"My lady, a maid from Wu Gege's side came to report that Wuya Shi had entered the main courtyard. She stayed inside for about an hour before leaving through the side gate," Cui Niang reported to Lanqin, who was holding her belly and reading a book in the room.
"They really did team up. As expected. Has Sister Geng sent anyone over to deliver a message?" Lanqin asked, frowning.
“Gege Geng hasn’t sent anyone over. I’ve noticed she doesn’t interact with us much these days. Does she have some plans?” said Cui Niang.
Lanqin glanced at Cui Niang, pondered for a moment, and said, "Don't doubt her so easily. Sister Geng has always been calm and collected. Her situation is even worse than Sister Song's, so it's normal for her to have some thoughts. As long as she doesn't become our enemy or help the wicked, let's be more lenient with her."
Unlike Song, Geng had once enjoyed the Fourth Prince's favor and had been pregnant twice, giving birth to a princess. She, however, rarely saw the Fourth Prince, perhaps only once or twice a month, let alone had any offspring. Yet, no matter how much Lanqin cared for Geng—for example, by increasing her allowance and assigning her two more servants—Lanqin could only do so much. Any more would mean giving up the Fourth Prince himself. Lanqin could never do that. Unless the Fourth Prince himself went, she wouldn't be so magnanimous.
“Your Majesty is kind. I am only worried that Lady Wuya and the Fujin may be plotting something in secret that would be detrimental to Your Majesty. Your Majesty is currently six months pregnant, and Your Majesty is not here. Consort Song and Consort Geng are not very helpful to Your Majesty,” said Cui Niang.
Lanqin suddenly felt a churning in her abdomen; it was the baby inside her doing boxing and dancing.
"These two little rascals have been making quite a ruckus lately!" Lanqin's face showed a loving mother's expression.
"Master's pregnancy is getting heavier and heavier; he looks like he's almost seven or eight months along. We should start preparing the delivery room, and we need to find a reliable midwife. Oh, when is Master going to come back? He's been gone for over three months already," Cui Niang said worriedly.
"He probably won't be here until September at the earliest. Something must have happened over there. It's alright. As long as I don't leave this courtyard, what can they possibly do to me? All my food comes from our own small kitchen. They can't interfere at all. Besides, the Fujin (princess) is not what she used to be. What kind of trouble could she possibly come up with?" Lanqin smiled and raised her hand to smooth a stray hair behind her ear.
"Now that you've said that, I'm not so flustered anymore. Alright, I'll go and gather all the servants in our courtyard and give them a good talking-to. They must be on their best. At this time, we absolutely cannot afford any mistakes." Cui Niang curtsied to Lan Qin and then left.
Lanqin rested on the soft pillows for a while. Shuiling lifted the curtain and came in, carrying a plate of glistening purple grapes, which she placed on the high table next to Lanqin's bamboo couch.
"Master, why is the water so precious now?" Because of her cleverness, Shui Ling had gained some respect from Lan Qin. Although she was only a second-class maid, she could still speak to Lan Qin.
“Speaking of which, it seems like it’s been a long time since it rained. Have the water levels in the wells in our manor dropped a lot?” Nianxue asked, responding to Shuiling’s complaint.
“That’s right. Jinju and I went to fetch water today, and they all said that it hasn’t rained for quite a few days, and the well water level has dropped a lot. Moreover, some wells have started to become murky, and I don’t know why.” Shuiling peeled a grape for Lanqin and handed it to her.
"Nianxue, how many days has it been since it rained?" Lanqin suddenly asked.
"It seems like it rained a little on the fifteenth of the lunar month after the New Year, but it hasn't rained since. Is this going to be a severe drought?" Nianxue asked, her face showing fear. Although she hadn't experienced a drought that nearly killed people, she had seen it before. Nianxue had been sold into the Lingzhu Manor by slave traders when she was young, so she was considered lucky. Even if there were any major droughts or disasters outside, they would never be affected by them, the maids in wealthy families.
“A severe drought is terrible!” Grape, who was dusting off the antique shelf, suddenly said.
"Now, have you experienced it?" Lanqin asked.
“I experienced this when I was a child. It was because of that severe drought that my family couldn’t support my siblings and me, so they had to sell my sister and me to slave traders. That’s how we managed to survive. I remember that many villagers were so thirsty that they went to the fields to find wild vegetables and chew them to extract the juice to quench their thirst. Even wealthy families couldn’t do that. Money couldn’t buy water.” Grape’s eyes showed a hint of fear as she spoke.
"Where do the people outside rely on for their water?" Lanqin asked.
"It's not just the ponds and streams around; only wealthy families can afford to dig wells. Poor families have to fetch water from those places. Usually, a village will dig one well for the whole village," Grape said.
"Besides the well water we draw ourselves, do we also get water from a special source?" Lanqin knew that the palace's water came from the Xishan Reservoir. That was a royal water reserve, and ordinary people were not allowed to fetch water from there.
“Yes, half of the water in our manor comes from there. The few wells in the manor are not enough. It is said that the water there is good and clear, and the water used by the masters comes from there. Our water comes from the wells in the manor and the water from Bixin Lake in the courtyard,” Nianxue said.
"Nianxue, go to Bixin Lake and the well to see how much the water level has dropped. Also, ask the head nanny if the water level has ever dropped this much in previous years. Go now." Lanqin suddenly sat up.
If a severe drought were to occur, could she perhaps use her wisdom from future generations to alleviate the suffering of these people? Lanqin remembered a drought that had occurred a few years ago, shortly after she entered the manor. It wasn't particularly severe then, and thankfully, it rained. She recalled that the Fourth Prince had been searching far and wide for water, seeking usable sources for the people of the capital. Now that the Fourth Prince was gone, and the capital was showing signs of drought again, she hoped nothing bad would happen.
Seeing Lanqin's serious expression, Nianxue immediately curtsied and then strode out.
“Your Highness, you are pregnant, so these matters should only be handled by officials,” Xi Cha said, seeing Lan Qin’s concerned expression.
“These aren’t just matters concerning officials; they’re matters concerning everyone in the world. Not having water to drink is a terrible thing. If a person doesn’t drink water for three days, they will die of thirst,” Lanqin said.
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