Lanqin insisted that Qingping escort her to the north courtyard gate, then sent her back to take care of Song Shi. With Nianxue's help, she trudged towards the east courtyard, her steps uneven.
“Nianxue, I realize I might have been too naive. Life in the inner quarters isn’t as peaceful and leisurely as I thought. Without Fourth Master’s protection, I’m afraid I’d be in a worse situation than Sister Song!” Lanqin’s hand, which was supporting Nianxue, suddenly tightened. She remembered how rarely Geng Shi changed her headdress and clothes, and even thought of Yin Shi, who had once tried to harm her…
“Princess, you should spend more time and effort on Master, especially since you don’t have children yet,” Nianxue said immediately, seeing that Lanqin was finally showing concern. Lanqin’s innocent and naive nature had always worried Nianxue, but she always just laughed it off, leaving Nianxue helpless. Now that Lanqin had brought it up herself, she naturally took the opportunity to give her a good talking-to.
"No matter how much effort I put in, I can't expect to please him every day. That might not be a good idea. Besides, Fourth Master might not even care. Otherwise, even if I didn't try to please him, he would still come to me." Lanqin didn't agree with Nianxue's traditional idea of women being subservient to their husbands and raising children.
So ever since she entered the Fourth Prince's household, she never thought of currying favor. Favor gained through such means was merely charity, and sooner or later, the giver would take it back. Wasn't Song Shi the best example now? She was the Fourth Prince's first woman, and must have received his favor before, otherwise she wouldn't have conceived twice.
When Lanqin said that, Nianxue was a little confused, but it was indeed true.
In the blink of an eye, the two had arrived at the entrance of the East Courtyard. When Granny Wang saw them coming, she immediately lit the gas lamp and went to greet them.
After Lanqin and her servant entered Li's courtyard, they saw a stage set up in the center of the courtyard, where a shadow puppet show was being performed. Li and her entourage were sitting at the entrance watching!
Lanqin walked to Li's side and whispered in her ear, "We've gone far. Didn't keep you waiting long?" She instinctively stopped herself from going to see Song's affairs.
Li pointed to an empty seat to her left, indicating that Lanqin should sit down and watch the shadow puppet show.
Lanqin looked around at the braziers. Since they were outside, each of them had a small hand warmer under their feet and held a gilded flat-bottomed hand warmer in their hands. So even sitting at the doorway, they were not cold, and it was warmer than inside Song's house.
After Lanqin sat down, she looked around and saw that the eldest and second princesses were there, and the third and fourth princes were also sitting side by side.
Beside each master's seat, candied fruit, melon seeds, and hot tea were placed, with maids standing behind their masters, serving them tea and water.
The performance on stage was a shadow puppet play about "Three Battles with the White Bone Demon." This kind of martial arts drama was perfect for this kind of occasion—lively and cathartic—so everyone loved to watch. Lanqin was immediately captivated by the lifelike shadow puppets, temporarily putting aside her previous chaotic thoughts and focusing entirely on watching.
Mingyan, along with several maids who had been serving outside, served each master a cup of jujube tea. Nianxue immediately picked up the teacup and handed it to Lanqin. In the dead of winter, brewing some tea with jujubes and brown sugar was truly a good idea.
“Look at that Tang Sanzang, he’s really foolish. He was tricked by the demons without even realizing it, and he even chanted incantations to punish Sun Wukong. He’s utterly foolish,” said Madam Wang, sitting next to Lanqin, to Madam Wu.
Yan Yu and Geng Shi sat on the other side of Consort Li, along with several children.
Lanqin smiled inwardly: Everyone says Tang Sanzang is muddle-headed, but actually he simply has Buddha in his heart. He views the world and all things with a Buddhist heart and nature; to ordinary people, that would seem utterly foolish.
If someone slaps your left cheek, you offer your right cheek to them and even warn them to be careful, as it might hurt their hand.
Is this Buddha-nature or foolishness?
Lanqin couldn't help but mentally prepare herself, like a philosopher practicing dialectics. Today's events were too much for her, weren't they?
Well, this is also a psychological struggle that Lin Mengyao has always had in her heart: how to treat those who have harmed her. In the past, Lin Mengyao would confront them, have a frank talk, and then cut off all contact. For those people who were only involved in her studies or work, at most she would simply remove the people who had harmed her.
But now, the struggle between the women in the inner quarters is not as simple as just cutting off contact; it has even escalated to a matter of life and death.
Therefore, our Comrade Lanqin, with the heart of a modern person, is somewhat unable to extricate herself from this vicious cycle of harming others, being harmed, retaliating, and harming others.
"Gege, what's wrong with you~~" Suddenly, a shrill voice broke Lanqin's reverie and also disrupted the lively shadow puppet show.
Sitting next to Yan Yu, Geng noticed that Yan Yu suddenly felt unwell, clutching her stomach and her expression changed. Her maid, Yun Yuan, was the one who had just uttered that exclamation.
Startled, Li stood up, walked to Yan Yu's side, and asked with concern, "What's wrong?"
Yan Yu's forehead was already slightly sweaty. She clutched her stomach and said, "My stomach is uncomfortable. It feels like the baby inside is falling down. Sister Li, please call the doctor quickly!"
Ah~~
Everyone was shocked. Why was she suddenly feeling a downward pressure in her stomach? Could it be a sign of miscarriage?
Madam Li dared not be careless and quickly instructed the maids to help Yan Yu into her room, where she lay down on the warm couch. The others followed her in.
Mingyan had already received instructions from Madam Li to go and invite Doctor Zhou.
"Sister, relax, don't be anxious. The doctor will be here soon." Madam Li was even more anxious than Yan Yu. If anything happened to this person while she was here, she wouldn't be able to escape responsibility. With the Fourth Master and his wife not around, she had to be responsible for the safety of everyone in this room!
Seeing Yan Yu looking like she was in great pain, Lanqin walked to Geng's side and asked softly, "Sister Geng, what's wrong with her? She was perfectly fine just now. She didn't fall or hurt herself, so why is she having stomach problems?"
Madam Geng shook her head and said softly, "I don't know either. She was sitting to my left, and I didn't see anything unusual happen!"
Madam Wu and Madam Wang were also whispering about how Yan Yu's sudden miscarriage had occurred. They hadn't seen her eat anything that was too cold or unsuitable for a pregnant woman that night.
Dr. Zhou arrived with his medical kit, practically running after Mingyan. He was panting heavily; what a tiring night!
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