Harem Fighting Strategy 13
Three more months passed, and Tao Yuan's belly grew larger day by day. Although the Empress Dowager had told him not to go to her every day to pay his respects, it was impossible for Tao Yuan to completely skip the trip. Every two or three days, he still had to go to Jingshou. He would just sit and chat with the Empress Dowager and then leave. It wasn't too tiring.
That day, Tao Yuan was talking to the Queen Mother when Ye Rong walked in with a happy face.
"Greetings to the Queen Mother and the Emperor." Ye Rong smiled and bowed respectfully to the two of them.
"No need for formalities," said the Queen Mother.
"Thank you, Queen Mother."
Seeing the unconcealed joy on his face, Tao Yuan guessed why he was in such a good mood, but he still asked, "Your Majesty, you look so happy, but do you have any good news to report to the Queen Mother?"
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, the Imperial Physician came to check my pulse today and confirmed I was pregnant. Therefore, I have come to report this to you, Your Majesty."
"Pregnant pulse?" The Queen Mother said happily, "Are you pregnant too?"
"Yes, the imperial physician said that I am pregnant, but it's not yet two months, so the pulse was not obvious before." Ye Rong said with a smile.
"That's wonderful!" The Queen Mother was also very happy. "You two have children. It's really a happy event. You should tell the Emperor as soon as possible so that he can be happy too."
Tao Yuan felt a little sympathy for the Queen Mother. If she knew that the child in Ye Rong's belly wasn't her grandson at all, she wondered how she would feel. She'd probably want to tear Ye Rong apart. But Xiao Junye definitely knew, so how would he deal with Ye Rong and the child in his belly? Tao Yuan suddenly felt curious.
The empress dowager was just saying that she would go and inform the emperor when the emperor arrived immediately, also with a look of joy on his face.
The Queen Mother thought that he already knew that Ye Rong was pregnant, so he looked very happy.
But after Xiao Junye saluted the Queen Mother, he looked at Tao Yuan and said, "Your father has sent a good news, and he will be able to return to the court soon."
"Really?" Tao Yuan said happily, "My father can come back?"
"Ningguo and Qiuyunguo have withdrawn their troops and are willing to pay tribute to the Great Wei every year in exchange for peace." Xiao Junye looked at Tao Yuan, a smile on his face and in his eyes. "By next month at the latest, your father and your brother will be able to return to the Imperial City."
"This is such a constant stream of happy events," the Queen Mother said with a delighted smile. "First, Axi is pregnant, then Arong is pregnant too, and now Ningguo and Qiuyunguo have withdrawn their troops and asked for peace. May God bless our Great Wei, and may God bless the Emperor!"
After hearing what the Queen Mother said, Xiao Junye was stunned for a moment, then looked at Ye Rong and asked, "Are you pregnant?"
Ye Rong had just heard about the great victory at the border and that Mu Yongsheng would soon be returning to the capital. He was so panicked that his hands were shaking. When Xiao Junye asked him a question, he could only force a smile and said, "Yes, Your Majesty, I am pregnant. The imperial physician said I am less than two months pregnant."
"Why?" the Queen Mother asked doubtfully, "The Emperor doesn't know about this yet?"
"I only found out that he was pregnant after hearing what my mother said." Xiao Junye looked at Ye Rong with a smile and said, "My dear, since you are pregnant, you must take good care of yourself."
"Yes." Ye Rong couldn't feel happy even after listening to Xiao Junye's caring words. His face became more and more ugly.
The Queen Mother noticed that he looked pale and asked with concern, "Arong, you look so pale, are you feeling unwell? I will call the imperial physician to take your pulse."
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I just feel a little nauseous, it's nothing serious." Ye Rong said.
"Then you should go back to the palace and rest. I will have someone send you some supplements later. You should stay in Mingcui Palace and take good care of your pregnancy. You don't have to come here every day to pay your respects."
"Thank you, Queen Mother. I will take my leave now." Ye Rong saluted the Queen Mother, Xiao Junye and Tao Yuan before turning around and leaving.
Even before returning to Mingcui Palace, Ye Rong's expression was already strained. According to the game's plot, Mu Yongsheng's return to the imperial court would take at least four years, but now it was so much earlier. Besides shock, he was even more terrified. If Mu Yongsheng led his troops back to the imperial city, all his plans would be thrown into disarray. His dream of becoming empress dowager would become even more difficult.
As soon as Ye Rong returned to Mingcui Palace, he immediately wrote a note, sealed it, and asked Lin Qing to send someone to deliver it to Prince Yu as soon as possible.
Prince Yu had already known that Mu Yongsheng was returning to the capital. The entire court knew about this, so how could he not know? However, it was precisely because the entire court knew about this that he knew about it, so his shock and panic were no less than Ye Rong's.
After Ye Rong left Jingshou Palace, Xiao Junye and Tao Yuan sat for a while, and then they returned to Fenghua Palace together.
Tao Yuan and Xiao Junye got off the imperial sedan chair. Xiao Junye supported him and slowly walked into the bedroom. Although Tao Yuan's belly was not very big yet, it was already obvious, so he became more cautious.
"Your Majesty is happy that the royal lady is pregnant?" Tao Yuan asked after sitting down.
Xiao Junye remained silent for a moment, his face expressionless, before he said, "That's not my child."
"Isn't it Your Majesty's child?" Tao Yuan deliberately made an expression of surprise and confusion.
"Don't ask about this now. I'll tell you later. Just focus on your pregnancy and don't worry about anything else." Xiao Junye said, "This time, Ningguo and Qiuyunguo withdrew their troops and asked for peace. It was thanks to those things of yours. Otherwise, your father wouldn't have been able to return to the court so quickly."
Over the past few months, Xiao Junye and Mu Yongsheng had maintained a close correspondence, so Xiao Junye was fully aware of all the events at the border. Mu Yongsheng had followed his instructions and immediately returned to the imperial court after Ningguo and Qiu Yunguo withdrew their troops and sued for peace. He was so anxious to have Mu Yongsheng return to the imperial city because he wanted to quickly gain control of the palace and government, and to eliminate those who needed to be eliminated.
Tao Yuan said, "I haven't seen my father for more than two years. It's great that I can finally see him next month."
Xiao Junye pulled him into his arms, gently caressing his belly as he said, "Before our child is born, I will create a safe environment for you. This palace will soon be completely under my control, and no one will be able to harm you."
"Your Majesty," Tao Yuan leaned her head on his shoulder and said, "Your Majesty is pregnant. The other concubines will also be pregnant with your Majesty's children soon, right?"
Xiao Junye paused for a moment, remaining silent for a long time. Up to this point, he had never visited any other concubines in the harem, and he had no such thoughts at all.
In this harem, there was a person like Ye Rong, and there might be many like him. So he didn't want anyone other than Tao Yuan to help him bear children, and he had no interest in other people's bodies. But he didn't know how to tell Tao Yuan. As an emperor, he couldn't express his loyalty to others.
Xiao Junye looked down and saw that Tao Yuan had fallen asleep leaning on him. He carefully picked him up, put him on the bed and covered him with a quilt, and then lay down beside him.
He stroked Tao Yuan's smooth face, looked at his sleeping face, and his heart was full of love. Only this person made him fall in love, only this person made him want to grow old with him.
Ye Rong was restless in his bedroom, wanting to see Prince Yu immediately to ask him if he had any plans. However, he had to wait until late at night the next day before he could see Prince Yu.
Ye Rong was sitting on the edge of the bed. When she saw the door open, she immediately stood up and strode over.
"Your Highness..." Ye Rong practically ran. He grabbed Prince Yu's hand and said excitedly, "Mu Yongsheng is returning to the capital. Why so soon?! Why did Ningguo and Qiu Yunguo withdraw their troops and seek peace so quickly?!"
"Don't get excited. It's not good for the child." Xiao Yuyang hugged him and walked to the bedside to sit down. "I only found out yesterday when I was in court that Mu Yongsheng was actually going back to the court."
"Then what should we do?" Ye Rong asked in panic. "Mu Xi is now the empress. Even if it's for Mu Xi, Mu Yongsheng will definitely help the emperor after he returns to the imperial city. Mu Yongsheng commands a large number of troops. If the emperor takes back the military power, the first person he will eliminate will definitely be you."
"Things have already come to this. We have no way to stop Mu Yongsheng from leading his troops back to the imperial city. We can only take it one step at a time." Xiao Yuyang was also very anxious, but he still comforted him, "Don't worry too much. I will be fine. Even if Mu Yongsheng comes back, the emperor can't do anything to me right away. We still have a lot of time to plan slowly. Who will win or lose in the end is still uncertain."
"Your Highness, you must be careful and cautious. You must not let the Emperor catch you." Ye Rong placed his hand on her lower abdomen. "For the sake of our child, you must be more careful."
Ye Rong was thinking that with Mu Yongsheng back in the Imperial City, the Emperor would be even more powerful and would no longer back down because of Xiao Yuyang's influence in the Imperial City. If the Emperor caught Xiao Yuyang, even if he survived, it would be difficult for him to recover. Without Xiao Yuyang's help, his goal of becoming the Empress Dowager would be difficult to achieve.
"Don't worry, for you and the child, I will never lose to Xiao Junye." Xiao Yuyang hugged him and promised with a firm look in his eyes, "No matter how he wants to deal with me, I won't let him succeed."
This was the first time the two met after Ye Rong knew she was pregnant, but because of the news that Mu Yongsheng was suddenly going to return to the court, the two were in no mood to share their joy. They only felt anxious about the impending crisis.
After Xiao Yuyang left, Ye Rong lay in bed, his hand on his still-undeveloped belly, thinking about how he had finally gotten pregnant, only to now face this crisis. But no matter what, he had to give birth to the child safely. Even if Xiao Yuyang had an accident, as long as everyone believed the child was the emperor's, he still had a chance.
Ye Rong was pregnant. Not only was the empress dowager really happy and sent people to send him a lot of supplements, Xiao Junye also had to show his happiness. Rewards and the like were inevitable, and he also had to go to Mingcui Palace to see him specially, so that it would seem like he was really happy because of his pregnancy.
The next afternoon, Ye Rong was delighted to learn that Xiao Junye was coming. He still hadn't given up on wanting Xiao Junye's affection. Now that he was pregnant and couldn't sleep with her, there was no need to drug him. Ye Rong felt that being able to spend time with Xiao Junye while he was awake would make him feel more favorable towards her. He believed that the reason he lost to Tao Yuan before was because he didn't have more opportunities to spend time with Xiao Junye.
In the evening, Ye Rong finally waited for Xiao Junye to come. He stepped forward with a smile and saluted, "Welcome, Your Majesty."
Xiao Junye walked over slowly, stood in front of Ye Rong and said, "I see the moon is beautiful tonight, how about you accompany me to appreciate the moon?"
"If Your Majesty is in a good mood, I will accompany you." Ye Rong said respectfully.
Xiao Junye ordered people to place fruits and snacks in the Moon Viewing Pavilion of Mingcui Palace, and then he and Ye Rong walked into the pavilion and sat down. The carp pond beside the pavilion reflected the bright full moon.
"My dear, since you can't drink alcohol, just drink this pot of ginseng tea." Xiao Junye personally poured him a cup of tea, and then poured himself a glass of wine.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Ye Rong took it with both hands. Although it was just ordinary concern, he still felt happy because Xiao Junye had never been so gentle to him. It turned out that having a child did have its benefits. He had to seize the opportunity and work hard to win Xiao Junye's favor.
"How about I play a song for Your Majesty to cheer you up?" Ye Rong suggested.
"My dear, you are pregnant and should not overwork." Xiao Junye said.
"I will just play a simple song. I won't get tired." Ye Rong said with a smile, and then ordered the palace servant to fetch his zither.
The palace attendant brought the zither, Ye Rong washed it and burned incense. When she was about to start playing, she suddenly heard a whoosh sound. The lantern in the hand of the palace attendant next to Xiao Junye fell to the ground, and then several men in black rushed out from the flowers beside the pond.
"There's an assassin! Protect the emperor! Protect him quickly!"
Ye Rong was so frightened that she was stunned and had no idea how to react.
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