Chapter 453: Rumors
Editor: Atlas Studios
The three families looked at each other and silently got into the carriage to leave. The group of people was especially conspicuous on the quiet street, attracting the patrolling imperial guards to go forward to enquire. Fortunately, the Zhang family had anticipated this situation before coming, so they had asked the family head Zhang Cheng to bring along an invitation.
The imperial guards assigned six people to send them back to the three residences separately.
Women were not the only ones who gossiped; men weren’t any less gossipy than women at all. It was super obvious these people had been chased out by the Qi family in the middle of the night. Among them, the Zhang family was the family of the Minister of Revenue, Zhang Cheng. The Shu family’s status was not low either. Although the Zhou family was only a merchant family, they were considered famous. The six young men felt as if their hearts were being scratched by claws. Hence, during the escort process, they obtained some news using their own methods.
After sending them off, they returned to the team. The night was long, so they naturally gossiped to pass the time.
Hence, the news spread among the imperial guards. Early the next morning, more than half of the imperial guards knew that the Zhang, Shu, and Zhou families had a conflict in an embroidery workshop. However, it accidentally affected Eldest Madam Qi, who was passing by, causing her to give birth prematurely and suffer a difficult delivery. They did not know how the situation was now.
After changing shifts in the morning, a small portion of the imperial guards who returned home mentioned it to their wives as a novelty. Then, they gloated. “That kid, Qi Haoran, is very mischievous. Even though he’s young, he doesn’t give anyone face at all. I’m afraid he’s going to act the same way with the Zhang family. There’s going to be a show in the capital again.”
Then, he turned around and fell asleep. However, his wife was excited. This was fresh news that she could share with her besties.
Hence, while the Zhang family and the Shu family were still thinking about how to persuade the Qi family to suppress the news and settle it privately, all kinds of gossip had already spread.
The Qi family had no idea about this.
Qi Haoran was hugging his head in frustration. He looked at his nephew in a daze and wondered how he was going to explain things to his big brother.
Moreover, how was this child going to live in the future if he turned out to be a fool?
Qi Haoran’s eyes turned redder and redder, almost to the point of madness. Fan Zijin’s face also sank as he asked in a hoarse voice, “Can’t it be cured?”
Mu Yangling said angrily, “How do you guys know that the child must have injured his head? Isn’t it still undiagnosed?”
Mu Yangling said in a low voice, “This matter can’t be spread. Let’s just keep it within our family. As for the Zhang, Shu, and Zhou families, they can’t wait to hide this matter under the blanket. The imperial doctor said that the diagnosis should be confirmed in about three months. At that time, he will assess based on the child’s reaction.”
No one had any objections to this matter. Although it would be more beneficial to them if word got out and the public opinion alone could crush the three families, it would not be beneficial to Li Jinghua and the child at all. In the future, they might live under the strange gazes of others. There might be sympathy, but there might also be gloating and disgust.
They weren’t people who relied on other people’s sympathy to live. There was no need to push the mother and son to the front for that little benefit.
Qi Haoran said, “Even if there’s no public opinion, I can still peel off a layer of their skin.” As he spoke, he turned around and left.
Fan Zijin nodded slightly at Mu Yangling and hurriedly chased after him.
Mu Yangling turned around and looked at the tired people in the room who were about to doze off. She waved her hand and said, “All of you go down and rest. Everyone, take turns to take care of her.”
Wen Cui and Spring looked at each other and left with the servants.
Mu Yangling got someone to wake Madam Xia, who was already sleeping on the couch, and arranged for her to sleep in the side room.
Only then did Mu Yangling sit beside the soft couch. Staring at the baby sleeping peacefully on the couch, she whispered, “Baby, you have to be smart.”
Qi Haoran didn’t let Mu Yangling interfere in the matters outside anymore. He didn’t even let Qi Feng and Madam Wu ask about it. Together with Fan Zijin, he directly took over the right to converse with the three families.
Mu Yangling saw that he was not at a disadvantage. Although rumors were flying everywhere outside, there was no mention of Li Jinghua and the baby’s situation. They were all talking about how domineering the Zhang and Shu families were, and how Madam Li had suffered an undeserved calamity. Clearly, the public still did not know the current state of Li Jinghua and the baby’s health.
Seeing that Qi Haoran could control the rumors, Mu Yangling ignored them and focused on taking care of Li Jinghua and the child.
After giving birth, Li Jinghua fell asleep and only finally woke up the next afternoon. After taking a look at the child, she fell asleep again.
Mu Yangling knew that she had exhausted too much energy and had to sleep more to recover from it.
When it was mealtime, she got a servant to wake her up and feed her food and medicine. The imperial physician and doctor also said that her condition was improving. Only then was Mu Yangling relieved.
If he wanted to nurse her back to health, he could only write a prescription for her after her postpartum hemorrhage stopped. Mu Yangling did not tell her about the actual situation of her and the child, since agitation and worry weren’t going to aid her recovery.
As for the child, there didn’t seem to be any abnormalities at the moment. He had already begun to drink milk. When Mu Yangling grabbed his tiny hand and stuffed it into his mouth, he would nibble on his fingers and pull back his hand before swinging them twice.
Mu Yangling was overjoyed when she saw this. She felt that the baby did not look like a fool at all. Instead, he was very bright.
It was a pity that his eyes were not fully open yet. Otherwise, it would be best to observe his eyes.
Mu Yangling was lying on the side and talking to the baby softly when Mama Wang came in and said, “Fourth Madam, the madam from the East Manor sent someone over to ask about how we should deal with the xisan1 ceremony tomorrow.”
Mu Yangling waved her hand and said, “Considering the child’s body is weak, the xisan ceremony can’t be held.”
Taken aback, Mama Wang said, “Erm… this isn’t a good idea.”
“What’s wrong with that? The child is weak to begin with. Who knows if he’ll catch a cold if we carry him out? Just do as I say and don’t do the xisan ceremony.”
The xisan ceremony was not only a meet-and-greet between the baby and everyone. The most important significance was to wash away the baby’s filth and obtain happiness.
A large group of people would watch as the child took a bath, while throwing silver, gold, and even various small items like jade pendants and bracelets into the bathtub. Who knew how many people had touched those things and how much bacteria was left on them? If it was a healthy child, she would just turn a blind eye. At most, she would give the child a combat bath when they returned home.
However, since the baby’s body was weak now, she didn’t want to take this risk. Therefore, she directly called for the xisan ceremony to be canceled.
Qi Haoran and Fan Zijin originally wanted to hold a grand xisan ceremony for the child to show how much they valued him. However, after hearing Mu Yangling’s explanation, Qi Haoran waved his hand and said, “In that case, we won’t hold the xisan ceremony. Do you think we should cancel the one-month-old celebration as well?”
Fan Zijin immediately said, “Since the xisan ceremony has already been canceled, we mustn’t cancel the one-month-old celebration. Those who don’t know might think that you don’t like this nephew of yours.”
Mu Yangling pondered for a moment and said, “Let’s hold the one-month-old celebration. However, when the time comes, we won’t bring the child out to wander. The people who come to see the child in the backyard have to be selected. Don’t bring everyone to the back lest they make too much noise. It’s not good to scare the child.”
Only then did Fan Zijin stop objecting.
“By the way, how’s the seeking justice thing going?” Mu Yangling asked curiously.