Kunning Palace.
"Your Majesty! Almost there! Almost there! Just a little more effort!"
Inside the delivery room, the four midwives looked at the baby who was already halfway out of the delivery room, and all of them had joy on their faces. At this moment, the baby they were holding was like a precious treasure. They didn't even dare to blink, for fear of making a mistake at this crucial moment.
And then came a final, painful scream.
"Waaaaaah!"
The baby who came into the world uttered its first cry, a cry of bewilderment.
Unlike the baby's cries, the midwives were all smiles. The first midwife to take the baby in her hands immediately noticed the baby's genitals and realized it was a boy.
Immediately afterwards, the four of them congratulated each other in unison:
Congratulations, Your Majesty!
"It's a prince!"
Zhang Zisheng, whose face was already extremely pale, suddenly flushed red, and she weakly cried out:
"Quick...quick, bring me here, my child."
One midwife was cutting the umbilical cord, another had already run out to spread the good news, another was noting down the time of the baby's birth, and the last person was handing the crying baby to Zhang Zisheng.
Looking at her infant son in her arms, Zhang Zisheng wept with joy. She struggled to prop her head up, pressing her cheek against her son's tender, soft face, sobbing uncontrollably.
"My child, my child..."
Just then, the curtain was suddenly thrown open, and Qin Ze, who had just arrived, entered the room. He had been running all the way and was drenched in sweat. When he saw Zhang Zisheng holding the child, he was overjoyed. However, in his excitement, his legs went weak, but fortunately, a sharp-eyed midwife caught him in time.
His sudden intrusion was also witnessed by Zhang Zisheng, instantly bringing tears to her eyes, yet she wore a smile on her face:
"Your Majesty, when...when did you return, Your Majesty..."
Qin Ze, supported by the midwife, stumbled forward, his legs unsteady. He opened his mouth to speak, but his lips trembled violently. Only when he was kneeling before the bed could he manage to squeeze out a sound:
"Mother and child... safe... good... good." Overjoyed tears streamed down his face as he reached out and embraced the two children in his arms.
The midwife, sensing the situation, took a few steps back, giving the family of three time and space.
"Your Majesty, your return is just in time." Zhang Zisheng looked at Qin Ze, who was burying his head and crying, with gentle eyes and reached out to stroke his head.
The baby cried incessantly, but his cries were far less loud than Qin Ze's cries at that moment.
He could no longer control his body and, like his newborn son, cried out entirely out of instinct.
Unlike the crying boy and girl, Zhang Zisheng, now a mother, had a smile on her face. She was still touching Qin Ze's head with one hand and gently stroking her son's skin with the other, constantly murmuring softly:
"My child has come into this world today, and you have also returned to my side."
"Your Majesty, this is the happiest day of my life."
She looked at Qin Ze with infinite tenderness in her eyes. At that moment, Qin Ze raised his face, which was covered in tears. His eyes were crying, but his mouth was smiling. The tears and laughter were intertwined, which made him unable to say a word. He could only nod repeatedly with tears in his eyes.
After a moment, Qin Ze slowly began to speak:
"I'm sorry, Zisheng, I've troubled you, I..."
Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Zisheng reached out and covered his mouth: "Your Majesty, don't say such things. You have done nothing to wrong me."
"We each have things we want to do our best to do."
“My child is growing up, and I hope he can be like you.”
Hearing this, Qin Ze looked down at his son. The child's crying had gradually subsided, and he was squinting as if he was about to open his eyes.
Qin Ze bent down and whispered, "Son, you..."
Before the words were finished, the child suddenly opened his eyes, then immediately closed them again, and the crying, which had been gradually weakening, suddenly intensified:
"Wow!"
"Hehehe." Zhang Zisheng laughed heartily, while Qin Ze chuckled in disbelief, scratching his head and jokingly scolding:
"What's there to be afraid of when you see your father?"
Amidst the cries and laughter, Zhang Zisheng asked, "Your Majesty, have you visited your sister?"
Upon hearing this, Qin Ze's smile faded, his brows furrowed, and he said:
"I just got back. Yonghe Palace is nearby, so I went there first, but..."
Upon seeing Qin Ze's expression, the quick-witted Zhang Zisheng's face changed, and she immediately said, "Hurry up and go!"
Qin Ze was taken aback, and was about to speak when Zhang Zisheng hurriedly interrupted him:
"What are you standing there for? Your son is safe and sound. You need to go and check on your sister right away."
"How can you be so foolish at a time like this! Go now!"
"Yes, yes, yes." Qin Ze immediately turned to leave, but just as he reached the door, he stopped, turned back to look at Zhang Zisheng, and said:
"Zi Sheng, thank you..."
"Go quickly, don't waste time!" Zhang Zisheng urged repeatedly.
——
Kunning Palace and Yonghe Palace are not far apart, but sedan chairs are too slow and riding horses is even more inconvenient. Since entering the imperial city, Qin Ze has been constantly running back and forth. Even though he is physically strong, he is now panting heavily.
The intense emotional shift left him utterly exhausted; it seemed to be the first time in his life he had ever felt so tired.
On his way back to Yonghe Palace, he ran into the old woman who had come to deliver the good news.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! The Imperial Concubine has given birth to a prince!"
The sudden good news almost made Qin Ze, who was running wildly, fall to the ground. Fortunately, he had already received some joy moments before, and this time his legs didn't give way. Instead, he ran forward while shouting:
How is Her Majesty?
The old woman's expression changed, and she trembled, not daring to speak. Qin Ze's heart skipped a beat when he saw her expression, and he dared not stop to ask her questions in detail.
Finally, when he gritted his teeth and rushed into Yonghe Palace, everyone he met congratulated him, but everyone's expression was clearly restrained.
It was as if a sense of apprehension was hidden beneath the joy.
This made Qin Ze's heart, which was already pounding so hard it was about to burst out of his chest, beat even faster. After arriving outside the palace, he didn't go in immediately, but stood at the door, trembling, listening to the sounds inside.
"Waaaaaah..."
The baby's cries were exceptionally loud, seemingly even louder than those of his other son.
But this is not the sound he most wants to hear right now.
Ten seconds, twenty seconds, thirty seconds, time passed by, and Qin Ze's eyes reddened again. He couldn't wait to hear the woman's voice, sometimes wild and sometimes gentle.
Even on their wedding day, she still insisted on a martial arts contest. She was not a weak or easily bullied girl. It was precisely because of this that she was able to hold such a position and wait for his return in this vast palace.
One minute, two minutes passed, but the voice still didn't appear. Qin Ze walked forward tremblingly, his face devoid of color, only a pale, sorrowful expression remained.
Just then.
"You little bastard, come out here!" A furious shout suddenly rang out.
Upon hearing this sound, Qin Ze's legs went weak again, and he fell to the ground, tumbling into the palace in a very disheveled state.
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