Chapter 89: The Promise

It happened that Yan Yan, in a fury, meant to go and demand an explanation, but at the foot of the Tower of Lovely Dreams she ran into the Ninth Master, who had come to see the children. After the Ninth Master had given her a harsh scolding, Yan Yan had not even managed to speak before Cui'er caught up with her and said softly, "Mistress, let's speak calmly. Don't wear out your own body over this, or the loss will outweigh the gain."

At once the Ninth Master's eyes narrowed. He knew that the matter Dong E had just come to him about had already reached Yan Yan. It seemed he truly needed to put the household in order.

With a sigh, he stepped forward and made as if to take Yan Yan's hand.

Who would have thought that Yan Yan would fling him off at once, still staring at him with wide, unblinking eyes, her gaze full of shock and hurt. Such silent accusation made something seem to lodge in the Ninth Master's chest, leaving him unbearably ill at ease.

He said to Nanny He, "Help the side consort upstairs. Hang a curtain in the downstairs bedchamber. I will go up and speak with her." Then, with forced gentleness, he looked back at Yan Yan and said in a low voice, "Shall we go upstairs and talk? You have only just given birth. How can you be so careless with your own body?"

Yan Yan still looked at him, as though intent on making full use of that mute reproach. The Ninth Master had no defense against that sort of look from her. He stretched out his arm and gently drew her into his embrace. The clean, fresh scent she usually carried was gone, replaced by the faint milky fragrance of a nursing mother. Instantly, the Ninth Master felt a strange and profound steadiness settle in his heart, and an unfamiliar warmth slowly overflowed from its depths.

"Master, don't send my children away..." Yan Yan, curled in his arms, finally said it. Her voice carried pleading, yet also stubbornness.

"All right!" The Ninth Master answered without the slightest hesitation, almost before he had time to struggle. If the Tenth Master had been there, he would surely have been astonished again: when had his Ninth Brother become so easy to speak with? Yet at this moment, the Ninth Master wanted only to say those words. It seemed that only by saying them would Yan Yan's nearly twenty hours of agony not have been in vain, for she had borne him these three children.

Once Yan Yan heard his promise, the tautness in her expression immediately loosened. The strength that had carried her down the stairs was gone at once, and she began to slide weakly toward the floor.

It seemed she had truly overestimated herself. Childbirth had drained her more than she had imagined; she had not an ounce of strength left, and both legs felt sore and weak. The Ninth Master was both helpless and heartbroken. He scooped Yan Yan up at once and strode upstairs, complaining as he went, "Must you always be so stubborn? Do you think I would not agree if you did not force yourself like this? Truly, I do not know whom you take after."

Yan Yan nestled against him and said faintly, "Master, speak more softly. The children are all asleep."

At that, the Ninth Master obediently fell silent. After he gently laid Yan Yan on the bed, before he could even say a word, Nanny He had already ushered him out. Yan Yan smiled faintly and thought that Nanny He was adorable as well.

Nanny Song was clearly on Yan Yan's side. Together with Cui'er, she briskly hung a gauze curtain beside Yan Yan's large bed, thus narrowing the area assigned to her for confinement after childbirth. Seeing the two servants so quick and capable, the Ninth Master was happy enough to remain downstairs.

By now, the former small study on the second floor had already been removed and converted into the resting place of the three little ones. Yet at this moment, they were not in their own room, but all on the balcony, basking in the sun.

When the Ninth Master went over, he saw that all three little ones had gauze coverings over their eyes and were still sound asleep, utterly unconcerned by the warm sunlight on their bodies.

The only wet nurse was still Nanny Wang. Over the past several days, under Yan Yan's care, the little ones had become well regulated. Every day, once they had been fed, they would lie in their small beds and sleep soundly. Aside from soiling their diapers and needing to be changed, they hardly ever cried.

Nanny Wang often sighed that now that she was caring for three children, it was easier than when others cared for just one. When the Ninth Master came over, Nanny Wang hastily stood. He waved her down and looked at his three children, feeling more fond of them the more he looked.

"What are they doing?" The Ninth Master felt the sunlight was still too harsh; it might damage the children's skin.

"Replying to Master," Nanny Wang said in a voice slightly lower than normal, while the three children seemed unaffected in the least and continued sleeping soundly, "the side consort said that sunlight is beneficial for the children's growth and will help them become tall later on."

The Ninth Master smiled, thinking that Yan Yan was indeed Yan Yan. Even in the matter of raising children, she was so methodical. He then glanced through the charts hanging nearby for the children and saw that records had already been entered: each child's weight, height, and the tiny footprints pressed with ink pad. Everything about it struck him as novel.

He grew even more interested in the charts recording how long the children slept each day and how much they ate, and could not help thinking that raising children was full of amusement. Because Yan Yan had strictly forbidden anyone from carrying the babies, the Ninth Master did not hold the Sixth Miss this time. Instead, he returned to the curtain to speak with Yan Yan for a while. Hearing that her voice was thick with weariness, he told Nanny He to take good care of her, and then left Yan Yan's Tower of Lovely Dreams.

Dong E naturally learned of it very soon, and clenched her fists tightly. Nanny Dong also sighed and said, "Mistress, you must absolutely not underestimate this Yan."

Dong E glanced at Nanny Dong and seemed to have made up her mind about something. "When will Master come to my place?"

After a brief calculation, Nanny Dong lowered her voice and said, "Replying to Mistress, by the rules, he should come the day after tomorrow."

Dong E nodded, then let out another heavy sigh. "Come, go with me and see how well Ya'er has been learning these past few days."

Looking at Dong E, Nanny Dong knew this was not a good plan, but she also knew it was an expedient born of helplessness.

In the blink of an eye, more than half a month had passed, and before long the three little ones would reach their first full month. The Ninth Master had begun quietly making plans for their full-month celebration.

As for the ritual bathing on the third day after birth, the Ninth Master had canceled it for all three children, feeling the two little princes were still too small and not suited to being seen by so many people. Yan Yan's requirements were also extremely strict. Even the Ninth Master himself had to change his clothes after returning to the residence before he could go see the children.

The Ninth Master thought this arrangement was excellent. At the very least, after half a month, the three little ones were still eating and sleeping, sleeping and eating every day. Though there was a faint suggestion of piglets about them, they were in remarkably good spirits.

When they rarely woke, each one was full of energy. Especially the Sixth Miss, whose large eyes revealed all manner of bright expression, having inherited Yan Yan's eyes completely. The First and Second Young Masters were equally lively and vigorous.

At last, Yan Yan and the Ninth Master also found one resemblance between the two boys: when they cried, their voices were equally thunderous.

Of course, there was one matter that Yan Yan and the Ninth Master had unconsciously both forgotten: naming the children.