Chapter 69: Chapter 69

Chapter 69

Though Li Niang was usually quite whimsical, after giving birth to twins, she seemed to gain a new perspective on life. She had faced a near-death experience, and for the first time, she felt her own life was more important than having children.

She couldn't control her tongue and often spoke her mind in front of others, which inevitably displeased the Marchioness of Dingbei.

But now, Li Niang’s father was the Chief Minister of the Dali Temple, and her younger sister was the Princess Consort of Qing. What could the Marchioness of Dingbei do? So, whereas Li Niang used to fear Wang Pan leaving, she now wasn’t afraid to argue with him, causing quite a commotion.

She was well aware that the Marquis of Dingbei’s household feared her maiden family, so she no longer cared.

When she visited She-niang, She-niang chided her: "While we can support you, it depends on whether you are in the right. If you are, I'll back you; but if you're not, and I hear about it, you'll face consequences."

Li Niang shrank her neck and quickly offered an ingratiating smile: "You're about to give birth, and you still have such a temper. Don't worry, I'll be careful. I've been feeling unwell for a long time after giving birth to your two nephews; otherwise, I wouldn't have waited until now to visit you."

"I've prepared two aged ginseng roots for you. Take them back later and have a doctor make some pills to strengthen your vitality. It's almost the twelfth lunar month, so you shouldn't go out in the wind. Rest well at home," She-niang said.

Li Niang nodded: "I know. By the way, have you heard about Mo Yun?"

She-niang had expected this: "He acted as such a vanguard. Now that the emperor wants to balance the political situation, it's not surprising. How is Second Sister doing?"

"She was sent back to her hometown in Hedong," Li Niang said, feeling a bit sorry as she had once been close to Yue Niang.

Mo Yun was beaten with one hundred and fifty strokes and executed by *lingchi* (death by a thousand cuts). This was the emperor’s way of appeasing the imperial clansmen, as Mo Yun had followed Prime Minister Ding in coercing these lords into submission, using both threats and incentives, which many found repulsive.

Now that many imperial clansmen had arrived in the capital, they wouldn’t truly resent the emperor but would naturally direct their hatred toward Mo Yun.

Even Shang Yang’s reforms couldn’t avoid backlash, let alone Mo Yun. When you infringe upon others’ interests, retaliation is inevitable.

"That's fine. You've always been close to Second Sister. If she's ever in need, help her if you can," She-niang said, thinking that as a widow with children, her husband executed by *lingchi*, she might be bullied upon returning to her clan.

Li Niang said: "I heard that Mo Yun seemed to have anticipated this outcome. When Second Sister returned, she had seventy or eighty trunks. Why would she need my help? Think about how destitute they were when they first came from Hedong."

As the saying goes, they got what they wanted. She-niang didn’t dwell on it further. Looking outside, she saw that it was about to snow heavily and urged Li Niang to leave, adding: "The weather is bad. Don't go out, okay?"

"Got it," Li Niang said, appreciating her sister’s concern.

At noon, she drank fish soup, which was said to have been caught by the Prince of Qing himself and specially delivered. She-niang no longer felt nauseated by the fishy smell. Instead, the kitchen had prepared it in such a way that the meat was tender, smooth, and sweet. For the first time, she finished the entire bowl of fish soup.

Li Ju laughed: "I was afraid you’d find it fishy. Since you enjoyed it so much, Father will be pleased."

"Why has Father been going fishing so often lately? How does he manage it in the middle of winter?" She-niang found it a bit unusual.

Li Ju said: "I'm not sure about that. The emperor is sending me to Liaodong again. I'm sorry to leave you alone to handle everything while I'm away."

"Why say that? If you were home, you’d have plenty to say to me and A-Heng. It’s just a pity I’m pregnant now; otherwise, I’d want to go with you," She-niang said reluctantly.

Li Ju shook his head: "I’d like to take you both with me, but military regulations forbid bringing women."

She-niang knew this well. Rotations to Liaodong were routine, and the emperor didn’t allow noblemen to stay in the borderlands for too long, lest they amass power and rebel.

He had only been back for a few days before having to return to the icy north. She-niang felt sorry for him and prepared frostbite ointment and bruise salve.

When Li Ju was about to leave, he gave her plenty of instructions. She-niang couldn’t see him off outside but also offered her own advice.

He couldn’t say too much to She-niang, as his wife was nearing childbirth and shouldn’t be stressed. But he and the Prince of Qing had already reached an understanding. The Prince of Qing’s plan was to send his son away. He had already bet on the Prince of Jin. If the Prince of Jin succeeded, he would have the merit of supporting the new emperor and could maintain his current position without lifting a finger.

If the Prince of Jin failed, his son could quickly return to rescue the emperor. Either way, they wouldn’t lose.

If the current emperor continued to reign, the Prince of Chongning might eventually overshadow him, and the title could be passed to someone else. Who wouldn’t want to kick him when he was down?

Hereditary titles weren’t easily revoked, but they could be transferred to someone else. For instance, the Prince of Xiang’s estate had caused public outrage, leading to his title being stripped. Instead of passing it to the Prince of Xiang’s eldest son, it was given to his younger brother.

Incidentally, this younger brother was related to She-niang because the current Prince of Xiang’s mother was She-niang’s biological grandmother.

Outsiders didn’t know this yet, but as the head of the Imperial Clan Department, he was already aware.

After Li Ju left, She-niang focused on preparing for childbirth. Since this wasn’t her first time, she had experience. She often had the midwife check if the baby was in the right position and made sure not to sit for too long. Even when she felt lazy, she would get up and walk around.

The busiest person was the Princess Consort of Qing, who was torn between her daughter-in-law and her daughter. The princess’s due date was after She-niang’s, but since it was her first child, she wished she could return home to give birth.

Thus, the Princess Consort of Qing’s attention was divided.

She-niang didn’t expect the Princess Consort of Qing to focus solely on her. She was managing the household affairs and had already prepared everything for the birth. Her Mother and sister-in-law from her maiden family would also be there when the time came.

Although the Princess Consort of Qing was concerned about her daughter, as a Princess Consort, she couldn’t frequently visit the Marquis of Shouning’s residence. She noticed that her daughter-in-law’s mother only visited two or three times a year.

The household had become much quieter, but having A-Heng around added some liveliness.

Perhaps because Li Ju was away, the Prince of Qing often summoned A-Heng. When A-Heng returned, he had learned how to play pitch-pot. When asked, he said his grandfather had taught him. She-niang thought it was strange—her father-in-law had never been known for being particularly active. Now he was fishing and playing pitch-pot, as if he were rediscovering his youth.

Was something about to happen?

But she soon had no time to ponder this, as she was about to give birth. Yu Shi had sent people over several times. When the time finally came, the labor wasn’t as smooth as before. The contractions would ease off only to start again, making her break out in a sweat despite the winter cold.

Yu Shi came in person. She had originally planned to send Huang Shi but decided against it.

Usually, She-niang dressed very elegantly, but now she wore only loose sleeping robes, her hair unbound, lying restlessly in bed.

"She-niang, are you okay?" Yu Shi asked worriedly.

She-niang smiled to comfort her Mother: "I’m fine, don’t worry. Mother, why do you look thinner since I last saw you?"

Yu Shi sat by the bed, gazing at her daughter as if she couldn’t get enough: "You’re worried about me losing weight? Look at yourself. Where’s A-Heng?"

She was most afraid that while her daughter was giving birth, outsiders might neglect her grandson.

She-niang smiled: "I sent him to the Princess Consort. I didn’t want him here."

"It’s just too bad the heir is in Liaodong," Yu Shi muttered, feeling it was unfortunate that her son-in-law was often absent when her daughter needed him.

She-niang waved her hand: "Even if he were here, I’d still be the one giving birth. It’s better for him to be out there."

With Yu Shi keeping her company with everyday talk, She-niang relaxed much more.

A-Heng stayed with the Princess Consort of Qing, looking at picture books. When he didn’t understand something, he would ask the Princess Consort to explain.

"Grandmother, when will Mother come to pick me up?"

Even though he sometimes stayed with the Princess Consort of Qing, it was usually only for an hour or two before his Mother came to get him.

The Princess Consort of Qing had someone bring him snacks and fruits and assigned two younger servant girls to play with him, saying: "A-Heng, be good. Your Mother will send for you soon."

A-Heng cooperated in the game but said: "I know Mother is having a baby sister. Mother told me."

"You know about that? Yes, your Mother is going to give you a little brother or sister," the Princess Consort of Qing said, also wondering how her daughter was doing.

When Bao Ying was due to give birth, she would also go over. Fortunately, her daughter-in-law was managing the household affairs, so she felt reassured.

A-Heng had fallen asleep waiting here when he finally heard a maid from his mother’s quarters come to deliver the message: “Princess, our heir’s wife has given birth to a boy.”

The Princess of Qing sprang to her feet. “That’s wonderful, truly wonderful!”

She-niang gave birth close to dusk. As the child was born, a glow filled the room. She relaxed at last, relieved to have finally delivered the baby.

Yu Shi wiped the sweat from her daughter’s forehead and instructed the servants to clean the delivery room.

After She-niang gave birth to her son, she often had A-Heng speak to her through the window. Daily household matters were left to Qiu Ju and Lan Ruo to manage, as the two had always worked alongside her and were familiar with the routines.

If there were any unresolved issues, they would seek She-niang’s instructions.

Oddly, Yu Shi hadn’t visited for several days when the Princess of Qing sent Nanny Gong over to discuss a matter with her.

“You mean the Emperor has chosen the late Old Prince of Xiang’s youngest son to inherit the title, and the current Prince of Xiang has been stripped of his rank?” She-niang was astonished. “It seems Dowager Consort Hua truly has good fortune.”

Nanny Gong smiled. “Indeed. Her Highness asks that you prepare several generous gifts for congratulations.”

“Alright, I understand.” She-niang was also delighted.

One never knows how fate will turn out until the very end. After Dowager Consort Hua returned to the capital, she kept a very low profile, not even socializing with them. Everyone thought things would remain that way, but now she has become the mother of the new Prince of Xiang.

With Dowager Consort Hua now the Dowager Princess of Xiang, noble and official households in the capital would surely pay visits. Old Madam Pei would definitely come—she loves currying favor with her social superiors. It’s just a pity I won’t be able to witness how she reacts upon meeting Dowager Consort Hua.

At this thought, she hoped Li Niang would visit, though she wasn’t sure if Li Niang’s status would allow her to attend.

After She-niang handled this matter, she heard that the Princess’s pregnancy was not going well.

“How is the Princess doing?” She-niang asked Gui Fang.

She had sent Gui Fang to the Marquis’s household to check on her, so Gui Fang was aware of the situation. Gui Fang replied, “They say she’s bleeding. How could that happen out of nowhere? I wanted to find out more, so I specifically sought out Nanny An’s goddaughter. Guess what? It’s another case of feud between the wife and a concubine.”

She-niang frowned. “Wasn’t that Ju Qing driven out? How could this still be happening?”

“This time, it’s a woman of good family who was brought in. I haven’t seen her myself, but I’ve heard her looks and temperament are top-notch. It seems Wu Ting is determined.” Gui Fang was also angry on the Princess’s behalf.

She-niang leaned back, thinking that Wu Ting used to be quite afraid of the Qing household. Even when the Princess acted unreasonably at times, she could see him holding back.

Why would he bring someone in now? Isn’t this a slap in the face to the Qing household?

With Li Ju not at home, why haven’t the Prince and Princess of Qing reacted at all? Now She-niang was grateful she was in postpartum recovery; otherwise, she would have been dragged into dealing with the fallout again.

If the Princess had been on good terms with her, she might have offered advice. But since taking over household management, she had placed her own people and often heard that the Princess was making trouble in front of the Princess of Qing.

She-niang wasn’t born to endure such treatment and had long been discontented.

“Let’s not get involved in this. This Wu heir isn’t someone without foresight. Could it be that he’s found some influential supporter?”

After the new Prince of Xiang inherited the title, everyone went to his estate to offer congratulations. The Pei family, of course, also attended. Old Madam Pei brought Meng Shi and Yu Shi along, as they were the only ones with honorary titles.

The Pei family wasn’t considered particularly high-ranking in front of the Xiang household and had to queue. However, at that moment, someone from the Xiang estate came over and said, “Our Dowager Princess invites everyone inside.”

Yu Shi knew it was because of Dowager Consort Hua, but Old Madam Pei didn’t. She simply thought the Xiang estate must be aware of her background from the esteemed Dingbei Marquisate and was treating her differently.

Meng Shi smiled and said, “I wonder if we’ll get to see Sixth Daughter today?”

“They probably came the day before,” Yu Shi remarked.

Meng Shi sighed. “If Fifth Daughter were here, things would be easier. She understands the royal protocols.”

“You’re right. It’s a pity she’s in postpartum recovery now. Speaking of which, I’ll have her sister-in-law visit her in a couple of days.” Yu Shi now had four children to worry about, and compared to the others, She-niang was actually the least of her concerns.

The three of them entered together. The Xiang estate was opulently decorated, and the Dowager Princess’s residence was especially magnificent. Two female attendants guided them forward.

Just as Old Madam Pei was about to perform a formal greeting, she glanced up and froze in disbelief.

She thought she must be seeing things. This person… this person… wasn’t she that wretched Hua woman? How could she now be the Dowager Princess? Old Madam Pei felt the world spinning around her.