Chapter 1 Entering the Mansion Shen Yunrong followed timidly behind the maid of the Prince's mansion...
Shen Yunrong followed timidly behind the maid of the Prince's mansion, her eyes sweeping over the magnificent inner courtyard of the mansion, where even the bluestone bricks under her feet were spotless.
She suddenly felt like running, her steps faltering. Thinking of her infant daughter at home and her mother with her graying hair, she bit her lip, quickened her pace, and followed closely behind the maid.
The reason why the Prince Zhuang's mansion hired a wet nurse this time was because the son of Aunt Liu, a neighbor, worked in the mansion. He saw that the widow and her child were pitiful and recommended her. The wet nurse had to be reviewed by the nanny in the mansion before it could be decided whether she could stay.
The Prince's mansion was hiring a wet nurse, who would receive two taels of silver a month. Countless people were vying for this coveted position, but Brother Liu had to speak on her behalf so many times that the wet nurse finally agreed to see her. She couldn't give up halfway because of this favor.
I've only been out of the house for half a day, and my chest is swollen. It hurts a little when I take a step. My baby hasn't been able to nurse for half a day, and I don't know if he's been crying.
With her child on her mind, she had no interest in looking around the Prince's mansion. A maid called out crisply, "Granny Li, the person has been brought!"
Shen Yunrong was startled and quickly pressed her head down to her chest.
"Are you a relative of Liu Hu's family?" a dignified female voice rang out.
Shen Yunrong followed the maid and curtsied behind her, calmly replying, "This humble woman, Shen Rongniang, greets Granny!"
"Raise your head?" Granny Li had been searching for a suitable wet nurse for two days, and the young master was crying from hunger. When she saw the fair-skinned and tall Shen Yunrong, her eyes lit up, and she leaned forward slightly from the back of her chair.
Shen Yunrong raised her head, her pretty face as delicate as a peeled egg, especially her clear and pure eyes. If it weren't for her full breasts, you would never guess she was a woman who had given birth.
As usual, Granny Li asked how many people were in her family. When she heard that she was a widow, she frowned. Looking at her fair face, her frown quickly relaxed. She gave a signal, and the door was closed by the maid.
"Take off your clothes!"
Shen Xunrong already knew from the maid that the nanny would examine her body, but she didn't know that in this situation, it wasn't just her and the nanny, but also the maid. Although they were all women, she still felt embarrassed and clutched her collar tightly.
"Hmm?" Seeing her hesitation, Granny Li gave a soft hum. Shen Yunrong immediately stopped hesitating and quickly unbuttoned her clothes, revealing her snow-white breasts.
Granny Li's eyes were filled with amazement. She cupped it in her hand and nodded in satisfaction: "You're the one!"
Shen Yunrong, who was already blushing with embarrassment, couldn't help but show her joy upon hearing this: "Thank you, Granny!"
When she arrived at her room, Shen Yunrong still couldn't believe that she had been chosen. Seeing that all of the dozen or so women who came were more voluptuous than her, she hadn't had any hope to begin with.
Granny Li told her to rest well for the night and to breastfeed the young master tomorrow.
When no one is around, I think of my daughter and wish I could quit this job and go back to hold her tightly.
But she couldn't. It was for her daughter's sake that she couldn't lose this job. She wiped away her tears, took a bath, and drifted off to sleep on this unfamiliar bed.
In her dream, she returned to that day. As usual, she went up the mountain to gather herbs. In the cave she visited every day, there lay a man, a man injured somewhere, unconscious.
As he turned to leave, the man suddenly let out a painful groan. It was getting dark, and the temperature on the mountain would drop significantly. If an ordinary person lay there like that, they would freeze to death even if they weren't sick.
Shen Yunrong couldn't get over the guilt of not helping someone in distress, so she turned around to investigate. She wondered how the man had ended up in the cave. She had discovered the cave by chance. The entrance was covered with vines, and the sap of these vines could cause hallucinations. Villagers would avoid the cave when they saw it, and it was generally difficult to find that there was a cave behind the vines.
After the man groaned, he suddenly arched his back. Shen Yunrong was startled and mustered her courage to approach. The man had sword-like eyebrows, thin lips, and his forehead was covered with beads of sweat. He looked like he was in great pain.
She touched the man's forehead and realized he had a fever. In this desolate wilderness, if she ignored him, he could really die. Fortunately, the vines at the cave entrance were medicine that could reduce inflammation and relieve pain. She tore off a few vines, smashed them with stones, squeezed out the juice, and dripped it into the man's mouth.
Soon, the man stopped hunching over, but an unusual blush appeared on his face, causing him to murmur softly. Shen Yunrong didn't know what he was saying. Seeing that the man was better, she prepared to leave, but her wrist was suddenly grabbed: "So hot!"
This time, Shen Yunrong heard what the man said clearly. Before she could respond, the man pulled her into his arms. At that moment, she didn't know if she had also been poisoned by the vines, because she didn't push him away immediately.
Later, she descended the mountain in a sorry state. She had intended to suffocate the man, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. This was not his fault; she had been careless and only focused on saving the man, forgetting the potent venom of the vine.
The next day when she went up the mountain, the man had disappeared. She breathed a sigh of relief, thinking it was just a nightmare. However, a month later, she felt nauseous and couldn't eat.
After consulting a doctor, she discovered she was pregnant. She had no choice but to confess to her mother what had happened that day. The small village simply couldn't accommodate a woman like her who was pregnant out of wedlock. So she took her mother to the capital to seek refuge with her mother's sister. When they arrived in the capital, her aunt's family, whom she hadn't seen much, had all moved away. They had no money to travel any further, so they settled down in the capital.
Upon hearing her daughter's cries, Shen Yunrong jolted awake in bed. Looking at the unfamiliar surroundings, she realized that she was working in the Prince's mansion. The baby's cries must belong to the young master of the mansion, but why had it been crying for so long?
She hurriedly got up, washed up, and sure enough, the maidservant next to Granny Li came to find her a moment later: "Nanny Chen, the young master is crying very hard, please go and take care of him."
Shen Yunrong hurriedly followed the maid and picked up the child who was about the same age as her daughter. The child seemed to smell the milk and kept snuggling into her arms, so she quickly unbuttoned her clothes.
The moment the baby started suckling, Shen Yunrong trembled all over. Fortunately, the little boy looked about the same age as her daughter, so she quickly got used to it. She gently patted his little bottom and heard the baby gurgling as he drank milk. He had just been crying, and his little face was flushed with sweat. She couldn't tell if it was from crying or from drinking milk.
Looking at the little boy who was about the same age as her daughter, Shen Yunrong felt a wave of tenderness followed by sadness. Her daughter was also so young and had no mother by her side, and was eating only rice cereal.
Li Mama stood beside her, and only when she saw that the young master had been coaxed to sleep by Shen Yunrong did she feel relieved.
"From now on, you will be the wet nurse of the Prince Zhuang's mansion. Apart from feeding the young master, you must not cause trouble or speak too much. When you see the prince or other noble masters, remember to avoid them immediately." After the young master fell asleep and was placed on the small bed, Li Mama sternly spoke to Shen Yunrong word by word.
Shen Yunrong lowered her head and agreed to each of them. She entered the Prince's mansion to make money. She was originally quiet and would not cause trouble or create problems.
With her head bowed and eyes lowered, Granny Li nodded in satisfaction: "Just do your best to take good care of the young master, and you'll be rewarded in the future."
This time, Granny Li only chose her and another fair-skinned, plump older sister to be the young master's wet nurses. Looking at the older sister who was brought in by the maid at the door, Shen Yunrong breathed a slight sigh of relief. She looked easy to get along with.
After Granny Li left, the older woman smiled at her and said, "You're a really pretty girl. My name is Zheng Zhu'er, and I'm twenty-two years old, so I should be a few years older than you."
"Sister Zheng, my name is Rongniang, and I am nineteen years old."
The two spoke in hushed tones, careful not to wake the young master, as they were not familiar with each other. After a brief introduction, they sat quietly.
Just as footsteps sounded at the door, the man's authoritative voice rang out: "How is the young master today?"
"Your Highness, the young master has fallen asleep after drinking his milk." It was Li Mama's voice, but unlike the stern tone she used when speaking to Shen Yunrong, it was now a pleading and cautious one.
Shen Yunrong only had time to see a tall man in a gold-embroidered brocade robe stride in. Zheng Zhuer quickly pulled her down to kneel: "This servant greets Your Highness!"
"Your Highness, this is the new wet nurse who arrived today!" Granny Li's voice trembled with fear; she had carefully selected this woman.
King Zhuang, Zhao Linzhang, kept his eyes straight ahead until he saw the little boy still fast asleep, then he glanced down at the kneeling woman.
"Rise and take good care of the child. I will reward you handsomely!"
Shen Yunrong had never been in close contact with such nobles before. Her heart was pounding and her palms were sweaty. It was Zheng Zhuer who pulled her up; otherwise, she wouldn't have dared to get up.
After saying this, Zhao Linzhang turned and left, not even bothering to glance at the new wet nurse's face. But just as he took a step, a baby's loud cry rang out.
Zheng Zhuer, who had been taking care of the young master for several days, hurriedly turned around to hug the child, and Shen Yunrong paused before following behind her.
Holding the child, Zhao Linzhang, who had returned, looked at the child who had stopped crying and forced an awkward smile: "Little Siliang, let your godfather hold you."
The child, who had stopped crying, pouted and burst into tears again when he saw Zhao Linzhang stretching out his hands.
"Your Highness, this young master has just woken up and must be hungry," Granny Li quickly interjected, trying to smooth things over. Ever since the child was brought back to the manor, he would let anyone else hold him except the prince.
It's no wonder the child was afraid. She had lived for so many years, and the prince had just returned from the battlefield. The battlefield aura and the cold, domineering air of someone who had long held a high position made him imposing without even being angry. She felt fear whenever she spoke to the prince.
"Feed the baby first!"
Just as Shen Yunrong was about to take the child, she looked up and a cold and noble face appeared before her, instantly striking her like a thunderbolt, freezing her blood.
Isn't he the man on the mountain that day? That man was King Zhuang?
Never having imagined she would meet this man again, Shen Yunrong was stunned, her chest heaving violently. Seeing that she didn't intend to take the child, Zheng Zhuer took the child into the inner room herself.
After a moment of panic, Shen Yunrong hurriedly lowered her head and followed behind Zheng Zhuer. Fortunately, the Prince Zhuang did not recognize her.
Or perhaps he simply didn't know she existed. The world is so vast; perhaps they were just two people who looked alike. How could Prince Zhuang, a prince of the highest rank, be all alone in that desolate wilderness? They must be two people who looked alike.
Shen Yunrong kept reassuring herself that she couldn't do without this job. Her mother was old and sick, and her child was young. As long as she didn't say anything, no one would know what happened that day, including that man.
A note from the author:
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