Chapter 072

Chapter 072

The Empress Dowager instructed Chen Momo, “Later, let…” She looked at her son, “Jingzhe, have you named the child yet?”

“No.”

“Why?” The Empress Dowager was surprised, “You must have known early that it was a boy.”

He knew, but with Chu Yin always experiencing discomfort, he really wasn’t in the mood for it. Lu Jingzhe thought for a moment, “He’s the second, so let's call him Erlang for now. I’ll pick a proper name for him tomorrow.”

The Empress Dowager gave her son a slight glare, then said, “Later, let Erlang choose a wet nurse to see whose milk he prefers.”

“Yes,” Chen Momo picked up Erlang.

The Empress Dowager then said to her daughter-in-law, “Ah Yin, if you’re not comfortable with it, we can change the wet nurse later.”

“No need, with Mother overseeing it, what do I have to worry about? It saves me the trouble.” The wet nurses had already been screened twice, and it would be difficult to find any faults in a short time. They would use them for now and decide later.

“Then you rest well,” the Empress Dowager patted her son’s arm, “Jingzhe, take good care of Ah Yin. Don’t go to Qianqing Palace today. Missing one day won’t matter,” she added with a smile, “We have to send good news to the in-laws at Prince Jin’s residence and the princess’s estate.” With that, she left.

Chen Momo followed with Erlang.

Lu Zhu and Lu Zhen, completely focused on their new brother, hopped and skipped along to see him.

The hall quieted down, the couple looked at each other in silence, their fingers entwined, eyes meeting.

After a while, Lu Jingzhe asked, “What would you like to eat? I’ll instruct the royal kitchen.”

Chu Yin said, “The healer will have the royal kitchen prepare it. They know what I should eat.”

“Do you want to sleep for a while?”

“Not really,” Chu Yin shook her husband's hand, “You're not really upset with… Erlang, are you? For not naming him sooner. Take a closer look at him later, he resembles you.”

“I don’t think he looks like me now, but don’t worry, I wouldn’t seriously hold a grudge against a child.”

“That’s good,” Chu Yin was very fond of the child, “He wasn’t easy to come by.”

Lu Jingzhe understood.

All those days of effort, indeed, were not easy.

“I’ll definitely choose a good name for him tomorrow.” His mother was also quite displeased earlier.

Chu Yin nodded.

She had just said she wasn’t tired, but soon her eyelids grew heavy.

Seeing her blink slowly, Lu Jingzhe asked, “Tired, aren’t you?”

“Yes, will Your Majesty stay with me?”

He bent down and kissed her cheek, “Of course.”

Chu Yin smiled sweetly and closed her eyes.

He sat there, quietly watching her.

Her hair, her eyebrows, her nose, her lips…

Suddenly, a word popped into his mind.

The child’s name was decided just like that.

Meanwhile, Erlang had chosen his favorite wet nurse, a 19-year-old woman named Luo, who was fair-skinned, had a simple smile, and was adept at caring for children.

After feeding, Erlang quickly fell into a deep sleep.

Rendong came to report but saw the Emperor still sitting by the bed, holding the Empress's hand, unmoving, while the Empress was clearly asleep.

She quietly withdrew.

Unnoticed, the sunlight had shifted, now streaming in from the western window.

Chu Yin opened her eyes to find her right hand numb and still clasped in his grasp. Surprised, she said, “Your Majesty stayed the whole time?” She knew he promised to stay, but hadn't expected him to stay so long.

“Haven’t you eaten lunch?”

“I was waiting to eat with you.”

Worried he might be hungry, Chu Yin quickly called for a maid to prepare a meal.

Lu Jingzhe helped her sit up, adding, “I’ve thought of a name for Erlang.”

Chu Yin had a bad feeling about this.

Could he have just picked any name in such a short time? She hurriedly said, “Your Majesty can take your time, there’s no rush.”

“No need, his name will be Lu Yu, and I’ve even thought of his courtesy name, ‘Ni Xia’.”

‘Ni Xia’ means to hide flaws, but with ‘Yu’ in it, the meaning changes to ‘Jin Yu Ni Xia,’ implying something so perfect that no flaws can be seen.

Chu Yin, surprised, asked, “Does Your Majesty like him that much?”

It was because the child was Chu Yin's, Lu Jingzhao thought. His affection was only for her; how much could he feel for a child he had only seen once? He didn’t explain this, simply accepting it. Chu Yin also hoped he would come to love this child.

Chu Yin was very pleased: "I thank Your Majesty on behalf of Yu'er."

Later, the couple had their meal together; she sat on the bed to eat, while he ate at a table beside her.

Observing carefully, Chu Yin's health seemed robust, and her appetite was good, which reassured him even more.

However, later she asked him to leave as she had sweated a lot during childbirth and needed the palace maids to assist her with bathing, using the restroom, changing clothes, and other such tasks, things she did not want him to see.

In this regard, she still treated him as an "outsider."

Walking outside the hall, Lu Jingzhao issued a decree: The Empress had added another prince to the royal family, a great achievement. He awarded the Chu family twenty rolls of brocade and two boxes of silver. As for Chu Yin... he suddenly didn't know what to reward her with.

His wife lacked neither gold and jewelry nor fine silks and satins.

Thinking over it, he suddenly remembered Chu Yin mentioning her fondness for collecting calligraphy by Liu Xu.

This Wei Dynasty calligrapher had left many works of art, most of which were destroyed in wars. Only four were rumored to remain. He wondered how many she had acquired. After pondering for a moment, Lu Jingzhao instructed Dong Ling to summon Rendong to his study later and added not to disturb Chu Yin.

Dong Ling received the order.

He found an opportunity and stealthily conveyed his master's message to Rendong.

Rendong found it strange, but obeyed the Emperor's command, slipping out to the study while Chu Yin rested.

………………

February 11th of Tai Xi's first year was the liveliest day since the late Emperor's passing.

The second prince, Lu Yu, was celebrating his full-month ceremony.

Relatives, including her father, were to attend. Chu Yin was overjoyed, playfully tapping her second son's nose: "You'll get to see your maternal grandfather soon!"

Lu Zhu said, "I haven’t even met my sister yet."

“You met them when you were younger; you’ve just forgotten.”

“Oh,” Lu Zhu indeed couldn't recall, “But I remember grandmother, uncle, oh, and auntie.”

“Auntie is very pretty,” Lu Zhen also remembered.

“But why can’t Third Uncle go out? He hasn’t even seen our little brother.”

Why was this child still not forgetting Lu Jingrui? Chu Yin said, “Now that you have a little brother to play with, you still think about your Third Uncle? Even if he goes out, he has things to do, just like your Second Uncle.”

Lu Zhu pouted, “But Second Uncle hasn’t given me anything, Third Uncle’s gifts are so much fun!”

“What your Third Uncle can do, I can too,” Chu Yin pinched his little cheek, “Didn’t I fold horses and tigers for you?”

“But those were first given by Third Uncle, Mommy learned it later.”

Chu Yin frowned, then said, “You’ll grow taller this year and can learn to ride a horse. Let Daddy teach you.”

Simply preventing him from getting close to Lu Jingrui had no point. Children can be stubborn; opposing them might lead to dissatisfaction. Better to divert his attention with something new.

Sure enough, Lu Zhu's eyes brightened, “Really? How much taller do I need to grow? Is this much enough?” He gestured with his hand.

“Ask Daddy later.”

Lu Jingzhe would naturally attend his younger son’s full-month celebration.

Seeing his father, Lu Zhu rushed to him, “Mommy said you could teach me to ride a horse this year if I grow taller.”

It seemed she had sold him out again.

Lu Jingzhe glanced at Chu Yin, “You can ride a pony, but not a big horse.”

“…” Lu Zhu was slightly disappointed, but it was still a good thing to learn, “Daddy, how can I grow faster?”

“Eat more, move more, and after your mother’s confinement, you can learn some martial arts from her.”

“Okay!” With a goal in mind, Lu Zhu was full of enthusiasm, “Once I learn, I’ll teach my little brother!”

Lu Zhen, feeling a sense of urgency, quickly grabbed her brother’s hand and stood on tiptoe to whisper in the baby’s ear.

Chu Yin watched with a smile.

The siblings, having different interests, usually played separately. Now with a new brother, they both wanted to sway him to their side. Chu Yin wondered what the baby would like, but as a boy, he might probably enjoy riding and archery, right?

Speaking of which, she hadn’t practiced riding and archery for a while; she planned to resume it after her confinement.

A maid reported, “Your Majesty, Madam, Lord Chu, Lady Chu, Mr. Chu, Mrs. Chu, and Princess Baocheng have arrived…”

The guests had arrived.

Chu Yin, a bit excited, turned her head towards the window.

She still couldn’t get out of bed.

“I’ll have Zhu and Zhen welcome their grandparents,” Lu Jingzhe said, kissing her lips before glancing at his plump younger son and then leading the children out of the inner hall.

The Empress Dowager also arrived at the Eastern Palace, sitting at the head with him. The children joyfully greeted their grandparents, curiously eyeing the former.

Everyone offered their formal greetings.

Lu Jingzhe asked them to rise, “No need for formalities today… Father-in-law, please go see Ah Yin. She’s been looking forward to seeing you.”

Chu Fangheng quickly headed towards the inner hall.

Chu Yin’s eyes reddened at the sight of her tall, handsome father approaching.

Her father noted that apart from a fuller face, his daughter looked no different than the girl before her marriage. Proudly, he thought his daughter, not only beautiful but also intelligent, had firmly captured the Emperor’s heart.

His decision to support her had been right. Ultimately, her perseverance had made it all possible.

As long as she remained the Empress and they made no mistakes, the Chu family would never fall.

“Ah Yin!” he greeted her with a smile.

While the father and daughter caught up, Lady Chu and others gathered around the Second Prince.

Surrounded by praises from his grandmother, uncles, aunts, and great-aunt, the oblivious baby listened to the words of admiration.

The baby soon fell asleep, listening to the voices around him.

He rarely cried, which Lu Jingzhe appreciated. He asked Lady Chu, “Did Ah Yin also not cry much when she was this age?”

Lady Chu laughed, “Ah Yin loved to cry. She couldn’t be away from people. She cried when I left her side or when her nurse left for a while. It got better after she turned five, but as a child, she was always clinging to Ge’er.”

Chu Ge reminisced about the past, feeling somewhat nostalgic: “After we hired a governess, Ah Yin gradually became more sensible and stopped clinging to me.” She became rational, mature, and decisive.

It was precisely because of this that her sister could marry into the royal family and become the current Empress.

Lu Jingzhe fell silent upon hearing this.

When the baby was brought back, he had a safety amulet around his neck from his maternal grandmother and a silver bracelet with a small amulet from Princess Baocheng.

“The Empress Dowager also wanted to give something, but she heard it’s better for the child to wear something from the maternal grandmother, so she didn't.”

Chu Yin smiled, smoothing out her son’s slightly wrinkled new clothes: “Where did Mother hear that? I don’t recall her mentioning it in Qingzhou.”

“Perhaps she heard it after coming to the capital, all for Yu’er’s benefit.”

“Yu’er, see how much your great-grandmother adores you. You must grow up healthy and strong,” Chu Yin said softly, kissing her son’s cheek.

The baby lay still, his lips curling slightly as if smiling.

Chu Yin kissed him again, her affection evident.

Lu Jingzhe suddenly said, “Since he’s asleep, let him be. Don’t wake him up,” instructing the wet nurse Luo Shi to take the baby away.

Chu Yin objected, “Let him sleep here.”

But Lu Jingzhe insisted.

His expression was stern, and Luo Shi quietly stepped forward, advising, “Madam.”

Not wanting to openly defy Lu Jingzhe in front of the nurses and maids, Chu Yin reluctantly handed over the child.

Once Luo Shi and the maids left, Chu Yin expressed her dissatisfaction, “Why can’t Yu’er sleep here? You usually don’t mind during the day.” Since her confinement, he had been busy at Qianqing Palace, and the baby often slept beside her, only taken away at night. She found it odd that he was meddling in such trivial matters today.

Lu Jingzhe replied indifferently, “There are some things children shouldn’t see.”

Chu Yin: “……”