The palace maid said gravely, "You may leave; I have something to discuss with the Old Madam."
The Old Maid asked curiously, "What is it? It seems quite serious."
"Indeed! There's trouble with the Prime Minister."
"Is it that the Prime Minister has taken his twentieth concubine again? Rest assured, all these years, the Old Madam has come to terms with it. The Prime Minister, at his age, still doesn't settle down. He has such a wonderful daughter, the Empress, and he's still not satisfied, wanting to bring about a son. I tell you, these matters of sons are all determined by fate. As the saying goes, whatever is meant to happen, will; if it's not meant to be, don't force it. Think about it, the Prime Minister barely managed to bring the Young Master into the world, and Heaven took him back. I think the Prime Minister simply isn't fated to have a son; such is the nature of these things, they can't be forced."
