"Summon Granny Ai!"
A stern voice rang out. Liang Jiugong had already anticipated this, so he was not surprised at all and quickly responded.
Granny Ai was a middle-aged woman in her forties who worked under Liang Jiugong, mainly in charge of the concubines' nightly services. Seeing Liang Jiugong's unpleasant expression, she knew it wasn't good news and began to feel uneasy.
"Greetings, Your Majesty! May Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings and peace!" Granny Ai knelt down to pay her respects.
"Did Baoyue drink all of the contraceptive soup without missing a single dose?" Kangxi asked, staring at the woman before him.
"Yes, this servant always made sure to watch the ladies drink after they had served the emperor. Princess Baoyue was no exception, not once was she missed." Granny Ai was still unaware of what had happened.
"Then why did Baoyue get pregnant?" Kangxi's face turned slightly pale. Liang Jiugong secretly glanced at him and knew that the emperor was somewhat angry.
Granny Ai prostrated herself on the ground in astonishment, many thoughts flashing through her mind, but she rejected them all. Finally, she could only say, "Your Majesty, this servant did indeed follow your instructions and made Princess Baoyue take the contraceptive soup every time. Perhaps, Princess Baoyue is very fortunate, as she was able to conceive even after taking the contraceptive soup."
Liang Jiugong glanced at Granny Ai, remembering how capable she was, and said, "Yes, Your Majesty, this contraceptive soup is not 100% effective in completely eliminating the possibility of pregnancy. Princess Baoyue is the moonlight of the grasslands. She has been riding horses and eating meat and drinking milk since she was a child. Perhaps her body is different from that of ordinary women and is much stronger than theirs."
Granny Ai was grateful to Liang Jiugong, but she still didn't dare to raise her head and remained prostrate, trembling as she awaited Kangxi's judgment.
The person behind the table held the power of life and death over everyone present, and at this moment, he remained silent. But in the eyes of Granny Ai and Liang Jiugong, the emperor's silence was the most terrifying thing, like a ferocious beast lurking in the darkness, ready to bare its fangs and pounce at any moment.
"We can't let her give birth to this child. Let her go!" Kangxi said coldly.
Liang Jiugong and Granny Ai were both taken aback by the words they heard and dared not respond.
"Granny Ai, go and give Baoyue the abortion medicine yourself. Don't mention this to anyone," Kangxi added.
"Yes, this servant will go and prepare." Granny Ai was already very fortunate to see that Kangxi did not punish her. As for Princess Baoyue's pregnancy, she could only blame herself for not being lucky enough. The emperor was unwilling to keep her, and they were just following orders.
After Granny Ai left, Kangxi sighed, as if saying to himself, "This Baoyue is too ambitious. If she has a child, I'm afraid she will use it to blackmail me."
Upon hearing this, Liang Jiugong walked to Kangxi's side and said, "Your Majesty, let this old servant help you rest for a while. The medicine will be brought over soon once it's ready."
Kangxi nodded and, with Liang Jiugong's help, lay down on the bed behind the table.
Meanwhile, Granny Ai had already ordered someone to brew an abortifacient, and she personally led a young eunuch to carry the medicine to Baoyue's tent.
Baoyue had already taken her afternoon nap. Zhuoma, who was standing guard nearby, frowned when she saw Granny Ai barge in without announcing herself. She shouted, "The princess is sleeping! What are you doing here?"
Granny Ai sneered inwardly. She wasn't just working for Liang Jiugong; she was secretly on Consort Yi's side. Consort Yi naturally disliked young, beautiful noblewomen bearing the Emperor's child, and now even the Emperor himself refused to have it, showing that Princess Baoyue wasn't truly favored.
"This old servant is acting on His Majesty's orders to bestow upon Princess Baoyue a bowl of abortifacient medicine. Please wake the princess immediately, and she must drink it in front of this old servant," Granny Ai said condescendingly to Zhuoma. She had just been nearly scared to death by Emperor Kangxi, all thanks to this master and servant duo.
Zhuoma looked at Granny Ai in surprise, a thousand thoughts flashing through her mind, before she said, "Granny Ai, please go back first. Our princess hates being disturbed while she sleeps. If we wake her up suddenly, I can't guarantee that the princess's whip won't spill your medicine. I will talk to the princess when she wakes up. You can come back then. Why rush things?"
Upon hearing this, Granny Ai felt a chill run down her spine. Princess Baoyue was not like the other young noble ladies who were easy to manipulate; when she got angry, she could be lawless. If she got really angry, she would definitely take it out on her.
Thinking of this, Granny Ai hesitated, then glanced at the person under the blue gauze curtain, who was sleeping soundly! Alright, I'll let you carry the child for a little longer, since you can't escape it anyway.
"Then I'll trouble Miss Zhuoma to speak to the princess herself and tell her that the Emperor has said this child cannot be kept, and that Princess Baoyue should immediately accept the Emperor's arrangement." With that, Granny Ai left with her people.
They had just left the tent when Zhuoma heard a sigh behind her.
"Princess, you're awake?" Zhuoma turned around and walked to Baoyue's gauze tent to ask.
“I woke up as soon as that old servant spoke. I never expected him to be so heartless. I bet he didn’t even hesitate before sending her to deliver the abortion medicine to me,” Baoyue said.
"Princess, what should we do now? The emperor refuses to let you give birth to this child," Zhuoma said anxiously.
"Go and invite Prince Zhi." Baoyue sat up, her face hidden behind the green gauze curtain, making it impossible to see her features.
“Princess, even Prince Zhi has no power to change the Emperor’s mind,” Zhuoma said.
“I know, but I want him to know that the child in my belly is his. Now it’s his turn to do something for this child,” Baoyue said.
Aunt Zhuoma withdrew and went to find Prince Zhi.
Because of the Tenth Prince's injury, there have been no further conflicts in the past few days, and all the princes are resting in their own tents. Since his tryst with Bao Yue, Prince Zhi has become increasingly infatuated with her body. Bao Yue has also invited Prince Zhi into her tent several times in the middle of the night for their trysts, and all of these times no one has noticed.
Zhuoma secretly walked behind the tent of Prince Zhi, squatted down, and secretly cut a hole in the tent with the dagger in her hand. She saw Prince Zhi sitting by the house, drinking alone.
"Prince Zhi!" Zhuoma called out softly.
"Who?" Prince Zhi immediately became alert and grabbed the long sword from the table.
“It’s me, Prince Zhi, it’s Zhuoma!” Zhuoma whispered.
At this moment, Prince Zhi had already seen a hole in the back of the tent, and there seemed to be a human face outside.
"Why are you here? Is something wrong, Princess?" Prince Zhi quickly stood up, walked over, and asked Zhuoma.
"Your Highness, please save the child in the princess's womb," Zhuoma pleaded.
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