The Spring Cherry Blossom Garden is empty at night.
Wu Chun stood before the window, gazing at the pair of mandarin duck candlesticks. The bronze-engraved mandarin ducks were lifelike. The white candles burned quietly and slowly, without even a flicker of the flame.
The interior was quiet and peaceful.
The day before entering the palace, Fukang'an sat under the mandarin duck candlesticks, his brows furrowed with worry for her and the child's safety.
She had initially thought that the doting attention she had received during these past few months of pregnancy was because Fukang'an had finally grown tired of Yan Ning. A woman who couldn't conceive couldn't hold onto the position of a general's wife.
So she used the child in her womb to restrain Fukang'an's steps, keeping him confined to Chunying Garden.
Wuchun thought she had succeeded, but it was only to make Fukang'an feel guilty for making her take musk every day in the palace. She could have chosen not to gamble, but for the sake of her child, she had to take the gamble.
Of all the things she had ever seen that could harm her, only Fukang'an had done something that made others so willing to harm her. In her heart, her fear of Fukang'an outweighed her love.
On the day they returned from the Yuanmingyuan and entered the mansion, Fukang'an announced to the servants who were welcoming the three that Yan Ning was pregnant.
The shock came not only from the servants kneeling or standing on the blue stone slab, but also from Wuchun, who was surrounded by them.
The winter wind changes in an instant, warm in one place and cold in another.
Both courtyards in the mansion were warm or cold, and it was not long before Wuchun was about to give birth, but Fukang'an rarely stayed in Chunying Garden.
Although the best tonics in the manor were all from Chunying Garden, they were all chosen first by Jian Gong Zhai. As the madam, this was the proper custom, and she should have chosen the best ones first.
Wu Chun didn't care about these material possessions. However, the servants of Chunying Garden, who were used to being arrogant, couldn't stand the cold words from the kitchen and front yard.
Every time he returned to Chunying Garden, he would always report to Wuchun verbatim. This didn't please them, but saying it out loud in Chunying Garden was like slapping Wuchun in the face.
As spring approached, Wuchun, who was sensitive to the cold, kept the underground heating in Chunying Garden as warm as if it were winter. Because she slept during the day, the deeper the night, the harder it was for her to sleep.
She ordered Diecui to fetch a thick cloak, wanting to go out and see if the pale moonlight was as lonely as she was.
Since the day I returned home, when it snowed heavily, it hasn't snowed again. The moonlight shone on the cold asphalt slabs, obscuring the road ahead, but the patterns on the slabs underfoot were clearly visible.
Wu Chun did not let Die Cui light the lamp; instead, the two walked along the wide courtyard road by the moonlight.
As dawn broke, a few early-rising servants walked by. Wu Chun hadn't seen such moonlight in a long time; though it carried a chill, it brought her a sense of peace.
Spring Cherry Blossom Garden truly lives up to its name; once you step outside the gate, you're surrounded by lush trees. Artificial rocks rise and fall in a series, and if you were to sit in the Spring Welcoming Pavilion, which embraces the summer's embrace, on a spring day, surrounded by vibrant flowers and verdant leaves, with goldfish leaping in the pond, the scenery would be breathtaking.
Thinking this, she imagined her child being born in such a setting, and whether it was a boy or a girl, it would surely be a rosy-cheeked baby. Wu Chun's face revealed an undisguised smile. She took Die Cui's hand and wanted to climb up the towering Yingchun Pavilion to see if there were any flowers vying for spring's favor.
Just as she climbed a stone step, she heard the uninhibited conversation of two maids in the distance, which reached her ears perfectly.
"No matter how favored Aunt An was in the past, she was still a woman from Wanxiang Pavilion, unlike our Madam who is the apple of the eye of the Su family in Jiangnan. Now that Madam is pregnant, the Jian Gong Zhai is almost overflowing with rare items."
"Indeed! It was because the lady said that the morning dew in early spring has the coolness of snow and the warmth of spring, and that if it were used to make soup, it would be an exquisite delicacy. Now, the general has ordered us to collect the dew day and night."
"If Aunt An had given birth to a young master, life would be better! But if she had given birth to a young lady, then she would truly be a concubine's daughter. Didn't we already have one in our household? Miss Peng is talented, virtuous, and beautiful, yet she still became Master Fu's concubine."
"So what if she gave birth to a young master? This mansion already has the eldest son, Delin. Even if Madam gives birth to another young master, it will never go against the hierarchy of legitimate and illegitimate children, no matter what!"
"······"
Hearing the words of the maids at Jian Gong Zhai, Wu Chun frowned and threw the hot water bottle in her hand to the ground. The hot water bottle rolled a few times and stopped at the feet of the two maids.
A maid slipped and fell, only then did she see Wuchun and Diecui hidden in the moonlight. She quickly pulled another maid beside her to kneel down.
"This servant greets Consort An!"
Wu Chun still had her eyebrows furrowed. She descended the stone steps, and her shallow embroidered shoes kicked the separated hot water bottle in front of the two of them.
"Are the maids of Jian Gong Zhai so arrogant and rude? How has the Madam taught you all? If I report this to the General, I'll see how your skin is torn and bleeding under the military whip!"
Wu Chun's face was contorted with anger, making her delicate features lose their usual gentleness.
Ranxin and Ranyu knelt on the ground, their bodies curled up in a ball.
"Please spare us, Aunt An! We know we were wrong! Please spare us, Aunt An!"
Ranxin and Ranyu's foreheads struck the cold stone slab, creating bloody gashes that oozed blood. The warm wounds felt chilly when the cold air blew on them, and their teeth chattered.
The military whip would tear flesh when it fell on the master, but if it fell on the servants, it would cripple them for the rest of their lives.
Although Wu Chun is no longer favored, she is still a concubine in the mansion, holding a higher position.
Wu Chun had no intention of letting them off the hook. The gossip in the manor wasn't limited to just the two of them; if she didn't take this opportunity to suppress the rumors, how would she maintain her position in the manor if she gave birth to a daughter?
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