Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 406 Infant-Induced Pregnancy (1)

"A basket of charcoal is only worth a few taels of silver. Is it really worth breaking palace rules? Our Consort Chun is the most intolerant of any wrongdoing. Are you deliberately courting disaster?"

Cuijuan was so frightened that she knelt down with a thud. "This servant was confused! Then... then it's a good deal for Consort Wu? This servant will send her over as soon as I finish packing my valuables."

Inside the side room, Wu Yunu leaned against the cold window frame, listening to the sounds of chests being moved from the front.

"So she really did climb up the social ladder?" she murmured, her breath condensing and dissipating on the window.

Shuangyue whispered, "Just now, Miss Amber came to tell us that Yang Baolin will be moving to Zhaoqing Palace today."

Wu Yunu listened intently for a while, and Shuangyue gently reminded her, "It's cold by the window, Your Highness. Come and sit by the charcoal brazier to warm up. You're still confined to your quarters right now, and if you fall ill, I'm afraid you won't be able to summon the imperial physician."

A few charcoal cakes were smoldering in the brazier, barely extinguished, and the room was actually not as warm as it was under the sun outside.

These charcoal cakes were made by crushing charcoal, mixing it with rice paste, and pressing it down. They crackled and popped when burned, filling the room with smoke. Even so, the monthly allowance had to be used sparingly.

"It's a disservice for you to follow such a useless master as me."

Wu Yunu sighed with a wry smile.

She initially sought to become a concubine in the Prince of Jin's mansion with the ambition of getting ahead. If she had simply stayed as a palace maid, she could have left the palace with dignity when she reached a certain age. Now, however, she has ended up in a state of living death.

Shuangyue squatted on the ground and gently poked at the charcoal cake with copper chopsticks. She bit her lip and whispered, "Where is there a servant who doesn't suffer grievances? Your words are too kind to me. It's just that you... were a bit impulsive. Those arguments with Yang Baolin before were clearly all her doing."

Shuangyue was originally a servant in the Prince of Jin's mansion. When she was assigned to serve Lady Wu, she was secretly pleased. After all, compared to Concubine Yu, her mistress was beautiful and knew how to ingratiate herself with the Princess and the concubines. However, she didn't know why, after entering the palace and facing the lowly Yang Baolin, she was like a cat with its fur standing on end, yet she couldn't scratch Yang Baolin's sore spot and instead made herself so angry that her liver ached.

Wu Yunu tucked her hands into her sleeves, lowered her eyes, and remained silent.

Just as Shuangyue was about to seize the opportunity to offer a few more words of advice, Cuijuan's deliberately raised voice came from the corridor: "This servant greets Your Highness. Our Baolin is moving to Zhaoqing Palace today and has come to bid Your Highness farewell. There is still half a basket of silver frost charcoal left in the room, and our Baolin said she wanted to send it..."

Upon hearing this, Wu Yunu looked up abruptly. Her earlier self-reflection and regret instantly transformed into a surge of anger. She replied in a strong voice, "Goodbye and don't bother coming back!"

This shout immediately made Shuangyue's face fall, and she shrank back.

Well, all my heartfelt advice just now wasted.

Inside the courtyard, Yang Baolin stood on the steps, a slight smile playing on his lips. After a moment, he said softly, "Sister Wu is still confined to her quarters; I'm afraid she'll have a hard time during the New Year holidays. The charcoal fire has been left in the side hall..."

She paused, then softened her voice, "Sister Wu, don't forget to have Shuangyue go and get it. Don't let your sister's good intentions go to waste."

"boom--!"

The only response to Yang Baolin's words was a shattered vase. Yang Baolin's smile widened, and he leisurely left the Magnolia Pavilion.

A string of shallow footprints was left on the unmelted snow, only to be covered by freshly fallen snowflakes in the blink of an eye. This year, the snow has fallen exceptionally frequently; the leaden-gray clouds press down, and the fluttering snowflakes swirl and try to get into people's collars.

As the two walked towards Zhaoqing Palace, Cuijuan glanced at her mistress's expression and forced a smile, saying, "A timely snow promises a bumper harvest; this is a good omen."

Yang Baolin stopped and stared silently at the leaden-gray clouds.

Green Willow, too, looked out the window at the increasingly dense snowflakes and sighed, "Your Majesty, the snow seems to be falling faster and faster. Why don't we wait until it stops before we go back?"

Meng Shu leaned against the incense burner and said lazily, "What's there to go back to? Anyway, the Emperor and Empress aren't in the palace, so we'll just stay here with Wan'er today."

Consort Chun's eyes lit up with a smile: "What a coincidence, I was just wondering why I couldn't find a reason to keep you here. How wonderful! After I finish dealing with my palace affairs this afternoon, we can sit around the stove and discuss antiques together. Wouldn't that be delightful?"

"Wan'er, why don't you teach me to play the zither, so that the child in my womb can benefit from your spirit?"

Meng Shu's words made Rui Zhu and the others laugh out loud while clutching their handkerchiefs.

Consort Chun teased, her small mouth seemingly laced with poison: "The demonic sound is jarring; no amount of practice will help."

Aunt Mei smiled and interjected, saying, "This snow isn't going to stop anytime soon, and the side hall is being tidied up every day. I'll have someone bring in a charcoal brazier to warm the room, and add two more incense burners, so Your Highness can stay here tonight."

Upon hearing this, everyone happily went about their business.

Consort Chun also went to the study to discuss matters with Granny Kong, leaving only Meng Shu and Lü Liu in the flower hall, who were turning the pages of a book.

Green Willow asked worriedly, "Didn't Your Majesty say before... that the Emperor didn't want to see you and Consort Chun getting too close? Why is that today?"

Meng Shu tapped her fingertips lightly on the page and explained to her, "Not to mention that today's heavy snow has provided a ready excuse, even if I deliberately avoid suspicion on ordinary days, the Emperor might not believe it. I did have many concerns in the past, but now... the situation is different, and I don't need to be so tense all the time."

Although Green Willow did not understand the deeper meaning, seeing Meng Shu's calm and composed demeanor, her anxiety subsided.

Seeing that Meng Shu had no further instructions, she curtsied and said, "This servant is going to the small kitchen to see what's going on. Last time, Mingyue asked Donggua to make winter melon dumplings."

Meng Shu's eyebrows relaxed: "Go ahead, have Dong Gua cook some warm ginger and osmanthus soup, and also make a few dishes that Wan'er likes."

......

A heavy snowfall enveloped the imperial palace in tranquility.

In the Ganlu Palace, Consort Qu was leaning against the window admiring the snow scene when she saw Consort Qu approaching with a hand warmer. She couldn't help but frown slightly and curse her bad luck inwardly.

Hearing a noise from outside, Ruixue hurriedly lifted the curtain.

"With such heavy snow, why did you come all the way here, cousin? Be careful not to catch a chill." Qu Meiren put on a bright smile and personally brushed the snowflakes off her cloak.

Qu Baolin snorted coldly: "Cousin, do you find me an eyesore? Don't forget how you got into the palace."

After giving the routine warning, she sat down and explained her purpose.

"I remember that Consort Qi gave my cousin a thank-you gift before. Since you don't need it anyway, why don't I take it to do her a favor? My cousin is always very sentimental, she wouldn't refuse my request, would she?"

The thank-you gift Qu Baolin mentioned was a gold lock.

There was a long-standing rumor in both the palace and among the common people that baby items could induce pregnancy. "Baby items, imbued with vitality, could be given to childless women, who believed they could bring offspring." Giving a baby's personal belongings to close female relatives was meant to "bring offspring and good fortune, and facilitate pregnancy."

Out of gratitude for Consort Qu's selfless protection, Consort Qi specially gifted Princess Lingyi the gold lock she had worn on her third-day celebration.

Qu Meiren was taken aback upon hearing this, and her expression turned serious: "My cousin is asking for this gold lock... to whom is she going to give it?"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Note: 1. Consort Qi also sent a similar gift to Consort Chun, but Consort Meng, being pregnant, did not. 2. The idea that using an infant to induce pregnancy is an ancient folk belief, originating from the traditional fertility beliefs of "borrowing blessings" and "continuing the bond." The *Zhou Li* (Rites of Zhou) states, "Three months after a child's birth, an auspicious day is chosen to cut the hair... and the baby's hair is placed in a brocade pouch and given to a woman of the family, believed to induce offspring." The *Fengsu Tongyi* (Customs and Traditions) of the Han Dynasty explains, "An infant imbued with life force is given to a childless person to inherit their vitality." This logic lacks scientific basis; do not believe it.