Chapter 182 Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace: Bai Ruiji 9
"That must have hurt so much! How could the eldest prince be so cruel to himself?" Consort Yi hissed, finding it hard to believe that a child could do such a thing to himself.
"Yes, I can't believe it either, but it's true. The eldest prince bumped into me once, not just once, but twice."
Consort Chun couldn't accept it just thinking about it. She couldn't bear to imagine Yongzhang hurting her. Afterwards, she specifically instructed Yongzhang not to follow the example of the First Prince.
"Your Highness, you just said that it was Consort Xian who taught the eldest prince to harm himself?" Bai Ruiji pretended to know nothing about this.
"Yes," Consort Hui nodded. "The Emperor and I originally intended to go to the Imperial Study to see the First Prince, but the Empress sent someone to tell the Emperor about the First Prince's self-harm."
"The Emperor went directly to the Imperial Study to inquire, and I was worried about the First Prince, so I went with him. At first, the First Prince did not admit that he had deliberately injured himself."
"Upon hearing that Consort Chun had witnessed it with her own eyes, the Emperor became angry again and pressed her for answers. The eldest prince became frightened and cried, saying that it was Consort Xian who had given him the idea to raise him and help him stop being abused by his wet nurse."
After this incident, Consort Hui gave up the idea of raising the eldest prince. Although she took good care of him, he became closer to Consort Xian and even harmed himself in order to be raised by her.
Forget it, the eldest prince is too old to be raised properly. It would be better to find a way to raise the children of lower-ranking concubines later, preferably newborns, so they can be raised properly.
"Such a thing could have been said to the Empress or the Emperor. Instead, you made the First Prince harm himself. This is not helping the First Prince to avoid being abused. It is clearly your own way of wanting to raise the First Prince."
Bai Ruiji peeled a kumquat and sighed.
"Yes, is Consort Xian only confined to her quarters? That's too lenient. His Majesty really values Consort Xian." Consort Jia leaned back lazily in her chair, raising an eyebrow as she spoke.
Upon entering the main hall, the Empress heard Consort Jia's words and said, "From now on, do not call her Consort Xian."
"Your Majesty, may Your Majesty be well," the concubines bowed.
"Get up."
As she rose and sat back down, Consort Jia spoke first, asking, "What did Your Majesty mean by what you just said?"
"The Emperor issued an edict, demoting Consort Xian to the rank of Consort Xian and confining her to her quarters for three months."
The Empress sat upright, but her expression showed no joy whatsoever.
Because of the wet nurse's mistreatment of the eldest prince, the emperor suspected that she was responsible.
The Xiefang Palace is now personally looked after by the Emperor. The Emperor has also stipulated that princes and princesses under the age of six should be raised by their birth mothers and sent to the Xiefang Palace after they turn six.
The only saving grace was that the Emperor did not intend to find a foster mother for the eldest prince.
Consort Yi said matter-of-factly, “That’s more like it. If it were just a house arrest, it would be too disheartening.”
At another audience at Changchun Palace, Bai Ruiji rose and bowed to the Empress, saying, "Your Majesty, I have good news to report."
"What joyous occasion does Consort Mi have?" The Empress looked at Bai Ruiji, a vague guess forming in her mind.
Bai Ruiji said softly, "Last night I had a slight abdominal pain. His Majesty summoned the imperial physician to see me, and he said that I am pregnant."
Consort Jia straightened up, stopping the fan she was using, and asked in surprise, "So fast?"
"It's not that fast. I've been serving the Emperor for more than half a year since I entered the palace."
Bai Ruiji smiled gently, stroking her belly, her eyes full of tenderness and affection.
"She was promoted to the rank of Consort in just six months. If she gives birth to this imperial heir, she might be promoted to the rank of Imperial Concubine, right?"
Consort Chun's words carried a hint of bitterness. She had served the Emperor since he was a prince and had given birth to the Third Prince, which was how she obtained this rank of consort.
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