Unexpectedly, as soon as I came out of the bedchamber, I saw Situ Rui sitting to one side reading a book. Judging from his appearance, he must have been reading for a long time.
"Your Majesty, I have overslept and have kept you waiting."
Situ Rui handed the book in his hand to Eunuch Li beside him, "It's nothing. I saw you sleeping so soundly, so I didn't want to wake you. Are you hungry? I haven't had dinner yet either, let's eat together!"
"It is my honor."
Next came mealtime. The emperor's rules were quite strict; he was expected not to speak while eating or sleeping, which made her afraid to speak either.
After rinsing my mouth after dinner, I sat in the living room for a while, speechless. But thinking about what I had discussed with my mother that afternoon, I hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Your Majesty, I have a favor to ask of you."
"Oh? Tell me about it." Situ Rui raised an eyebrow, genuinely curious about what the other person wanted from him.
"Your Majesty, it is still a matter concerning my family. I know I shouldn't let my family's affairs bother Your Majesty too much, but I have no choice but to ask Your Majesty this time. My family has just come from a small rural place, and we are completely unfamiliar with the customs and etiquette. I would like to ask Your Majesty to bestow upon my mother a rank-bearing matron to properly teach her how to manage the household affairs, and also to bring my sisters-in-law along, so that I won't have to keep worrying about my family."
"Alright, that's not a difficult matter, but it's not appropriate for me to interfere. How about this, I'll go see the Empress Dowager tomorrow. The nanny by the Empress Dowager's side is quite capable; teaching her is a piece of cake."
After thinking about it for a moment, Situ Rui agreed. In the future, without her family's affairs bothering Consort An, she could stay in the palace in peace and have more children for him.
"Your Majesty, I thank you in advance, and I also thank the Empress Dowager. However, it is inconvenient for me to go out right now, so I can only ask Your Majesty to convey my gratitude."
Tang Baozhu thought the Emperor was really capable. Although in the end the people were borrowed from the Empress Dowager, the people from the Empress Dowager were no less capable. You should know that she had some palace maids sent by the Empress Dowager, and each of them was very well trained and extremely capable. One person could do the work of three people.
In the days that followed, Tang Baozhu stayed in the palace to rest and prepare for childbirth. She never left Changchun Palace and only walked around the small garden every day. As for the Imperial Garden, she hadn't even been there yet.
She hadn't seen any other concubines either. The outside was guarded, and no one could get in. Situ Rui had really protected her very well.
However, the only thing that made Tang Baozhu feel gratified was that, apart from the Empress Dowager, she had the highest rank in the palace. She thought that after giving birth to the little prince, she would be able to be promoted again and become a concubine. With a higher rank, she felt that life would be more comfortable.
Everyone outside is hoping she'll give birth soon. The concubines in the palace want her to give birth quickly so they won't keep the emperor around anymore. There's nothing they can do; ever since she got pregnant, the emperor has been watching over her every day, afraid something might happen.
Sure enough, this made the concubines envious and jealous, but they couldn't do anything to her. She hid in Changchun Palace and never came out, so they couldn't even say a word to provoke her.
Many people outside the palace were praying that she would give birth to a princess, especially those from the collateral branches of the family. However, they might be disappointed, as Tang Baozhu had taken a fertility pill and was certain that she would give birth to a son.
Time passed slowly, and the due date drew closer. Everyone in Changchun Palace was on edge. So much time had passed, and she was about to give birth. They couldn't afford to have any mishaps during this time. Therefore, everyone was extra careful.
Tang Baozhu was quite calm, but she also felt that these palace maids and eunuchs were really capable. The poison-avoiding beads they wore on their hands had never shown any effects, which meant that they had kept all the bad things out.
However, she wouldn't let her guard down, after all, there was still a life-threatening situation ahead. She was afraid that the midwife might slip up. The midwife was also very important. Fortunately, the emperor had prepared the midwife carefully, checking her ancestors for 18 generations. Just in case something went wrong, he even took control of her family. It could be said that everything was prepared, and she was just waiting for her to start labor.
Fortunately, the little prince in her belly didn't cause too much trouble, and Tang Baozhu went into labor when her due date arrived.
That morning, while she was eating breakfast, Tang Baozhu felt waves of pain in her abdomen. Having safely passed ten months of pregnancy, she knew what was going on as soon as she felt pain, so she calmly finished her breakfast.
Knowing I'd be in postpartum confinement for a month, which meant I definitely wouldn't be able to shower, I thought I'd take a shower first! After all, it's going to be really hot giving birth in May.
"Yu Mei, I suddenly feel a bit hot and want to take a bath. Go and prepare some hot water."
Yu Mei hesitated for a moment, but didn't want to argue. After all, the pregnant woman was the most important person to take care of, and she figured that taking a bath shouldn't be a problem, so she didn't say anything.
"Your Highness, please wait a moment, I will be right there."
What Tang Baozhu was most satisfied with about Changchun Palace was the newly opened small kitchen next door. She could eat whenever she wanted, without worrying that the food from the imperial kitchen would be cold by the time it arrived. She could always have something hot to eat.
Just like now, if I want to take a shower, I can just give the order and hot water will be brought over quickly. It's incredibly convenient.
She went straight back to her bedchamber, feeling waves of pain coming from her stomach. Fortunately, she could bear it for the time being. The pain would come in waves, then stop, then come back again. She felt that she probably wouldn't be giving birth so soon.
Hot water was brought quickly, and with the help of the palace maids, I took a bath and washed my hair. Then I sat in front of the dressing table and had the palace maids help me dry my hair.
After everything was ready, she said to the person beside her, "My stomach feels a little uncomfortable. I don't know if I'm about to give birth. Go quickly and fetch a royal physician, and also prepare a midwife."
The palace maids who were serving nearby were terrified when they heard this, but fortunately they were all well-trained and quickly came to their senses. They made a series of arrangements, and Changchun Palace remained orderly and everything was in good order.
The delivery room was ready long ago, and the midwife was waiting in Changchun Palace. Right now, she was helping Tang Baozhu walk around more, hoping that she would give birth faster and more easily later.
The emperor and empress dowager, having received the news quickly, rushed over. Because of the belief that the delivery room was unlucky, they sat outside the delivery room and waited, their eyes never leaving the doorway.
Despite his seemingly expressionless face, Situ Rui was actually gripping the chair tightly, with veins bulging out.
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