AN: For the guest reviewer wondering about what afterbirth is, here's some information about it: /labor-and-birth/third-stage/. Thanks to the rest of my guest reviewers for taking the time to leave reviews; I really appreciate it.
Zhan Mou had lived through a lot of bad times at the Green Hills Courtyard. The crippling and betrayal of his master, the scandal involving the young master's mother, the emperor's loss of trust in the Eyes of God...all of these had taken mental and, at times, physical tolls on the residents of Green Hills. When the young master had obviously become interested in his newest slave, Zhan Mou had agreed with his master that nothing but trouble could result from such a relationship.
True, they knew they might be able to use this slip of a girl named Xing'er to get rid of some enemies, but if she were to die in the process, that would likely be better for everyone. He knew that the young master was playing a dangerous game, and there were multiple times when loss had seemed imminent and inevitable. Zhan Mou remembered well that fateful day when his master had dropped one of the sticks that he'd held in his hand and had predicted that that meant woe for the Yuwen family.
Against the odds, however, Young Master Yue had not lost, but had won at the last minute when Xing'er had come through for him. Most importantly to the young master, he had won Xing'er's heart and had kept it ever since. Given the copious amounts of furniture and bedding they'd had to replace in their rooms and the way that they conducted their "training exercises," Zhan Mou predicted that theirs was a relationship that would last—much to his master's dismay.
Had someone told Zhan Mou after shooting the ice arrow that had led to Xing'er's capture that he would someday find himself standing behind his master in the courtyard celebrating her delivery of the future heir of the Yuwen family, he probably would've punched that person in the face and called him a fool. And yet, here he was, standing behind his master, who was currently swapping war stories with the emperor, some of his subordinates, and He Xiao.
The master had ordered the best wine they had to be brought out for the occasion, and everyone from the emperor himself to their lowest servant was partaking of it copiously. This was a night for celebration, and everyone seemed determined to celebrate. After facing so much adversity before the events of two years ago, who could blame them?
Zhan Mou had once been as stern and disapproving as his master, but after Young Master Yue had finally achieved his heart's desire, he'd just...gotten over it, honestly. Being stern and disapproving had gotten neither him nor his master anywhere in life, so what was the point? Not that Zhan Mou was going to start being an optimist any time soon, but he didn't see anything wrong with celebrating the love that his young master had found.
While he knew that calamity could always be right around the corner, he was still determined to take the good times—like this—when they came and to leave the bad times to be faced another day. He took a swig of his wine and mentally toasted the young master and his wife, who had managed to turn so much of the kingdom upside down almost, at times, by accident.
"Well, I must be getting back to the palace," Emperor Xiang said to the group at large. "Yuwen Zhuo, congratulations on your good fortune."
"Thank you, Your Highness—and thank you for honoring us with your presence, which will surely bring good fortune to the newest member of the Yuwen family."
The emperor stood up, and everyone else—except his master, of course—followed suit.
"If I may be so bold, Your Highness," He Xiao said, clasping his hands and bowing his head, "please allow me to remake the offer I extended to you earlier. Young Master Yue has already gifted us Xiulis with a sizable amount of quality wine for us to mark this occasion with. It's not as good as the excellent wine that has been shared with us this night-"
He Xiao inclined his head towards the master, who managed to return the nod without expressing his disapproval.
"-but it's still of an excellent vintage that will allow us to celebrate this occasion with the enthusiasm it deserves. Our servants have been working all day to prepare good food for us to eat, and Jille Pavilion has been freshly cleaned and readied for a night of celebration. Your Highness is most welcome to attend our humble gathering if you so desire."
Zhan Mou kept his expression neutral, knowing that his master's eyeballs were likely threatening to fall out of his head. He himself found the invitation amusing and hoped that the emperor would take He Xiao up on it. After all, if the emperor and the Xiulis could get to know each other better, that would surely bode well for future relations between the group of ex-rebels and the Wei government.
It could also cause a national incident, but what else is new in these chaotic times?
"I accept your gracious offer," the emperor said after thinking a moment. "I wasn't looking forward to riding on the road so late at night, anyway. This sounds like a much more enjoyable use of time to me."
A soft choking noise sounded from his master's chair, but Zhan Mou ignored it, not wanting to draw the emperor's attention to his master's disapproval.
"Yuwen Zhuo, thank you again for your excellent hospitality. He Xiao, lead on."
The emperor and his officers took their leave of Green Hills Courtyard, and He Xiao left with them. Zhan Mou could hear the Xiulis taking their leave, obviously shocked, excited, and nervous to have such a powerful guest accompanying them to their party.
Silence finally descended over Green Hills Courtyard, and both he and his master released sighs of relief at the same time.
"I've had enough chaos for one day, Zhan Mou," his master said. "Let's retire to the peace of my inner sanctum."
"As you wish, master," Zhan Mou said, pushing his master away from the sitting area in which they'd been entertaining their somewhat unlikely assembly of guests.
He rolled his master past Yue Qi, who clasped his hands and greeted them from his position in front of Young Master Yue's rooms. Zhan Mou knew that the young man would likely spend the entire night there, making sure that no harm came to any within.
"I have a great-grandson," Yuwen Zhuo whispered in soft wonder.
Zhan Mou smiled into the darkness.
"You do, indeed."
"I might not approve of the methods my grandson used to give me a great-grandson, but I now think they were worth the trouble."
"I think his methods were probably pretty traditional," Zhan Mou said, smirking as he rolled his master into his room.
"Not if those furniture bills are to be believed," his master muttered.
Zhan Mou chuckled softly, almost shocked into silence when his master reluctantly joined him moments.
Maybe it's the wine, he mused as he prepared his master for bed. Or maybe there's something special about the birth of a great-grandson that not even my master can resist.
Xiao Ce stared up at the stars in disbelief and dismay, feeling a sense of betrayal from what he'd come to regard as his close companions. True, they still told a positive story in regards to Qiao Qiao's labor itself, and he spared a wistful smile on behalf of his old friend and her husband. So the child was likely here already, but the rest…
Where the stars had previously only predicted health, safety, and prosperity for Qiao Qiao and her family, they now foretold of danger from a familiar foe, a settling of old grudges, and intervention from unexpected sources. Xiao Ce could easily guess that the familiar foe was his sister, although he had to grudgingly admit that Qiao Qiao had a knack for effortlessly making the most charming enemies. He knew his sister carried many grudges against not only Yuwen Yue but Qiao Qiao as well, so that part would fit, too.
As for the unexpected sources, he mentally shrugged. If they were unexpected, how could he possibly know them? The stars were being unusually unhelpful this night, and they gave him no clue as to whose actions could tip the balance between success and failure for his sister.
He felt a sudden, mad impulse to jump in his carriage and ride as fast as he could for Green Hills Courtyard, but he logically knew he wouldn't even come close to making it in time to stop whatever would likely be unfolding tonight.
She might be making her move even now, and there's nothing I can do.
Xiao Ce balled his hands into fists in fear and anger.
All I can do is to trust my people to do their jobs and allow the heavens to have their way. Man proposes; God disposes.
He tipped back his head and looked at the stars once again, knowing that he was in for a sleepless night. Maybe they would unfold their secrets to him as the hours wore on and whatever was fated to be came to pass. Or maybe he would have to wait until later in order to learn what fate had in store for them all.
Several days' ride from Xiao Ce's palace, Mo'er looked up at the same stars. Not that he knew how to read them; he just thought they were pretty. The moon was full and bright, which he knew to be a good and bad thing. On the one hand, a full moon meant that he'd be able to see anyone trying to sneak up on the back side of his parents' rooms. On the other hand, however, a full moon meant that he had fewer shadows in which he could hide.
Both his mom and his dad had given him lessons on observation and intuition. Mo'er knew that his dad had a strong ability to sense sights, sounds, and smells that were out of place. He'd watched, wide-eyed, as his dad had found out the answers to tough problems just by paying attention to what was around him.
His mom, on the other hand, just...knew things. While he knew that his dad would say that that was just his mom showing off her ability to easily get into trouble, Mo'er thought that maybe his mom got into trouble simply because she could sense its presence nearby. Sometimes she could just feel that things were not right and that she needed to get out now or go do something about it.
Mo'er understood what his mom meant because that's exactly how he was feeling at the moment. He could sense that something was not right and that he needed to go do something about it. His mom had told him that he needed to listen to that sense because doing so could save his life. Of course, she and his dad had gotten into an argument about when to listen to that feeling and when to be careful, but he felt that you could both listen and be careful at the same time.
So here he was, standing guard in the shadows outside his parents' rooms, dressed all in black and cradling the most precious gift his parents had given him besides their love and guidance. A few days ago, Mom and Dad had taken him to the archery practice area not far from where he was standing right now and had shown him how to use a small crossbow just like the ones they used. True, he wasn't close to being as good as they were, but by the end of the lesson, he was hitting near the middle of the target pretty often.
They had solemnly gifted him with his own crossbow and had told him that, since he was their son, he might need to use it someday. He was to only use it in an emergency, and he was never to treat it as a toy. Mo'er had practiced every day and felt that he could stop anyone trying to sneak in with the six arrows he could shoot quickly.
A soft scratching at one of the windows behind him made him flinch, but he managed to not make any noise that would give away his hiding place. Once he realized the sound was coming from inside his parents' rooms, he quickly and quietly opened the window just a little bit. To his surprise, his dad's parrot fluttered right in front of his face.
He opened the window just wide enough for the bird to fly through and then shut it as quietly as he could. Mo'er knew that his dad could hear the softest of sounds, but he hoped that his dad was sleeping so soundly after the events of a few hours ago that he wouldn't be able to hear. After several moments had passed without Dad coming over to investigate, Mo'er breathed a faint sigh of relief.
"You feel it too, don't you?" he whispered to the parrot, who nodded his head once.
Mo'er stared off into the night, thinking hard.
"Something's not right," he whispered. "Someone's coming, someone bad. I don't know where they're coming from, so I'm going to stay where I think they're coming to. But you can fly, so you might be able to find them before I could."
The bright red parrot nodded in agreement again and went to fly away.
"Wait," Mo'er whispered, scooping up a handful of dark dirt near his hiding place and holding it out to the parrot.
The bird cocked its head before landing on the ground at Mo'er's feet. He bent down and gently placed the dirt all over the bird, darkening its coloring to brown instead of red. The parrot ruffled its feathers in disgust but still nodded his head in thanks.
"Good luck," Mo'er whispered, straightening back up and holding his crossbow loosely across his body.
The bird shook off a bit of dirt that hadn't stuck to his body and hopped away, taking off into the shadows and staying there as much as he could. Mo'er watched him until he was out of sight, not sure of what a bird and a boy could do against whatever was coming, but knowing that they would both do their best to protect the people they loved from harm.