Chapter 61 "When did I fall in love?"
Ye Mingzhu tugged at the corners of her lips, got up and was about to leave: "You should rest well in your room tonight, I'll go and squeeze in with Baozan and the others."
As she passed by Sheng Yunche, unsurprisingly, he stretched out his long arm and pulled her into his arms.
Ye Mingzhu struggled but couldn't break free. She stared at him with her bright, almond-shaped eyes and asked, "What is the Duke doing? Are you going to force me?"
"Are you upset because I kissed your chest too many times? When I kissed you, you were clearly moved too."
"When did I fall in love?"
"You blushed deeply, looking so beautiful and charming that you dared not look at me."
"Oh...maybe I'm just more shy than you."
"..." Sheng Yunche couldn't help but chuckle, resting his chin on her shoulder and saying helplessly, "Alright, alright, I promise I won't touch you tonight, just behave yourself and don't run away."
"..."
Is it okay?
Ye Mingzhu had a headache. She gently pushed him away a little and asked, "Did the Princess come back with you? Have you finished your official business?"
“No,” Sheng Yunche said matter-of-factly. “I left in a hurry and forgot to tell my mother. It’s fine with the camp in the southern suburbs; we can go there tomorrow.”
Ye Mingzhu was even more troubled: "You..."
"Although we are just business partners, my mother doesn't know that. She thinks I fell in love with you at first sight, that my feelings were deeply rooted, and that I reaped what I sowed..."
Ye Mingzhu looked at him, narrowed her almond-shaped eyes, and took a deep breath.
Sheng Yunche cleared his throat and continued, "My mother is eager to have a grandson, and she's overjoyed to know I've come back to see you. My parents-in-law must feel the same way, hoping you'll bear me a son. If you don't get pregnant soon, they'll be worried too, so..."
Ye Mingzhu said with a half-smile, "So you should get your health back on track! Only when you're healthy can you do other things."
This person, who is usually very sparing with words, rarely speaks so much, but it's all for that one thing!
Sheng Yunche: "..."
Ye Mingzhu hummed softly, then pushed him away forcefully and walked to the door, instructing Baozan to go to the small kitchen to add a few dishes.
...
The sun was setting in the west; it was already dusk.
In a secluded corner of Rongshou Hall, Yushu stared in disbelief at the young maidservant before her, frowning as she held the letter and asked, "You said this was sent to me by the magpie?"
"Yes." The little maid nodded vigorously and said nervously, "Sister Yushu, I would never dare to lie to you. I don't know what's written inside either. Look, the sealing wax on this envelope is intact! I... I've delivered the letter, so I'll go back to my duty now."
"Hello……"
Yu Shu tried to call out again, but the little maid had already disappeared. She stomped her foot in anger.
Everyone in the manor knew about the magpie that climbed onto the bed and was killed by the Second Master, so no one wanted to get involved, and she was no exception.
But to her utter surprise, the magpie actually wrote her a letter...
That's really scary!
She clearly didn't know the magpie at all, and they had no connection whatsoever!
Yu Shu intended to tear the letter to pieces and throw it away, but for some inexplicable reason, after hesitating for a long time, she still opened the letter and read it quickly.
After reading the letter, her expression kept changing, and her eyes showed struggle.
After a long while, she took a deep breath, carefully folded the letter into a square, and put it in the sachet that she always carried with her. She had already made up her mind.
As soon as she returned to the courtyard, a maid rushed up to her, panting, and said, "Sister Yushu, Madam wants you to serve her and wants you to hurry!"
"Okay, I understand." Yu Shu replied, then paused and said with a smile, "My clothes are dirty, I'll go back to my room to change, I'll be right there."
"Please hurry."
"good."
Walking quickly back to her sleeping room, Yu Shu went to her trunk and hesitated before choosing a moon-white, elegant dress from it.
She had always preferred bright colors, and had only worn this pale white dress a few times, always finding it bland and tasteless. But the magpie said in the letter…
Thinking of this, Yu Shu quickly changed her clothes and left the room.
As she walked into the main hall of Rongshou Hall, she caught a glimpse of Sheng Huai'an out of the corner of her eye. Not daring to look him in the eye, she carefully stood behind Madam Jia and whispered, "Madam."
Madam Jia turned to look at her, sized her up and down, nodded with a stern face, and Yu Shu breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Yu Shu felt her sleeve being tugged, and she looked at Granny Wang. Granny Wang gave her a kind and reassuring smile, which made her feel more at ease, and a secret joy welled up inside her.
Madam Jia spoke to Sheng Huai'an, who was drinking tea, saying, "I called you here today to talk to you about Yu Shu."
Yu Shu was even happier.
Sheng Huai'an frowned and looked over, and Yu Shu's heart tightened again.
Madam Jia said, "She is different from the magpie; she doesn't have any intention of climbing the social ladder. Before, when she went to your study, well... I saw that you're already so old and have reached the age where you should be aware of worldly affairs, so I asked her to go to your study to serve you."
"If you don't like it, I'll get you a different maid, or I'll go outside and buy you a few with better colors?"
Sheng Huai'an frowned and said, "Mother, I want to focus on the imperial examination."
"Taking a concubine is nothing; it doesn't conflict with the imperial examinations. As long as you don't become obsessed with women, everything is negotiable," Jia said. "Look at the top two scholars of the previous year; didn't they all have families and children?"
“But…” Sheng Huai’an hesitated for a moment, then looked up at Yu Shu, as if he was considering whether or not he should take her.
Yu Shu lowered her eyes nervously, keeping her eyes downcast and her mind at ease, appearing gentle and polite.
She was a completely different person from the one who dressed brightly and lightly that night and took the initiative to throw herself into Sheng Huai'an's arms.
“Since it was chosen by my mother, she must be good. I don’t care much about a woman’s appearance; she’s just something to have fun with, so I’ll just make do with her.” Sheng Huai’an said.
"Alright." Madam Jia smiled. "Since you've agreed, take her with you when you return to the study next time."
Sheng Huai'an stood up and bowed, saying, "Thank you, Mother."
"Aren't you going to thank Madam?" Granny Wang nudged Yu Shu.
Yu Shu forced a smile, quickly walked up to Jia Shi, performed a deep kneeling bow, and quietly stood behind Sheng Huai'an.
From that moment on, she belonged to Sheng Huai'an.
Although she was just a concubine, she wouldn't have to do any dirty or tiring work anymore, which was much more comfortable than being a regular maid.
If she serves the Second Master and his future wife well, and her womb bears a son or daughter, becoming a concubine is not out of the question.
But for some reason, even though this was something she had been dreaming about for the past few days, she suddenly lost interest and didn't feel the joy she had expected.
She was even somewhat confused.
She recalled that night after she was kicked out of the study, Fu'an comforted her in a low voice as she cried, saying that the Second Master was not a good match for her, and that she should find a suitable steward in the mansion to marry and become a steward's wife.
A concubine is merely a means of amusement for the master, something to make do with as is. A head maidservant is probably not one of those.
That's why Fu'an advised her?
...
The night was deep.
After Ye Mingzhu finished acupuncture on Sheng Yunche, she handed him water to rinse his mouth after he vomited a mouthful of black blood, and then gave him a bowl of medicinal juice to replenish his qi and blood.
After drinking the medicine in one gulp, Sheng Yunche got up and went to the bathhouse.
When he returned, still damp and sweaty, Ye Mingzhu was already sitting cross-legged on the bed, looking at a thin letter.
"What letter?" Sheng Yunche asked.
"Before the magpie died, it wrote a letter to Yu Shu. Yan Zhi got the original from Yu Shu and made a copy for me."
"Oh?" Sheng Yunche raised an eyebrow, got on the bed and sat down next to her. "Let's take a look together."
Ye Mingzhu glanced at him, dispelling his idea of getting closer, and handed him the letter directly: "You can read it yourself."
Sheng Yunche: "...?"
He curled his lips into a half-smile, then suddenly stood up and pinned her to the bed, looking down at her with a fierce gaze, gritting his teeth as he said, "Trying to guard against me like a jackal or a tiger, huh?"
"Sheng Huai'an is about to have concubines! And I'm still a virgin, is that reasonable?!"
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