Chapter 539: Rebirth of Concubine Shu (I)
"Your Majesty, Concubine Xia has given birth to a princess. The Emperor has given her the name Lu Li."
A strange yet familiar voice rang in his ears, and Shen Liuzheng opened his eyes in a daze.
Concubine Xia?
Who is it?
Sounds familiar.
Lu Li?
Isn’t that Xiaojiu’s name?
Who is so bold as to call Xiaojiu by her name?
Shen Liuzheng suddenly opened his eyes and saw the young maid and two young daughters. He was stunned.
"Mother, are you awake?"
"Can you get me a swing?"
Lu Qiongying and Lu Qionghua ran up to her chattering.
Shen Liuzheng was terrified.
Aren’t the two daughters already married and have children? Why do they still look so young now?
"What year is it now?" Shen Liuzheng asked in a daze.
The palace maid Qingshuang was shocked. Was Concubine Xia's giving birth to a daughter such a big blow to the Empress that she couldn't even tell what year it was?
Although she was full of doubts, she still answered honestly: "Your Majesty, it is now the 23rd year of Jianyuan."
The twenty-third year of Jianyuan?
Shen Liuzheng was shocked. Isn't this the year when Xiaojiu was born?
Xia Jieyu...
It’s Xia Shuyi!
She remembered that after Xia Shuyi gave birth to the ninth princess that year, she was promoted three ranks and became the empress.
Later, the ninth princess became the crown princess, and the queen became the empress dowager.
So when she first heard the title "Xia Jieyu", she was stunned for a while.
She remembered that she fell down during the Qingming Festival when she was paying homage to her ancestors, and then she died.
Unexpectedly, she returned to the 23rd year of Jianyuan.
Is this the rebirth mentioned in the storybook?
She suppressed her fear and said in a deep voice, "Quick, bring me a silver mirror."
"Silver mirror?" Qingshuang was stunned. "My queen, there are only bronze mirrors in our palace."
Shen Liuzheng was stunned. That's right, Qu Fufeng hasn't joined the Ministry of Industry yet, and the silver mirror and other things haven't been researched yet.
"It's all right. Give it to me." She began to recall the past.
After taking the mirror, she looked at her young face and touched it subconsciously.
She lived again.
She was truly reborn!
Did God let her be reborn to make up for her regrets?
Shen Liuzheng thought of his father and brothers at the border and smiled.
Great, she has a chance to save her father and brothers.
She had to go to the border quickly to support them, otherwise they would all be killed by Wei Zhong, that hypocritical villain, shortly after the Ninth Princess's full moon.
Shen Liuzheng gritted his teeth in anger when he thought of his father and brother who died on the battlefield.
Lu Qiongying and Lu Qionghua, who were originally lively, were a little at a loss when they saw their mother smiling and looking angry at the same time.
"Mother, what's wrong with you?" Lu Qionghua carefully tugged at his mother's sleeve.
"Mother is fine. Let's go and visit Concubine Xia and the Ninth Princess." Shen Liuzheng smiled and touched the heads of the two children.
"Your Majesty, let's say goodbye." Qingshuang tried to persuade her.
"We don't usually interact with Concubine Xia. You suddenly came to visit us. The Ninth Princess is so fragile at birth. If something happens and it's your fault, it will be bad."
"Yes, your majesty, we don't need to rush at this moment." Another palace maid, Han Guang, also advised against it.
"It's okay. We are doing things right and have nothing to be afraid of." Shen Liuzheng waved his hand and decided to go to Yuxiu Palace.
After Xiaojiu ascended the throne, she talked to the Queen about Xiaojiu's thoughts.
When the Queen and the others learned the day the Ninth Princess was born, they were able to hear her thoughts.
She wanted to confirm whether things had changed after her rebirth.
Can she still hear the Ninth Princess's thoughts?
If not, would the Ninth Princess still possess those magical powers?
She had to figure these things out.
Perhaps the situation on the battlefield has also changed.
Seeing that she had made up her mind, the two palace maids no longer held her back, but accompanied her to Yuxiu Palace.
Xia Shuyi, who had just given birth, was still very weak. She didn't expect Concubine Shu to come so soon.
She was a little uneasy. She had no contact with Concubine Shu on a daily basis, and the fact that she gave birth to a daughter would not threaten her position. Why did she come to visit her?
"Your Majesty, your concubine, pays her respects..." When she saw Shen Liuzheng, she forced herself to stand up and salute.
"No need to be so polite, sister." Shen Liuzheng quickly held her down.
"I brought you some things for women to replenish their qi and blood after childbirth, including donkey-hide gelatin, ginseng, deer antler, and cordyceps. You can ask the imperial physician to help you see which one is more suitable for you."
Hearing this, Xia Shuyi felt somewhat flattered.
Why is Concubine Shu so nice to her?
She was confused, but she didn't ask. She just smiled gently and said, "Thank you, Madam."
"There's no need to be polite between you and me, sisters." Shen Liuzheng sat down on the edge of the bed and looked around.
"Where's Xiaojiu? Why can't I see her?"
"The child just peed, and the servant took her out to change her diaper." Xia Shuyi's eyes were full of smiles when she talked about her daughter.
She was finally able to raise the child.
Thinking of her son who was taken away by Concubine Xie, the smile on her face faded again.
Heng'er still doesn't know that she is his biological mother.
As soon as Xia Shuyi finished speaking, Lu Wei came back carrying Lu Li. Shen Liuzheng was overjoyed to find that she was awake.
She took out a gold safety lock and handed it to Lu Li.
"I have a special affinity with this child. I was delighted the moment I saw her. This safety lock is my gift to her."
After saying this, she stared at Lu Li closely, trying to hear what was in her heart.
The Ninth Princess loves gold the most, so it is impossible for her to remain indifferent.
But Lu Li smacked her lips, not caring about the gold lock at all, and fell asleep again.
She heard nothing.
"Your Majesty, is this too expensive?" Xia Shuyi was a little confused.
She just gave birth to a princess, but it was unreasonable for Concubine Shu to give her so many gifts right away to make friends with her.
"It's not expensive. She is a princess and deserves it." Shen Liuzheng smiled faintly.
Knowing that she couldn't hear anything, she casually said a few words to Xia Shuyi and left.
After Shen Liuzheng left, Xia Shuyi hurriedly asked the palace maid to invite the imperial physician to check whether there was any problem with the things Shen Liuzheng sent.
After learning that there was no problem, Xia Shuyi fell into confusion.
Why should Concubine Shu be nice to her?
…
The news that Shen Liuzheng went to Yuxiu Palace quickly spread throughout the harem.
"She's just a little girl, but Shen Liuzheng takes her so seriously? Is there something fishy going on?" Xie Ruizhu couldn't help but wonder.
Could it be that Xia Shuyi actually gave birth to a prince, but in order to save the prince's life, she claimed to the outside world that it was a princess?
Xie Ruizhu became more and more curious and decided to go to Yuxiu Palace tomorrow.
…
Shen Liuzheng returned to the palace and went straight to the study.
She wanted to list out the things she remembered one by one. She wanted to make sure clearly what had changed after her rebirth.
She couldn't just rush off to the battlefield.
So she picked up her pen and wrote down the story.
The first thing to do is to monitor the spies that Concubine De has planted in the palace, and at the same time do Concubine Xian and An Miaoyi a favor by revealing the list of spies planted by Concubine De to them.
The second thing is to check whether the Xie family has established the White Lotus Sect. Xie Ruizhu is not a tolerant person. If Xiaojiu is different from his previous life and has no divine power, something might happen to him.
She had to get rid of Xie Ruizhu first.
The third thing was to investigate whether Wei Zhong and those corrupt officials in the court were secretly colluding with each other as they did in the previous generation.
After getting the evidence, she had to find a way to convince the emperor to let her go to the battlefield.
The fourth thing is to find out whether Qu Fufeng is still the same Qu Fufeng.
After listing the things that needed to be done one by one, Shen Liuzheng felt much more at ease.