In the warm spring of March, all things come back to life.

The outside world was full of vitality, but the entire Forbidden City was shrouded in a persistent nightmare.

The death of his eldest son was a greater blow to Kangxi than the combined impact of all his previous children. This cannot be blamed on Kangxi's bias, because it was the truth. The court and the country needed the eldest son to stabilize the people's hearts, so the weight of the eldest son was naturally elevated.

"What's all this rush about?"

As Xiuning returned from Shou Kang Palace in a sedan chair, she couldn't help but frown as she watched the palace servants running past her.

Chunyu glanced back and whispered to Xiuning, "Your Highness, it must be someone from Chuxiu Palace. I'm afraid Prince Baoqing is sick again."

It's a sad story. When Prince Baoqing was born, Prince Chenghu died right around the same time. Not only was the third-day celebration not held, but even the full-month celebration was extremely perfunctory.

That's not all. Prince Baoqing's birth was delayed for too long, so he was a bit weak and would often spit up milk and get sick. Such hurried calls for imperial physicians were common in Chuxiu Palace.

“Prince Baoqing is still by Consort Nala’s side. Judging from this, it’s probably not appropriate to send him to the prince’s quarters.”

How can we send him? With such a frail body, I'm worried he'll die within two days.

The Princes' quarters are currently a nightmare for all the princes; none of the princes who have stayed there have escaped unscathed.

Chunyu nodded with a sense of sympathy, "I heard from the princess that the third princess is also somewhat weak, but there are many things going on in the palace right now, so it has been kept a secret."

Xiuning wasn't optimistic, saying, "You can hide it for a while, but not forever."

If the concubines keep losing their children like this, Emperor Kangxi might really have to resort to metaphysics.

...

Side Hall of Chuxiu Palace

Consort Nara stayed by Baoqing's side, her eyes constantly looking towards the door.

"Why hasn't the imperial physician arrived yet?"

"My lady, it's almost done. Sister Chengxin has already sent someone to urge them on."

"You go too, go quickly, be sure to summon the imperial physician as soon as possible."

Yes, yes.

"..."

After everyone in the room was driven out, Consort Nara, who had been anxious, instantly changed her expression. She lowered her eyes and looked at her pale-faced son lying on the bed, feeling extremely distressed.

There was nothing she could do. She had thought that as long as Baoqing stayed by her side, she could protect him and prevent him from becoming the next Chengqing. But the cruel reality made her despair. Baoqing's only hope of survival in the palace was to die.

Why? !

She had never offended the Empress, yet the Empress repeatedly pushed her and her son to the brink of death. This was true for Chengqing, and now it was true for Baoqing as well.

No matter what, we must protect Baoqing.

Consort Nara drew a line in her mind. It's no wonder she was so determined. Her body had suffered greatly during childbirth, and she would not be able to have another child besides Baoqing. If even Baoqing were to die, her value in the harem would be completely gone, and the Yehenara clan would simply send another member of their clan to the palace to replace her.

"Your Highness, Physician Zhou has arrived."

Chengxin's voice came from outside the door, which also startled Consort Nara, who was still lost in thought.

Consort Nara stood up, her face regaining its anxious expression. "Quickly, invite Imperial Physician Zhou in. Baoqing has stopped waking up again after drinking milk. What's going on?"

"..."

The lively atmosphere at Chuxiu Palace quickly spread to Kunning Palace, causing the usually aloof Hesheli Fangyi to show a rare smile.

But that's not enough. Chenghu is gone, so the princes in the harem should go down and keep him company.

Not only the princes, but if the emperor hadn't been watching them so closely, the two princesses shouldn't have been left alone either.

Completely insane, Hesheli Fangyi only wanted to drag all the imperial heirs out of the palace with her. Since her son was gone, no one else's son could live.

Seeing this, Tan Yun was even less able to advise her mistress. She carefully retreated to the door and discussed with Granny Li what to do. "Your Majesty's actions are really dangerous. If the Emperor finds out," she said, not daring to even think about the consequences.

Tan Yun's worries were exactly what Li Mama wanted to hear. Li Mama glanced into the room, then reached out and pulled Tan Yun aside. "Her Majesty's actions these days are mostly due to the shock of Prince Chenghu's death."

Now, all you need to do is follow the Empress's lead. As for the rest, I will discuss with those outside the palace to try to prevent the Empress from making any serious mistakes. Even if something is done, it cannot be revealed that it was the Empress who did it. Empress Hesheli cannot lose her position as Empress, and the Empress cannot lose her status.

Tan Yun nodded obediently, "Don't worry, Granny, I understand."

Granny Li patted Tan Yun on the shoulder, "Her Majesty is counting on you here."

...

Cining Palace

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang and Emperor Kangxi sat facing each other on the couch. Xiaozhuang fiddled with the Buddhist prayer beads in her hand and sighed softly, "Xuanye, the imperial heirs in the harem are failing one after another. I'm afraid rumors are already spreading in the court and among the common people."

What rumors were circulating? Naturally, they were rumors of overthrowing the Qing dynasty and restoring the Ming, and criticisms of their illegitimate accession to the throne.

"Grandmother, your grandson plans to adopt my fifth brother's daughter and raise her in the palace."

The officials from the Imperial Observatory said that the child had a blessed destiny, and living in the palace would be beneficial for having offspring.

Emperor Kangxi was truly at his wits' end. His children were dying one after another. If it were caused by human error, that would be one thing, but some of them were due to their own health issues. Emperor Kangxi couldn't possibly suspect that his poor health was the reason for the high number of his offspring dying young, so he could only attribute the matter to metaphysics and feng shui.

With the Imperial Observatory specializing in this area, it was quite normal to find a princess of noble birth to enter the palace for adoption and to change the fate of the royal family.

Furthermore, the fifth brother mentioned by Kangxi was Prince Gong Changning. His adopted daughter was not born to his primary wife, but to a concubine who was not favored by Changning and was not valued in the household.

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang nodded, "You can make the decision on this matter."

Since Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang did not object, the adoption was decided immediately.

But the matter wasn't over yet. Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang then mentioned Baoqing, the child born to Consort Nara, saying, "If possible, send that child out of the palace to be raised."

Kangxi was taken aback. "Grandmother, I intend to let Consort Nara take care of Baoqing herself. Wouldn't it be too cautious to send her out of the palace?"

While raising a child in the princes' quarters might indeed present opportunities for tampering, keeping the child with their birth mother would at least prevent any major incidents. Besides, Consort Nara is capable of such actions; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to give birth to the previous Chengqing.

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang smiled and didn't explain anything. "Since Your Majesty wants to give it a try, let's leave it at that for now."

Emperor Kangxi was still inexperienced. There are many examples of people who got into trouble while living with their mothers. To say nothing of the distant past, Chenghu is a good example. The power dynamics in the harem are complex and complicated. It is probably not enough for women to protect their children with their own methods.