Nanxing seems to have never had children.
Yanran wanted to ask, but she was afraid of touching on Nanxing's sore spot, so she swallowed her words.
Jiang'er served tea and snacks, and then took Little Tangyuan to play on the side.
She performed magic tricks for Little Tangyuan, the objects in her hands appearing and disappearing intermittently, keeping the little guy's eyes wide open and preventing him from bothering his favorite older sister.
Nanxing then asked Yanran about her situation during the two years she had been away from Beijing, and also talked about some things that happened in the capital.
She specifically told Yanran to be careful.
In the past two years, Consort De has been in the limelight for too long.
"She must have been involved in the matter of my mother being wrongly accused of poisoning my grandfather," Yanran said with a cold snort.
"It must be her," Nanxing said. "Actually, I was also at fault in this matter."
"What does this have to do with you?"
"I should have guessed sooner that Consort De was not a good person," Nanxing said regretfully. "Pei Shen warned me long ago not to have any contact with Consort De."
At that time, Consort De was still praised by everyone as a virtuous and kind person.
"That doesn't count," Yanran said casually. "There's no such thing as 'if only I had known.' Anyway, I have no intention of compromising. She's wholeheartedly supporting Prince of Ding, and she and my father have already fallen out."
If there's any concern, it's about Meng Yulan.
After all, Meng Yulan came from the Duke Meng's Residence.
But after hearing Yanran's concerns, Nanxing said, "You don't need to worry about that at all. Just do what you need to do, don't be shy, your aunt won't blame you. Just protect yourself. If Consort De summons you alone, don't go, ask me to go with you, understand?"
At this moment, Nanxing was somewhat relieved that she did not have a child yet, so she had no weakness that Consort De could exploit.
To be honest, she has considered having a child in the past two years, but perhaps because her health hasn't improved, she hasn't been able to conceive.
Originally, Madam Qin was keeping her company—both were "older" and infertile—but after the New Year, news spread that Madam Qin was pregnant, and she should be five or six months along now.
"Alright," Yanran said. "Slapping you in the face is slapping Pei Shen in the face, Consort De should still have some consideration for that."
Nanxing is going to take Yanran to stay at the Marquis's mansion again.
Yanran refused. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll stay in the Prince's mansion."
She is also a mistress of the Prince's mansion, so there's nothing wrong with her living there.
Inside and outside the mansion, if anyone thinks they can avoid using steamed buns as provisions, they'll have to wait and see.
Nanxing thought about it and was still a little worried.
"I'm worried that Consort De might complain about you to the Emperor, so I've already spoken to Pei Shen and asked him to come to the palace. Also, I wonder if your maternal aunt has returned yet? She's very thoughtful; we should listen to her more often."
"Oh, Nanxing, you don't need to worry so much," Yanran said with a grin, "Or you'll age faster."
Nanxing glared at her. "I'll write to the Empress tonight and tell her what you've done, and see what she says."
Yanran quickly begged for mercy, "Good Nanxing, good Nanxing, please don't do that..."
Tang Zhuyun, far away in a border town, was drying medicinal herbs in her courtyard when she suddenly sneezed twice.
Xiu'er said mischievously, "It must be that the Prince is thinking of you."
Why can't it be Yanran?
"A mother worries when her son travels a thousand miles, but a son doesn't worry when his mother travels a thousand miles. This is a well-known truth. Yanran is in the capital now, and she's probably having a wonderful time."
Tang Zhuyun said with some regret, "I don't need her to worry about me, but I do regret letting her go back. I'm worried about her."
"Don't worry, the Prince is here, Cui Xiaoqiu is here, Aunt is here, Nanxing is here too..."
"That's true." Tang Zhuyun smiled, put down the half-dried Eucommia bark in her hand, and said, "If the weather is good, it will be ready in three or four more days of drying."
While washing her hands, she asked someone to bring her three children over to play.
The three little ones can all walk now; they're like little snowballs, so Lovely.
Wuxian was walking unsteadily and looked like he was about to fall.
Tang Zhuyun reacted quickly, bending down to support him and preventing him from falling flat on his backside.
She chuckled and playfully pinched Wuxian's nose, telling him to slow down. However, when she tried to get up, she felt a sharp pain in her lower back and held it, afraid to move.
"Your Highness, what's wrong? Did you strain yourself?" Xiu'er wiped Wuji's nose and saw Tang Zhuyun like this, so she quickly came over to help her.
"It might be a stitch," Tang Zhuyun said. "Let's rest for a bit and see."
Seeing her slowly moving while supporting her back, Xiu'er suddenly remembered the hardships she had endured while pregnant with twins and exclaimed in surprise, "Your Majesty, has your period been delayed for two months?"
Tang Zhuyun washes her own underwear, but Xiu'er always notices when she has her period.
However, she was so busy taking care of her three children that she forgot about it.
Tang Zhuyun was also stunned.
Is it really two months?
I don't think so.
But upon closer inspection, it seems like it's been almost three months since my last period...
Tang Zhuyun is pregnant again.
Xiu'er was both happy and complaining. "You, how could you ignore something so important? What if something happens? Don't move, please don't move..."
Tang Zhuyun found it amazing.
How could she be pregnant without even realizing it?
The baby in my belly is so well-behaved.
She couldn't help but lower her head and rub her lower abdomen; this was a gift left to her by the Prince of Jin before he went to the capital.
Looking back now, even though he was injured, he was still thinking about such a small thing. Was it because his daughter was coming?
Thinking of this, Tang Zhuyun couldn't help but smile.
Xiu'er also realized what was happening and whispered in her ear, "Your Highness, this child... how could the Prince have gotten this child from his injury?"
Tang Zhuyun nodded, her face flushed.
Xiu'er slapped her thigh. "Your Highness is amazing!"
Tang Zhuyun: No, it's me who can do it.
"That's great!" Xiu'er exclaimed happily, "This time it's definitely a girl."
She called out "sister" to Guagua, Guagua looked around blankly.
"Fool, your little sister is in Her Majesty's belly."
Guagua was completely bewildered.
Tang Zhuyun was amused by her adorable look and said, "It doesn't necessarily mean she's a girl."
While having a daughter could help balance the gender ratio in the next generation, we still need to respect science.
Xiu'er said, "Why not a girl? You want to have four sons? Are you not leaving any way for those of us without sons to survive? You've taken Zidu!"
Tang Zhuyun laughed loudly.
"Then I'll name my daughter Wuyan (meaning 'Wuyan' )," she joked.
She doesn't try to please anyone based on their appearance; she thinks the name is quite nice.
Xiu'er said, "How can you say that about your own daughter? No, this name is definitely not right. I'll have Linlin think about it carefully later."
She's speechless, especially since she 'Wuyan!
When it comes to naming things, Xiu'er admires Linlin the most.
"Your Highness, why don't you write a letter to the Prince? He'll be overjoyed to hear it."
"I won't tell him. He can't help anyway, and worrying about it will only take up his energy," Tang Zhuyun said.
She might have Zidu given birth by the time Prince of Jin returns, which would give him a big surprise.
"Your Highness, someone outside has a letter from the Prince's residence requesting to see you," a maidservant reported from under the eaves.