Golden Branch

It is already the twelfth lunar month.

Nanzhou has a special climate, and even in winter it is as warm as spring.

Wang Heng had just arrived and was quite amazed by the weather.

"A Mian really didn't lie to me. This world is truly amazing!"

There is no snow in winter, nor are there proudly blooming winter plums, but there are large clusters of blooming camellia flowers.

The colors are bright and gorgeous, and the not-so-big courtyard of the governor's mansion looks full of spring.

Wang Heng held her bulging belly and sat on a specially made chair, looking at the scenery in the yard or writing and drawing.

It has been almost half a year since Wang Heng came to Nanzhou, and she has gradually adapted to the humid and warm weather here.

Although there are no distinct four seasons, the climate is pleasant.

As someone who grew up in the north, Wang Heng was still very curious about not having experienced the harsh winter for the first time.

What Wang Heng also likes is the rich products of Nanzhou.

Not to mention the various flowers and fruits, just the wild delicacies made Wang Heng enjoy it immensely.

Wang Heng is no longer fat, and she doesn't need to eat too much to gain weight.

But she is a foodie at heart and loves to savor delicious food.

"It's incredibly delicious! It's as if the spiritual energy of the entire forest is contained in this tiny mushroom."

When Wang Heng tasted these wild delicacies for the first time, her brows and eyes were relaxed.

With delicious food and beautiful scenery, the remote and wild Nanzhou does not seem as unbearable as the legend says.

Wang Heng enjoyed it more and more. Of course, the most important reason for her to do so was that her status was noble enough and she had enough money.

Whether it is wild delicacies or exotic flowers and fruits, she can get them at any cost.

She was surrounded by hundreds of slaves and guards.

These people not only protect her safety and take care of her life, but also protect her from various dangers.

It was still those wild delicacies that Wang Heng liked. Before leaving, Wang Mian reminded Wang Heng:

"Delicious mountain food, but hidden dangers!"

As the saying goes, "Red umbrellas and white poles, after eating, you all lie down on the board together." If you are not careful, delicious food can turn into deadly poison.

However, Wang Heng was able to enjoy the food in peace. Not only did she have experienced local mountain people to help her pick the food, she also had slaves to test for poison.

In fact, Wang Heng would not take the first bite of not only wild delicacies but also meals made with ordinary ingredients.

In the South State, they are outsiders.

Still a fierce dragon coming across the river to cause trouble.

They must be cautious and thorough in everything they do.

Even though the two of them had tried their best to run the Governor's Mansion airtight and impenetrable, they still remained on the highest alert.

Especially Wang Heng, she was pregnant and was an absolute and key protected person.

Every bite of food she ate and every sip of water she drank would be tested for poison in advance.

In addition to food, daily necessities such as clothing, incense, etc. were also inspected layer by layer, and only after repeated confirmation that there were no problems would they be presented to Wang Heng.

Even when renovating the Governor's Mansion, Wang Heng's private soldiers secretly dug a secret passage without the knowledge of the craftsmen.

Once there was a change in Nanzhou and the governor's mansion was under siege, Wang Heng would be able to quietly leave through the secret passage at the first opportunity.

It can be said that although Wang Heng and Lou Yu were newcomers, they relied on their absolute power and financial resources to take all aspects into consideration.

Prepare for a rainy day and nip all dangers in the bud... This is the skill and strength of the top dignitaries.

Strict control is exercised over food, clothing, housing, transportation and every detail; there are layers of guards inside and outside the courtyard.

Even though things were starting to get turbulent outside, Wang Heng was still able to stay safely in the yard to take care of her pregnancy and enjoy her time.

The fetus in her belly grew bigger day by day. Wang Heng felt the fetal movement for the first time and saw the protruding little hands and feet through her thin belly for the first time... She finally felt like a mother.

"Brother, this is amazing! There's actually a tiny person here!"

Wang Heng herself was still a willful and pretentious child, but she was already pregnant with a smaller child who needed more care.

Lou Yu was also quite curious.

He didn't like children, but he was also shocked by this little new life.

The big hand did not tremble even slightly when it was waving the Fang Tian Ji, but he did not dare to touch it easily.

It was Wang Heng who grabbed his hand and gently placed it on her belly.

"It's moving! Ah Heng, it, it's moving!"

Being a father for the first time, feeling the vitality of the fetus for the first time, the usually calm and self-controlled Duke of Qi and Governor of Nanzhou actually exclaimed like a child.

"Hmm! It's moving! This kid is a lively one!"

A maternal glow appeared on Wang Heng's face.

She inexplicably had a sense of fulfillment. She had a husband and children. The lonely little person who had been abandoned finally had a complete family.

At seven or eight months of pregnancy, it has entered the late stage of pregnancy.

There was no morning sickness during the entire pregnancy, but there were still too many changes and pains.

My waist became thicker, my hands and feet started to swell, and I had to go to the bathroom more and more frequently.

At night, I would suddenly get cramps.

Wang Heng was such a delicate person, how could she have ever suffered such pain?

Even so, Wang Mian and Wang Heng clearly expressed their envy when they corresponded:

"Ajiu, you're already doing well! When I was pregnant with Thirteen Years, I was much worse off than you!"

"Shisan Niang suffered from morning sickness for three whole months. Although I didn't have morning sickness, my figure was seriously out of shape and my hair was falling out a lot!"

"We are lucky. We don't have stretch marks or spots. Some pregnant women, due to their physical constitution or other reasons, have spots all over their belly and on their faces."

If your body shape is out of shape, it can be repaired.

Stretch marks are irreversible.

Once it grows, it cannot be eliminated.

Although Wang Mian and others were not concubines who served men with their beauty, everyone has a love for beauty.

If you have a good body but it has flaws, even if you are not afraid of being disliked by men, you will not be happy when you see it.

But Wang Heng has none of these.

She probably inherited Concubine Jiang's good physique -

During the entire pregnancy, I didn't gain too much weight except that my waist became a little thicker.

The skin did not become dull, but remained fair and tender.

There are no stretch marks or pregnancy spots, and the hair is still black and shiny, and there is no hair loss in large clumps.

Knowing Wang Heng's current situation, Wang Mian couldn't help but wail in the letter:

"Ahhh! Oh my god, it's so unfair!"

Her appearance itself is a masterpiece of Nuwa's skill, but when she was pregnant, she was still favored by God.

If this isn’t the heroine, then what is?

Cannon fodder like her, Wang Mian, would become fat and ugly when they got pregnant, but the heroine seemed to be more beautiful and more dazzling.

However, Wang Heng could not understand Wang Mian's "sadness". This seemingly favored pregnancy experience was still painful for Wang Heng.

At night, she was suddenly awakened by the urge to urinate. It was difficult for her to turn over. Lou Yu, who was sleeping next to her, was awakened and hurriedly carried her to the bathroom.

This happens every night.

Sometimes more than once.

Wang Heng suffered herself and felt sorry for Lou Yu.

However, Wang Heng was not like many virtuous wives who would take the initiative to say things like, "Brother, I get up frequently at night, which makes you sleep uneasily. Why don't you go to the side room to sleep?"

For the selfish and spoiled Wang Heng, bearing a child is not just her responsibility. As a father, Lou Yu should also bear certain responsibilities.

If she suffers physically, Lou Yu will have to suffer more.

She wouldn't allow herself to be tortured by pregnancy and unable to sleep all night while Lou Yu could sleep soundly beside her.

She would not allow Lou Yu to sleep with other women.

It's not just jealousy as a woman, but also "revenge" as a little troublemaker - why should I suffer here while you can still enjoy yourself?

Of course, even if Wang Heng was "virtuous", Lou Yu would not do this.

He felt even more sorry for Wang Heng.

He couldn't help Ah Heng share the pain of pregnancy, so he would suffer with her.

Lou Yu even has a somewhat masochistic mentality.

After all, they have no shortage of servants, and there are slaves on night duty.

Even if they didn't have separate rooms, Wang Heng would have servants to serve her when she got up at night to go to the toilet.

However, Lou Yu refused to delegate the task to others and did it himself.

First of all, it was "self-abuse", using her own hard work to balance the pain Wang Heng suffered during her pregnancy.

Secondly, it was Lou Yu's possessiveness. He didn't want anyone else to touch Wang Heng.

Before Wang Heng became pregnant, Lou Yu had long been accustomed to changing clothes and bathing her personally.

He really enjoyed the process of washing Wang Heng's hair, massaging her, dressing her, etc.

Wang Heng's pregnancy actually gave Lou Yu another reason to do it himself.

Wang Heng: ...Okay!

The slight imbalance in her heart slowly dissipated when she saw Lou Yu with dark circles under his eyes, but still willingly busying himself for her.

Well, there is no imbalance, nor resentment, but instead there is an inexplicable shame and helplessness -

"Brother, these essential oils are for applying to the belly. Where do you put your hands?"

Either up or down!

What should have been a heartwarming parent-child moment was made extremely tense by a shameless little pervert.

"Brother, could you please tighten your things a little? Don't keep them so hard all the time?"

"Brother..."

She had so many fucks, and she just happened to meet a little pervert.

"Aheng, the imperial physician said it will be fine after three months!"

"..."

Wang Heng was completely speechless.

I don't know what questions a certain shameless person asked the imperial physician when he was in the capital.

Not just the imperial physician!

Lou Yu also wrote a letter to Li Mingtang who was in the mountains of Lingnan.

Li Mingtang was actually speechless. She was a nun and a miracle doctor, but not a medical practitioner or a midwife.

She herself has never given birth.

As a result, Lou Yu wrote to her one letter after another. The questions in the letters made her, a grown-up woman with many lovers, blush.

Finally, Li Mingtang could no longer bear the harassment and surrendered directly:

"Lord Lou, I will arrive in Nanzhou before the New Year!"

"Although I'm not good at obstetrics, I will take good care of the princess!"

Don’t write any more letters, and don’t let people relay your stories. Some things really shouldn’t be publicized.

...It can be said that Wang Heng's entire pregnancy was stable and lively.

Wang Heng also has a very good attitude.

There is no anxiety, no fear, only anticipation for new life.

When the New Year arrived, Li Mingtang and her attendants came out of the deep mountains and forests and arrived at the capital of Nanzhou.

When old friends meet again, there is a natural warmth.

Wang Heng had already bought the courtyards around the governor's mansion in advance and made room for Li Mingtang to live in.

The other courtyards were not empty either, but were used to house midwives, wet nurses, etc.

These people were all selected by Lou Yu from the capital, Yizhou and other places, and from slaves and farmers under the Lou and Wang families.

They traveled thousands of miles to get here, and then they were settled in a centralized location and properly cared for.

They were all hereditary servants or attendants of the Lou and Wang families.

Not only their own lives and property, but also the life and death, honor and disgrace of all their relatives and friends are in the hands of Lou Yu and Wang Heng.

Therefore, they have the highest loyalty and reliability.

Even so, Lou Yu would not take it lightly.

Two or three months in advance, they are raised directly in the yard. All their food, clothing and other daily necessities are strictly checked, and no "accidents" are allowed!

Officials from various government offices in Nanzhou and several wealthy families were all stunned by the generosity of Lou Yu and Wang Heng.

It's just a matter of getting pregnant and giving birth to a child, why make such a fuss?

Even a midwife had to be sent from the capital, two or three thousand miles away?!

This is no longer a question of whether it is troublesome or not, but rather how much money and manpower it will cost?

Tsk, it’s only the nobles in the capital who can do anything.

However, through this incident, all the forces in Nanzhou finally understood how much Lou Yu valued Wang Heng, as well as the extravagance and arbitrariness of Lou Yu and Wang Heng as top dignitaries!

With such thoroughness, even if someone really wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to do something, they all gave up the idea.

It's too thorough and cautious, leaving no loopholes at all. I have no idea where to start!

After waiting in the inn for a month, Ashlin finally realized that she might have been cheated. She was unwilling to give up and continued to stay in Nanzhou to connect with others.

After hearing the news coming from the governor's mansion, he couldn't help but get angry and smashed all the porcelain in the room.

"Wang Jiu is indeed insidious and cunning. He is obviously a thoughtful and thorough person, but he deliberately acts like a fool."

stupid?

Haha, maybe in Wang Jiu’s opinion, she, Ashlin, is the fool!

No!

We can't just let this go!

Aslin was already filled with resentment because she failed to make use of Wang Jiu and was instead fooled by him.

The news that Lou Yu had traveled thousands of miles to get a midwife and a wet nurse for his wife hurt Ashlin even more.

Wang Jiu was pregnant and could not serve Lou Yu at all, but Lou Yu still loved her so deeply.

Why?

She lives in such pain and is covered in filth, but Wang Jiu can still get her husband's exclusive love?

Ashlin knew that several powerful families including Li, Cheng and Fang had contacted the villages in the mountains and were ready to make trouble for Lou Yu.

"Civil uprising? Civil uprising is good!"

"There was a rebellion among the Yi and Liao people in Yongzhou, and there may also be an uprising among the Yi people in Nanzhou."

"How do we incite civil unrest? It's simple. Start from the root..."

Ashlin planned secretly.

Just after the New Year's Day, the wind started to blow in Nanzhou.

"Princess, the prices are a little unusual lately!"

"Leaving aside other things, the price of salt alone has increased several times!"

The lady in charge of purchasing came to report to Wang Heng that day.

Wang Heng raised an eyebrow. "Prices have gone up? Are they the same in both the east and west markets of the provincial capital?"

And salt, which is the foundation of the national economy and people's livelihood, can easily cause trouble if the price of salt is too high or there is no salt...