Chapter 607 Shield 17

Consort Liang obediently withdrew. After all, there was indeed a huge pile of memorials on the imperial desk. If it were her, she probably wouldn't be able to finish reviewing them all in a day. Not to mention reviewing them, just reading them would make her feel tired.

After she left, the Emperor summoned Rongquan and asked, "Is there anything unusual?"

"The Qi family sent a message to Consort Liang's palace last night, but the specific content was not found out. Consort Liang burned the letter directly."

The emperor originally had no suspicions about the Qi family.

After all, the Qi family had been honestly guarding the frontier for generations and had made countless military achievements. As long as they did not rebel, he was willing to give them more honor.

Therefore, as soon as he ascended the throne, he named Qi family's daughter as one of his four consorts, and he would also give her some rewards from time to time.

But sometimes, he can't help but have doubts.

After dismissing the palace servants, the Emperor summoned the head of the secret guards and ordered, "Send men to keep an eye on the Qi family. Report back immediately if there is any disturbance. Also, find another opportunity to visit Qi Wei's study."

The leader of the secret guards received the order and disappeared from the main hall in the next second.

...

Being an emperor is not easy; being a good emperor is even more difficult.

He also wanted a harmonious relationship between the emperor and his ministers, and for the dynasty to prosper. But these ministers who held great military power could overthrow his dynasty in a matter of minutes. What could he do?

That evening, he went to Consort Liang's palace—to have a meal with her.

Alas, being an emperor is a very pitiful job. Not only do they have to work tirelessly day and night to govern, but they also have to sacrifice themselves for the country. If this family business hadn't been passed down from their ancestors, they would have quit long ago.

Consort Liang was overjoyed to see the Emperor come to her palace; it had been so long since the Emperor had visited her.

The small kitchen prepared a table full of exquisite dishes. After tasting the poison, the emperor ate with great relish. Every now and then, he would have the eunuchs serve some of the best food to Consort Liang. The meal was a delightful one for both host and guests.

Just as the Emperor put down his chopsticks, a young eunuch hurriedly entered the hall and whispered something in Rongquan's ear.

Rong Quan hurriedly stepped forward to report, "Your Majesty, Lord Bai has entered the palace, saying he has important matters to report."

The Emperor put down the handkerchief he had used to wipe his mouth and immediately stood up. "Consort Liang, please enjoy your meal. I'm returning to Chaoyang Palace now. I'll come and keep you company again when I have time."

Consort Liang only had time to say "Respectfully seeing off Your Majesty" before she looked up again and found that the Emperor had already disappeared.

Her face looked rather pale.

He then summoned his trusted aides: "Go and see if Lord Bai has really entered the palace?"

"It is Your Majesty."

Lord Bai did indeed enter the palace. As the Minister of Justice, it was no small matter for him to seek the Emperor's help. Consort Liang was relieved by the Emperor's hasty departure.

What she didn't know was that Lord Bai was sent to the palace on orders.

The young eunuch had also received advance notice that as soon as the emperor put down his chopsticks, Lord Bai should "enter the palace."

On the third day, the Emperor visited Consort Liang's palace again and stayed overnight.

However, according to the records of the Imperial Household Department, Consort Liang was on her period and it was inconvenient for her to serve the Emperor.

Seeing that the Emperor was not going to leave, Consort Liang, who had initially suspected that the Emperor was just being perfunctory, dispelled her doubts. She then tactfully explained that it was inconvenient for her to serve him. However, the Emperor acted magnanimously and refused to go to the side hall to sleep with Consort Liang's maid. Instead, he stayed with Consort Liang on her bed for three days.

He could have slept with her, after all, she was his woman, and he had slept with her before.

But the woman in Zhu Yan Palace is carrying his child with great difficulty. If he were to favor someone else for his own comfort at this time, he would feel that he is doing her a disservice!

Moreover, Qi Wei has been making frequent moves recently. If Consort Liang is really pregnant with his child, he fears that his own safety will be in danger. Therefore, it would be better to nip it in the bud.

Soon, rumors spread throughout the palace that the Emperor intended to make Consort Liang Empress.

Upon receiving the news, Consort Xian was unwilling to accept it. That very night, she pulled off her son's blanket. The eldest prince was five years old and already had a weak constitution. After being tossed around all night, he developed a high fever in the middle of the night.

In order to evoke the Emperor's paternal instincts, Consort Xian deliberately waited until the child was delirious with fever before sending someone to fetch the Emperor, and, incidentally, the imperial physician as well.

However, she misjudged the status of her and her son in the emperor's heart.

The Emperor returned to Zhu Yan Palace rather late tonight. Just then, Ning Xuexian was woken up by the baby kicking. The Emperor found it strange, and the couple touched their bellies excitedly for quite a while. Moreover, the Emperor, being a bit of a rascal, noticed the baby was still restless and went in to greet it. This commotion lasted until midnight.

The two had just gone to bed when a servant came to report that the eldest prince was ill. The emperor impatiently scolded the servant and sent him away with the words, "I am not a royal physician, get out of here."

When the Emperor didn't arrive, Consort Xian's face was understandably grim. In front of all the palace servants, she began to curse Consort Shu, the woman who had bewitched the Emperor.

She cursed Consort Shu and Consort Liang, and then she couldn't stand her own son anymore. She thought the eldest prince was useless and couldn't win his father's favor, so she simply handed the child over to a palace maid and went back to her room to sleep.

As a result, at dawn the next day, the eldest prince suddenly passed away.

The Emperor was deafened by the wailing in Consort Xian's palace. He knew the child had died, so he went over to take a look, instructed Rongquan to handle the funeral arrangements properly, and then returned to Chaoyang Palace.

It wasn't that he was heartless; it was just that this child was a disgrace to him. If it weren't for the fact that the Empress was still his mother and keeping him in check, he wouldn't have kept the child and Consort Xian together.

Who would have thought that his cousin would resort to any means to marry him, even drugging him herself? He realized something was wrong, so he turned and went to the backyard.

To his surprise, the woman was so foolish that she also drank the drug and had sex with the guard outside his study after he left, and even got pregnant.

Of course, he didn't know about this originally.

After that night, Consort Xian went to her mother and said that the two had been intimate. They had indeed embraced each other, and he had broken free and run away, but his mother forced him to take him into the Crown Prince's residence.

Two months later, she happily announced that she was pregnant. Yin Chen didn't know how to describe his feelings. He, the crown prince of a country, was forced to marry a woman he didn't like, and he was also cuckolded!

After investigating for a long time, the investigation finally led to his own bodyguard.

Because the young man had been by her side for many years, he had developed feelings for Consort Xian. Coincidentally, Consort Xian was drugged that day, and the two had sex. Afterwards, he left early, and Consort Xian thought that he was the one who had shared the room with her.

Yin Chen had considered letting his cousin die, but she managed to avoid it three times by chance.

The saying goes, "Things shouldn't happen more than three times." After surviving three attempts, he stopped.

Later, she was made a virtuous consort because of the Empress Dowager's sake, and also because of his own ulterior motives. Having that child could also silence some people's gossip, which is why they have been allowed to stay until now.

Now that the eldest prince is gone, to be honest, he doesn't feel any heartache at all.

Consort Xian cried her heart out in the palace, filled with regret. She shouldn't have tried to use her own son to curry favor with the Emperor.

But there is no medicine for regret in this world.

Consort Xian is ill.

She was ill for more than a month. After the imperial physician examined her, he said that she had phlegm obstructing her mind and that she was somewhat insane.