“Your father’s three brothers are not ordinary; one is the Prefect of Jizhou, another the Governor of Anyang, and the last is the Vice Minister of Rites.”
It seems Jiang Dahu’s family is quite influential.
Ji Ranran pouted, “Uncle, why are you telling her all this? I don’t want them back.”
“What nonsense are you talking! They are your kin, it’s only right they come back.”
The magistrate gave her a disapproving look.
In truth, he wasn’t just saying this because they were of the Ji family’s blood. He thought they were so beautiful that if they returned, they could certainly be of help to Ji Ranran’s father.
If one of them became a concubine or something similar:
Wouldn’t that make their family royal kin?
Then, he could also rise through the ranks, couldn’t he?
“I don’t want them!”
Ji Ranran shouted loudly.
Jiang Yan had no intention of returning to that family either, so she said, “You don’t have to get so excited; we’ve never thought about going back. Otherwise, we would have followed Jiang Dahu to find his family long ago.”
Noticing her direct address of Jiang Dahu:
The magistrate’s brows slightly furrowed, then he forced a smile, “Don’t mind Ranran, she’s just like that, she doesn’t mean anything by it.”
“I’m not upset because of her!”
Jiang Yan didn’t want to stay there any longer, she continued, “Are you still going to punish us? If not, we’re leaving. We’re in a hurry to get home.”
The magistrate didn’t want to let them go but didn’t dare punish them.
He spoke kindly, “It’s been a while since you’ve seen your father, right? Stay here a few more days, and I’ll send someone to inform him…”
“If he really wants to see us, he’ll come back on his own.”
Jiang Yan called out to Jiang Ling and they left.
Ji Ranran breathed a sigh of relief.
The magistrate didn’t pursue to detain them further, instead heading to his study to write a letter to Ji Ranran’s father, Ji Ting.
…
Jiang Yan, of course, was unaware, and even if she knew, she wouldn’t be afraid.
Just as they returned to the town:
Su Jixiang brought them bad news: Su Yunniang had given birth to a stillborn.
“How could this happen? Wasn’t everything fine before?”
Jiang Yan stared at Su Jixiang and asked.
Su Jixiang shook his head, “I don’t know what happened. Because of this, Aunt cries every day, and no one can console her. Oh, and there’s something else, Lin Yaoyao also gave birth, a son, on the same day as Aunt.”
What a coincidence!
Jiang Yan didn’t even bother going home, she got back into the carriage with Jiang Ling and headed to Jia Yang’s place.
Jia Xiaohua opened the door for them.
“Big sister…”
Jia Xiaohua’s eyes were red, clearly having cried.
Jiang Yan hugged her and asked, “Aunt, what exactly happened? Were you all there when she gave birth?”
“We were all there.”
“That day, my mother started labor in the afternoon, and my father immediately called for Granny Li to deliver the baby. But who would have thought, my mother bled so much, and the baby that was born was…” She couldn’t continue speaking after that.
Jiang Ling and the others felt very uncomfortable; both couldn’t hold back their tears.
Jiang Yan consoled them a few words and then walked inside.
Jia Yang was sitting in the backyard.
Compared to before,
he actually had white hair now.
“Auntie’s husband.”
Jiang Yan’s voice brought Jia Yang back to reality, and he said in a somewhat hoarse voice, “Da Ya, you’re back.”
“As soon as I returned, I heard about Auntie’s situation. How is she now…”
Before Jiang Yan could finish her question,
Jia Yang looked at her and said, “Your aunt cries every day. I’m worried that if she keeps going like this, her eyes will suffer, so I gave her some calming medicine. She’s still sleeping now; she’ll probably wake up in a while.”
Chapter 107: Where is the Child?
After listening to Jia Yang, Jiang Yan looked at him intently and asked, “Auntie’s husband, did my aunt show any unusual signs before giving birth?”
“Unusual? Nothing unusual, just like usual.”
Jia Yang thought back and said.
Jiang Yan then asked, “If there was nothing unusual, how could she deliver a stillborn? Auntie’s husband, haven’t you ever suspected anything?”
Upon hearing this,
Jia Yang pursed his lips and said, “The midwife, Li Wenpo, said it was because the baby stayed in her belly too long without being born, so…”
He didn’t finish the sentence.
Because just thinking about that word made his heart ache.
“How could this happen?”
Jiang Yan asked again.
Jia Yang sighed, “What else could it be? It’s because the baby was not in the right position. If the position had been correct, it wouldn’t have ended up like this.”
Is that really the case?
Jiang Yan decided to ask Li Wenpo later.
After chatting with Jia Yang for a while,
when Su Yunniang woke up, Jiang Yan brought Jiang Ling and the others in to see her.
“Da Ya, you’ve come.”
Su Yunniang reached out to Jiang Yan.
Jiang Yan took her hand and sat by the bed.
“Da Ya, I’m so useless.”
Tears started to flow from Su Yunniang’s eyes as she spoke.
Jiang Yan wiped her tears and said, “Auntie, this isn’t your fault, really not your fault. It’s a problem with the baby’s position, not your problem.”
“I feel so terrible…”
Su Yunniang clutched her chest.
Jiang Yan, not having figured out the situation, naturally didn’t dare to say anything reckless in front of Su Yunniang and could only offer words of comfort.
After staying there for about three-quarters of an hour,
Jiang Yan escorted Jiang Ling and the others back to the shop.
After sending them back,
Jiang Yan asked Qing Four to stay and watch over them while she and Qing Three took a carriage to Li Wenpo’s house.
Li Wenpo lived in a small house in the west of the city.
When Jiang Yan and her group arrived, the gate was locked. Jiang Yan didn’t give up; she had Qing Three fly into the house to check.
Confirming no one was home,
Jiang Yan stood there waiting. Whenever someone passed by, she would approach and ask if they knew Li Wenpo or where she might have gone.
After asking eight people,
she got no useful information.
Jiang Yan still didn’t leave; she continued to wait.
When she asked the tenth person,
Jiang Yan finally found someone who knew Li Wenpo.
“Aunt, do you know where she went?”
The middle-aged woman replied, “I don’t know where she went, but I know they haven’t been back for days. They might have returned to their hometown. I heard Li Wenpo mention it before.”
Jiang Yan and Qing Three then went to the yamen to check who the owner of the house was.
Confirming it was rented,
based on the previous information left behind,
Jiang Yan took a carriage driven by Qing Three to their village.
After some inquiries in the village, confirming that Li Wenpo’s family had moved back, Jiang Yan asked for directions to their house and drove there.
“Knock, knock, knock…”
Jiang Yan got off the carriage and knocked on their door.
“Who is it!”
A young woman answered.
Jiang Yan didn’t speak and kept knocking.
Mrs. Nian frowned, walked over, and opened the door: “Who are you? Did you get the wrong place?”
“Is this Li Wenpo’s house?”
Jiang Yan asked directly.
Mrs. Nian thought Jiang Yan was there for her mother-in-law’s midwifery services. Her expression changed, and she smiled, saying, “Yes, yes, this is. She’s my mother-in-law. Are you here because someone in your family is about to give birth?”
“Not yet, but soon.”
Jiang Yan made up an excuse.
Mrs. Nian warmly welcomed Jiang Yan inside and called out, “Mom, someone’s here for your midwifery services.”
Shortly after,
an old woman in her fifties with graying hair came out from a side room.
This was Li Wenpo.
