After breakfast, Xiqiu instructed Nanny Cen, "The guest list for the naming ceremony will follow what we previously agreed upon. We don’t need to visit other households."
Nanny Cen replied, "I’ll take care of it by noon." Xiqiu nodded and added, "For those families marked in red, you and Nanny Rong should visit them personally." Nanny Cen nodded with a smile.
Xiqiu then tilted her head to tease her son.
Supported by Ziwei, the Grand Dowager ca in and sat by the bed, unable to hide the smile on her face as she looked at Xiqiu, "This child is really well-behaved. I only heard him cry once during the night..." She reminisced about when Xing was little, "...he was very fussy, cried all night until dawn."
Xing had a frail constitution since childhood, sensitive to hunger and cold, which made him sowhat pampered.
"...He would glare at you when he wet himself, cry when he was hungry. I’ve never seen a child like this, it was quite strange," Xiqiu said with a smile.
The Grand Dowager, however, found it endearing, cradling the child lovingly, "I think he’s perfectly fine, there’s nothing odd about him." She couldn’t resist kissing his little face, "Look at his features; he’ll definitely grow up to be handso."
Mrs. Xiao’s genes were indeed excellent; none of their children, male or female, were unattractive, Xiqiu had to admit.
The more you look at your own child, the better they seem. The Grand Dowager held him and looked at Xiqiu, "If you don’t have milk, don’t force yourself. You suffered a lot giving birth to him; your body might need a few months of careful nurturing to recover. Take care of yourself first; your good health is his blessing."
Xiqiu also felt the Grand Dowager made sense and nodded, "If it doesn’t work out, then so be it!" Though she still seed a bit disappointed.
"I didn’t have milk when I had our fourth child either," the Grand Dowager chuckled, "I didn’t personally feed any of the children. At that ti, in the military camp, I couldn’t find a wet nurse, so I thought of breastfeeding myself, but who knew, even with goat milk he didn’t want it after just two days, my milk dried up completely." She looked again at the baby in her arms, "Funny how even this habit runs in father and son."
Xiqiu couldn’t help but laugh.
"Mother," Xiqiu looked at the Grand Dowager, taking the naming ceremony list from under her pillow to show her, "Please have a look, is there anyone on it by mistake?"
"Let see," the Grand Dowager put the child down, took the list, squinted at it for a long while, and nodded, "No mistakes, go ahead and invite these people." After a pause, she added, "Don’t trouble yourself with these matters, it’s not like I’m not here to help."
Xiqiu paused at her words, shaking her head, "Your health isn’t good, you can’t be burdened." After what happened with the Third Master, the Grand Dowager’s hair had turned completely white, and any encounter with people would inevitably lead to private gossip. She couldn’t bear to let her at such an age beco the subject of others’ discussions.
It was as if the Grand Dowager knew about her concerns and worries, she said indifferently, "It’s the truth, there’s nothing to worry about." After a pause, she added, "People grow old, it’s just a matter of ti. Besides, later you can have your sister-in-law here to help manage things."
Xiqiu felt a twinge of sadness, nodded with tears brimming in her eyes.
As if on cue, Nanny Cen lifted the curtain, announcing, "First Madam is here!"
Upon hearing this, Xiqiu instructed, "Please invite her in." The First Madam always considered her own status and avoided making appearances on festive days, but she didn’t abstain from this one...
"Let her be," the Grand Dowager laughed, "Yuzhen has always been like that."
Xiqiu shook her head, "We can’t let her stay outside. We’re family and shouldn’t fuss over such things." Then she looked at Nanny Cen, "Invite the First Madam in."
Nanny Cen smiled, nodded, and went out. After a while, the door curtain was lifted, and the First Madam entered. Xiqiu greeted her with a smile, "Sister-in-law."
First Madam nodded at her and then looked at the Grand Dowager, "Mother." Her attitude was sowhat awkward.
Now that she had entered, the Grand Dowager was pleased to see the sisters-in-law getting along so well, delightedly pointed at the child, "Co and see, the eyebrows and eyes look just like Fourth Master."
First Madam had heard about Xiqiu’s difficult labor the day before and also about what she had said to the Grand Dowager, "...One day, if you’re not well, perhaps you could let my sister-in-law take care of him... so he can have a companion..." When she first heard it, she was shocked, unable to quite describe how she felt. Initially, when Xiqiu married into the family, she treated her as she did Tong Xihua, always keeping little things in mind, secretly plotting to get back with petty tactics. When she heard Xing calling her ’Sixth Aunt,’ it only confird her judgnt of Xiqiu’s character. She despised deceitful people who wouldn’t live openly and honestly...
Not until the incident with Chunyan did she witness another side of Xiqiu in the courtyard, shedding her usual ek and obedient deanor, standing there proudly with her spine straight. At the ti, though she was displeased, her impression of Xiqiu changed slightly for the better because of it, and from then on, she kept her lips sealed and never ntioned the incident with Chunyan again.
Many things happened later, and she watched from the sidelines yet saw everything more clearly than anyone else. Initially, she thought Xiqiu’s affection for Xing and Min was only for appearances, just like Tong Xi, not to last long, but she hadn’t thought she had misjudged Xiqiu for the first ti...
First Madam looked at Xiqiu, a faint smile erging on her face, tinged with warmth, as she walked over to the Grand Dowager and upon seeing the baby in the swaddle, her face lit up, a feeling like her heart had been gently struck, turning as soft as cotton.
Such features really did resemble the Fourth Master...
Tears welled up in her heart, thinking that if she had a child with the Fourth Master, it would surely be as adorable as this.
Xiqiu observed First Madam gazing lovingly at the child and smiled, "Sister-in-law, why don’t you hold him for a try."
"?" First Madam was startled; she had held Xing and Min before, so it shouldn’t feel unfamiliar, but she still showed uncertainty on her face and shook her head, "I better not. I’m out of practice, I might harm him." Standing behind the Grand Dowager, she felt bad for rejecting Xiqiu’s kindness and changed the subject, asking, "Has a na been chosen?"
Xiqiu shook her head, "Not yet." She politely addressed the Grand Dowager and First Madam, "Why not have Mother and Sister-in-law help na him? You’re his grandmother and aunt by marriage; naming him would be his blessing."
"We should let Fourth Master na him," the Grand Dowager laughed, looking at First Madam, "Or perhaps you’d like to suggest a nickna to start with. We can finalize the na when he grows a little older."
Xiqiu thought of the na Fourth Master Xiao, smiling, "Let’s just choose the na directly; later on, once everyone’s used to it, it won’t be so easy to change." She looked at First Madam.
First Madam contemplated, looked at the baby in the swaddle again, then towards the Grand Dowager, "...I don’t have any good nas, let’s leave it to Fourth Brother." She swallowed her words.
Could it be that they already had a na decided? Xiqiu smiled, "Sister-in-law..." Just as she spoke, Fourth Master Xiao entered, lifting the curtain, and upon seeing the Grand Dowager and First Madam, nodded in acknowledgnt, giving the Grand Dowager a separate glance. The interaction between mother and son was a bit awkward, and Xiqiu deliberately light-heartedly said, "Fourth Master...you’ve co at just the right ti. We were just discussing naming him, have you thought of a na, Fourth Master?"
User Comments
0 comments from readers