Chapter 168 Heart Palpitations
Xiao Heng hurriedly said, "Mother, today is Concubine Zhao's birthday. She has always been in poor health and cannot bear to see these things. I will let her rest."
The Queen Mother snorted coldly, "Emperor, please stop defending Concubine Zhao."
"Although I have been in Chongfu Temple for the past few years, I know everything that happens in the palace. No matter how big the incident is, Concubine Zhao always stays leisurely in her Yaohua Palace."
"I don't expect her to be virtuous, but since she is a concubine, she should fulfill her duties as a concubine."
As she spoke, the Queen Mother glanced coldly at the concubines who were secretly delighted.
"How many of these concubines truly want to come here? At least they know how to put on an act! And Concubine Zhao, since entering the palace, has been acting on her own, disregarding palace rules and etiquette, and has no respectful behavior expected of a concubine. If the emperor doesn't stop, the concubines below will follow suit."
She did not go to Chongfu Temple this year because she wanted to see how the queen managed the harem and how her son pampered his concubines.
If the emperor still has no choice when it comes to favoring his concubines, I'm afraid that Concubine Xi who just entered will be the second Concubine Zhao.
If this happens, the harem will be in chaos.
Although Xiao Heng had many complaints about his mother, he also knew that every word she said made sense.
Over the years, he has indeed been too indulgent towards Concubine Zhao.
He nodded and said, "My Queen Mother is right. I will ask Concubine Zhao to change her temper."
The Queen Mother slowly spun the Buddhist beads in her hand, her eyes narrowing slightly. "She may not change with just a few words. We need to teach Concubine Zhao a lesson."
"Then what does mother want?" Xiao Heng asked.
"I won't punish her severely. I'll just ask her to copy the Women's Commandments twenty times within three days."
As soon as the words fell, all the concubines looked at each other, unable to contain their joy.
There are more than 1,600 words in "Legislation for Women". If you read it twenty times, your hands will probably break.
Seeing Xiao Heng's gloomy expression and silence, the Queen Mother raised her eyebrows slightly: "What does the Emperor think?"
A woman's mournful cry came from the delivery room, pulling Xiao Heng back to his senses. He said calmly, "Then listen to the Queen Mother."
What is important at the moment is the unborn royal heir. It is just a matter of copying the "Nujie". Concubine Zhao has always been well-versed in literature, so it should not be difficult for her.
The Queen Mother nodded in satisfaction, then looked at the Queen.
When the queen felt the queen mother's sharp gaze, her heart trembled, and she already knew what the queen mother was going to say.
"Queen, you are in charge of this harem. I don't want to say too much, and I hope you won't let me say too much."
The queen knew that the queen mother was reprimanding her for not keeping the harem under strict control.
Especially the matter of Concubine Zhao, and when the imperial physician asked the emperor whether to protect the eldest and youngest sons, as the mother of a country, she should have immediately advised the emperor to put the royal heir first.
But she also hesitated.
"I have caused you, the Queen Mother, to worry. I hope you will forgive me."
As she said this, the queen knelt down with a look of shame on her face.
The Queen Mother glanced at her calmly and said, "Get up. I'm not blaming you. You are the Queen, and you are in charge of the six harems. Don't worry too much. If a concubine fails to properly handle her status, you must use your majesty as Queen and punish her severely."
These words were of course a warning to the concubines, referring to Concubine Zhao, and were also spoken to Xiao Heng.
The Queen naturally understood that although the Queen Mother was strict and harsh, her words and deeds were all for her own good.
When Concubine Zhao first entered the palace, she was disrespectful to him many times, but the emperor turned a blind eye.
It was the Queen Mother who stepped in to protect herself again and again and severely punished Concubine Zhao, which made her restrain herself a little.
So she respected but was also afraid of the Queen Mother.
The Queen said respectfully, "I will remember your teachings, Mother."
As the night deepened, the clear light filtered through the carved window lattices, coating the table with a layer of cold frost.
It was not until the early hours of the morning that the cry of a baby was finally heard in the delivery room.
Although the voice was small, it struck the hearts of the concubines.
The Queen Mother is old and rarely lives to this hour.
When she heard the baby crying, the tiredness on her face disappeared instantly, and her eyes seemed to be lit with lights, and the light of joy was beyond words.
"It's born! It's finally born!"
Xiao Heng's tense face lit up with joy and he strode forward.
The midwife took the swaddled baby out and said joyfully, "Congratulations, Your Majesty, congratulations, Your Majesty the Queen Mother, Miss Su has given birth to a little prince."
Hearing that it was the little prince, the Queen Mother's smile became even wider. She clasped her hands together, closed her eyes, and chanted, "Amitabha! God bless! God bless!"
"Let me hold you." Xiao Heng reached out and took the little prince from the midwife's arms, his handsome face full of excitement.
After losing a child, he felt even more that this child was hard-earned, and he held him in his arms and looked at him carefully.
The midwife smiled and said, "The little prince was born half a month early, so he is a little smaller."
The Queen Mother watched with delight, "This child is so wrinkled, like a monkey."
"But the nose and mouth are like the emperor's when he was a child."
Xiao Heng's eyebrows were as white as Su's, his eyes full of the joy and tenderness of being a father: "So this is what I looked like when I was a child."
The mother and son, who have always had a distant relationship, now have some tenderness and affection because of this new life.
As she was speaking, the Queen Mother suddenly remembered the little prince's faint cry and hurriedly asked, "The situation was so dangerous just now. Does the little prince have any hidden worries? I hope he doesn't develop any chronic illness."
Imperial Physician Shen was hesitating about how to report this, but upon hearing the Queen Mother's question, he quickly knelt and bowed, saying, "The little prince was born half a month premature. He is born with deficient endowments, which has led to a weak heart, making him prone to palpitations. He must be carefully cared for, and he will be fine after he turns five."
As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the hall froze instantly.
Xiao Heng felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured on his head, and the smile on his lips disappeared: "Heart palpitations?"
Mingpin covered her mouth in surprise and said, "Concubine Su has heart palpitations. Could it be that she has brought the disease to the little prince?"
Imperial Physician Shen replied, "What Madam Mingpin said is indeed possible, but... in my humble opinion, it is because the little prince was born prematurely and has congenital defects, and he almost suffocated in the womb just now."
The Queen Mother's face darkened, her amiable features becoming incomparably grim. "I just said that this is a matter concerning the heir to the throne, and we cannot hesitate for a moment. We should immediately perform a caesarian section and deliver the child. You all tried to stop me. Now that the little prince has suffered from heart palpitations, who among you can shoulder this responsibility?"
The Queen Mother's cold and majestic voice echoed in the palace.
The queen turned pale with fear and knelt down with a thud: "Mother, please calm down. It was my fault for not being considerate. I hope you will forgive me."
The other concubines also knelt on the ground, not daring to breathe, for fear that the empress dowager's anger would affect them.
Xiao Heng also felt a pang of regret in his heart. He took a deep breath and looked at Doctor Shen and asked, "Is there any way to cure the little prince's illness?"
Imperial Physician Shen prostrated himself on the ground, kowtowed in fear, and said, "There's no cure for heart palpitations, but I'll prescribe a few heart-tonifying prescriptions for the wet nurse. With careful care, the symptoms won't recur after the little prince turns five. But you need to be extra careful these few days, for fear..."
He hesitated for a moment and said, "I'm worried that the little prince won't be able to withstand the temperature and smell of the outside world, or that he might be frightened, causing his heart qi to become disturbed, leading to a relapse of his illness."
The Queen Mother heard this. Her legs went weak and she almost fell. Fortunately, the Queen was there to support her in time. She frowned and said, "Mother, please take care of yourself."
Looking at the child in his arms slowly opening his eyes, Xiao Heng felt a sudden pain in his heart, as if countless silver needles were piercing his heart.
Is it because of my hesitation just now that God wants to punish me with the child?
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