Yingbao: "What's your name? Are there any other family members here?"
"My name is Wei Xiuxiu, and those two just now are my sisters." Wei Xiuxiu said with trembling hands, "I have another child here too, please buy both of us, mother and daughter."
As he said this, he knelt down and bowed deeply to Yingbao.
Yingbao asked her to get up: "Go and bring your child to me for a look."
Wei Xiuxiu was overjoyed. She kowtowed three times to Yingbao, then turned around and ran to the wooden cage to hug her daughter.
Inside the wooden cage, the two girls from before spat at her: "Bah! You are willing to be a lowly person! You have brought shame to your father!"
A haggard-looking woman sat in a wooden cage and said to Wei Xiuxiu, "Xiuxiu, your uncle said he would come to rescue us, why are you so anxious to become a slave?"
Wei Xiuxiu hugged her three-year-old daughter tightly and said coldly: "That's not my uncle."
"What are you talking about?" The woman said dissatisfiedly, "Even if he is not your biological uncle, he will not ignore you. Why are you so disobedient? If you leave, what will happen to me and your two sisters?"
Wei Xiuxiu sneered: "What do you have to do with them? Do you want me to keep selling my body in exchange for the safety of you and your daughter?"
After saying that, he carried his daughter out of the wooden cage.
Yingbao looked at Wei Xiuxiu and her daughter, then glanced at the wooden cage, turned around and walked outside with the servants.
The servant locked the wooden cage, followed the slaves with a stick, and drove them to the corner to wait for the master to pay the deed tax.
After paying the money and receiving the slave contract, Yingbao got on the carriage and went home.
The broker tied up the slaves with ropes and sent two ox carts to take them to the Jiang family.
Chunniang was a little surprised to see her daughter buy so many servants at once, but thinking that the family really needed people, she didn't say anything.
However, when he saw the little girl, who was only three years old, kneeling down to him, he suddenly felt a little reluctant.
It's pitiful that she became a slave at such a young age.
"What is this child's name?" Chunniang asked.
Wei Xiuxiu replied respectfully: "Madam, her nickname is Wenzhu."
Chunniang nodded, turned to her daughter and said, "Bao'er, please make some arrangements for them. The child is still young, so give her and her daughter a separate room."
Yingbao: "Don't worry, I will arrange it."
She named the two newly bought girls Pearl and Amber, arranged them in A Niang's room, and took care of A Niang's daily life.
Wei Xiuxiu was also left to A-niang, who would chat with her, embroider flowers, and do odd jobs with her every day.
The two cooks were handed over to Cook Liu to help her.
There were four servants, one for my younger brother Jiang Jie, one for my second cousin, and the other two were guarding the gate.
The house soon became lively, and all the servants and maids took their places.
Not long after, Jiang Jie's appointment letter came down, and he and the first and second place in the first class were admitted to the Hanlin Academy and appointed as a seventh-rank editor.
Li Xu was sent to another place to serve as a county magistrate.
Suddenly one day, two eunuchs from the palace came to the Jiang family and delivered an oral order, asking Jiang Yingbao to go to the palace to meet the emperor, and also asked her to bring a medicine box with her.
Yingbao did not dare to delay and immediately asked Mudan to carry the medicine box and follow her into the palace.
The two eunuchs glanced at Mu Dan without saying a word, and invited Ying Bao and his servant to get on the carriage.
The imperial city of Jiankang is not as majestic as that of Tokyo, but it is tall enough.
Yingbao rode the imperial carriage into the imperial city unimpeded, and then arrived in front of a palace.
After the young eunuch announced, a palace maid came out and let Yingbao in, but Mudan had to stay outside.
Yingbao took the medicine box from Mudan and said soothingly, "Just stand here and don't walk around. Don't be afraid. I'll be out soon."
"Yeah." Mudan stood with his hands hanging down, his legs trembling unconsciously.
When Yingbao walked into the palace, she saw a group of palace maids surrounding a beautiful woman. The woman was dressed in silk and satin, with pearls and jade on her head, and she looked extremely gorgeous.
The eunuch leading the way said, "This is our Concubine Shu, why don't you quickly pay your respects?"
Ying Bao bowed to the woman at the top and said, "I, Jiang Ying Bao, greet the Concubine Shu."
Concubine Shu looked at her with a smile and waved, "Come closer and let me take a look."
Yingbao had no choice but to step forward and salute again.
"Oh, what a beauty." Concubine Shu smiled softly, pulled Yingbao over and said, "I've heard from His Majesty that he has a female apprentice who is very skilled in medicine. I've asked for your permission today to summon you to the palace to check my pulse."
"I am willing to share your worries." Ying Bao finally felt relieved and looked at Concubine Shu eagerly: "Please stretch out your wrist."
Concubine Shu did not hesitate and put her wrist on the table.
Yingbao checked her pulse and found that she was pregnant. "The queen is pregnant."
Concubine Shu nodded: "It's been five months. I asked you to come this time because I want to ask whether my baby is a boy or a girl."
Yingbao took her hand back and said, "I'm sorry, my medical skills are limited and I can't tell whether the baby is a boy or a girl."
A maidservant nearby said in dissatisfaction: "How can you not diagnose the condition? Even His Majesty said that you have superb medical skills. But how difficult is it to diagnose a man or a woman?"
Yingbao glanced at the palace maid and didn't want to argue with a fool.
Seeing the girl's face darken, Concubine Shu smiled and said, "Even the imperial physician couldn't diagnose the problem. Zhuzhu, you can't blame her carelessly. Miss Jiang, Zhuzhu has an impatient temper, so please bear with her."
Ying Bao sneered: "Madam Shufei, you are joking. I am just a commoner. You are embarrassing me by saying that I should take responsibility."
Concubine Shu looked a little embarrassed, and immediately ordered the maid: "Quickly bring the things I prepared and give them to Miss Jiang."
A palace maid came over with a box and opened it in front of Yingbao.
Then I saw ten golden ingots inside, each weighing no less than ten taels.
Ying Bao took a step back and saluted: "I didn't do anything, I don't deserve these rewards."
Concubine Shu smiled and said, "Miss Jiang, you are wrong. I will give birth in five months, and I will need you to come and help me then."
Yingbao frowned slightly, feeling a little unhappy.
I am not a female doctor in the Imperial Hospital, how can I enter the palace to deliver babies for these nobles
If something goes wrong, won’t your whole family be in trouble
But if I refuse now, I will definitely offend Concubine Shu.
His cheap master didn't have a queen yet, so he guessed that all these concubines wanted to be the first and give birth to the emperor's eldest son.
When giving birth to children, they must have hoped that other people's children would die young. Since they often went to the palace, they might become someone's scapegoat.
Alas, what an unexpected disaster.
"Young lady, please continue!" the palace maid urged.
Ying Bao gritted her teeth and took the heavy wooden box. "Thank you, Concubine Shu."
At this moment, someone outside sang: "The Emperor has arrived!"
Concubine Shu immediately stood up, combed her temples happily, and walked to the palace door to greet him.
Yingbao followed with the box in her hand.
A bright yellow figure walked in, and the palace maids knelt on the ground.
Yingbao didn't kneel, but just put down the wooden box and saluted to the emperor.
Concubine Shu held the emperor's arm and said coquettishly, "Your Majesty, why did you come just now? I have been waiting for you for more than ten days."
Zhou Wuchang smiled, patted her arm and said, "I've been very busy lately, and I finally managed to find some free time today."
As he spoke, his eyes fell on the standing girl, "Are you... Yingbao?"
Yingbao immediately replied: "Yes, Master, don't you recognize your disciple?"