Yun Manman arrived home just in time for lunch.
As soon as she entered, Yun Zeren and Yun Zewu supported her on either side and helped her settle safely into her seat.
"What are you doing? Don't be so nervous. I'm not that delicate."
Yun Zewu and Yun Zeren set out Yun Manman's bowl and chopsticks.
"Sister, you're the most delicate person in our family now. We're men, so it's only right for us to look after you and protect you."
Smiling, Madam Zhou took the bowl, filled it to the brim with chicken and broth, and placed it before Yun Manman.
"These two grandchildren of mine know how to spare their mother suffering.
"When I was carrying those two boys, your father finally managed to catch a wild chicken for me to eat. But one sniff made me throw up for three days straight. Afterward, even the sight of wild vegetable cakes made me vomit."
Old Father Yun's kindly face was also wreathed in smiles.
"My Manman must be a blessed child. That one mouth of yours has to feed three people now. Drink up. Once you've finished, I'll get you another bowl."
Looking at the second bowl Old Father Yun offered her,
Yun Manman felt a little embarrassed. She really could eat and sleep well during this pregnancy. If not for her belly, she wouldn't even have felt pregnant, much less suffered from morning sickness.
Meanwhile, in the commander's tent at the northwestern camp,
Mo Beiyuan threw up over his meal yet again.
Looking at his master's increasingly thin, pale face,
Qing Yi still ordered the guards at the entrance to fetch Luo Fan and the army physician.
Ever since the prince's abdominal pain that day, although he had shown no other symptoms,
the slightest smell of meat was sure to make him vomit endlessly.
And now, better still,
even the smell of noodles and porridge made him throw up...
They had also suspected that their master had been poisoned,
and had summoned both the army physician and the divine physician Luo Fan.
Yet their final diagnoses had all been that the prince was in normal health and had not been poisoned!
Qing Yi sighed inwardly. Surely my wise and mighty master won't starve to death?
Mo Beiyuan looked at Qing Yi's expression, a hint of helplessness in his blue eyes.
"I've told you there's nothing wrong with my body. I simply can't stand the smell of meat or fish. That expression of yours makes it look as though I'm about to die."
Qing Yi pressed his lips together. Could His Highness read minds? How else would he know I thought he might starve to death?
Luo Fan took Mo Beiyuan's pulse again, then stared at his abdomen, lost in thought.
After a long while,
Luo Fan's gentle, jade-like voice rang out, a faint, helpless amusement in his tone.
"Beiyuan, your condition truly is strange. These symptoms of yours should normally occur in pregnant women, but you..."
Mo Beiyuan's blue eyes turned coldly toward the handsome, refined young man in plain robes seated below him. His voice was chilly and annoyed.
"Luo Fan, your medical skills have regressed rather than improved over the years. You truly deserve the title of quack."
Luo Fan raised his eyebrows, a gentle smile on his lips. Entirely unbothered by Mo Beiyuan's mockery, he turned to study the lost chess game.
Late that night, during the midnight hour, a little after eleven,
"Beep, beep! The night is dark and the wind is high. Time to get up and stir up trouble, Master!"
Guagua's voice rang out above Yun Manman's head like a ghost hounding her for her life. Feeling sluggish, Yun Manman frowned unhappily, rolled over, and pretended to sleep.
The voice above her kept repeating like a broken record.
Yun Manman opened her sleep-blurred eyes, her fury surging higher and higher.
"I really am the hardest-working pregnant woman in history. I even have to get up in the middle of the night to deal with a long-tongued gossip!"
Fuming, she flung back the quilt and pulled on her outer robe, anger and a faint killing intent swirling around her.
She immediately leaped away toward Old Woman Wang's house.
Guagua shrank back in fear. Old Woman Wang really was courting death!
Beneath the moonlight,
that white-clad figure moved with light, agile grace, yet her silhouette looked strong and solitary in the moon's glow.
Yun Manman vaulted straight over the earthen wall and landed steadily in the middle of the courtyard.
Old Woman Wang's husband worked in town year-round, and her son had been among those killed when the villagers went hunting in the mountains.
Now she was the only one who lived at home throughout the year.
Yun Manman narrowed her eyes at the wooden door before her and kicked it open.
Startled awake, Old Woman Wang stared wide-eyed at the doorway in alarm.
"Who's there? Who is it?"
Yun Manman stepped slowly into the room, her purple eyes glittering like a river of stars in the darkness. Her quiet voice held a trace of languor and anger.
"What? When you were wagging your tongue during the day, didn't you think someone might come knocking late at night?"
Old Woman Wang's heart lurched at the visitor's voice.
When she made out the white-clad figure approaching in the moonlight, her eyes abruptly contracted. "Why is it you?"
Then she looked behind Yun Manman and saw no one else. Only then did her tense body relax. Sitting upright, she pointed at Yun Manman and snapped,
"You Yun girl, what are you doing playing ghost in the middle of the night? Get out of my house right now, or I'll tell the village chief tomorrow."
Yun Manman gave a soft snort. Her pale purple eyes were as sharp as icy blades, and murderous intent surged from her. Her cool, indifferent voice carried that same killing intent.
To Old Woman Wang, it sounded like a thunderclap!
"You brazen, long-tongued gossip. How dare you describe my children with such filthy words? I think that superfluous thing of yours has no reason to exist!"
Feeling the chill in the air, Old Woman Wang shrank back.
Looking into Yun Manman's soul-piercing purple eyes, she recalled the sight of Yun Manman killing people, as well as what she had said the day she kicked her down.
Her entire body began to tremble, and her mind instantly cleared.
"You-Lass Yun, you can't kill me! Please spare me! I'll never dare do it again. I really won't! Please!"
Old Woman Wang's eyes brimmed with terror. She desperately begged for mercy while inching farther and farther backward.
Yun Manman's pale purple eyes instantly turned deep violet.
She swept a contemptuous glance over the ant-like old woman, and a transparent lotus slowly rose between her fingers.
Under Old Woman Wang's terrified gaze, it shot straight at her face.
"Aah!"
A scream rang out. Old Woman Wang's mouth filled with blood, and she touched it in terror and panic.
Blood spattered the worn bedsheet, beside a mangled lump of flesh.
"Mmph, mmph, mmph..."
"I'll spare your worthless life today and take only your tongue as punishment. If I ever find out you've been up to mischief again, I'll make sure you die in such agony that you'll wish you were dead!"
With that, Yun Manman walked out of the room and waved a hand, shutting the door behind her and cutting off the whimpering inside.
Only then did she leap away toward home.
Feeling movement inside her belly, a rare trace of tenderness appeared in Yun Manman's eyes. She gently rested her palm against it.
"As long as I'm here, I will never allow anyone in this world to hurt you. Your mother will grow strong-strong enough to keep you safe for the rest of your lives."
Feeling her belly move even more vigorously, Yun Manman chuckled softly and hurriedly corrected herself.
"Of course, my children must be even more capable than I am. So you must be the very best."
As though they had heard Yun Manman's praise, the movement in her belly quieted, and the curve of her lips grew more pronounced.
Sensing a presence ahead, Yun Manman's smile faded, and her gaze sharpened as she looked over.
Not far away, Yun Mo stood dressed in white beneath the moonlight, his expression indistinct.
"Yun Mo, what are you doing here in the middle of the night instead of getting some proper rest?"
Yun Mo first stealthily looked Yun Manman over. Only after finding that she was uninjured did an innocent smile spread across his face.
"My room felt a little stuffy. I'll go back and rest right away. You should get some rest soon too, Sister Man."