Ye Yunniang gritted her teeth and voiced her thoughts.
She shared the childcare advice she had gathered from the midwife and Cai Damei, combined with her own reflections.
Children, too, have their own ideas when interacting with adults.
They test boundaries little by little.
Once they learn that crying and tantrums get them what they want, they escalate their demands further.
Parents must set firm limits from the start. If those limits are crossed, the child should receive nothing—otherwise, they’ll grow spoiled and unruly.
After speaking, Ye Yunniang lowered her head, bracing for Fourth Madam Jiang’s anger.
She knew, as a servant, she shouldn’t have spoken up. But after nursing Jiang Tingjun for months, she couldn’t bear to see him turn into a spoiled child.
There was a boy in her village—adorable at first, doted on by his family, given everything he wanted. Over time, he became utterly insufferable.
Fourth Madam Jiang saw through Ye Yunniang’s concerns but wasn’t angry.
Raised in such an environment, she understood the dangers of indulgence better than anyone. That’s why she had sought a plain, dutiful wet nurse—someone who wouldn’t stir trouble for her son.
Now, it seemed Ye Yunniang was a good choice.
Instead of punishment, Ye Yunniang received rewards, and the maids and servants in the household treated her with newfound respect.
Yet she didn’t let it change her. She continued caring for Jiang Tingjun just as before.
This deepened Fourth Madam Jiang’s approval, and she even granted Ye Yunniang a half-day leave to visit her own son outside the mansion.
Overjoyed, Ye Yunniang knelt. "Thank you, Madam."
"You’ve earned it."
Not only did Fourth Madam Jiang permit her to leave, but she also gifted her fine clothes and fabrics.
After handing her duties to Chunyao, Ye Yunniang skipped lunch and left Jiang Mansion with Li'er, carrying two bundles.
Shanhu had arranged for Li'er to accompany her.
Following the address, they arrived at a small courtyard in Wanxia Lane and knocked.
"Coming, coming!"
At the sound of Cai Damei’s voice, Ye Yunniang’s eyes welled up.
"Sister, why are you crying?" Li'er pointed out, making Ye Yunniang realize tears were streaming down her face.
The door swung open. Cai Damei stood in the yard, holding Pan'er.
"Mother," Ye Yunniang choked out.
"Ah, Yunniang, you’re back!" Cai Damei beamed.
A growl from Cai Damei’s stomach made her smack her forehead. "Silly me, so happy I forgot to cook! Come inside, I’ll make a meal."
"I’ll cook," Ye Yunniang insisted, passing the bundles to Li'er and asking her to take them inside.
"You hold Pan'er, I’ll cook," Cai Damei countered, shoving Pan'er into Ye Yunniang’s arms before taking the bundles from Li'er and heading to the kitchen.
Ye Yunniang cradled Pan'er, unable to look away.
Pan'er, having half-forgotten her mother, stared curiously at the stranger before him.
In the kitchen, Cai Damei and Li'er prepared the meal.
Li'er, aware of Cai Damei’s background, shared stories of Ye Yunniang’s life in Jiang Mansion—only the suitable ones, of course.
After the meal, Li'er played with Pan'er in the yard.
At a year and a half, Pan'er could already walk.
Inside, Ye Yunniang unpacked the bundles, showing Cai Damei what she’d brought—especially the jewelry gifted by Fourth Madam Jiang, most of which she had brought home.
Cai Damei now fully agreed with Cai Xiaomei’s words:
The wealthy could spare a trifle that would feed common folk for years. A single piece from Ye Yunniang’s haul could fetch twenty or thirty taels of silver.
Finally, Cai Damei asked the question weighing on her heart:
"How have you been at Jiang Mansion?"
"Madam treats me very well." Ye Yunniang shared some details, including Ding Fang's previous schemes. She also spoke about how she cared for the child.
"I nursed that child with all my heart, hoping he would thrive." Ye Yunniang explained her reasons.
"You did the right thing." Cai Damei didn't scold her but reminded her to be cautious. As servants, they had to mind their words.
Her grandmother and child were waiting for her to return home.
Ye Yunniang gave a soft acknowledgment, assuring she would be careful.
Noticing her hesitation, Cai Damei asked, "What's wrong?"
Ye Yunniang struggled to speak, feeling both ashamed and embarrassed.
"What is it? You’re worrying me to death!" Cai Damei patted her leg impatiently.
Gritting her teeth, Ye Yunniang confessed—she had been dreaming lately. A man would appear in her dreams, and then… She couldn’t continue, her voice breaking as she asked, "Mother, is there something wrong with me?"
Cai Damei sighed in relief and took Ye Yunniang’s hand.
"Once you return, after about three years, I’ll find you a good husband."
"I don’t want one." Ye Yunniang shook her head vigorously.
She only wanted to live quietly, raising her child and staying with her mother.
"Pan'er will grow up and have his own life. You can’t cling to him forever—you must think of yourself too." Cai Damei had no intention of letting her daughter remain alone forever.
Ye Yunniang panicked. "Mother, are you abandoning me?"
"How could I ever abandon you?" Cai Damei soothed her. "It’s too early to discuss this now. We’ll talk after you return from Jiang Mansion. But this won’t do. You must learn to… help yourself."
"Help myself?" Ye Yunniang was puzzled, recalling her wedding night with Li Yong. The only memory was pain—so much pain.
She had always believed intimacy was nothing but suffering and wanted no part of it.
Cai Damei glanced outside, then leaned closer and whispered instructions on how to… take matters into her own hands.
Ye Yunniang’s eyes widened. She had never imagined such a thing was possible.
On the way back, her face remained flushed. Li'er assumed she was upset about leaving her son and had cried.
"Sister, don’t be sad. You took such good care of the young master—Madam will surely let you visit again."
Ye Yunniang gave a faint hum in response. She couldn’t explain that while parting was hard, her thoughts were mostly occupied by what Cai Damei had told her…
Upon returning, she first delivered the pickled vegetables Cai Damei had prepared to Shanhu, asking her to pass them to Fourth Madam Jiang.
Ye Yunniang was afraid of facing Fourth Madam Jiang, terrified of making mistakes and being scolded.
Shanhu accepted the gift.
Ye Yunniang returned to Zhiyu Pavilion, changed her clothes, ate quickly, and hurried to the small courtyard.
"Chunyao, sorry to keep you waiting. These are my mother’s pickles—perfect with porridge in the morning." She handed the jar to Chunyao.
Chunyao opened it and sniffed. "Your mother’s cooking is truly delicious."
With that, she left with the jar.
Ye Yunniang picked up Jiang Tingjun.
"Did you miss your nursemaid, little master? I went back to see Pan'er. He’s eight months older than you—already walking and starting to talk.
Little master, when will you walk and speak?" She murmured softly while feeding him.
"Ah—!"
"Sister Ye, what’s wrong?" Hong Cai, standing nearby, leaned in to check.
Ye Yunniang pried open Jiang Tingjun’s mouth. "The little master is teething. But you mustn’t bite your nursemaid."
Hong Cai beamed and dashed out excitedly.
Soon, Zi Yuan arrived to examine Jiang Tingjun’s emerging front teeth.
Zi Yuan then went to report to Fourth Madam Jiang.
Jiang Tingjun, who was teething, had an itchy urge to chew on things and drooled constantly.
Ye Yunniang made bibs for him to wear and even tied one around her own chest to reduce the frequency of changing clothes.
She felt grateful that they didn’t have to pay respects to the Old Madam, or else both she and Jiang Tingjun would have been miserable.
"This idea of yours is brilliant," Chunyao laughed, eyeing the bib Ye Yunniang had tied around herself.
