Chapter 63 Dealing with Xinyue

The autumn scenery in the Imperial Garden is still enjoyable, but due to the cold weather, there are few visitors. Only the palace servants pass by in groups with quick steps from time to time.

Most people dare not stop to take a look at the situation here.

A gust of cold wind blew over. The people on the sedan chair had curtains and long-handled round fans held by palace maids to block the wind, so the people standing in front of the car seemed to have their clothes swaying, making them look even more pitiful and shivering.

Seeing her mother being humiliated, the Queen was also embarrassed. How could she bear this? She turned to Qingzan and said, "Are you rebelling? Who allowed you to sit up there and talk to me?"

Doukou stepped across and stood in front of the sedan chair: "This is His Majesty's order, of course His Majesty approved it."

At the Queen's signal, Jin Yu came over and stiffly dragged the man away: "Master, we just need to listen carefully."

The Queen, intent on showing off in front of her mother, whispered, "Mother, did you see that? How despicable it is to see a villain succeed."

Of course she knew His Majesty's order, but she dared to ask someone to get out of the sedan chair, so she must have her reasons.

The wife of the Marquis of Yongning looked at Qingzan silently, with hatred between her eyebrows, but more of it came from empathy for another person... This look, after all, was more servile and fawning, which made people feel more comfortable and happy. If it were not for this, she might not have agreed to let her husband keep the child.

She patted her daughter's hand on her arm without saying a word.

Given her status as a lady of noble birth, it would only be disadvantageous for her to speak up at this time, so she could only give her daughter a chance to perform.

The Empress, trying even harder than usual to maintain her composure, approached Qingzan and said, "His Majesty, only excused you from the formalities, considering your pregnancy's hardships. He did not allow you to sit in a sedan chair and speak to someone of higher rank than you. How disrespectful is this, confusing the distinctions?"

She glanced at the palace maid behind her and forced out a few words from between her teeth: "Do I really need you to be invited personally?"

If the person in front of her was really pregnant, perhaps she would take the royal heir into consideration and might even grit her teeth and swallow this loss together with her mother.

Unfortunately, no one knew better than her what was in her stomach. It was just a pipe dream!

Qing Zan said gently, "Get out of the sedan chair."

She did not fight against the queen anymore, but her gentle and submissive appearance did not appease the queen. If she had not been good at disguising herself, how could she have deceived the king and climbed to this position?

Once hatred arises, whether it is a frown or a smile, whether it is joy or anger, it is all equally hateful.

However, as she watched the sedan chair being taken off the bearers' shoulders and placed on the ground with a clang, the queen still raised her brows with satisfaction and pride.

As long as she is the queen, she will remain the most honorable person in the harem.

Seeing the sedan chair coming down, Doukou wanted to help, but her arm was firmly held in Jinyu's hand, and she tried to struggle twice.

Didn't break free.

Who told the master not to let her break free!

Qingzan was about to get down, but at this moment she slipped and fell back onto the sedan chair. No one saw what happened between the curtains. They only heard Concubine Ying let out an almost shrill scream, and then she fell onto the seat of the sedan chair, holding her stomach tightly.

This sudden change made everyone present confused. Doukou suddenly shook off Jinyu's hold and rushed to Qingzan, crying hysterically and desperately, "Master, Master, how are you?"

Perhaps due to emotional contagion, the wife of Marquis Yongning also became anxious for a moment.

But isn't the baby in her belly fake? What's going on here?

Only after realizing Qingzan was acting did Lady Yongning regain her composure, her terrified mind returning to a state of calm. She stepped forward and pulled her dazed daughter to her side. A calm expression had been put on her face as she whispered to her daughter, "See what she wants to do."

The Queen and her mother exchanged a glance, and the uneasiness in their hearts suddenly dissipated. Yes, there was no way Qingzan was in trouble! How could she be in trouble if she wasn't pregnant?

However, behind the veil of the sedan chair, the figure holding his lower abdomen seemed to be in great pain, and the pain was getting more and more severe, and he was completely unable to speak.

Doukou commanded the guards and said, "What are you waiting for? Go get the imperial physician! Quick, quickly lift the sedan chair and take the master to a safe place."

The frightened people finally felt like they had found a backbone. Although they were still in panic, they finally started to work in accordance with their duties.

Just like the incident with Concubine Yang a few days ago, since it concerns the royal heir, he can only be placed nearby.

The closest place to here is the Queen's Fengzao Palace.

The empress specially arranged for him to stay in the simplest side hall. When the emperor rushed over after hearing the news, Qingzan was lying unconscious on the couch with his eyes tightly closed and his face pale.

"What's going on?" He asked a question as sharp as a frosty blade, but ignored everyone in the hall, and only glanced coldly at the wife of Marquis Yongning who entered the palace today.

As soon as someone entered the palace, something happened today?

The wife of Marquis Yongning rarely faced the majesty of heaven, and she seemed to be so guilty that she lowered her head and avoided it.

Upon hearing this, Concubine Hui followed her usual style and reported the situation to the emperor impartially without being biased towards either side.

But the truth pointed to the Queen. So she was prepared for one, or two, poisonous glares, but today the Queen didn't even look at her, not even a hint of anger or annoyance.

That's strange.

The imperial physician arrived later.

The Queen stood silently with her mother until she saw Doctor Fang and another highly respected Doctor Lin arrive together. Her expression suddenly relaxed a little.

She eagerly called for the imperial physician, "Go and take a look at Concubine Ying. How could she have collapsed so suddenly when she was perfectly fine?"

This gave Doukou the opportunity to complain, so she suppressed her tears and said, "How could she fall down just like that? It's clearly the Empress who insisted that the master get out of the sedan chair, and she kept saying, kept saying..."

"What did you say?" The emperor brushed the hair of the person on the couch, trying to keep his voice as soft as not to wake her up.

But the calmness still made everyone tremble.

"Tell me, if the master doesn't come down, the Queen wouldn't mind personally inviting the master down!"

"Please" with words is no longer enough. The so-called "please" naturally means using power and force.

"How dare you!" The emperor was furious and everyone knelt down.

The queen's knees weakened, and she managed to speak: "Your Majesty, the most important thing now is to let the imperial physician examine my sister's condition."

Without the Queen's instruction, Imperial Physician Lin had already stepped forward.

Although Doctor Fang did not receive the Queen's look asking him to step back, as a person with younger seniority, he would not go past Doctor Lin.

However, he was the only person in the palace, besides the queen and her daughter, who knew what would happen next.

Once the news of Concubine Ying's fake pregnancy is exposed, even if he claims that he was coerced and had to help Concubine Ying to commit fraud, he will definitely not be able to escape the blame.

Doctor Fang kept wiping the sweat off his face with his sleeves. He didn't even have the courage to get close to the bed and could only watch from afar.

At the bedside, Imperial Physician Lin, his beard all white, stood. He had practiced medicine for half his life, his skills always excellent. But today, he seemed unable to reach a conclusion. After completing the consultation, he still seemed to be confused: "Your subordinate needs to take another look."

The corners of the Queen's mouth curled up. Doctor Lin must have discovered something was wrong, but he didn't dare to say it without repeated confirmation.

Imperial Physician Lin had indeed noticed something was amiss. After a long pause, he stood up, then bent down again and reported everything to the Emperor. "Both the Imperial Concubine and the unborn child are in good health and are not seriously ill. It's just that I don't know why she hasn't woken up yet. Furthermore, the Imperial Concubine's pulse is a little weak, but it's unlikely to be a sudden event and won't affect the unborn child."

The Queen was hoping that Doctor Lin's words would deliver a vicious blow, but she didn't expect this result...

How is this possible? Could it be that Doctor Lin had been bribed a long time ago?

Her face froze. "Doctor Lin, please take another good look. You must not lie to His Majesty. You must tell the truth."

One of the concubines questioned, "Isn't it a good thing that there's nothing serious? Why does the Empress say that? It's as if she can't accept that the Concubine is fine."

The Queen was confused and didn't know how to defend herself. This was not what she couldn't accept! She turned to her mother, wanting to ask for help, but the look in the eyes of the Marquis of Yongning was full of condemnation and disappointment.

At this moment, Concubine Zhao suddenly pushed her cousin Concubine Hui from behind.

Concubine Hui suddenly stood up and had to say something:

"This matter was dangerous, but fortunately no disaster occurred. This was all thanks to the great blessings of Daliang, the Queen Mother, and the noble concubine. Your Majesty was also destined by heaven and was blessed by heaven."

Consort Zhao also said, "Exactly. If it weren't for God's blessing, I really don't know what would have happened. Could it be that the Empress is hoping something bad happens to Concubine Ying? It's fine if you and Concubine Ying are at odds, but if you're hoping for an heir because of this... then you deserve to be killed!"

The queen suddenly felt as if she had swallowed a handful of coptis. That was not what she meant!

The emperor had already made his decision, and now his expression intensified. "The Empress Dowager has failed to live up to her moral standards and has disgraced herself as an example. I deduct one year's salary and confine her to her house for six months without imperial decree. The Phoenix Seal will be temporarily relinquished to the Taiji Palace. Furthermore, Marquis Yongning's wife, Zhu, is forbidden from entering the palace until Concubine Ying safely gives birth."

Even the grace given to the Yongning Marquisate was withdrawn? The Queen wanted to immediately reveal that Qingzan was a fake pregnancy and wanted to torture Imperial Physician Lin to extract a confession.

If His Majesty asked her how she knew it, she could just say that she had spies in Chengluan Palace...!

As soon as she opened her mouth, the wife of Marquis Yongning stopped her in time.

She warned her daughter not to act rashly again.

This act of forbearance resulted in one of the mother and daughter being confined to the house, while the other was expelled from the palace.

This confinement was different from the previous house arrests under the pretext of illness; it still retained some tenderness. The moment the imperial decree was issued, rumors spread like wildfire, shaking the seas and mountains.

Until she separated from her mother, the Queen kept asking, "Mother, why didn't you let me expose her? Mother, don't you understand? Today's incident was a trap set by her. She just wants to frame us! Doctor Lin is hers. As long as we can prove that she is faking the pregnancy, Your Majesty will know that we are innocent."

The wife of the Marquis of Yongning was also full of doubts, but no matter what, this matter would never be that simple.

She urged her daughter to calm down. "The key to this matter lies in her pregnancy. Since the fake pregnancy wasn't her doing, and she was able to exploit it, she must have known about our plan long ago. How could she leave such a big loophole for her opponent? Your Majesty, keep a low profile so that you can plan for the future."

Before the mother and daughter could say a few more words, the executioner came over with a cold face.

On the other side, after Doctor Lin confirmed that Qingzan was fine, the emperor personally picked up the unconscious woman and wanted to return to Zhaoshui Palace.

He thought that she probably wouldn't want to stay in Fengzao Palace.

But just as the emperor carried the person away from the bed, the woman in his arms woke up.

She immediately curled up like a soft, overcooked shrimp, burying her head in the emperor's arms, and cried out in a weak voice, "It hurts so much..."

Xiao Fang held her tightly, but his heart suddenly began to beat fast. He couldn't believe that he would be so upset and flustered because of her voice.

It was as if he could always be easily provoked by her.

The emperor was unable to move for a moment, his voice tense: "Where does it hurt? Tell me."

Qing Zan grabbed the collar of his robe and said, "My hands, feet, everything hurts, it hurts like needles pricking me."

The emperor could only take her back first: "I will carry you back first."

When they returned to Zhaoshui Palace, Doctor Fang, who had survived the disaster, was nowhere to be seen. Doctor Lin and Chan Yi examined Qingzan again and again, but neither of them could tell what was wrong.

Qingzan's brows, which were almost twisted into a knot, relaxed a little on their own: "I feel much better now."

This improved her condition, and she reached out to stroke the emperor's brow as he sat on the edge of the bed. "Your Majesty, please don't frown. Actually, I've been in pain from time to time these past two days, so it's obviously not a serious illness. I'm still full of energy, isn't it?"

Xiao Fang felt an unprecedented softness in his heart, and his thin lips pursed into a line: "Is this what you call full of energy?"

Qingzan forced a gentle and indifferent smile to deal with him.

At the side, Doukou added to Imperial Physician Lin, who was baffled by the mystery of this difficult illness, "The master has been experiencing bouts of pain lately, but fortunately the symptoms are not severe... at least not as severe as when he was in Fengzao Palace."

The more Doctor Lin talked, the more confused he became. A lot of his white hair fell out, and he said he had to go back to read the medical classics.

The Empress Dowager also sent Nanny Lian to visit. When Nanny Lian heard the mysterious symptoms, she had a guess in her mind.

However, it was not easy to tell the emperor about such supernatural things, so he could only hurry back to discuss it with the empress dowager.

But no matter what, the Queen Mother meant that the two pregnant concubines in the palace had accidents one after another, and this matter could not be easily resolved, and must be investigated thoroughly.

It was quiet in Zhaoshui Palace, with the emperor and his concubine lying and standing inside and outside the curtains.

Until someone else came in. It was the foreman of the eunuchs who were in charge of removing the furnishings and utensils from Fengzao Palace today. He claimed that he had something to discuss with the emperor, and that this matter was of such importance that he could not speak without seeing the emperor.

Only then did Xiao Fang finally leave the bedside.

Qingzan sat up, leaned against the head of the bed, and looked at the emperor's tall and straight figure walking away, a little absent-minded.

Today's commotion was quite big. People came one after another like leeks in the fields, leaving and growing again. It is only now that things have quieted down.

Doukou found an opportunity and hurriedly asked, "Master, why are you taking such a risk? I'm so scared! Since the Empress set this up, she'll definitely expose your fake pregnancy. Why don't we just wait for her to make a move, then catch her off guard?"

Qing Zan patiently explained, "We can't delay. If we wait for the Queen to take the initiative, I don't know how much time will pass. But Doctor Fang will definitely come to check my pulse every month."

The Queen might ask Doctor Fang to test her to see if she had discovered anything. Furthermore, if she used the same method to conceal her pulse next time, it would inevitably arouse suspicion. Therefore, she had to take preemptive action before the next pulse check, the sooner the better.

The queen believed that she was not pregnant, so she would naturally act eccentrically and without restraint, and even wanted to make a big deal out of it, so she would cooperate with her actions.

The emperor returned quickly.

He waved his black sleeves and said, "Everyone, retreat."

Then he bent down, took the woman's slender hand on the couch, and placed it on his lips: "I'm not going anywhere today. Tomorrow morning, I will give you an explanation."

Qingzan could probably guess what the person who wanted to see her said.

But she pretended not to know: "Hasn't Your Majesty already given me instructions? I am already grateful for this result."

Seeing her clueless expression, the emperor leaned closer and gently stroked her cheek with his thumb. "We'll talk about this tomorrow. Get some rest first."

But perhaps because he had returned from outside, he was also contaminated with the chilly autumn air, and there was always a kind of coldness between his brows that showed the extreme restraint of emotions.

Qingzan gently patted the bed beside him.

He had done the same thing to her, but at that time he was in a superior position, waiting for her to come closer and surrender at her leisure.

Today, when she did it, it felt as natural and close as that of lovers.

The emperor's heart moved, but he did not take off his boots and get on the couch. He just sat on the edge of the couch and asked jokingly: "Aren't you afraid that I will do something to you?"

"That's right. At this time and in this place, I'm not that bad."

Seeing that he didn't move, Qingzan simply sat up and gently hugged his waist from behind: "Your Majesty, what's wrong?"

His mood was so abnormal, had he discovered something? But she was still pregnant, so even if he was suspicious, he wouldn't get angry with her.

Xiao Fang raised his hand and stroked the pair of soft arms that were pressed against him in front of him, and narrowed his eyes.

"Nothing, just some regrets."

She regretted that in order to fulfill her father's promise, she had needlessly given the position of Empress to a vicious and stupid woman; she regretted that she had sought fame and reputation and could not give justice to her biological mother for the so-called false reputation of the royal family; she regretted having such a weak spot, and was helpless time and time again and could not protect her.

The emperor finally lay down beside her.

Suddenly, he felt that he was being a bit inappropriate. She was pregnant, yet he still wanted her to be submissive to him in every way.

He no longer frowned, but embraced her and said jokingly, "When men and women clash, each wants to make the other truly convinced. Today, I will not let you submit to me on this couch any longer. Guess what's left?"

Qingzan was stretching one of her slender arms across the man unscrupulously, and she was using his arm as a pillow to sleep on.

Perhaps it was because the embrace at that moment was so intimate and comfortable that it made people less sober and they actually thought about it in a daze. If they were convinced, what would be left without the conviction?

"Xin, Yue..." Qingzan felt a sharp pain in his teeth: "Your Majesty, you are so corny!"

The emperor smiled and said, "You guessed right."

He looked at her and gave her a deep look: "I am pleased with you."