Chapter 162

Chapter 162 Dantao felt even more distressed: "But the thought of Fifth Young Master refusing to acknowledge me for a day or two... it breaks my heart..." The maidservants of Spring Mountain Courtyard had watched Taotao grow up bit by bit, truly treating him as their own precious heart. Sometimes even more attentively than Xie Run, his own birth mother. Xie Run found it amusing from the side: "You all spoil him far too much." Xie Run changed her clothes, washed her hands, and went to play with the child. Taotao was truly a child who loved to laugh. The moment he saw Xie Run, he grinned wide, showing that tiny newly-grown tooth—so sweet it could make your teeth ache! Two days ago, when the temperature suddenly dropped, the little one caught a bit of wind and started coughing. It had the maidservants frantic with worry. But after a few days of bitter medicine, he was nearly recovered. Xie Run's claim that she needed to care for the child was merely an excuse to decline the Princess Consort's invitation. Xiaoshu told Dantao about what had happened at Green Pine Courtyard. Dantao grew somewhat excited: "Does this mean our mistress can now manage the embroidery workshop?" Managing the household affairs meant holding power—from then on, skimming profits and placing trusted people would be effortless. "You think this is a good thing?" Xie Run sat on the couch, stroking her son's little face. "If we had the Princess Consort overseeing us from above, everyone would stay in line and wouldn't dare reach out recklessly." "But now that everyone holds a bit of power, each harboring their own schemes, it's hard to guarantee nothing goes wrong." "And these are troubled times—if something happens, there won't be enough hands to investigate..." Xie Run said calmly: "We must prepare for the worst!" Wan Linlang had recently been protecting Concubine Lian's pregnancy, having nurtured that child safely to five months. Everyone knew she was harboring ill intentions, yet it was hard to guess who she was trying to drag down. Fang Yuan'er had also been unnaturally quiet. Xie Run was now a Side Consort with a healthy son. She didn't believe Fang Yuan'er would refrain from making trouble just because of some inexplicable goodwill. Dantao and Xiaoshu both grew serious and immediately nodded in agreement. Xie Run thought it over carefully, then said to Zihu: "Zihu, I'd like to arrange for you to attend exclusively to Fifth Young Master during this time. What do you think?" Zihu was briefly stunned, never expecting such a fortunate opportunity to fall upon her. She had always been invisible in Spring Mountain Courtyard—though she received a first-class maidservant's official allowance, she was still a second-class maidservant. She didn't have many duties on ordinary days, simply following silently behind Xie Run like a shadow. Now that the Prince's residence was peaceful, her role wasn't particularly prominent, and her presence seemed increasingly diminished. Everyone knew Fifth Young Master was Consort Xie's very life. Have her attend to Fifth Young Master? Zihu's expression turned resolute as she bowed: "This servant thanks the mistress for the honor and will not dare to be negligent in the slightest!" Xie Run took her hand and helped her rise. "I'm entrusting Taotao to you. From now on, everything regarding his food and clothing must pass through your hands first!" "These days, you are the only one I trust!" "The lives of both mother and child are placed entirely in your hands!" Zihu hadn't expected Consort Xie to be so solemn about this. She dared not relax in the slightest: "If this servant ever betrays the mistress's trust, may heaven strike me down with lightning and I die a miserable death!" Xie Run smiled: "I believe in you!" Sometimes, Xie Run's premonitions came swiftly, yet they were especially accurate. It was only the fifth day after she had entrusted Taotao to Zihu that something happened. That day, Xie Run had finally settled the winter embroidery workshop procurement matters. She had just closed her eyes when she heard Taotao crying. At first, she didn't think much of it—just assumed the child had woken from a nightmare in the middle of the night. She quickly got out of bed to soothe him. But after coaxing him for a long while, Taotao's crying didn't stop. Instead, he tossed and turned restlessly. Xie Run sensed something was wrong. Dantao, wearing only an outer robe, held up a candle: "What's wrong with Fifth Young Master? Crying so hard?" Xie Run frowned: "No wet diaper, and he doesn't seem hungry..." "Could it be Soul-startle?" "Perhaps?" Xie Run wasn't certain, and had Zihu come specifically to take a look. Zihu felt Taotao's belly, and the little one's crying suddenly grew louder. Zihu said: "It might be indigestion from food stagnation." Xie Run was puzzled: "He's eaten more on other days without any fuss. Why is he crying so hard today?" Taotao was a healthy child—from birth, he ate and slept well, with a hearty appetite. Xie Run was usually very careful to control his diet, never letting him overeat. In all this time, this was the first time he'd experienced food stagnation. Zihu said calmly: "It's probably because he didn't play much today, so the food settled poorly." With that, she went to fetch a digestive plaster she had prepared in advance and applied it to Taotao's navel. Zihu also used massage techniques to work on Taotao. After fussing for most of the night, Taotao finally drifted into a deep sleep amid his sobs. Zihu noticed Xie Run lost in thought with lowered eyes and immediately said: "Fifth Young Master's food is all prepared by the small kitchen, and this servant personally inspects it before feeding him." "The menu hasn't changed these past few days either." Taotao was already over five months old. Besides milk, Xie Run had started giving him supplementary food to ensure adequate nutrition. This was actually something Fang Yuan'er at Song Ya Courtyard had done first. Xie Run had followed suit—it wasn't out of line. Xie Run nodded: "I hope I'm just being overly cautious." Having been up all night, Xie Run was also rather tired. Taking advantage of the fact that dawn had not yet broken, everyone went back to sleep. They had originally thought it was an accident. Who would have thought that on the second and third days, Taotao would still wake up in fright in the middle of the night, tossing and turning unable to sleep. Upon examination, it turned out to be indigestion. The Emperor's illness was not particularly severe, but it lingered on without showing signs of improvement. Prince Jing and the Princess Consort had to enter the palace every two or three days to attend to him, returning only at midnight, exhausted. Xie Run did not want to disturb them, so he first sent a visiting card to request a physician from the Imperial Medical Bureau. The medicine was prescribed and taken, and acupuncture was administered, but there was still no effect. Just then, Concubine Lu came to visit: "Has Fifth Young Master's nighttime fussiness improved at all?" After several consecutive days of this, Xie Run's face also showed signs of fatigue. Hearing Concubine Lu's words now, he shook his head: "It's getting worse. Today he hasn't even had a bowel movement." Xie Run was anxious too, but he was at a loss for what to do. Concubine Lu dismissed the servants and said in a low voice: "I'm afraid there's something sinister going on here!" Xie Run looked up at her. Concubine Lu: "Something has also happened recently at Third Young Master's place!" Xie Run couldn't help but sit up straight. "What happened? I've been so busy taking care of Taotao these days that I haven't paid any attention to matters at Songya Court." Concubine Lu shook her head and said: "I only found out by chance when I overheard the wet nurse from Songya Court talking." "I'm afraid even Side Consort Fang herself doesn't know yet." Xie Run was slightly startled: "She doesn't know?!"