boyutpedia Chapter 232 The Legend of Zhen Huan, Consort Qi 45
Chapter 232 The Legend of Zhen Huan, Consort Qi 45
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the Emperor, mindful of An Lingrong's pregnancy, specifically instructed her not to attend any banquets and to focus on her pregnancy.
Night fell as dark as ink, silently enveloping the entire palace. Chunzhu helped An Lingrong, preparing for her to rest.
Just then, a series of scattered sounds came from outside the hall, which were particularly abrupt in the quiet night.
An Lingrong frowned and asked softly, "What's going on outside?"
"Your Highness, this servant will go and see right away." Chunzhu hurriedly left the bedroom, leaving two second-class palace maids to continue serving An Lingrong.
Since An Lingrong became pregnant, she has become increasingly cautious. She has been secretly observing the three or four palace maids assigned by the Imperial Household Department for several months. She has not found anything wrong with the two maids so far, and they usually do some chores such as serving tea and water. She rarely lets them serve her closely.
However, as An Lingrong's pregnancy progressed, it became inconvenient to have only one personal maid by her side, so she promoted them to work alongside Chunzhu.
In the courtyard, several eunuchs and maids were whispering among themselves. In the daytime, such commotion might go unnoticed, but now, in the dead of night, with the surroundings completely silent, even the softest whispers could travel far.
"Have you heard? Consort An's father has been arrested," a young eunuch said in a low voice.
"Yes, the news has spread. But the Emperor is busy with New Year's affairs, and Consort An's father is currently imprisoned in Chuzhou (Chuzhou governs Songyang County). The Emperor suppressed this matter so that Consort An could focus on her pregnancy." Another palace maid chimed in.
"It's embezzlement, right? I heard he embezzled nearly 500,000 taels. A seventh-rank official, how dare he be so audacious," the young eunuch added.
"That's right. When Consort An entered the palace, the Emperor promoted her father from the eighth rank to the seventh rank out of respect for her. I never expected her father to be so audacious."
As soon as Chunzhu came out, she heard their discussion. Her expression immediately turned serious, and she shouted, "What nonsense are you talking about here? This matter is not allowed to be discussed in Yanxi Palace. Get back to work!"
Chunzhu knew that this matter was of great importance. An Lingrong's pregnancy was already unstable, and she would definitely be shocked if she heard this news.
She tried to compose herself, forced a smile, and entered the bedroom, saying softly, "Your Majesty, please go to sleep. A cat suddenly darted out and startled the maids in Yanxi Palace. The eunuchs are helping to catch the cat, but the noise was a bit loud and disturbed Your Majesty."
Chunzhu took the work from Xiazhu, picked up a backrest pillow, and carefully helped An Lingrong sit up.
An Lingrong frowned slightly, her gaze sweeping over Chunzhu, who looked somewhat guilty. She immediately understood that this was no small matter. She gave Xiazhu and Qiuzhu a look, signaling them to leave.
"Speak, what is it? Don't hide it from me." An Lingrong's voice was slightly hoarse, but it carried an undeniable authority.
Chunzhu stammered, looking guilty. Seeing An Lingrong's firm gaze, she could only tentatively say in a soft voice, "Your Majesty, please don't be angry. It's just a small matter. Please don't take it to heart."
"Speak quickly!" An Lingrong's voice became sharp, her expression solemn. She knew in her heart that this must be a big deal, after all, the Empress and Zhen Huan's methods had never stopped in the past few months.
“It’s…it’s your father…He’s imprisoned in Chuzhou. I heard he embezzled nearly 500,000 taels of silver. The Emperor has ordered that you not know about this…” Chunzhu gritted her teeth and blurted out the truth.
Upon hearing this, An Lingrong's eyes widened, and her emotions fluctuated violently.
Although she always disliked her humble origins, she was still, in public, the daughter of an official family.
At that moment, a sharp pain shot through her abdomen. Overwhelmed with mixed emotions, An Lingrong murmured to herself, "It was Zhen Huan, it must have been Zhen Huan..."
"Ah! My stomach, my stomach hurts so much..." An Lingrong's attention was instantly drawn to the pain in her abdomen, and the intense pain brought her back to her senses.
Chunzhu reached out and touched the quilt, finding a pool of blood. She was shocked, realizing An Lingrong had gone into premature labor. Fortunately, she was already past seven months; if she were any earlier, the baby wouldn't be fully developed, and she might have miscarried.
"Your Majesty, please bear with it a little longer. This servant will send someone to fetch the midwife and the imperial physician right away." Chunzhu quickly ran out and gave instructions to Xiazhu and the others, while she stayed by An Lingrong's side.
At this moment, An Lingrong is in labor pains, and it will probably be a long time before she gives birth.
……
In stark contrast to the chaos at Yanxi Palace, Chuxiu Palace was serene. Xiao Lengzi entered the palace and saw Wen Yuan intently painting in the study, so she waited quietly to the side.
Wen Yuan finished her painting, looked up, and asked with a puzzled look in her eyes, "What is it?"
"Your Majesty, news has come from Yanxi Palace that Consort An is about to give birth, and the Empress has already gone there," Xiao Lengzi replied respectfully.
"Let's go. Have Jingfu come with me, and Fanglan stay here to take care of the Seventh Prince. The situation in the harem is chaotic right now, and there's no guarantee that nothing unexpected won't happen. We also need to increase the number of people guarding the Sixth Prince. You go and handle this personally. We absolutely cannot let those villains succeed," Wen Yuan said solemnly.
After saying this, Jingfu stepped forward to help Wenyuan straighten her clothes, and then Wenyuan boarded a sedan chair and headed towards Yanxi Palace.
When Wen Yuan arrived, Yi Xiu, Zhen Huan, and all the other concubines were already present. Everyone wore a solemn expression, seemingly very concerned about An Lingrong, but whether they were truly human or a ghost, no one could tell.
After Wen Yuan bowed to Yi Xiu, she sat down on a bench in the courtyard. Not long after, the Emperor arrived in haste from the Hall of Mental Cultivation with his entourage. The New Year celebrations were not yet over, and apart from staying at Jingren Palace on New Year's Eve, the Emperor had been staying at the Hall of Mental Cultivation for the past few days.
"Greetings to His Majesty." Everyone bowed in greeting.
The Emperor impatiently flicked the eighteen-bead bracelet in his hand and said, "Alright, all of you, get up. How is Consort An?" The Emperor looked at Yixiu and asked.
"This... I heard that she was born prematurely because she learned about Anbi Huai's situation..." Yi Xiu looked completely innocent, as if she knew nothing about it.
A barely perceptible chill flashed in Zhen Huan's eyes as she thought to herself: An Lingrong, you've finally met your match. You sent someone to tell me about my father's imprisonment, and today I'll let you taste that bitterness too. Let's see if you survive.
The Emperor was extremely agitated. He had clearly instructed his subordinates not to inform An Lingrong of this matter. He swept his gaze across the faces of the concubines present and demanded, "What exactly happened?"
"Alright, what did the imperial physician say?" the emperor continued.
Yixiu looked worried and said, "Consort An has always been in poor health. It has been so many years since she conceived this child. Now that she has gone into premature labor, I'm afraid the situation is not good..."
"You must ensure the safety of mother and child, or I will hold you accountable." The Emperor didn't want to hear any of this and directly ordered the head of the imperial physicians.
Yixiu never intended for An Lingrong to live and had already secretly arranged for her to survive.
Wen Yuan naturally wouldn't let Yi Xiu succeed. An Lingrong's pregnancy resulted in a sickly daughter, which she didn't care about. Besides, An Lingrong had a long-standing feud with the Empress and Zhen Huan. Keeping An Lingrong around would only make the waters of the harem even more turbulent.
Furthermore, Yixiu currently does not hold power in the palace; most of the power in the harem is in Wenyuan's hands. If something goes wrong during her time in power, wouldn't that give Yixiu an excuse to reclaim power? That would be a huge loss.
Wen Yuan had already arranged for a loyal midwife and a loyal imperial physician to assist An Lingrong in giving birth. If all else failed, she would give An Lingrong some medicine to facilitate childbirth; in short, she absolutely could not allow anything to happen to An Lingrong.
Inside the delivery room, An Lingrong's hoarse cries echoed. Just as one of the midwives arranged by Yixiu was about to begin, she was stopped by another midwife.
"What are you trying to do?" the midwife asked, trying to stop her.
"Didn't you see I was delivering the baby?" The midwife looked flustered and sounded guilty.
"Is this powder needed for childbirth?" The midwife who was trying to stop her held her down tightly, preventing her from moving.
The noise from their argument caught the attention of An Lingrong and Chunzhu. A fierce glint flashed in An Lingrong's eyes, and she said hoarsely, "Quick, Chunzhu, hold her down!"
"Yes, Your Majesty." Chunzhu had some strength and, together with another midwife, held the other midwife down and even found a rope to tie her up.
"Your Majesty, you need to conserve your energy now. You're only five centimeters dilated, so it will probably take a while longer," the midwife comforted you softly.
An Lingrong held the midwife's hand tightly, her eyes filled with hope. Pain washed over her like a tidal wave, but she could clearly feel the presence of the child in her womb.
"I entrust everything to you. Once I give birth to the child safely, I will reward you handsomely." An Lingrong's voice was hoarse, but it was firm.