Lanqin slept until nightfall before waking up. The first thing she saw when she saw the tiny swaddled baby sleeping beside her brought tears to her eyes.
"Princess, you should start your postpartum confinement now. You can't cry, or you'll hurt your eyes," Nianxue said, having stayed by Lanqin's side the whole time. Seeing that Lanqin had woken up, she quickly went over to her and said.
"Where is Master?" Lanqin felt a little uncomfortable when she didn't see Fourth Master.
"Master just left, saying he went to draft a proposal for the princess's official title," Nianxue quickly said.
Lanqin felt relieved and then tried to sit up, supporting herself with her elbows.
"Princess, you should lie down. You just gave birth, you can't sit up," Nianxue said hurriedly.
"It's nothing, I'm just leaning against something, I won't move," Lanqin said.
Nianxue had no choice but to quickly grab a cushion and place it behind Lanqin's head.
"The little princess is so pretty, her little eyebrows and eyes are just like the master's!" Nianxue picked up the little princess and put her in Lanqin's arms.
“It’s normal for a daughter to resemble her father.” Lanqin looked at the tiny person in her arms, and her heart felt like crying. She had suffered so much to give birth to this little one.
“Princess, you should lie down. It’s time for the little princess to be fed. The wet nurse is all ready,” Nianxue advised.
"I want to breastfeed my baby myself, Nianxue, go and prepare some milk-boosting soup for me. Prepare some crucian carp soup and some pig's trotter soup," Lanqin said. This was the child she had gone through so much to give birth to; the thought of her drinking someone else's milk seemed a little hard to accept.
Nianxue had never heard of a master who refused to have a wet nurse nurse her child and instead nursed the child herself, so she didn't know how to persuade Lanqin.
"Go on, what are you standing there for?" Lanqin said decisively when she saw Nianxue standing there with a blank look on her face.
Nianxue watched as Lanqin unbuttoned her bra and quickly turned her head away. She saw the child cry a few times, and then she heard sucking sounds.
Nianxue quickly left and went to the kitchen to instruct Lanqin on the menu she wanted.
When Nianxue returned to Lanqin's room, she saw that Fourth Master was already inside.
Fourth Master sat at the head of Lanqin's bed, holding her in his arms, while Lanqin was holding Little Princess in her arms. The three of them looked so warm and harmonious.
The tea set members all retreated outside, not daring to go in and disturb this tranquility and beauty.
“Ushiha, you will drink your own mother’s milk, you don’t need a wet nurse, right?” Lanqin said to the little princess in her swaddling clothes.
By this time, the little princess had finished eating, her face was rosy, and she was fast asleep, completely satisfied.
Lanqin thought it wouldn't be easy for her to start breastfeeding, but when the little princess started suckling, she had plenty of milk.
"No one doesn't need a wet nurse. You'll breastfeed yourself, so don't complain about being tired or in pain." When Fourth Master heard that Lanqin wanted to breastfeed the little princess herself, he was surprised, but he also admired Lanqin's approach.
It feels like something's missing if you don't breastfeed your own child. But the old rules forbade princesses from raising their own children, let alone breastfeeding them. Was it so that they could better serve their husbands?
“I’ll breastfeed my own child, what’s there to complain about? Master, keep the two wet nurses here, let them take care of the little princess and let her play with her,” Lanqin said.
"Of course, otherwise Lan'er wouldn't have time to take care of Master." Fourth Master said affectionately.
"Is Master jealous of his own daughter?" Lanqin looked up at the Fourth Master with a haughty smile and said.
"Yes, I'm jealous that she can have close contact with my mother's grandmother. When will I ever get to that point?" Fourth Master said bluntly.
Lanqin rolled her eyes shyly and said softly, "You shameless man, getting jealous of your own daughter."
The Fourth Prince lowered his head and kissed Lanqin's temple gently, saying tenderly, "The edict requesting your official title is finished; I'll take it to the palace tomorrow. Our Wuxiha must be as happy as a little star."
Lanqin thought about it. Fourth Master had indeed put his heart into helping her raise the child, and she didn't mind being promoted. Although she knew it would make the woman in the main courtyard uncomfortable, the conflict with her was obviously irreconcilable. The higher her rank, the better she could treat the child and the better she could protect her.
"Master, Lanqin doesn't want to move, and she doesn't need to bring in any more people. Just two maids to serve the young princess will suffice. The rest are enough." Lanqin felt quite used to living here. Although the south courtyard wasn't large and there weren't many people, she was too lazy to move.
"A concubine can live in a larger place. If you'd like to live here, I'm naturally fine with it, but I'm afraid it might be too cramped for you. The East Courtyard is much larger than this one. If you'd like, I'll renovate it and rearrange it to your liking." The Fourth Prince originally intended for Lanqin to move to the East Courtyard, because a concubine also needs a matching residence and a grander setting.
"No need, I like living here. There's no need to furnish it, just prepare a room and servants for Wuxiha," Lanqin said firmly, though she really didn't want to live in the house that Li Shi had once lived in.
"Alright, since you insist on staying here, I won't force you. But you'll need to prepare more servants. Send four maids to serve Ushiha." The Fourth Master looked at this daughter who resembled him so much and felt a deep affection for her.
"I only have four maids to serve me. Why does she, a girl, need so many people to serve her? Too many people will only make things more chaotic." Although Lanqin said no, she was secretly pleased. Wuxiha received more love from the Fourth Prince from birth, making her luckier than most princesses.
"Two seems a bit few. Let's make it three then, one less than you. How shameless of you to compare yourself to your own daughter!" Fourth Master raised his hand and flicked Lanqin's nose.
Nianxue and Xicha stood guard outside, seeing their mistresses enjoying themselves so much, and didn't want to disturb them. However, Lanqin's lactation-promoting soup was already ready, so they had to call out from outside, "Princess, the crucian carp soup is ready."
Hearing Nianxue's voice outside, Lanqin quickly said, "Bring it in. Let Granny Wang come in and take Wuxiha to bed."
Both wet nurses were selected from the Plain White Banner, and their families had served the imperial family for generations. They were both women in their early twenties who had given birth and were in good health. They were physically strong and experienced in breastfeeding.
Lanqin pondered how to persuade these wet nurses to go back and take care of their own children as well. It was really inhumane to abandon their own children to raise other people's children, and it might even cause them to harbor resentment and not take good care of the little princess.
"Grandpa, the wet nurses can be rotated, so they can go back to see their own children from time to time, or the wet nurses can simply bring their own children in, so that mothers and children are not separated, and the little princess can also find some playmates of the same age." Lanqin suddenly thought of this.
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