The midwife took Maleta's temperature, pulse, and discharge and declared.
“I’m sure the child has entered.”
Maleta asked again with a bright smile on her face.
“Grandma, is it true?”
“Then did you see me lying? It's early days, but it's definitely true. You’re pregnant.”
"Done...!"
The old woman clicked her tongue at the state of affairs in which a young woman was jumping for joy even after giving birth. It seemed like an era in which morality and ethics had fallen to the ground.
“Be careful for the time being. Don’t drink alcohol. Don’t accept it even if the father begs you to do it. You might miscarry in the early stages. You have to be careful.”
“Yes, yes!”
Maleta handed the midwife five silver florins and hurried back to Cardinal de Mare's residence. She had to quickly convey this good news to Master Ippolito.
As soon as Maleta entered the front door, she handed the fur cloak she was wearing to the servant, who was standing at the front door. Her attitude was as if she were his superior. The servant looked at Maleta with an expression of 'Is this person crazy?', but he was pushed by the force and was handed Maleta's fur cloak.
"Young Master-!"
Maleta headed to Ippolito's room on the second floor, calling out to the young master at the top of her lungs. Ippolito happened to be in his own room. He was lying down, reading a book for the first time in a while.
“Master, we have borne the fruit of our love!”
"Oh?"
Maleta imagined that Ippolito would embrace her in his arms and be happy, but Ippolito did not move an inch from his lying position. But Maleta was not the one to give in here.
“Master, when are we having our wedding?”
Ippolito's expression became subtle. But Maleta was confident and continued to push Ippolito. Half of it was because she was too excited to see Ippolito's reaction, and the other half was the leisure of the one who had the upper hand. The attitude was, “What if I tell you I’m having a baby and you don’t like it? What if marriage is a foregone conclusion?”
“Have you spoken to His Eminence the Cardinal and Madame Lucrezia? When will you give it to me? Will you give it to me, Master? It’s better than what I’m doing, right?”
Ippolito's expression finally cracked. It was a change that came as soon as the cardinal’s eminence was mentioned. No matter where you look, it does not look like the face of a young father who is happy to have a child.
“Yes, Maleta.”
Ippolito hurriedly received Maleta’s words.
“I should tell my parents. Now that we’re on the subject, that’s good. I’ll go tell my mother right now.”
He quickly got up.
“Don’t go anywhere, just wait here quietly.”
Ippolito asked Maleta to take care of herself.
"Yes, yes!"
Maleta cried with joy. And about an hour passed after Ippolito left. Maleta did not expect that Ippolito would go to Cardinal de Mare and his wife, confess to them that she was pregnant, and immediately set a date for the marriage. But when he didn't come back for an hour, she started to get anxious.
‘No way, did he run away...?'
It's not that she hasn't thought about it, but she still wondered if he would go that far. Maleta made up her mind. Even if Master Ippolito runs away, the best strategy is to crush him in this house. They say they cut off the eldest grandson of their only son, so they must be kicked out.
"Young Master-!"
Maleta headed to Ippolito's room on the second floor, calling out to the young master at the top of her lungs. Ippolito happened to be in his own room. He was lying down, reading a book for the first time in a while.
“Master, we have borne the fruit of our love!”
"Oh?"
Maleta imagined that Ippolito would embrace her in his arms and be happy, but Ippolito did not move an inch from his lying position. But Maleta was not the one to give in here.
“Master, when are we having our wedding?”
Ippolito's expression became subtle. But Maleta was confident and continued to push Ippolito. Half of it was because she was too excited to see Ippolito's reaction, and the other half was the leisure of the one who had the upper hand. The attitude was, “What if I tell you I’m having a baby and you don’t like it? What if marriage is a foregone conclusion?”
“Have you spoken to His Eminence the Cardinal and Madame Lucrezia? When will you give it to me? Will you give it to me, Master? It’s better than what I’m doing, right?”
Ippolito's expression finally cracked. It was a change that came as soon as the cardinal’s eminence was mentioned. No matter where you look, it does not look like the face of a young father who is happy to have a child.
“Yes, Maleta.”
Ippolito hurriedly received Maleta’s words.
“I should tell my parents. Now that we’re on the subject, that’s good. I’ll go tell my mother right now.”
He quickly got up.
“Don’t go anywhere, just wait here quietly.”
Ippolito asked Maleta to take care of herself.
"Yes, yes!"
Maleta cried with joy. And about an hour passed after Ippolito left. Maleta did not expect that Ippolito would go to Cardinal de Mare and his wife, confess to them that she was pregnant, and immediately set a date for the marriage. But when he didn't come back for an hour, she started to get anxious.
‘No way, did he run away...?'
It's not that she hasn't thought about it, but she still wondered if he would go that far. Maleta made up her mind. Even if Master Ippolito runs away, the best strategy is to crush him in this house. They say they cut off the eldest grandson of their only son, so they must be kicked out.
While Maleta was thinking about this and that, the door opened. Maleta smiled and stood up from her chair.
"Young Master?"
But what came in droves were completely unexpected people. They were Aunt Loretta, who became Lucrezia's new confidant after the death of Giada, the head maid, and several servants under the butler Niccolo.
“This nonsense! An unmarried virgin eats with her husband without any sense of shame?!”
"Yes? Yes?"
“I don’t know who you worked with, but you can’t stay in this mansion anymore!”
“What kind of guy are you? Of course, Master Ippolito's child....”
“Shut up! Quick, get that bitch out!”
The servants sent by the butler Nicolo grabbed Maleta's limbs.
“Ahh!”
Maleta crouched to protect her lower abdomen but was lifted into the air by the burly men, each of whom grabbed her limbs.
“Eww!”
Maleta struggled desperately.
“You guys! Let go of me! Do you know whose child is in my stomach? It’s Master Ippolito’s child!”
When she screamed, Loretta became embarrassed and slapped Maleta in the face.
“You, be quiet!”
“There is a child of Master Ippolito in my stomach!”
"Young Master?"
But what came in droves were completely unexpected people. They were Aunt Loretta, who became Lucrezia's new confidant after the death of Giada, the head maid, and several servants under the butler Niccolo.
“This nonsense! An unmarried virgin eats with her husband without any sense of shame?!”
"Yes? Yes?"
“I don’t know who you worked with, but you can’t stay in this mansion anymore!”
“What kind of guy are you? Of course, Master Ippolito's child....”
“Shut up! Quick, get that bitch out!”
The servants sent by the butler Nicolo grabbed Maleta's limbs.
“Ahh!”
Maleta crouched to protect her lower abdomen but was lifted into the air by the burly men, each of whom grabbed her limbs.
“Eww!”
Maleta struggled desperately.
“You guys! Let go of me! Do you know whose child is in my stomach? It’s Master Ippolito’s child!”
When she screamed, Loretta became embarrassed and slapped Maleta in the face.
“You, be quiet!”
“There is a child of Master Ippolito in my stomach!”
“This is so simple!”
Loretta took the dirty dishtowel out of her front pocket in a hurry and stuffed it into Maleta's mouth.
"Ugh!! Ugh!!"
An indecipherable cry came out of Maleta's mouth, whether she hated the dishtowel in it, wanted to speak, or was suffocated. But Loretta was satisfied that Maleta had shut up for now.
“Let’s go!”
She led the men out of the second floor where the family lived and quickly headed to the annex downstairs. It was connected to the kitchen, used as a place to wash dishes and store, and where the maids were punished and processed.
Loretta took the dirty dishtowel out of her front pocket in a hurry and stuffed it into Maleta's mouth.
"Ugh!! Ugh!!"
An indecipherable cry came out of Maleta's mouth, whether she hated the dishtowel in it, wanted to speak, or was suffocated. But Loretta was satisfied that Maleta had shut up for now.
“Let’s go!”
She led the men out of the second floor where the family lived and quickly headed to the annex downstairs. It was connected to the kitchen, used as a place to wash dishes and store, and where the maids were punished and processed.
***
An hour ago, Ippolito had left his room and headed straight for his mother, Lucrezia's room on the first floor. It was definitely not to ask for permission to marry.
"Mom."
“My son, for some reason came to visit his mom first.”
“Mom, your son is in big trouble.”
“What, what’s wrong? Just tell me anything. Mom will take care of it.”
Ippolito mumbled as he looked at Lucrezia's eyes before speaking. Even Lucrezia, her son's fool, seemed to have a hard time getting over it this time.
“That’s... You know...”
"It's okay. Trust your mom and tell me.”
“...Maleta is pregnant.”
Lucrezia let out a roar from deep within her stomach, loud enough to cause a landslide.
"What?!"
“Mom, Maleta is pregnant. Please do something about it.”
In normal circumstances, it would have been normal to ask the son, “What do you want to do?” But when Ippolito came here, the son’s true intentions were clear. He did not want to take responsibility.
“Oh my, you bastard!”
Lucrezia slapped her grown son, who was at least a hand and a half taller than her, on the back.
"Mom."
“My son, for some reason came to visit his mom first.”
“Mom, your son is in big trouble.”
“What, what’s wrong? Just tell me anything. Mom will take care of it.”
Ippolito mumbled as he looked at Lucrezia's eyes before speaking. Even Lucrezia, her son's fool, seemed to have a hard time getting over it this time.
“That’s... You know...”
"It's okay. Trust your mom and tell me.”
“...Maleta is pregnant.”
Lucrezia let out a roar from deep within her stomach, loud enough to cause a landslide.
"What?!"
“Mom, Maleta is pregnant. Please do something about it.”
In normal circumstances, it would have been normal to ask the son, “What do you want to do?” But when Ippolito came here, the son’s true intentions were clear. He did not want to take responsibility.
“Oh my, you bastard!”
Lucrezia slapped her grown son, who was at least a hand and a half taller than her, on the back.
Bam!
This time, Ippolito also knew that he had done wrong and took the blow obediently without showing any sign of pain.
“I knew you would do this, I knew it, seeing you being such a brat!”
“Oh, I understand, so please do something!”
Lucrezia scolded her son, looking at Ippolito who was on the verge of tears.
“You! Straighten your shoulders! Stand tall! A man shouldn’t walk around like that.”
Ippolito was confused by his mother's order to stand up straight and proudly, having beaten him for his mistake 30 seconds ago. However, Lucrezia paid no attention and straightened her son's back and the wrinkled coat that she had beaten. There was a hint of anger in her hands, and it seemed as if she was beating him again.
“That can happen when a man lives! Don’t be so intimidated that you walk around sloppily!”
It was truly a great education for her children. Nevertheless, leaving Ippolito curled up on the sofa in her mother's room, Lucrezia pulled the strings and called for her new maid, Loretta. She was not someone she had had for as long as Giada, but she was her classmate from Taranto.
“Loretta! Bring me, Butler Niccolo! No, I will go to Niccolo now.”
Lucrezia searched the room for gold coins to bribe Niccolo. The bag she took out of the closet contained mostly silver florins, with only a few gold ducats remaining. Lucrezia frowned and took out Isabella’s pink sapphire tiara from deep in the chest of drawers.
“Loretta. Please leave this at the pawn shop in the afternoon and exchange it for Ducato gold coins.”
Lucrezia decided to use the last of her gold coins to rescue her son from the powerful maidservant. Her eldest son was her lifeline, the last love of her life that could not be explained logically. Ippolito had to meet the only daughter of a noble family, good and docile if not royalty. Her son’s destiny was to become a great nobleman who had acquired land through marriage and to blend in with the society of San Carlo. Nothing else was acceptable.
“I knew you would do this, I knew it, seeing you being such a brat!”
“Oh, I understand, so please do something!”
Lucrezia scolded her son, looking at Ippolito who was on the verge of tears.
“You! Straighten your shoulders! Stand tall! A man shouldn’t walk around like that.”
Ippolito was confused by his mother's order to stand up straight and proudly, having beaten him for his mistake 30 seconds ago. However, Lucrezia paid no attention and straightened her son's back and the wrinkled coat that she had beaten. There was a hint of anger in her hands, and it seemed as if she was beating him again.
“That can happen when a man lives! Don’t be so intimidated that you walk around sloppily!”
It was truly a great education for her children. Nevertheless, leaving Ippolito curled up on the sofa in her mother's room, Lucrezia pulled the strings and called for her new maid, Loretta. She was not someone she had had for as long as Giada, but she was her classmate from Taranto.
“Loretta! Bring me, Butler Niccolo! No, I will go to Niccolo now.”
Lucrezia searched the room for gold coins to bribe Niccolo. The bag she took out of the closet contained mostly silver florins, with only a few gold ducats remaining. Lucrezia frowned and took out Isabella’s pink sapphire tiara from deep in the chest of drawers.
“Loretta. Please leave this at the pawn shop in the afternoon and exchange it for Ducato gold coins.”
Lucrezia decided to use the last of her gold coins to rescue her son from the powerful maidservant. Her eldest son was her lifeline, the last love of her life that could not be explained logically. Ippolito had to meet the only daughter of a noble family, good and docile if not royalty. Her son’s destiny was to become a great nobleman who had acquired land through marriage and to blend in with the society of San Carlo. Nothing else was acceptable.
***
While Lucrezia negotiated with the butler Niccolo, Ippolito tossed and turned on the sofa anxiously. It took Lucrezia thirty or forty minutes before she returned, and when his mother returned to the room, Ippolito jumped up from the sofa like a fish jumping and asking his mother.
“Mom, what happened?”
“I handled it well.”
Lucrezia took off the gown she had been wearing and placed it on the sofa, glaring at her son. Lucrezia was planning to admonish Ippolito in a rare maternal manner. However, the content of the admonition was a little strange.
“Man, you can have some fun. If you play, you might have children or something like that. But that’s it.”
Ippolito was startled by his mother's serious expression, which was rare for Ippolito, and buried his head in his shoulder like a turtle.
“You can’t do that before you get married.”
It seemed normal at first glance, but it was subtly wrong.
“You’re not planning on marrying some idiot, are you?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“Who would marry a man with an illegitimate child? A noble young lady in her right mind would not make such a choice.”
Ippolito swallowed hard. He had no title or lands to inherit. If he did not receive his father-in-law’s things through his wife, he would become a commoner after his father’s death.
“Once you get married, you can do whatever you want after that. If the girl gives birth to a child, will she run away to her parents' home? After that, you can do whatever you want. Until then, be careful!”
It was an understandable story even at Ippolito's level of ethical awareness. He nodded.
“You, just this time, your mom took care of it. There is no next time!”
Ippolito then grinned, perhaps feeling relieved. Ippolito's laughter appeared innocent in Lucrezia's eyes, spreading a wide smile. He clung to her mother and slapped him in a way that was not appropriate for his size.
“After all, there is only one mother. I am my mother’s son, and my mother is the best.”
Ippolito, who was shaking Lucrezia's arm, asked secretly.
“Mom, then how did you kill her? Did you throw her into the Tiber River?”
Lucrezia's complexion has worsened.
"Son?"
"Why?"
“You really... But she is a woman who is pregnant with your child. How can you be so cruel?”
Lucrezia had a straight face as if she had never killed a servant before. By taking care of her son, Lucrezia plunged the life of someone else's precious daughter into an abyss, but unusually, this time, Lucrezia did not even think about killing Maleta.
“Who would marry a man with an illegitimate child? A noble young lady in her right mind would not make such a choice.”
Ippolito swallowed hard. He had no title or lands to inherit. If he did not receive his father-in-law’s things through his wife, he would become a commoner after his father’s death.
“Once you get married, you can do whatever you want after that. If the girl gives birth to a child, will she run away to her parents' home? After that, you can do whatever you want. Until then, be careful!”
It was an understandable story even at Ippolito's level of ethical awareness. He nodded.
“You, just this time, your mom took care of it. There is no next time!”
Ippolito then grinned, perhaps feeling relieved. Ippolito's laughter appeared innocent in Lucrezia's eyes, spreading a wide smile. He clung to her mother and slapped him in a way that was not appropriate for his size.
“After all, there is only one mother. I am my mother’s son, and my mother is the best.”
Ippolito, who was shaking Lucrezia's arm, asked secretly.
“Mom, then how did you kill her? Did you throw her into the Tiber River?”
Lucrezia's complexion has worsened.
"Son?"
"Why?"
“You really... But she is a woman who is pregnant with your child. How can you be so cruel?”
Lucrezia had a straight face as if she had never killed a servant before. By taking care of her son, Lucrezia plunged the life of someone else's precious daughter into an abyss, but unusually, this time, Lucrezia did not even think about killing Maleta.
This is because Lucrezia, who only knows herself, feels sympathy for this situation as it overlaps with what she experienced in the past. Today's incident reminded Lucrezia of the times when she was young, tying up her boat with a cotton cloth and going to see Cardinal de Mare, or rather, at the time, Friar Simon.
How arduous and difficult was it to be abandoned by a man and find a place to lay one body, or rather two bodies, while carrying a young life in your stomach. The memory of that time aroused a rare glimmer of mercy in Lucrezia. Lucrezia was feeling proud of her own kindness. However, Lucrezia's long-standing good deed was shattered by Ippolito's next remark.
“Mom, she knows too much. I heard Arabella has a different father.”
"What?!"
“Mom, she knows too much. I heard Arabella has a different father.”
"What?!"
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