Chapter 40 Miscarriage
When questioned, Yun Zhaorong was taken aback and had no choice but to step forward and recount what had happened on the small boat.
"Your Majesty, I was the first to disembark from the small boat. The moment I turned around, I heard someone shout that Consort Rong had fallen into the water. At the time, my back was turned, so I really didn't see anything..."
Yun Zhaorong's expression was somewhat complicated; she didn't know whether she should talk about what happened on the ship.
Consort Rou seemed to sense her predicament and gently advised, "What else do you know? Just tell me the truth."
After hearing this, Yun Zhaorong glanced at Lan Wu, who was kneeling on the ground without raising her head, and said, "It's not that I know anything else, but I overheard Consort Zhen and Consort Rong exchanging a few words on the small boat. Consort Zhen seemed to be dissatisfied with the name Consort Rong gave to her personal maid."
Lan Wu endured the pain, and not only the pain, she also had a strange feeling that her thighs were wet, but the dampness and the smell of blood were so faint that she didn't know if it was real.
My ears were buzzing, but the sound was clearly transmitted to my brain.
She clenched her fists, her palms icy cold, and said in a low voice, unwillingly, "Your Highness... you did nothing wrong. It was Consort Rong who tried to push me into the water, and I only instinctively protected myself. I—"
Before he could finish speaking, a mournful cry of grief came from the side hall.
Everyone realized something.
Soon, Zhilan rushed to the main hall, crying as she reported, "Your Majesty, the Empress has miscarried—"
silence.
silence.
Everyone stared at Lan Wu, not daring to look at the emperor's face. After a moment, the emperor spoke softly: "Issue my decree that Consort Rong be promoted to Consort Rong, and order the imperial physicians to take good care of her health."
To leap three ranks in one leap is quite an honor bestowed upon Consort Rong by His Majesty.
But no matter what, the child is gone.
From the moment he entered the palace until now, Chu Mingheng has not uttered a single word to Lan Wu.
Upon hearing this, Lan Wu felt a sour taste in her mouth and swallowed hard. With the help of Lian Xi beside her, she straightened up on her knees, her whole body visibly trembling.
"Your Majesty..." Lan Wu originally wanted to defend herself with some backbone, but her words came out so softly that not only could Chu Mingheng not hear her, but even Lan Wu herself almost didn't know what she was saying.
It hurts so much! Did they put a knife inside her stomach?
Her head hung limply, and she struggled to lift it. Unbeknownst to her, a string of water droplets were dripping down the palace carpet in front of her.
She cried?
This is terrible, it's going to kill her with pain.
Chu Mingheng also saw her crying, sighed, and still couldn't bring himself to ignore her. Just as he was about to call someone to help her up and sit down, he suddenly heard someone say in surprise and panic:
"...Blood, Your Majesty is bleeding..."
Lianxi lowered her gaze, staring intently at the blood-soaked dress beneath Lanwu. The dress was green, and at first glance, the wet stains were not clearly blood, but upon closer inspection, it was clear that it was indeed blood.
Lan Wu wanted to tell her to be quiet and that it wasn't anything scary, but she couldn't move her lips to make a sound, and could only let out a low moan from her throat.
Her field of vision gradually narrowed, and she was lifted up. She grabbed Chu Mingheng's clothes, tears streaming down her face, unable to speak.
"Tell the imperial physician to come in right now." With that, Chu Mingheng kicked open the door to the inner palace and strode inside to carry Lan Wu to the bed.
Because of Consort Rong's unexpected miscarriage, several imperial physicians from the Imperial Hospital came and were waiting in the side hall. They were quickly pulled into the main hall and learned that another consort was bleeding. Their legs began to go weak, and they thought she had miscarried again.
Inside the main hall, the concubines went from being shocked to being completely bewildered.
"Could it be...could it be that Zhen Jieyu also...!" Someone blurted out.
Immediately someone retorted: "Fool, His Majesty only issued the decree to confer the title on her less than a month ago, how could that be..."
That makes sense. It's true that it's less than a month since the miscarriage, but if it really was a miscarriage, then whose child is it?
Undeniably, the concubines present all harbored a secret expectation that things would turn out exactly as they imagined.
Inside the inner palace, Lan Wu was carried onto the bed, and when Chu Mingheng let go, his hands were already stained with blood.
He stopped, staring intently at the blood on his hand, but then let go in the next instant.
Lan Wu lay listless on the bed, her cries of pain barely audible.
The imperial physician was brought over to take her pulse. He then let out a deep sigh of relief and reported, "Your Majesty, Consort Jieyu is suffering from menstrual cramps due to an imbalance of Qi and blood. I will administer acupuncture to relieve her pain."
"Stop talking nonsense." Chu Mingheng washed his hands and urged him to hurry up.
The imperial physician dared not delay any longer and quickly agreed in a low voice, then turned to administer acupuncture to the person on the bed.
Chu Mingheng walked over and looked at her pale face. He reached out and stroked her face, feeling a cool sensation.
"Go and fetch a basin of hot water."
Lianxi quickly agreed and went downstairs, and soon brought in the hot water.
Lan Wu's complexion had improved somewhat, but she was still sleeping soundly with her eyes closed.
The concubines are still waiting outside; this can't go on forever.
Consort Rou first went to see Consort Rong in the side hall. She knew she had miscarried and was still awake with her eyes open, her face covered in tears, waiting for His Majesty's decision.
But for some reason, one of the imperial physicians was summoned away, and it was a long time before Consort Rou finally arrived.
"This concubine... greets Your Majesty."
Consort Rou looked at her with pity, helped her up and told her not to move around, "His Majesty just issued a decree to make you a Noble Consort. Take good care of yourself, and you will have another child."
Upon hearing this, Rong Shuyi's eyes welled up with tears again. She turned her head to hide her tears under the pillow, looked towards the door, and struggled to ask, "Your Majesty, why doesn't His Majesty come to see me? Does His Majesty dislike me because I have lost my child...?"
Consort Rou reached out and stroked her hair, saying softly, "Don't think too much. His Majesty has important matters to attend to now. What you should do is take care of your health."
Important matter?
Now that things have come to this, what could be more important than her lost imperial heir?
Does Your Majesty intend to protect Consort Zhen? It was Consort Zhen who pushed her into the water, causing her miscarriage. How can Your Majesty possibly protect her now?
Rong Shuyi clenched her fists without realizing it, then suddenly raised her face, which was contorted with grief from crying, and asked Roufei, "Your Majesty, please tell me, tell me, how His Majesty intends to deal with Consort Zhen, tell me, so that I may have peace of mind, Your Majesty—"
"This..." Consort Rou hesitated for a moment, but finally turned her head and said a few words, "Just now Consort Zhen also bled. His Majesty is with her. Don't overthink it. His Majesty must have a reason for doing this."
These words were like a sharp dagger plunged into her heart, twisting and churning her flesh and blood. Rong Shuyi felt a sudden darkness before her eyes, and it took her a long time to regain her senses. Facing Consort Rou's concerned question, she pulled at her cheeks, revealing an expression of extreme hatred, and uttered each word clearly: "His Majesty is unjust."
"How dare you!" Consort Rou quickly covered her mouth, warning her, "You're just grieving and talking nonsense. I'll pretend I didn't hear it."
"Don't forget how Consort Liu died."
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