Chapter 88: Fighting for the Child

Yan Yan gave birth to three children in one breath: one daughter and two sons.

This sent the Ninth Prince into such reckless delight that for several days he could not stop grinning. And he did not merely rejoice; he also scattered wealth. After decreeing that everyone in the Ninth Prince's residence should receive double monthly pay, he swept his hand once more and ordered the tea house and the vegetable shop under the Ninth House name to sell at half price for three days.

At first, he had not intended to include the vegetable shop, since it was not really his own enterprise. But the common people did not know that; they were even offering congratulations to the shopkeeper there. And once his mood improved, he naturally allowed the vegetable shop to join in the half-price sale as well.

When the Kangxi Emperor heard the news, he gave a most unconcerned snort. To Li Dequan he said, "Yintan seems to have quite a lot of silver lately. Go tell the Court of Imperial Household Affairs to have them collect payment from Yintan for the vegetable shop. Keep only a hundred taels as operating funds and take back the rest. Bring the account books too."

Li Dequan glanced at the emperor, somewhat helplessly, but still went to the court with the message. After all, the one who had to ask the Ninth Prince for money was not him; the embarrassment would not be his either. Thus Lingpu, who was in charge of the court, frowned as soon as he received the order and went off to discuss it with the Crown Prince.

Yan Yan, however, knew nothing of any of this. She slept in a groggy haze for an entire day before finally waking. Naturally, the Ninth Prince was not by her side. In the Great Qing, it was customary that when a woman gave birth and was confined for her month of recuperation, men could not enter the room, lest they bring future bad luck.

Yan Yan was utterly speechless at such a rule, but she had never been especially dependent on the Ninth Prince anyway. She looked toward Mama Song and asked, "Where are the children? Let me see them."

Mama Song smiled. "Mistress Consort, please rest a while longer. You have suffered such a great ordeal in childbirth; how could your body recover so quickly?"

Yan Yan was indeed terribly exhausted, but her longing to see the children was too strong. She could only continue gazing at Mama Song with pleading eyes. Mama Song looked a little embarrassed, and after a long pause she said, "The Ninth Prince is in the room playing with the young miss and the young masters, so I fear it will be a while yet."

Yan Yan immediately frowned and said unhappily, "Newborn babies have nothing to play with. Go tell the prince that the most important thing for a newborn is sleep. Tell him not to disturb them, or they will grow foolish later."

This was a line her cousin in her former life had always repeated: that a child's intelligence and emotional maturity were gained while sleeping, so sleep was especially important. Seeing how firm Yan Yan was, Mama Song slowly made her way downstairs. She thought the Ninth Prince would surely be displeased this time, yet to her surprise he agreed readily and even said that Mama Song should do everything according to Yan Yan's wishes, and under no circumstances let Yan Yan become upset.

Yan Yan heard the Ninth Prince's voice upstairs and could not help curling her lip. Cui'er smiled from the side and said, "Mistress didn't see it, but the Ninth Prince is very fond of those three children. Yesterday he even learned how to hold the Sixth Young Miss."

At that, Yan Yan's brow furrowed even tighter.

Fortunately, the three children were soon brought up and laid side by side next to Yan Yan. She tilted her head for a look, and indeed the Sixth Young Miss was the largest, almost equal to the other two combined. The other two, surprisingly, were not so alike after all. Though it was clear at a glance that they were brothers, their size and complexion made them easy to tell apart.

Mama Song smiled nearby. "The slightly larger one is the Eldest Young Master, and the one a little fairer is the Second Young Master."

It was obvious that Mama Song knew how to speak to people, saying only the children's virtues. Yan Yan struggled to sit up, quickly stripped the babies' clothes off, examined them carefully from top to bottom, then said to Cui'er, "The Sixth Young Miss has a birthmark on her waist. The Eldest Young Master has one on his ankle. The Second Young Master is the fairest of all, and has none. You must remember this for me, or else I may forget later."

"Yes, mistress, rest assured." Cui'er's reply was bright and clear.

Yan Yan looked around the room again and asked, "Besides Nurse Wang, has the prince found any wet nurses yet?"

Mama He, standing nearby, said, "The Ninth Prince has already gone looking, but now everyone knows that our residence has gained two young masters, so it has become somewhat difficult to find suitable women. The Ninth Prince is also worried that someone may harbor bad intentions, so he has been searching rather slowly."

Yan Yan did not really care much about finding wet nurses. In later generations, children drank formula and still grew up quite well. Besides, she herself should be able to nurse them too. But just as Yan Yan was preparing to breastfeed, Mama He stopped her.

"Mistress, that does not conform to the rules."

Yan Yan was plainly very assertive. She looked at Mama He with a smile and said, "Nurse, in my Cloud Dream Garden, and with my children, what I say is the rule."

Mama He froze, thinking that Yan Yan truly was becoming spoiled by favor. Listen to those words; how could they sound like something a mistress consort ought to say?

Yet Mama He did not confront Yan Yan directly. Instead, she turned and went to find the Ninth Prince. But scarcely had Mama He left Cloud Dream Garden when Yan Yan issued a flurry of orders.

First: No one was to disturb the children while they slept. No loud noises were permitted in Cloud Dream Garden, and everyone must walk softly.

Second: No one was to hold them. Whether the Sixth Young Miss or the two young masters, they were not to be held except during feeding time; at all other times they must lie on their own.

Third: Every day, the times the children slept, drank water, and relieved themselves had to be recorded in meticulous detail. If one could not write, then one must draw on the timetable, and every item had to be clearly marked.

Thus Mama He gained one more matter to complain about to the Ninth Prince: how could raising children be like raising vegetables, with everything governed by rules and schedules? If the children woke in the middle of the night and cried, were they not to be soothed? Was the entire prince's residence to be left listening to their cries? And besides, the Ninth Prince's study was right beside Cloud Dream Garden; it would not do to disturb him either.

So Mama He thought that because Yan Yan had given birth to sons, she had become emboldened and was no longer as gentle as before.

But the Ninth Prince thought nothing of it. He knew that Yan Yan had always liked to make plans for everything. Though she might deviate somewhat when actually doing things, the habit was still a good one.

Moreover, in the Ninth Prince's heart, he believed that Yan Yan would be able to care for their children splendidly, even extraordinarily well. So he took Mama He's words to heart not at all, and instead said magnanimously, "Yan Yan would never harm the children. Just cooperate with her."

"Your Highness, are you truly not afraid that trouble will arise in the inner courtyard?" Mama He could not help reminding him when she saw how relaxed he was. Indeed, the Ninth Prince immediately narrowed his peach-blossom eyes, as if he had never considered the matter at all. "What do you mean by that, Nurse?"

Mama He let out a heavy sigh and said earnestly, "Your Highness, now that Mistress Yan has suddenly given birth to two young masters, and moreover has the emperor's life-saving kindness to his name, this is already beyond the reach of the others in the inner courtyard. This old servant only fears that some may begin to entertain other thoughts."

The Ninth Prince's brows drew together, and he looked very displeased. "What other thoughts?"

Mama He sighed helplessly, but did not continue. Some things only needed to be hinted at; say too much, and it might truly make the Ninth Prince uncomfortable. Even so, with Mama He leaving things half-said, the Ninth Prince became gloomy. After she left, he called Wang Quan'er and Wu Tong over and instructed them to pay especially close attention to the safety of Cloud Dream Garden.

Before the Ninth Prince had even finished giving his orders, Dong Eshi arrived at the study. He waved the two men away.

Dong Eshi seldom came to the Ninth Prince's study, and even when delivering ginseng soup and tonics, she rarely came herself. Perhaps she believed such tactics were only for concubines, and that she, as the proper wife, did not need to resort to them.

Yet today Dong Eshi had brought ginseng soup to the Ninth Prince's study, and a phrase immediately rose in the Ninth Prince's mind: needless courtesy is either theft or trouble.

Sure enough, after exchanging pleasantries for a while and seeing the Ninth Prince drink the soup, Dong Eshi finally began to speak somewhat hesitantly.

"Your Highness, this concubine would like to discuss something with you. I wonder if it would be feasible? If Your Highness does not agree, then please take it as though I never mentioned it."

Her smile clearly carried a hint of ingratiation. The Ninth Prince's heart gave a small jolt, but he still gave a low hum, indicating that he was listening.

As expected, Dong Eshi said, "Your Highness, I was thinking that since Sister Yan has given birth to three children at once, and this is also her first confinement, she surely cannot attend to everything alone. Why not let me help care for one of them?"

The Ninth Prince immediately narrowed his eyes and looked at her.

Dong Eshi felt a little unnerved, but still steeled herself and continued, "At the very least, I am Your Highness's lawful wife. If the two young masters are raised under my name, then in the future..."

She did not finish, but the meaning beyond the words was obvious enough: they would at least count as half legitimate sons and have a good future ahead of them.

The Ninth Prince naturally understood the significance of placing the children under Dong Eshi's name, yet he still looked at her skeptically, uncertain when she had begun entertaining such an idea.

"Your Highness understands. Please return first and let Your Highness consider it." He gave no definite answer, but neither did he refuse.

Dong Eshi was obviously very satisfied with his reaction. She believed that such magnanimity on her part ought to earn his gratitude.

And Wu Tong, who had not gone far, naturally overheard this news and hurried to Cloud Dream Garden to tell Cui'er. Knowing Yan Yan as he did, he feared she would never agree to such a thing.

Sure enough, the moment Yan Yan heard it, she shot upright in bed. After a full quarter hour of stunned silence, she ordered Cui'er to help her dress and make herself presentable, because she was going to see the Ninth Prince.

Naturally, no one would allow Yan Yan to go out while she was still in confinement, and they all hurried to dissuade her. Mama He and Mama Song even suggested sending someone to invite the Ninth Prince over instead, but Yan Yan seemed unable to bear it for even a moment longer. She found a fresh set of clothes and put them on, roughly arranged her hair, and strode quickly downstairs.

By then, the Ninth Prince had also entered the main hall of Cloud Dream Garden. Seeing Yan Yan, he immediately frowned. "Nonsense. You're in confinement—how can you come downstairs so casually? What if you leave behind an illness for the future? Hurry back upstairs."