tallest building

Chapter 203 Long Summer Days

Summer arrived in the blink of an eye, and Wen Mingqian had already moved into the residence bestowed upon him by Princess Zhao.

Shortly thereafter, the eldest princess adopted her as her goddaughter.

These two incidents caused a huge uproar in the capital, becoming almost a household name.

Everyone thought that Wen Mingqian, after leaving the Gong family, was like a swallow that had lost its nest. But who would have thought that he would fly to an even higher branch?

This is Liu Cuiyi visiting her. Because she is still in mourning for Zhou Jingsan, she is dressed very simply, but her complexion is very good. Her belly is already very big, and she needs someone to help her walk, sit, and lie down.

"You should be giving birth in a little over a month, right? How are you feeling now?" Wen Mingqian asked her with a smile.

"Besides being able to eat a lot, there's nothing else wrong. It's just that turning over at night is very difficult, but considering that I'll be giving birth in a little over a month, I won't have to wait too long." Liu Cuiyi said while touching her belly, "I came here especially to congratulate you on your housewarming, sister."

"What's there to be happy about? It's just moving to a different place." Wen Mingqian didn't care. "I suppose you're having a peaceful time with the Zhou family now, and no one's bothering you anymore, right?"

“They certainly wouldn’t make things difficult for me, after all, making things difficult for me now would only make things difficult for themselves.” Liu Cuiyi smiled. “It’s kind of funny, I ran into Liu Huanchun on the street the other day. She didn’t say anything when she saw me, she just glared at me a few times. I didn’t take it to heart, I just laughed it off.”

“She’s the kind of person who can’t stand being taken advantage of, so she’s naturally unwilling to accept that she’s been outmaneuvered by you,” Wen Mingqian said. “But since she can’t find any fault with you, she can’t do anything about it.”

“Now that my sister is riding high, I suppose she has no choice but to rein herself in.” Liu Cuiyi said, fanning herself gently. “I heard that a few days ago she went to Princess Zhao to speak ill of my sister, and the princess scolded her, saying that those who speak ill of others are themselves ill-intentioned. She’s making a fool of herself.”

Just then, Sang Er brought over a plate of freshly ripened plums, each one the size of a walnut, covered with a layer of fine fuzz, making them look incredibly tempting.

“I remember you like to eat plums,” Wen Mingqian said to Liu Cuiyi.

"I like to eat this yellow-green color; overripe ones aren't good." Liu Cuiyi smiled at Sang Er, reached out and took a half-ripe plum from the plate, smelled it first, and then took a bite.

Sang Er stared blankly at her round belly, momentarily stunned.

She still can't believe that the child in Liu Cuiyi's belly is actually her uncle Sang Sanyang's. These two people are really something. They were originally completely unrelated, but they ended up in the same bed.

When she came to her senses again, she found that Liu Cuiyi had grabbed her hand and was touching her stomach.

"Feel it, he's kicking me right now!" Liu Cuiyi didn't feel embarrassed at all, even though Sang Er knew all about her and Sang Sanyang's affair and was even a little awkward about it.

Sang Er was a little scared and even wanted to pull her hand back, but Liu Cuiyi firmly pressed her hand onto her stomach.

"Hey, he's really kicking!" Sanger immediately noticed. "He's really strong!"

“When he’s born, you can hold him,” Liu Cuiyi said gently to Sang Er. “He will definitely like you very much.”

Sang Er didn't know why, but hearing her words suddenly softened her heart. Yes, they were related by blood; this child was her cousin!

"Sang Er, go tell Aunt Wu to add a bird's nest cake, a fresh fish soup, and a cold sliced ​​lamb liver to lunch." Wen Mingqian mentioned all of Liu Cuiyi's favorite foods.

“My sister still loves me the most. I always have to pretend to be vegetarian at the Zhou family’s house,” Liu Cuiyi said. “Only here can I eat meat.” Zhou Jingsan died, and Liu Cuiyi had to observe mourning for him, but in reality, she didn’t want to observe it at all.

The more submissive she was before, the more rebellious she is now.

Just as they were having lunch, Zhao Pokuang rushed in from outside.

Since Wen Mingqian moved here, she has also come here to work as a maid.

Not only is the work much easier than before, but the wages are also higher.

"My lady, I heard on the street that the old lady of the Gong family has passed away," Zhao Pokuang said breathlessly. "I was afraid I had misheard, so I made a special inquiry, and it is indeed the old lady of the Ruyang Earl's Mansion."

Wen Mingqian and the others were all very surprised to hear this: "How could this be? The old lady of the Gong family has always been in good health, how could she suddenly be like this?"

"I don't know the details," Zhao Pokuang said. "Even if someone like me went to their doorstep to ask, they wouldn't tell me."

"Sister, why don't I go over and take a look?" Liu Cuiyi said. "You wait for my news at home."

“No need, I’ll go myself.” Wen Mingqian stood up. “Funerals are different from celebrations. I can skip celebrations in the Gong family, but I must attend the old lady’s funeral.”

Liu Cuiyi then rode with her in a carriage and headed to the Gong family.

At this time, the street where the Gong family lived was bustling with people, horses, and carriages, obviously all of whom were relatives and friends who had learned of the death of Old Madam Gong and had come to offer their condolences.

Wen Mingqian went directly into the main courtyard and met Madam Wei.

When Madam Wei saw her, she couldn't help but cry. She took Madam Wei's hand and said, "I was just about to send someone to inform you, but I didn't expect you to have already arrived."

"How could this happen so suddenly? I didn't believe it at first," Wen Mingqian said.

"Don't tell me you don't believe it, even we still feel like we're dreaming," Mrs. Wei sighed. "The old lady has been in good spirits these days, and she even enjoyed the flowers with us yesterday!"
She got up a little late this morning, saying she was a bit tired. I think it's probably because she was tired from admiring the flowers yesterday, so I asked the little girl to massage her more often.

While preparing lunch, I came over to ask the old lady what she wanted for lunch. She said she wanted something light, just a bowl of clear soup noodles would be fine, and she specifically asked me not to add sesame oil.

When I got to the kitchen, I had just finished giving my instructions when the maid from the old lady's courtyard rushed to find me, saying that the old lady was complaining of a headache.

I rushed over, and when I got to the old lady's room, I found her unconscious. They had already gone out to fetch a doctor, but by the time the doctor arrived, the old lady was already gone…”

"This is really sudden. Although it's hard to accept at first, when you think about it, it's a blessing that the old lady didn't suffer from any illness." Wen Mingqian couldn't help but sigh when he heard this.

"Now we can only use these words to comfort the eldest and second masters. In fact, Chang'an will never be able to attend the funeral in time," said Madam Wei with regret. "The old lady talks about him several times a day. Of all her grandsons, he is the one she loves the most."

“Yes, Chang’an really can’t make it in time. Then let me take his place at the old lady’s funeral!” Wen Mingqian said, “It’s also a small token of my respect.”