Chapter 139 Zhang Jia's Self-Destructive Acts
She burned the letter, then secretly gave the martial arts manual to her youngest son, repeatedly instructing him that no one else should know about it, not even his father or elder brother.
This will be the foundation he passes down to his family.
He was eight years old and knew what was important. Although he didn't understand why his mother wouldn't let him tell his father and older brother, he knew his mother would never harm him, so he didn't say anything.
I agree, Mother.
Haha, the misunderstanding about the pearl has come to a satisfactory end. Fanghua has also thoroughly investigated the people chosen by Kangxi and found that they are somewhat similar to Chenghu in both character and temperament. She is quite satisfied with the two of them.
Fanghua did not shy away from this and directly rewarded the two handsomely.
Now the imperial court and the inner palace all know that the eldest prince's haha pearl has been decided.
Only Consort An, upon hearing this news, hurriedly went to Kunning Palace to pay her respects.
But Fanghua was unwilling to involve Chenghu in the imperial court and harem too early, so she refused Consort An's audience.
She also sent someone to tell her that since she was pregnant, she should take good care of herself and not think about anything else.
Consort An never expected that the Empress would refuse to see her. Even though the Empress had chosen her family's child as the eldest prince's son, she was still being distant. At this moment, she felt somewhat uncomfortable.
But she dared not show it. "Then this concubine will not disturb Your Majesty's rest." After curtsying, Consort An left Kunning Palace.
Naturally, Li Changfu saw all her changes and felt disdain. She was clearly trying to curry favor with his mistress, but she even harbored resentment after being rejected. He had to have a good talk with his mistress.
And so they were deceived by such people.
"Please take care, Lady An." Li Changfu maintained the proper etiquette of Kunning Palace.
After everyone had gone far away, Li Changfu turned back and recounted what had just happened.
Fanghua laughed upon hearing this, "His Majesty has already told me that Consort An and An Zhiming are only related by the third degree of kinship, so they can't be considered too close. I really don't know why she came to see me." In Fanghua's eyes, Consort An just wanted to use this relationship to get closer to her.
Is she really that easy to approach?
Definitely not.
“Surviving in the harem is not easy, so it’s not unreasonable for Consort An to have such thoughts. If Your Majesty doesn’t want to pay attention to her, then don’t.” Qiaoyun, who was standing to the side, was afraid that Her Majesty would be upset, so she spoke up to comfort her.
"Besides, our brother is a man of his own mind and will not be influenced by outside influences."
"That's true, but I'm afraid someone with ulterior motives might get close. Well, it's better to have someone keep a closer eye on things from now on."
After the matter was dropped, Fanghua ignored An Changzai. However, she did not expect that An Changzai would not give up and would come to her door many times, which made Fanghua very unhappy.
So after the candidate was chosen, she went to see Kangxi again and talked about the Haha Pearl, naturally also informing him about An Changyi.
Emperor Kangxi was somewhat puzzled, but he respected the Empress's opinion.
"Is the Empress considering a different candidate?"
Military generals often have many sons, so replacing one wouldn't be a problem.
Fanghua nodded, "I do have this idea, and I hope Your Majesty will grant it."
Since it was such a trivial matter and the Empress had asked, he naturally didn't refuse. "Alright, then let's change the candidate." It wasn't an important person to begin with, so changing them was fine.
"Does the Empress have someone she prefers?"
Fanghua had already revealed her chosen candidate, "I think the second son of General Li is very good. I heard that he likes martial arts, which is the same hobby as Chenghu."
Upon hearing this, Kangxi understood that the Empress had taken a liking to General Li's second son. "In that case, we will agree with the Empress and change the candidate to General Li's son."
The news spread quickly, and the An family was furious when they found out. They sent letters to the palace many times to reprimand Consort An.
Even if she became the emperor's concubine, she still had to endure the scolding from her elders.
This caused An Changzai, who was three months pregnant, to have a miscarriage.
When Fanghua learned of this, she sent someone to visit Yi Er, but said nothing else.
The day of Chenghu's enlightenment was approaching, and she was very busy.
But he had no time to accompany An Changzai in her lamentations of autumn and spring.
Instead of wasting time on this, we should prepare more things for Chenghu to use to open the door.
That day, Chenghu returned from school, and Fanghua was already waiting at the gate of Kunning Palace. When she saw her son returning with the palace servants, Fanghua immediately went to greet him.
"Can you even concentrate on the teacher's lessons?"
She stepped forward, took her son's little hand, and asked him with concern.
Seeing his mother waiting at the door, Chenghu said very dutifully, "Your Majesty, I will listen to you. From now on, please don't wait at the door anymore. It's windy, be careful not to catch a cold."
"Your mother is just worried. This is the first time you've left your mother to study, so of course I'm worried. I won't do it again." Knowing that her son was worried about her, she pretended to agree in order not to make him worry.
Chenghu followed his mother on the way back to the palace. "I'm sorry to have worried you, Mother. I'm doing well, and the teacher is very dedicated to his studies."
The mother and son chatted casually. After returning to the palace, Fanghua accompanied her son for a meal and then told him to go back and rest before returning to her own bedroom.
Upon her return, she immediately summoned Li Chuanzong and inquired about Chenghu's entire schedule for the day.
Only after learning that everything was going smoothly as Cheng Hu had said did she truly feel at ease.
Days passed uneventfully, and Chenghu officially became a student, while she became busy with some matters concerning the harem.
"Your Majesty, it seems that Consort An's pregnancy is not going to last. May I request the imperial physician to examine her?"
When Qiaoling reported back, Fanghua was quite surprised. Her pregnancy wasn't far along, so how could it have reached the point where she couldn't be saved?
"Do you know why you couldn't keep it?" She was most annoyed by the women in the harem who had ulterior motives, after all, there were quite a few pregnant women now.
Who knows if someone might try to pave the way for their own belly and cause some trouble?
"I heard that the An family often sends letters to the palace, and Consort An always calls the imperial physician after receiving a letter." Qiaoling did not mention that Consort An was implicated in the matter of the replacement of the Haha Beads.
However, with Her Majesty's intelligence, she will surely understand the deeper meaning.
Sure enough, Fanghua retorted sarcastically upon hearing this: "She brought it on herself. I don't want to get myself into this kind of trouble. Look at Consort Li, she's much more well-behaved. You know, Chenghu's Haha Pearl is her nephew."
Li Guiren's nephew was not initially among her choices, but unexpectedly, Consort An was so blind as to try to drag her into it.
When she was choosing Chenghu, she tried her best to avoid the emperor's taboos, but she had no sense at all and came to her door.
This is an attempt to harm her son.
"Your Majesty has discerning eyes and a keen eye for people. I have heard that the two young masters get along very well with our prince."
Despite their different social statuses, the friendship they developed from childhood is an opportunity that others cannot obtain.
"Stop flattering me. Is An Chang really going to lose that pregnancy?" Fanghua waved her hand and asked with a gloomy expression.
She gave the man to Chenghu, believing he could handle him; it was still troublesome to deal with matters of the harem.
"The imperial physician has already applied moxibustion, but I'm afraid it will be difficult," Qiaoling said, shaking her head.
"Hmph, if you don't cherish it, then don't ruin the royal offspring in the future. Let this pregnancy be natural, and don't let there be another one." It's better to have no one to rely on than someone so restless.
Otherwise, who knows what she might do in the future?
She wanted to ensure that no trouble would arise in the harem.
I don't want things to turn out like they did in the last generation, where everyone fought like roosters with black eyes.
"Yes, I've got it."
Fanghua thought An Changzai was an isolated case, but she never expected that some people would also set their sights on having offspring.
As spring approached, the pregnant concubines' bellies gradually grew larger.
Zhang Jia, who was the first to become pregnant, was about to give birth when Fanghua discovered something that shouldn't have been in her palace.
This immediately put her on alert.
Summon a palace maid from Zhang Jia's side, point to the flowers in the vase on the table, and ask, "Where did these flowers come from?"
The palace maid was Zhang Jia's personal maid. When the Empress asked about this item, she replied without thinking, "Your Majesty, these are fresh flowers sent from the flower room. They said that since Your Highness is pregnant, it is not advisable for you to go out. They sent some fresh flowers to let Your Highness know about the spring scenery outside."
She wasn't lying; it really was delivered by someone from the flower shop.
Zhang Jia was overjoyed when she saw it, since she was about to give birth and could not go out every day as before.
Since we couldn't see the beautiful scenery outside, flowers were the perfect substitute. I even rewarded the little eunuch who delivered the flowers with a lot of money.
Is Her Majesty the Empress's question related to the young lady's attack today?
The young palace maid immediately knelt down and said, "Please, Your Majesty, make the decision! My lady is still half a month away from giving birth, but she went into labor today after sitting at this desk and reading for a while."
This palace maid is quite clever.
Fanghua asked someone to help her up.
"Don't worry, I will find out for myself." This is oleander, and it's not a good thing.
Ingesting such a contaminated food can cause a pregnant woman to miscarry, let alone someone like Zhang Jia who is about to give birth.
She had already handed over places like the flower room to the Imperial Concubine when she relinquished power in the palace.
So she sent someone to invite the Imperial Concubine.
Fanghua didn't have to wait long; the Imperial Concubine arrived quickly. Fanghua didn't waste any time with her and told her what she had discovered.
"You are in charge of the greenhouse. Have someone investigate who sent this item."
If everyone in the harem behaved themselves, she wouldn't bother with their petty schemes.
But to lay hands on the imperial heirs would be to disrupt her plans, and that is absolutely intolerable.
Therefore, we still need to find out who is behind this.
Furthermore, the fact that the harem was jointly managed by her and the Imperial Concubine allowed others to take advantage of the situation. So, when they weren't paying attention, these people would suddenly appear before them.
Upon hearing this, the Imperial Concubine immediately ordered her nanny to investigate.
While we waited, Emperor Kangxi arrived.
However, he did not stay long. After inquiring about the condition of the imperial physician Zhang Jia, he left, saying that he had business to attend to at the previous court.
But Fanghua was the empress, and she had no choice but to stay.
Zhang Jiashi waited until dark but still hadn't given birth. Fanghua was exhausted and hungry, but she couldn't leave.
So she sent the rest of the people to leave the Imperial Concubine to guard Qixiang Palace until Zhang Jia gave birth.
Unfortunately, Zhang Jia failed to give birth for a full day and night. It wasn't until noon the next day, after the midwife and the imperial physician issued a final ultimatum and the emperor made a decision, that the child was kept and the mother was removed.
It is unknown whether Zhang Jia was lucky or not, but she was rescued after the massive hemorrhage. However, she will never be able to have children again.
When Emperor Kangxi learned after court that he had another princess, he remained calm, but in accordance with the rules, he promoted Lady Zhangjia to the rank of Consort Chang, and the princess was raised under her care, which was considered a compensation for Lady Zhangjia's inability to bear children.
Zhang Jia Shi now had someone to rely on. Although she was a princess, she was still a royal descendant, so who would dare to neglect her?
But Fanghua and the Imperial Concubine were not at peace.
Because they discovered the cause of Zhang Jia's premature birth.
"I thought she was a well-behaved person, but I never expected her to be so wild. She actually gambled with herself and the child in her womb. Ha, she won this time, but there will be no future for her."
The Imperial Concubine was furious. She never expected that after all the investigation, the problem would ultimately lie with Zhang Jia herself.
"She's just an unfortunate person. Since she doesn't cherish it, let her go. She's just a princess, I can still tolerate her."
Fanghua has never pitied those who don't cherish their blessings.
In her previous life, she desperately wanted to live, but had no chance. And these women, on the other hand, valued life so little for the sake of status. Even if they died, they deserved it.
Now that she has gotten what she wanted, what business is it of theirs?
"So we're just going to ignore this?" The Imperial Concubine pouted, looking indignant.
"How can we handle this? She just gave birth, are we supposed to punish her? No matter what, she is the birth mother of a princess. Even if we don't consider her status as a monk, we should at least consider the Buddha's feelings."
Fanghua showed Zhang Jia no pity whatsoever; she would have to bear the bitterness herself from now on.
"She got off too easy." The Imperial Concubine was still indignant. "From now on, everything should be done according to the rules. I was a fool to help those pregnant women in every way. It was a waste of my benevolence."
Seeing her angry expression, Fanghua found the Imperial Concubine quite amusing.
"Alright, take it easy. After all, human nature is inherently evil."
Although it was meant to comfort, it would have been better if there had been no comfort at all.
The imperial concubine glared at her, "You're quite open-minded."
"What else can you do if you don't let it go? Scold her? And then make her cry and apologize? What's the point? Why bother with someone who has no future?"
The Imperial Concubine is much more lively than before, but unfortunately, her temper is getting worse and worse.
Sometimes she doesn't even dare to provoke people.
"Let's not talk about her anymore. Lady Dong is going to give birth next month, right? Are you really not planning to adopt one or two more this time?" Although she knew that Lady Dong would definitely give birth to a princess, she still wanted to test the Consort's intentions.
The Imperial Concubine rolled her eyes gracefully. "Do you think the Emperor would agree? Or rather, the Empress Dowager would agree?"
She knew perfectly well that the Empress Dowager was also keeping an eye on the pregnant bellies of the concubines in the harem.
If Consort Meng and Noble Lady Yun hadn't already served the Emperor, the Empress Dowager probably wouldn't have been able to hold back.
"That would be troublesome. Let's wait a bit longer. Maybe we'll have a chance to adopt a prince to keep us happy in the future." She only said that, but she would be the first to refuse if the Imperial Concubine were to actually adopt a prince.
Isn't this just asking for trouble?
"I might have had unrealistic fantasies before, but now I've come to terms with it. Xizhu is good enough." Although the Consort spoke frankly, the sadness in her eyes was still undeniable.
"Let's not talk about this. It's likely that Dong's baby will be another princess. Let her raise it herself."
Everyone has a trusted imperial physician.
She had the imperial physician examine Dong Shi when she was four months pregnant, but she didn't tell Dong Shi about it.
Princess, she has Xizhu, that's enough for her.
Fanghua had no idea what the Imperial Concubine was thinking, and even if she did, she would have thought it made perfect sense.
Who wouldn't want a son to rely on?
When Lady Zhang woke up and learned that she had given birth to a princess, she was somewhat disappointed, but when she learned that the emperor had allowed her to raise the princess herself, she felt that she had made the right bet.
But a shocking piece of news almost took her life.
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