Released from prison, I am now the Empress?!
The regent was arrested and imprisoned, and the court was filled with anxiety, fearing that the capital would suffer another rebellion like the one five years ago.
After waiting and waiting, the court was quiet, and even the general's mansion where the incident had occurred was peaceful.
Only in the palace...
Xiao Yu fell ill again.
On the dragon bed, which was covered by a bright yellow curtain, were scattered old items that Wei Shuang had used. Xiao Yu's pregnant body had been immersed in the fragrance of the dried ginseng for the past two months. Now that the fragrance had suddenly stopped, a number of adverse reactions followed.
Xiao Yu's body craved the fragrance of the Emperor's incense every moment, but she was angry that Wei Shuang cared about the other Kun people and refused to release them from the private prison, only constantly ordering Feng Shun to send thick blankets and palace banquets to the private prison.
Even the scent of the inner garment that Wei Shuang had worn close to her skin almost completely disappeared after three days. Without the replenishment of the scent, Xiao Yu experienced a severe stress reaction on the fourth day.
The morning sickness that had been so difficult to manage and suppress suddenly flared up again. Xiao Yu spent the last two days practically living with a spittoon, only managing to eat a few sour plums.
Finally, on the sixth day, when Xiao Yu received Wang Ruofu, who had come to plead for him, in the imperial study, he suffered unbearable abdominal pain and fainted.
Two imperial physicians rushed over with their medicine chests and discovered that in addition to Xiao Yu, the middle-aged Left Prime Minister had also fainted.
The two had different symptoms. Physician Zhang stayed to administer acupuncture to Xiao Yu, while Physician Li gave the Prime Minister a pill to protect his heart meridian before hurriedly returning to change his medicine box.
Xiao Yu, lying on the dragon bed, had cold sweat on his forehead and a pale face. The emperor closed his eyes, his brows were furrowed, and he curled up, hugging his lower abdomen with his arms. He looked so fragile that it was heartbreaking.
It took Zhang Taiyi a lot of effort to remove Xiao Yu's left hand from her abdomen. Her body was pulled, and Xiao Yu let out several unbearable whimpers.
Xiao Yu's pregnancy, which had been stable just half a month ago, was completely disrupted again. Imperial Physician Zhang was extremely anxious and hurriedly handed the prescription to Feng Shun to prepare the medicine, while he stayed in the room to administer acupuncture to the emperor to stabilize the dragon fetus.
After a few needles, Xiao Yu's tightly furrowed brows gradually relaxed. The young emperor's face was still pale, and his lips were bright red, as if they had been bitten in pain. The fragrance of pregnancy was greatly aroused, but the osmanthus fragrance on Xiao Yu's body was so faint that it was almost undetectable.
Seeing that Xiao Yu's condition had temporarily stabilized, Physician Li also carried his medicine box to Wang Ruofu's side, while Physician Zhang squatted down in front of Feng Shun, who was decocting medicine, and asked for information with a worried expression.
"The Regent has always been gentle and kind in front of His Majesty. What could have angered His Majesty this time?" His Majesty is pregnant with the imperial heir! Shouldn't the Prince be more careful? Say a few nice words to appease him.
"Sigh..." Feng Shun shoved the palm-leaf fan used for fanning medicine into Physician Zhang's hands, cupped his drooping face, and complained, "It's all because of His Majesty's hysteria. That day, His Majesty happily took the Prince to the Hot Spring Palace. After the Prince served His Majesty, he mentioned a woman to His Majesty. I don't know how the Prince explained it, but these past two days His Majesty has been muttering in his dreams that the Prince is a heartless man who cheats on his wife as soon as he gets his pants up!"
When he mentioned the words "heartless man," Feng Shun's voice cracked with emotion.
The fire roared in the stove, making Feng Shun's expression appear even more jealous and resentful. Zhang Taiyi, listening to this, sensed something was amiss.
"Given how inseparable His Majesty and the Prince are, where would the Prince possibly stray?"
"Yes! I don't understand either. I only mentioned that His Majesty is a Kunzhe, so why was the Prince thrown into a private prison? His Majesty is too thin-skinned to do this. He feels sorry for the Prince but can't bring himself to do it. These past two days, the weather has gotten cold, and he even asked me to send the Prince four or five quilts... It's pitiful that His Majesty is suffering like this because of the little prince in his belly!" Feng Shun became more and more indignant as he spoke, and he snatched the palm-leaf fan back and fanned the fire in the stove.
"...Eunuch Feng, after His Majesty differentiated, has no one ever mentioned to His Majesty that he had actually differentiated into a Kun?" Physician Zhang suddenly realized that he had grasped the crux of the matter.
"Alas... Your Majesty is pitiful. Since ancient times, the emperors of the Great Liang have been treacherous rulers. I am afraid that mentioning it will upset Your Majesty. As for others, with the Prince keeping them in check, they dare not gossip." His Majesty has suffered a lot since childhood and is very sensitive.
As a child, because of those eyes, she often secretly shed tears under the covers. Others didn't know, but Feng Shun saw it all.
“But now Your Majesty is pregnant with the imperial heir… and needs the incense of the one who has formed a bond with you. If Your Majesty and the Prince develop a long-standing rift because of the identity of the female heir, it may be detrimental to Your Majesty’s health!” Xiao Yu was weak and pregnant, lacking the incense of the imperial heir, yet still burdened with state affairs. Physician Zhang couldn’t help but worry.
"What does Physician Zhang mean...?" Feng Shun stopped fanning himself.
"I and Physician Li will go together to inform His Majesty."
"Then I'll have to trouble Physician Zhang!" Feng Shun immediately beamed with joy.
Physician Zhang's breath hitched, and he suddenly realized that he had fallen into a very deep trap.
——
An hour later, Xiao Yu slowly woke up. The dull pain in her abdomen had lessened slightly, but her limbs were still weak and tired.
The room was filled with a sour, medicinal scent, an unpleasant smell, but surprisingly, Xiao Yu didn't feel nauseous. He opened his eyes and mustered some strength to sit up.
"Your Majesty, you have disturbed the pregnancy, you must not move around!" Physician Zhang, who was holding Physician Li by the bedside, spoke up sharply to stop him.
"..." Xiao Yu had no choice but to lie back down, his hands helplessly placed on his abdomen, and asked, "I was just talking with my teacher, how could it have affected the fetus?"
The story says that miscarriage is usually caused by strenuous exercise, but he didn't move.
"Your Majesty... I have something to say, but I don't know if I should say it." Physician Zhang did not answer Xiao Yu's question directly. Separated by a bright yellow curtain, Xiao Yu lay flat and could not see the scene outside the curtain. Physician Zhang was so nervous that he gripped his colleague's arm tightly.
"Minister Zhang has rendered meritorious service in saving the emperor; please speak freely." Xiao Yu treated the two imperial physicians with great kindness.
"Your Majesty, do you still remember when you were undergoing your transformation, you were overcome with emotion and felt weak all over, and you summoned the Regent to the palace to help you?"
"Hmm," Xiao Yu hummed weakly.
"Have you ever suspected that... your vulnerable period at that time was not actually a vulnerable period, but rather a period of nurturing and nourishment for the Kun (female)?"
Xiao Yu's eyes widened slightly as he touched his slightly protruding abdomen: "...What do you mean?"
"Your Majesty, you were caught in the throes of passion during your period due to the incense burning in the palace. Your incense became disordered, and you lost your memory, which is why you forgot that you had differentiated into a Kun (female) type. During your amnesia, you suffered a hysterical attack and mistakenly believed you were a Gan Jun (male emperor). The Regent, fearing your Kun identity would cause chaos in the court, suppressed it single-handedly, which is why everyone has kept quiet and treated Your Majesty as a Gan Jun." Imperial Physician Zhang racked his brains to find many ways out for Xiao Yu, hoping that the pregnant emperor would release Wei Shuang as soon as possible to replenish the Gan Jun incense needed for her pregnancy.
"Wait...wait, don't speak yet, let me think about it." Xiao Yu's mind went blank for a moment.
After a long while, Xiao Yu's buzzing brain finally managed to make sense of the information in the words. Xiao Yu spoke again in a hoarse voice: "Minister Zhang, I...I am actually a Kun?"
Kun... How could it be Kun? I clearly took the secret medicine, and even used it twice.
Physician Zhang dared not say more: "Yes..."
“But I used the secret medicine… I used it twice. Logically, shouldn’t I have been separated into a de facto ruler?” Xiao Yu muttered.
"Twice?" The two imperial physicians exchanged awkward glances.
"Hmm... Wei Shuang forced me, no, fed me once, and then I asked you for it again later." Xiao Yu rolled up his sleeves sullenly, not yet fully accepting his identity as a Kun.
"We were completely baffled before. All the monarchs of Great Liang who took the secret medicine differentiated into dry monarchs without fail. Even if the mark was causing the problem, Your Majesty shouldn't have differentiated into a female monarch. Now we finally have a clue." Imperial Physician Zhang clapped his hands excitedly. "Your Majesty used the secret medicine twice, but it reversed the effects. The glands of the dry monarchs that had grown up atrophied and differentiated again. No wonder Your Majesty's differentiation was so late!"
Most Kun individuals begin to differentiate at thirteen or fourteen, while Gan individuals differentiate slightly later, around sixteen or seventeen. However, their Emperor differentiated at twenty. If Xiao Yu hadn't taken the secret medicine and could smell the fragrance, the two imperial physicians would have almost thought that Xiao Yu was about to become an undifferentiated Ze Dui.
Xiao Yu: "So...so I really am a Kun?"
Physician Zhang: "Yes, Your Majesty's identity as a female is beyond doubt."
Ah... So when Wei Shuang said I was a Kun, it wasn't to humiliate me, but to tell me the truth. Wei Shuang didn't want to find other Kun just because I am a Gan Jun, but because I am a Kun.
I am actually a Kun (female)... that's why the two little brats arrived so quickly.
What Wei Shuang broke open was not the degenerated reproductive cavity of the Emperor, but the one that I should have during my period of pleasure... No wonder it felt so good.
I misunderstood Wei Shuang...
It's been so cold these past two days. Even wrapped in a cloak, I'm shivering. There's no heating in the prison; even with four or five quilts, I'd still catch a cold.
Xiao Yu's mind was in a mess. Ignoring the doctor's advice, he sat up, lifted the curtain, and said anxiously, "Wei Shuang, quickly let Wei Shuang out."
Seeing that the misunderstanding between the two masters had been cleared up, Feng Shun walked briskly and happily to pick up Wei Shuang from the private prison.
Inside the only private prison connected to the underground dragon, there was a square table made of golden sandalwood, the same material used in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Wei Shuang sat leisurely in the chair without shackles. The newly renovated private prison had been freshly painted, and the floor was covered with a clean carpet. All the utensils were complete. Under Feng Shun's direction, the style of the private prison's renovation was no different from that of the Empress's palace. Stepping inside, one was filled with splendor and magnificence.
The only drawback is that it's a bit small, but it's spacious enough for one person.
"Your Highness! Your Highness!" From afar, Feng Shun's excited and anxious voices came from the narrow passage.
"His Majesty has sent another quilt?" Wei Shuang's lips twitched subconsciously.
If they send another ten or so beds, does Xiao Yu want him to get prickly heat in the dead of winter?
"No, no, it's because His Majesty is having trouble with the pregnancy!"
Wei Shuang suddenly stood up, her expression changed, and before Feng Shun could read out the imperial edict announcing her release, she ran out of the private prison on her own.
Wei Shuang drifted out of the private prison like a gust of wind, and Feng Shun scratched his head, grabbed his cloak for warmth, and chased after her.
They couldn't catch up.
Wei Shuang stormed into the inner chamber of the Hall of Mental Cultivation with a chilling aura. In the bitter winter cold, frost rose on her black hair.
A chill drifted through the curtains toward the dragon bed. Xiao Yu noticed the frost on Wei Shuang's hair and his eyes suddenly reddened.
He knew it! Five or six quilts wouldn't be enough! Hopefully, Wei Shuang won't develop a hidden illness from the cold!
"Imperial Physician! Imperial Physician! Take my pulse!" Xiao Yu cried out anxiously, grasping at the air.
Four panicked hands grabbed Xiao Yu from the left and right.
Xiao Yu angrily shoved the imperial physician aside and raised his trembling hand to point at Wei Shuang: "I'm fine, quick! Show Wei Shuang! Is my godfather alright?"
Beside the crowded imperial bed, Wei Shuang released a massive amount of soothing incense towards Xiao Yu. The regent leaned over the bed, the emperor's eyes red and his voice choked with sobs.
The two imperial physicians were in a flurry of activity, and were also forced to overhear a private conversation between the Emperor and the Regent.
"Wei Shuang, why didn't you rebel against me when I threw you into the imperial prison!" Xiao Yu sniffed, feeling a pang of guilt as the emperor felt pity for Wei Shuang's unknown ailment.
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Author's Note: [Dog head with rose in hand] Warmly welcome Empress Wei back to the palace—
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