Chapter 62 Production
Chan Zhen's due date was mid-April, but since early March, His Majesty had already brought Chan Zhen to live in the Purple Palace and ordered people to prepare a delivery room in the side hall.
No royal heir had ever been born in the Purple Palace, so His Majesty's action immediately caused a great sensation within the previous dynasty. After the Prince of Jin returned victorious, many expected the emperor's favor to shift to his side. However, His Majesty's attitude towards him remained unchanged, far less esteemed than the heir to the Empress's womb.
Concubine Shu was indignant about this: "My son is working hard at the border, and the Queen doesn't even know whether the baby is a boy or a girl. How can Your Majesty be so partial?"
After saying that, she looked at Yun Yi, hoping to get some recognition and comfort from him, but she found that he was staring at the corner of the wall in a daze.
"Yun Yi, what are you thinking about?"
She frowned. Yun Yi seemed like a different person since he came back from the palace. Last time, he asked to go to the border without even saying hello to her. After he came back, he was always alone and lost in thought. Even she, his mother, could not figure out his thoughts now.
Chen Yunyi came back to his senses: "Nothing, I just remembered some matters in the court."
Concubine Shu thought he was under too much pressure recently, so she didn't think much about it. "The Queen's due date is coming soon. Seeing how fragile she is, I don't know if she can give birth safely."
She had thought about taking advantage of the Queen's labor to do something, but who would have thought that His Majesty had placed both the Queen and the delivery room in the Zichen Palace, which was heavily guarded from inside to outside, so that she couldn't even insert a needle. She could only jump around in her own palace in frustration.
"She and the child will be safe and sound." Chen Yunyi said almost subconsciously.
After he finished speaking, he reacted and looked up to meet Concubine Shu's suspicious gaze.
"Yun Yi, Mother noticed that you seemed to value that woman very much. Last time before you left the palace, you also visited Fengqi Palace."
Chen Yunyi clenched his fists, hiding them beneath his sleeves, but remained expressionless. "Mother, you misunderstood. Father now values the woman from Fengqi Palace, and I can only cater to his wishes. Following the example of Prince Yu, I don't want to follow in his footsteps."
Concubine Shu accepted his explanation. Although she still had some doubts in her heart, she was reluctant to think about it in other ways.
"I was a little too anxious." She sighed, "My son is now very popular in the court. Even Your Majesty cannot completely ignore the opinions of the court."
"Mother, you think too highly of him. When father gets mad, he's completely reckless." Chen Yunyi scoffed in his heart, but remained gentle on the surface.
"Don't worry, mother. Even if the queen's baby is a boy, it will take another ten years for him to grow up. By then, the emperor will be old and will not have much strength left to support him to ascend the throne."
"That's true." Concubine Shu's face lit up. "Perhaps the Queen will have already fallen out of favor before that time comes."
She just didn't believe that His Majesty could favor that woman all his life.
After February, the capital city gradually warmed up, and all the trees sprouted new buds. After entering April, the scene was even more colorful with flowers.
Chanzhen sat in the courtyard, admiring the vibrant blossoms and plants, her hand gently caressing her round belly. She marveled at the timing of this birth. April was neither too hot nor too cold, and her confinement would be more comfortable.
"How do you feel today, Chan Zhen?" His Majesty's voice came before he arrived.
"Your Majesty asks this every day, and the child is tired of hearing it." Chan Zhen did not look back, and soon he felt a tall and warm body sticking to his back.
"It's none of my business if he's tired of listening to it. As long as Chan isn't tired of me, that's all that matters." Chen Dingyao hugged her from behind.
Zen Zhen tilted his head with a smile in his eyes: "How dare I dislike Your Majesty?"
"Why not?" He smiled. "I see you're so bold that you don't even listen to me."
Chan Zhen knew that he was angry again because of his previous refusal to move into the Zichen Palace.
"Didn't I listen to you later?" She glared at him, "Yao Lang, you're so narrow-minded, aren't you?"
Wasn't she worried that his actions would draw criticism from the previous dynasty, so she refused? Even so, she had no choice but to give in.
After all, who would set up a delivery room in the emperor's bedroom? Your Majesty is really bold. He is not afraid of being scolded by his ancestors in his dreams.
Chen Dingyao touched her waist and abdomen: "My heart is as small as a needle hole, Zen Zhen should know it."
"I don't know," Zenzhen snorted. "I only know that His Majesty has been extremely tolerant and generous to me."
"Zhan Zhen dares to bully me because I am tolerant of you." His eyes were gentle and not annoyed at all.
"Then I want Your Majesty to pick me up. Will Your Majesty allow me to bully you?" Zen Zhen turned around in his arms and opened his arms to him.
He loved her so much that she looked like a spoiled child, so how could he not obey?
But just as he was about to put his hands on Zen Zhen's waist and exert force, he heard her take a small breath and immediately became nervous: "What's wrong?"
Chan Zhen suddenly felt something strange under her body, as if a warm current was rushing downwards, and at the same time her abdomen began to contract and ache. In just a few breaths, the pain became significantly more severe, making her face turn pale.
She held His Majesty's arm, with obvious panic in her voice.
"Your Majesty, I seem to be giving birth."
Chen Dingyao's face changed, and he immediately picked her up by the waist. As he walked towards the delivery room that had been prepared in advance in the inner hall, he comforted her in a calm voice: "Don't be afraid, Chanzhen, I'll be with you. Just bear with it for now, the imperial physician and midwife will be here soon."
Zen Zhen was a little dizzy from the sudden and intense pain, but staying in his arms and listening to his voice made him feel extremely at ease.
"I'm not afraid, Your Majesty, and neither should you." She forced her eyes open and gave him a weak smile. "I will stay with Your Majesty for a long time. I will never abandon Your Majesty first."
His eyes became hot and he almost shed tears. He walked with her arms around him, and his pace quickened. However, it was so steady and powerful that she could not feel the slightest shaking in his arms.
"I won't let anything happen to you." He walked in and Guo Kai hurried to greet him. Before Guo Kai could say anything, he immediately ordered, "Chanzhen is about to give birth. Call the imperial physician and the midwife."
Guo Kai was stunned for only a moment, then he quickly reacted and called for help in a hurry.
The midwife was ready long ago. As soon as Chanzhen lay down on the bed, the midwife rushed over, asked her about the situation, and then ordered people to prepare all the delivery items in an orderly manner.
Chanzhen had previously asked the midwife about the precautions for childbirth, and knew that the labor had just begun and there was still a long time to go, so after the pain subsided, he relaxed and took deep breaths to conserve strength for later.
After the midwife had comforted her, she turned around and realized His Majesty was still in the delivery room. She hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, the delivery room is a filthy place. You should go outside and wait for good news."
Chen Dingyao frowned, "The Queen gave birth to my children here, how could this be a filthy place?"
The midwife who said this saw his obviously unhappy expression and immediately knelt down and trembled all over.
Although Chan Zhen couldn't see the scene clearly from her bed, she could guess what was happening from the sounds. Enduring another wave of pain, she said to him, "Your Majesty, please leave. You'll scare them and distract them if you stay here. I'm fine."
Chen Dingyao pursed his lips, still holding her hand tightly with concern.
"If I feel I can't bear it anymore, I will call you immediately." Zenzhen tried his best to comfort him.
Seeing that the midwife seemed a little hesitant because of his actions, Chen Dingyao had to accept Chan Zhen's explanation.
"Okay, I'll wait for you outside." He touched her sweat-soaked face one last time, "Don't be afraid, I'm here for you."
"Yeah." Zenzhen nodded to him.
Wave after wave of pain swept over her, and Zenzhen almost couldn't help biting her lip. The midwife saw it and quickly stuffed a clean handkerchief into her mouth.
"My lady, if you can't hold it in any longer, please scream out loud or bite the handkerchief. Don't hurt yourself." Several midwives surrounded her. Some wiped her sweat, some turned up her clothes to see what was happening underneath her, and some gently rubbed her abdomen to help her speed up the delivery.
Chan Zhen knew that most women would have to go through this, and she had already prepared herself mentally, but she didn't expect that this day would be so painful, even making her eyes dizzy.
The world was spinning before her eyes, and she seemed to hear countless voices mixed together in the dark.
"Your Majesty is already weak, and now she's suddenly in premature labor. It's really dangerous," said a panicked voice.
"What should we do? The queen is almost losing consciousness." Another voice was almost trembling.
Someone got under her and shouted, "My Lady, please hold on a little longer! The little prince has already shown his head and will be out soon!"
"Your Majesty, how did you come in?"
The scene seemed to become even more chaotic.
"Zhenzhen, look at me, don't fall asleep!" Someone walked to her bedside and held her hand tightly. It was the first time she heard his panicked voice.
Your Majesty! The familiar voice suddenly brought her back to her senses. She opened her eyes and saw the midwives in the room were still moving in an orderly manner, without any panic in her dream.
"Your Majesty, I can already see the little prince's head. Please try harder!"
Chan Zhen clutched the bed sheet tightly with both hands. Upon hearing this, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and pushed down with all his strength.
His Majesty is waiting for her. She promised His Majesty that she would be with him forever, and she must not break her promise here.
She gritted her teeth, feeling like a fish on land, trying her best to lift her tail and flip around, trying to find a source of water. Finally, she felt something roll out from under her, and her stomach finally felt relieved.
"It's born!" She lay exhausted on the bed, her face tilted to the side. Her vision went dark, and she heard the midwife's surprised voice, "Congratulations, Your Majesty, it's a little prince!"
It’s her Yuan Zhao!
It was such a joyful moment, but she couldn't help but shed tears. An inexplicable feeling of sadness and emotion filled her chest, as if the treasure she had lost had finally returned to her after going through reincarnation.
It was her Yuan Zhao who came back.
Outside the hall, Chen Dingyao walked around anxiously, glancing at Li Ma from time to time, his face showing no sign of concealing his anxiety and nervousness.
After hearing the news, everyone in the harem rushed over and was about to salute His Majesty when they saw him, but he interrupted them irritably: "Shut up!"
Everyone looked at each other. It was the first time they saw such a panicked look on His Majesty's face, and for a moment they didn't dare to utter a word.
It was Concubine Shu who had the courage to comfort her: "Your Majesty, the Queen will be fine."
Although she wished that the queen would have a miscarriage and die, she was not stupid enough to say something unlucky in front of His Majesty and provoke his anger.
Chen Dingyao paused, turned around and gave her a cold look: "Zhenzhen will be fine."
After saying that, he turned his head and stared into the house. From the moment Zen Zhen started, his fists had never relaxed.
From time to time, one or two screams of pain were heard from the house, but it was not as tragic as in the previous life, and no basins of blood were brought out one after another.
He comforted himself that Chanzhen had given birth to a full-term baby in this life and had taken good care of herself during pregnancy, so everything would definitely go better than in her previous life.
After an unknown amount of time, a loud baby cry was finally heard from the house, and Chen Dingyao finally loosened his fist.
A midwife ran out to congratulate him, "Congratulations, Your Majesty! The Queen has just given birth to a little prince. Both mother and child are healthy."
"Okay..." Chen Dingyao then realized that his palms were covered with cold sweat. Without even looking at the people outside, he almost couldn't wait to walk in, wanting to see how Chan Zhen was doing.
Chanzhen was still awake, her lower body still aching, but much less so than before. She tilted her head to the side, watching the midwife clean Yuanzhao's body and swaddle him.
Although I couldn't see his face clearly, I could tell from the loud sound of his crying that he must be in good health.
"Zen Zhen!" His Majesty came in and walked straight to
He sat down beside her bed and held her hand nervously, "How do you feel? Is it still painful?"
Chan Zhen was thinking of him when she gave birth, so she should be very happy to see him now, but for some reason her heart suddenly grew cold. Her love for him seemed to have suddenly dissipated a lot at the moment Yuan Zhao was born. She inexplicably didn't want to look at him any more at this moment.
"Yuan Zhao..." She felt weak all over and her voice was very faint.
Chen Dingyao was only thinking about her, and when he saw that she seemed fine, he shifted his attention a little. He took the baby from the midwife's arms. The midwife was initially apprehensive that he wouldn't be able to hold the baby properly, but she realized that his posture was perfect.
The baby in the cradle was small and soft, and his facial features vaguely resembled Chan Zhen. It was undoubtedly Yuan Zhao, but he was much stronger than in his previous life. His crying was loud but not annoying.
His heart was filled with tenderness. He thought that Yuan Zhao would not be as frail and sickly in this life as he was in his previous life, and he would not die early and cause his mother to shed tears every day.
He held Yuan Zhao in front of Zen Zhen and said, "Zen Zhen, look how much our Yuan Zhao looks like you."
Chanzhen finally saw the child she had been thinking about so much. His eyes were not even open yet, he was a red ball, and his skin was wrinkled like a little mouse, but her heart was filled with joy.
"That's great..." Tears rolled down her eyes.
Her Zhao'er finally returned to her safely.
After forcing herself to take a look at Yuan Zhao, she finally lost her temper and closed her eyes. The sachet tied around her waist also broke at this moment and fell to the ground, stained with blood that had not yet been cleaned up.
"Chanzhen!" Chen Dingyao shouted nervously when he saw Chanzhen suddenly close his eyes and faint.
Chan Zhen, however, was completely unaware of the movements in the outside world and fell into a dark dream.
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