I may be heartbroken, but life goes on.
This was the thought that popped into Lanqin's mind when she learned that Liu was pregnant and that Fucha had finally gained the emperor's favor. The Fourth Prince's inner quarters—it had been like this since she transmigrated, never changing. Women were like spring flowers, one after another.
“My lady, it’s getting chilly. You’ll catch a cold standing in the wind like this.” Cui Niang took a cotton cloak and draped it over Lan Qin from behind.
“Cui Niang, you’re pregnant now, why don’t you go back and rest? Si Hua and the others are here.” Lan Qin tightened her cloak belt; she had just learned that Cui Niang had been diagnosed with pregnancy.
"It's only been two months, what's the big deal?" Cui Niang said. "My mistress has so many things to deal with here, I can't put my mind at ease."
Lanqin smiled slowly and said, "What could possibly happen to me? I'm just going to continue living my life."
Seeing Lanqin's calm expression, Cui Niang breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Master, Consort Liu is pregnant. According to custom, we should send her a reward. We can also send something to Lady Fucha."
Lanqin knew that this was a common practice for women living in the inner quarters of the house. It was a way to win over the newcomer and also to leave herself a way out in the future. If she fell out of favor, she could build a relationship with the newcomer and avoid being bullied.
"You decide what to do. Give whatever is appropriate for social occasions. But it doesn't need to be anything special; just follow Sister Song's example, something ordinary will do," Lan Qin said. She was truly tired of this lifestyle.
After saying that, Lanqin turned and looked at a tree in the corner of the room. The leaves on it had turned a brilliant gold and would soon fall from the branches.
"Master, then this servant will prepare according to custom." Cui Niang looked at Lan Qin's back with concern. She didn't know why Lan Qin was having such a disagreement with the Fourth Master.
“Cui Niang, from the very beginning of entering this inner quarters, this kind of life was destined to be, wasn’t it? Just like the leaves on this tree, from the very beginning, it was destined that one day they would fall into the mud and turn into fertilizer,” Lan Qin suddenly said.
“Master! Sometimes I feel that you are different from us. There are some things you say that we don’t understand,” said Cui Niang.
“Go, go and deliver the rewards to them,” Lanqin said.
When the Fourth Master returned, Madam Nian personally sent someone to invite him over and told him the good news about Madam Liu.
"Thank you for your trouble. Please send her some more tonics." That was all the Fourth Master said before falling silent. Madam Nian thought the Fourth Master should at least be happy, but judging from his expression, he still didn't seem very happy.
The Fourth Prince didn't actually like Lady Liu that much. It was only because Lanqin treated him so coldly that he felt he was spoiling her too much, which is why he went to other women. Firstly, to divert his thoughts from Lanqin; secondly, to respond to Consort De's reminder; and thirdly, to make up for the pain of his chauvinistic feelings being thwarted by that little woman, Lanqin.
When Fourth Master heard that Liu was pregnant, his first thought was that he could no longer visit her. If Liu knew what Fourth Master was thinking, she would probably faint.
"Master, why don't you go and see Sister Liu?" Madam Nian reminded him.
"Oh, she just got pregnant, it's best to keep her from making too much noise. Let her rest well. I'm going back now." With that, the Fourth Master left from Madam Nian's place.
Unable to fathom the Fourth Master's reaction, Madam Nian said somewhat dejectedly, "I had hoped that by taking advantage of Madam Liu's pregnancy, the Fourth Master would completely abandon the South Courtyard. But what's with his reaction? I don't see any joy in him."
"Perhaps the master is troubled by matters of the court. Didn't the General write to you, asking you to recommend more members of the Nian family to the Fourth Master? The master is presiding over the autumn imperial examination this time," Bai Zhi said.
“Brother’s appetite is a bit too big this time. Letting so many people in at once is not so easy,” said Madam Nian.
“Now is the time for the Nian family to build up their network of connections and trusted confidants. Master, speaking of which, the more members of the Nian family enter the court, the more secure your position will be in the future,” Bai Zhi said.
“I know. But you just saw it yourself, he didn’t want to stay here any longer. Even if I wanted to say a few words to him, I didn’t have the chance. If I didn’t have the chance to say it, it would not only be useless, but it would also have the opposite effect,” said Madam Nian.
“What Consort says is absolutely right. So we have to think of a way. Even news of Lady Liu’s pregnancy can’t make the master smile. I wonder if that Lady Fucha has any ability. The master stayed at her place last night,” Bai Zhi said.
"It's just for the novelty. Let's see how long her favor lasts. Go to the storeroom and get something to send over to her," said Madam Nian.
Meanwhile, gifts for Lady Fucha kept arriving from all over, and Lady Liu, being pregnant, also received many congratulatory gifts.
The maids of the two princesses started comparing their rewards to see which princess received more.
When Liu heard that Fourth Master had returned, but hadn't come to visit her, she felt a little uneasy. She thought that at least Fourth Master would come to see her, but he simply didn't.
After dusk, the Fourth Prince sent someone to deliver a message, ordering Lady Fucha to come and serve him in bed. That meant the Fourth Prince wouldn't come to Chunhui Courtyard anymore, but instead wanted Lady Fucha to sleep with him in the front courtyard. The Fourth Prince might have done this to avoid Lady Liu, fearing that she would see him enter Lady Fucha's room and feel uncomfortable. But in reality, this wouldn't have made Lady Liu feel any better either.
"Hmph, you lowly servant! You've only served me for two nights, what's so great about that!" Liu's maid, Cuizhu, stormed in. She had just seen Hongqiao outside, who acted like she owned the place, which infuriated her.
"What's wrong? Even Fucha's maids are trembling?" Liu Shi had already guessed what was going on when she saw Cuizhu scolding.
“That’s right, she thinks her mistress is something special. It’s just that the princess is pregnant and can’t serve her, which is why they got to take advantage of her,” Cuizhu said.
"Cuizhu, go and pick out some things to take to the other side," Liu said after a moment of thought.
"What? Princess, you're going to give her something too?" Cuizhu asked, puzzled.
“Yes, she has just been favored by the emperor, so it’s natural to offer our congratulations,” said Madam Liu.
"Princess, why are you doing this?" Cuizhu asked, puzzled.
"Of course, it's to show Master that I'm not jealous at all, so he'll think I'm magnanimous. I'm pregnant now and can't serve him anymore. Fucha is currently in favor, so she'll definitely be on equal footing with me for a while," Liu said coldly.
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