Chapter 254: Going to Be a Big Sister
Pei Yan was startled.
With a long reach, he carefully placed Ling on the padded bench on the other side.
Freeing his hands, he wrapped an arm around Mei Wanying’s shoulders and studied her reaction. "Is your stomach upset?"
Mei Wanying nodded.
The discomfort had come on suddenly. She tried hard to recall what she had eaten and drunk.
She couldn’t think of anything out of the ordinary.
Pei Yan wasn’t a doctor; he couldn’t be sure what was causing her stomach discomfort.
Seeing Mei Wanying’s delicate brows furrowed in discomfort, the man’s expression grew grim.
He threw open the carriage curtain and ordered the people outside, "Summon the Imperial Physician! Quickly!"
He also had the carriage stopped, afraid the swaying would make Mei Wanying even more uncomfortable.
The moment the carriage came to a steady halt, Ling scrambled down from the padded bench.
She leaned against Mei Wanying’s knees and asked worriedly, "Mother, what’s wrong?"
Mei Wanying shook her head. "It’s nothing serious. Don’t be scared."
The little one looked nervous, her eyes instantly welling up with tears. "Is Mother sick?"
She reached out a small hand, wanting to touch Mei Wanying’s forehead, but Pei Yan caught his daughter’s little hand and had her sit still.
"Your mother is unwell. Talking will tire her out, so let her rest for a bit."
Ling’s lips trembled, and glistening tears began to fall, one after another.
’I don’t want Mother to be sick.’
’I don’t want Mother to be in pain.’
’It would be fine if only Father got sick...’
Seeing the child cry like this, Mei Wanying was touched, heartbroken, and also a little amused.
Ling really did love her.
She took out a handkerchief to wipe away the little one’s "golden beans." "Mother will be fine after a little rest."
Ling didn’t believe her.
’Grown-ups always say things like that to trick kids.’
’Back home, whenever Grandmother was sick and saw a doctor, she would say the same thing to her and Mother.’
"You’re tricking a little kid," Ling said, two new tear streaks appearing on her face.
She looked utterly pitiful.
Mei Wanying coaxed her, "Mother will be fine after drinking some water."
Upon hearing this, Ling immediately held back her tears, turned to grab a small cup, and prepared to pour water for her mother.
Don’t be fooled by Ling’s small size; she wasn’t clumsy at all. She held the teacup in her little hands and said, "Father, pour the water."
Pei Yan did as he was told, pouring half a cup.
Ling carefully brought the cup to Mei Wanying’s hands. "Hurry and drink, Mother. You won’t feel bad after you drink it."
Mei Wanying drank the water and felt a little better, the furrow in her brow easing slightly.
Pei Yan’s anxious heart had yet to settle, but then he saw her dry heave again.
The tightly wound string in the man’s mind snapped with a TWANG.
He roared at the guards outside the carriage, "Did he die on the way? Why isn’t he here yet!"
Mei Wanying nudged Pei Yan with her elbow, signaling for him not to be so impatient.
’It’s only been a short while. The Imperial Physician couldn’t get here this fast even if he sprouted wings.’
The man pulled her into a tight embrace. "We’re not waiting. We’ll find a clinic."
With that, he prepared to carry Mei Wanying out of the carriage.
"I’m fine."
Pei Yan’s expression was cold and stern, his whole body tense. "We’re seeing a doctor first."
Mei Wanying didn’t feel like her life was in danger, nor was the situation so urgent. They could have easily waited for the Imperial Physician to arrive and diagnose the cause.
But Pei Yan gave her no chance to speak.
He simply carried her out of the carriage and headed in the direction of a clinic.
Seeing her father suddenly carry her mother away, Ling was frightened and burst into tears.
She wanted to follow her father and mother, but she was too small to get out of the carriage by herself.
Standing at the carriage door, Ling was about to jump down without a second thought.
Just as she leaped, Wei Jue, with his quick eyes and deft hands, caught the little one.
Ling thrashed about, her eyes fixed on the direction Pei Yan and Mei Wanying had gone. "I want Mother! I want my mother!"
Wei Jue handed her to Ding Xiang. "Take good care of the Little Prince. You two follow behind."
’The Emperor left too quickly and without any guards. I need to catch up to him before any trouble starts.’
Ding Xiang was also worried about her mistress, so she held Ling and gave chase.
Ling was over two years old and solidly built; she was genuinely heavy to carry.
Ding Xiang was Mei Wanying’s trusted head maid and wasn’t used to heavy labor. She couldn’t run fast while carrying Ling.
Ling wanted to be put down to run herself. "I can run fast."
She looked anxiously into the distance, but her father and mother’s figures had long since disappeared.
Ling grew even more frantic, saying urgently, "I’ll run myself..."
Ding Xiang did as she asked and put the little one down. Worried she might fall in her haste, she held one of Ling’s hands.
As Ling started to move, the hidden guards moved with her.
The carriage driver looked like he wanted to say something but stopped himself. ’I could have just driven the carriage over... My masters have truly lost their heads in their panic!’
Fortunately, the clinic wasn’t far.
A lavishly dressed man, carrying a woman who looked like a celestial fairy, burst into the clinic, instantly drawing everyone’s gaze.
Immediately after, guards arrived and secured every exit, while the captain of the guards followed the Noble into the clinic’s examination room.
The people in the main hall finally realized who he was. That man just now... seemed to be... the Emperor.
Back then, the Emperor had been raised in the Mei family and was the Young General who dominated the battlefields. When he returned to the capital in victory, the city’s common folk had even gone to the city gates to welcome him.
At that time, the Young General was clad in armor, looking majestic and awe-inspiring. Wasn’t he the spitting image of that Noble?
Although his aura was different, his appearance hadn’t changed much. As long as one’s eyes weren’t failing, they could recognize who that Noble was.
The peerlessly beautiful woman he was carrying must be the sole daughter of the Mei family.
It would be hard to find another woman like her in the entire world.
With the guards standing watch, the people in the hall didn’t dare to gossip, only exchanging glances.
For a moment, the hall became unnaturally quiet, the atmosphere somewhat strange.
Before long, a crying little child ran in. The child wore her hair in double topknots adorned with pearl flowers, and her clothes were embroidered with patterns in gold thread.
One look was enough to tell she wasn’t a child from an ordinary family.
Ling’s big eyes swept across the room, but she didn’t see her family.
She asked the nearest old woman through her sobs, "Ma’am, where did my father and mother go?"
The old woman was hard of hearing. Seeing the child who looked like a good-luck doll crying, she exclaimed with a sigh and reached out a trembling hand to wipe away her tears.
"Whose child is this? Where have her parents run off to? If they lose a child this precious, they’ll regret it for the rest of their lives!"
"Don’t cry, don’t cry. Grandma will help you find them..."
Ding Xiang quickly pulled the little one away, not letting the woman touch Ling. "Don’t worry, they must have gone to the examination room."
As she spoke, she shot a look at an attendant, signaling them to explain to the old woman that the child’s parents hadn’t abandoned her—it was an emergency!
Ling hadn’t even arrived, but inside the examination room, Mei Wanying could already hear her crying.
’The little one must be terrified.’
She shot a glare at Pei Yan. "Aren’t you going to go out and get her?"
Pei Yan hadn’t yet recovered from the shock. He stood frozen, his gaze fixed on Mei Wanying’s stomach, not even blinking, as if his soul had left his body.
Mei Wanying poked his arm. "Pei Yan!"
The man finally reacted. He gripped Mei Wanying’s slender waist, his fingers caressing her as ecstatic joy surged in his eyes.
He suddenly bent down and kissed Mei Wanying’s abdomen through her clothes.
He laughed out loud. "Ah Yin, our little number two is here!"
After saying this, he abruptly stood up and strode out the door to get Ling.
Ling was going to be a big sister!