Chapter 977: Chapter 995: Mom’s Initiative
But it was Mom speaking, so even if it stings, there’s nothing I can do.
Nanny Huang stood by, looking apologetically at Ye Xinyan. Her own lady had been deeply affected, and upon hearing that the Zhou family’s daughter was pregnant, she was so anxious to get straight to the topic that she spoke without thinking.
If it were the past, Madam would certainly consider her daughter’s feelings.
Ye Xinyan, feeling rather gloomy, wiped her hands and face, called for the maids to bring hot tea, and instructed Song Ping’s Household to bring up a plate of radish cakes from the kitchen, then she sat down next to Madam Yin without holding any grudges.
"Mom, your Pastry House surely doesn’t lack dried fruits. But try this; it’s sour and quite delicious." She said, sliding a plate of dried apricots toward Madam Yin.
Then, with great interest, she said to Madam Yin, "Our kitchen tried making radish cakes a few days ago, and they came out very soft, glutinous, and fragrant. Once they’re ready, you should try them. If you like them, your Pastry House can add a new snack."
Madam Yin, somewhat absent-minded, picked up a dried apricot, tasted it, and nodded, "Hmm, the taste is good. Although the sourness outweighs the sweetness, it’s very refreshing and cuts through the greasiness."
Ye Xinyan also smiled happily while eating two more, glancing at the still absent-minded Madam Yin, she asked, "You brought me back from the store not just to sit here daydreaming, right?" While speaking, she tugged at Madam Yin’s sleeve.
Pulled back by Ye Xinyan, Madam Yin returned to her senses and actually gave her a glare.
Ye Xinyan was stunned, what did she do wrong to receive a glare? Her mother looked like she definitely had something on her mind.
"What exactly do you want to say, don’t just glare at me for no reason?"
Madam Yin frowned and said, "I heard that Biyao is pregnant and plans to accompany the relocated Mechanical Workshop to Beijing once her pregnancy is stable."
Huh? Ye Xinyan sat up straight. She knew Wong Qiao and Shi Yin would come to Beijing next year, and of course, Zhou Biyao would go with them. But that was after the steam engine research had reached a certain point, and they would only depart after receiving her reply.
But Zhou Biyao is pregnant... Grandpa didn’t even mention it when he returned, how did her mom find out? Did Madam Liang tell her?
Ye Xinyan adjusted her mood, happily looked at Madam Yin, "Really? That’s great! This is good news, Wong Qiao is the only son, Lady Zhao must be very happy. But I wonder if she will return with them? If she follows back, it might not be so good. Don’t you think?"
She said cheerfully, but her heart couldn’t help but pound.
She thought, her mom wouldn’t just show up out of the blue and drag her back from her store for nothing.
Is this about asking if she’s pregnant?
Ye Xinyan felt a sense of crisis arise. She’s been married for less than a year, so even if she’s not pregnant, that’s normal right? Is it necessary for everyone to press her about it? It’s really annoying, don’t they know?
Madam Yin shifted her position, turned to sit next to Ye Xinyan, and, seriously looking into her eyes, said, "Ah Yan, you’re several years older than Biyao, you can’t delay any longer."
Ye Xinyan almost broke out in cold sweat, "Mom, what do you mean by that? I’m not delaying anything, I’m just over twenty, there’s plenty of time. Besides, don’t worry, it’ll happen, everything will happen. If you keep saying this, I’ll start to feel pressured, which will make it even harder for it to happen."
The servants in the room held their breath, didn’t even dare to look up. Seeing Madam Yin getting anxious, they pretended they hadn’t seen or heard anything.
Indeed, Madam Yin’s voice was rising, "What do you mean by just over twenty? That’s already over twenty!"
On this matter, Madam Yin was not ambiguous at all, even though Ye Xinyan showed a troubled expression, she had no intention of stopping and continued, "Ah Yan, you also said, Madam Zhao will be happy. But have you thought about In-law Madam? Yuanfan is the in-law’s eldest son, nearly thirty years old with not a single child, any family’s elders would be anxious. It’s thanks to the in-law and In-law Madam being generous and understanding..."
Madam Yin started her nagging mode, continuing for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before pausing, "Ah Yan, you must take this seriously."
"Yes, yes, Mom, you’re right, I will take it seriously, I’ll work on it, you just watch my future performance." Ye Xinyan quickly responded, nodding like a pecking chicken. She couldn’t let Madam Yin keep talking; if she continued this nagging, there would be no end.
She didn’t dare say it’s not solely her concern, if she did, Madam Yin might call a doctor over to give both her and Jiang Yifan a check-up.
By then, if they brought in tonics and supplements, even if she should be able to get pregnant, she’d probably be scared off.
If she agreed smoothly, maybe Madam Yin would just think she and Jiang Yifan were lax, and a few reminders would be enough. Her ears could develop calluses, she didn’t mind listening to a few more reminders.
Ye Xinyan had said these things so many times that Madam Yin had probably heard enough to get calluses on her own ears. Madam Yin frowned and said, "How many times have you said that? Where is your effort? Show me, then."
Oh! Well, Mom, with you talking like that, it makes it hard to chat, doesn’t it?
Ye Xinyan cast a resentful glance at Madam Yin. Her mom was less and less giving her face.
To speak honestly, right now in various places and in front of various people, she was very respectable. Especially officials, young ladies, and young wives, basically, no one dared to provoke her. Even at her peak, Miss Ye wasn’t this glamorous.
Why did her deterrence decrease dramatically in front of Madam Yin?
Ye Xinyan could only hurriedly assure, "Mom, Mom, Mom, what I said this time is true. Give me some time, as you know, this matter isn’t going to show results in a day or two, right?"
Look how flustered she was driven, to the point of being incoherent.
Ye Xinyan was racking her brain trying to figure out how to get by, while Madam Yin started to become absent-minded again. This time, Madam Yin would occasionally glance toward the door, seemingly not present at all.
When the golden, beautifully colored radish cake was brought in, Cui Zhu, who had been waiting outside, also followed in.
Cui Zhu stood there, waiting for Ye Xinyan to recommend the radish cake to Madam Yin before bowing to both and saying, "Ma’am, Imperial Doctor Hu is here."
"Imperial Doctor? Who’s sick?" Ye Xinyan was stunned for a moment and then understood.
Her mom’s action can be applauded.
If her mom had used such decisiveness early on to deal with Ye Hongyang and Maternal Aunt Liu, how would there have been today’s disaster? Or if she had applied this decisiveness to her and Zhao Gang’s situation, a lot of unnecessary trouble would have been avoided.
"Mom, is it necessary? I’m not sick. The way you’re doing it makes it seem like there’s something really wrong with my body, like I can’t really get pregnant."
With the doctor here, Madam Yin felt relieved, her voice softened, and she reached out to gently pat Ye Xinyan’s back, saying, "That year you ran away, spending the entire winter in hardship, you suffered a lot. I’m afraid you hurt your body then. Let’s have the Imperial Doctor take a look early on. If there’s nothing wrong, then all’s well. If there’s a deficiency, we should strengthen and nourish your body early."
Ye Xinyan nodded with a frown. Now that the doctor was here, could she even chase him away? Just consider it a health check.