In February of the 41st year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, Yihua was already six months pregnant.
The little one in my belly is lively and active, practicing boxing every day. He especially likes Honghui, and moves a lot when he hears his older brother reading.
Sometimes Yi-hua would feel a pain in her belly from being stretched, and she would think to herself that this was such a naughty child.
At the same time, Yi Hua's peaceful pregnancy came to an end, and she began to vomit everything she ate.
It all started with a hot pot meal. It was the dead of winter when Yi Hua suddenly had the idea to order a mutton soup hot pot. The chefs in the mansion went to great lengths to prepare a large table of dishes, but unfortunately, Yi Hua was not able to enjoy them.
From the moment she smelled the mutton soup, Yihua couldn't stop vomiting. In a fit of anger, Yinzhen punished the eunuch in charge of cooking with ten strokes of the cane.
This pot of mutton soup was like a switch that had been turned on. Yi Hua couldn't stand the smell of anything anymore, and even the flowers and plants in the yard were moved away. She could only eat a little porridge every day, and she quickly lost weight, making her belly look unusually big.
Yi Hua instructed Granny Chen to send some medicine to the head eunuch in charge of cooking, along with twenty taels of silver. The person in charge of the kitchen had been doing a good job, and was being punished because of their mistress's own fault; therefore, she had to be properly comforted.
That day, Yinzhen returned late from supervising the accounting at the government office. Seeing a bowl of rice porridge and a small dish of pickled vegetables in front of Yihua, he frowned so much that he could kill a fly: "Su Peisheng, tell Feng Yong to get in here. Does he not want to serve you anymore?"
Feng Yong was the chief eunuch in charge of cooking at the Fourth Prince's residence. Yinzhen had eaten his cooking since he was a child and found it very delicious.
"Your Majesty, it has nothing to do with anyone else, it's just that I can't eat." Yi Hua's face was pale and her voice was weak, which made Yin Zhen even more worried.
Feng Yong dragged his aching legs in and knelt down: "This servant greets Your Highness and Your Highness's wife."
"The Princess Consort has a poor appetite, so you must find ways to persuade her to eat more. How can her body withstand eating this every day?" Yinzhen said angrily, pointing to the dinner that had not yet been cleared away.
Feng Yong kowtowed: "Your Majesty, this servant is also worried about the health of the Fujin and the young master. This bowl of porridge may seem ordinary, but it was actually made using a medicinal diet method after consulting with the imperial physician. The taste may be average, but it is definitely very nutritious."
"This servant dares to say that nausea and vomiting are common occurrences during pregnancy. Perhaps the Fujin's household has some of the foods that the Fujin liked when she was young, which might have a miraculous effect," Feng Yong said, mustering his courage.
Yinzhen thought about it and felt that what he said made sense. Even if his wife still couldn't eat, having her own mother by her side would surely make her feel better.
"Alright, carefully observe the Princess's diet, you may leave."
Yinzhen didn't mind the lingering smell of Yihua's vomit and leaned closer to look at her pale face.
"How about letting your mother stay for a while tomorrow?" Yinzhen coaxed her. "Also, Honghui will be six years old in a little over a month. You are not in good spirits and your health is so bad. You can't take care of him. Why don't you let him move to the front yard in advance? With me looking after him and the eldest princess there, you can rest assured."
Upon hearing this, Yi Hua grabbed Yin Zhen's hand tightly: "No, he's not even six years old yet."
“I don’t want him to feel that he can be abandoned for the sake of Honghui, the baby in my belly.”
"Yinzhen, he can only accompany me for these six years. I hope these are six complete years. After March, he will move into the front courtyard, have the Haha Beads, and officially start studying in the study. His future is bright."
"He belongs to me completely for these six years only, please don't move him away, okay?"
Yinzhen quickly patted Yihua's back, feeling her bony spine, and felt very sad: "Alright, alright, we won't move now. I was just saying, why are you in such a hurry?"
"Take a break, have some water." Yinzhen tested the temperature of the cup and brought it to Yihua's lips.
"Master, how about we prepare a different kind of sixth birthday celebration for Honghui?" Yihua thought for a moment and suddenly had an idea.
Seeing that Yihua's attention was diverted while she was thinking about things, and that she was vomiting less frequently, Yinzhen quickly replied, "What does the Princess Consort want to do?"
Yinzhen chatted with Yihua for a long time, and he began to understand her meaning.
The Fujin (princess) always had a sense of cherishing Honghui as if she had lost him and then regained him. This feeling was so strong that Yinzhen suddenly felt a little envious of Honghui. He could feel the Fujin's affection for him, but this affection was always elusive, like a vast distance separating them, unlike her affection for Honghui, which was as passionate as a volcanic eruption.
******
The next day, Ulanara rushed over early in the morning, her heart aching at the sight of her daughter's pointed chin.
"Your Highness hasn't had breakfast yet, has she? This is something I had prepared overnight. It was your favorite when you were little. Try it and see if you have an appetite."
Yihua saw her mother take out a plate of still-warm, soft-looking pastries from the food box. Curious, she picked one up and took a bite. The pastry was golden and crispy, with a generous filling inside. This one was black sesame.
It looked like it was deep-fried, but it wasn't greasy at all, and it was sweet. Yi Hua ate three of them in one go.
Granny Chen chanted Amitabha Buddha's name beside her: "It's all thanks to Madam's resourcefulness. The Princess Consort ate several times more than usual today."
Madam Unalana pulled out a small paper bag from the food box, tore it open, and found dried apricots inside: "I heard you were feeling very unwell. This is what your father bought yesterday at Wuweixuan Restaurant. When you were little, you always clamored to eat their dried fruit, and your father often went to queue up."
Yi Hua wiped her mouth, took a sip of water, and then took a bite. The taste was extremely sour and refreshing, and the feeling of nausea was immediately suppressed.
"Your daughter is unfilial, causing your mother and father worry." Yi Hua was deeply moved. They had to prepare all these kinds of food overnight, which showed how much they cared.
"What's the big deal? Anyway, Mother doesn't have anything important to do at home." Lady Ulanara said indifferently. She carefully looked around her daughter's residence. There were traces of the male master's life everywhere in the room, which was good. "Come on, after we finish eating, we need to move around so that we will have an appetite for the next meal."
"Mother, what you're saying makes it sound like I'm a little piglet." Yi Hua frowned, disliking the way it was described.
Lady Ulanara nudged her: "Don't be upset. The words may be rough, but the reasoning is sound. The child is at a crucial stage of growth. If you can't eat, not only will you feel uncomfortable, but he will too."
And so, Lady Ulanara accompanied Yihua for half a morning stroll through the garden. Yihua was feeling a bit tired, so she went to catch up on her sleep.
"Granny Chen, come here."
Lady Ulanara asked Granny Chen to go outside to talk so as not to disturb Yihua's rest: "Did Yihua have similar symptoms when she was pregnant with Honghui?"
Granny Chen shook her head: "Madam, although it was the first time for the Fujin to have a baby, she had very little reaction, but the delivery was a bit difficult."
Lady Ulanara looked around and said, "Most women experience morning sickness in the first three months, so Yihua's unusual behavior must have a reason. Have you thoroughly searched this house?"
Upon hearing this, Granny Chen suddenly realized what was happening, and her expression changed drastically.
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