Chapter 63 Chapter 63 Will her cub be okay? ...

Before she became pregnant, Li Shuyao always felt that the maids in the palace always treated her like a child.

After having a baby, these maids become even more excessive!

——Just treat her as a little fool.

Li Shuyao puffed up her cheeks and did not dare to argue with the old nanny sent by the Cining Palace. She could only pick up the teacup and drink water in small sips, while giving Qingyao an angry look.

Guo Luoluo Qingyao: "..."

The nanny was clearly praising Shu Yao, why was Shu Yao glaring at her?

Qingyao touched her nose with an innocent expression, then picked up the teacup and started drinking water.

Like Li Shuyao, she did not dare to argue with Li Shuyao at this time. After all, she was pregnant with a baby. If she was upset in broad daylight, she might hold her belly at night, cry and say bad things about her to the baby.

...Forget it, I'd better bear with it and wait until the baby is born.

After drinking the warm water, the two sat together and chatted for a while.

Qingyao stood up leisurely and said goodbye.

Li Shuyao was still a little surprised. Whenever she went to Yiku Palace before, she would not leave until the palace gate was locked. She thought Qingyao would do the same, but she didn't expect that she would leave so soon?

A faint feeling of reluctance suddenly welled up in Li Shuyao's heart.

When he sent Qingyao to the gate of Changchun Palace, he hung his head and grabbed Qingyao's sleeve, shaking it, and refused to let go no matter what.

Nanny Yan had no choice but to come over and coax her: "Your Majesty, you have worked hard moving the palace today..."

Before she could finish her words, Li Shuyao glanced up at her and softly retorted, "I wasn't tired. It was Jiarou and Yueshu who worked hard, as well as the palace maids sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs to clean up Changchun Palace in advance, and the palace maids from Qianqing Palace who helped me move things... They did a lot of the physical work, and I was just carried here on the sedan chair."

"So, Mammy, I'm not tired."

Nanny Yan was choked by her words, and it took her a while to find her voice, "This old slave meant that the Majesty must have worked hard to be pregnant..."

"It's not hard at all. He's so tiny." Li Shuyao made a circle with her fingers. "He's so light inside my belly that it's like nothing. Why would it be hard?"

Nanny Yan suddenly didn't know what to say.

She had served in the palace for thirty or forty years, and had never seen a concubine who spoke so... so bluntly and frankly.

Seeing this, Aunt Zhao from the back hurried over to help: "Your Majesty, the Emperor is coming today, why don't you go and make some preparations first?"

What is there to prepare? She is pregnant and the doctor said she can't have sex.

So what does the emperor do when he comes here? At most, he will talk, eat, read a book, and then lie down on the bed and take a nap together.

He left as soon as I woke up. What were you preparing for?

She would rather stay with Qingyao for a while longer. After all, Qingyao's story was not over yet. Did the scholar surnamed Xu pass the imperial examination and become the top scholar? And what happened to the young lady surnamed Wu?

And that corrupt official, and that skilled and ruthless hero...

Well, it’s good to know traditional Chinese characters.

Qingyao went to read the storybook to read the stories, but as she read... she started to learn to recognize big characters.

In the end, Qingyao had to trouble her to tell her the story.

Li Shuyao stood at the gate, grabbed Qingyao's sleeve and shook it for a long time. After getting several assurances from Qingyao, she let her go reluctantly, watched her walk through the two vermilion gates, and waved to her while standing at the gate of Yiku Palace.

Li Shuyao quickly put on a smile and waved her right hand vigorously at Qingyao.

The two smiled at each other, then turned around and returned to their respective palaces.

*

The palace maids sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs were quickly handed over to two maids for placement and training.

Two days later, Nanny Yan led four beautiful palace maids to stand in front of Li Shuyao and introduced them to her, "Your Majesty, the other palace servants have been settled, and the positions of the eight third-class palace maids have also been roughly determined. Only these four second-class palace maids need Your Majesty to come and give them names personally."

Li Shuyao sat on the couch and looked at the four palace maids with curiosity.

She turned around and asked Nanny Yan, "Do I really have to name them?"

"What were their names before?"

Nanny Yan nodded before saying, "Their names were all chosen by the Imperial Household Department. This one is called Qiao Xiang, the one next to Qiao Xiang is called Ru Yu, the one next to Ru Yu is called Cui Er, and the one next to Cui Er is called Dian Yan."

After saying that, Nanny Yan came over again and lowered her voice to tell Li Shuyao that these were the unwritten rules in the palace. Ordinary maids who cleaned the house and those of the third rank were fine, but maids of the second rank and above basically had to be given names by the mistress to show her appreciation.

It will also make it easier for them to discipline and control the palace maids in the future.

Li Shuyao nodded, then suddenly remembered something and asked Nanny Yan, "Do I need to name Jiarou and Yueshu too?"

"It's not naming, it's bestowing names," Nanny Yan corrected her before saying, "They've both been with the Empress for a long time, and their bond is extraordinary, so whether they're bestowed with names or not doesn't really matter."

Even if Concubine Ling did not give them a name, the palace maids would not dare to look down on these two.

Li Shuyao nodded as if she understood, then looked at the few young palace maids not far away.

"Lift your heads up and let me see."

Several palace maids lowered their eyes and raised their chins, their gazes still fixed on the floor.

Li Shuyao took a few glances and pointed at the palace maid on the far left, saying, "From now on, the four of you will be called Plum, Orchid, Bamboo and Chrysanthemum."

"Smell the plum blossoms, orchids, the sounds of bamboo, and invite the chrysanthemums."

After she said the last name, Nanny Yan coughed twice to interrupt her.

Nanny Yan said, "The Empress's name contains the character 'yao', and the 'yao' in 'yaoju' sounds the same as 'yao'. Why not change the character?"

Li Shuyao blinked and didn't say yes or no. Instead, she asked her, "Then Yueshu's name must also be changed."

"What about Qingyao? The 'Yao' in Qingyao's name sounds exactly like my 'Yao'."

She said: "I am just an ordinary concubine, why should I have so many taboos?"

"And the word 'Yao Ju' sounds really nice. It took me a long time to come up with it."

"If you don't like it, Mammy, then you can change it. I can't think of any other nice words anyway."

The last sentence is the key point.

After Li Shuyao finished speaking, she shrugged her shoulders and spread her hands towards Nanny Yan with an innocent expression, indicating that she really had no ideas left in her mind.

Nanny Yan understood the implicit meaning of her words, and her weathered face gradually showed a hint of helplessness.

Then he gave Li Shuyao a straight look, thought for a moment, and said to Li Shuyao: "How about Wanju?"

"Bowl, which bowl? The bowl for eating?" Li Shuyao asked.

Nanny Yan shook her head and said, "I want to keep you here."

Li Shuyao thought about it and thought it sounded pretty good.

Thus the names of the four second-class palace maids were given.

After they knelt down and kowtowed to Li Shuyao, they were led away by Tian Jiarou and Yue Shu to assign tasks.

In the past few days, the emperor has been looking for the name cards of Changchun Palace. Even though he knows that Li Shuyao cannot sleep with him, he is very happy to come and accompany her.

They ate together, talked, and then touched Li Shuyao's belly. His handsome face was full of anticipation for the child.

But Li Shuyao felt extremely restrained.

Probably because Qingyao wanted to leave as soon as he came.

Not only do I have no stories to tell, but I also have to run around serving him...

Well, actually, it wasn't that she was really busy running around. It was just that Li Shuyao tried hard to make herself look mature, sensible and thoughtful, like a concubine who had worked as a concubine for more than ten years and had superb skills and qualities.

If you look closely, she actually didn't do anything.

——It was just like supporting the bottom of the teacup when Tian Jiarou was pouring tea, or closing the book and putting it aside when the emperor finished reading; or helping the emperor stick his fork into the snacks before he enjoyed them; or handing him a handkerchief when he washed his hands...

In the eyes of the emperor, it was like a naive little kitten that had been pampered for a long time, and suddenly became clingy one day.

Who can resist the attention of a pretty little kitty?

Even though it looks a little clumsy, a little rustic, and a little...

Well, it doesn’t matter, as long as she is willing to spend time and effort on me.

The emperor thought so.

But after flipping the sign in Changchun Palace for several days in a row, he was also afraid that Li Shuyao would become the target of criticism from the concubines in the harem.

So from that day on, the emperor began to flip through other people's signs, and the one he flipped through was Chengqian Palace.

When Li Shuyao heard the news, she immediately smiled with joy.

Nanny Yan and Nanny Zhao were secretly surprised.

For a moment, I even wondered if Li Shuyao was so sad that she couldn't even control the expression on her face.

The two were thinking about how to persuade Li Shuyao to relax.

On the other side, Li Shuyao had already pulled Tian Jiarou and Yue Shu and walked quickly back to her bedroom. She walked to the small room at the back where clothes were stored, rummaged around for a long time, and finally packed out a small package.

"I'm going to Yikun Palace to sleep with Qingyao today!"

"You two should discuss who will stay in Changchun Palace and who will come with me."

Tian Jiarou and Yue Shu looked at each other.

Without thinking, he knelt down in front of Li Shuyao with a plop.

He knelt down so suddenly that Li Shuyao didn't have any chance to react.

Then the two of them said in unison: "My Lady, no!"

Li Shuyao: "..."

She took a deep breath, feeling that the two of them had become bad people during the few days they stayed with Nanny Yan and Nanny Zhao!

How come you've learned to play the victim?

If you want to sell it, just sell it...

She went to Qingyao's palace now, out of sight, out of mind.

Li Shuyao took a step forward with a stern face, walked around the two of them and was about to leave.

But who would have thought that as soon as he reached the door of the bedroom, he ran into Zhao Ma who came in holding a large tray.

Nanny Zhao had brought her some snacks. As she entered, she saw Li Shuyao walking out quickly, carrying a small package. Her delicate, fair face was filled with determination and solemnity. She then looked at Tian Jiarou and Yue Shu, who were still kneeling on the ground behind her, crawling forward miserably...

Aunt Zhao vaguely felt that she understood something.

She quickly put the tray down, turned around and shouted to the door, "Sister Yan, come quickly!"

Li Shuyao was shocked when she heard this!

He subconsciously threw the small package under the table.

Then he put his hands behind his back, stood there with puffed cheeks, and blinked at Zhao Ma, as if to say, I didn't do anything, I'm not afraid even if you come to find Nanny Yan.

Nanny Yan came over quickly.

Nanny Zhao walked quickly to her side and recounted what she had just seen.

The next second, Nanny Yan looked at Li Shuyao with a stern face.

Li Shuyao took a step back.

Nanny Yan took several steps forward.

Li Shuyao simply turned around and ran back to her bedroom, then closed the two doors and said she didn't want to face the angry Nanny Yan no matter what.

Woohoo, even though she was wrong, she will dare to do it again next time!

Next time, she would just wait until Nanny Yan goes out and then sneak away.

…

Li Shuyao stayed alone in her bedroom for more than half an hour.

After the voices outside gradually faded away, she carefully opened the door, poked out her little head, stared at her eyes like bells, and pricked up her two ears like antennas, carefully observing the movements outside.

It seems like they have really all left.

Shouldn't...shouldn't he hide in the dark, wait for her to come out, and then suddenly jump out to scare her?

No, no, she has a baby in her belly now.

Even if Nanny Yan was angry, she wouldn't wait in the dark just to scare her.

Thinking of this, Li Shuyao quickly opened the two doors, and the door leaves made two long "creaking" sounds on her left and right.

But it was still quiet outside.

It seems that there is really no one here.

Li Shuyao walked out cautiously and tiptoed.

After a while, he found that the small package he had packed earlier had been taken away by Nanny Yan.

She came to the outer room again. The door was not closed, and several palace maids and eunuchs were standing under the eaves at the door on duty.

When they saw Li Shuyao coming out, they knelt down and saluted her.

Li Shuyao absentmindedly called out, "Get up!" and then asked them, "Madame Yan, Madame Zhao, Jiarou, and Yueshu, where are they?"

A young palace maid stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, Madam Zhao is currently in the small kitchen, while Madam Yan has taken Sister Jiarou and Sister Yueshu to the Yikun Palace."

"Yikun Palace? What are they doing there?"

She hasn't gone yet.

Why did Nanny Yan go there first?

After Li Shuyao finished asking, she came to her senses and asked the young palace maid, "When Nanny Yan left, was she very angry?"

The young palace maid shook her head. "Madame Yan's expression is the same as usual. It's hard to tell whether she's angry or not."

After the little palace maid finished speaking, she seemed to remember something and said "Oh" again, "Oh, right, before Nanny Yan left, she assigned Xiao Shunzi to go to the Cining Palace to invite Aunt Suma. It seems that she wanted to check, or look at the Yikun Palace or something..."

"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I really didn't hear the rest of your words clearly." After the little palace maid finished speaking, she apologized to Li Shuyao.

However, Li Shuyao's mind was no longer on this at all.

She felt a little ashamed because of her momentary willfulness, she wanted to run away and spend the night with Qingyao, but she ended up causing such a fuss... and even alarmed Su Malagu who was far away in the Cining Palace.

...If Su Malagu knew it, how could the two ancestors not know it?

Li Shuyao also understood what Nanny Yan meant.

She didn't actually want to stop Li Shuyao from interacting with the Yikun Palace, but she was just worried that there might be something unclean in the Yikun Palace...

Thinking of this, the guilt in Li Shuyao's heart was like a tsunami, almost swallowing her whole.

Seeing that she looked dazed and didn't say anything, the little palace maid couldn't help but feel worried.

So he called out softly, "Empress Lingpin?"

She asked, "Madame Yan and the two sisters have already gone. Does Concubine Ling want to go too..."

"No." Li Shuyao replied in a deep voice to the little palace maid.

She decided to be nice.

Just wait, wait until Nanny Yan finishes checking the Yikun Palace, then she will go find Qingyao to play.

and……

This might be a good thing.

A lot of the plot about the heroine Uya in the original novel has been lost by Butterfly, an outsider to the book.

Because Uya had no chance to be favored by the emperor, she was unable to give birth to the fourth prince Yinzhen.

And if the fourth child is gone, the fifth child might become the fourth child.

Calculating the time, it won’t be long before Qingyao becomes pregnant. At the latest in a year, Li Shuyao will be able to hear good news from Yiku Palace.

Therefore, it was also a good thing for Qingyao that Nanny Yan took people to check the Yiku Palace at this time.

Yes, that's it!

Li Shuyao comforted herself a little in her heart, and then she felt much more relaxed. She turned back to the main hall and waited quietly for news.

*

That afternoon, Nanny Yan brought Tian Jiarou and Yue Shu back from Yiku Palace.

When they came back, the expressions on their faces were not very good.

Li Shuyao was sitting on the couch reading a book. When she heard the footsteps of several people, she quickly turned around and bumped into Nanny Yan's eyes, which were cloudy but still shone with a sharp light.

She was so frightened that the pages of the book in her hands trembled.

Li Shuyao quickly put the book down and asked quietly, "What's going on?"

Nanny Yan shook her head, still hesitating whether to tell Li Shuyao about the dirty things that happened in the palace.

Yue Shu couldn't help herself and complained directly to Li Shuyao, "Your Majesty, you don't know what we found in Yikun Palace this afternoon..."

"What is it?" Li Shuyao became curious when she heard it.

She climbed down from the couch with eager eyes, put on her shoes, walked to the table, and poured a glass of warm water for Nanny Yan and the others.

Nanny Yan was startled and quickly reached out to take it.

He thanked Li Shuyao together with Yue Shu and the others, then turned sideways and drank the warm water in small sips.

Li Shuyao held the handle of the teapot, feeling that she was somewhat useful.

So after they finished drinking, she raised the teapot in her hand and asked them with bright eyes: "Do you want more water? I'll pour you some more."

Nanny Yan shook her head, walked over and took the teapot from her hand, then said, "Don't bother your majesty, we can do it ourselves."

"Oh, that's great." Li Shuyao bit her lip, put her hands behind her back, and consciously gave up the empty seat at the table.

Then he just watched them drink up a full teapot of water.

At this moment, Li Shuyao's curiosity instantly reached its peak.

So, before Nanny Yan and the others even put down their teacups, she couldn't wait to speak. "Nanny, you haven't told me yet, but what did we find in Qingyao's palace this afternoon? Even someone as experienced and resourceful as you feels it's a bit tricky. It must be something very special, right?"

Nanny Yan nodded.

Instead of getting straight to the point, he came over and helped Li Shuyao sit down on the couch.

Yueshu had already moved a few small embroidery cushions over.

Several people sat in a circle around Li Shuyao.

Tian Jiarou spoke first, "Your Majesty, do you still remember how many items Aunt Suma took from our palace that day?"

Li Shuyao nodded. "I remember. It was about this big bamboo basket. Aunt Suma searched out two bamboo baskets of things in a row."

After she finished speaking, she suddenly realized something, and her almond-shaped eyes widened suddenly: "Could it be that the things found in Qingyao Palace are more than what we have in our palace?"

Several people nodded at the same time, and Yue Shu's voice was obviously mixed with some fear, "It's more than a lot."

She thought for a moment and asked Li Shuyao, "Your Majesty, do you still remember those large vats used to store water that you saw in the Palace of Heavenly Purity?"

She said, "The things we found in Concubine Yi's palace today could fill two large jars!"

Tian Jiarou added, "When we left, Concubine Yi said she was going to take people to the Palace of Heavenly Purity to file a complaint with the Emperor. I think she's on her way now."

At this time, Nanny Yan also sighed, "But Concubine Yi has been living in Yikun Palace for nearly five months, and Yikun Palace was once the residence of the Empress. It has been so long, and I wonder what the Emperor can find out."

Li Shuyao was stunned again and again when she heard this.

It took a long time to digest their words in my mind.

My first reaction was worry – “Qingyao has lived here for so long, is she okay?”

Nanny Yan shook her head. "In the afternoon, someone from the Imperial Hospital came to check Concubine Yi's pulse. Her pulse was normal, so I think she should be fine."

After she finished speaking, she looked at Li Shuyao's belly again. "Most of the things found in the Yikun Palace have the effect of preventing pregnancy. Even if you are lucky enough to get pregnant, it will be extremely difficult to survive the first three months if you are under the influence of those things for a long time, let alone a safe birth."

Li Shuyao: "..."

She touched her belly thoughtfully.

My mind is a mess.

She simply lowered her head, stretched out a few slender fingers like scallions, made a number nine, and said to Nanny Yan, "I became pregnant in the ninth month."

September was the month after the grand enthronement ceremony, when the empresses in each palace were busy with their own affairs and had no mood to pay attention to her.

——It is also the time period when she is most favored.

At that time, the emperor would often summon her to the Qianqing Palace to accompany him, so she slept on the dragon bed for almost twenty days in a month.

By October, the weather had gradually cooled down and was no longer as hot as in July and August. So when she went to play with Qingyao, she would usually stand outside the door and wait for her to come out. Then they would go to the Imperial Garden hand in hand. When they were tired, they would rest in the pavilion until the sun set, and then they would return to Yiku Palace.

After talking for a while and eating something, she went back to the outer room to sleep.

This continued until the end of November, when it began to snow in the Forbidden City, and she and Qingyao began to spend more time in the Yiku Palace.

Until she found out she was pregnant...

Thinking of this, Li Shuyao suddenly felt a little scared.

Will her cub be okay?