Chapter 144

Chapter 144

Song Shian was so excited that he couldn’t sleep all night.

Early the next morning, he rushed to the study and penned a note, having the servant Gui Pi deliver it later to Lu Shuyu, the heir of the Marquis of Jinxiang, inviting him to have drinks together the next evening.

But that wasn’t all. At the Ministry of Personnel, once all his colleagues had gathered, he waved his hand and announced with a flourish, “There’s a joyous event in my family. Tonight, I’m treating all my colleagues to drinks at Fan Lou.”

The officials immediately cheered.

Deputy Minister Hu Ningyuan sucked in a breath, “Oh my, oh my! There are dozens of us in the ministry. If we all go, we’ll need seven or eight tables. A meal at Fan Lou, including drinks, costs at least five taels of silver per table. That would likely set me back forty or fifty taels of silver.”

After a brief pause, he exclaimed, “You’re really splashing out, Lord Song!”

Song Shian smiled, “A five-tael banquet per table isn’t upscale enough. I’ve booked tables at ten taels per table.”

As soon as his words fell, gasps erupted all around.

Hu Ningyuan sighed, “Lord Song is really splurging!”

Song Shian raised his lips proudly, “It’s fine. My wife is well-off.”

Everyone: “……”

Sure, your wife has money, but aren’t you worried she’ll give you an earful for being so extravagant?

So, what exactly was the joyous event in the Song family that made Song Shian take the risk of being scolded by Jiang Niangzi just to treat his colleagues to drinks?

But they were all officials in the bureaucracy, not fools. Since Song Shian didn’t mention it, they naturally wouldn’t be so tactless as to ask.

Everyone remained tight-lipped, but that night at Fan Lou, Song Shian generously announced the good news that his wife was pregnant.

Everyone: “……”

No wonder he had the audacity to invite his colleagues to Fan Lou so extravagantly. It turned out that Jiang Niangzi was pregnant.

No wonder he was so fearless. He was showing off for Jiang Niangzi, and even if she found out about this later, she probably wouldn’t scold him.

Moreover, they were all older than Song Shian and almost everyone had several children. Yet, none of them were as smug as he was just because their wives were pregnant.

Especially some of the older officials, stroking their beards, thought to themselves, “Still wet behind the ears, isn’t he?”

Song Shian didn’t care what they thought. His smile didn’t leave his face all day. He felt that life was becoming more and more delightful, and he even wished he could live another hundred years.

Jiang Chun’s mood was also quite good that day because, just after finishing breakfast, people began to arrive with congratulatory gifts.

First, from Madame Zhuang’s maternal family, both the eldest and second madams of the Zhuang family sent many tonics and medicinal herbs.

*

From the Li family, the maternal family of the second madam, despite their silence when Madame Li was sent to the family temple, they even sent congratulations upon hearing of Jiang Chun’s pregnancy.

Then came gifts from the maternal family of the third madam, Madame Qiu, in the form of many tonics and medicinal herbs sent by the wife of the Marquis of Wuan.

Even the Zhou family, the maternal family of the old madam, sent a congratulatory gift.

Aside from the in-laws, the wife of the heir of Marquis of Jinxiang, Madame Xiao, and Lady Lu the Second Mistress also sent many tonics and medicinal herbs.

Another person familiar to her, Lady Cao, also sent someone with gifts.

Even Yu Ancheng came with a package, saying that his wife had asked him to bring it.

He quickly glanced at Jiang Chun's belly and said, "Now that you're pregnant, I suppose you'll have to put your martial arts training on hold?"

Jiang Chun sighed, "I’ll have to put it on hold for now and resume after my confinement."

In truth, she believed she could continue her martial arts training since she was pretty tough and could handle the strain.

But Song Shian absolutely refused to allow it.

Considering how desperately he had been longing for this pregnancy, even shedding countless tears for it, if something went wrong, the Dangui Courtyard might be flooded with his tears.

So she decided not to take the risk.

As a married couple, they needed to know how to accommodate each other.

Since Song Shian always accommodated her, it wouldn’t hurt to accommodate him on this matter.

Yu Ancheng had anticipated this outcome and didn’t get angry. He simply said, "Take care and rest well."

Then he was about to leave.

"Master, wait," Jiang Chun called out to him.

She then had Gui Zhi bring out two jars of white wine from Second Mistress Lu's new brewery.

Jiang Chun smiled and said, "This is white wine from Second Mistress Lu's new brewery, made with a recipe from a foreign merchant caravan. It tastes much better than the white wine we usually get in Great Zhou. Please take it home and give it a try.

If you like it, just let me know, and I’ll send more over."

Yu Ancheng pursed his lips and snorted, "I'll just send someone to buy it from the brewery myself. No need for you to go out of your way."

Jiang Chun grinned, "It’s only right for a student to show respect to their teacher."

Yu Ancheng proudly lifted his chin, "You’re not my direct student, so even if I got in trouble, it wouldn’t affect you. Why bother showing me respect?"

Jiang Chun didn’t bother arguing with this stubborn fellow, "Fine, fine. Buy it yourself. You have plenty of money anyway."

The old emperor, to show he wasn’t ungrateful, always sent Yu Ancheng gifts during festivals.

After seeing off Yu Ancheng, Jiang Chun had Gui Zhi take two jars of white wine, a pound of blood bird's nest, and two pounds of premium Tieguanyin tea to the Jiang family to share the good news with Jiangyan.

While she wasn’t Yu Ancheng’s direct student, Song Shian was Jiangyan’s, so she felt it was important to show respect.

However, she also felt troubled.

Earlier, Song Shian cried and used the infertility issue to temporarily convince Jiangyan not to go to Jiangnan.

Now that she was pregnant, Jiangyan might feel he no longer had anything holding him back and could consider ending his life again.

The couple would have to find a way to hold him back. This was truly a headache.

Early that morning, Jiang Chun had already sent someone to tell Jiang He the good news. After selling his meat, Jiang He hurriedly closed his shop, bought some things in the West Market, and rushed to the Song family.

*

When he saw Jiang Chun in the Dangui Courtyard, he grinned from ear to ear, "Wonderful, wonderful! It's great that you're pregnant. Now the Jiang family will have someone to carry on the lineage."

Whether it's a boy or a girl doesn't matter. A young master would be ideal, but if it's a little miss, it's not a problem either. With the business she builds for herself, finding someone to marry into the family would be easy enough.

He hadn't read many books, but he could tell right from wrong.

The Song family is not only a prominent family but also the in-laws of the Crown Prince. It's already quite generous of them to allow their daughter's first child to carry the Jiang family name and inherit its legacy.

Most families would have forced them to divorce and arranged a new marriage for the daughter.

If I, as her father, were to keep insisting that the firstborn must carry the Jiang family name, it would be unreasonable.

Unreasonable people often don’t live long.

Jiang Chun looked at him sideways and hummed, "Are you happy now, Father?"

Jiang He chuckled, "Happy! Happy! With this good news, I'll have more motivation to run the shop!"

Jiang Chun rolled her eyes. You two are really cut from the same cloth.

She wasn't fooled. Song Shian got up earlier than his usual time today, spent some time in the study, and then went to the office.

Becoming a grandfather is giving him more motivation, huh?

Jiang He glanced at Jiang Chun's flat stomach several times and asked with concern, "What did the doctor say? How long have you been pregnant? Is the fetus stable?"

Jiang Chun smiled, "It's been two months, and the fetus is as stable as an iron pillar buried deep in the ground."

"What kind of talk is that!" Jiang He gave her a white look, then said happily, "It's good that the fetus is stable."

He then stretched out his hand and began to calculate the delivery date.

After calculating for a while, he smiled, "It's likely to be born after the Lantern Festival next year."

Ancient people believed that pregnancy lasts for ten months, so Jiang He calculated the due date to be after the fifteenth day of the first month next year.

But according to modern scientific calculations, the pregnancy period is about forty weeks.

So Jiang Chun's due date might be around New Year's Eve. Whether it's a bit earlier or later, it can't be predicted and can only be left to nature.

This year is the Year of the Dog, and next year is the Year of the Pig. She was actually curious whether this baby would be a dog or a pig.

She smiled, "It might come earlier than expected."

Jiang He chuckled, "Whether it comes early or late, as long as the birth goes smoothly, that's all that matters."

Jiang Chun smiled, "My husband has already arranged for Imperial Doctor Lu from the Imperial Hospital to check my pulse every three days, and there's also a Dr. Zou in the house who specializes in treating women's diseases. The delivery will definitely go smoothly."

Although she had never given birth, she had some confidence in her body.

She had a tall, well-proportioned figure. As long as she didn't overeat during pregnancy and controlled the baby's weight, it was theoretically unlikely that she would encounter difficult labor.

But life and death are determined by fate and wealth by heaven. If she did encounter difficult labor, it would be her destiny, and worrying wouldn't help.

For some reason, ever since she found out she was pregnant, her mindset had become much more peaceful, as if everything was serene.

Is this what they call the 'maternal glow'?

Thinking about it made her laugh at herself.

Jiang He nodded vigorously, "It will definitely be smooth!"

After the father and daughter had a long conversation, Jiang He finally left.

Jiang Chun had wanted to keep him for lunch, but Jiang He declined.

None of the Song family's men were home, so there was no one to entertain guests. As an outsider, it wouldn’t be proper for him to stay long in the inner quarters.

*

After receiving a bunch of supplements and herbal medicines, and having met her own father, Jiang Chun was quite happy that day.

However, Jiangyan’s situation made her feel uneasy, and she planned to discuss it with Song Shian when he returned, to see if he had any good solutions.

That evening, Song Shian sent Gui Zhi back to report that he had invited his colleagues from the Ministry of Personnel to Fan Lou for drinks.

When she confirmed just how many people were in the Ministry of Personnel, Jiang Chun gasped inwardly.

This spendthrift, flaunting her pregnancy, dropped nearly a hundred taels of silver. Did he think her money grew on trees?

There was no peace of mind or tranquility left!

Jiang Chun clenched her teeth, planning to give him a serious talking-to when he got back. If he dared to talk back, she might even consider giving him a beating. She would see if he dared to waste money recklessly in the future!

Eventually, Song Shian was brought back by two attendants.

Jiang Chun asked one of the attendants, Song Lu, "Drunk like this, just how much alcohol did your young master drink?"

Song Lu hurriedly replied, "The young master was in high spirits today and accepted every toast from his colleagues. He probably drank three or four jugs of Meishou wine."

"Three or four jugs?" Jiang Chun exclaimed, then remembered that liquor in ancient times had a low alcohol content, probably no more than ten degrees. Three or four jugs were a lot, but not completely outrageous. She finally relaxed.

She waved her hand and said, "You two go rest."

After sending the two attendants away, Jiang Chun had Gui Zhi fetch Song Shian's night clothes and changed him herself.

Just as she reached for the buttons on his outer robe, he suddenly grabbed her wrist.

Song Shian, with a thick tongue, said, "Who are you, some shameless woman coming near me? Get lost! Only my wife is allowed to touch me. Who do you think you are, lusting after me?"

Jiang Chun: "..."

She suspected he was using alcohol as an excuse to pledge his loyalty to her, but she had no proof.

She shook off his hand and deliberately teased him, "What if I insist on lusting after you? Now that you're drunk like a limp shrimp, even if I forced myself on you, you'd likely be unable to resist."

Song Shian glared at her with blurred eyes and coldly said, "Go ahead and try! Even if I’m drunk, I could still take your life easily."

Moreover, he still had his hidden guards. Even if he couldn’t handle this shameless woman, with just a gesture, the hidden guards would appear to solve the problem for him.

Jiang Chun didn’t dare to try, fearing that if she did, she might lose her life. Tomorrow, when Song Shian sobered up, he’d probably be so upset that he might even consider dying of heartbreak.

Although she had been learning martial arts for half a year, she couldn’t compare to Song Shian, who had been training since childhood, enduring the cold of winter and the heat of summer.

She pinched his chin, brought her face close to his, and said with a grin, "My dear husband, take a good look. Who is this shameless woman? Does she look like your dear wife?"

Song Shian opened his phoenix eyes wide, struggling against the dizzying sensation, and with great difficulty, focused his gaze on Jiang Chun's face.

After a long look, he finally exclaimed in surprise, "Ah, it's you, my dear? Did you come to Fan Lou to take me home?"

A happy smile spread across his face. "My dear, you're really good to your husband."

Jiang Chun just stared at him, speechless.

She couldn't be bothered to argue with a drunk. She started unbuttoning his clothes and hummed, "Yes, I came to take my husband home.

Your alcohol smell is too strong, so the baby in my belly doesn’t get affected by it. We should change you into your night clothes first."

Song Shian froze, then nodded obediently. "Yes, we can't let the baby be affected."

Jiang Chun took off his official robe and inner garments, then helped him change into clean night clothes.

Throughout the process, he was very cooperative, moving his arms and legs whenever she asked, almost mechanically.

After changing his clothes, Jiang Chun asked Gui Zhi to prepare a bowl of hangover soup.

Gui Zhi smiled and said, "I anticipated that the young master and his colleagues would overindulge in drinking, so I already prepared some hangover soup."

Jiang Chun smiled. "Thank you for thinking ahead. Bring it over."

On such a hot summer day, there was no need to reheat it.

After feeding Song Shian the hangover soup, Jiang Chun asked Gui Zhi to pour some warm water and fed him a large cup of it.

Then she tossed him onto the bed and said, "Alright, you can sleep now."

Thankfully, he’s usually pretty quiet even when he’s drunk. As a pregnant woman, she had no patience to deal with any nonsense.

She considered giving him a piece of her mind, but decided against it.

However, Song Shian didn’t close his eyes and sleep as she expected. He shuffled closer to her, inching his way over.

Then he gently placed his face against her belly and happily said, "My love, I’m so happy."

Jiang Chun pouted.

She rolled her eyes; she could tell he was over the moon.

Over the moon enough to throw away nearly a hundred taels of silver like it was nothing.

She replied half-heartedly, "Mm-hmm."

It was unclear if Song Shian heard her. He rubbed his cheek against her belly, closed his eyes, and murmured, "After two lifetimes, I, Song Shian, finally have a descendant."

Jiang Chun: "???"

Two lifetimes?

Did she hear that correctly?

Why did he say that he finally has a descendant after two lifetimes?

Besides this life, which other life was he referring to?

Could it be that he was actually reborn?

If that was true, she’d been clueless from day one.

No wonder he figured out so quickly that I wasn't the original me—it's like he had an unfair advantage.

She had been wondering how he could have spotted the discrepancies so quickly, despite her being so careful, trying to mimic the original owner in speech and action, and even retrieving items from the system warehouse in secret. How could he have noticed so soon?

Her cover had been blown, and it was no surprise.

Moreover, this man had quite the poker face.

Facing her, the very person who had cheated on him and ruined his reputation in his previous life, making him a laughing stock in the Imperial City, he could still put on a facade and play nice with her.

Instead of just eliminating her to avoid future troubles.

Thankfully, he was so composed; otherwise, she wouldn't even have had the chance to "reform" and would have been long dead, taking the fall for the original body.

Thinking carefully, many previously confusing details now made sense.

For example, how he knew that the magistrate of Hongye County, Lu Zhengheng, was obsessed with his paintings, using this to manipulate him into dealing with Liu Qitan and even making a large sum of money in the process.

Or how he tipped off Princess Anyuan to catch them in the act of adultery at Marquis of Anyuan's household, creating chaos, and then taking the opportunity to drug Cheng Wenyuan and set her up with Fan the Butcher.

And how he went as far as using something as shameful as infertility to stop Jiangyan from going to Jiangnan, attempting to save his life.

He didn't know the content of the original story, so without having experienced it firsthand in his previous life and planning based on the information he knew, it would have been hard to achieve such results.

As she thought about this, Jiang Chun's expression darkened again.

This man was being incredibly dishonest.

She had told him everything about her origins and the check-in system, even volunteering a lot of information about Zhong Wenjin, yet he hadn't mentioned a single word about his own rebirth, keeping it all tightly under wraps.

Did she look down on him for being reincarnated?

Unless...

Jiang Chun's expression suddenly became very strange.

Could it be... that he had lived until he was seventy or eighty before being reborn?

If that was the case, didn't that mean she had married an old man?

He was like an old fox catching young rabbits!

She suddenly felt a shiver run down her spine.

Her gaze fixed on his handsome face, flushed red from drinking.

His face was practically perfect.

His features were chiseled, with long eyebrows that extended into his temples, thick lashes that looked like small brushes, and a high, straight nose bridge that softened at the tip, balancing the coldness of his features.

Beneath his nose were thin lips, slightly redder than most men's, adding a touch of allure to his face.

His appearance was so androgynous that it could captivate both men and women.

But thanks to his slightly upturned cold phoenix eyes, he didn't appear feminine at all, instead exuding a certain dignity.

Of course, that was only when he was dealing with others.

When he looked at her, those cold phoenix eyes would soften with joy, and even during their arguments, the corners of his mouth often couldn't help but curl up.

Falling for someone is like a cough—you can't hide it.

Jiang Chun let out a soft sigh.

It doesn’t matter how old he was when he came back; as long as he looks to be around my age now, that’s fine.

Besides, I lived until I was thirty-three in my previous life, didn’t I?

At thirty-three, in ancient times, I’d already be a grandma.

I’m not some young teenager, after all, so the age gap between us from his previous life probably isn’t that big, right?

Jiang Chun tried to convince herself, though it felt more like self-brainwashing, and finally decided to pretend she knew nothing and not expose him.

Since he doesn’t want to be honest with her, he must have his reasons. If she called him out, it might throw him off.

Let him keep this secret with him until the end.

Besides, it’s not like she really cares about this anyway, and calling him out wouldn’t help their relationship at all. It’s better to just cherish the present moments.

Song Shian woke up in the middle of the night, quietly got up to change in the washroom, and then quietly returned to the four-poster bed.

*

His coworkers had practically forced him to drink last night, and he ended up plastered, not even knowing how he got home.

Feeling the smooth silk of his pajamas, he realized Jiang Chun must have changed him.

His head was still foggy, like it was stuffed with cotton, and he couldn’t remember anything after returning home.

He didn’t know if he had said anything nonsensical.

Still, he hadn’t done anything to betray her, so there was nothing to fear from saying nonsense.

The only thing he feared was accidentally slipping up and mentioning something from his past life.

Jiang Chun could be oblivious at times and not very perceptive, but at other times she was overly smart.

If he said something he shouldn’t have, she would definitely be able to guess that he was reborn.

After all, in her time, there were many stories about time travel and rebirth, and she had read plenty of them. She even talked to him about the plots during her free time.

Guessing the truth about his rebirth wouldn’t be terrifying for her; it shouldn’t be something difficult for her to accept.

After all, she was a transmigrator herself, and there was also Zhong Wenjin, who was another transmigrator.

They were in the same situation, both transmigrators.

But the fact that he had deliberately hidden things from her would be exposed at the same time.

That would be the most serious issue.

They had agreed to be honest with each other and not deliberately hide things from one another.

Given her fiery temper, wouldn’t she fly into a rage if she found out he had kept this from her?

Song Shian broke out in a cold sweat.