Chapter 001: The Birth of the Noble Young Lady

Zheng Guiqing felt dazed and her body felt quite unusual. She heard herself opening her mouth and emitting a series of baby cries, as if in a dream. When she heard the crowd calling out "Guijier, Guijier" one after another, she vaguely understood that she had likely crossed over. Just as she was in a state of panic and confusion, she was picked up by a pair of large hands and then securely held in a warm embrace. A woman's voice said, "Little darling, are you hungry?"

"Wow, look at this hair, it's so black!" Lai Fu glanced at the little girl's soft, sparse, and damp hair sticking to her scalp, resembling something drawn with ink. He couldn't help but reach out to touch it, but as soon as his fingers brushed against the little girl's head, Lai Rong swatted his hand away, saying: "The little girl has just been born, you can't touch her randomly. Look, you've made her cry!"

The Zheng family was originally a prominent household in Tianspring Village. However, after Zheng Taiye's five sons fought over the family inheritance and engaged in many years of litigation, most of the family assets were acquired by the eldest branch, leaving the other branches in decline. Zheng Mingfa's father, Zheng Weisheng, was the youngest son of Zheng Taiye and only received a little over ten mu of poor farmland and the courtyard they currently reside in. He lived with his first wife, eldest son Zheng Mingxing, and daughter Zheng Mingfang. Within a few years, his wife fell ill and passed away. Observing that his daughter and son had previously enjoyed a comfortable life in the main residence and were not accustomed to managing household affairs, he had no choice but to entrust a matchmaker to arrange a new marriage for himself. The woman who entered the household was Zheng Mingfa's mother, Zheng Pozi.

The young lady actually wanted to cry, but she was afraid that if Zheng Pozi came up with an upgraded version of superstition, she would say that she must have offended a higher deity. It would not be as simple as just offering incense; if things went poorly, she might end up being forced to drink some talisman water. Thus, she suppressed her sadness and focused solely on nursing, determined to be a good baby who loves to eat and sleep.

Although she is a girl, her feet are indeed quite good. When she became pregnant, Mingfa raised her wages, and now that she has just given birth, Mingfa has received a bonus and a few days off. Truly, this is a blessing. " Zheng Pozi said while counting on her fingers, expressing great satisfaction with her newly born granddaughter.

"It's not like she hasn't given birth before. Now that she has a big belly, she thinks she's a precious person. Should we invite someone to come and take care of her at home?" Zheng Pozi returned from the fields with a hoe on her shoulder. Upon entering the house, she heard the two pigs inside crying out in hunger. Feeling irritated, she shouted a few words. Seeing that her second daughter-in-law, Qiaoniang, did not come out to greet her, she was about to scold her when neighbor Aunt Li approached and said, "Aunt, I just saw Qiaoniang carrying water back. She was holding her belly and complaining about back pain. She might be about to give birth. You should go check on her in her room!"

"Oh, take your time, no one is competing with you." Qiaoniang gently patted Guijier's back, speaking with both affection and concern: "But I'm so hungry!"

The old man took the copper coins from Zheng Pozi and advised, "The girl has a strong fate; your family may not be able to handle it. You should find a wealthy family to arrange a betrothal, and promise to be their goddaughter. Then, ask them for a close-fitting garment to wear, which will ensure her safety."

She was already crying! Lai Fu, feeling indignant, glanced at the little sister whose eyes were closed, her wrinkled little face flushed from crying. For a moment, he dared not touch her again, but imitated his older brother Lai Rong's manner and swatted away the hand of his second brother Lai Hua that was reaching towards the little sister's nose, huffing, "She's already crying, why touch her?"

Zheng Pozi lifted the curtain in Qiaoniang's room and indeed saw her lying on the bed, groaning. The old garment underneath her was already soaked, so she hurried to the back street to find the midwife

Zheng Pozi was busy asking for more details, and on the way back, she contemplated which family to find for the engagement of her daughter. After much thought, she concluded that she must seek the family of Fang Dahu, who was known for his wealth. However, establishing this connection would be quite challenging and would likely require considerable effort. While she was deep in thought, she almost bumped into someone as she approached her home. Upon closer inspection, she realized it was Qiaoniang's elder brother. She couldn't help but exclaim, "In-law, didn't you say you were going to do business at sea? Why are you back so soon?"

Zheng Mingye, at the age of eighteen, was still unmarried and had unknowingly become the leader of the children. Whenever he had free time, he would take a few nephews out to catch fish and birds. At this moment, hearing the words of a few nephews, he cheerfully said: "When your mother became pregnant, didn’t your father keep mentioning that he wanted a daughter? Let’s hurry back, perhaps she has already given birth." In the countryside, a strong village woman can give birth in no more than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, so seeing his nephews running swiftly, fearing to miss the excitement, Zheng Mingye did not scold them but instead ran along with them.

Zheng Mingfa was helping in the accounting room of the Fang family. He was initially unaware that his wife was about to give birth. However, coincidentally, the Fang family was celebrating a joyous occasion, and in a moment of happiness, they rewarded everyone in the household. Zheng Mingfa calculated the days and, fearing that his wife might give birth soon, took a few days off. To his surprise, upon returning home, he saw his mother hastily bringing the midwife from the back street, and he witnessed the birth of his daughter with his own eyes

Not yet a month old, the neighbors have all lifted the curtain to see the precious girl, praising her: "A rare sight, plump and fair, with clear and bright features, truly a lady's appearance." Hearing this, Zheng Pozi was filled with joy. She took out a few coins from her sleeve and went to the Mazu Temple to ask an old Taoist who usually helps people calculate their fortune to read the girl's fortune. The old Taoist stroked his beard with his left hand and calculated with his fingers for a long time, saying: "This girl indeed has a good fate; she can help her father and brothers prosper, and in the future, she will bring good fortune to her husband and bear children well. Take good care of her!" Upon hearing this, Zheng Pozi slapped her thigh and said: "I knew she had a background! The moment she was born, her father Mingfa's wages increased, and her little uncle Mingye's marriage proposal was also loosened, truly a series of joyful events!"

When they returned home, they saw their father, Zheng Mingfa, rubbing his hands while standing outside the door, talking to Aunt Xiao: "Do you remember when we had three sons? It was quite quick, wasn't it? This time, it's been half an hour, and she still hasn't given birth?" Aunt Zheng replied irritably: "Haven't you seen your wife's belly? It's much bigger than when we had Lai Rong and the others. I'm afraid it might be another big boy, so it will take some effort."

Zheng Mingfa turned around and saw Lai Rong and the others standing behind him, and he said gloomily, "Kid, that's enough; our family is short of daughters!" Just as he was speaking, a loud cry of a baby came from the room. Zheng Mingfa was first delighted, but then blurted out, "Listen to that cry; it's quite vigorous! Could it be another boy?" Just as he was in doubt, the midwife joyfully announced, "It's born, it's born, a big healthy girl, both mother and daughter are safe!" Before Zheng Mingfa could respond, Lai Rong and his brothers had already lifted the curtain and squeezed into the room, shouting with joy, "It's a little sister, it's a little sister, haha!"

Zheng Pozi came from a farming family, her physique was robust, yet her appearance was quite ordinary. However, once she married, she took charge of household chores and children, giving birth to Zheng Mingfa and Zheng Mingye, and she also took good care of Zheng Weisheng, earning her praise from the neighbors. After Zheng Mingfang got married, Zheng Mingxing remarried, and Zheng Weisheng unfortunately passed away, leaving Zheng Pozi to face Zheng Mingxing's cold demeanor while also raising her two biological sons, Zheng Mingfa and Zheng Mingye. Fortunately, she had a strong character and managed to cope with the situation.

The brothers, Lai Rong and a few others, were originally fishing with their uncle Zheng Mingye at the pond. Upon hearing that their mother was about to give birth, they hurriedly took a wooden bucket and a fishing net to rush home, discussing along the way: "Our family only has boys; we hope our mother will give us a lovely little sister this time."

The young girl caught a whiff of a milky fragrance, and her little mouth instinctively puckered forward, feeling quite hungry. She heard several children laughing and saying, "Mom, the little sister's lips are pouting, how adorable!" Then something was stuffed into her mouth, and as she gently sucked, it was indeed warm and sweet, causing her to feel both anxious and flustered, nearly choking.

Zheng Mingfa had already decided on several names for his daughters when his wife was pregnant. However, upon seeing the chubby and soft little girl, he felt that none of the names he had thought of were suitable. Glancing over at his several sons, he smiled and said, "Let's give her a nickname first, we'll call her Guijie'er!" Upon hearing this name proposed by Zheng Mingfa, Qiaoniang was quite pleased, as it was unlike the names of the village girls that were often Spring, Flower, or Red. The farmers did not have many particularities regarding names, so they immediately began to call her Guijie'er.

Zheng Pozi was taken aback. Qiao Niang had been married for eight years and had given birth to three sons: the eldest, Rong, was seven years old; the second, Hua, was six; and the youngest, Fu, was five. After these years of silence, she thought she would not conceive again. Unexpectedly, at the end of last year, she became pregnant again. Counting the days, it was indeed time for her to give birth in the coming days

When Qiao Niang saw that the young lady was asleep, she gently picked her up and laid her down. After taking a bowl of rice soup handed over by Zheng Pozi and drinking it to the last drop, she finally sighed and said: "The young lady is truly fortunate; she has just been born and is already surrounded by good fortune."

After more than ten days of eating, sleeping, and relieving herself, the young lady suddenly woke up and remembered her past life, crying for quite a while. This prompted Aunt Zheng to mutter, "Could it be that she has offended someone? Why is her face all purple and red from crying today?" Saying this, feeling uneasy, she hurriedly steamed a few buns to offer incense at the Mazu Temple, and also requested a talisman to be tied around the young lady's neck. Seeing that she no longer cried out at night, Aunt Zheng finally felt relieved.

Qiao Niang was strong and robust; although she had just given birth, she still had the strength to tell her sons, "Go, go, all of you go outside, don't scare your little sister!" Zheng Mingfa hurried in to shoo away the sons and carefully picked up his little daughter, smiling as he said, "I said I wanted a daughter, and indeed my wish has come true. I must offer thanks to the gods during the New Year."

Zheng Pozi sent the midwife out, and only then did she come in with a smile, saying: "A name can be given now. When the old man was around, he had decided that the second room's child should be called 'Ronghua Fugui'. If it is a boy, 'Gui' is naturally a ready-made name, but for a girl, a different name must be chosen"

The young lady felt a deep sense of pity in her heart, yet was powerless to resist. Instinctively, she suckled for a while, and once she was full, she fell into a deep sleep.