The next day.
As usual, Fourth Master got up around 4 a.m. He saw that Lanqin was still sleeping soundly, so he didn't wake her. Nianxue, who was on night watch outside, heard the noise inside the house.
Su Peisheng also woke up early. The Fourth Master inside called out softly, and Nianxue and he pushed open the door to help their master change clothes and wash up.
After the Fourth Prince left, Nianxue carefully helped Lanqin tuck in her blankets. Seeing that the little princess showed no sign of waking up, she had no choice but to lower the curtain and stand guard outside.
Su Peisheng once mentioned to Nianxue: When the master gets up, the princess should also get up to help him change his clothes and see him off before going back to sleep.
Nianxue had tried to persuade Lanqin about these rules, but the princess said: "I haven't rested well, how can I have the energy to serve you, sir!"
Nianxue noticed that Fourth Master's expression was relatively normal every time he got up and left, so she assumed that Fourth Master had granted the princess permission not to get up and serve him.
As the sky outside the window gradually turned a pale white, Nianxue sat on the edge of Lanqin's bed, dozing off.
The sound of sweeping outside woke Nianxue. She looked into the tent again and saw that Lanqin had turned over but was still fast asleep.
Lanqin didn't open her eyes until the sun was high in the sky. She was exhausted from the night before and slept very soundly!
"Nianxue, quickly help me pack my things, Master said he's taking us to the estate today!" She sat up abruptly.
"Princess, Master just sent someone to tell us to pack some summer clothes first. The estate over there also needs to be tidied up; we probably won't be able to go for about three days." Nianxue immediately used a ruyi knot to fasten the gauze curtains.
"What? It'll be several more days!" Lanqin's heart sank.
The pace of life in ancient times was slow; they needed three days to prepare before going out to play. Lanqin thought to herself.
Meanwhile, Madam Yin woke up at her usual time; her morning sickness had returned, and she would dry heave for a while every morning. Fourth Master instructed Doctor Bai to come and check her pulse every day and also prescribed some medicinal diet to help with the pregnancy.
"Princess, what would you like for breakfast today?" Ye Ying asked. Like Nian Xue, she was one of Yin Shi's personal maids who had entered with her. Yin Shi was born to a concubine of the Yangzhou prefect, and was often bullied by her stepmother and other favored concubines at home. She was also suspicious and reserved. Although the Fourth Prince had favored her before Lan Qin this time, her cautious, taciturn, and suspicious nature didn't particularly appeal to him. There were simply too many women like her. Song Shi and Geng Shi had both been neglected by the Fourth Prince in recent years, so Yin Shi, with her similar personality, naturally wouldn't enjoy his favor for long either. This wasn't to blame the Fourth Prince for being heartless; it was simply that as he grew older, the women he needed were no longer merely those who were completely obedient to him.
"Look at me like this, how can I possibly eat anything!" Madam Yin clutched her chest with one hand, gripped the armrest of the chair with the other, and spat a mouthful of sour water into the copper bowl that Peony was holding up.
"Princess, you still need to eat something so that the little prince in your belly can grow up healthily!" Ye Ying brought a glass of water for Madam Yin to rinse her mouth.
"Master hasn't come to see the Princess for quite some time!" Peony said, rising to carry a copper bowl. She was a maid given to her by the Fujin (Prince's wife) when Madam Yin entered the household. Originally from the Imperial Household Department, she noticed that although Madam Yin was pregnant with the Fourth Prince's child, she received little favor. Servants had no future with a master who didn't receive much favor! Even if she was pregnant, she couldn't raise the child herself. The eldest princess of the Song family was a perfect example.
Upon hearing this, Madam Yin immediately began to gag again.
"Didn't the master bestow a house upon you, Granny? Have the eunuchs come down yet?" Ye Ying glared at Shaoyao and comforted Madam Yin.
“That guy got a whole courtyard!” Peony retorted.
"You..." Ye Ying was so angry that she almost spoke again, but was stopped by Madam Yin.
Just then, a young eunuch from the front courtyard walked to the door. He gave a slight bow and said, "Princess Yin, the master has sent me to deliver a message. Please pack your clothes and belongings in the next two days, and we will go to the estate with the master in three days."
Upon hearing this, Madam Yin was immediately overjoyed and quickly tightened her grip on Ye Ying's hand.
Peony had already put on a smile, and when Ye Ying went to the inner room to get her purse, she spoke first, saying, "Thank you, sir. Our princess was just talking about it, and you brought us the master's arrangements."
Ye Ying took a small purse and handed it to Shao Yao when she came out.
"Father-in-law, this is a small token of our princess's appreciation. Please take it and buy some tea." Peony handed over the purse with a beaming smile.
"Thank you for the reward, Princess!" The little eunuch naturally accepted it with great joy. He was just one of Zhao Quan's men who didn't have much face in front of the Fourth Prince. Zhao Quan was too lazy to run errands like delivering messages to a princess who wasn't favored, so he entrusted it to him.
"Does Father-in-law know who else is going?" Peony asked.
"This servant doesn't know." The young eunuch indeed didn't know.
After he left, Shaoyao immediately went to Madam Yin, her expression changed, and she said happily, "Princess, I was just worried about you and the little prince in our belly. Don't worry, the master still remembers you, so you should seize this opportunity."
“Sister Shaoyao, you needn’t worry about that. The princess knows what she’s doing. Go ask Granny Liu if the princess’s medicine is ready for today,” Ye Ying said as she approached Madam Yin.
Peony gave a curtsy, rolled her eyes at Night Poppy, and then left.
"What a chameleon!!" Night Poppy spat towards the door.
“Don’t we see plenty of people like this back home? But we’re new here, so we can’t afford to offend these powerful servants,” said Madam Yin.
“Princess! You can’t be too weak, otherwise, these people will no longer respect you. The master has bestowed these people upon you, and apart from Granny Liu who comes to inquire every day, the others act like they’re the masters, never even showing their faces. Now that we’ve met the master, let’s tell him about their behavior,” Ye Ying said.
"I know what I'm doing. Accompany me to the Fujin's place later. Now that I'm leaving the manor, I should at least pay my respects and apologize to her!" said Madam Yin. Since she became pregnant, the Fujin had arranged for Granny Liu to come and serve her with her medicinal meals and daily life, reporting back to her on everything. The women in the inner quarters were required to report their menstrual cycles and pregnancies to the Fujin.
"Yes, Princess, I'll go get you breakfast!" Ye Ying said.
After a while, Granny Liu came over and saw that only Madam Yin was in the room. She said, "Where are the maids? Why are they leaving you alone in the room, Princess? They're becoming more and more unruly."
Ye Ying went to fetch the meal, and Shao Yao said she went to see the medicinal food, but we haven't seen a single person since.
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