Chapter 335 — Ventilation
Purple Streets of Chang'an Page 2 of 2
The man nodded, smiling. "Then I shall trouble you today, sir."
The two looked at each other and smiled, then walked off in opposite directions.
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Dou Yan sat on the kang with her aunt and Zhao Zhangru, doing needlework.
Her aunt instructed her earnestly: "For a child's clothes, you must find old clothes and remake them. The rough places have all been worn smooth, so they will not hurt the child's tender skin... A woman giving birth is like passing through the gate of ghosts... After three months, she must walk about the courtyard often. The heavier the months, the more she must move. Why is it that the noble ladies of the palace so often have difficult births, while the women in the fields bear one after another? The midwife and the wet nurse must be found early, so that when the child is born there is no flurry and confusion..."
Zhao Zhangru, meanwhile, had her eyes wide open, glancing now and then at Dou Zhiwei's belly, glancing again and again, until Dou Yan did not know whether to laugh or cry. Seizing the moment when her aunt and Suxin had opened the chests to look for old clothes, she said in a low voice, laughing, "If you have something to say, just say it. Carrying on like this makes one terribly uncomfortable!"
At that, Zhao Zhangru flopped onto Dou Zhiwei's shoulder. "Are you really with child?"
"Nine parts out of ten," Dou Yan said. "We will not know for certain until the doctor feels my pulse next month."
"You really are formidable!" Zhao Zhangru looked at Dou Yan with great admiration. "My eldest sister was married half a year before she conceived. And you have been married less than two months..."
Dou Yan was caught between laughter and tears.
A little maid came in timidly and announced, "Madam, there is a man who calls himself Chen Zanzhi asking to see you!"
Chen Zanzhi—Chen Jia.
What had he come for?
Dou Yan said flatly, "I will not see him!"
The little maid answered meekly and withdrew.
Zhao Zhangru said, astonished, "Who is Chen Zanzhi? Can you receive men from outside? Does the Young Lord not scold you? He just lets you do as you please?"
"What do you mean, do as I please!" Dou Yan pinched Zhao Zhangru's cheek. "I receive guests openly and properly. How is that doing as I please!"
"Ah!" Zhao Zhangru tilted her head to dodge Dou Zhiwei's attack and said, "The Young Lord truly treats you well. My second brother-in-law—never mind letting my second sister meet outside men, even when she goes back to her natal home he hems and haws, until my mother just sighs!"
Dou Yan was very surprised and was about to ask more when the little maid came in again. "Madam, that Lord Chen insists on seeing you. He says it concerns the Young Lord..."
What did this Chen Jia mean by it?
Since it concerned Song Yan, he ought to go to Song Yan; at the very least he could go to Mr. Yan or Chen Hai. What did it mean, running to her?
Dou Yan frowned, but remembering that he was an assistant commissioner of the Zhenfu Division, she did not dare gamble with Song Yan's safety. After a moment's hesitation, she received Chen Jia in the small parlour.
Chen Jia wore a very ordinary pongee jacket, his eyes lowered and manner deferential; with his plain features, he looked like a man who would be lost in a crowd, with none of the blaze and pomp of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Yet something in him made Dou Yan's heart pause, and she looked at him twice.
"Madam!" Chen Jia bowed to Dou Yan with respect and said in a low voice, "In a few days the Emperor will go to the Western Park, but the Young Lord, because Lord Zhenguo is ill, must stay at his bedside to nurse him and cannot accompany him. The Jinwu Guard will most likely be led by Dong Qi, heir of Count Guang'en, to accompany the Emperor for a short stay at the Western Park. Are you aware of this?"
Dou Yan was secretly startled, and it took several turns of her mind before she understood Chen Jia's meaning.
This was a world she did not understand.
She said thoughtfully, "What old grudge is there between Dong Qi and the Young Lord?"
"There is no old grudge between Dong Qi and the Young Lord," Chen Jia said quietly. "Eighteen years ago, when Count Guang'en and the Duke of Yingguo were both still heirs, they were on very good terms. Later, for some reason, the two turned against each other and ceased all dealings. After that, Dong Qi defeated the Young Lord at the autumn hunt, and took the post of vice commander of the Jinwu Guard from the Young Lord's hands..."
He told Dou Yan certain things about Song Yan and Dong Qi in the Jinwu Guard.
Dou Yan listened quietly until he had finished, then smiled and said, "You have taken great trouble, Lord Chen," and raised her teacup to see him out.
(To be continued)