08 Children (Part 3)
Xu Junying didn't let Meimei take care of the children by herself. Meimei wanted to at first, but later she found that she really couldn't. If she took care of them all, she would have to take care of them all. The palms and backs of the hands are all flesh, which one can you hold and which one can you put down? So they simply connected the two rooms in Xu Junying's small study to make a bright nursery. The four boys lived in one room, which made it much more convenient to take care of them. When the parents came to see them, they could see everything. Heng'er was separated at the age of ten and moved into Wendeyuan opposite Tsinghuayuan. Meimei didn't have the heart to do it at first, but Xu Junying insisted on doing so, saying that the boys of the Xu family had always been like this. Meimei thought about the fact that Shen'er and Wei'er in Xifu had already lived alone in a courtyard, so she gave up. The girls were also separated when they were seven or eight years old. Fortunately, Meiyi and Meijuan were twins. They were quirky since childhood and smart and clever, not like seven-year-olds. The two girls kept each other company. Xu Junying loved his daughters the most, so he assigned guards to secretly stand guard at night, and there was no need to worry too much about the maids and servants in the room who were on duty. Every night, the couple would settle the four little ones, and then go over to check on the three older ones before they could go to bed.
Xu Junying always listened to him when she was at home, because he was their father and the head of the family, and she had to maintain his dignity. Once he was not at home, Meimei would let the children do whatever they wanted. They would gather all the children, big and small, into the upper room and eat and live together. Seven children would sleep on the couch or squeeze into the big bed. At night, as long as they finished their homework, practiced their calligraphy and memorized their books, and had fun, they could stay up all night. But they had to make sure they could get up the next day. If they couldn't get up, they would be pulled by the ears and not allowed to cry. In short, they were allowed to do whatever they wanted and it didn't matter how chaotic they were. One time, Xu Junying went home without telling him when he would be back. When he entered the room in the middle of the night, he found the upper room in a mess. Heng'er and Kang'er were sleeping on the couch in the outer room, and five children were sleeping on the big bed in the inner room. Meimei was sleeping on the outermost room with Meng'er in her arms. The table and the floor were littered with toys, books, chess pieces and other children's toys. He was stunned for a long time, but he was not angry. He just couldn't sleep next to his wife. He couldn't sleep in the study room. He could sleep well outside where he couldn't see or smell her, but he couldn't when he got home. He smelled the familiar and tempting fragrance, and thought that the person was right next to him but couldn't get close to him. How could he not feel uneasy
Meimei felt that Xu Junying was extremely contradictory. It was obvious that he loved children, but he was also selfish to the point of being abnormal. He refused to let any of his six children drink breast milk, and found two wet nurses for each of them. They were allowed to drink milk until they were sick of it, but they were not allowed to touch their mother's breasts. In public, his reason was very clear - Meimei was already very tired from giving birth, and feeding the children herself would be even more tiring, and her body couldn't stand it. But in private, he overbearingly told Meimei another reason: These two are mine, and no one is allowed to touch them!
Within a month, the couple had to have sex. Meimei tried to be careful, thinking that she hadn't gotten pregnant for nine months after giving birth to Meng'er. It was probably not a coincidence that she would get pregnant as soon as she said it would. Fearing that the stone powder was bad for the body, she persuaded Xu Junying and took him to Qiancaotang to find doctors Bai and Duan to check his pulse and ask if it was harmful for men to use stone powder for contraception. At the beginning, she only remembered asking Zhang Jingyun for the antidote, but she didn't ask this question.
Doctors Bai and Duan were obviously surprised by their decision. What couple would dislike having too many children? The wife of Marquis Weiyuan was really a wonderful person. She refused to have children herself, but wanted the man to be sterilized. And Marquis Weiyuan actually obeyed her. They were a loving couple after all, and he loved his wife to the point of obsession.
Doctor Bai then wrote them a prescription, a total of three doses of medicine, each dose was boiled in water and taken for three days, after nine days of taking it, there would be no children for three years. Doctor Bai said: "This medicine is mild and harmless, but the stone powder is somewhat toxic, so it should be used with caution. If you still don't want to have children after three years, you can continue to take the medicine according to this prescription. It will take half a month for the effect of the medicine to dissipate. If you two really don't want to have children, it's best to live in separate rooms during this period."
So a certain man drank bitter contraceptive soup every day while watching his lively, charming and attractive wife lying beside him unable to move, and endured half a month in agony. And the so-called reward he had expected finally arrived as scheduled - he was sitting in the study reading documents, and Yuanyang came running to report: Oh no, the young lady was playing with a few young masters in the yard, and suddenly she vomited!
Xu Junying was delighted, smiled calmly, stood up and walked out: Another baby is coming, this is his last child! He saved it with great difficulty, he must love him more!
Meimei was afraid of the pain of childbirth, and also afraid of the nausea and discomfort during the initial pregnancy, which would take a full month to heal. She hated her laziness and negligence at this moment. She was used to relying too much on Xu Junying. Whenever Xu Junying made a decision, she would obey him as soon as he intervened and gave her a suggestion. What kind of situation was this? Was she still the independent Cen Meimei? This was too wrong! If she hadn't listened to him at that time, she would have taken medicine when she remembered, and she wouldn't have gotten pregnant.
Meimei frowned, and held back her nausea while discussing with Xu Junying: "Let's not have him anymore. How about taking medicine and letting him fall down?"
Xu Junying's expression changed, and he shouted at her: "Cen Meimei! Are you still a woman? How can you learn the unbearable methods of those vicious women? Don't even think about it!"
"I'm not a woman, are you? Go give birth yourself!"
Meimei was startled by him and glared at him angrily. Xu Junying found that he was too excited to tell the situation. At this time, the hard approach would not work at all, so he had to change his approach, put on a smile to please her, and used all his tricks to persuade her. In front of this woman, he had already been tempered into steel, and he was still the kind of soft woman who could bend around fingers. No matter what he said, he could not be defeated:
"My dear Meimei, this is our flesh and blood! Like Meiyi and Meijuan, like Kang'er and Meng'er, they are so cute and smart, so lovable, how can you bear to not want him?"
Shamelessly, they dragged their children into the mix, all shouting, "We want a brother! We want a sister!"
After coaxing her like this for most of the day, Meimei finally raised the white flag, saying that she would obey her husband and children and keep the baby in her belly. In fact, she didn't dare to take medicine carelessly, she just wanted to make things difficult for herself, and she couldn't blame anyone but herself for not being firm in her position. No doubt, she would give birth to the baby, the last one!
When her sisters-in-law heard the news, they came to congratulate her, bringing a variety of gifts. Meimei thanked them, set out tea and snacks, and sat down to chat with her sisters-in-law.
Seven years have passed, and everyone has changed. Bai Jingyu is now the mother of five children. The eldest daughter Meilian is already thirteen years old. Perhaps because she is busy with the affairs of the mansion and her own business, she can't gain weight. Except for the slight crow's feet at the corners of her eyes, she is still the same. Ning Rulan is also the mother of five children, but she is wide and fat. The beautiful egg-shaped face has become a round face full of blessings. Gan and Fang each gave birth to two sons and two daughters, and their bodies have also become fatter. The sixth grandmother Liu Jingyun is a little plump and gave birth to three children, all boys.
Meimei sighed inwardly. The Xu family's offspring had grown so rapidly. In ten years, several women had given birth to thirty children, and she had the largest share among them. Just as Bai Jingyu said, "My eldest sister-in-law is really amazing. She didn't give birth until she was old enough. She was busy all her life!"
She also felt very embarrassed, and she was pregnant again...
Ning Rulan enviously said, "But why doesn't my eldest sister-in-law gain weight? My second sister-in-law has lost weight, but at least she has changed. My eldest sister-in-law is getting better and better. Her figure is really enviable! If you have any ideas, you should tell us about them. You can't just keep it to yourself!"
Meimei just smiled and didn't have the energy to argue with her. The women who coached yoga said that it was too hard and they couldn't persist. They didn't know how to do somersaults and she didn't dare to teach them. She could only suggest that they exercise more. The scenery in the yard was beautiful and they could walk and see more. But they just sat more and became lazier. What could she do
In the next two days, Meimei received congratulations from the Queen in the palace. Among the items given by the Queen, there were some gifts from the concubines. Meimei sighed, the ways of the world, flattery is everywhere, the concubines really take advantage of every opportunity, and follow the Queen to give gifts and go around the palace. Is this kind of flattery useful? It makes the recipient of the gift bear a lot of pressure.
The maids of the past, Cui Xi, Cui Lian, Cui Si, Xia Lian, Rui Xue, Cheng Er, and Ping Er, all came back to congratulate. Each of them now has children and is of noble status, either rich or noble. Under their dignified and gorgeous appearance, who can still recognize the maids they once were
In the luxurious and wealthy Palace of Prince Qi, Prince Qi Zhao Bao, the father of two children, is still arrogant. Time has not left too many marks on him, he is still cold and arrogant. Only when he sees the two children, he inadvertently reveals a little gentleness. At this moment, there is a faint feeling of maturity on him.
The King of Qi stood behind a clump of flower trees, and watched intently through the gaps between the flowers as his two children walked out of the Ziyuan. Zhao Min held Zhao Jie's hand, and the brother and sister smiled brightly in the sunlight. Zhao Bao's heart was beating fast. Every time he faced these two smiling faces, he was inexplicably moved. These were his flesh and blood, his descendants!
After Zhao Min was born, he didn't care much about her, and he didn't touch Lin Runan anymore, but he cleaned up the Prince Qi's Mansion thoroughly. There was no more mess in the mansion, and it was completely as strict as other princely mansions. All the servants given by the Queen Mother were sent away, and new servants were bought in. The household affairs of the mansion were completely handed over to Lin Runan. Ruixue came from Weiyuan Marquis' Mansion and was very capable, so he made her the head of the inner courtyard to help the princess manage the mansion. If he wanted to play, he would go to the other courtyard of the mansion...
He thought that by doing this he would be doing his duty to the woman and the child, until one day, when he was walking out of the field after playing polo, he suddenly heard a small voice behind him shouting:
"Daddy! Daddy is so awesome!"
He turned around and looked in the direction of the sound. Heng'er was standing on the steps holding a two-year-old girl. The little girl was holding a flower towards him. Not far away, Meimei and Lin Runan were standing together. Both women were staring at him. It was obvious that the little girl wanted to give him a flower, but he walked past her with his head held high and ignored her.
He was stunned: Is this his daughter? Can she walk? He didn't recognize her. He only ate one meal with the mother and daughter once a month. In his impression, the little girl would cry, which was annoying.
When Zhao Min saw her father stop, she thought he was waiting for her, so she happily broke free from Heng'er and ran over. She missed a step and fell down with a thud. Her upper teeth hit her delicate lips and blood oozed out. The King of Qi felt nervous but still did not move. Heng'er ran up and helped the little girl up. The blood on her lips scared him. He did not look at the King of Qi, but quickly glanced back at the two women who were talking with their heads down and did not notice him. He raised his sleeve and actually wiped the blood off the little girl's lips.
"Min'er, does it hurt? Tell me where it hurts."
"Brother, Min'er doesn't feel any pain. The flowers I gave to Daddy are gone. Woo..."
The little girl held the flower stem tightly in her hand, but the flower flew away. She cried sadly, and tears welled up in her eyes like springs.
"Min'er, what's wrong with you?"
Lin Runan was startled when she heard the sound and ran over, but the King of Qi took a few steps forward and picked up Zhao Min before she arrived, and returned to his own courtyard at an extremely fast speed.
From that day on, he knew how wonderful it felt to have his daughter admiring and loving him. He also knew that he had treated her badly, so he wanted to monopolize his daughter, love her and compensate her. He brought all the wet nurses, maids and servants who had served Zhao Min to his courtyard. Lin Runan chased him like crazy every day to ask for her daughter, but he ignored her and protected her tightly. Zhao Min wanted to find her mother, but he threatened that if she did, she would not be able to live with her father. Zhao Min dared not say a word, and finally Lin Runan was exhausted. Zhao Min was overly worried and suddenly had a fever and convulsions in the middle of the night. She was so scared that he ran into the palace gate in the middle of the night with the child to find the imperial physician, which woke up the emperor. After finding out the reason, he scolded him. After coming back, he returned Zhao Min to Lin Runan. From then on, he gradually restrained his temper and cared more about Zhao Min.
One day, he went into Lin Runan's room again in a frenzy, and after that, Zhao Jie was born. He thought it was amazing that this woman could give birth to a child with just one touch. After that, he came to Ziyuan to live every now and then, but there was no movement. Just when he thought that he might not have another baby, Lin Runan got pregnant for the third time and was going to give birth this month. The damn Cen Meimei delivered the news that she was also pregnant. It was said that pregnant women should not accompany the mother. Without her by her side, could this woman give birth to his child smoothly? She was worried about this last time when she was pregnant with Zhao Jie. Fortunately, Meimei gave birth to Kang'er, and Zhao Jie was born two months after Kang'er. The two little boys became inseparable good friends.
Zhao Min and Zhao Jie spotted the King of Qi behind the flowers and ran over together, shouting, "Daddy!"
The King of Qi nodded and asked, "What did your mother say?"
Zhao Min smiled and replied, "Mother said to ask Shan Ma to prepare the gifts, and Jie'er and I will go to the Hou Mansion to congratulate!"
King Qi raised an eyebrow: "You? And Jie'er?"
"Oh, no?"
The King of Qi was amused by Zhao Min's serious attitude: "Okay, you are a girl, you can go to such things. Jie'er is a man, and a woman's pregnancy and childbirth are none of your business."
Zhao Jie puffed out his chest and said, "How is it none of my business? Ah Kang is going to have a little brother, so naturally I should go and congratulate him. Besides, my sister is going to marry Brother Heng, and if mother gives birth to a little sister this time, she will marry me in the future!"
The King of Qi and Zhao Min looked at him together. Zhao Jie scratched his head and added, "Am I wrong? I think this is fair. If my sister goes to live in the Hou Mansion, someone from the Hou Mansion must come to live in our house. Otherwise, there will be one less person."
The King of Qi finally couldn't help himself, he laughed out loud, patted his little head and said, "Yes, that's right! This is fair! Then you should beg your mother to give you a wife every day, but..."
He glanced at Zhao Min and said, "Who said you were going to marry Heng'er?"
Zhao Min's rosy little face didn't change color at all: "I told you! I told Brother Heng: When you grow up, you can only marry me!"
"What did he say?"
Zhao Min's eyes darkened slightly: "He said to talk about it when he grows up... Daddy, Sister Yurui also said that she likes Brother Heng. She is older than me, and I am afraid that she will snatch Brother Heng away!"
King Qi narrowed his eyes and said, "Does Miner like Brother Heng so much?"
"Yes! I only want Brother Heng!"
"Don't be afraid. Daddy has already chosen Brother Heng for you. No one can snatch him away. Even Yu Rui is a princess, so she can't take him away! Come on, Daddy will take you to the Hou Mansion and explain everything to your mother!" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets on Qidian. Your support is my greatest motivation.) (To be continued)