The Second Master of the Red Chamber

Back at Jiaying Hall, Sister Feng, heavily pregnant, immediately came out from the inner room to greet them.

Her bright face had a pair of wide, beautiful eyes.

Jia Lian laughed and said, "What are you looking at? Haven't you seen the Prince before?"

Sister Feng smiled immediately and gracefully went to bow to Jia Lian, but Jia Lian helped her up.

"I haven't seen many princes, so I must take a closer look. Hmm, my prince is still the most handsome."

Faced with the playful and teasing Sister Feng, Jia Lian helped her to sit down on the soft kang (heated brick bed) and asked as usual, "How are you feeling?"

"It's okay. It's just that with my belly sticking out, it's inconvenient to do anything."

"What else do you want to do? The midwife said that you will give birth in a month at most."

At this time, you just stay put and don't do anything.

Otherwise, if something unexpected happens, you'll regret it.

Sister Feng touched her belly, her face radiating maternal glow.

Rarely finding herself not arguing with Jia Lian, she immediately took his hand and asked with a delighted expression:

"If everyone who came back from the palace hadn't said so, I really wouldn't have believed it."

"You really acknowledged the Empress as your mother, and even became a prince?"

Jia Lian casually waved his sleeve: "As you can see, the Prince of Pingliao is the real deal."

Sister Feng could no longer hide her smile, and she hesitated to speak.

Jia Lian said unhappily, "Just say what you want to say. Dragging it out isn't like Second Madam Feng's style."

Sister Feng snorted lightly, unmoved by Jia Lian's attitude.

"If you've made me a king, then I'll be the queen?"

"Of course. If you don't want to be the one, you can give it to Bao'er or Lin'er."

"go……"

Sister Feng glared at Jia Lian resentfully, then laughed and said, "Then the one I'm carrying is the future prince?"

"Not necessarily. She could also be a county princess."

Sister Feng was immediately displeased and gritted her teeth, saying, "I have a feeling that this child will definitely be a son!"

Seeing how deeply determined Sister Feng was, Jia Lian gently put his arm around her shoulder and said:
"I also hope that you will have a son this time."

But I still have to remind you that whether it's a son or a daughter, they are the fruit of our bloodline and our precious children.

I don't want you to favor boys over girls.

I especially don't want you to have any wicked or unethical thoughts.

I've seen quite a few plays like "The Prince Replaced by a Civet Cat".

Don't put on a show for me later and make me laugh my head off.

Feng Jie could understand the first part of Jia Lian's words because Jia Lian had said similar things before.

But the second half of what she said stunned her for a long time before she realized what it meant.

She immediately flew into a rage: "What nonsense are you spouting? What 'substitution of the crown prince'... How could you even say something like that?"
Am I that kind of person?

Sister Feng felt a little wronged, even though she was absolutely hoping that this child would be a son.

Because she knew that if this pregnancy didn't result in a son, Jia Lian's other women would most likely not wait for her anymore.

Even Sister Feng was puzzled.

Jia Lian now has quite a few women, and since the Ping'er incident, she has stopped deliberately targeting Jia Lian's other women by forcing them to take contraceptive soup or anything like that.

But to this day, none of Jia Lian's other women have conceived.

Is that kind of unscrupulous method really that effective?
That being said, although she really hoped this baby would be a son, she had also considered the possibility that things might not go as planned.

Although this possibility made her sad, it wasn't unacceptable to her.

She wasn't like those shallow, foolish women who blindly favored sons over daughters.

She prefers sons, but she also likes daughters.

She even comforted herself by saying that having two daughters was fine too.

She never even considered the idea of ​​"switching the prince for a cat".

Putting aside whether she dares or not, even if she did, she wouldn't do it.

That would be disloyalty to Jia Lian, dishonesty to oneself, and unkindness to one's child.

So even if it were possible to succeed, let alone the risks involved, she wouldn't bother.

She valued the inheritance of the family business very much, and was anxious to arrange the position of heir for her child even before he was born.

That's because she felt that it was originally hers.

She didn't think there was anything wrong with protecting her own things and upholding her own rights.

On the contrary, she looked down on those who couldn't even protect their own things.

Conversely, if something is clearly not hers, she will not resort to any means to seize it.

This is her personality.

So when Jia Lian said that to her, she was very angry and felt wronged.

When Jia Lian saw that Feng Jie was fuming because of what he said, he couldn't help but laugh.

He certainly didn't doubt Sister Feng; he just couldn't help but tease her when the words were about to come out.

This also prepares for what follows.

"Alright, I know you're not that kind of person. I guess I was just being petty."

I have two important things to tell you.

First, the Fusang Kingdom at sea invaded Korea, and the Korean king sent an envoy to our dynasty for help.

The imperial court has decided to send troops, to be led by me, and we will depart soon.

Sister Feng's defiant expression was still written all over her face, and she looked astonished.

After a long pause, he said anxiously, "Why is there another war? And you're needed to lead the troops? Does the court have no one else?"
You just won a great victory for the court last year, and haven't had a chance to rest properly yet.

"The imperial court can't just keep ordering you around..."

Seeing the worry and dissatisfaction on Sister Feng's face, Jia Lian explained to her the reasons why he had to go.

Sister Feng didn't buy it, but she couldn't refute it, so she said dejectedly, "You weren't by my side when Qiao'er was giving birth."

Now that I've finally conceived our second child, I thought you would be able to see him born.

I never expected you to be going to war again at this critical juncture.

As she spoke, Sister Feng looked at Jia Lian with hopeful and pleading eyes: "Could you ask the court to let someone else go this time?"

Just this once, for me and the child…

Jia Lian sighed, pulled Feng Jie into his arms, said nothing, and gently patted her shoulder.

Feng Jie understood. Faced with such a momentous event, let alone something as trivial as the birth of a child, even abandoning one's family and property would likely not deter Jia Lian's determination.

Once again, she felt that same regret for having taught her husband to seek fame and fortune, and Feng Jie's heart was filled with complex emotions.

Knowing that the matter was settled and not wanting Jia Lian to do such a dangerous thing while emotional, she wiped away her tears and pulled away from Jia Lian's embrace.

"I know that once you've made up your mind, nothing I say will change it."

I have only one request.

For my sake, for Lin Yatou and the others, and for the children, please don't do anything risky, and please come back safely.

I'm still waiting for you to name the baby.

Jia Lian smiled and replied, "Okay."

Seeing that Jia Lian's answer was somewhat casual, Feng Jie thought for a moment, then suddenly lowered her voice:
"Now that you are a prince, I don't need to tell you how noble your status is."

Don't ignore what I'm saying...

As long as you come back safe and sound, I will never care about your other women again.

Not only will I not care about you, but from now on, no matter which girl you fancy, I'll personally go and get her for you.

Jia Lian raised an eyebrow: "Really?"

Sister Feng rolled her eyes at Jia Lian, annoyed: "A woman's word is as swift as a whip."

Jia Lian grinned and said, "Could you fulfill your promise ahead of schedule?"

Sister Feng was puzzled.

"You know about Sister-in-law You's two younger sisters, right?"

She's been with me for two years now, but we've never been officially recognized or given any status.

I was thinking of taking them to my room before leaving the capital, to avoid them overthinking things.

Jia Lian originally planned to take You Erjie and You Sanjie into his family after marrying Baochai and Daiyu.

After all, these two sisters have been with him for quite some time.

Especially You Sanjie, whose red pills were taken away by him at a very early age.

Now he has to lead his troops into battle again, and who knows how long this trip will take. If it drags on any longer, I'm afraid those two girls might become depressed.

Feng Jie was a little annoyed and scolded, "What do you mean by being afraid of them overthinking? I think Your Highness wants to experience being a groom one more time before leaving the capital, doesn't he?"
Wow, sisters! They're such a beautiful pair of twin flowers, like lotus blossoms on the same stem.

Just thinking about it makes me happy for the prince.

Hehehe, Jia Lian admitted that what Sister Feng said was right.

Sister Feng only appeared annoyed, but in reality, she had known about the existence of the two sisters for a long time.

Jia Lian has been patient enough to wait until today to speak out.

"You are a prince, but you are only taking two respectable women as concubines. Why do you need to discuss this with me?"

Besides, I'm not feeling well right now, so even if I wanted to help the Prince, I wouldn't have the ability."

Jia Lian said, "You don't need to make arrangements. In urgent situations, we have to act expediently, and we can only ask them to make some sacrifices."

"I'll have Ping'er arrange it for me then."

The status of You Erjie and You Sanjie was not as high as that of Tan Chun and the others, so at most they could only be considered as concubines.

However, Jia Lian did not look down on them because of their status.

If given enough time, Jia Lian would be willing to put on a show for them.

However, they cannot host a grand banquet like Baochai and Daiyu.

Now, we can only do it simply.

Unless they are willing to wait any longer, like Tan Chun.

Although Sister Feng spoke nicely before, when it came to Jia Lian wanting to take a concubine, she still had to ask her Ping'er to make the arrangements, which made Sister Feng a little unhappy.

"There are so many people in the mansion, and they always have to order my Ping'er around."

Jia Lian touched Feng Jie's face and said with a smile, "Ping'er is someone you trained; she's reliable in handling things."

Sister Feng was pleased with these words, so she pretended to be generous and said, "Alright then, I'll have her arrange it for you later."

By the way, are there any requirements regarding the date? Which day would you like to choose?

"Let's hurry. I estimate I'll have to leave in three days at most."

The imperial court issued the order to mobilize troops yesterday, and now we are just waiting for the troops to gather and for the provisions to be prepared.

As for the North Korean envoy, he arrived in Beijing this afternoon, and will be all set up after going through the formalities at the grand court assembly tomorrow.

"So fast?"

Sister Feng was surprised, but remembering the saying in plays that "speed is of the essence in war," she didn't doubt it.

So he said, "Since time is so tight, let's arrange it for the day after tomorrow."

Anyway, they're from a humble family, so there's no need to prepare anything. Just prepare a simple wedding room and use two bridal sedan chairs to carry the bride in.

Jia Lian did not reprimand Feng Jie for her disdain.

He would definitely give Ping'er some instructions in private.

Just then, Ping'er walked in, and Feng Jie'er entrusted the matter to her.

Ping'er glanced at Jia Lian, and seeing that he didn't speak, she nodded in agreement and then said:
"Grandpa and Grandma, the banquet in the front hall is ready, and the old lady and the others have also arrived."

Upon hearing this, Sister Feng subconsciously asked, "Why did the old lady and the others arrive so early?"

As the matriarch of the family, Grandmother Jia simply wouldn't participate in any family activities.

If you're going to participate, you're usually the last one to arrive.

It wasn't that she liked to put on airs, but rather that she wanted to give the younger generation time.

After all, if she arrives too early, it would seem inappropriate for others to arrive after her.

However, Sister Feng quickly realized that now that Jia Lian was a prince and had recognized the Empress as his mother, Grandmother Jia naturally dared not be presumptuous anymore.

So he quickly instructed Ping'er to go outside and take care of things, and then called a maid to come in and help Jia Lian change his clothes.

Seeing that Jia Lian hadn't moved and was still looking at her, Feng Jie asked, "Is there anything else?"

Jia Lian shook his head and stood up.

There was one more thing.

That was the matter of dividing the rooms, which was proposed by Baochai.

When he first told Sister Feng about two important things, he hadn't actually decided which one to tell her.

Finally, seeing the worried and concerned look on Feng Jie'er's face when she heard that he was going to war, Jia Lian decided not to separate rooms for the time being.

Anyway, this trip to North Korea will definitely take up a lot of time, and by the time we return to Beijing, we'll probably be moving into the Imperial City.

It is better to wait until they move into the Prince's Mansion before assigning rooms.

This would seem more logical and would also prevent Sister Feng from suspecting anything. (End of Chapter)