Chapter 47 Almonds and Peach Kernels

The fake pregnancy pills are designed to be quite humane; if the user is not affected by external forces, the pregnancy will naturally miscarry within one to six months. However, if the user is affected by external forces or medication during this period, corresponding reactions will occur.

Logically speaking, Shen Meizhuang has been pregnant for less than three months, and it's still a long way from six months.

Unless... someone couldn't hold back and made a move.

When Xia Zi came to report, all the concubines were there, and naturally, they couldn't escape the large group of people who followed the Emperor and Empress to Xian Yue Pavilion.

Also arriving late was Consort Wan, who had just been pardoned by the Emperor from confinement.

As soon as Zhen Huan entered the room, she felt the atmosphere inside was unusually heavy. In the middle of summer, the windows were tightly closed and thick curtains were hung in front of the door to block out the heat. The oppressive heat and the lingering smell of blood made her involuntarily hold her breath and frown.

The emperor stood in the hall for a long time with an extremely ugly expression. The strong smell of blood made it clear almost instantly what had happened.

The Empress looked inside with concern, her face full of anxiety. She turned to the Emperor and said considerately, "Your Majesty, the smell of blood here is too strong. Please wait outside to avoid harming your health."

The Emperor didn't say anything, but his actions confirmed the Empress's statement. He shook his head with a tight smile and walked out with disappointment in his eyes.

Su Peisheng set up stools in the courtyard, and everyone, covering their faces with handkerchiefs, followed him out of the house. Only Zhen Huan hesitated, looking inside with difficulty, before finally following the others out.

"Summon Consort Hui's attendants to report back. I need to know how Consort Hui, who was perfectly fine yesterday, could have turned out like this today." He leaned back in his chair, his expression condescending, his cold gaze revealing neither joy nor anger.

Caiyue followed Su Peisheng out of the inner hall, and with unsteady steps, she knelt down in front of the emperor with a thud.

"Your Majesty, I beg you to do justice for my lady!"

Yixiu sat upright and spoke seriously, "You are Consort Hui's closest confidante. Tell me in detail what happened today."

Caiyue's eyes were bloodshot and swollen like walnuts. She spoke in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty and Empress, our Consort has been feeling contractions and coldness in her lower abdomen for the past two days. The imperial physicians couldn't find any symptoms and only said that she had miscarriage. But this morning, shortly after having breakfast, her stomach started to hurt. She thought that drinking some hot soup would help, but it got worse and worse, and soon she started bleeding!"

She became more and more agitated as she spoke, her voice trembling with emotion—"Your Majesty! Our Consort has always been in good health; she wouldn't have fallen ill like this without a reason. Please, Your Majesty, investigate thoroughly!"

Listening from the side, Lü Yingfeng couldn't help but ask, "Caiyue, has Consort Hui eaten anything she hasn't eaten before? Or used anything she hasn't used before?"

Caiyue seemed to have thought it through all along, and shook her head decisively—"No, Your Majesty has been very careful since you became pregnant, and you have been using the same things you are used to, without changing to anything new."

Consort Hua, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up: "Since you said that the incident happened after you had breakfast, is there anything left? Why don't you let the imperial physician take a look?"

Lu Yingfeng glanced at Consort Hua with surprise, thinking to herself that that familiar, mischievous feeling had returned.

Yinzhen flicked the yellow tassel in his hand—"Do as Consort Hua says."

Before long, Jiang Shen walked out of the inner palace with his hands hanging down. He carefully threw off his robe and bowed, his tone quite low and regretful: "Your Majesty, I am incompetent. Consort Hui's pregnancy could not be saved."

Having already guessed the outcome, Zhen Huan still felt a pang of anxiety upon hearing the imperial physician's pronouncement. She almost couldn't help but stand up, wanting to go in and see what was happening, but Jinxi cautiously pulled her back and quietly shook her head.

"What!"

Unexpectedly, someone was even more agitated than her. Nian Shilan, who had been calm and composed, couldn't help but take half a step forward upon hearing this—"The child...didn't survive?"

Upon hearing Consort Hua speak, Jiang Shen's forehead reflexively broke out in a sweat. He lowered his head and replied with difficulty, "Yes, Consort Hui seems to have used some cold-natured medicine, and the child can no longer be saved."

Perhaps feeling that Consort Hua's reaction was excessive, Cao Qinmo gently tugged at her from behind. After receiving a fierce glare in return, she reluctantly withdrew her hand, feeling inexplicably guilty.

The emperor slowly opened his eyes. For a moment, the intense emotions in his eyes almost overflowed, but in an instant, they became as dark and deep as an ancient well without any ripples. He raised his finger and pointed to several porcelain bowls on the ground in front of him—"Take a look at these. Is there a problem with them?"

Jiang Shen followed instructions and stepped forward, taking out his needle pouch from his bosom. He then touched each silver needle to the food, pastries, soup, and porridge, examining them carefully against the light for a long time before frowning and putting them back. He picked them up one by one, brought them to his nose to smell, and then took a small amount and put it in his mouth.

Finally, his gaze settled on a plate with only one and a half almond cookies left.

He picked up the plate and asked Caiyue, "How many days has Consort Hui been eating these pastries?"

Caiyue said, "We've been serving it every other day for about eight or nine days now. These past few days, Your Majesty has been feeling nauseous after eating jujube paste and yam cake, so we've switched to almond shortbread instead."

Jiang Shen nodded, then turned to the Emperor and said, "Your Majesty, Consort Hui's miscarriage was caused by this plate of almond shortbread."

"Can almond cookies cause miscarriage?" Yixiu asked, voicing the question that everyone present was curious about.

Jiang Shen said, “Almond shortbread is made with sweet almonds, so it will not cause miscarriage. But this dish uses peach kernels instead of sweet almonds. Peach kernels are similar in appearance to almonds, but peach kernels are cold in nature and have the effect of promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis. Pregnant women who eat too much of this will naturally harm the fetus.”

"How is the Imperial Kitchen doing its job!" The Emperor's face darkened with anger, and the atmosphere of an impending storm swept through Xian Yue Pavilion.

Consort Hua raised her eyes and looked up, suppressing the panic in her heart, and forced herself to say, "Your Majesty, in my opinion, the Imperial Kitchen often makes almond shortbread, so they would not make a mistake. This matter... must have been done on purpose by someone."

Upon hearing this, the entire courtyard fell silent, eerily quiet.

The Empress also looked back with curiosity, wondering what Nian Shilan was up to this time.

Seeing that the Emperor and Empress were looking at her, as if they wanted to hear her opinion, she gritted her teeth and finished the rest of her sentence—"How about... we investigate who handled this plate of pastries and who has taken the peach kernels within the last half month?"

Yinzhen was in a bad mood and didn't speak. After a long silence, he waved to Su Peisheng, signaling him to do as Consort Hua said.

As the sun rose higher, the suppressed moans of pain from Shen Meizhuang, which could initially be heard, gradually faded away. Just as the Emperor was growing impatient, Su Peisheng, his men drenched in sweat, hurriedly entered.

As he approached, his gaze subtly swept over Zhen Huan.

With just that one glance, Zhen Huan's heart clenched, and a bad premonition spread up her spine.

"Your Majesty," Su Peisheng called softly, pointing to the eunuch behind him who was holding a thick book in his hands.

"This booklet records who handled this plate of pastries; please take a look, Your Majesty." He bowed, gesturing for the eunuch behind him to hand the booklet to the Emperor, pausing briefly before continuing, "As for who took the peach kernels..."

"Within half a month, only Consort Guan was recorded as having taken it."