As the head of the imperial harem, the Empress was naturally the first to receive the news. She immediately sent rewards and arranged for someone to inform the Yuquan Palace.
Consort Xian was trimming a pot of vibrant flowers with small silver scissors when she heard that someone from Kunning Palace had arrived. She straightened up and said, “Please come in.”
Soon, an eunuch from Kunning Palace entered, smiling as he said, “Congratulations to Consort Xian.”
Consort Xian’s heart skipped a beat, but she maintained a perfectly composed smile. “What’s the occasion for celebration?”
Could it be that Seventh Brother’s wife had given birth?
The eunuch continued, “After midnight yesterday, Princess Yan gave birth to a precious daughter.”
“Thank you for your trouble, sir. Hong Yu—”
A palace maid immediately presented the eunuch with a reward.
After exchanging a few more auspicious words, the eunuch withdrew.
Consort Xian’s smile instantly vanished. She picked up the small silver scissors and resumed trimming, casually instructing, “Prepare some tonics to be sent to Prince Yan’s residence.”
A girl, naturally, was nothing to be excited about.
Moreover, the thought was rather painful. At the time, both Fourth Brother’s wife and Seventh Brother’s wife were pregnant. A minor consort had flattered her, saying, “First comes the blossom, then the fruit.” But what was the result?
Fourth Brother’s wife had miscarried—not even a blossom, let alone fruit. Seventh Brother’s wife, on the other hand, fulfilled that inauspicious saying, only giving birth to a girl.
Among the many princes with their households, including the Eastern Palace, girls were plentiful. The Emperor probably wouldn’t even raise an eyebrow at the news.
Consort Xian methodically trimmed the flower branches, dismissing the news of Princess Yan’s daughter from her mind.
On the first day of the sixth month, Emperor Jingming finished his court session and, as usual, visited the Empress.
“Your Majesty has finished early today.”
“There isn’t much to do lately, so I came to dine with you.” Perhaps due to the shared secret between the imperial couple, although Emperor Jingming held no love for the Empress, their interactions were quite comfortable.
For an old married couple, this was enough.
“There’s some good news for Your Majesty.”
Emperor Jingming perked up. “What good news?”
With recent political affairs in disarray, he rarely found anything to be happy about.
“Last night, Princess Yan safely gave birth to a daughter. Isn’t that joyous news, Your Majesty?” the Empress asked with a smile.
Emperor Jingming was momentarily stunned, then smiled. “Indeed, it is good news. A safe delivery is what matters.”
As Emperor, with myriad affairs to manage, he naturally couldn’t keep track of when the princesses living outside the palace would give birth.
“Empress, remember to prepare some tonics to be sent to Prince Yan’s residence.”
“I’ve already arranged for that.”
Emperor Jingming recalled a previous promise and said to the Empress, “Seventh Brother has been performing well lately. I plan to bestow a name upon his eldest daughter.”
Yu Jin had rooted out the troublemaking Madam Duo in the palace and had shown great promise in Qianhe County. Emperor Jingming had taken note of all this. As a prince, Yu Jin couldn’t be promoted in rank, so the Emperor had to show his favor in other ways.
The Empress was surprised.
When the Emperor spoke of bestowing a name, it wasn’t as simple as just naming a child.
Bestowing a name meant granting the recipient a title—an immense honor for a newborn.
It was worth noting that among the many princesses in the palace, only the legitimate Princess Fuqing and the tragically deceased Fifteenth Princess had titles. The other princesses were still untitled, waiting to be enfeoffed upon their marriages.
The same applied to the daughters of princes, who could only request titles when they married.
The Empress quickly understood the Emperor’s reasoning.
As the saying goes, “The son pays the father’s debts,” and similarly, children benefit from their parents’ merits. Prince and Princess Yan had resolved many of the Emperor’s troubles, but some matters couldn’t be openly acknowledged. Naturally, the Emperor had to compensate in other ways.
The Empress smiled and asked, “Has Your Majesty decided on a name?”
“Not yet, let me think.” Emperor Jingming tugged at his beard for a moment, unable to come up with anything. He then said to the Empress, “Why don’t you think of some ideas too?”
The imperial couple put their heads together, brainstorming names for Prince Yan’s newborn daughter.
Yu Jin and Jiang Si were also racking their brains over their daughter’s name.
Being young, Jiang Si had recovered much of her energy by the second day. After coddling her daughter and handing her to the wet nurse, the couple discussed naming.
“We don’t need to rush the formal name. I’ve thought of a milk name—let’s call her A Huan.”
Jiang Si blinked. “Didn’t you say before that if it was a boy, we’d call him A Li, and if it was a girl, A Jiao?”
Thinking of his ugly daughter, Yu Jin sighed inwardly.
How could they call such an ugly child A-Jiao? What if others secretly mocked their daughter?
Of course, Yu Jin didn’t dare say this to Jiang Si. He smiled awkwardly and said, “I suddenly feel A Huan is better. Wouldn’t it be nice for our daughter to be happy all her life?”
Jiang Si considered this and found it reasonable, so she nodded. “Then let’s call her A Huan. I think it’s better too.”
“My lord, people from the East Peace Earl’s mansion have arrived.”
“Who came?”
A Qiao replied, “The eldest master, the eldest young madam, and the third madam.”
Yu Jin immediately stood up. “I’ll go greet my father-in-law.”
Jiang Si was still in confinement, so Jiang Ancheng couldn’t see his daughter. He only saw his swaddled granddaughter.
Jiang Ancheng couldn’t take his eyes off the infant, smiling as he said, “Yi’er, look, this child is exactly like your sister when she was little…”
Jiang Yi gathered around the baby, agreeing, “Yes, she looks just like Fourth Sister. Her features seem carved from the same mold. She’ll surely be as outstanding as Fourth Sister when she grows up.”
Listening to the father and daughter lavishly praising his daughter, Yu Jin was confused.
Were others blind, or was he?
“Your Highness, I’ll go check on the Princess Consort.”
Jiang Yi and the Third Madam entered the birthing room together. Seeing that Jiang Si was well, they chatted briefly before leaving.
A woman in confinement shouldn’t be disturbed for long.
On the way back, Jiang Ancheng sighed, “Time flies. In the blink of an eye, your Fourth Sister is already a mother.”
Jiang Yi, knowing her father was thinking of her late mother, quickly consoled him.
At Ci Xin Hall, Old Madam Feng, who had been waiting, hurriedly asked, “How are they?”
“Fourth Sister and the baby are both doing well, Grandmother. Don’t worry,” Jiang Yi said.
Old Madam Feng raised an eyebrow. “What about the Prince?”
Jiang Ancheng looked puzzled. “The Prince didn’t have to exert himself in childbirth. What could be wrong with him?”
Old Madam Feng glared at her son. “I mean, Si’er gave birth to a girl. Isn’t the Prince disappointed?”
Jiang Ancheng scoffed, “Si’er went through all that trouble to give him a beautiful daughter. How could he be unhappy? Mother, don’t worry unnecessarily.”
Old Madam Feng was left speechless.
Jiang Si woke up to find Yu Jin by her side, making her smile. “A Jin, aren’t you going to attend to important matters instead of keeping me company during my confinement?”
Yu Jin chuckled, “There’s nothing urgent at the office lately. What could be more important than being with you?”
A woman’s confinement was truly difficult. In the June heat, with doors and windows closed, he was already sweating profusely after just a short while. Poor A Si had to endure this for a month.
“A Jin, could you write a letter to Second Brother for me? Tell him he has another niece…”