Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 353 The First Child

Meng Shu was walking slowly along the palace path when she heard this, so she stopped and turned to stare at Green Willow. "It's just a bottle of Dew, is it worth you fussing over? How have Wan'er and Aunt Mei treated you? Don't bring up such things again."

Seeing that Green Willow was twisting her handkerchief and still looked somewhat indignant.

Meng Shu patiently said, "Wan'er has always been like this. Back in the manor, every time the eldest young lady came to Yunyi Courtyard, she would 'steal' a few things."

Green Willow spent the shortest time at Yunyi Academy and was unaware of many past events.

She opened her mouth, but ultimately said, "How can these be the same? That was a gift from Shu'er, it should have been..."

"Should have been what?" Meng Shu suddenly interrupted her, her voice turning colder.

"You disliked Mengzhu before, but what you just said is no different from her words," Meng Shu lowered her voice, "How many people in this palace are waiting to see us fall out of favor, and you're the ones who are handing over the knife first?"

"It is always better for Consort Yun to be favored than others. If she harbors resentment over such trivial matters, how can she accomplish anything?"

If you continue to be so impatient, I might as well send you out of the palace sooner rather than later, to prevent you from losing your temper and causing trouble.

Meng Shu had always been grateful for the friendship between Green Willow and Winter Melon, and had never spoken to them so harshly in the past, even when they had said something wrong.

But Green Willow's words just now clearly revealed the resentment hidden deep in her heart. This lack of discretion forced her to give her a stern warning.

"Shu'er!"

Perhaps Meng Shu's words were too harsh, because Green Willow disregarded the rules and suddenly knelt down, grabbing the hem of her skirt, tears rolling down to the ground.

"...I know I was wrong, and I will never talk nonsense again."

Meng Shu bent down to help her up, wiping away the tears on her face with her fingertips, and sighed softly, "I didn't want to say anything to you, but in this palace, the most taboo thing is not to talk to each other..."

Before the words were finished, the tinkling of jade pendants suddenly came from around the corner.

The two men's expressions tightened, and they immediately resumed their master-servant demeanor.

The one coming up ahead was Consort Yun, who seemed to be heading to Huining Palace. She was dressed in a brand-new Shu embroidered palace gown, and her head was covered in glittering pearls and jade, making her almost unrecognizable at first glance.

Upon seeing Meng Shu, Consort Yun hurriedly stepped forward to greet her, "This concubine greets Consort Meng. Did you just come from my cousin's palace, Sister Meng?"

Meng Shu nodded slightly, smelling the familiar Osmanthus Dew on Yun Cairen's body. Her gaze lingered on Yun Cairen for a moment before she smiled and said, "Sister Yun, you look radiant today. Is there something to celebrate?"

Yun Cairen blushed and said shyly, "Sister Meng is too kind. Yesterday I received a pair of flowing cloud pendants as a gift from the Emperor, and I was thinking of giving them to my cousin to play with." As she spoke, she gestured for Gui Qiu behind her to step forward.

Meng Shu looked up and saw Gui Qiu open the wooden box she was holding. Inside lay a jade pendant with flowing clouds, its surface lustrous and radiant, indicating its considerable value.

"Sister Yun has only been in the palace for a short time, so she probably doesn't know that Consort Chun has a phoenix pendant bestowed by the emperor, which is a pair of love pendants with the dragon pendant that the emperor always wears."

Yun Cairen paused for a moment, then said awkwardly, "This concubine truly does not know... how come I have never seen my cousin wear it?"

Meng Shu's eyes were clear and shallow as she smiled lightly, "Wan'er is naturally reserved, hiding her talents in her heart and not showing them outwardly. Just like the Osmanthus Dew that Sister Yun uses, the reason why it is praised by scholars and literati is precisely because even its fragrance has a restrained charm. The principle of moderation is a good thing, and Sister Yun, who is well-read, should understand this."

These words, delivered with a mix of provocation and subtle provocation, brought Yun Cairen's hidden thoughts to the forefront. Upon hearing this, Yun Cairen unconsciously reached for her waist, where the Flowing Cloud Pendant held by Gui Qiu now seemed particularly glaring.

After parting ways with Consort Yun, Green Willow whispered cautiously, "Aunt Mei is right, Consort Yun also harbors ulterior motives."

Meng Shu said calmly, "Have Jin happy keep a close eye on Ganlu Palace. You don't need to worry about anything else. It's also a good opportunity to test his loyalty..."

When Consort Yun was still some distance from Huining Palace, she suddenly stopped, feeling uneasy all over. Her brand-new Shu embroidered dress suddenly felt heavy, weighing her down and making her feel irritable, and her face gradually turned ashen.

“Return...return to Ganlu Palace.”

Gui Qiu secretly breathed a sigh of relief and followed with her head down.

It had been several months since Consort Chun had assigned her to serve Consort Yun. In the Ganlu Palace, Consort Rong, from a noble family, was always dressed and used with exquisite luxury, and Consort Yun's eyes would always flash with envy whenever she saw her. In recent days, she had been favored twice and received many rewards. In addition, with the constant instigation of Du Juan, who loved to stir up trouble, she was becoming more and more arrogant.

She had originally planned to inform Aunt Mei about this matter, but now that Consort Meng had "awakened" Yun Cairen with just a few words, it seemed that Yun Cairen would restrain herself after this.

......

As Guo Xiuyi was about to give birth, she became increasingly cautious, and at the beginning of the month, she even sent Fanxue away.

Fanxue was the cat that had been obtained from the Empress Dowager. Chuntao had been taking good care of it. Chuntao told Lvliu about it, and Mengshu laughed when she heard it: "The Empress probably can't sleep at night if she can't find an opportunity."

In fact, the Empress was not as anxious as Meng Shu had expected.

One reason is that she is currently focused on recuperating her health and has no time for anything else.

Secondly, Consort Guo's disguise was excellent. Since becoming pregnant, she had been staying at home under the pretext of being weak and resting during her pregnancy, which led the Empress to mistakenly believe that the coral necklace had worked...

On September 12th, around 3 PM, Guo Xiuyi gave birth to a daughter safely.

Empress Dowager Jiang and the Empress were the first to receive the news and ordered the Imperial Household Department to send a pair of red gold longevity locks. The Emperor personally visited and stayed in the Dieqiong Pavilion for a full hour.

When the news spread, the concubines in the six palaces had different thoughts, most of them secretly breathing a sigh of relief. Upon hearing the news, Consort Shen felt even more relieved and stroked her swollen belly.

Inside the Dieqiong Pavilion.

The Emperor had just left, but the lingering scent of ambergris still remained in the palace.

Consort Guo leaned weakly against a gold-threaded peony-patterned cushion, her face as pale as silk, with faint dark circles under her eyes, and the crescent-shaped marks on her fingernails from childbirth still visible. She slightly raised her hand, revealing a jade bracelet, a new gift from the Emperor, on her wrist.

Hua Jin carefully carried the crimson brocade swaddled baby closer. "Your Majesty," she said, bringing the baby close, "look how much the little princess resembles you."

Consort Guo struggled to sit up, her fingertips lightly touching the baby's wrinkled face. Her voice was still a little hoarse as she spoke: "...Did Your Majesty hold the baby just now?"

Seeing that her mistress's eyes were slightly red, Hua Jin quickly said, "Your Majesty, the Emperor not only held the little princess in his arms, but also praised her for her beautiful features."

She brought the swaddling clothes closer, saying, "The little princess is the Emperor's first child, and is naturally of the highest order. The Empress Dowager and the Empress have also sent congratulatory gifts. Your Highness should take good care of yourself; you will surely give birth to a prince someday..."