Chapter 56

Chapter 56

"The Prince has ordered the Princess to register the eldest son under the name of the late Shufei Qian."

"From now on, the eldest son is the son of Shufei Qian, and is no longer related to Shiqie Ning."

"Shufei Qian?" Suddenly hearing an unfamiliar title, Xie Run could not react for a moment.

It was Xiaoshu who stepped forward to explain: "Milady, you didn't know, but there used to be a Shufei Qian in the manor. Unfortunately, she died of illness in the twenty-ninth year of Yuanhong."

After dismissing the little maid, Xiaoshu said some things unknown to others.

"Back when Shiqie Ning was still Cefei, she had a lot of blood on her hands. The deaths of other Shiqie and Shufei were more or less related to her."

"Only this Shufei Qian was naturally weak and died of a cold."

After hearing this, Xie Run was silent for a long time, then said, "The Prince does still care for the eldest son."

Prince Jing is ruthless toward Shiqie Ning, but he is truly good to the eldest son.

Dan Tao also nodded: "The eldest son insulted his stepmothers and harmed his siblings. Yet the Prince still chose a Shufei to be the eldest son's mother... After all, he is the first son."

If he truly didn't care, he would have casually placed him under a deceased Shiqie's name, and the eldest son would have had no hope for the rest of his life.

Xie Run sighed, "I only hope that after this incident, the Prince's manor can be peaceful for a while."

She stroked her slightly bulging belly, with a hint of worry between her brows. During this pregnancy, there have been constant upheavals.

"It's already five and a half months now. If we can be stable for another three or four months, it will be fine..."

Dan Tao said: "Raising a child, you worry for ninety-nine years out of a hundred. How can three or four months be enough?"

Xiaoshu nodded in agreement, "Exactly. After the young master is born, the first three years require the most caution."

"After three years old, they start with elementary education and learning to read; after coming of age, they have to marry and have children... How can there be any real leisure?"

In this day and age, children are hard to raise.

It is generally believed that if a child reaches three years old without problems, then the child is considered to have truly survived the danger.

Xie Run: "..."

Just then, a piece of news came from outside the manor.

Cefei Jiang, who was originally scheduled to enter the manor in November, has contracted smallpox and is now severely ill, so she probably can't enter the manor as planned.

"Smallpox?"

"She's in the capital, how could she contract smallpox?!"

Upon hearing the news, Xie Run was not the only one shocked.

However, most people were gloating.

If it were any other illness, that would be one thing.

But of all things, it's smallpox.

If she's not careful, she could be left with scars on her face, or even disfigurement in severe cases.

A Cefei with a damaged appearance is hardly a threat.

Xie Run and Fang Yuaner immediately thought of Wan Linlang, this reborn female lead.

In the original plot, there was no such person as Jiang Baobao.

Because of the plot change, she appeared out of nowhere, snatched the credit for disaster relief from Wan Linlang, and earned a Cefei position.

Both Fang Yuaner and Xie Run knew nothing about her, so they couldn't tell whether it was true or false.

But they knew one thing.

Wan Linlang is most skilled in medicine and poison, and she entered the capital together with Jiang Baobao, so it's hard to believe she didn't have some malicious intentions.

It's not that they like to maliciously speculate about people.

It's just that it's so typical of Wan Linlang's methods.

Dan Tao used fire tongs to stir the charcoal in the silver wire brazier; there was no trace of smoke, just the fine silver wire charcoal that was burning well.

"For now, they only say that her entry is delayed, but they haven't said exactly when she will enter. I think it probably won't be until after the New Year."

"The later she enters, the better."

Xie Run had a small blanket draped over her waist, lazily lying on the kang.

She held an embroidery hoop in her hand, occasionally poking a stitch.

Xiaoshu lifted the curtain and came in from outside, just happened to hear this, and said with enthusiasm: "I heard this one has a wild and willful temperament. After she enters the manor, who knows what kind of trouble she'll stir up."

Dan Tao echoed: "The later she enters, the more peaceful days we'll have."

Xiaoshu's eyes lit up, and she said: "Milady, I just saw Shiqie Lu carrying something towards Qingzhu Pavilion again."

The look on her face clearly showed she couldn't wait to see the drama unfold.

Dan Tao was afraid that Xie Run would become curious and go watch the drama, so she quickly stopped her: "Milady, the snow is heavy and the road is slippery today, please don't go out."

Xie Run obediently nodded, "I won't go out."

She looked curious and said: "Didn't they say that Shiqie Lu was driven out by Shiqie Li yesterday? Why is she going again today?"

Before, when the two hadn't fallen out, Shiqie Lu would go every few days.

Now that Shiqie Li has started driving her away, Shiqie Lu is going even more frequently?

Dan Tao said softly: "When something's off, there's always a catch. Milady, don't get involved. It's just those few people scheming."

Xie Run nodded and smiled lightly: "I won't get involved. In two days it will be the Winter Solstice. At that time, I'll have the people in my courtyard make two winter outfits each and prepare a feast to liven things up."

"When the time comes, I will report to the Princess."

To prepare a feast, they need the main kitchen's help, so naturally they must first mention it to the Princess.

Xie Run has recently been quite favored by Prince Jing. Her "formidable rival" Shufei Fang is under house arrest, so Xie Run has been stealing the spotlight.

But Xie Run has always been low-key and follows the rules; she would never show the least bit of disrespect over such small matters.

The Princess Consort was also very satisfied with her.

"The snowfall is heavy this year. The Imperial Observatory says it might last until the third month. The Emperor fears for the people's livelihood and plans to lead the entire palace in ancestral rites on the Winter Solstice. That'll be another busy affair."

Xie Run smiled and said, "Matters of the palace are for Prince Jing and the Princess Consort to handle."

As she spoke, Xie Run paused, and her slender, willow-leaf brows furrowed slightly.

She had forgotten, she recalled—this winter would indeed bring a severe snow disaster, and the situation would be dire.

According to the book, by early the third month, the heavy snow showed no signs of stopping. Localities everywhere begged the capital for aid, and the people were destitute.

Just then, a monumental incident occurred.

It nearly forced Emperor Yuanhong to issue an edict of self-blame.

At the height of the snow disaster, the Ziyang Hall where Consort Chen resided collapsed under the weight of the snow!

That very night, Consort Chen was attending the Emperor.

Outside, rumors spread that the Emperor lacked virtue and favored a bewitching consort, thus causing Heaven to send heavy snow in the sixth month and ruin the people.

Many ministers submitted memorials, urging the Emperor to depose Consort Chen and issue an edict of self-blame to appease the people.

But just then, the neighboring Xia Dynasty was making military preparations and eyeing the border covetously.

With troubles both at home and abroad, Emperor Yuanhong had no choice but to reluctantly depose Consort Chen and reduce her to a commoner and send her to Qingyuan Hall to live in seclusion.

This upheaval dragged on for a full six months, finally dying down only after the autumn harvest.

Xie Run was merely a lowly concubine struggling to survive in Prince Jing's household.

Faced with this snow disaster, she was helpless.

The only things she could do were whisper a few reminders to Prince Jing or donate some money to aid the refugees displaced by the heavy snow.

Xie Run suddenly called, "Dan Tao!"

Dan Tao replied, "What are your orders, mistress?"

"After the New Year, remind me that I must see my elder sister."

Dan Tao nodded. "This servant will remember."

What Xie Jiang held in her hands was a heroine's script—she was carving her own path alone.

Because she was the protagonist, she was blessed with a halo, and the environment would adapt to her, and not the other way around.

Otherwise, simply by traveling around as a female physician with two children of unknown paternity,

Xie Jiang would not have received acclaim from the entire city; instead, she would have been notorious and unable to move an inch.

Some things Xie Run could not do.

But Xie Jiang could.

Just as they were talking about Xie Jiang, someone arrived from the main courtyard with a message.

Tinghe handed a letter with a smile. "Greetings, Shufei Xie."

Xie Run raised her hand in greeting and smiled. "It's rare to see Miss Tinghe. Is something the matter?"

"Eldest Miss Xie is about to travel south. Before her departure, she specially sent this letter to you," Tinghe said softly. "The Princess Consort ordered this servant to deliver it personally."