Unexpected disaster
Fruits and melons were prepared in the four corners of the room. Since becoming pregnant, Qi Qian'er could not stand the smell of spices, but the fragrance of fruits and vegetables was refreshing.
Every day, Du Shaoyou would send people to Lingnan to bring fresh fruits, just to cheer her up.
Fresh fruit was placed in the room, but it wasn't eaten; once the fragrance dissipated, it was given as a reward to the maidservant beside her.
The little maid wasn't greedy; she just played with the fruit in the courtyard, making a racket with the fruit pulp scattered all over the ground.
That day, Qi Qian'er felt nauseous, her stomach was churning with acid, and she kept vomiting.
Upon receiving the news, Du Shaoyou returned home, reeking of perfume as he entered the house.
Qi Qian'er leaned over the table, while her maid Jin Feng patted her back and held a copper basin in one hand to soothe her mistress.
The smell of perfume made her even more nauseous, and Qi Qian'er vomited even more violently.
"Qian'er." Du Shaoyou sat down, replacing the maid, his manner kind and gentle.
Qi Qian'er was gasping for breath, her lips pale. She shoved the man away and said with all her might, "Get out..."
"You can go down now."
The maid Jinfeng knelt down to pay her respects, closed the door, and retreated out.
"Don't think I don't know what you've been doing outside." She struggled to lift her head, her wet eyes glaring at him resentfully. "Brothels, philandering, what don't I know?"
She slowly sat down, her face bare and without makeup. "Have you ever thought that I'm carrying your child?"
"Qian'er, those were all just for show. I never gave my heart to any of those women." Du Shaoyou sat on the edge of the bed, his body taking up most of the bed surface. Qi Qian'er resisted his touch.
"Don't touch me—" she said angrily, then a sharp pain shot through her abdomen, causing her to curl up in a corner, clutching her stomach and gasping for breath.
"Be careful of the baby." Ignoring her resistance, he forcefully pulled her into his arms, his hand moving down to cover her warm belly, feeling the faint heartbeat.
"Qian'er, whether or not we have this child, my love for you is genuine." He held her tightly, and the woman's tears fell onto his shoulder, hot and wet.
"Don't worry, I will treat you well after you give birth to this child."
"Stop talking." Qi Qian'er burst into tears, finally able to vent her long-suppressed grievances.
“I have mistreated you in the past, but since this child was born, I have come to understand. From now on, I will live a good life with you and have no more resentment.”
Du Shaoyou held the back of her head, laid it flat on the jade pillow, covered it with a summer quilt, and sat by the bed for a while.
After Qi Qian'er fell asleep, he quietly closed the door.
Turning around, he saw his maid, Jin Feng, standing by the door, bowing slightly to him, "Young Master."
He nodded, and as they brushed past each other, Wu Jinfeng's body went limp and she was caught in Du Shaoyou's embrace.
He said in a low voice, "You've had a tough time these past few days."
Wu Jinfeng was pale and swayed. After recovering for a while, she bowed and left.
As the heat intensifies, I wake up drenched in sweat after a long night's sleep.
When Qi Qian'er woke up, her husband Du Shaoyou was not by her side, and even her maid Jin Feng was not there.
She called out towards the door, and a maidservant immediately came in, bowed, and said, "What are your orders, Madam?"
"I'm thirsty, pour me a bowl of tea."
The maid immediately got up to pour tea, brought the wine bowl to the bedside, and placed a pillow behind her back.
Pregnant women should not be exposed to cold, but the weather was too hot, so Qi Qian'er kept her room full of herbal tea.
After drinking it to my heart's content, the heat dissipated considerably.
After sleeping for a long time, her body felt tired and she wanted to move around. The maid put down her teacup and was about to help her get out of bed.
"Where's Jinfeng?" Qi Qian'er stood upright by the bed, one hand gripping the bed curtains, her body swollen. The little maid squatted on the ground, unable to put on her shoes and socks, so she went to the cabinet and took out a pair of sandalwood clogs.
Cool and comfortable, they make a clicking sound when you step on them.
Qi Qian'er tilted her head to examine the pair of wooden clogs, and heard the maid say, "Sister Wu is sick."
"Is she sick?" Hearing this, I was surprised. After sleeping for so long, it's time for her to get up and move around. "I'll go see her."
"Madam, you'd better not go," the maid said, supporting her. "Madam is unwell; you might inadvertently pass on your illness."
"What kind of talk is that?" Qi Qian'er put on her outer garment and stepped out of the room in her wooden clogs.
Jin Feng is a meticulous girl, which she likes very much. Since she is sick, it is only out of consideration for her mistress and servant to visit her.
The servants' rooms were in the backyard. After descending from the attic, Qi Qian'er swayed and stopped in front of the servants' room.
Just as I was about to knock on the door, I heard Wu Jinfeng's voice inside, saying something I couldn't make out.
The next moment, the man's voice came out, and Qi Qian'er's hand remained still on the door.
It was Du Shaoyou's voice. In broad daylight, a master and his servant talking behind closed doors—it looked like a private affair. Qi Qian'er didn't barge in rashly, but instead pressed her ear to the crack in the door to eavesdrop on the two inside.
Wu Jinfeng sat on the bed, and Du Shaoyou sat beside her, personally feeding her medicine.
"I'm not drinking anymore." She turned her head away, refusing to drink any more.
"Don't be childish, this is good medicine for preventing miscarriage." He brought it all the way from Lingnan, not for her to waste.
“Even if you drink it, you won’t acknowledge the child, so just pour it out.” She turned to the side, her back to him.
"What are you saying? You're carrying my child, how could I not acknowledge it?" He turned her body around and looked her in the eye. "Don't make me angry anymore."
Her words were full of coquettishness, which made Qi Qian'er outside the door furious.
"Now that you have a beautiful wife and a fortune, how could you possibly care about the life or death of my son and me?" Wu Jinfeng's words were full of sarcasm.
"Jinfeng, you understand me. I'm doing all this for our future."
Wu Jinfeng was clearly more clear-headed than Qi Qian'er. "You've said this to her too, haven't you?"
“No, you are different from her. You and I are husband and wife.” Du Shaoyou held her shoulders, his eyes filled with affection, and said sincerely, “Between her and me, it was just a fling.”
"Don't worry, I will never abandon you," he solemnly swore.
Wu Jinfeng looked at him, not daring to ask for too much. She said, "I never expected you to acknowledge this child, but as a father, please let us leave for the sake of blood ties."
"No—" Du Shaoyou refused, and he suddenly stood up.
“You’re unwilling to give up your vast fortune, and you won’t let my son and me leave. What else do you want?” Wu Jinfeng said, dissatisfied. “Nothing in this world is perfect. Please face reality.”
"I am the father of my child, and you are my wife. I will never allow you to leave me."
Wu Jinfeng's tone rose, her voice betraying her unfamiliarity with the man before her. "What do you want to do? Are you going to kill her?"
Du Shaoyou's eyes shone with a cold, ruthless light, and his momentary silence confirmed his attitude. Wu Jinfeng roared and pushed him away, "Are you crazy? That's your child!"
Children are innocent; all the misfortunes in the world come from their parents.
"Even if she forced you into marriage, she is still your wife in name only. How can you be so heartless?!" Wu Jinfeng was incredulous and felt disgusted with the man in front of her. She had never experienced any problems during her pregnancy, but this time, she vomited while leaning on the edge of the table.
"Jinfeng, don't be angry. It's my fault. I shouldn't have made you angry."
She slapped away his outstretched hand, clutched her chest, and felt a nauseous urge in her stomach.
"If you feel sorry for me, set me free and just consider us strangers who met by chance."
“I will never agree.” Du Shaoyou’s eyes shone with determination. “I will agree to anything you ask, but this is the one thing I cannot do.”
"Wait for me. After she dies, I will make you my legal wife."
"Are you crazy?!" Wu Jinfeng felt disgusted from the inside out, and even looking at him was terrifying. "Aren't you afraid the Master of the Manor will hold you accountable?"
"A man like that, who would even harm his own wife, would he care about the life or death of another woman?"
Upon hearing this, Qi Qian'er felt as if struck by lightning, her body convulsing and her vision blurring. The little maid shrank back, her eyes lowered, not daring to look up.
It's obvious they know the truth.
They kept it all from her, they kept it all from her.
Qi Qian'er could no longer hold back. With a bang, she kicked open the door and pointed at the man and woman inside, shouting, "Do you think I'm dead?!"
"Madam?!" Wu Jinfeng was the first to react, kneeling on the ground and begging for her forgiveness, "It's all my fault."
Seeing that the secret had been exposed, Du Shaoyou decided to stop hiding it and said in a cold voice, "Jin Feng, get up. Since she already knows, there's no point in hiding it anymore."
"You adulterous couple, you'll die a horrible death—" Qi Qian'er pointed at the two of them, her maidservant supporting her.
She was in poor health. Since becoming pregnant, she had been unable to eat or sleep well, and even the simple act of kicking the door had exhausted her energy.
“We are adulterers, and what are you?” Du Shaoyou pressed, staring coldly at her. “When I met Jinfeng, you didn’t even exist yet.”
Wu Jinfeng was more pregnant than her, but her pregnancy wasn't very noticeable, and she also disguised it well, so no one ever noticed.
"If it weren't for your father forcibly taking me into his household, Jin Feng and I wouldn't have ended up like this."
Qi Qian'er was out of breath, her eyes bloodshot as she stared at the person beside her, yet despite sharing the same bed day and night, he was thinking of someone else.
"Then why didn't you say anything back then? Why did you keep all this a secret?" Qi Qian'er pressed him, nearly fainting.
"Can I say it? Do I dare to say it? Your father is threatening me with Jin Feng's life, how could I dare to refuse?" He laughed angrily, realizing that deep affection could be faked.
Seeing how much effort she was putting in, Wu Jinfeng tried to help her, but Qi Qian'er turned and glared at her, "Get away—"
The worse she treated Wu Jinfeng, the more Du Shaoyou would protect her, holding her tightly in his arms.
This scene deeply hurt Qi Qian'er. She broke free from the maid's hand and stepped forward to hit the person, but Du Shaoyou stopped her and slammed her to the ground.
Qi Qian'er collapsed to the ground, her face growing paler with each passing moment, and she weakly murmured, "My stomach hurts..."
The maidservant cried out in a panic, "Madam? Madam? Quickly, please fetch a doctor—" Just as she was about to run out, Du Shaoyou blocked her way and grabbed her by the neck.
The maid's face contorted, gradually turning a pale blue, her grotesque features swelling, and finally her neck went limp, her head drooped, and she breathed her last.
Wu Jinfeng hugged Qi Qian'er from behind, calling out anxiously, "Madam?! Madam?!"
I touched something warm and wet, and when I looked up, it was bright red blood.
She had some healing pills beside her and got up to go find them, but Du Shaoyou stopped her and wouldn't let her take them.
A woman suffering from severe hemorrhage is essentially facing a life-or-death situation; it is a living, breathing human being, and she cannot simply ignore it.
Du Shaoyou not only stopped her, but also squatted down in front of Qi Qian'er.
A warm current flowed beneath her, and the life within her was draining away between her legs.
Qi Qian'er looked weakly at this heartless man, who said to her, "I will give you a grand send-off, bury you next to your father's grave, and send you and your father to be reunited in the afterlife."
"You will suffer a terrible death..."
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