tallest building

Chapter 206 A Narrow Escape

After descending the mountain, Wen Mingqian went to the Prince Zhao's residence for a banquet.

At the banquet, Princess Zhao praised Wen Mingqian in front of everyone: "Now I can't live without her, I feel like I've known her for a long time."

Hearing Princess Zhao say this, everyone held Wen Mingqian in even higher regard.

After the banquet, Princess Zhao kept Wen Mingqian behind alone.

“You’ve been staying up on the mountain with Her Highness the Princess these past few days, so I can’t easily ask you to come down,” said Princess Zhao, adjusting the pearl hairpin at her temple.

Wen Mingqian had long noticed that she didn't like too much decoration, so there were usually only two or three pieces of jewelry on her hair.

Each item is exceptionally luxurious, equivalent to a hundred items.

“Even if the Princess Consort doesn’t send someone to tell me, I’m still coming down the mountain.” Wen Mingqian smiled. “Her Highness the Princess is a person who loves peace and quiet, and I’m always afraid of disturbing her.”

“His Highness naturally likes you, otherwise he wouldn’t have recognized you as his goddaughter,” Princess Zhao said with a smile. “You are very tactful and know how to behave appropriately, which is something that both the Princess and I are aware of.”

In fact, many people had asked Wen Mingqian to do things for them before this, but Wen Mingqian had declined them all.

She said that she could not rely on the favor of the nobleman to bully others, and these words naturally reached the ears of Princess Zhao.

She was very satisfied after hearing this and felt more at ease with Wen Mingqian.

It's important to understand that people of high status are inevitably wary of others and dislike being taken advantage of.

Wen Mingqian's actions naturally earned the approval of Princess Zhao.

"No wonder you have such a son; it's because you, as a mother, are no ordinary person either." Princess Zhao's efforts to win over Wen Mingqian also had other reasons.

Her eldest son was summoned to the palace by the Empress to be raised, clearly indicating that he was a candidate for Crown Prince.

However, the fact that the Crown Prince of Chu was also summoned to the palace at the same time inevitably made her suspicious.

Wen Mingqian's son, Gong Chang'an, is already renowned throughout the capital at a young age. Who wouldn't want to win him over?

If his son could befriend Gong Chang'an, he would surely learn a great deal.

He will be even more outstanding than the Crown Prince of Chu, and naturally, both the Emperor and the ministers will favor him.

Prior to this, King Zhao and Queen Zhao had tried to get close to the people of the Sanjing Academy, but no one paid any attention to them.

Despite being royalty, they were powerless against the Sanjing Academy, which had enjoyed a reputation for centuries.

After all, the people there are known for their upright character and integrity, following the right path rather than following the ruler.

Not to mention them, even the emperor was helpless.

But things are different now.

Firstly, Gong Chang'an was young and naturally relied on his mother.

Secondly, although he is young, he has a great reputation, which makes him easier to manipulate than those who are older.

Therefore, as long as Wen Mingqian is won over, there is no need to worry about making contact with Gong Chang'an.

Moreover, Wen Mingqian is a sensible person, so there's no need to worry that she will embarrass her family.

"Your Highness is too kind, I am humbled," Wen Mingqian said with embarrassment. "My son and I don't really have any other merits, the only commendable thing is that we know how to be grateful. A few days ago, I told Chang'an in a letter that Your Highness had bestowed upon me a house so that I could live there. I am doing well in the capital now, so please don't worry about it."

"Sigh, I feel the same way as you. Our sons aren't by our side, and we miss them terribly, but we can't say it out loud. After all, we have to think about their future." Princess Zhao's eyes welled up with tears as she spoke.

Although it would be easy for her to enter the palace, she always had to deliberately avoid suspicion in order to avoid upsetting the Empress.

Therefore, she only entered the palace once a month, at most twice.

Upon hearing her words, Wen Mingqian couldn't help but quietly wipe his eyes with a handkerchief, and said with emotion, "Although our statuses are vastly different, our hearts as mothers are the same."

"Look, it's all my fault for bringing tears to your eyes. Actually, you're suffering much more than I am. At least I can see him once or twice a month," Princess Zhao said with a smile. "Besides, I have another son by my side. But you only have one son, and you don't see him for years. You must be missing him terribly."

Just then, a maid brought over some fruit, and Princess Zhao changed the subject: "Try these loquats, they were sent from Qingzhou, and they taste better than those from other places."

Wen Mingqian chatted with Princess Zhao for a while before taking his leave.

Upon returning to their residence, they saw Hongliu, Liu Cuiyi's maid, pacing anxiously outside the door.

"Isn't this Sister Hongliu?" Sang Er jumped down from the carriage. "What brings you here?"

"My goodness! I've finally seen you!" Hongliu grabbed Sang Er's hand and said, "Our eldest mistress is bleeding after childbirth, and several doctors we asked for refused to come, making excuses. We finally managed to get one, but the old lady intercepted him. So Zhao Mama sent me to find Madam Wen, saying that only you can save our eldest mistress now."

"Is Cuiyi about to give birth?" Wen Mingqian asked hurriedly. "I'll go with you first. Sang Er, go to the Prince Zhao's residence and ask the Princess to send their doctor to the Zhou family."

Sang Er agreed and hurried off, while Wen Mingqian and Hong Liu arrived at the Zhou family's residence.

Upon entering Liu Cuiyi's room, one is immediately struck by the stench of blood.

The baby had already been born, but Liu Cuiyi was pale and on the verge of death.

"Don't be afraid, Cuiyi, I'm here." Wen Mingqian rushed to the bedside and grabbed Liu Cuiyi's hand.

"Sister, you're here! That's wonderful. I was afraid I wouldn't make it, but thankfully the baby has been born." Liu Cuiyi said weakly.

"Don't speak, I brought some ginseng slices." Wen Mingqian took out some ginseng slices from his pouch and made her put them in her mouth.

This is a ginseng that's over a hundred years old; it's barely clinging to life.

"Don't worry, don't be afraid. There are imperial physicians in the Prince Zhao's mansion all year round. Sang Er has already gone to invite them, and they will definitely be able to come." Wen Mingqian held Liu Cuiyi's hand tightly and gently comforted her, "Look at your son, he's so chubby and healthy. You should take good care of yourself too."

Zhao's mother cried from the side, "It's all my fault for being careless. I didn't expect them to do this."

"Mom, don't cry yet. We'll talk about everything after Cuiyi is safe and sound," Wen Mingqian said. "Take the ginseng from my purse and brew it into a strong ginseng soup for me."

Wen Mingqian arrived, and Sang Er also arrived shortly after.

Because her residence was quite close to the Prince Zhao's mansion, separated only by a street.

The physician who arrived was Physician Feng, who was especially skilled in gynecology.

He quickly took Liu Cuiyi's pulse and said, "It's timely; there's hope."

As he spoke, he took out a small porcelain bottle from his trunk, poured out a few red pills, and told Liu Cuiyi to take them.

"This is the best hemostatic medicine. The bleeding will stop in less than fifteen minutes after taking it," Physician Feng said confidently. "The woman must have been fed something containing safflower after giving birth, otherwise this would never have happened."

"It was Yu Mama, who serves the old lady, who came and said she brought some nourishing soup. Our young lady started bleeding profusely after drinking it," Zhao Mama whispered in Wen Mingqian's ear.