Chapter 183 The Soft Principles of Having Children
After the fourth princess was born, it was almost the end of September. With many things to attend to, everyone finally returned to the palace from the Yuanmingyuan.
Shortly after returning to the palace, the Fourth Princess's official register was changed to that of Consort Duan, Qi Yuebin. And Cao Qinmo was thus quietly erased from existence.
Rou then smashed everything in sight to the ground, leaving fragments everywhere, which terrified Xuewen, who was serving her.
"Why? Why? Why is Qi Yuebin taking my child?"
"My lord, my lord, please calm down. Walls have ears; what if outsiders hear us..."
"Hear?" Rouze let out a cold laugh. "I'm the only one living in Yonghe Palace. Who could hear me?"
The thought of how she had once considered it an honor to live in her aunt's palace made Rouze burst into tears, and she staggered and fell into a chair.
"My lord..."
Xuewen stepped forward to help her out of concern, but Rouze pushed her away.
"I've figured it out, what more do you want from me?"
Rouze stared intently at Xuewen, this loyal servant of the Ulanara clan, and watched her lower her head timidly. She couldn't help but smile bitterly.
After all these years, how could she still not understand? How could she still deceive herself into believing that the Emperor loved her? She simply knew that she had given everything for him, that there was no turning back, and that she could only cling to that last bit of true affection and deceive herself into continuing on.
Why must her family force her to bow down to Yixiu? Why must they expose the lies she's so painstakingly maintained? Just because Yixiu is the Empress, just because Honghui is the Crown Prince? Is that why she has to be completely abandoned?
She had already endured it all; she had already bowed her head. For the sake of her family, for her father and mother, she had accepted her fate. But why, why did she break her promise to get Cao Qinmo's child back for her?
Knowing full well that she has difficulty conceiving because of the use of the "Xiji Pill," and knowing full well that she just wants to keep one last memory, why not help her achieve it?
"Why? I have nothing left, I just want a child..."
Seeing Rouze's distraught state, Xuewen felt a pang of pity and stepped forward to persuade her, "My lady, it's not that the clan hasn't tried to find a solution, but... the Emperor made the decision about the princess's fate beforehand..."
"What about Yixiu? Isn't she the Empress? Isn't her son the Crown Prince?"
"Your Highness, Her Majesty the Empress..."
Seeing Xuewen's troubled expression, Rouze suddenly understood everything and laughed so hard her eyes widened: "Haha... So, so you guys haven't hooked up with Yixiu at all... You looked down on her before, but who knew she had such good fortune... Now you're eagerly catching up, and Yixiu doesn't care anymore, does she? Hahaha..."
"My lady, this is also for the future of the Ulanara clan..."
Xuewen was quite embarrassed. To put it bluntly, she was just a messenger, and it was not her place to interfere with what Ulanara wanted to do. But after serving Rouze for so many years, there was still some bond between them, and she naturally felt a little ashamed for doing something that resembled "betrayal."
"The future of the Ulanara clan?" Rouze wiped away her tears, her smile vanished, and she looked coldly at Xuewen: "Even Yixiu looks down on the Ulanara clan, so where is their future? From beginning to end, since you chose me, don't waver. Yixiu won't turn back."
"Xuewen, send word back that I want Yuan Changzai's child. I only want the child. Cao Qinmo's ending is good, and I think it's also suitable for Yuan Changzai. Don't you agree?"
Hearing Rouze speak such words in the gentlest tone, Xuewen couldn't help but feel a chill, staring blankly at Rouze: "My lady, this..."
"Shh." Rouze put her finger to Xuewen's mouth. "You're just responsible for relaying the message. Tell my father to think it over carefully. Which one do they want: an empress who hates her family or a concubine with a child who was promoted by her family?"
"Yes, I understand."
"By the way, has Suiyuxuan been renovated? I don't like that kind of face."
"yes."
Watching Xuewen's stiff back, Rou touched her face and snorted twice. She'd done plenty of bad things, but she was still so timid. She hadn't learned anything from Xuewen, but she'd certainly mastered self-deception.
...
"Sent them away?"
As Yixiu carefully embroidered the purse she had prepared for Honghui, she asked casually.
"Yes, Your Highness's message has been clearly conveyed. I suppose she won't be coming again." Jianqiu approached respectfully, not finding anything wrong with her mistress rejecting Ulanara's offer of allegiance. Where were they before? Now that their mistress's position is secure, they're trying to reap the rewards. Weren't they always clinging to Rouze before?
"I hope so." Yi Xiu frowned. The presence of the Ulanara clan was like flies buzzing in her ear. She was already annoyed by Hong Hui's trip to negotiate, and now someone was trying to get in on her good side.
"I wonder where Honghui is?"
Touching the bamboo purse that was about to take shape in her hands, Yixiu became worried about her son's recent situation.
"Your Majesty, rest assured. According to the journey, His Highness the Crown Prince should have already reached the border. With Prince Zhi here, there will be no problem."
Jianqiu quickly spoke up to comfort her. You see, for the sake of the Crown Prince, she had been following her master around, calculating the distance from the capital to the Russian border every day, and it was etched into her very bones.
"How can I be at ease? Hasn't Honghui encountered enough troubles along the way?"
Yixiu sighed. If the Emperor hadn't inadvertently let slip a few days ago, she wouldn't have known that Honghui had been targeted by assassination attempts more than once on the road. Although each attempt was successfully thwarted, he was her son. A mother's heart is connected to her child's; how could she not feel heartache?
She harbored a deep, almost unbearable hatred for those behind the scenes, though she had no access to them in the imperial court. But in the inner palace, if anyone dared to harm Honghui, she would absolutely not let them get away with it.
"Where is Xiu Xia? Tell her to come over and give us an answer."
"yes."
Xiu Xia was quick-witted and perceptive. She was sent by Yi Xiu to secretly monitor the situation in the harem. It is unknown whether she has found out anything.
"This servant greets Your Highness."
"Get up, tell me, have you found anything?"
"Your Majesty, there's been some activity at Yonghe Palace lately. It seems Consort Wan has started using Ulanara's spies again..." Xiu Xia cautiously glanced at Yi Xiu's expression. Everyone knew that Ulanara had previously said she wanted to pledge allegiance to the Empress, and had even severed her contact with Consort Wan for it. But now she's making moves again—isn't that deception?
"Do you know why?" Yixiu wasn't too angry. Since she had already refused, it was normal for Ulanara to turn to Rouze. As long as it didn't affect her and Honghui, Yixiu didn't care at all.
"The movement is still relatively small, and it's uncertain at the moment."
"Keep an eye on her and report any issues immediately."
"Yes, and I've also noticed that there seem to be more eyes around the Imperial Hospital."
"The Imperial Medical Academy?" Yixiu's expression turned grave. "Do you know why?"
Xiu Xia looked somewhat uneasy: "From what I can see, it seems to be aimed at the Emperor's medical records. This is a very important matter, so I didn't dare to continue investigating."
"You did the right thing. Keep an eye on things from a distance and don't get close."
Yixiu affirmed Xiuxia's actions. Since it involved the Emperor's health, she couldn't help but feel uneasy. No one expected that Xiuxia's investigation would uncover such a significant amount of information.
Yi Xiu suddenly stood up. Under the surprised and suspicious gazes of Jian Qiu and Xiu Xia, she hesitated for a while, but in the end, worry prevailed: "Jian Qiu, come, take the ginseng soup, I'm going to see the Emperor."
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