Soon, two swaddled babies—one in blue and one in red—were brought in. Ye Yaming had prepared these different colors specifically to tell them apart.

Ye Yaming looked at the two sleeping little faces in the swaddling clothes and smiled, asking, “Did they cry much last night?”

“Not really. They ate and slept, woke up and ate, grunted a bit when they soiled themselves. They’re very easy to care for,” Madam Yin said with a smile.

Stories of babies being switched, like the “Leopard Cat for the Crown Prince,” were common in the Capital City. Before giving birth, Ye Yaming had repeatedly instructed them to watch the children carefully during delivery to prevent any swapping.

Therefore, they weren’t comfortable leaving the children entirely in the maids’ care. After Ye Yaming gave birth yesterday, Old Lady Ye went to sleep while Madam Yin watched over the children. Old Lady Ye woke up in the middle of the night to relieve Madam Yin.

No matter what, after enduring a difficult night, they could now hand the children over to Ye Yaming intact when she awoke, and that put their minds at ease.

Ye Yaming stared at the two little faces for a while.

“Both children look good, like you two,” Madam Yin smiled. “The little sister seems slightly prettier.”

As fraternal twins, the children resembled each other somewhat but weren’t identical—one could easily tell them apart. However, with their reddish, wrinkled little faces, Ye Yaming couldn’t tell if they were good-looking or not.

“Have they been weighed? How heavy are they?” she asked.

At this, Madam Yin smiled again: “You nourished them well. The boy is four jin and eight liang, the girl is four jin even. The midwife kept praising how rarely she sees such healthy twins.”

Ye Yaming breathed a sigh of relief.

It hadn’t been in vain that her belly had grown as big as a balloon in the late stages of pregnancy, making it difficult to sit or lie down. All the suffering had been worth it.

After all, this era had no incubators. If the babies had been too small, they might not have survived. A weight of four jin was indeed remarkable for twins.

The couple leaned against the headboard, looking at their children, and Ye Yaming casually patted Lu Guanyi’s back. “How are you coming along with naming the children?”

Lu Guanyi’s face suddenly changed color. He clenched his jaw tightly, revealing a pained expression.

Though this expression flashed by quickly, Ye Yaming still caught it.

She froze for a moment and asked, “What’s wrong?”

She touched the spot she had just patted, and recalling Lu Guanyi’s strange behavior the night before, a thought flashed through her mind: “Are you injured?”

Lu Guanyi’s face changed again, clearly, Ye Yaming had touched his wound again.

Madam Yin also looked at him anxiously.

“It’s nothing, just a minor injury,” Lu Guanyi said, unable to hide it any longer. “It will heal with rest.”

Ye Yaming looked at his gaunt face and asked, “Did you suffer a serious injury that prevented you from moving? Is that why you were delayed in returning until now?”

Throughout their marriage, she could feel Lu Guanyi’s deep affection for her. If he hadn’t been truly unable to leave, he would certainly have returned to Lin’an in early August to be with her for the birth.

Lu Guanyi looked at her and nodded, then reached out to stroke her head with a smile: “I achieved a military merit and am now of the third rank.”

“I don’t need you to achieve military merit. Why must you push yourself so hard?” Ye Yaming glared at him angrily. “If something happened to you, what would the children and I…”

At this point, she choked up.

After giving birth, she seemed to have become more fragile.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry.” Seeing Ye Yaming about to cry, Lu Guanyi panicked and quickly said, “Crying is bad for your health. Don’t worry, I won’t have to go to the border again. I’ve applied for a position at the Ministry of War. The imperial edict should arrive in a few days.”

“What?” Ye Yaming was stunned.

She grabbed Lu Guanyi’s sleeve: “What happened?”

“First, get up and eat something, then I’ll explain everything to you slowly,” Lu Guanyi said, stroking her head.

“Yes, there’s plenty of time. Eat something first,” Madam Yin quickly added.

Ye Yaming looked around at Madam Yin, the wet nurse, several maids, and the two babies—the room was full of people. She suddenly felt a bit embarrassed.

“Take the children out for now. Zi Yuan, help me wash up,” Ye Yaming said, then turned to Lu Guanyi, “You go rest. I don’t need you here.” She added firmly, “Have Zhang Ning examine you thoroughly. I won’t be at ease until he does.”

“All right,” Lu Guanyi obediently agreed.

Yesterday, Ye Chongming and Ye Hongsheng had come to the Lu mansion and waited a whole day for Ye Yaming, though they had remained outside and hadn’t entered the birthing room. They had returned early this morning.

Madam Qi had also come.

When the elders heard that Lu Guanyi was injured, they became very concerned and immediately called for a physician, then summoned Antai and others to inquire about the situation.

Everyone then learned that Lu Guanyi had sustained serious injuries some time ago. After recovering somewhat and regaining mobility, he had hurried back.

Fortunately, his wounds had healed well. During the journey, Antai had constantly urged him to slow down, persuading him with how pitiful fatherless children would be. They hadn’t rushed on the road, so his wounds hadn’t torn open.

However, the previously well-healed wounds showed some redness and swelling, appearing somewhat inflamed.

The physician changed his dressing, brewed some medicine for him to drink, and only then did everyone feel reassured.

“Tell me, why doesn’t he know how to take care of himself?” Madam Qi’s eyes reddened.

“Indeed, Yaming had us here to help. There was no need for you to rush back like this,” Old Lady Ye and Madam Yin quickly added.

Lu Guanyi smiled and said, “This is nothing serious; I’ll be fine with some rest. I was worried about Yaming giving birth—she had to walk through the gates of hell. I couldn’t help but worry…”

Hearing this, everyone fell silent.

Indeed. If Ye Yaming had faced danger during childbirth and Lu Guanyi had missed seeing her one last time because he arrived two days late, he would have regretted it for the rest of his life.

Even Madam Qi couldn’t bring herself to say any more words of reproach, and only said, “While Yaming is in confinement, you should also rest well in the next room.”

“Yes, yes. The chicken soup and tonics prepared for Yaming are for you too. Both of you need nourishment,” Old Lady Ye added.

With the elders present, Ye Yaming couldn’t ask much.

It wasn’t until the afternoon, when Ye Yaming had persuaded all the elders to leave, with only Madam Yin remaining—whom Ye Yaming also convinced to go rest in the adjacent courtyard—that she finally found the opportunity to ask Lu Guanyi what had happened.

Lu Guanyi knew Ye Yaming wouldn’t be at ease without a clear explanation. Since the incident was over and he was sitting here safely now, telling her the truth wouldn’t frighten her too much.

He explained, “Duke Wei’s household has connections with the Jin people, right? Lu Guanyu somehow learned that a tribe from that side was planning to come south to raid our supplies, and he wanted to use them to eliminate me.”

“This tribe has been harassing us, causing endless trouble for our troops. After learning this information, I planned to turn the tables and annihilate them in one stroke. We should have won easily, but unfortunately, we encountered a wolf pack and were attacked from both sides. That’s how I was injured, and half of the five hundred soldiers I brought with me were killed.”

“The Emperor intends to transfer General Qin to serve as my father’s deputy, so they can keep each other in check. Having the three of us—father and sons—in the same military camp is taboo. It’s just that previously there was nowhere to place me, and Lu Guanyu’s assignment was my father’s private arrangement for a short time, so the Emperor tolerated it.”