Chapter 66: CH 40

Outside the window, the bamboo stirred gently in the autumn wind, the leaves still as fresh and green as before. In the elegantly furnished room, a woman with skin akin to the highest quality mutton-fat white jade stood quietly. Her eyes seemed to exude light as she naively pursed her bright red lips and tried to curry with the person in front. In a manner similar to presenting her most valuable treasure to him, she took out the pair of little shoes from her sleeve.

From just one glance, one could understand that the person who made them, did the job with great care.

They were really tiny. However, they were exquisite. An adorable tiger head was embroidered on the round and bulging toe cap while the uppers of the shoes were rimmed with golden threads. The embroidery work was impressive with each of the stitches done meticulously. Even the whiskers on the tiger head looked vivid and lifelike.

Such a pair of baby shoes, held in her fair and clean hands, looked especially beautiful.

She must have been very serious while embroidering it.

However, Xiao Heng’s expression was incredibly uninterested. His lips were sealed tightly while his brows and eyes were as deserted as a field covered with snow during the time of the harsh and cold winter.

She was still smiling at first, but when she finally noticed that something was amiss with the situation, her smile faded slowly, and she looked at him cautiously.

Although his expression had always been, Gu Sui’er had already learned how to interpret his happiness, anger, sorrow, and joy from that same expressionless face.

Hence, she could barely understand that he was unhappy now; he was particularly unhappy.

She bit her lip lightly, the grip of the hands holding the tiny shoes tightening gradually.

Lowering her head, she thought furtively, what happened today? Did I do something wrong? But even after racking her brains, she couldn’t figure out if she did anything wrong today, let alone the reason for his unhappiness.

She had now learned how to help him put on his clothes. So when he left in the morning, she helped him put on his robe and ornaments very carefully. At that time, he glanced at her.

She thought he was praising her by giving her that look.

But now, after only some time of returning, he suddenly turned so vicious…

Gu Sui’er bit her lip and inquired in a small voice: “Third Master, y-you don’t like it?”

Xiao Heng put down the teacup in his hand gracefully and said in a light tone, “I don’t dislike it. But, you. You are about to give birth. Get some more rest during the day. There is no need to worry about these irrelevant things.”

Irrelevant… How is the little tadpole irrelevant?

Gu Sui’er looked at him ignorantly, a blank expression arising on her face.

She didn’t understand what he meant but she could at least realize that he didn’t seem to want to say anything more.

She couldn’t do anything else. She just gripped the little shoes she had made tightly in her hands and hid them in her sleeve.

These were her little tadpole’s shoes. However, he didn’t like them at all; he didn’t even want to look at them.

Gu Sui’er lowered her head, still insisting on explaining to him: “I-I just thought that after the little tadpole was born, it might like it more if I put on the shoes I made by myself…”

But even after she said this, his expression didn’t improve at all.

He was like a block of cold jade. Even as he stood in front of the window, his eyes did not shine.

Gu Sui’er took a deep breath and said gently: “Third Master, Sui’er will leave first then.”

“En.” As he stood by the window with his hands behind his back, he just hummed lightly without even looking back at Gu Sui’er.

Gu Sui’er retreated slowly. When she reached the door, she clasped the door frame and looked back again.

She could only see his side profile. His face was still honorable and cold with remarkable elegance, but it seemed a little unfamiliar now.

She suddenly recalled the time when she used to be a little servant in the inn. In those days, she would be so busy every day that she wouldn’t even be able to straighten her waist and neck. Once in a while, when she did look up, she could see the guests coming in and going out, some of them looked crude while some looked noble. At that time, she wouldn’t even dare to look up at a guest like Xiao Heng.

In fact, if one was to calculate the time, one would discover that all this was just a few months ago. A few months ago, she was just a humble helper in the inn’s kitchen.

Now, she had entered the Marquis’ Mansion and had become the concubine of such a distinguished person. Although the women in the residence did not look down on her, only caring for her and speaking of her highly, did she forget her own identity?

She was originally like the dust on the ground in front of him.

After thinking about it like this, Gu Sui’er actually felt a lot better.

She bowed her head again and left the study silently.

After returning to her room, she sat on the bed and placed the tiny shoes in her palm, fiddling with them. The more she looked at it, the more she liked it, and the more she liked it, the sadder she felt.

In the past, whenever he came back, he would stroke her belly and feel the movement of the little tadpole inside.

Now, he even refused to acknowledge the child.

She couldn’t understand what was going on with him or what he was thinking.

Gu Sui’er picked up the little shoe, put it on her belly, stroking it lightly as she mumbled, “Your father doesn’t like this shoe. Do you like it, little tadpole? Or do you not like it? If you don’t like it, Mother will make it for you again. This time, I will definitely be able to do better…”

She did not know how long she sat there foolishly and talked to herself before Nanny An came in.

Seeing that something seemed amiss with Gu Sui’er’s manner, she probed gently, “Young Mistress, you must be feeling hungry. Should I bring some light refreshments for you?”

Gu Sui’er raised her head blankly and stared at Nanny An for a while before saying, “No need. I’m not hungry.”

Nanny An grew more uneasy: “Then, you should drink some red rice congee first. It enriches the blood and is beneficial for you and the fetus. It has been cooked on a slow fire for a long time.”

Gu Sui’er seemed to have not heard her words. She lowered her head and stroked her belly, rubbing the little shoes against it.

Nanny An became increasingly anxious as she witnessed her actions. So, after thinking about it, she went out and ordered the maid to prepare the red rice congee.

Gu Sui’er sat on the bed in a daze, thinking about the little tadpole in her stomach. Then, Xiao Heng’s face popped into her mind, followed by the memories of that night.

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A few moments later, she felt tired and lay down on the bed with open eyes. She looked at the embroidered canopy in bewilderment, watching it as it swayed gently with the light breeze coming in from the open window. Soon, her consciousness plunged into a deep slumber.

In her dream, she found herself standing on the sand-laid official road beside the inn. She looked up and saw a handsome man wearing a purple robe. He was sitting on a black horse, giving off the illusion that an immortal had descended to the world of mortals.

It was Xiao Heng.

She reached out and tried to grab his robe hurriedly.

Unexpectedly, when he lowered his cold eyes, she couldn’t sense any trace of familiarity within them. He seemed to chastise her in a low voice before urging the horse and riding away.

She chased after him, trying her best to follow him. But, there was so much dust on the road that it became difficult for her to catch up with him no matter how long she ran.

Failing to catch up with him, she collapsed on the road. She suddenly noticed that she was wearing a dress full of patches and her face was dirty. In short, she was too lowly.

“Young Mistress, can you wake up and drink this red rice congee?”

Nanny An’s voice awakened her, pulling her out from her dream. As soon as she opened her eyes, she was faced with Nanny An’s worried expression. For a while, she couldn’t even remember who she was.

After looking at her in a daze for a long time, she recalled.

Lowering her head and touching her belly, she nodded and propped herself up to drink the congee.

In the past, she liked the way it tasted. A lot of time was needed to cook this congee with the red blood rice. It was soft, fragrant, and sweet. When she heard that it helped enrich the blood, she began looking forward to eating more so that her little tadpole could grow better.

She tried her best to eat. She wanted to eat a bit more, but who knew, after she finally ate half a bowl, a wave of nausea crept up and she threw up everything without even getting an opportunity to suppress it.

After throwing up, her head spun, frightening Nanny An’s heart to jump to her throat. She hastily called the maids, wiping her clean and changing her clothes. After tidying up everything, Gu Sui’er was laid down.

With a deep sigh, she looked at Gu Sui’er worriedly, but with just a glance, she was shocked.

Gu Sui’er’s little face was as incredibly wan. It was so pale that it appeared translucent. Her eyes were staring above with a dry gaze; they had lost their usual shine. Her current self made one feel that even a soft wind could blow her away anytime.

The terrified Nanny An didn’t dare to delay any longer. She walked out of the room without making a sound and dashed towards Xiao Heng’s study. But to her utter surprise, Xiao Heng had already left.

She stomped her feet in frustration: “This is bad. What should I do if something unfortunate happens? I should better report this to the Madam and the Old Madam as soon as possible!”

Muttering this, she didn’t dare to delay anymore. When she was heading towards the Madam’s courtyard, she came across Wang KaiShun’s wife and informed her. Hearing the matter, the other person also didn’t dare to delay.

Soon this matter was presented in front of the Madam and the Old Madam.

As soon as the Old Madam heard it, she rushed over to take a look at her. Seeing Gu Sui’er’s blank gaze, she was terrified and hurriedly requested for the Imperial Doctors to come over.

There were two doctors in the residence, one was Doctor ZhuGe, and the other was the Chief Doctor of the Imperial Academy of Medicine. The two of them examined Gu Sui’er’s pulse for the time of a cup of tea before giving her acupuncture1Acupunture [针灸] – Acupuncture is a combination of acupuncture and moxibustion used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). The former is a health care method that uses needle-shaped tools to pierce or compress acupoints or diseased parts while the latter is a method of health care that uses warm moxa or other combustible materials to warm or burn acupuncture points or diseased parts. [Source: educalingo.com] and checking her pulse again. After putting their all in the treatment, they were finally able to calm Gu Sui’er.

As they came out, the two discussed their views and came to a joint conclusion that she fell into a stupor caused by the internal heat generated by an excess of anxiety and grief. She would be fine after taking enough rest. As for the fetus, there was no major issue with it.

The Old Madam was barely relieved. She asked the two doctors to write a prescription for Gu Sui’er before commanding the maids to decoct the medicine quickly.

After finishing all these tasks, she finally summoned Nanny An: “Speak, what exactly happened today? Who made her so anxious? Why did she become like this?”

Nanny An had never thought that the Old Madam would question her ah. She was unable to say the reason. But after thinking for a long tune, she was forced to open her mouth: “When Young Mistress knew that the third Master was back, she went to his study. She had been like this since she came out of the study.”

As soon as the Old Madam heard this, she muttered hatefully, “Ah Heng, Ah Heng. Where is he?!”

Nanny An didn’t know. In fact, she had not seen even the third Master’s shadow after Gu Sui’er left his study.

The Old Madam had no choice but to order someone to look for him. After a long time, he was finally found.

“Say something. You are going to be 20 soon. How can you still be so rash? What did you say to make her so anxious? Do you not know that she is pregnant now and will be giving birth next month? What would have happened if something unfortunate had happened?”

The more she said, the angrier she became. Ultimately, she picked up the flower vase near her hand and threw it directly at Xiao Heng.

The valuable flower vase hit Xiao Heng’s shoulder and broke into several pieces. One of the sharp edges scratched his cheek and blood seeped out from his bruised jade-like skin.

Xiao Heng’s expression was gloomy as his thin lips pressed together.

“She… What’s wrong with her?” He asked in a hoarse and grim voice.

“What’s wrong? Didn’t this all happen because you made her anxious?! She’s pregnant with your child. Why are you fussing over it? You’re an adult now. Can’t you act a bit more like a father?!” The Old Madam reprimanded him unhappily.

Xiao Heng dusted off the broken pieces of the flower vase from his robe, got up, and turned around to leave.

The Old Madam stopped him and advised: “You should coax her. A pregnant woman can’t be made anxious!”

Xiao Heng paused for a while and walked out of the room before hurrying towards Gu Sui’er’s room.

When he entered, the eldest and second Young Madams were both there. Seeing him, they looked at each other and decided to leave. But before going out, they didn’t forget to remind him, “Speak to her softly. Her sickness is a bit weird, so try not to stir up her emotions any further.”

After the eldest and the second Young Madams were gone, Xiao Heng slowly walked to the bed. He saw the delicate figure lying behind the layer of the lowered gauze canopy, her once white as porcelain skin seemed to have lost its glow. It was so white that it seemed as if she had no blood; it was like the dried petal that was kept between the pages of a book.

Neither she nor the little one inside her swollen belly moved. Everything was too silent. If it wasn’t because he could see the faint blue veins on her slender neck, he would have thought that she had already passed away.

Xiao Heng raised his hand and lifted the hazy layer of gauze.

When the canopy was lifted, the fear of loss gripped his heart tightly, almost suffocating him.

He was really afraid. Afraid that she would never wake up again…

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