newbobooks Chapter 402 Oh, has our Miss Ruyan finally seen the light?
Chapter 402 Oh, has our Miss Ruyan finally seen the light?
Yingyue felt a little uncomfortable under her gaze, pursed her lips, said nothing more, turned around and went into her room, slamming the door shut.
Qinghe stood there for a moment, gazing intently towards the main room, before silently walking into another side room.
In the following days, just as Yu Ling had said, Yingyue and Qinghe were hardly summoned.
Besides spending their days in their own little courtyard, they had nothing else to do.
The servants in the mansion were polite to them, but they all carried a sense of distance, clearly having received instructions.
Yingyue was not a well-behaved person. She tried several times to find excuses to go to the front yard, such as bringing some homemade snacks to the lady, or saying that she had heard that the general liked a certain tea and had specially sought it out.
Without exception, they were all politely but firmly turned away by the maids and servants stationed in various places.
“Miss Yingyue, Madam is not feeling well today and has already rested. We will convey your regards to her.”
“Miss Yingyue, the General is discussing matters in his study and does not wish to be disturbed. Please give this tea to us servants.”
After several such incidents, Yingyue angrily smashed a few teacups in her room and complained to Qinghe, "This General's Mansion is like an iron barrel! That Chu Ruohan is keeping a far too close eye on the General! Isn't she afraid of pushing him too far?"
Qinghe remained as indifferent as ever, sitting by the window doing her needlework. Upon hearing this, she merely raised her eyelids slightly.
"If the general is so easily seduced by beauty, why would Consort Shu have gone to such lengths to send us in?"
Yingyue was speechless for a moment, unsure how to retort.
That evening, Chu Ruohan and Gu Junze had dinner in the inner room.
Seeing the weariness in her eyes, Gu Junze reached out and pulled her into his arms, asking softly, "Are you tired today? Did those two cause you any trouble?"
Chu Ruohan leaned against his firm chest, found a comfortable position, and gently shook her head.
"What trouble could they possibly cause? They're just two pawns pushed onto the stage. That Yingyue is ambitious but not very clever; she's been causing trouble for a few days, so it's time for her to quiet down. But Qinghe is unusually quiet, which makes her even more unpredictable."
Gu Junze snorted coldly, a hint of annoyance flashing in his eyes: "What kind of person could Consort Shu send? They're just trying to plant spies around me, or... they have other dirty intentions."
He paused, then tightened his grip on Chu Ruohan's hand. "You don't need to pay attention to them. I'll take care of everything. If they dare to have any improper thoughts, I will not let them off easily."
Chu Ruohan snuggled closer to him, finding a comfortable position.
As night deepened, the chirping of insects filled the air outside the window!
Chu Ruohan's belly grew more and more prominent each day, and she became more cautious in her movements.
The sun was shining brightly that afternoon.
Yu Ling was carefully arranging the cushions for Chu Ruohan, and said softly, "Madam, your belly looks bigger again. I was thinking that we should go and buy some fabrics and items to prepare some clothes and trinkets for the young master. We should start preparing what needs to be prepared."
Chu Ruohan stroked her slightly protruding belly and nodded: "Yes, it's time to start preparing. You should take Ruyan with you. It's good to have someone else to make decisions; she has a good eye."
Song Ruyan was sitting on a small stool not far away, resting her chin on one hand, her eyes somewhat unfocused, lost in thought.
Hearing Chu Ruohan call her, she jumped up and looked up abruptly: "Ah? Madam called me?"
Seeing her like this, Yu Ling shook her head helplessly, then looked at Chu Ruohan with some concern.
"Madam, we've all left, and I'm a little worried."
Chu Ruohan patted Yu Ling's hand with a gentle smile, comforting her, "It's alright, isn't Haitang still here? She's meticulous in her work. Besides, Junze invited a few midwives over today, so I'll take this opportunity to meet them and make a selection. You can go ahead with peace of mind and come back soon."
Upon hearing that the general had already arranged for a midwife, Yu Ling felt somewhat relieved and replied, "Yes, Madam, then we will go right away."
The two received the money and left the general's mansion.
The carriage traveled smoothly, but Song Ruyan remained absent-minded, occasionally lifting a corner of the curtain to look outside, only to quickly lower it again in disappointment.
Seeing this, Yu Ling finally couldn't help but ask, "Ru Yan, you've seemed distracted the whole way. Is something on your mind?"
When asked this question, Song Ruyan's cheeks flushed slightly, her eyes darting away. After stammering for a while, she finally whispered, "Yuling, where did you think... Doctor Qian went? I haven't seen him for quite some time."
Upon hearing this, Yu Ling was taken aback at first, and then couldn't help but burst out laughing.
She looked at Song Ruyan with a teasing smile, her eyes gleaming with mischief: "Oh, has our Miss Ruyan finally come to her senses? She's gone and now she's worried about people."
She paused, then drew out her words, "Don't worry, Dr. Qian will naturally return when Madam's due date approaches."
"Who's thinking about him!" Song Ruyan retorted immediately, raising her voice like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. "I was just... just asking casually!"
“With such a significant event as the lady giving birth, he, as the doctor, can’t just stay out of sight forever! I’m just worried about the lady!”
She spoke with a firm tone, but her eyes unconsciously drifted towards the window again.
Yu Ling hummed in agreement, finding Song Ruyan's insincere expression amusing, but said nothing more.
The two carefully selected items in various shops, and before they knew it, the sun was setting.
Jinxiufang was the last stop on their trip. They picked out several bolts of soft cotton cloth and some brightly colored silk threads, and were preparing to head home.
They had just come out of Jinxiufang and hadn't even stepped onto the carriage when they saw a large crowd gathered at a street corner not far away, three or four layers deep, with shouts and curses coming from time to time, causing a commotion in the crowd.
Yu Ling never liked getting involved in these kinds of things. She frowned, grabbed Song Ruyan's arm, and tried to get into the carriage: "Let's go quickly, don't meddle in other people's business, let's go back to the manor as soon as possible, Madam is waiting."
"Hey, wait a minute!" Song Ruyan grabbed her arm and stood on tiptoe to look into the crowd, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"It looks like there's a fight going on. Let's go take a look, just for a quick glance!"
Yu Ling had no choice but to say, "Just take a look, don't cause any trouble."
"Okay!" Song Ruyan replied happily, and pulled Yuling into the crowd.
With some effort, the two finally squeezed into the inner circle of the crowd.
A burly man with a fierce face was seen grabbing a slightly thin man and raining down his fists.
The man who was being beaten covered his head, completely powerless to fight back.
The burly man shouted angrily as he hit her, "You bastard! How dare you seduce my wife! Do you think you can just touch that place like that? I'll beat you to death today, you worthless scoundrel!"