Chapter 696: Unexpected Joy
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The next day, after kissing the sleeping Zhuang Zhuang, Mingzhu wrapped herself in a fox fur and bid farewell to the people who came to see her off: Lady Qian, Fu Mingzheng, An Xiaogu, and others. Then, under the gaze of everyone, she boarded the carriage.
Yuwen Chu, sitting in the carriage, flipped through documents. When he saw her coming in, he put down the documents and handed her a hand warmer, “Are you all ready?”
Mingzhu held the warm hand warmer, full of spirit, “All ready, don’t worry.”
Yuwen Chu hugged her, repeatedly reminding her of the precautions on the way.
When they reached outside the city gate, the chief escorting Mingzhu on the road, Gu Erde, stopped and respectfully asked Yuwen Chu to get off the carriage, “Your Highness, it’s time for you to go back.”
Yuwen Chu agreed and got off the carriage first. Mingzhu, disguised as a eunuch, carrying a stack of documents high enough to cover her face, followed him step by step, then changed to another carriage and returned to the capital. Quietly, after gathering with Jiang Zhouzi, Jing Song, and others, she changed her attire and appearance, then left through another city gate by carriage. By this time, the carriage bearing the “Regent’s Wangfei” had already gone far away.
The carriage prepared by Yuwen Chu for Mingzhu looked simple and inconspicuous on the outside, but inside, it was very comfortable, warm, and practical, causing her to fall asleep as soon as she got on. When she woke up, they had already arrived at a roadside inn to rest briefly, and after a quick tidy-up, she went to have dinner with Dong Hui.
The disguised Jiang Zhouzi, Jing Song, Su Momo, and others were sitting around the table waiting for them. When they arrived, Jiang Zhouzi said, “Let’s eat.”
Mingzhu glanced at everyone and couldn’t help but smile.
They were disguised as a family doing business in the capital, returning home due to the unrest in the city. Since Mingzhu’s appearance was too delicate to pass as a man, they didn’t change her gender but disguised her as an ordinary pretty woman. Jiang Zhouzi played the father, Su Momo played the mother, Jing Song played the eldest son, Mingzhu played the youngest daughter, and Dong Hui played Mingzhu’s husband for close protection.
So this newly assembled family sat around the table, each feeling quite fresh.
Jiang Zhouzi looked at everyone’s faces and proudly said, “My skills have improved again.”
Because Yuwen Chu had mentioned the incident with his scheming of his fiancée, Mingzhu loved to argue with him, sneering, “I don’t see it.”
Actually, she knew very well. Jiang Zhouzi’s skill at disguise was very good. With simple materials like glue, paint, and hair, he could change someone’s appearance dramatically. Only those skilled in this craft could discern it. What was most remarkable was that after Jiang Zhouzi disguised Mingzhu and Jing Song, they even bore some resemblance to each other, truly resembling siblings. Separated, they also bore some resemblance to Su Momo and Jiang Zhouzi as a couple. If not for knowing the truth, no one would suspect they weren’t a family.
Jiang Zhouzi was very dissatisfied, but because he had been bought off by Yuwen Chu beforehand, he saw Mingzhu as an untouchable and unreasonable shrew, so he didn’t bother with her. He smirked sarcastically and remained silent.
Mingzhu found his smile irritating, though not enough to argue with him. She snorted and turned her face away.
Su Momo sighed with the authority of an elder, “Daughter, why do you always clash with your father? Letting others see will only invite ridicule upon you.”
Mingzhu suppressed her anger and respectfully replied, “Yes, mother, I will be more careful in the future.”
Jing Song and Dong Hui breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the situation. Maintaining this kind of distance was best, a bit aloof, not getting along too well but knowing their limits, so as not to cause trouble. Otherwise, if these two were too intimate, teaching each other this and that, His Highness would surely separate them. Now it’s better, they don’t need to instigate secretly, everyone can relax.
So everyone was happy, and the first meal went very well.
Later, Jiang Zhouzi and Mingzhu were separately advised to maintain a distance and not engage in conversation unless necessary, to keep things peaceful. This delighted Jing Song and the others, knowing that they would surely be generously rewarded when they returned.
Perhaps because Jiang Zhouzi’s disguising skills were so good and the escort team dispatched by Yuwen Chu was very capable, plus the smoke bombs from the fake Regent Wangfei convoy for cover, Mingzhu’s journey went smoothly, encountering no major incidents. There were only a few small incidents where some thugs tried to cause trouble and cheat for money, but it only added a bit of fun to the dull and arduous journey.
However, Mingzhu had a new worry: her menstrual cycle hadn’t come. The month before the Winter Solstice, she was a few days late, thinking she might be pregnant, but it turned out she wasn’t. Then, after the Winter Solstice, many major events occurred, keeping her constantly busy. She was so caught up in the chaos that she overlooked this matter. But she thought that recently, things had been going smoothly, she maintained a regular daily routine, and her mood wasn’t that bad. It should have come by now, shouldn’t it? But it hadn’t.
And she found that she was indeed gaining weight visibly every day, which frightened her. If she was pregnant again, this situation was completely different from when she was pregnant with Zhuang Zhuang. First, she didn’t gain weight early in her pregnancy back then, and second, she suffered from severe morning sickness. But this time, not only was she gaining weight, but she hadn’t experienced any vomiting at all, although she occasionally felt nauseous, it was rare and usually had a reason.
It was useless to overthink it. One evening, Mingzhu finally couldn’t bear it and politely asked Jiang Zhouzi to diagnose her pulse.
Since it concerned her health, Jiang Zhouzi didn’t show her any face and readily took her pulse. After placing his fingers on her pulse, Jiang Zhouzi’s expression became quite subtle, furrowing his brow, wanting to speak but stopping himself, feeling annoyed but also feeling like he had no reason to be annoyed, not wanting to speak but having to. It was like constipation.
“Do I have a serious illness?” Mingzhu’s heart sank. It seemed she really had a terrible disease. Thinking of this, she missed home, missed Yuwen Chu, missed Zhuang Zhuang, even more.
Jiang Zhouzi frowned and said, “There’s a bit of a problem. Do you feel an urgent need to go home now?”
Mingzhu nodded, “Yes, indeed.”
Jiang Zhouzi lowered his eyes and remained silent. Just being sick made her want to go home. What about knowing she’s pregnant? Wouldn’t she clamor to go back immediately? So annoying, she’s pregnant at such a time.
Dong Hui and Su Momo became anxious. Without waiting for Mingzhu to speak, Dong Hui sternly said, “Why won’t Lord Jiang speak? Do you want to hide the severity of the illness? Let’s talk outside, shall we?”
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