Chapter 167

Chapter 167

Yi Ge'er and Yu Ge'er, the two little ones, were still sent to Dan Gui Yuan by Madame Zhuang.

Although Madame Zhuang was extremely reluctant, Old Madam Zhou entrusted her with organizing the third-day bathing ceremony for Fourth Master Song Shikai. With all the comings and goings in the main courtyard, it wouldn’t be good if they got startled.

Madame Zhuang was afraid that Jiang Chun wouldn’t send them back to the main courtyard, so as she left, she specifically said, “Let them stay here for three to five days. After the fourth’s full-month banquet is finished, I’ll come to pick them up again.”

How could Jiang Chun not see through her thoughts? She deliberately teased her, “I don’t think there’s a need to pick them up. Just let them stay in Dan Gui Yuan. The nursemaids will take care of them, so I won’t have to worry too much.”

Madame Zhuang immediately tensed up and said sternly, “Although the nursemaids are looking after them, they are still very young, and there are many things to be concerned about.

The doctor has advised you to rest, so you should take good care of yourself and not worry about these trivial matters. If you end up with some illness, you’ll have a hard time later!”

Jiang Chun teased him, saying, “I won’t worry. Let my husband worry about it. Those two babies aren’t just my responsibility alone. When I’m recovering, he has to step up.”

Madame Zhuang gave her a sideways glance, “Shian has to attend court during the day and go to the yamen for his duties. By the time he finishes work in the evening, it’s almost dark.

If you rely on him for everything, it’ll take forever.”

Jiang Chun pretended to ponder for a moment, then tentatively said, “How about I ask my father to come and help for a month or so?

After my mother gave birth to me, she was weak, and my father took care of both her and me during her confinement.

If he helps with Yi Ge'er and the others, I would be completely at ease.”

Madame Zhuang was so anxious she almost jumped, “What kind of talk is this? How can we trouble your father?

First, it would interfere with his business; second, if people found out, they would think our family can’t afford to hire nursemaids.”

If Jiang Chun really brought her father over, Madame Zhuang would have to stay away from Dan Gui Yuan, which she couldn’t bear.

Jiang Chun suddenly burst into laughter, giggling, “I was just teasing you. Don’t worry, after the fourth brother’s third-day bathing ceremony is over, just come and pick them up. I promise I won’t stop you.”

There were priorities in life, and her most important task at the moment was to nourish herself and recover her health.

There was no rush to take care of the children. They were still young, and she would have plenty of time to take care of them in the future.

Madame Zhuang felt relieved and scolded with a smile, “You troublemaker, always so carefree!”

The second daughter-in-law treated the twins like they were her most precious treasures, rarely bringing them to the main courtyard, as if she was afraid someone would snatch them away.

To see them, Madame Zhuang had to ask the second daughter-in-law, who would reluctantly bring them over.

Or she would have to go to Qing Zhu Yuan herself to see them.

Jiang Chun was more relaxed about it.

Madame Zhuang actually didn’t plan to keep Yi Ge'er and his brother all to herself. She had just become a grandmother and found the chubby little milk babies adorable.

*

That evening, when Song Shian came home from work, he saw Yi Ge'er and Yu Ge'er lying beside Jiang Chun and was surprised, “Why were they brought here?”

Jiang Chun gave him a sideways glance, deliberately acting argumentative, “What’s wrong with bringing them here? They’re my kids. Can’t I bring them here to dote on them?”

Song Shian walked behind the screen to change out of his official robes, washed his hands, then sat down next to the canopy bed and laughed, “Why are you so fiery? Who upset you?”

Jiang Chun couldn’t hold back and laughed, “In this household, who dares to provoke me?

Even Madam Zhou, who doesn’t like me, only throws a few sarcastic comments my way but doesn’t dare to do anything.”

Song Shian couldn't help but laugh along with her, reaching out to gently scrape her nose and teasing, "You're always finding ways to scare me when you have nothing better to do. One of these days, you'll frighten me to death."

Jiang Chun giggled and replied, "Who said I’m just sitting around with nothing to do? Today, I had Gui Ye wheel me over to the Wutong Courtyard to see Third Aunt give birth."

Song Shian, having already heard about Qiu Shi giving birth from his attendants, immediately asked with concern, "Does your back hurt, sweetheart? Should I massage it for you?"

Jiang Chun had indeed been sitting in the wheelchair for over an hour and was feeling a bit sore. She immediately flipped over onto her stomach, still grinning as she said, "Then I'll have to trouble my husband."

Song Shian lifted her nightgown and, with his slender, pale fingers—which were covered in calluses from years of martial arts training and calligraphy practice—began to knead her waist with just the right amount of pressure.

His hands, though fair, were not as soft as a woman's due to the calluses, and as they moved across Jiang Chun's fair and tender waist, they created ripples of sensation, causing her to shudder.

Leaning down, Song Shian asked in a low voice near her ear, "How's the pressure? Is it too much? Should I lighten up?"

Jiang Chun: "..."

If someone walked in, they’d think we were up to no good!

She grumbled, "The pressure is perfect."

Song Shian chuckled, "Then this husband will continue to work hard."

Jiang Chun twitched the corner of her mouth.

She turned her head to glare at him and said with a laugh, "Stop causing mischief."

Song Shian smiled, "Can’t I even make a joke? Don’t be such a control freak, honey!"

Jiang Chun snorted, "That’s not a joke. You’re totally trying to tempt me on purpose."

Song Shian, of course, wouldn't admit it and immediately protested, "My love, it hurts my heart that you think of me this way. Am I really that kind of person?"

Jiang Chun nodded firmly, "Yes, you are."

Caught off guard by her response, Song Shian decided to drop the act, "Alright, I admit it. I am deliberately tempting you, but you, my lady, don’t seem to be able to resist the temptation either. Looks like we’re both equally guilty."

Jiang Chun, seeing through his act, lazily replied, "I’ve never been good at resisting temptation. No surprise there."

Song Shian leaned down and gently lay on her back, his arms around her shoulders, and said with a comforting smile, "Take care of yourself and get better. Once you’re ready, I’ll take care of everything else."

Jiang Chun hummed, "Are you trying to satisfy me or yourself? Don’t try to have it both ways!"

Song Shian immediately seized the opportunity, "If my lady insists on satisfying me, then this husband can only bear it."

Jiang Chun: "..."

She nudged him in the ribs with her elbow and said with a laugh, "You're dreaming!"

Just as the two were playfully bickering, Yu Ge'er suddenly let out a couple of hums.

Jiang Chun immediately said to Song Shian, "Mother said that Yu Ge'er is usually well-behaved and only hums when he's hungry or has soiled his diaper. Hurry up and get off me, call the nursemaid to come and check."

Song Shian immediately got off her and, instead of calling the nursemaid, picked Yu Ge'er up and undid his swaddling clothes.

"He then smiled and said, 'So he peed.'"

"He called out, 'Gui Ye, bring a clean diaper.'"

"Gui Ye responded from outside and soon delivered a clean diaper."

"She volunteered, 'Young master, let me change him. I learned from Nursemaid Xu.'"

"Song Shian took the diaper and waved her off. 'You may leave.'"

"Gui Ye didn’t insist and promptly retreated."

"Song Shian lifted the baby's two little legs with one hand, raised his little bottom, pulled out the wet and soiled diaper, and then slipped the new one in."

"He then lowered his legs and re-wrapped the swaddling clothes, tying them securely with the ties."

"Jiang Chun said in surprise, 'Wow, you’re really good at changing diapers, honey.'"

"Song Shian’s heart skipped a beat and he immediately refuted, 'No, don’t slander me. I didn’t even get remarried in my past life, so how could I have had a child?'"

"This had to be explained, and quickly at that. Any hesitation could make her start doubting me."

"Jiang Chun raised an eyebrow. 'Then how do you know how to change diapers?'"

"Song Shian gave her a side-eye. 'Changing diapers? I saw the nursemaids do it in the main courtyard before, so I learned naturally.'"

"Jiang Chun: '……'"

"She pouted and muttered, 'Almost forgot, my husband has a photographic memory. No wonder it’s easy for you.'"

"In fact, for other men, even without a photographic memory, it wouldn’t be too difficult."

"The reason they 'can’t learn' is either because they don’t pay attention or they deliberately pretend they can’t learn."

"After all, once they learn, they have to do the work. So, they’d rather act clumsy so their wives wouldn’t dare entrust the child to them."

"Song Shian took the soiled diaper out, handed it to Gui Ye, and washed his hands, then returned to the step bed."

"Just as he was about to resume massaging Jiang Chun, Yi Ge’er suddenly burst into loud cries, flailing his arms and legs."

"Song Shian quickly put the first baby back and picked up the second baby, swiftly undoing the ties of his swaddling clothes."

"But he was a step too slow."

"With a 'rip,' a large hole appeared in the swaddling clothes, and the baby's little foot poked straight through."

"Song Shian: '……'"

"Jiang Chun: '……'"

"She couldn’t help but laugh and said, 'You little troublemaker, you’ve torn another swaddling cloth! I’ll ask Gui Zhi to make a ledger specifically to record all the things you’ve destroyed. Let’s see how much you can wreck!'"

"Then, with a fierce expression, she added, 'The things you destroy will come out of your future allowance. You won’t get to keep your allowance until you’ve paid off everything.'"

"Song Shian gave the baby a sympathetic look. 'With the way he wrecks things, he might not be able to pay off his debts even by the age of thirty.'"

"Jiang Chun said coldly, 'No matter, he has to pay it back! If his allowance isn’t enough, he can find other ways to make money, or maybe he can find a wealthy patron to support him.'"

"With a dad as handsome as you, he’ll definitely grow up to be a looker. There should be plenty of rich women willing to support him.'"

Song Shian chuckled as he undid Yi Ge'er's swaddling ties. "He has a rich mother like you to support him; why would he need anyone else?"

Flattered by being called wealthy, Jiang Chun smugly lifted the corner of her mouth.

But her expression quickly fell, and she scolded with a laugh, "Rich lady, my foot! You've drained me dry, and now with Yi Ge'er, who burns through everything, it's like you're trying to take my life!"

She poked Yu Ge'er's chin with her finger and praised, "It's still our Yu Ge'er who's good. He doesn't waste his mother's money. He's the only non-spendthrift man in this household."

Song Shian, with a cold tone, said, "Yu Ge'er may not be wrecking your money now, but it'll be hard to say in the future. If he develops a hobby for antiques and calligraphy, spending thousands of taels on an ancient painting would be normal. The amount of money he'll burn through would be enormous."

"He better not!" Jiang Chun snapped, raising an eyebrow. "I'll break his legs if he does!"

Song Shian frowned disapprovingly, just about to scold Jiang Chun, when he caught a whiff of something foul.

He opened the swaddling and saw that Yi Ge'er's diaper had turned yellow underneath his little butt, with some smeared on his buttocks.

"Looks like he's pooped," Song Shian murmured.

He called out, "Gui Ye, bring a new diaper, a basin of warm water, and a clean cloth."

After a moment of thought, he added, "And a new swaddling cloth."

Gui Ye quickly brought the items.

Song Shian first used the clean part of the old diaper to wipe Yi Ge'er's little butt, folded the old diaper, and handed it to Gui Ye.

Then, holding Yi Ge'er with one hand, he walked to the basin and used the other hand to wash his buttocks clean, drying them with the clean cloth.

Afterward, he changed Yi Ge'er's swaddling cloth and diaper, wrapping his arms and legs back into the swaddling and securing the ties.

By the time he finished, Song Shian was sweating.

"Raising twins is no easy task," he sighed. "Luckily, we have nursemaids, so we don't have to do everything ourselves."

It was manageable for him since he had to work during the day and could only help a bit in the evening.

But Jiang Chun, staying at home all day, was running around after the boys nonstop. It was hard to say how exhausted she must be; she probably didn’t even have time to eat.

Was this what people meant when they said poverty brings endless troubles to a couple?

Fortunately, they had money and power, so they didn’t have to live through those bitter days like they did back in Daliushu Village.

Jiang Chun didn’t have the energy to help, but just watching Song Shian struggle was enough to make her feel overwhelmed.

"Yes, taking care of babies is indeed a tough job," she immediately agreed.

So, to get some help, she still needed to bring in more money; otherwise, she wouldn’t even be able to pay the nursemaids.

A nursemaid cost ten taels of silver per month, and four nursemaids would set her back forty taels.

This didn’t even include the expenses for their food and lodging in Dan Gui Yard.

It was no cheaper than hiring a modern nanny.

Making money was absolutely necessary.

*

While the two shops were doing well and bringing in steady income, there was no immediate pressure to earn more. However, spring plowing season was approaching.

If Jiang Chun's health had been better, she would have personally inspected the four estates and planned the planting areas herself.

She could now only walk a few steps at most, but she couldn't handle the bumps on the road or prolonged sitting, even with a wheelchair.

She could only dictate her planting plan to Gui Zhi, who would then write it down for her, before giving it to Manager Liao, who was overseeing the estate on her behalf, to arrange the planting.

Fortunately, the estate servants had planted corn and sweet potatoes the previous year, so they had the experience and could expand the planting area together with the newly purchased servants.

By the time spring planting ended in April, Jiang Chun's health had finally recovered somewhat.

Before Jiang Chun could even say anything, Madame Zhuang tactfully had the maids pack up Yi Ge'er and Yu Ge'er's things and personally sent them back to Dan Gui Yuan.

In fact, over the past two months, Jiang Chun hadn't entirely ignored the two boys. Every other day, she would have them brought to Dan Gui Yuan for half a day.

After changing locations, the two little ones made the transition smoothly and didn’t cry or make a fuss.

They were now four months old, with arms and legs like lotus roots, resembling two white glutinous rice dumplings, chubby and very cute.

Their faces had also grown quite a bit.

As the saying goes, 'ginger gets spicier with age.' Jiang Chun had originally thought Madame Zhuang's assessment of the boys' looks was just nonsense.

But Yi Ge'er was indeed starting to look like herself, while Yu Ge'er was increasingly resembling Song Shian, except for his mouth, which looked like hers. He was practically a carbon copy of Song Shian.

What was comforting was that Yi Ge'er's eyes at birth were very much like her own big almond-shaped eyes, but as he grew, they turned into the phoenix eyes unique to the Song family.

It must be said, the phoenix eye gene in the Song family was incredibly strong. Jiang Chun wasn't sure about the collateral branches, but all the main branch descendants of the Song family had phoenix eyes.

You could tell at a glance whether someone was part of the Song family. The phoenix eye was so rare that even if you deliberately looked for it, you wouldn't find many people with that eye shape.

As for Huan Ge'er and Tang Jier, who were born four months earlier, they were now eight months old.

There's an old saying, "Three months lying, six months sitting, eight months crawling." They could not only crawl now but did so very quickly.

Zhong Wenjin said helplessly, "The older they get, the more challenging they become to manage. If you don't watch them closely, they'll crawl off somewhere, and you'll need several people to keep an eye on them at all times."

Jiang Chun smiled and said, "This is just the beginning. It will be even harder when they start walking. Especially young masters; they have boundless energy. You could be exhausted, but they'd still be running around non-stop."

Although Jiang Chun hadn't taken care of the babies for long, she was rich in theoretical knowledge. After all, in the modern era, she had spent half a year lurking on the Baobei Tree parenting forum to gather material for her writing, so how could she not know this?

Zhong Wenjin first sighed, then her eyes lit up with a mischievous glint, "I'm lucky to only have Huan Ge'er, who is naughty. Tang Jier is very well-behaved.

Big sister-in-law, on the other hand, has Yi Ge'er and Yu Ge'er, two young masters. She's going to have her hands full in the future."

Jiang Chun reached out and touched Yu Ge'er's cheek, smiling, "More or less, our Yu Ge'er is almost as well-behaved as your Tang Jier. Only Yi Ge'er is a bit of a troublemaker, but he's not too difficult to handle."

The two of them were eating fruits bought from Pinduoduo Mall while exchanging parenting tips.

Zhong Wenjin listened with wide-eyed enthusiasm and even had her senior maid Bai Zhi take notes.

Although Jiang Chun hadn't taken care of the babies for long, she was rich in theoretical knowledge.

And Zhong Wenjin was a strong advocate of modern scientific feeding methods, treating Jiang Chun's words as gospel.

One was bold enough to speak, and the other was brave enough to act on it.

Just as they were deep in conversation, Song Shiying arrived.

And she came alone, with Song Shi Yu and Song Shiyue not trailing behind her.

Jiang Chun teased, "Oh, our new bride has arrived."

Song Shiying's face immediately turned red, and she laughed as she scolded, "Big sister-in-law, cut it out! My match is still up in the air, and you're already making fun of me!"

Jiang Chun grinned. "It's fun to tease you now. When everything is settled, you'll be too thick-skinned to blush. Then my teasing won't work anymore."

Song Shiying was left speechless.

Remembering her purpose for coming, she suppressed the urge to argue and spoke frankly, "Aunt and the Lan family agreed to go to Ci'an Temple together on the fifteenth of this month to pray. They asked Lan Zizhou and me to take the opportunity to meet and assess each other.

Big sister-in-law, you know people well. Will you come with me and help me figure out if he's reliable?"

Jiang Chun feigned anger. "When have I ever been good at judging people? Don't flatter me."

After a pause, she smiled and said, "You're asking the wrong person for help. Young Master Lan is a Hanlin Academy scholar. Your brother has also spent several years there. If you want to know about Young Master Lan's character, why aren't you asking your brother?"

Song Shiying grinned. "My brother always follows your lead. It's right for me to come to you. If you take this seriously, Big sister-in-law, my brother will tell you everything without me even asking."

Jiang Chun laughed and scolded. "You’re a clever one, aren’t you? Trying to get two things for the price of one!"

No longer shy after Jiang Chun’s teasing, Song Shiying laughed. "Who's to blame for this? Isn't it because you, Big sister-in-law, have taught me well?"

Jiang Chun was both amused and exasperated, turning to Zhong Wenjin. "We should find a good match for this clever little sister-in-law soon. Otherwise, she’ll keep coming up with schemes, and I’ll be the one losing sleep."

Zhong Wenjin spoke up for Song Shiying. "Ayin came to you for help, showing how much she values your opinion. Please help her.

If she marries the wrong person and ends up unhappy, you’ll be the one who has to step in and stand up for her."

Jiang Chun pouted. "Before the Song family encountered their misfortune, if she suffered grievances in her in-laws' house, she would probably just whine and cry.

But look at her now, acting so carefree. Does she look like someone who would let herself be mistreated by her in-laws? It's more likely that her in-laws won't take advantage of her.

Let's light a candle for the Lan family in advance."

Zhong Wenjin chuckled and agreed, "You got that right."

Song Shiying stomped her foot in anger, huffing, "You two, watch what you say."

Jiang Chun grinned and said, "We’ll be nicer once you're married off."

The two of them teased Song Shiying for a while, but in the end, Jiang Chun agreed to her request and even roped in Zhong Wenjin.

She put it this way, "Two heads are better than one, and three’s even better."

Zhong Wenjin laughed. "I haven't been to Ci'an Temple for a long time. Going with you all sounds good. I can burn some incense for the Bodhisattva, donate some money for the temple, and get protection charms for Huan Ge'er and Sugar Sister."

Jiang Chun quickly added, "I'll also get protection charms for Yi Ge'er and Yu Ge'er."

Honestly, they were just going along for the ride.

This marriage was arranged by Madame Zhuang for Song Shiying. If the Lan family were a problematic family, Madame Zhuang wouldn't have agreed to the match.

Jiang Chun had great trust in Madame Zhuang's judgment.

Thankfully, Madame Zhou wasn’t about to make things worse. During the New Year, she didn't mention bringing Madame Li over, pretending to have forgotten about it.

And the second branch of the family, fearing that Madame Li's return would disrupt Song Shiying's marriage, also pretended to have forgotten.

Madame Li is still in seclusion at the Song family temple and has sent messages back, but no one’s responded.

Jiang Chun couldn’t help but comment to Zhong Wenjin, "Once Yin'er finishes meeting potential matches, it’ll be Yue'er’s turn next."

Before you know it, Song Shiying will be evaluating suitors too. Soon, all three younger sisters will be married off, and the Song household will feel much emptier.

Jiang Chun felt a pang of sadness.

She couldn’t help but think, like Jia Baoyu in *Dream of the Red Chamber*, how wonderful it would be if the sisters could always stay by her side!

Of course, she was just voicing a passing thought. Chances are, all three younger sisters will marry within the Imperial City, so they’ll still be nearby.

It won’t feel like a real separation.