It was only after Ning Yi’s figure had disappeared into the horizon for a long time before Zhi Wei lowered her gaze, smiled as she thumped on her sore legs a few times. 

This abrupt illness has taken a big toll on her body so it will take a long time to fully recover. The only thing that struck her as strange is that the mysterious scorching hot energy inside her seemed to have gotten bigger but somehow less hot compared to before. In fact, it has seemed to have settled down some. Who knows, her walk past the hell’s gate might turn out to be a blessing. 

Sounds of footsteps come again from outside of the courtyard, it was someone with especially light and snappy footsteps. Her eyes sparkled with a smile, Zhi Wei knew it must be Hua Qing. 

Zhi Wei was correct, in no time Hua Qing rounded the long hallway in a speed that should be impossible for a pregnant lady to stand in front of her. By Hua Qing’s side is Yan Hui Shi’s mother Madam Chen and behind them a maid is holding a plate of fresh pomegranates. Holding up one of the pomegranates, Hua Qing flashes a smile at Zhi Wei. 

Zhi Wei returns her smile. She likes Hua Qing a lot. Not only because of the deep impression this woman gave her when they first met but because the time they have spent together in this last bit. Hua Qing has shown exceptional intelligence and wisdom. She is bold but not reckless, daring but considerate of others, ruthless when needs to be and ready to back down if the situation requires it, she is truly a rare talent. 

“Are you feeling better today?” Hua Qing comes to visit every day. Yan Huai Shi has taken over the business of constructing the maritime office so has been extremely busy which leaves his wife to be responsible for coming to express their concern for Zhi Wei. 

“Like today’s weather, not bad.” Zhi Wei watches as Hua Qing carefully peels the pomegranate to expose the red and plump seeds. Noticing Zhi Wei’s eyes glancing upward, Hua Qing immediately tosses a pomegranate up to the roof. Master Gu caught it but immediately tossed it back– not walnuts, don’t want. 

Grinning, Hua Qing peels the pomegranate and eats it herself. 

Madam Chen, as one who has always been a stickler for decorum promptly frowns upon seeing Hua Qing eating the pomegranate before Zhi Wei and chides disapprovingly “Qing Er! Watch your manner!” 

Hua Qing grins while Zhi Wei quickly assures Madam Chen “It’s okay, Madam Yan is pregnant, we can’t starve someone carrying a baby.” 

Zhi Wei tries to smooth things over but Madam Chen doesn’t smile. Instead, Madam Chen frowns slightly as her gaze moves past Hua Qing’s belly. 

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law duo sat quite far apart, one sits perfectly upright while one is relaxed without a worry. The tone of their communication is also quite cold, without any of the warmth and gratitude one would imagine. 

The mother and son narrowly escaped death in Yan clan’s ancestry chapel (Despite Yan clan’s claim that they were discussing Yan Huai Shi and his mother’s exile but everyone involved knew their goal was to kill Yan Huai Shi and his mother. So what Hua Qing did literally saved Yan Huai Shi and his mother’s lives.) Hua Qing had escaped from Yan family’s confinement, hiked barefoot ten plus miles, shed her own blood in front of the ancestry gate to finally open the chapel door. This kind of sacrifice would have earned everlasting gratitude from any family but why is Madam Chen’s attitude like this?

Zhi Wei’s gaze falls on Hua Qing’s belly, a question that has been circling in her mind for a long while resurfaced again. However, with her current identity right now, this is not a question she can ask out loud.  

After asking a few routine questions Madam Chen prepares to leave and proceeds to signal Hua Qing with her eyes. Hua Qing grins and says “Mother, you go ahead. I will come after I help Official Wei with some paperwork.” 

Madam Chen hesitates and seems to want to say something but in the end left after bidding Zhi Wei goodbye. Zhi Wei smiles then turns to Hua Qing. 

Giving Zhi Wei a side glance, Hua Qing languidly eats her pomegranate then tells the maid “Not bad, it’s tasty, go ask for some more.”

The maid leaves. Zhi Wei looks at the plate that still has ten plus pomegranates on it, already too many for them to finish so why would they need more? Looks like this astute lady has something to say to her. 

“If Official Wei has something you would like to ask, ask away.” Hua Qing sits by her, breezily flings her hair back.

Zhi Wei moves her gaze to Hua Qing’s belly to indicate her question. 

Hua Qing’s belly is not too big yet, about five to six months along. However, five or six months ago Yan Huai Shi was still at the Capital and had never been back to South Sea.

Looking down at her belly, Hua Qing smiles and utters yet another shocking sentence. “You guessed right, this child, is indeed not Huai Shi’s.” 

Zhi Wei started to cough. Even if she had guessed it but to hear it said out loud in such frank honesty still shocked her. 

Hua Qing immediately reached over to pat her back lightly causing Zhi Wei to blink in surprise but Hua Qing had already pulled back her hand. 

Gently caressing her belly with a soft smile, there is finally a bit of sadness in Hua Qing’s eyes, “I am a village girl, my father had been a local official previously. After he retired he returned back to his village and opened up a private schoolhouse. My family’s schoolhouse is in the same area as Madam Chen’s nunnery. She was bullied quite severely in the nunnery. My father and I felt bad for her so we will often help her out a bit. Huai Shi and I have known each other since we were little.”

Ah, a story between an outcast nobleman’s son and a poor village girl.

“Don’t assume it is a romantic story of young loves.” Hua Qing delivers a shocking sentence again, “Huai Shi doesn’t like me.”

Zhi Wei almost spewed out the tea in her mouth onto her blanket. 

“Madam Chen is a very typical noblewoman. While she is grateful towards my family but she can never think highly of a village tomboy like me. Due to her influence, Huai Shi has no romantic thoughts towards me. He is simply thankful for my family’s help so he is friendlier with me which in other people’s eyes looks like we are a couple.”

Slowly eating her pomegranate, Hua Qing says softly “The year that father passed away, he held my hand and told me that it is not good to marry above one’s station. He said don’t marry into Yan clan or else I would suffer a lot of hardship in the future. I listened to him and became the first female school teacher and married a scholar in the village.” 

“The scholar had a weak constitution and not long after we married he fell sick. I took care of him for about a year but he still passed so that’s how I ended up with the reputation for being bad luck.” 

“Then this child…”

“The scholar’s.” Hua Qing replies. 

Zhi Wei sucked in a cold breath. In silence, Zhi Wei thought of how this woman had declared her words with such force and audacity that no one would have doubted that Yan Chang Tian’s surname is not Yan.

But Yan Chang Tian’s surname really is not Yan….

She really just ran and knocked on someone’s ancestry chapel carrying someone else’s child. Declaring matter of factly that the baby is the eldest grandchild, saved two lives which then directly changed the whole situation of South Sea. 

For the first time in her life, Zhi Wei admired someone of her own gender.

But something is still off.

“Huai Shi has not been in South Sea for a while. This is something Yan clan is well aware of, why didn’t they raise a question about that?”

“One reason is due to you guys’ barricade and my fierceness that they forgot to calculate the dates.” Hua Qing replies, “Another reason is that ever since I heard an envoy will be sent to South Sea to build the maritime office and Huai Shi could very possibly be in charge of it, I knew right away Yan clan will not let him live. So some time ago I spread the rumor Huai Shi had recently secretly come home to see me.” 

“Why?”

“This child doesn’t have a father (who is living).” Hua Qing gently caresses her belly, her face full of the glow of motherhood, “No one knows the scholar had left me a child. I thought Huai Shi’s birth was his biggest weakness. Huai Shi wasn’t a threat before so Yan clan didn’t think much about him and wouldn’t touch him. But the moment Huai Shi makes something of himself, then sooner or later Yan clan will use the circumstances of his birth to exile him. To Yan clan who have always placed great importance on their posterity, no other shield is better than the eldest grandson (of the youngest generation)!” 

Zhi Wei looks at Hua Qing blankly. This woman is even smarter than she had imagined. Moreover, she has great foresight. Just by small clues she had very early on made careful and stunningly accurate decisions.  Behind her wide and frank smile lies a wise and intelligent mind. 


All text copyright @ www.Ninja-Reflection.com

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