Chapter 1 Entering the Mansion Shen Yunrong timidly followed the maid of the prince’s residence…

Chapter 1: Entering the Mansion

Shen Yunrong timidly followed the maid of Prince Zhuang’s mansion, her gaze sweeping across the opulent inner courtyard. Every corner was magnificently adorned, and even the bluestone bricks beneath her feet were immaculately clean.

A sudden urge to flee seized her, her steps faltering. But the thought of her hungry, wailing daughter at home and her mother, whose hair was now streaked with silver, made her bite her lip. She quickened her pace, staying close behind the maid.

The opportunity to become a wet nurse in Prince Zhuang’s mansion had come through her neighbor, Aunt Liu, whose son worked there. Seeing their plight as a widow and child, he had recommended her. Still, she had to pass the inspection of the mansion’s nanny before her position could be confirmed.

The monthly pay for a wet nurse was two taels of silver—a coveted position many vied for. Brother Liu had spoken countless good words on her behalf to secure this interview with the nanny. She couldn't give up halfway, if only to repay his kindness.

Having left home only half a day ago, her chest felt swollen and tender with each step. Her daughter had gone without milk for hours, and she worried if the child was crying.

Preoccupied with thoughts of her daughter, she paid little attention to the mansion’s grandeur. The maid’s clear voice cut through her thoughts: “Nanny Li, I’ve brought her!”

Startled, Shen Yunrong lowered her head, almost touching her chest.

“Are you Liu Hu’s relative?” a stern female voice inquired.

Shen Yunrong, following the maid’s lead, curtsied calmly and replied, “This humble woman, Shen Rongniang, greets the nanny.”

“Raise your head.” Nanny Li had spent two days fruitlessly searching for a suitable wet nurse, and the young master had been crying from hunger. Seeing Shen Yunrong’s fair complexion and tall figure, her eyes lit up, and she leaned forward slightly from her chair.

Shen Yunrong lifted her head, revealing a delicate face as smooth as a peeled egg, particularly her clear, pure eyes. Were it not for her full bosom, one would never guess she was a woman who had borne a child.

Nanny Li routinely asked about her family. Hearing she was a widow, she frowned briefly but soon relaxed upon seeing Shen Yunrong’s fair face. She signaled with her eyes, and the maid closed the door.

“Undress.”

Shen Yunrong had heard from the maid that the nanny would inspect her, but she hadn’t expected it to happen in such circumstances. It wasn't just her and the nanny; a maid was also present. Though all were women, she felt deeply embarrassed and clutched her collar tightly.

“Hmm?” Nanny Li’s soft hum urged her on. Without further hesitation, Shen Yunrong unbuttoned her clothes, revealing her snow-white chest.

Nanny Li’s eyes shone with admiration. She cupped Shen Yunrong’s breasts and nodded in satisfaction. “You’re hired.”

Blushing with shame, Shen Yunrong couldn’t hide her delight. “Thank you, Nanny!”

Even after settling into her room, Shen Yunrong could hardly believe she had been chosen. Among the dozen or so women who had applied, many were more buxom than her, and she had held little hope.

Nanny Li instructed her to rest for the night and begin nursing the young master the next day.

Alone, thoughts of her daughter made her want to quit and return home to hold her. But she couldn’t—precisely for her daughter’s sake, she needed this job. Wiping her tears, she bathed and drifted into a fitful sleep in the unfamiliar bed.

In her dream, she returned to that day when she went to the mountains to gather herbs, as usual. In the cave she frequented, she found a man lying unconscious, injured in ways she couldn’t discern.

She turned to leave, but the man groaned in pain. As night fell, the mountain temperature would drop drastically, and anyone left there would freeze to death.

Unable to abandon him, she turned back to check on him. She wondered how he had found the cave, which she had discovered by chance. The entrance was covered with vines whose sap could cause hallucinations. Villagers avoided the area, making the hidden cave difficult to find.

The man groaned again, arching his body. Shen Yunrong, though frightened, mustered courage to approach. He had sharp eyebrows and thin lips, his forehead drenched in sweat, clearly in agony.

She touched his forehead and realized he had a fever. Left alone in the wilderness, he would surely die. Fortunately, the vines at the cave entrance had medicinal properties—anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving. She picked a few, crushed them with a stone, and dripped the juice into his mouth.

Soon, the man stopped arching, though his face remained flushed. He muttered incoherently. Shen Yunrong didn’t understand his words but, seeing him improve, prepared to leave. Suddenly, he grabbed her wrist. “So hot!”

This time, she understood him. Before she could react, he pulled her into her arms. She wondered if she, too, had been affected by the vines’ toxins, as she didn’t push him away immediately.

Later, she fled the mountain in disarray. She thought of suffocating the man but couldn’t bring herself to do it. It wasn’t entirely his fault—she had been careless, focused only on saving him and forgetting the vines’ potent toxicity.

The next day, when she returned to the mountain, the man was gone. Relieved, she thought it had all been a nightmare. But a month later, she began feeling nauseous and unable to eat.

A physician confirmed she was pregnant. She confessed everything to her mother. In their small village, an unmarried pregnant woman was shunned. They traveled to the capital to seek refuge with her aunt, only to find her aunt’s family had moved away. With no money to travel further, they settled in the capital.

Awakened by a baby’s cries, Shen Yunrong sat up in bed, momentarily disoriented by the unfamiliar surroundings. She remembered she was now working in the mansion. The cries must be from the young master, but why had he been crying for so long?

She hurriedly washed up. Soon, Nanny Li’s maid came for her. “Wet Nurse Shen, the young master is crying fiercely. Please come and tend to him.”

Shen Yunrong followed the maid and picked up the child, who was about the same age as her daughter. The baby seemed to smell her milk and nuzzled into her chest. She quickly undid her clothes.

As the child began to suckle, Shen Yunrong shuddered. Fortunately, the young master was similar in size to her daughter, and she soon adapted, gently patting his bottom. The baby drank greedily, his face flushed and dotted with sweat from crying or nursing.

Seeing the young master, so like her daughter, softened Shen Yunrong’s heart, but it also ached. Her daughter, just as young, was without her mother, surviving on rice paste.

Nanny Li stood nearby, relieved to see the young master lulled to sleep by Shen Yunrong.

“From now on, you are the wet nurse of Prince Zhuang’s mansion. Besides nursing the young master, you must avoid trouble and gossip. If you encounter noble masters like the prince, remember to step aside promptly,” Nanny Li sternly instructed after the child was settled in his crib.

Shen Yunrong bowed her head and agreed. She had entered the mansion to earn money and, by nature, was quiet and unlikely to cause trouble.

Pleased with her humble demeanor, Nanny Li nodded. “Take good care of the young master, and you will be rewarded.”

Nanny Li had selected only Shen Yunrong and another plump, fair-faced woman as wet nurses. Seeing the friendly-looking woman brought in by the maid, Shen Yunrong felt slightly relieved.

After Nanny Li left, the woman smiled at her. “You’re quite pretty, sister. I’m Zheng Zhuer, twenty-two years old. I’m probably a few years older than you.”

“Sister Zheng, I’m Rongniang, nineteen.”

They spoke softly to avoid waking the young master. After a brief introduction, they sat quietly.

Footsteps approached, and a man’s authoritative voice rang out. “How is the young master today?”

“Your Highness, the young master fell asleep after feeding,” Nanny Li replied, her tone obsequious, unlike her earlier sternness.

Shen Yunrong caught a glimpse of a tall man in gold-trimmed robes striding in. Zheng Zhuer quickly pulled her down to kneel. “Your servants greet Your Highness!”

“Your Highness, these are the new wet nurses,” Nanny Li said, her voice trembling with fear. She had chosen them carefully.

Prince Zhuang Zhao Linzhang didn’t glance their way until he saw the sleeping child. Then he looked down at the kneeling women.

“Rise. Take good care of the child, and I will reward you handsomely.”

Shen Yunrong, who had never been so close to nobility, felt her heart race, her palms sweaty. Zheng Zhuer had to pull her up, or she might have remained kneeling.

Zhao Linzhang turned to leave, not bothering to look at the new wet nurses. But as he stepped away, the baby’s loud cries erupted.

Zheng Zhuer, who had cared for the young master for days, hurried to pick him up. Shen Yunrong hesitated briefly before following.

As they brought the child out, Zhao Linzhang, who had returned, looked at the now-quiet baby and forced an awkward smile. “Xiao Siliang, let your godfather hold you.”

But the child, seeing Zhao Linzhang’s outstretched arms, puckered his lips and burst into tears again.

“Your Highness, the young master just woke up. He must be hungry,” Nanny Li hurriedly explained. Since the child had been brought to the mansion, he would let anyone hold him except the prince.

It was no wonder the child was afraid. Even Nanny Li, despite her years, felt intimidated by the prince, who had just returned from the battlefield. His aura of bloodshed and authority commanded fear without a word.

“Feed the child first.”

Just as Shen Yunrong was about to take the child, she looked up and saw a cold, noble face that struck her like a bolt of lightning, freezing the blood in her veins.

Was he the man from the mountain? That man was Prince Zhuang?

Never expecting to see this man again, Shen Yunrong stood frozen, her chest heaving violently. Zheng Zhuer, noticing she made no move to take the child, took the baby inside.

In a panic, Shen Yunrong quickly lowered her head and followed Zheng Zhuer. Thankfully, Prince Zhuang hadn’t recognized her.

Or perhaps he didn’t even know she existed. The world was vast—maybe they were just two people who looked alike. How could Prince Zhuang, a man of such high nobility, have been alone in that remote wilderness? They must simply resemble each other.

Shen Yunrong kept reassuring herself inwardly. She couldn’t afford to lose this job—her mother was elderly and ill, and her child was still young. As long as she kept silent, no one would ever know what happened that day, not even that man.

Author's note:

----------------------

Rolling over to ask again, dear readers - please bookmark me! [Let me see]