Chapter 289 (2/2)
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Ning Yuxuan had chosen a good time to leave the capital to go pray for blessings. He had completely avoided this stormy period. By the time he returned, the situation had calmed down.
”Why do you look so unwell?” Standing in the entrance, he looked at Nie Sangyu. He stretched his hand out and gently tucked a wisp of hair behind her ear.
Ji Man raised her head and looked at him. She gave a weak smile. ”As I pondering about my lord and husband, I've become old. The slow carriage arrives late.”
(T/N: These are lines are from the poem, the lonely bamboo slowly withers away. The poem is about a newly wedded wife missing her husband. At the end of the poem, she self-comforts herself by saying that she believes her husband will return.)
The hand that lingered by her face paused. There was a hint of mocking in Ning Yuxuan's smile, but it quickly disappeared.
”Haohao is almost one year old. Since you don't have any children of your own, I'm thinking about officially making him my heir.”
Ji Man paused. She glanced at Liu Hanyun and Wen Wan, who were behind Ning Yuxuan, then she smiled and said, ”My lord, if that's what you want, this servant doesn't have any objections either.”
The heir was always the oldest son of the main wife, but since Marquis Moyu had said she didn't have any children, then she didn't have any other choices. It meant that she definitely wouldn't have any children in the future. After all, she couldn't reproduce by herself.
Liu Hanyun was just quietly holding Xi-er. Wen Wan was looking at her with a gaze that showed she was gloating over her misfortunate.
The purpose of the trip had been for praying for blessings for the children, but it had been a failure for Yun-er. After the long journey back to the estate, this pitiful baby seemed to be close to her last breath. From Yun-er's current appearance, Ji Man could see that this baby wouldn't have much longer to live. She just didn't know who would be blamed for Yun-er's inevitable death.
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The next day, because Ji Man was on her guard over this issue, when she heard that Wen Wan was bringing over Yun-er to Feiwan Courtyard to pay respects to her, Ji Man decisively choose to flee and hide. She brought Dengxin along with her to Liu Hanyun's courtyard.
When they arrived, Liu Hanyun was playing with Xi-er. Seeing that Nie Sangyu had come, there was an estranged look in her eyes that hadn't been seen in a long time. Still, remembering Nie Sangyu's kindness and favor from long ago, she still brought over Xi-er.
Looking at her, Liu Hanyun lightly smiled and said, ”Madam, although the marquis didn't bring you on this trip, he was still thinking about you. We only ended up staying there for a few more extra days because Xis.h.i.+ wasn't being sensible. She liked the hot springs there and refused to leave.”
Not caring about this, Ji Man smiled and said, ”That's okay. The estate was quite peaceful when there were fewer people around.”
Liu Hanyun paused. She hesitantly looked at her for a while, then she said, ”Madam, do you really not mind that Haohao is going to be the heir? If that happens, then if you have children in the future...”
”It's the marquis's decision, and he has the highest authority in this household. There's nothing I can do about it.” Ji Man lightly smiled and stroked Xi-er's face. ”Besides, it's not unreasonable to name the oldest son as the heir either, and Haohao is a well-behaved child.”
Liu Hanyun pursed her lips and said, ”Madam, you're very magnanimous. But, you shouldn't let yourself suffer too much. After all, men aren't dependable. It's your own child that will be the most reliable and trustworthy.”
Translator Ramblings: Ji Man sees Nie Clan as a towering tree, but I think we get a hint that it's a tree that's rotting from the inside out. Early on in the novel, the author tells us that there's been a history of corrupt family members taking for granted that the emperor favors n.o.ble Consort Nie's and acted badly thinking they wouldn't be punished. Even thought the emperor had pruned some of these members away, once the n.o.ble Consort Nie regained the emperor's favor, other family members probably started acting badly again (i.e. maybe taking bribes and accepting shoddy armor and weaponry). I think it's very suspicious that Nie Xiangyuan would rather trust Errong's father for help in procuring supplies than members of his own clan. Anyways, this is just my speculation. What do you guys think?