingly casual but actually carefully coordinated, including the color of her undergarment.
At this moment, she wore no makeup whatsoever, and since she was not seeing anyone, her hair was not tied up but loosely braided and hung down in front of her chest. She wore a plain cotton shirt with a lotus-colored cloak over it—the same one that Granny Shen wore ten years ago. She was wandering around here with her big belly.
Even without looking in the mirror, you can tell that you are extremely slovenly.
Upon seeing Qin Lie, Lingyi's first reaction was regret and shock.
Then it suddenly occurred to me that I could no longer rely on him, so why should I care what he thought of me?
But she couldn't anger him, so she gave a slight curtsy, turned around and went back into the house, closing the door and not coming out again.
As dusk fell, thinking that she had only taken one walk that day, she went out for another walk. Everyone says that pregnancy lasts ten months, and she was only eight months along. She felt her belly dropping. The last time the doctor came to see her, he said that she might go into labor in about twenty days and that she should walk and move around more if she wanted to have a smooth delivery.
This time, things were even more unfortunate. She ran into Qin Lie coming from the opposite direction as soon as she stepped out. There was no way to avoid him, so she lowered her head and said politely, "General."
It was nearly winter, and a thin layer of snow had fallen a few days ago. In previous years, she would not have gone out at this time unless absolutely necessary. But now, pregnant, she felt like she was carrying a ball of fire inside her. She didn't feel cold even though she was only wearing a cloak. She wasn't wearing a hat, and her braids were still hanging down. Since she had just woken up, her hair hadn't been combed yet. When he looked down, he could only see the top of her messy hair.
Lingyi's neck stiffened, but she could still feel his gaze on her.
Unable to hold on any longer, she stood up, raised her head, pointed ahead, and said, "I... I'm going to take a walk over there."
This would be the typical closing remark for a chance encounter.
Qin Lie, however, seemed to be in a trance, only uttering an "oh" before neither taking a step nor speaking.
Lingyi had no choice but to stand with him for a while longer.
The sunset on the horizon was magnificent and beautiful, and the afterglow shone on people, giving them a golden edge.
There were trees on all sides, but most of them were bare and had lost all their leaves. The stones on the artificial hill were cold and hard, and there was not even the sound of insects chirping.
In the silence, he suddenly asked, "Liu Lingyi, do you have something to say to me?"
Lingyi thought it over and over again, and finally performed a formal palace salute. “I am ashamed beyond words for the many crimes my father and brothers committed in the past. I only wish that the general will be safe and well in the future, and that all his wishes will be fulfilled.”
She spoke sincerely, but he merely scoffed and turned to leave. Lingyi pondered for a moment, realizing that her two light words could hardly soothe his grief over losing his loved one and wife. She was certain he felt the same way, hence his dismissive attitude.
But what could she do?
Even if you stripped her bare to the bone, you still couldn't compensate him.
Besides, even if she could compensate, she wouldn't be willing.
Those past grievances and grudges are too distant for her.
Her only wish right now is to give birth to her child smoothly and then watch her child grow up.
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