The Rebirth of Han Yuxi

Chapter 0820 Good News

When Yuxi woke up in the morning, the clear, melodious calls of the birds brought an involuntary smile to her face. Stepping outside, she saw that the courtyard ground was damp, with raindrops still clinging to the blades of grass.

Yuxi was slightly surprised. "Did it rain this morning?" She hadn't even realised. She must have slept deeply.

Momo Quan smiled and replied, "It only scattered a few drops of rain. You must be hungry. Breakfast is ready, so hurry and have something to eat."

Yuxi smiled. "Have them bring it in! Oh, and ask Physician He to come and confirm something for me." She had been feeling rather sleepy lately, falling asleep as soon as she touched the bed, and eating more than usual. Having already given birth to two children, Yuxi was familiar with these symptoms. It was almost certain that she was pregnant. Nevertheless, it would be safer to have a physician confirm it.

Momo Quan nodded. "I'll give the instructions to someone shortly."

Not long after breakfast, Physician He arrived. After checking Yuxi's pulse, he said with a beaming smile, "There is joyous news, Wangfei. You're already one month pregnant." When he checked her pulse a few days earlier during his routine visit, Physician He had already been sixty to seventy per cent certain. However, as rumours circulated that Yuxi could not conceive, he had decided not to say anything then as a precaution. This time, he was certain it was a joyous pulse, so he no longer had any reservations.

Yuxi smiled and nodded.

Since this was the first time Physician He had detected a joyous pulse in Yuxi, he couldn't help but offer a little more advice. "Wangfei, your pregnancy is progressing very steadily. As long as you pay attention to your diet and avoid overexerting yourself, there should be no problems."

Having already given birth to two children, Yuxi knew perfectly well what precautions she needed to take during pregnancy. Nevertheless, she appreciated the kindness behind Physician He's advice, and immediately responded with a grateful smile, telling him, "Thank you, Physician He."

After seeing Physician He off, Yuxi went to the front courtyard. As soon as she entered the study, she saw Tan Tuo reporting some matters to Yun Qing.

Yuxi asked with a smile, "What are you discussing?"

Yun Qing replied, "We're discussing military farming." Tan Tuo and his subordinates understood Yun Qing's temperament, so most of what they reported to him concerned the military. As for everything else, unless it was urgent, they left it until Yuxi arrived before reporting.

Yuxi had heard Tan Tuo mention this matter before. "How are the discussions going?" Each military camp had reclaimed at least twenty to thirty thousand mu of land, while some had reclaimed forty to fifty thousand mu. The produce from these fields not only improved the soldiers' meals, but also considerably reduced the burden on Yun Qing and Yuxi.

Yun Qing answered grimly, "I've already agreed that the army will stop reclaiming wasteland." In fact, Tan Tuo had just reported several incidents in which military officers broke the law and disrupted discipline. For instance, some soldiers had got drunk and acted like drunken madmen. Although these were relatively minor incidents, they reflected poorly on the army, and Tan Tuo saw them as a troubling sign.

Yun Qing oversaw all military affairs, and Yuxi rarely put her hand into them. This occasion was no exception. After Yun Qing finished discussing the matter, Yuxi asked Tan Tuo about the spring planting.

Tan Tuo smiled as he reported, "Everything is going very smoothly." The previous year had brought a bumper harvest, and ordinary people had saved enough high-quality seeds for this year's planting, so there was no reason to worry.

Yuxi remarked, "The fifty thousand mu of potatoes planted at the beginning of last year were harvested a couple of days ago. Tan Daren, please go and have a look with An Daren sometime over the next two days."

Yuxi had originally intended to go herself, but now that she was carrying a child, she had to be cautious. A smile spread across Tan Tuo's face as he said, "Wangfei, the potato yield is so high that if we planted potatoes everywhere, the Northwest would never have to worry about food shortages again." Fifty thousand mu of potatoes was simply not enough to satisfy Tan Tuo.

Yuxi shook her head. "That won't work. Once potatoes have been grown on a plot of land, they cannot be planted there again for the next two years. Otherwise, diseases are likely to develop." She got this information from experienced elderly farmers in the region.

Tan Tuo lamented, "What a pity."

Yuxi added, "Once the potatoes have been harvested, we can plant spring wheat straight afterwards. That's a good arrangement too." Although potatoes could not be planted repeatedly on the same land, growing just 200,000 mu of them each year would still be a considerable amount.

Whenever serious business was discussed, Yuxi became particularly energetic. As lunchtime approached, she was still full of energy, and no one would have guessed that she was pregnant.

Only after lunch did Yuxi tell Yun Qing about her pregnancy. "The physician has just examined me. I'm already a full month along."

Even though they already had two children, Yun Qing wouldn't mind having more. He was delighted to hear the news, but not surprised. Usually, the couple would chat for a while before going to sleep. Over the past few days, however, Yuxi had fallen asleep as soon as she got into bed, and no amount of calling could wake her. In the mornings, she wouldn't get up until it was fully light outside. Yun Qing grew slightly concerned and privately consulted Physician He. Physician He had also shared his suspicions with Yun Qing, so he already had a good idea of what to expect. "I knew there was something unusual about how sleepy you've been these past few days!"

Yuxi said with a beaming smile, "Physician He said the baby is developing steadily. I just need to pay attention to my diet." She had conveniently left out the part about getting plenty of rest. She could sleep whenever she felt tired and attend to government affairs when she was not. There was no conflict between the two.

Yun Qing advised, "Now that you're pregnant, you mustn't overwork yourself. From now on, you can only spend two shichen a day on government affairs."

"Three shichen," Yuxi countered. She then explained, "I know perfectly well what condition my body's in. Just three shichen a day won't be a problem at all."

Knowing how stubborn Yuxi could be, Yun Qing warned, "If I catch you pushing yourself too hard, I'll make you stay in the inner courtyard and focus on taking care of yourself and the baby. You won't be allowed to lift a finger."

Yuxi nodded. "Don't worry about that. I would never treat my own safety or the child's as a joke." If her body could not cope, she would certainly hand over all government affairs to Yun Qing and focus on her pregnancy.

Yun Qing did not try to persuade her any further. After all, Momo Quan and Mama Lan were there to keep an eye on Yuxi. If she continued working without regard for her health, Momo Quan would probably be the first to speak up.

It was customary not to publicly announce a pregnancy before the third month. Apart from feeling unusually sleepy, Yuxi had experienced no other unpleasant symptoms. Moreover, she continued to attend to government affairs every day, so even Tan Tuo, who frequently came to report official matters, had noticed nothing unusual.

On this particular day, however, Mama Lan could no longer restrain herself. She said to Yuxi, "Wangfei, Old Madam has been worried about you all this time. Don't you think such wonderful news should be shared with her?" Ever since the incident involving Ye Shi, Mama Lan had sensed that Yuxi had become considerably more distant towards the Han family. Now, Yuxi did not even intend to inform her natal family about something as important as her pregnancy.

Yuxi replied, "When the time comes, I'll naturally tell Mom." The reason Yuxi hadn't told Qiu Shi wasn't because of the incident involving Ye Shi, but because she feared Qiu Shi would keep nagging her. In the eyes of the older generation, a pregnant woman should rest properly. Many women even relinquished their household management duties when they became pregnant, devoting themselves entirely to nurturing the baby. However, those women were generally in poor health, whereas Yuxi was in excellent health. There was no reason for her to be cooped up in the rear courtyard every day just to nurture the baby. She could not bear being cooped up in the rear courtyard like that.

Seeing that Mama Lan still wanted to speak, Yuxi waved her hand. "I know what I'm doing. There's no need to say any more." After a brief pause, she added, "Mama Lan, you are now a member of this Wangfu household." This sentence also reminded Mama Lan not to forget who her current mistress was. Yuxi had said this specifically to prevent Mama Lan from secretly informing Qiu Shi about the pregnancy.

Mama Lan felt her heart suddenly lurch. She lowered her head and replied, "Yes." It seemed that the incident involving Ye Shi had really caused Wangfei to become estranged from the Han family.

That evening, Yuxi received a letter from Yang Duoming. The letter stated that Jiang Hongjin had died nearly a month earlier.

Yuxi was extremely surprised. However, after calculating the timing, a thought suddenly occurred to her. Could Jiang Hongjin's death be related to Yun Qing?

At that moment, Xu Wu announced from outside, "Wangfei, Han Daren requests an audience." The Northwest was now governed under very strict regulations. Although some people still committed wicked deeds and violated the law, there were not many of them. Nevertheless, Han Jianming's responsibilities were far from light, as he was also overseeing matters concerning Qingming Hall.

Han Jianming had come not on official business, but because of Yurong. "A few days ago, Yurong went out to buy something and happened to catch the eye of He Gaoda, the nephew of the Regional Commander of Henan. Seeing that Yurong's beauty stood out from the crowd, He Gaoda decided he wanted to take her home as his concubine." Yurong had a fierce and formidable personality, but she was certainly not unattractive. After giving birth, she had become particularly voluptuous, and He Gaoda happened to favour such women.

Although Yurong was the Minister of Revenue's daughter-in-law and thus enjoyed respectable social standing, the Imperial Court had already lost control of the regional authorities. In Henan, Regional Commander He Ye was effectively the local emperor. He Gaoda was not only He Ye's nephew, but also his right-hand man. If He Gaoda decided to use force, Yurong might not be able to escape him. Fortunately, however, He Gaoda had declared that using force was no fun. He wanted Yurong to become his concubine of her own accord. That was the only reason the matter had dragged on until now.

Yuxi wasn't interested in Yurong's affairs, so she asked, "Dage, how did you find out about this? Don't tell me Yurong came to you for help?"

Han Jianming shook his head and replied, "She asked Mom for help." Yurong was not foolish. Han Jianming had always treated her coldly, so even if she appealed to him, he might not bother helping her. Qiu Shi, however, was different. She had always shown compassion towards the weak and had a heart wholly devoted to goodness.

Yuxi smiled faintly and remarked, "It seems she's become a little cleverer. But Dage, are you going to help her?" In the past, mother would likely have come personally to plead with Yuxi to help Yurong. However, the incident involving Ye Shi had drastically changed Yuxi's attitude, making mother more hesitant to approach her.

Han Jianming shook his head. "I don't have any connections in Henan, so even if I wanted to help, I wouldn't have the ability or strength to do so." In his opinion, as a woman of the household, Yurong should have remained in the inner residence with her child and left external affairs to those specifically appointed to handle them. Yet she had insisted on going out to buy things herself.

Yuxi said, "Whatever happens to Yurong, I won't interfere. Dage, you can call me cold, thin-hearted or heartless if you wish, but I refuse to acknowledge any of the other members of the Han family." Besides, she could not possibly endanger the people under her command for Yurong's sake.

Han Jianming shook his head. "I'm telling you all this so that you can be mentally prepared for something that might happen. If Mom comes to plead with you, don't agree to help." Han Jingyan had caused the deaths of his son and daughter. Han Jianming did not have a heart broad enough to save the daughter of the man who killed his children.

Yuxi smiled and said, "Mom has become increasingly compassionate over these years of Buddhist devotion." Many madams from wealthy and influential families practised Buddhism because they had committed karmic wrongs and hoped to find inner peace through religious practice. Qiu Shi, however, practised Buddhism because she was genuinely devoted to goodness.

Han Jianming reflected, "I don't know whether that's a good thing or a bad thing." While he didn't mind his mother practising Buddhism, he had noticed that since she started, she had become like a bodhisattva, with a heart so kind that it seemed almost impossible. He hadn't thought much of it before, but the incident involving Ye Shi made him wonder whether it was necessarily a good thing.

Yuxi smiled faintly and pointed out, "The advantages are greater than the disadvantages." Qiu Shi frequently visited those temples to listen to eminent monks expound the Buddhist scriptures. Having found something to focus her heart on, she naturally felt her spirits improve. With better spirits, her physical health improved as well.

Han Jianming gave a wry smile, but did not agree with Yuxi. He could only nod.