"I've missed you so much, sister. Have some more, try this piece!" Yehe said calmly. The bracelet was originally a gift from the Fujin (principal wife). The jade beads were hollowed out and filled with musk. Wearing it herself was harmful to her health, but she was forced by the Fujin's pressure to wear it to get close to Lanqin, hoping to subtly influence the child in Lanqin's womb. Now that she saw Lanqin liked the bracelet, she simply gave it to her, so she wouldn't have to suffer its harm. Every day after returning from Lanqin's place, Yehe would secretly take off the bracelet.
Lanqin smiled and nodded, then took another piece and tasted it. It must be said, the Yehe family's cooking skills were indeed excellent.
"Consort, I heard that Princess Nian is pregnant. Did you know?" Yehe suddenly said.
Startled, Cui Niang instinctively looked at Lan Qin, only to see her completely unconcerned, and simply asked, "Oh, how did you find out, sister?"
Yehe quickly withdrew her probing gaze and lowered her head, saying, "I heard it from the Fujin when I went to pay my respects to her the day before yesterday. She said that the master had sent a letter specifically informing the Fujin that Consort Nian is pregnant."
Lanqin took another piece without a second thought, and it was indeed delicious. Seeing that Lanqin didn't seem to have any particular feelings about this, Yehe sighed, "I never imagined that Princess Nian would be so lucky. She got pregnant as soon as she went out with the master."
Lanqin smiled and said, "Sister, there's no need to be envious. Given the right opportunity, you too will have such good fortune."
Yehe was moved by Lanqin's words, as if something had touched her. She chatted with Lanqin for a few more minutes, then took her leave, unlike usual when she stayed longer.
"Master, please don't eat anymore. I haven't even checked these yet. How can you be so sure?" Seeing that Lanqin really liked the pastries made by Yehe Shi, and even went to check the remaining pastries in the food box, Cui Niang hurriedly picked up the food box.
"Don't worry, Aunt Cui. She won't tamper with it. It's too risky. If there were anything wrong, why would she send it over like this?" Lanqin grabbed the food basket and said, "It's really good. It's not greasy, and it's not too sweet. The original aroma of the ingredients is very appetizing. Tell Chef Niu to make more of these dishes."
"Good, good, good, it's good that you can eat, Master. Master, you deliberately wanted to take off that bracelet, didn't you? I didn't expect that Lady Ye would actually give it to you." Cui Niang added.
Lanqin raised her wrist to look at the beads with excellent clarity, then immediately took them off and handed them to Nianxue, saying, "Take this to Doctor Liang to take a look. I always feel that Yehe Shi is very protective of this bracelet, which is a bit strange."
Nianxue took the bracelet, agreed, and went out to find Doctor Liang.
"Master, Princess Nian is pregnant. Why hasn't the Master written to you about it? In the past, whenever he went out, he would always write to you. Why hasn't he written a single letter this time?" Cui Niang couldn't help but say.
Upon hearing this, Lanqin immediately looked somewhat disappointed. She had been deliberately ignoring the matter and focusing solely on the food, but Cui Niang's mention of it made her feel uneasy.
"What's wrong with me? Why am I saying things that upset you, Master?" Cui Niang said quickly, seeing Lan Qin's genuinely concerned expression. She was also anxious and had momentarily lost her composure.
“Cui Niang, what are you doing? I don’t need to listen to your flattery every day. To be honest, I’m not unhappy at all,” Lanqin said. “Master is not just mine. He will definitely have children with other women. So, I don’t need to be unhappy. That would only make things difficult for myself.”
When Cui Niang heard Lan Qin say this, she was immediately relieved.
Meanwhile, as Yehe Shi, supporting Tao Hua, stepped out of the South Courtyard, Tao Hua released her arm and said, "Gege, you've taken it upon yourself to give the bracelet that the Fujin bestowed upon you to the Consort. I'm afraid the Fujin will be unhappy."
Yehe glanced at Taohua and said, "I only spend an hour with her each day, so that thing has limited effect. Now that I've given her that bracelet, whether she wears it or not, it'll be in her room, so its effect will be much better. Besides, didn't you just hear what people were saying when they saw me, the princess, going to get married? Their words were full of sarcasm."
Peach Blossom was speechless for a moment, unable to think of anything to say, so she simply remained silent.
"Nian Shi is pregnant. I'm sure the Fujin (madam) is very unhappy." Yehe Shi continued to walk back, supporting Tao Hua's hand. Although it was already afternoon, the sun was still very strong. She had given away the bracelet and would no longer need to come here in this way.
“Princess Nian is truly blessed. The Princess Consort had already bestowed upon her a bracelet, yet she still managed to conceive,” Peach Blossom said.
Yehe was slightly startled, thinking to herself, "The Fujin is truly cunning; she even sent such a bracelet to Lady Nian. Even if Lady Nian isn't seriously injured by the musk and becomes pregnant, she probably won't be able to keep the pregnancy."
Seeing that Yehe remained silent, Taohua smiled and said, "But I don't think Nian can keep this pregnancy. As long as she wears the bracelet that Fujin gave her, even if she gets pregnant, she will miscarry."
Yehe felt her hands and feet were ice cold. She had initially felt very hot, but the thought that the Fujin could so easily take away the lives of two women using her and the two bracelets was terrifying.
"Princess, why don't you go to the main courtyard now and tell your wife about what happened today? That way, I won't have to explain it to her myself," Peach Blossom said when she saw that Yehe remained silent.
Yehe nodded and let Taohua help her walk towards the main courtyard.
In the main courtyard, the Princess Consort's room was cool and refreshing. Although it was very hot outside, ice blocks were placed in the four corners of her room, and a maid was fanning the ice blocks to spread coolness to every part of the room.
"Madam, Princess Yehe has arrived!" A maidservant outside reported from the doorway.
"Let her in." The wife's languid voice came from inside the room. If you smelled carefully, you could occasionally detect a faint scent of tobacco wafting through the air.
Yehe entered the room and saw the Fujin reclining on the couch, with a maid kneeling at her feet, tapping the ground with a jade hammer.
"This humble servant greets Your Highness, may Your Highness enjoy boundless blessings and peace!" Lady Yehe bowed respectfully.
"Just came from the concubine's place?" The concubine did not get up; she was holding a small, exquisite snuff bottle in her hand, which she was holding under her nose.
"Yes, today I gave the bracelet that the Fujin bestowed upon me to the Consort," said Yehe Shi.
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