Four Seasons Brocade – CH 122

Chapter 122 ☆、

Actually, Nanny Sang thought this reason was absolutely impossible. Even if he had someone else in his heart, it would not affect a man’s ability to have sex with others.

Ah Wu thought about it seriously and shook her head. “No.” She knew what Nanny Sang meant, but Ah Wu did not believe that Xiangsi was Chu Mao’s beloved.

“Well…” After much deliberation, Nanny Sang decided to speak to Ah Wu. After all, the young lady was already married, and it was better to understand than to remain ignorant. “Have you noticed anything unusual or strange about His Highness’s behavior?”

Others might find Prince Qi’s behavior strange, but in Ah Wu’s eyes, Chu Mao was perfectly normal. It was Rong Yin, with his pungent body odor, who was truly abnormal.

“No,” Ah Wu replied confidently.

Nanny Sang immediately understood Ah Wu’s misunderstanding. “I mean, does His Highness sometimes glance at the handsome servants?”

Ah Wu thought to herself, in just a few days, she had not even seen many servants herself; how could she know if Chu Mao would? However, Ah Wu vaguely understood Nanny Sang’s meaning; she was asking if Chu Mao had any homosexual tendencies.

“No,” Ah Wu replied confidently.

“Then, does His Highness often look at those young maids?” Nanny Sang asked, her voice trembling with fear.

Ah Wu frowned, not understanding what Nanny Sang was implying. Dear readers, please forgive Ah Wu; it was not that she was not intelligent, but she had never thought in that direction before. No one had taught her, and she knew nothing of such sordid matters.

“Or, perhaps His Highness prefers those alluring women?” Nanny Sang finally understood. Her young mistress probably did not understand these things at all. Indeed, who would dare to speak of such sordid matters and offend her ears? Nanny Sang had no other choice but to speak up.

But having spoken, there was no reason to leave empty-handed.

“Nanny, what exactly are you trying to say?”

Nanny Sang, driven by a sense of impatience, blurted it all out, “This old servant will simply tell the Princess everything. Men in this world are all sorts of people, strange and varied. Some prefer young boys, some like innocent girls, and some like alluring women, indulging in illicit affairs. And some even like a woman’s neck or her breasts…”

“Nanny Sang!” Ah Wu was utterly enraged. Her nanny was telling her such filthy things! Ah Wu wanted nothing more than to wash her ears with a spring. “Nanny Sang, I respect you as my wet nurse, but you…you must not…” Ah Wu stood up, trembling with rage.

Ah Wu was already quite resistant to these things because of what happened between Master Rong and Concubine Wang back then. She could not bear to even hear about them, let alone see them. On the night before she was married, she was forced to listen—it was customary, and Ah Wu had no choice but to comply. Even so, Lady Cui could only give vague answers. This was completely unlike Nanny Sang, who would tell her all sorts of disgusting things.

Nanny Sang, unaware of Ah Wu’s extreme anger, regretted her words, realizing her concern had clouded her judgment. “It’s all my fault, all my fault, young lady; please do not be angry…” Nanny Sang loved Ah Wu dearly, and seeing her so upset, she dared not speak further.

“Nanny, you are not allowed to interfere in my affairs anymore, and you are not allowed to go back and gossip to Madam, otherwise I…” Ah Wu hardened her heart, half-jokingly, determined to subdue Nanny Sang to prevent future trouble.

“Yes, yes…” Nanny Sang dared not argue with Ah Wu at all. She knew Ah Wu’s temperament best; she was always a woman of her word.

After Nanny Sang left, Ah Wu clutched her heart, suddenly remembering the look in Chu Mao’s eyes when he saw her bare feet last night. A cold sweat broke out. Could Nanny Sang have been right? Did this Prince Qi have a peculiar fetish?

Although Ah Wu disagreed with Nanny Sang’s indiscriminate remarks, she had to admit that she could occasionally learn something from them.

That evening, when Chu Mao returned to her room, she saw Ah Wu wearing soft satin slippers but cotton socks. He did not say much, but Ah Wu herself, somewhat guilty, explained, “It’s getting colder, and my feet always feel cold at night.” In reality, Ah Wu was clearly lying; the underfloor heating in the room was so good that she could wear a summer-ready gauze dress.

Chu Mao, seemingly unconcerned, said, “Tell them to heat the underfloor heating even more tomorrow.”

Ah Wu nodded, feeling that she had gotten away with it.

The next day, after breakfast, Ah Wu was preparing to stroll through the Acacia Garden again when, looking out the window, she saw Nanny Lu leading an old man and a young boy carrying a medicine box into Yulan Hall.

A moment later, Ah Wu saw Zi-Shan enter and say, “Nanny Lu has brought Physician Sha to take the Princess’s pulse. She said it’s an old custom in the mansion; Physician Sha comes every ten days to take the pulse of each master.”

Ah Wu nodded.

The maids immediately busied themselves, some pulling curtains, others setting up tables and chairs, but Ah Wu stopped them all. Zi-Shan hurriedly offered a handkerchief to cover Ah Wu’s wrist, but Ah Wu refused each time.

“This Physician Sha is quite old; there’s no need for so much fuss. Besides, since it’s a pulse diagnosis, the four diagnostic methods of observation, auscultation, inquiry, and palpation are essential. How can he take an accurate pulse if you are covering it like this?” Ah Wu said to Zi-Shan. Back in the Rong Mansion, there were no such strict rules.

Zi-Shan smiled awkwardly. “This servant only thought that since you’ve become the Princess, I…”

Ah Wu glared at her, and Zi-Shan did not dare say anything more, going out to fetch Physician Sha.

Physician Sha led the young boy into the room, bowing respectfully to Ah Wu without daring to look up. Seeing a woman in fine clothes sitting at the table, he knew it must be Princess Qi. He took the medicine box from the boy and placed a pulse pillow on the table.

“Please, Your Highness, extend your hand.”

A hand as beautiful as jade rested on the pulse pillow, making Physician Sha’s fingers tremble slightly as he took her pulse. Such a person, the less pretentious, the more unsettling.

When Sha Youzhe had previously taken the pulses of Prince Qi’s two concubines, he had always drawn a curtain and covered them with handkerchiefs. He had not expected this Princess to be so straightforward.

The young boy, lacking Physician Sha’s composure, could not help but steal a glance at this unfamiliar Princess Qi, then stood frozen to the side, almost forgetting his own name.

After taking her pulse, Sha Youzhe put away the pulse pillow and said slowly, “The Princess is in good health; there’s nothing to worry about. However, with winter approaching, it’s important to keep warm, but the room should be well-ventilated, and the doors and windows should not be kept closed all the time.”

Ah Wu withdrew her hand, slowly smoothing her cuffs and smoothing out the non-existent creases. Before Sha Youzhe could take his leave, she said leisurely, “Physician Sha, you can write my pulse record here.”

Ordinary aristocratic families might have a physician who came monthly to take a patient’s pulse, but once every ten days was rather frequent. Ah Wu did not bother to think about such trivial matters; she did not care to speculate on others’ petty thoughts.

However, those who take a patient’s pulse would always write a record so that the person being examined would have a record to refer to if they fall ill in the future, preventing problems before they arise. Although Ah Wu herself was perfectly healthy and had nothing to hide, it seemed that even if the pulse record were sent to Hongyao Villa for safekeeping, it would not be a big deal.

However, not only was it illegitimate for Hongyao Villa to keep the Princess’s medical records, but it also risked creating future problems. Ah Wu could not afford to be complacent, even if it meant she was being overly suspicious.

Then, Ah Wu thought, “Who among the two masters of Hongyao Villa is so meticulous about everything?” Ah Wu did not hesitate to speculate that if this Physician Sha were to diagnose someone as pregnant, someone there would likely lose sleep for a long time. His meddling was practically an attempt to arrange Prince Qi’s marriage.

Sha Youzhe had not expected the Princess to be so perceptive, but he felt he had a clear conscience, so he sat down at the table outside and quickly began writing the medical records. After finishing, he respectfully handed them to Zi-Shan.

After Sha Youzhe left, Zi-Shan returned to the east side room and said to Ah Wu, “Your Highness, why did you not tell Physician Sha to keep his mouth shut?”

Ah Wu glanced at Zi-Shan with annoyance. This girl was good in every way, except that sometimes she did not think things through. “Since this Physician Sha can regularly come to take pulses in this mansion, he must have his own strengths.” But these strengths, well, they were “the strength to earn the trust of those two.”

Ah Wu was not afraid of what Sha Youzhe would say to Hongyao Villa; she only wanted to express an attitude.

This pulse-taking made Ah Wu feel as if her personal space had been invaded. Perhaps Hongyao Villa had not thought much of it, but Ah Wu did not care how that Xiangsi girl managed Chu Mao’s other concubines; if she wanted to interfere in her affairs, Ah Wu would absolutely not allow it, and every time she reached out, she would give her a hard slap on the back of the hand so she would remember.

Fortunately, the small kitchen in Yulan Hall had been completed in the past few days. Since Yulan Hall already had a small kitchen when it was under its previous owner’s control, the setup was relatively quick.

Ah Wu was extremely annoyed by Nanny Sang’s nagging, so she simply let her manage the small kitchen, with Zi-Zhui assisting in preparing her and Chu Mao’s meals.

The ingredients for Yulan Hall were still purchased centrally by the main kitchen. Nanny Sang and Zi-Zhui went to collect them daily or every other day, following the newly established rules. For example, the Prince’s daily rations included a certain amount of pork, mutton, and chicken, while the Princess’s rations were different. Ah Wu thought that the rules of Lady Xiangsi were as strict as those of the Empress, where even the concubines had monthly rations.

However, based on Ah Wu’s observations during her first few days in the mansion, when the main kitchen supplied food to Yulan Hall, there were no such rules; the dishes were always different each day, based on Chu Mao’s preferences.