Chapter 191
Chapter 191: Luo Ning Does Not Want to Bear Prince Yong’s Child
Luo Ning came back from the Princess Manor and told the maidservants to bring out all the things Prince Yong’s manor had sent. She wanted to look through them one by one.
“This Prince sits on a mountain of gold and silver, yet he actually remembers everything,” Luo Ning said.
Lin Zhao said: “Princess Consort, do the things from the prince’s manor all have some kind of mark?”
“I have not seen any clear marks,” Luo Ning said.
“It may not be a mark. Take the food box, for example. With that black lacquer and gold-wrapped corners, the craftsmen may all make them a little differently,” Lin Zhao said.
Nanny Yin and Nanny He agreed.
Things made by the Imperial Court would not have special stamps, but people with sharp eyes could tell at a glance that they were rewards from the Imperial Palace.
“Princess Consort, you must not only recognize people, but also recognize objects,” Nanny Yin said.
Luo Ning understood.
So being a princess consort was really not easy.
“If the Prince were marrying a true highborn lady, she would not have to learn these things on purpose,” Luo Ning thought again.
Her network of contacts would have been trained by her maiden home since she was small. Her eye for quality would have come from what she saw and heard as a child.
But the Marquis of Zhen Nan’s manor had been too low among noble households before. There were many things they had no chance to touch. They did not have that level of status and wealth. That was why Luo Ning now felt so tired and had to learn everything from the beginning.
Her tiredness did not come from the position of Princess Consort Yong, but from her own future.
If she did not want to do the job well and chose to slack off, she could muddle through three years all the same, and would not need to trouble herself like this.
The investiture decree and seal for the princess consort had already been set, but the title of Commandery Princess had not yet been given. How could she not pull herself together?
That day, Luo Ning again looked through all the things sent to her from Prince Yong’s manor.
There really were some differences in the craftsmanship.
When night came, Luo Ning called the two nursemaids to her room. The three of them sat on the wide heated brick bed by the window and chatted.
She asked a question she cared a lot about.
“I once heard that in the Imperial Palace, not every favored person has the right to get pregnant. Is that true?” Luo Ning said.
The two nursemaids, He and Yin, looked at each other.
“It is true,” Nanny He answered. Her nature was gentle, and she spoke slowly and softly. “But this matter is complicated. It has never been allowed to be spoken of, and the Imperial Daily Record is not allowed to write it down.”
The women in the Imperial Palace were said to be there for the heirs of the Imperial House, not for the Emperor’s private desire. At least, that was what had to be said on the surface to protect the Emperor’s face.
So birth control could not be used openly.
But in struggles for power, children were bargaining chips, and some people did not have the right to have them.
Naturally, there were ways.
Luo Ning had heard of this.
“Do you two know how to do it?” Luo Ning asked.
The two nursemaids looked at each other again and stared at her in some surprise.
“What does Princess Consort mean?” Nanny Yin asked.
She was more serious and did things and spoke more sharply.
“The wedding day is near, and I have many worries. In short, I have gotten some hints that I will be Princess Consort Yong, but I may not stay Princess Consort Yong for long,” Luo Ning said.
The two nursemaids could not help being shocked.
“You two have seen much of the world. It is not hard to guess this,” Luo Ning said.
She was hinting that there were four highborn ladies who would be secondary consorts. There would have to be a fight, and Luo Ning had no protection.
“Of course, the future is uncertain. Before that, I do not want to be pregnant. If I am with child, I am afraid I will not have enough energy and will easily fall behind.
If my life is not safe, the child will be pitiful. I would rather wait a few years before giving birth.
I also heard that when the Imperial Mother gave birth to Prince Yong, she was twenty-six.
Compared with his brothers, His Highness is much more clever. That shows that when the mother is mature and healthy, the child she gives birth to is better,” Luo Ning said.
She had already thought this explanation through long ago.
The two nursemaids felt that what she worried about was very cautious and long-sighted.
To be able to bear and wait like this was something young people usually did not have, so the nursemaids naturally admired her for it.
“Massage the huiyin acupoint and the guanyuan acupoint,” Nanny Yin said after a long silence.
She really did know.
“Now that you say that, I can relax. In the future, I will have to trouble you with this. I will explain everything clearly to the Empress Dowager so you will never be dragged in,” Luo Ning said.
Nanny Yin nodded.
She said: “There are both good and bad sides. If the eldest son of the prince’s manor is born from a secondary consort, your position in the future will also be hard. Princess Consort, the Empress Dowager and the Prince may not agree.”
“I have an old illness. The Empress Dowager and the Prince will agree,” Luo Ning said.
She had taken that knife for the Empress Dowager, and the old wound had not flared up for quite some days. But she could bring it up as an excuse. She believed the Empress Dowager and Prince Yong would understand.
That night, Luo Ning did not let any maidservant keep night watch.
She half lay on the bed and felt her body a little lighter.
The closer it was to the wedding, the more she worried about childbirth.
She was Prince Yong’s princess consort, and she was also his slave. No matter which identity it was, when he wanted her to serve him, she had no right to refuse.
To Prince Yong, this matter was like eating and drinking water. It was the most normal need. It was natural for him to expect it to be met.
Luo Ning had never thought about avoiding it.
But women had a natural disadvantage. They could not treat it as simply as men treated eating and drinking, because they might get pregnant.
No matter whether it was a son or a daughter, Prince Yong most likely would not let her take the child away.
The princess consort was not the one who mainly raised the children. From the time the child was small, a wet nurse would care for it. It was not as if, once the princess consort was “gone,” the child could be sent to Shaoyang.
People would point at Prince Yong’s back and talk.
As for Luo Ning, she had had thin ties with her parents since she was small. She knew how bitter that was and would never let her child taste it again.
The only way was for her not to bear Prince Yong’s child.
About the Imperial Court using acupoints to avoid pregnancy, Luo Ning did not remember where she had heard it. She only wanted to ask the two nursemaids to confirm it.
If this skill really existed, Luo Ning planned to let her old illness “flare up” once after the wedding, and then ask the Empress Dowager to reward her with such a palace attendant, to help her avoid having children.
The Prince should not mind either.
He knew she would leave sooner or later. If she left a child behind, he would also find it troublesome in the future. Since she brought it up herself, he would only be glad that she understood.
She had not expected Nanny Yin to already know how.
Good. Things were going even more smoothly than Luo Ning had expected.
The next day, the manor of Grand Princess Jia Hong sent Luo Ning a whole sheep.
“This is mutton from the north. It does not have a strong smell. The Princess says that yesterday she invited Miss Luo to eat sheep, but Miss Luo did not eat well, and she feels bad about it.
So she specially sent one over for Miss Luo to taste. The Princess also hopes the two families will visit each other often. When Miss Luo has free time, she should go sit with the Princess and keep her company,” the steward’s old maidservant said.
Luo Ning told Qiu Lan to bring out some gold leaf ingots to reward the old maidservant.
Nanny Kong led the rough-serving maidservants to go prepare the sheep.
“Since when has the Princess become so modest?” Nanny He said with a smile.
Luo Ning frowned slightly.
She had a bad feeling.
“Qiu Hua, go to Prince Yong’s manor for me and tell the Prince about this,” Luo Ning said. “Repeat the Princess’s original words.”
Qiu Hua agreed and at once went out through the side gate.
A short while later she came back. She had actually brought Prince Yong with her.
Xiao Huai Feng did not come through the main gate. He went straight into Wenqi Courtyard with Qiu Hua through the side gate.
Everyone: “…”
Luo Ning: “…”
Xiao Huai Feng looked Luo Ning over and said: “You dress this poorly at home?”
Luo Ning was wearing a jacket that was neither new nor old. The color of the jacket was very light. Even when it was new, it had not been bright. After being washed several times, the color had faded and it looked even older.
She had not put on any makeup either. Her hair was loosely gathered and tied at the back of her head.
“You still have no money to buy clothes?” Xiao Huai Feng asked again.
Luo Ning: “…”