Chapter 423 — Childbirth

The baby did not look especially plump, but his limbs were long and he was full of vigor; within two hours of birth he had opened his eyes, and Song Yan was so delighted that he kept exclaiming, "Look, look, he's looking at me!"

Jiang Yan leaned in at once, and gazing at the child's grape-black eyes she could not help crying out in delight, "He's so beautiful!"

Dou Yan, propped against the great bolster and eating her rice-wine eggs, smiled despite herself; and Ji Shi, seated at the bedside attending to her, burst out laughing and said, "Young Marquis, the birthing room is unclean, and you went all night without sleep. Why not go out and rest a while? The announcements to the various households, the red eggs to be sent out... there's a whole pile of matters waiting for the Young Marquis to decide."

Song Yan, usually so quick-witted, now only grinned foolishly and said, "It's fine, it's fine. Last night I already drew up the list of households to be sent the good news and gave it to Cuiwei Peak; as for the rest, the stewards will see to it—there's nothing for me to busy myself with." Then he asked, "Tell me, who does the child look like? I think he looks like me!"

How could the Fifth Madam and Han Shi step forward? Jiang Yan, however, had no such scruples, and studying the child she said, "I think he favors Sister-in-law more. Look at that little mouth, so rosy; and his hair, black as oil..."

Song Yan said, rather put out, "My hair is very black too, and when I was small my lips were very red."

Jiang Yan was about to say more, but the quick-witted Cai Shi had already caught the drift. Before Jiang Yan could open her mouth, she gave a great laugh and cut in, "When the child was first born, I thought he looked quite like the Young Marquis too. Look at those fingers, so slender and long; and his skin, so red—once he fills out he'll surely be very fair; and his brows—our Fourth Young Lady's long brows sweep to her temples, but the Young Marquis's are even thicker."

Song Yan laughed happily.

The child yawned and closed his eyes.

Song Yan said excitedly, "Look, look, he yawned!"

However he looked at him, he found him fascinating.

The women in the room all laughed.

Dou Yan had been put through the wringer all night. Though her spirits were good, she could not bear Song Yan's carrying the child about and crying out in wonder at every little thing, and said, "Did you send word to the yamen? In a couple of days comes the child's third-day washing—we can ask Eldest Aunt to come and help with the arrangements; and for the child's full-month feast you'll likely have to take a day's leave..."

Her words reminded Song Yan, and he instructed Ganlu, "Go tell Wuyi to ask the yamen for leave on my behalf—I won't be going in these next few days."

Was that even allowed?

Dou Yan's eyes showed her bewilderment.

Song Sui did not mind in the least, and said mildly, "I have always respected Gao Yuanhua as my superior and treated him with every courtesy. But if he refuses to see reason and insists on standing in my way, he must not blame me for thinking nothing of him—I shall simply have to ask him to find somewhere else to flaunt his authority as Chief Commander!"

Gao Yuanhua was the Chief Commander of the Jinwu Guard, Song Zhi's direct superior, a military officer of the second rank. A close attendant of the Son of Heaven.

Ji Shi and the others, accustomed to Song Zhi's mildness and modesty, could not help clicking their tongues at this, and only then did they begin to feel that the man before them was not merely the Fourth Son-in-law of the Dou family but the Young Marquis of the Ying Zhenguo Estate.

Cai Shi was even more unabashed: "The Fourth Son-in-law is truly imposing! No wonder everyone envies our Fourth Young Lady her good marriage."

Such shallow flattery, because it touched on Dou Yan, actually brought a hint of pleasure to Song Zhi's brow.

Ji Shi and the Fifth Madam exchanged a glance.

A servant boy announced in a loud voice from beyond the curtain, "Young Marquis, Eunuch Pang of the Eastern Palace has come. He says the Crown Princess gave birth to another imperial grandson last night, and the Crown Prince sent him especially to ask whether our lady has given birth yet."

The Dou family women could not help drawing a sharp breath.

They had long heard that the Ying Zhenguo Estate enjoyed abundant imperial favor, but they had never imagined it went this far—the Crown Prince and Song Chu observed no taboos at all, behaving like brothers of one household.

Song Yan did not notice the expressions of the Dou family women. Still steeped in the joy of new fatherhood, he said complacently, "Go tell that Eunuch Pang that the lady has also given birth to a son, six catties seven ounces. Mother and child are both well, and he need not worry."

He had no intention of meeting this Eunuch Pang.

Dou Yan knew that this eunuch, Pang Lizhong, was also a grand eunuch at the Crown Prince's side. He had served longer than Cui Pianyi, and was said to have attended the former Empress Shen; he had always been respected by the Crown Prince, and now served the Crown Princess, charged with the care of the two imperial grandsons she had borne.

She said hurriedly, "You had better go and see him! Since the Crown Prince has sent someone to inquire after me, and the Crown Princess has newly given birth to a fine son, by both feeling and reason you ought to meet Eunuch Pang in person and ask after the Crown Princess and the little imperial grandson."

Song Yan slapped his forehead and said, "Look at me—I was so pleased with myself I forgot to ask how things stand with the Crown Princess."

He gave the servant boy fresh instructions, then carefully handed the child to the wet nurse, greeted Ji Shi and the others, and left the birthing room.

Everyone could not help heaving a sigh of relief.

The midwife came forward to take Dou Yan's pulse, the childbirth matron bustled up to offer congratulations and ask for her reward, the wet nurse held the child and patted and soothed him gently, the women at the stove heated water, and the maids prepared brown-sugar water to entertain the Dou family women.

The whole birthing room came alive.

Dou Yan had the wet nurse lay the child beside her pillow and said, "Better that he get used to sleeping in a bed. If you hold him all the time like this, you'll spoil him."

The wet nurse smiled and flattered her, "The young master has been born into a household like yours—even if he never slept in a bed, there'd be people to hold him in turns day and night. What does it matter?" She laid the child beside Dou Zhiwei's pillow as told.

Looking at the child, red as a skinned monkey, Dou Yan's heart finally settled.

She instructed the physician: "No need to brew me the malt water. Give me a few prescriptions to promote milk."

Everyone in the room was startled.

The wet nurse trembled with fright and at once knelt before Dou Zhiwei's bed: "Does the lady find me coarse and common? If I have done anything wrong, the lady need only say the word, and I shall mend it at once..."

"You are very good." Dou Yan had Jiang Yan help the wet nurse to her feet, and said, "This is the first child the Young Marquis and I have had, and we agreed long ago that we would nurse him ourselves. Do not take it amiss. We brought you into the household only as a safeguard, in case I have no milk or not enough. Otherwise I would not have had your own child brought into the household beforehand—this way your milk will not dry up."

The wet nurses were all recommended by the ** Office, of spotless background, one chosen in a thousand—how could they be anything but good? It was only that Dou Yan's lot in her former life had been thin in children, and in this life she would under no circumstances again let others raise her child for her.