Chapter 76 Chapter 76 Is this a lie?
The emperor didn't even finish listening to Liang Jiugong's words before he ran out of the imperial study in a hurry.
My face was dark all the way, and all I could think about was Liang Jiugong talking about "midwife" and "endless abdominal pain"...
Then he turned around and thought, Concubine Ling is only about seven months pregnant now, right?
If the baby is born at this time, wouldn’t it be premature?
Not only would Lingpin suffer greatly, but most premature babies would also have a very hard time surviving... Even if they did survive, their bodies would certainly not be as healthy as those of full-term babies.
…But that’s something to worry about later.
Therefore, this thought only flashed through the emperor's mind for a moment and was soon replaced by other concerns.
All he could think about now was: Concubine Ling must be terrified by now, right?
Thinking of this, the emperor bent a few fingers and knocked twice on the imperial sedan chair.
Liang Jiugong was accompanying the imperial sedan chair, and he did not dare to speak. He could only urge the palace servants carrying the sedan chair all the way, and only then did he arrive at Changchun Palace in the shortest time.
When the emperor got off the sedan chair, he even stumbled a step, which scared Liang Jiugong so much that he almost fainted.
The emperor walked into Changchun Palace without pausing. When he saw Concubine Tong and Concubine Yi, his voice trembled slightly: "I heard that Concubine Ling has severe abdominal pain. Is she about to give birth?"
Concubine Tong and Concubine Yi both had stunned expressions on their faces.
Birth? When did it happen?
Concubine Tong looked at Liang Jiugong behind the emperor. Is this how they convey messages to the emperor?
Concubine Tong thought about it and did not continue to salute. Instead, she stood up from the ground, walked to the side of the emperor, reached out her hand and carefully held the emperor's arm, and whispered to him the whole story.
The emperor listened with a frown, then heaved a sigh of relief.
Then he looked at Concubine Yi who was still squatting in front of him with his black eyes, helped her up in a good mood, and after saying "I'm going to see Concubine Ling", he walked into the bedroom of Changchun Palace without looking back.
Concubine Tong and Concubine Yi were left standing outside, looking at each other.
…
Because of the little brat's sudden rebellion, Li Shuyao successfully got a lot of good things from the emperor.
Looking at the mahogany boxes and red trays that filled the entire small room, Li Shuyao thought carefully, then waved her hand and said, "Put them all in my warehouse."
Nanny Yan was startled when she heard this. "Didn't Her Majesty just say that these were given by the Emperor..."
Li Shuyao shook her head. "But after I finished reading it, I suddenly didn't want to give it to him anymore. He'd been beating and kicking me all afternoon, and I figured I couldn't suffer in vain. He should compensate me with something. Isn't that right, Madam Yan?"
Nanny Yan nodded unconsciously, not thinking there was anything wrong with what Li Shuyao said.
So he followed suit and tore up the half-registered booklet, took out a new booklet from the study, and registered the rare items sent by the emperor again.
Li Shuyao was lying lazily on the couch at the moment, holding the small pillow that Hehua had made for her before, and a thin scarlet quilt embroidered with pomegranate patterns under her waist.
Her delicate little face, like a flower, was still a little pale, her almond-shaped eyes were moist, with red at the corners, and there were a few shallow tooth marks on her lips - these were all bitten by her all afternoon.
There's nothing we can do. It's the kid's fault for being so noisy.
Kicking her is like kicking an enemy.
She heard Concubine Tong's voice saying she was going to kick her, and when she heard the Emperor's voice, she kicked her even harder.
Li Shuyao was confused for a moment as to what the condition of the baby in her belly was. She could only wait and see after the baby was born in two months.
On the other hand, the midwives and wet nurses sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs were quickly selected after a joint screening by Concubine Tong and the Emperor. They only needed to go home and explain the situation to their families, and they would be able to move to Changchun Palace tomorrow.
Li Shuyao yawned again.
Lotus came over at this time, "If your Majesty is sleepy, would you like to go to bed and take a nap?"
Li Shuyao shook her head, her expression somewhat listless, her voice sounding aggrieved and dull, "No, I'm not sleeping. I'm still waiting for Qingyao to come."
He Hua looked at the sky outside and asked, "It's so late, will Concubine Yi come over?"
Li Shuyao nodded again, "Yes, she will come if she says she will. I will wait for her to sleep together."
"...Okay, then shall I go and get your Majesty a glass of milk?"
"Two, two cups, Qingyao should be here soon." Li Shuyao closed her eyes slightly, but did not forget to serve Qingyao a cup as well.
Hehua reached out to tuck the thin blanket around her, then turned and left.
Not long after, he came back with two cups of milk.
She placed the glass cup on the ivory table beside Li Shuyao. Suddenly, a palace maid's voice came from outside, "This servant greets the Concubine Yi."
"Your Majesty, Concubine Yi is here."
Seeing that Li Shuyao had her eyes closed and did not react, Hehua boldly pulled her thin blanket.
After pulling several times, Li Shuyao finally opened her eyes drowsily, "Hmm?" Her voice was already filled with sleepiness.
He Hua repeated in a hurried tone, "Your Majesty, it's Concubine Yi who's here."
"Oh, Qingyao is here," Li Shuyao raised her hand and wiped the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand, then yawned again, "Then, then go make the bed, we're going to sleep."
When Li Shuyao was vaguely explaining Lotus, Qingyao had already walked in. She took in the scene in the small room with her sparkling eyes and quickly understood what was going on.
She walked to Li Shuyao's side with a bit of heartache, bent down, stretched out her hand and pinched Li Shuyao's fleshy cheek, then asked softly: "Are you waiting for me?"
Li Shuyao felt like she was about to die of sleep, but Qingyao was still asking these nonsensical questions. So she sat up and kicked the quilt away angrily, saying with a stern face, "No, I'm waiting for the imperial concubine."
Who doesn’t know that the baby in Li Shuyao’s belly can’t stand the voice of Concubine Tong?
Qingyao was not angry after hearing this. Instead, she hugged Li Shuyao kindly. After successfully extinguishing the anger on her face, she took Li Shuyao's hand and walked with her to the inner room of the bedroom. She took off her outer clothes and the two of them lay directly on the bed.
Nanny Yan quickly took people to send all the wooden boxes and pallets outside to continue counting.
Tian Jiarou, Yue Shu and others walked quickly into the bedroom, extinguished the candles inside to only three or two, checked the windows again, and then lowered the curtains in front of Li Shuyao's bed and tiptoed out of the bedroom.
The people on night shift today are Wen Mei and Ruolan.
They guessed that their queen might have something to say to Concubine Yi, so they did not take a nap at the end of Li Shuyao's bed today, but each took out a quilt.
Just as they were about to go to the outer room, they suddenly heard their own mother calling out to them from the bed: "Wen Mei Ruolan, you two should go to sleep on the bed. Don't squat on the ground. You must be very tired."
Wen Mei and Ruolan were both stunned for a moment, then responded gratefully in the direction of Li Shuyao before walking outside.
The bedroom suddenly fell into silence.
Only the faint crackling of the candlelight could be heard from time to time.
Li Shuyao was lying on the bed, looking at Qingyao with her bright almond-shaped eyes.
——She was just pulled by Qingyao to walk a few steps on the ground, and somehow the sleepiness in her head suddenly disappeared completely.
Now lying in the quilt, I feel more awake than during the day.
She wanted to talk to Qingyao.
So he hugged the quilt and turned his body to the side.
Qingyao, who was lying next to her, looked at her nervously and whispered, "Be gentle," while raising her hand to lightly protect Li Shuyao's slightly bulging belly.
Li Shuyao pursed her lips and said, "Madame Yan added three layers of thick bedding to my bed! Didn't you notice how extra soft it was when you lay down on it?"
Qingyao was stunned when she heard this. She really hadn't noticed it.
Li Shuyao: "..."
She sighed softly, "I knew that you came here for my belly. If he were not here, you would not remember me, right?" She deliberately imitated Lin Daiyu's tone.
Then he saw with satisfaction that the relatively calm expression on Qingyao's face suddenly became flustered.
"No, no, no, I didn't come here for him. I was actually more worried about you than him." Qingyao pursed her lips helplessly and continued, "Just now, no, I wasn't afraid that you would move too much. What if you woke him up and he tormented you again?"
So that's how it is.
Li Shuyao nodded with a satisfied look on her face, then moved closer bit by bit, resting her chin on Qingyao's shoulder. She said softly, "Okay, I accept this reason."
If you think about it carefully, there's nothing you can do if she doesn't accept it.
She is already an adult, how can she be jealous of an unborn baby?
She wasn't jealous at all!
Li Shuyao began to try to change the subject, "In the afternoon, after you and the Imperial Concubine left, he tormented me for a long time in my stomach."
Qingyao asked worriedly, "Didn't the imperial physician say anything?"
Li Shuyao shook her head. "The imperial physician said it was nothing, he was just too lively. The emperor was very happy after hearing this and even lay down to talk to him."
"But as he was talking, he seemed to be getting angrier and angrier. Because every time the emperor said something, he would kick me several times..."
"Ah?" Qingyao was a little dumbfounded.
Li Shuyao carefully recalled the scene in her mind and was sure that her feeling was not wrong.
"That's it."
"Then, then why is this happening?" Qingyao felt a little itchy in her heart.
The baby in Shu Yao's belly would move when it heard Concubine Tong talking, and would also move when it heard the emperor talking. But when it came to her, it became that her belly would bulge from time to time only when she was silent.
Is it because the baby in Shu Yao’s belly doesn’t like her as her godmother?
Or is there any other reason?
When Qingyao was doubting herself, Li Shuyao lay beside her and suddenly sighed deeply, "I guess it was probably what the emperor said that made him angry."
Qingyao became even more confused at once.
Li Shuyao said, "Because the emperor said that he was so lively and active when he was still in my belly, and he would definitely be a strong and powerful little prince when he was born. He also imagined that he might be born with supernatural powers. He said that when he turned one year old, he would give him a bow and arrow with nine strength at the celebration."
After Li Shuyao finished speaking, she frowned and looked a little sad.
It was just because the emperor was so proud of himself that he accidentally said the name he had planned for the baby: "If it's a prince, let's call him 'Yinzhen', and if it's a princess, let's call him 'Ningchuke'..."
Yinzhen!
It seems that her guess was correct, and she had indeed replaced the heroine of the original book.
Otherwise, why would she give the baby in her belly such a name?
Thinking of this, Li Shuyao sighed again.
Qingyao didn't understand why she was so worried, and she advised: "The emperor is looking forward to the little prince in your belly, this is a good thing."
What's good about it?
Li Shuyao continued to sigh, "I think the emperor's expectations are too high. Isn't the Jiuli bow a bit too heavy for a child who just turned one year old?"
Qingyao smiled and gave her a glare. "The Emperor only said to put it in for him to catch, not to draw his bow and shoot an arrow right away. You're starting to worry now, isn't that a bit of a worry?"
Li Shuyao puffed up her cheeks unhappily. She found that Qingyao had no way of understanding her feelings at all.
Is this what she is worried about?
She was obviously worried that if this little guy grew up and couldn't pull Jiuli's bow, what would she do?
Taizong's four and a half powers, Taizong's four and a half powers...
In history, even when a kid became an emperor, he could only pull a bow of four and a half forces, while his father could pull a bow of fifteen forces. I heard that some children who had just reached adulthood in the Qing Dynasty could basically pull a bow of seven to nine forces.
It is no exaggeration to say that with the little strength that an adult like Yinzhen had, he should have sat at the children's table.
So, it was no wonder that he got so angry when he heard what his Khan Ama said in his stomach...
If you give it to her, she will be angry too.
Thinking of this, Li Shuyao silently pulled up the quilt to cover her mouth and nose, then blinked at Qingyao without saying a word.
Qingyao came closer, thinking that she had something private to say to her.
Unexpectedly, Li Shuyao just shouted to her in a low voice: "I want to sleep!"
After saying that, without caring about Qingyao's reaction, he turned over and lay flat on the bed, pressed the quilt under his neck, and closed his eyelids tightly.
Sleep, sleep more, so that the baby in her belly can grow fast and healthily.
Who knows, in the future you might be able to pull a bow with more than just 4.5 force!
*
After this day, the concubines in the harem were surprised to find that the interactions between Chengqian Palace and Changchun Palace had decreased.
They speculated that it might be because the Empress Dowager wanted Concubine Tong to take charge of the Phoenix Seal and preside over the affairs of the six palaces, so she had no time to visit Li Shuyao.
Although Concubine Tong did not come, the other concubines often came to Li Shuyao, either to chat with her or to teach her some embroidery techniques.
In less than a month, Li Shuyao had sewed more than 30 pairs of socks.
The advantage of these little socks is that the stitching is very dense, so even if you wear them for ten years, they probably won’t fall apart.
The disadvantage is that there are too many dropped stitches and the stitches are not hidden, so the seams of the socks feel very rough and are not suitable for newborn babies.
Li Shuyao felt somewhat disheartened and thought that she should give up her fantasy and change her career as soon as possible.
Nanny Yan smiled and persuaded her, "When my brother is a little older, he can wear it."
Li Shuyao shook her head. "If it gets any older, he'll dislike it too."
Nanny Yan: "How could that be? This is all because of the Queen's motherly love for the young prince. The young prince will definitely not despise it."
Li Shuyao thought, how could a newborn baby understand the meaning of a mother's kindness? He only cares about whether he is comfortable or not.
He laughs when he feels comfortable and cries when he feels uncomfortable. If he feels his socks are rubbing his feet, he might even think she is trying to hurt him...
However, Li Shuyao could also guess that there was more comfort in Nanny Yan's words. When the baby in her belly was really born, even if she insisted on wearing such socks for the baby, Nanny Yan herself would probably not agree.
...Oh no, there is another possibility.
After Nanny Yan takes these socks away, she will have someone secretly sew a few good pairs, so that they can use someone else's socks as a substitute...
This not only saves her face, but also allows the baby to better feel her intentions.
Li Shuyao sighed, "Alas."
It's really not easy for Nanny Yan.
Thinking of this, Li Shuyao decided that she should not cause more trouble for the palace maids in Changchun Palace.
So she put down her needle and thread, pushed the bamboo basket towards Nanny Yan, and made the excuse that she had already embroidered many pairs of socks, enough for the baby.
She didn't want to bother with needlework anymore and wanted to play with something else.
Nanny Yan asked her, "What would you like to play?"
Li Shuyao thought for a moment and said, "I want to hear the sounds of seagulls. Madam, can you find a few seagulls for me?"
Nanny Yan was stunned. Seagull, just by hearing the name, you know that this is a bird unique to the seaside. There is no sea here in the capital.
Nanny Yan thought for a moment and said, "There are some ventriloquist artists in the capital. How about inviting them to the palace and having them perform for you?"
Not much.
Li Shuyao shook her head, her mood suddenly becoming low. She had just said it casually, but after she finished speaking, she really wanted to listen.
Not only did she want to hear the sound of seagulls, she also wanted to hear the sound of the little train, the kind of old-fashioned little train that made that humming sound as it passed over the rails.
I still want to hear the sound of car horns, and I still want to eat the sesame paste that I ate when I was a child, which was sold in the streets and alleys.
As she thought about it, Li Shuyao licked her dry lips and asked Nanny Yan, "Is there any sesame paste in our palace?"
Nanny Yan was stunned again and again, not understanding why the Empress suddenly shifted her focus from the sound of seagulls to sesame paste.
But it was a good thing to not be thinking about the sound of the seagulls, so he nodded decisively, "Yes, yes. Does your Majesty want to drink now?"
"Yes, I want to drink that kind of hand-ground sesame paste, and lotus root powder and osmanthus sugar cake."
Nanny Yan smiled and hugged the sewing basket in her arms. She said to Li Shuyao, "Please wait a moment, Madam. I will be back soon."
"Go ahead." Li Shuyao waved her hand and stood up from the chair.
After walking around the small room twice, he really didn't know what to play, so he simply walked into the yard and asked Tian Jiarou and the others to bring out a rocking chair.
She just sat in the rocking chair under the eaves, fanning herself and watching the palace maids in Changchun Palace busy at work.
The weather in May is just right, the sun is neither too strong nor too hot, the wind blows from far away, and the temperature is very comfortable.
Before Nanny Yan finished making the sesame paste, Li Shuyao fell asleep while watching the busy palace maids.
Tian Jiarou and others hurried to the inner room and got a blanket to cover her.
Then they gathered around her in groups of three or four, fanning her and glancing at her belly from time to time.
When Li Shuyao woke up, the sun was already setting in the west.
The golden sunlight just a moment ago suddenly turned into an orange color.
Li Shuyao smacked her lips twice and suddenly said, "I'm craving scrambled eggs with tomatoes."
"What would your Majesty like to eat?" Nanny Yan's voice came from the side.
When Li Shuyao came to her senses, she saw Nanny Yan holding a tray and standing next to the rocking chair, looking at her curiously.
Li Shuyao thought about it and thought, there seemed to be no tomatoes at this time?
So he raised his hand and scratched his cheek, and said a little embarrassedly: "Nothing, I just dreamed that I was eating delicious food."
"Is it sesame paste?" Nanny Yan brought over the tray.
Li Shuyao nodded hurriedly, "It's sesame paste, this is the taste."
She picked up the spoon on the tray, reached out to test the temperature of the soup bowl, then scooped it up and took two sips.
The first thing she tasted was a dense sesame aroma, which was neither sweet nor greasy. But somehow, after drinking the sesame paste she had been craving for, Li Shuyao suddenly felt a little bland.
Li Shuyao took two more sips before throwing the spoon into the bowl. She didn't want to drink it anymore, and it didn't taste like what she had drunk as a child.
The people around her noticed that something was wrong with her expression, and their hearts jumped at the same time, "Mother?"
Li Shuyao looked at them, then smiled faintly and said that she probably just woke up and her appetite had not returned yet, so she didn't feel like drinking anymore.
Then he looked at Nanny Yan apologetically and said, "Nanny, I'm sorry. How about putting it aside for a while and drinking it later?"
Nanny Yan thought that it was common for pregnant women to have changing tastes, so she didn't take it to heart. Instead, she said to Li Shuyao, "If your Majesty doesn't want to drink now, don't force yourself."
She raised the tray again and casually told Tian Jiarou and the others, "It's going to be windy outside. Help the queen back inside first."
Tian Jiarou and others nodded.
Li Shuyao followed them back.
Sitting in the room and thinking about it, I felt that I might have been... homesick these days.
So he held his bulging belly and sighed for a while.
Suddenly there was a loud noise outside.
Li Shuyao curiously leaned out to look over. Yue Shu immediately put down her fan and said, "Don't worry, Madam. I'll go out and take a look."
After she said that, she turned and walked out.
Not long after he left, the noisy sound outside gradually moved towards Li Shuyao's main hall.
Yue Shu, with a smile on her face, hopped in like a little rabbit, and said to Li Shuyao in a very excited tone, "Madam, guess who's here?"
"Who is it, Qingyao?"
Or the emperor?
Yue Shu blinked at her mysteriously, "Neither of them, it's Madam Li from Jiangnan. Your mother is here!"
Li Shuyao: “?”
Huh? At this time?
This must be a lie, right?
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