The summer palace was quite a distance from the Forbidden City, and generally speaking, it was not an easy task to arrange for one or two palace servants to return to the palace while the emperor was away.
First, this action required the consent of those in charge of managing the harem.
Secondly, the palace servants assigned to the task could not act alone for their own safety and could only travel in groups with certain large groups returning to the palace.
Fortunately, when Consort Yi gave birth, Emperor Kangxi considered that it was not advisable to move the newborn child, and since Consort Yi was quite sensible, he simply decreed that everyone stay at the summer palace for another half month.
And during this extra half month, it wasn't just Xiuning who wanted to return to the palace; others also had this thought.
The two sides hit it off immediately, and there were no problems when Chunyu arranged the manpower.
The man left without incident, but returned with some big news for Xiuning.
Is this true?
Xiuning looked surprised, her eyes still revealing the confusion she felt when she first received it.
Who would have thought that it wasn't just the summer palace where concubines were pregnant, but also in the Forbidden City?
“My lady, Xuan Ying has confirmed with that person several times and there is no mistake. The woman in Yongshou Palace is indeed pregnant.”
After all, once her belly swells up, it can't be hidden anymore, and Xuan Ying wouldn't dare joke about such a thing with Xiu Ning.
Xiuning reached out and touched her chin. "Behind Consort Jia's back?"
It's highly likely that Consort Jia was unaware of this, otherwise Wanliuhashi wouldn't have been able to live so peacefully in the Forbidden City.
Chunyu nodded, "My lady, when we return to the palace, there will probably be quite a show to watch."
Yongshou Palace and Qixiang Palace are neighbors, and nothing that happens in these two palaces can be kept from each other. Now that such a big 'happy event' has happened in Yongshou Palace... Chunyu's eyes lit up, thinking that Consort Jia's expression would definitely be good after hearing the news.
"The problem is that Consort Jia might not come back to the palace with us this time."
After a moment of contemplation, Xiuning looked up at Chunyu and voiced her guess.
Chunyu was taken aback by his words, "Why?"
Xiuning shook her head. "Wanliuha has kept it a secret for so long. Would she easily let Consort Jia go back and ruin it?"
Furthermore, Consort Jia is nearly seven months pregnant; if she holds on for another month, it will be August. At that point, the baby is unlikely to survive if born prematurely. Wouldn't Consort Jia consider this carefully?
If Consort Jia considers it, she will definitely feel that staying at the summer palace is safer and more reliable than returning to the palace.
Perhaps we could be even more ruthless: Consort Jia could give birth at the summer palace and then return to the Forbidden City.
The child in Consort Jia's womb was Niohuru's only hope and a compromise for the royal family, implying that this opportunity was now or never.
If Consort Jia is unable to carry the pregnancy to term, or if something goes wrong during her pregnancy, the Emperor would not allow her to have another child.
The reason why Consort Jia died young in the original timeline was that she developed an illness when she gave birth to her second child. In the end, not only did she lose the child, but she also suffered from illness for several years. She did not even live to see the Tenth Prince get married and have children before passing away.
Regardless of whether there was any foul play involved, everything Consort Jia did for her son afterwards shows that she valued this pregnancy very much.
“Look back and everything will become clear,” Xiu Ning said, leaning back against the soft pillows and relaxing.
Upon seeing this, Chunyu quickly fetched a thin blanket to cover Xiuning's protruding belly.
The weather is gradually getting colder, and according to the imperial physician, we should pay more attention to keeping warm in the morning and evening.
She waved for Chunyu to go about her business, then propped her head up with one hand and closed her eyes for a short rest.
...
"Yunling, what are you doing?"
Hearing her master's call, Yunling, who was busy lighting incense, was startled and almost dropped the lit incense stick in her hand.
She quickly placed the incense sticks into the incense burner to let them burn, then turned and ran into the inner room, calling out, "Master!"
Consort Jia looked displeased. "Why didn't you answer my call just now?"
Yunling reached out and helped Consort Jia up from the bed. "This servant is lighting incense. Your Highness has not been sleeping well lately. The imperial physician prescribed some calming remedies, but I was worried that taking medicine would be bad for your health, so I made some calming incense to keep on hand."
After hearing this, Consort Jia's expression softened considerably. She nodded and said, "Not bad," which was better than having to drink bitter medicine all day long.
To protect her unborn child, Consort Jia drank the herbal tea as soon as she was diagnosed with pregnancy.
Now that she's almost eight months pregnant, she doesn't want to drink anything anymore, not even the soups she usually uses for nutritional supplementation.
The fragrance slowly wafted into the air. Jiafei watched the wisps of white smoke rising from the incense burner, took a sniff, and then told Yunling not to forget to add more.
To be honest, the fragrance is really nice. It has relieved a lot of my fatigue from not sleeping well last night, and even my forehead doesn't hurt as much as before.
While rubbing her temples with her eyes closed, Consort Jia asked Yunling a few more questions about the small courtyard.
Yunling smiled and said, "Your Majesty need not worry. Nothing has happened, whether in the temporary palace or the palace itself."
"It's good that you're alright. I haven't been feeling very energetic lately, so please take good care of me. Once I give birth safely here, I promise I won't let you suffer in vain."
Consort Jia began to make empty promises to Yunling, which was, of course, an essential skill for concubines.
If you want your servants to be obedient and sensible, how can you expect them to behave without offering them sufficient benefits?
Yunling thanked Consort Jia and then talked about the arrangements for returning to the palace in a few days.
"Your Majesty, but it will be a crucial time for you then. Would it be inappropriate for you to return to the palace?"
Yunling glanced at Consort Jia's belly, her eyes showing obvious worry.
Returning to the capital from the summer palace required a carriage journey, and the events of the journey there were still vivid in her mind. Now, Consort Jia's health was even more precarious than when she arrived.
Consort Jia also considered this point, and her previously relaxed expression turned serious again.
Yes, after such a long and arduous journey, will she give birth prematurely?
It's fine if she gives birth early, but what if someone secretly sabotages the process? How will she deal with that?
To take it to an extreme, what if she had an accident on her way back to Beijing, and there was nowhere to be found? What would I do then?
Originally, her successful pregnancy came at a price paid by herself and her family.
It's safe to say that even Jiafei herself doesn't know when the next child will come, given that she's no longer with this one.
Her gaze hardened, and Consort Jia's voice deepened, "If returning to the palace is not a good idea, then we will not return to the palace first."
"Yunling, go and fetch the imperial physician."
She was going to put on a show in exchange for the opportunity to rest and give birth at the summer palace.
Yunling: ...
Yunling lowered her eyes to hide the joy in them, and nodded softly in agreement.
Two days later, bad news came from the summer palace: Consort Jia's pregnancy was not going well, which might affect the child in her womb.
"Is it a problem?"
He was perfectly fine just two days ago, how come he's suddenly acting like this?
"Your Majesty, it is said that Consort Jia has been having trouble sleeping lately, which has caused her to look unwell."
The imperial physician advised that Consort Jia should not be moved at present, as it could easily lead to premature birth.
Chunyu added a couple of sentences in a low voice, and finally muttered about Xiuning's earlier guess, "Consort Jia may not return to the palace with us."
This ending truly confirms the master's words: Consort Jia will have to give birth alone at the summer palace.
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