Junwan was eating when she suddenly heard a man shouting outside the carriage, followed by several sounds of crying.
“It sounds like people from the Shi family,” Nanny Lin said while holding Little Jingchen in her arms.
Junwan nodded. She also recognized Shi Wenqing’s voice. It seemed the Shi family had run into trouble.
She finished the piece of meat in her hand, then reached out. “Let me feed Jingchen. You eat.”
Nanny Lin looked lovingly at the little baby in her arms, then gently handed him over to Junwan. “The little prince is getting more and more handsome, just like Your Highness when you were a child.”
Looking at Little Jingchen, who was waving his tiny hands nonstop, Junwan felt a wave of tenderness in her heart. Her baby was indeed well-behaved—he rarely cried, and after eating he would sleep. He was very easy to care for.
Junwan fed the baby while Nanny Lin ate her meal. At that moment, footsteps approached outside, followed by Zheng An’s voice.
“Lady Lü, has Lady Jun woken up?”
Zheng An had carefully thought it through before deciding to call the Empress Dowager Lü Shi “Lady Lü.” After all, the imperial surname was Mo, and the noble consort had already been demoted to a commoner. “Lü” felt like the most appropriate address.
“Captain Zheng, Wan’er is in the carriage. Are you looking for her?” Noble Consort Yi asked with a faint smile.
Under the roof of another, one must bow one’s head. Even though she was once a noble consort, she was now a prisoner. She did not intend to flatter him, but she also could not afford to offend him.
“The Shi family’s grandmother has fainted. I wanted to ask whether Lady Jun could go take a look,” Zheng An said.
In truth, Zheng An did not need to come personally. It was normal for people to die on the road. He simply wanted to test Junwan’s limits. If she was willing, their group would have a ready-made doctor.
Noble Consort Yi frowned. She did not want Junwan to treat the Shi family. First, the Shi family had mocked Junwan the night before. Second, if this precedent was set, everyone would come to Junwan whenever they fell ill.
“To be honest, Captain Zheng, my Wan’er has never even been known to know medicine,” she said with a sigh. “Yesterday was probably just a coincidence. The Shi family was fine yesterday, and suddenly became ill today. Sudden illnesses like this aren’t something that can just be treated casually.”
Zheng An fell silent. He knew this was an excuse.
Inside the carriage, Junwan heard Noble Consort Yi’s words and understood she was trying to prevent others from exploiting her as free labor in the future. Her affection for her deepened a little.
Just then, Little Jingchen finished feeding, and Nanny Lin also finished eating. Junwan handed the baby back to Nanny Lin, lifted the carriage curtain slightly, and looked at Zheng An outside.
“Captain Zheng, my mother is right. I only happened to guess correctly yesterday. I really can’t treat the Shi family’s illness. Please find another physician.”
Zheng An looked displeased and was about to scold her when Junwan smiled and added, “Captain Zheng, you can’t force people into difficult situations. If I treat them and something goes wrong, I’ll be the one held responsible.”
Zheng An felt stuck, unable to swallow or spit it out. With her words said like that, he couldn’t possibly force a knife to her neck.
He glanced at the group and ordered, “Prepare to set off.”
Since Junwan refused, they would have to continue on and find a doctor in the next city.
The Shi family had originally held a glimmer of hope when they saw Zheng An approach Junwan. But after hearing both Junwan and Noble Consort Yi refuse, hatred began to take root in their hearts.
Lü Chunxuan looked at Junwan with ridicule. She had said it all along—she must have just guessed correctly. How could a princess of another country possibly know medicine? Being made a princess was already the greatest blessing she could have; she shouldn’t expect to have everything.
After Zheng An left, Junwan looked at Noble Consort Yi and Mo Lian.
“Mother, please get back into the carriage. We will set off soon. Lian’er, you too.”
Mo Lian’s eyes filled with tears when she heard Junwan not only call her “Lian’er” but also allow her into the carriage.
Seeing that she was still standing there, Noble Consort Yi said sternly, “Why are you still standing there? Get in.”
Mo Lian quickly climbed into the carriage.
Junwan then looked at the two women left beside the carriage. Noble Consort Yi, afraid Junwan might feel uncomfortable, quickly explained, “Mei Shi and Jiang Shi were concubines given to Yan’er before he married you. If you don’t like them, we can give them some silver and dismiss them once we reach Dian City.”
In Noble Consort Yi’s heart, concubines could not compare to Junwan.
Upon hearing they might be dismissed, Mei Shi and Jiang Shi hurriedly knelt and pleaded, “Please, Madam, let us stay. We won’t compete for favor. We just need a place to live and food to eat.”
“We’ll discuss it later. For now, there’s only one seat left outside the carriage. You two can take turns sitting there,” Junwan said calmly before dropping the curtain.
After all, they were Mo Yan’s concubines. She did not have the authority to send them away—only Noble Consort Yi had made such decisions before.
Lü Chunxuan saw Mo Lian enter the carriage and even the prince’s concubines being allowed to take turns riding. Jealousy burned in her heart, and her expression darkened further.
“Cousin-in-law,” she said, “Grandfather and Grandmother are old. They walked the entire road yesterday. Let them ride in the carriage today.”
Junwan replied coldly, “When did I ever say I wouldn’t let Grandfather ride? He got out on his own. As for your grandmother…”
She paused, then continued, “She is your grandmother, not mine. Why should I care whether she lives or dies?”
“You—!” Lü Chunxuan was so angry she couldn’t speak.
Lü Anbang snorted coldly. “You are Prince Mo Yan’s wife, and my grandmother is his maternal grandmother. How can you say it has nothing to do with you?”
He no longer dared to call Mo Yan “cousin” like before, only using his name directly.
“To my knowledge, my husband’s maternal grandmother is Madam Zhu, who passed away many years ago. Does Master Lü not even recognize his own grandmother?” Junwan said mockingly.
Lü Anbang was instantly speechless. His grandmother had originally been a concubine who was only promoted after Madam Zhu died.
Since Zhu’s death, the Lü family had long treated her as the matriarch and forgotten Zhu entirely. Now being brought up made their expressions darken.
Lü Hanyuan and Lü Hanqing were also furious.
“Elder sister?” Lü Hanqing looked at Noble Consort Yi. “Aren’t you going to intervene?”
“Intervene in what? What Wan’er said isn’t wrong,” Noble Consort Yi replied coldly.
“Besides, the carriage belongs to Wan’er. She has every right to decide who rides in it. If your mother is too tired to walk, you can carry her yourselves. What are sons for otherwise? Do you expect others to show filial piety in your place?”
She sneered inwardly. You refused to even spare a bun for my Lian’er, and you bullied her all along the way yesterday—do you really think I have no temper just because I’ve fallen from grace?