Chapter 103 It seems you're going to be a father.
Yu Mingshu's plan to abduct the little princess was realized during a day off in the latter part of this month.
It wasn't that she was incredibly audacious to try and trap the princess in a sack; it was that Fu'an overheard a gluttonous palace maid talking about the new Fengyang iced tea and asked the imperial kitchen to make it for her to try.
Where in the Imperial Kitchen can you find Fengyanglou's exclusive recipe? After hearing about this, Liang Yuanjun pointed out a clear path for Fu'an and sent someone to take her to the Pingyan Marquis's residence.
Fu'an's arrival seemed ill-timed. As soon as she entered, she saw two people sitting on a swing. Her teacher, Ms. Yu, was resting her head on her cousin He's shoulder, while her cousin He's arm was around Ms. Yu's waist.
A breeze swept through the room, scattering a few petals that landed squarely on Yu Mingshu's brow. He Zheng lowered his head, gently blowing away the petals, which also woke his dozing wife.
"It's a bit hot, let go of me," Yu Mingshu said.
He Zheng released her and whispered in her ear, "Your waist seems to have gotten a little thicker lately."
Before he could finish speaking, he was slapped on the arm.
"Stop saying such unpleasant things."
"Why is it unpleasant to hear... I like it more than anything."
Fu'an lifted her clothes and ran to the swing. The two people who were snuggling together were quite startled.
He Zheng stiffly withdrew his hand, cursing Jing Hong a thousand times in his heart. How could this kid be so incompetent? He didn't even know to announce the arrival of the princess!
Yu Mingshu's earlobes glowed with an inconspicuous red as he stood up and bowed to Fu'an.
"Why did the princess decide to come to the Marquis's residence today?"
Fu'an stared at He Zheng's restless hand, tilted his head in confusion, and then looked up at Yu Mingshu and said, "Teacher, I want to eat pomegranate shaved ice."
The so-called pomegranate crushed ice is made by freezing cold brewed flower tea into ice, then crushing the ice, peeling out the pomegranate seeds and making juice, and then mixing the juice with the crushed ice to make an iced drink.
This recipe was conceived by Yu Mingshu when he was craving something sweet one day. He took it to Fengyanglou to try it out, and it unexpectedly became the top-selling product in Fengyang Iced Tea's summer series this year.
Yu Mingshu hesitated for a moment, then bent down to pat the princess's head, looked into her eyes, and asked, "Does His Majesty know about your leaving the palace?"
Fu'an looked back at her expectantly, "If it weren't for my elder sister's permission, how could I have come to Chongrenfang alone? Teacher, look at those eunuchs outside the courtyard, they were all sent by my elder sister."
The person left the palace through the proper channels, which put Yu Mingshu at ease. But then she thought, children have delicate stomachs and should avoid eating raw or cold foods. What if the princess had a stomachache after eating iced drinks? How would she explain that to His Majesty?
Upon closer reflection, the food safety dispute that occurred at Fengyang Tower was due to the princess's own mother.
"The palace maids all say that the new drink from Fengyang Tower is sweet and sour, refreshing and thirst-quenching, and the taste is amazing." Fu'an gently tugged at Yu Mingshu's sleeve and shook it, her tone pleading, "Teacher, I want one too."
Yu Mingshu could not possibly say "no".
He Zheng understood her concerns and stepped forward to stand between her and Princess Fu'an, coaxing the child in a stiff tone: "Teacher Yu can't eat cold food these days. If the princess eats iced drinks in front of her, she'll be envious. A new pastry shop has opened in the East Market. They have a honey chicken cake that tastes really good. How about we have Jinghong buy some for the princess to try?"
Fu'an's attention was indeed diverted, and he asked in a daze, "Why can't the teacher eat ice? Is he sick?"
He Zheng didn't know how to explain it to the young girl, so he made an excuse: "Your Highness will know in a few years."
Yu Mingshu glanced at him, and something suddenly came to mind.
Her periods were irregular, and she herself didn't quite remember the dates. Only after He Zheng reminded her did she recall when her last period was.
It's been almost two months already.
The two entertained Princess Fu'an with a chess game for the entire morning, and in the afternoon, they found an excuse to have her sent to the Yang residence.
As they were all the princess's teachers, Yang Leyi couldn't expect to have any peace and quiet.
The courtyard returned to quiet. He Zheng closed the door and was finally able to hold Yu Mingshu in his arms without restraint, his palm gently stroking her waist.
"Don't you feel uncomfortable every time you speak to the princess in a high-pitched voice?"
Yu Mingshu's face flushed, and she pushed his hand away, saying, "It doesn't hurt."
He Zheng shamelessly pestered her again, whispering, "My wife likes little girls, let's have one too."
Yu Mingshu suddenly fell silent.
He Zheng felt a moment of panic, his breathing quickened, and he changed his words, saying, "It was all a joke, I wasn't trying to put pressure on you..."
Yu Mingshu turned to face him, pressed two fingers to his lips, and frowned slightly. "I didn't come last month, so I should have come this month by now. But I still haven't come."
This passage can be incredibly confusing at first glance.
Their eyes met, and He Zheng instantly understood her unspoken meaning. The air seemed to freeze, falling into an eerie silence. At such a moment, the rapid beating of his heart was exceptionally clear.
Yu Mingshu gripped his hand tightly and realized that both of their palms were sweaty.
"He Xingzhao, it seems you're going to be a father."
He Zheng's mind was still blank, and his mouth blurted out before he could think: "Really?"
Coming back to his senses, he hurriedly added, "I mean, we always take precautions..."
“That thing can’t guarantee complete safety.” Yu Mingshu was more composed than him.
Aside from surgical sterilization in later generations, what method of contraception in the world is foolproof and safe?
She had discussed the issue of having children frankly with He Zheng shortly after they got married. It wasn't that she didn't plan to have children, but rather that she didn't plan to have them in her early twenties.
Now, five or six years later, even though He Zheng doesn't mention it and the elders of both families don't urge her, she herself has started to think about getting pregnant.
He Zheng's reaction was not one of surprise, but rather one of unease.
Yu Mingshu gently wrapped her arms around his neck, her eyes clear and bright. "If it's true, then that's good too."
He Zheng's eyes immediately lit up with joy. "You really think so?"
Yu Mingshu smiled and said, "The world is at peace these days, and the affairs of the court are relatively quiet. This fellow has come at just the right time."
…
To avoid being disappointed, she still sought a private diagnosis from Zhou Fuling.
Zhou Fuling has now been promoted to Assistant Imperial Physician, a position second only to the Emperor in the Imperial Medical Bureau. She usually serves the health of the Emperor, Empress Dowager, and Princess Fu'an, and occasionally does some teaching work, training young physicians and apprentices for the Imperial Medical Bureau.
Imperial physicians could treat the illnesses of officials, imperial guards, and even palace maids and eunuchs in the capital, but these tasks were usually delegated to lower-level physicians. Unless appointed by imperial decree, the assistant imperial physician would not be able to take the lead.
Yu Mingshu was an exception in Zhou Fuling's work. Whenever Yu Mingshu came to see a doctor, Zhou Fuling would always put aside other matters and take her pulse first.
The large room was so quiet that you could hardly hear a breath. Yu Mingshu reached out and let Zhou Fuling take her pulse, but her gaze wandered around the room, taking in all the furnishings of her bedroom. She could even count the grain on the beams clearly. She was completely unprepared to see Zhou Fuling's expression.
"You don't need to hold your breath, just relax," Zhou Fuling said, unable to bear it any longer.
Yu Mingshu chuckled twice. "I just thought your official residence was quite spacious, so I figured the Imperial Physician's treatment was much better than before."
Zhou Fuling didn't respond to her words. She moved her wrist away, put the pulse pillow back, and said calmly, "The pregnancy is still in its early stages, so the pulse isn't obvious yet. But in my judgment, this matter is almost certain."
Yu Mingshu's breath hitched. "You mean, I'm really pregnant?"
“You can’t say for sure. Don’t rush to make a fuss. It’s not too late to wait another month.” Zhou Fuling packed up her medicine box and raised an eyebrow at her. “In the past few years, countless men have been gossiping, saying that you only care about getting promoted and making money and don’t care about carrying on the He family line. Xu Jie from the Bureau of Justice has the most venomous tongue. He secretly mocked you for having a hidden illness… Now, let’s see what they can say now.”
Yu Mingshu scoffed, "My uterus is on my body. Do I need to ask them for their opinion on when I want to get pregnant?"
Zhou Fuling chuckled, no longer mentioning these unpleasant things, carefully reminding her of some precautions, and then watched her leave.
…
As autumn turned to winter, news of Yu Mingshu's pregnancy spread.
Actually, she didn't show much reaction. After her pregnancy became visible, the weather turned cold. The official robes were designed for looser fits, and everyone was wearing thick clothes, so no one noticed her waistline.
The problem was that He Zheng went to the Political Affairs Hall four times a day, personally picking him up and dropping him off in the morning and evening, and also bringing him food and supplements at noon and in the afternoon. After a while, everyone could see something was amiss.
As a result, Yu Mingshu's ears were no longer at peace. People would always come to fawn over him, offering expensive gifts under the guise of caring about his health.
Yu Mingshu felt no care whatsoever and only suspected that someone wanted to harm her.
After being refused multiple times, He Zheng took matters into his own hands and stormed into the government office with the old ginseng root covered in mud and tied with a red ribbon. He stuffed the ginseng into the mouth of the person who had given him the gift, and only then did this unhealthy trend stop.
During the afternoon break, Yu Mingshu put down her chores and closed her eyes to rest. Just as her eyelids touched, she heard a very soft sound of a door being pushed open.
Chen Qingyue quietly placed down a few folded documents and met her gaze.
"I'm sorry, I disturbed you."
"No, I wasn't asleep either."
Yu Mingshu gestured for her to sit down and talk, "Li Ji came to see you just now."
Li Ji was the only grandson of Li Qinian. He worked quietly in the history museum for many years, compiling the national history, until Li Qinian was about to retire, at which point he was suddenly promoted.
It is a common practice for retired leaders to help their children before retirement, a situation that has remained prevalent in later generations.
The Li family had a strict family tradition, and Li Ji did not have the arrogant habits of the Xie family's children. After being promoted to the position of Zhongshu Sheren, he remained humble and polite to his colleagues. Judging from appearances alone, he was a gentleman who was cultured, polite and principled.
There was only one thing that made Yu Mingshu somewhat dissatisfied.
This person comes to see Chen Qingyue every few days, but when asked about it in detail, it's never anything important... Office romances are not advisable, and it's even more unacceptable to try to seduce her capable assistant in front of her.
Mentioning Li Ji also brought back some unpleasant memories for Chen Qingyue.
"Don't even mention that Li Sheren. I left late yesterday, and before I got back, I overheard two gossipy people whispering all the way."
Seeing her face full of resentment, and that she didn't seem to have any good feelings towards the name Li Ji or even the person himself, Yu Mingshu's expression softened slightly.
She raised an eyebrow and asked with interest, "What did they say?"
Chen Qingyue still felt annoyed when she thought about it, and said, "These people got together to guess when you would go back to prepare for childbirth, and they even made a bet on it! The bet was on who was more likely to succeed Prime Minister Li after you gave birth, Li Sheren or Yang Zuocheng."
Yu Mingshu was somewhat speechless.
"I'm about to give birth, not die."
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