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It was three months after the birth of his first grandchild that he received the request for a blessing. The pregnancy had been unexpected but mostly welcome. It was the timing that hadn’t been ideal. Despite all the knowledge she had, or perhaps because of it, Maomao dismissed many of the early signs as a result of her history with medicine.
Their marriage was not yet fully finalized and “Jinshi” was still several steps away from his goal of separation from the royal family’s restrictive traditions. The baby was healthy, a tad early, as Maomao had deduced, but healthy. Which was also rather astonishing given she had no inkling that she was pregnant until she had a cramp and an unmistakable protrusion on her belly. The baby was a calm one, but on one select occasion gave a very visible kick and its father had been the one to notice.
Jinshi was naturally overwhelmed with joy and excitement, to the point that after discussing it with Maomao at length that evening, he was out of breath when he unceremoniously interrupted his dinner with Gyuokyuo. Of all things there was one thing Jinshi knew, and that was that both he and his empress loved children. And so it was a very welcome interruption, even if it did strike terror into several guards that the moon prince was racing through the palace without a thought to formality- even with the emperor and empress.
Gyuokyuo’s excitable glee at the announcement was worth it however. They had long ago determined between themselves at least, that even if the formality was unfinished, this was the one thing they would always view as a family matter first. It would only ever be political again if nearly the entire kingdom fell apart without an alternative. She had no fear of Jinshi and certainly no fear of a child.
A girl she hoped, a girl to grow up alongside her own daughter, if not separated by a handful of years. A girl to be wise and given the lessons her own daughter had been given by Maomao. A girl who could continue to widen their tiny world to new possibilities. And he was glad too. Regardless of the times, regardless of who was who and why and how. He was about to be a grandfather. Even if only a handful of people would ever know.
And while understandably and expectedly understated given what he knew of her, it was visible that even Maomao was warm to the thought of motherhood- especially given the baby had thus far been an ideal child to its mother.
Gyukyuo was more than understanding when he left the dinner table somewhat early. To briefly meet with consort LiHua to inform her he was regrettably not going to be able to go on the mid-afternoon walk they had planned for the following day, and then to his desk. He first sent out a short notice but he would be following behind it himself shortly. He would let no other person be the one to inform the baby’s grandmother.
Lady Ahduo came to visit a few short days later. Her presence turned out to be a great help to Maomao given her own experiences with a complicated pregnancy. Even a doctor can get pregnancy worries it seemed.
The entire matter however had to be kept VERY quiet however. Regardless of how those he cared for felt, they could not let this information go public quite so easily. And so like many others, Maomao found herself in the care of Ahduo and her ladies as well.
The expected people were present for the birth, Loumen delivered the child- a girl as his empress had rightly predicted. Ahduo was present, Jinshi was present, up until he fainted at the moment of delivery. And sworn to secrecy, Maomao had conceded. Lakan was present as well, if relegated to an outer room to pace and ramble away from his beleaguered daughter. His granddaughter, their shared grandaughter took greatly after her father. But even then, another face was added to the tiny list of those the general could never mistake for others. Apparently, she had her grandmother's eyes.
It was 3 months after the birth and things had begun to settle when he found the excuse to meet his new granddaughter for the first time. His mother having had a bit more freedom had already sent her blessings. With each generation, her ability to love the following children got just a little bit easier.
It was a quiet morning when he arrived in relative secrecy to Ahduo’s chambers. He would meet the new family a bit later, they needed their rest. It seemed his granddaughter was a deer fawn in the woumb but a wild boar as a newborn. Jinshi had been just the same for the first few months. He knew very little about his daughter-in-law's early childhood but it was hard to imagine her as a loud child.
In the years that had passed, he had learned many many things from his new daughter, one of the dearest to his heart however was a deeper understanding of what had transpired in Ahduo’s mind in the time of her own pregnancy. It would take time, a great deal of time, and it could never be to the degree he might wish it in his own children's early years most likely. But he would do his best to ensure the country of Li would never backslide into the dark times of his father's rule, or even into the hazy dawn of his own early time on the throne. The time when the sun was rising but colors could not yet be seen.
He would not let his son's family end up with the regrets his wife had stomached all these many decades ago.
She was having her morning tea in a quiet side chamber of her quarters when he arrived. It was just a quiet reading space but it had the best view of the landscape from this side of her pavilion.
She still greeted him as an old friend, the best kind greeting he could receive. No words, A cool smile and she turned her head back away from him, back to the scenery. He understood more now about the lives of the women under his rule than he ever had. The cool welcome was the warmest welcome he could remember receiving in a great many years. He joined her and poured himself a cup of tea from the pot on the table, An unthinkable act to anyone but her. Silently he joined her as the birds began stirring.
It was when he finished his cup that he presented her with his intended cause for the morning visit.
There was a new technique he had been shown for building sailing ships. Small, unable to be used for large transport- yet. But nearly twice as fast as any ship that could be built currently of the same size. It was not perfect information, it had been reverse-engineered from agents in his court. But after all these years, he realized how large a debt of gratitude he owed to her.
2 months following that, Ahduo, in a man's riding suit with a hidden name and documentation straight from his own desk set off to oversee a small fleet of 8 merchant sailing ships. It was not a station she could always fill, but it was what he could give her.
And in 6 weeks’ time, he received the first letter.
With his youngest two children fawning over a cage of braided straw full of singing crickets, they had caught, the cage having been a handicraft of maomaos during her bedrest, supervised by several of Gyukuyos’ ladies.
He read the letter penned by his trusted partner.
It couldn’t be forever, and it couldn’t be everything she had given up for him, but sincerely this time, she seemed happy.
She had pressed an orchid into the folds of the letter. It was unlike those that had once filled her pavilion at the palace. He had learned from his new daughter that they came in many shapes and sizes. It was small, and unassuming, and it was beautiful.