Ye Yunniang handed the clothes she had made for Jiang Tingjun to Zi Yuan. She then entered the room to take over from Ding Fang.
Now it was just the two of them. Ding Fang had originally intended to only serve during the day and had even gone to discuss it with Ye Yunniang. However, Zi Yuan directly arranged shifts for both of them—Ye Yunniang and Ding Fang would take turns, one day each. But overall, Ding Fang had more daytime shifts, with 18 days a month.
Ye Yunniang didn’t mind. She was happy to care for the child at night.
Though she had to wake up to feed and tend to him, Jiang Tingjun was truly the most well-behaved child Ye Yunniang had ever seen. He would wake up twice a night at fixed times, never crying or fussing. Once fed and changed into a clean diaper, he would quietly fall back asleep. Ye Yunniang could time it well and get some rest herself.
At night, with no one watching, Ye Yunniang could relax a little.
During the day, the room was bustling with people coming and going.
Jiang Tingjun was lively and active in the daytime. As he grew older, he disliked staying indoors and preferred being carried around the courtyard to see everything. Though maids and nannies helped with his care, Ye Yunniang still did most of the carrying.
Jiang Tingjun was plump and fair, and holding him all day was exhausting. But with the generous monthly wages she received, Ye Yunniang couldn’t complain about being tired.
One morning, Ye Yunniang arrived to relieve Ding Fang.
“Why are you so late?” Ding Fang grumbled impatiently before leaving with a yawn.
Ye Yunniang walked to the bedside, where Jiang Tingjun lay with his big eyes open, smiling at her.
“Little master, did you miss your nanny?” Ye Yunniang cooed as she picked him up.
Suddenly, Jiang Tingjun grabbed a handful of her hair and yanked hard.
“Ah!” Ye Yunniang gasped in pain.
“Little master, let go,” she pleaded, but Jiang Tingjun only tugged harder.
Hearing the commotion, Hong Cai and Zi Yuan rushed in from the outer room and tried to coax Jiang Tingjun to release his grip.
Thinking it was a game, Jiang Tingjun only laughed even more gleefully.
Finally freeing her hair from his grasp, Ye Yunniang was left sweating.
“Sister Ye, go freshen up quickly. You’ll need to see the madam soon,” Zi Yuan said, noting that Ye Yunniang’s disheveled appearance wasn’t suitable for meeting Fourth Madam Jiang.
Ye Yunniang handed Jiang Tingjun to Hong Cai, but the little one protested, crying the moment Hong Cai touched him. He only wanted Ye Yunniang to hold him.
With no choice, Ye Yunniang kept him in her arms while Hong Cai helped wipe her sweat and redo her hair.
“Thank you for your trouble.”
“Sister Ye, you’re too polite. Fixing your hair is no trouble at all.” Hong Cai admired Ye Yunniang’s locks. “Your hair is so beautiful—thick, black, and shiny. How do you take care of it?”
“Just washing it regularly, though others don’t get the same results. But my mother also had good hair,” Ye Yunniang replied, gently blocking Jiang Tingjun’s attempts to grab her hair again.
“Ah, so you inherited it from your mother. I take after mine—her hair is thin and frizzy,” Hong Cai said as she swiftly styled Ye Yunniang’s hair into a simple coiled bun.
Ye Yunniang’s original hairpin was too small, so Zi Yuan brought a jade magnolia pendant hairpin and fastened it into her hair.
The delicate sway of the magnolia added a touch of liveliness to Ye Yunniang’s gentle and graceful demeanor.
“Is that really me?” Ye Yunniang marveled at her reflection in the bronze mirror.
“Hong Cai did well,” Zi Yuan praised before instructing Ye Yunniang to carry Jiang Tingjun and follow her.
This was the first time Ye Yunniang had brought the young master to pay respects to Fourth Madam Jiang.
Fourth Madam Jiang reached out to take Jiang Tingjun, but the usually compliant child refused this time. His eyes were fixed on the magnolia pendant in Ye Yunniang’s hair. As Ye Yunniang bowed in greeting, he suddenly grabbed the pendant and yanked it free.
Ye Yunniang’s freshly styled hair instantly tumbled loose, and two strands were pulled out.
She couldn’t suppress a sharp inhale—it hurt.
As her hair cascaded down, Ye Yunniang froze in shock, and everyone else in the room was stunned.
No one had expected Jiang Tingjun to do such a thing.
Unfazed by the reactions around him, Jiang Tingjun showed no remorse. Instead, he waved the magnolia hairpin triumphantly, laughing with delight.
Seeing her son so lively for the first time, Fourth Madam Jiang also burst into laughter.
“This little rascal takes after his father. Hahahaha!”
The others quickly regained their composure. Zi Yuan stepped forward to take Jiang Tingjun, while Zijuan led Ye Yunniang away to fix her hair.
Ye Yunniang’s face was pale with worry—she had no idea Jiang Tingjun could be so mischievous and feared the madam’s displeasure.
“The madam is kind-hearted. She won’t blame you,” Zijuan reassured her, sensing her anxiety.
Ye Yunniang nodded meekly as a maid redid her hair. This time, she adamantly refused any hairpins or ornaments, opting instead for a small, inconspicuous pearl flower.
When they returned to the room, the floor was strewn with hairpins of various floral designs.
Jiang Tingjun grabbed one after another, tossing them aside after a moment—some even landed on the floor.
Fourth Madam Jiang didn’t scold him. Instead, she handed him new ones to play with, amused by his antics.
Jiang Tingjun was thoroughly entertained.
Only when hunger struck did he stop playing with his mother, demanding to be held by Ye Yunniang—he wanted to eat.
Ye Yunniang carried him behind a folding screen to nurse.
After feeding him, she held Jiang Tingjun upright, one arm supporting him while the other gently stroked his back in slow, downward motions.
“Why do you do that?” Fourth Madam Jiang asked curiously.
Ye Yunniang explained that it helped prevent the baby from spitting up.
As she spoke, Jiang Tingjun grew restless, patting Ye Yunniang’s shoulder with one hand and grabbing at her mouth with the other. He let out a few insistent babbles.
“What does Jun’er want?” Fourth Madam Jiang asked.
Ye Yunniang hesitated briefly.
“What is it? Can’t you say?” Fourth Madam Jiang’s expression darkened.
“Madam, when I feed the young master at night, I sometimes hum a lullaby I used to sing to my own son,” Ye Yunniang admitted. Fourth Madam Jiang fell silent.
Jiang Tingjun urged her on impatiently.
“Go ahead and hum it. I’d like to hear what lullaby Jun’er loves so much,” Fourth Madam Jiang said.
Ye Yunniang began to sing softly, “Wind so light, moon so warm, fireflies rest on willow boughs. No chirp of crickets, no call of birds—my little one closes his eyes…”
As the melody continued, Jiang Tingjun’s eyelids drooped, and he drifted off to sleep.
Ye Yunniang hummed the lullaby twice before stopping and ceasing her motions.
“Take Jun’er back to sleep,” Fourth Madam Jiang instructed.
“Yes,” Ye Yunniang replied with a bow before carrying Jiang Tingjun away.
“Zi Yuan, fetch the light green cotton silk from the storeroom and give it to her,” Fourth Madam Jiang ordered.
“Understood,” Zi Yuan acknowledged before leaving.
“The madam favors Nanny Ye,” Zijuan remarked as she massaged Fourth Madam Jiang’s legs.
“She is a good one. Pity she can’t stay for my son’s sake.” Fourth Madam Jiang knew of Ye Yunniang’s earlier words—that she would return home once Jiang Tingjun was weaned.
“If you want her to stay, it’s as simple as a word from you, mistress,” Zijuan said, as if it were no issue.
“Forcing a melon to sweeten is pointless,” Fourth Madam Jiang replied, disdaining such heavy-handed tactics.
Back in the side chamber, Ye Yunniang carefully laid Jiang Tingjun down, tucked him in, and sat beside him, watching over him.
Unable to resist, she gently tapped the tip of his tiny nose. “You little troublemaker.”
