Chapter 27 (None)
"Summon the imperial physician! Quickly, summon the imperial physician!" Jiang Ling cried out in alarm. She dared not step forward, struggling to tear her gaze away from the bloodstains on Consort Gao's skirt.
"Qiaoxin, go there yourself and have the Imperial Household Department send a sedan chair to escort Consort Gao back to Xiefang Pavilion. Go quickly!"
Wenjuan grabbed Qiaoxin and gave her a series of instructions. After she left, she summoned three maids and ordered them to report to Consort Lin, Consort Zhao, and Consort Liu: "Gao Cairen suddenly suffered a severe stomachache in the candle and lamp storeroom. Please, Your Highnesses, come out and make a decision."
Lan Yun cleverly moved a stool forward and said to the two palace maids who were crying anxiously, "Quickly help Consort Gao to sit down."
The two palace maids beside Consort Gao were both quite young. The older one, Hongye, gritted her teeth and tried her best to support her. Seeing this, the distraught Lüzhi quickly wiped away her tears and took Consort Gao's other arm.
Both of them were rather thin and weak. Gao Cairen seemed to have fainted and couldn't muster any strength. For a while, the two of them were struggling, and Gao Cairen remained slumped on the ground.
Lan Yun simply stood by and watched, while the other palace maids and eunuchs also watched the spectacle from afar, none of them daring to approach.
Jiang Lingduan looked at the scene before her and found it absurd and laughable, and strangely calmed down. Wen Juan leaned over and pulled her back two steps without making a sound, whispering, "Beauty, don't come forward."
"Mm," Jiang Ling replied.
Recalling Gao Cairen's earlier act of deliberately trying to snatch the bill when she stumbled and lost her balance at the alleyway, Jiang Lingruo realized that if she still didn't understand her intentions, she was truly hopelessly stupid!
If Gao Cairen's unborn child is truly gone, even if Jiang Ling bumps into her and pushes the table, hitting her stomach, it's because the unborn child was weak to begin with and wouldn't survive.
Even if they didn't understand, Jiang Ling would not feel guilty. Moreover, Gao Cairen had ulterior motives, and no matter who she was after, Jiang Ling would not offer her pity indiscriminately.
"It's getting late. Those who are on duty, hurry up and get to your posts. Be careful of fires at the lamp and candle area, and don't all crowd around here!" Jiang Ling said to Lan Yun.
Lan Yun hurriedly called the palace maids in charge of the lamps and candles to begin preparing to distribute them. Meanwhile, Zhong Shanggong, accompanied by people from the Imperial Carriage Bureau, rushed over in a sedan chair. She was horrified to see Consort Gao, pale-faced and groaning, nestled in the arms of Hongye and Luzhi.
Jiang Ling didn't explain further, saying, "Zhong Shang Palace, escort Consort Gao back to Xie Fang Pavilion."
Zhong Shanggong didn't ask any more questions. He called the sedan chair bearers to help put Consort Gao into the sedan chair and carry her away.
Jiang Ling then went to Xiefang Pavilion. She walked through the gate, stood and looked at the place that was once so familiar, her heart filled with a mixture of desolation and absurdity.
Perhaps it was because of winter, but the vegetation was withered, and a desolate atmosphere permeated everything. The main house was empty and its doors were tightly shut, and the gray tiles looked gloomy and somber in the gloomy weather.
Jiang Ling smiled silently. It turned out that after she moved out, Gao Cairen still lived in the west wing.
The west wing was bustling with activity that Jiang Ling had never seen before. Imperial physicians from the Imperial Hospital, along with Consort Lin, Consort Zhao, and Consort Liu, had all arrived. Palace maids were busy coming and going, while Consort Gao groaned in pain in her bedroom.
Jiang Ling stepped forward and bowed respectfully. Consort Lin nodded to her and then remained silent, continuing to stand at the bedroom door. Consort Zhao's face was expressionless as she stood two steps away from Consort Lin. Consort Liu, frail and weak, leaned on a table against the wall, her brows furrowed, her expression grave.
The smell of medicine mixed with a faint stench of blood lingered in the tightly closed room, making it almost impossible to breathe.
Jiang Ling stood quietly at the back, waiting for the imperial physician's diagnosis. After about half a cup of tea's time, the sound of greetings came from outside. Consort Lin and the others turned around and filed into the main hall.
Emperor Yuanming walked in with a somber expression, raised his hand to greet Consort Lin and the others who were paying their respects, and frowned as he looked towards the bedroom.
A moment later, Emperor Yuanming entered the side room and questioned the people who followed him in: "What exactly happened?"
"Your Majesty, I only know that Consort Gao is suffering from abdominal pain and bleeding, and the imperial physician is treating her," Consort Lin replied.
"Your Majesty, please do not worry. Talented woman Gao is a lucky person and Heaven will surely help her," Consort Zhao added.
Consort Liu sighed softly and said nothing.
Jiang Ling remained silent, standing almost pressed against the wall, inwardly groaning, "This room is indeed cramped, so crowded. No wonder Consort Su wanted to move to a better, more luxurious house."
Emperor Yuanming couldn't help but look at her, and was about to speak when the Imperial Physician Zheng Ze and the Imperial Physician Wu Shishan, who was skilled in gynecology, came out one after the other.
"Your Majesty, I have come to pay my respects." The two men stepped forward to greet him. Zheng Ze, his forehead beaded with sweat, said tremblingly, "Your Majesty, Consort Gao was pregnant and unfortunately experienced bleeding. When Physician Wu and I arrived, the fetus had already been lost. Physician Wu and I administered acupuncture to Consort Gao, and thankfully, she is now out of danger, though weak and anemic, requiring proper rest."
Emperor Yuanming's breath hitched, and he said sternly, "Miscarriage? How could a healthy fetus be gone?"
Although concubines frequently became pregnant in the harem, Emperor Yuanming had only fathered two princes and two princesses who had survived to this day. Zheng Ze and Wu Shishan hung their heads, not daring to utter a sound. Emperor Yuanming's face darkened. "You may both leave!"
The two men quickly bowed and withdrew. Emperor Yuanming slammed his hand on the armrest of his chair and shouted, "Where are the servants?"
"Your Majesty, it's all my fault. I'm unlucky enough to fail in protecting Your Majesty's children. Your Majesty!" Consort Gao cried out from the bedroom.
"My lady, my lady, please lie down properly." Hongye urged anxiously, and Lüzhi cried out, "My lady, my lady's eyes are not good. This servant will go and light all the beeswax."
Consort Lin's eyelids twitched slightly, and Consort Zhao glanced casually into the bedroom. Consort Liu remained motionless, her expression unchanged.
The bedroom was brighter, and candlelight shone through the gaps in the curtains, making the side room, which was lit with white candles, seem much brighter.
Consort Gao took a deep breath and said sadly, "Your Majesty, my period is several days late this month. I originally wanted to have the imperial physician examine me, but fearing I would be disappointed, I decided to wait a little longer and ask the physician when I had my pulse checked. I still held onto a sliver of hope, thinking that my eyesight wasn't very good, and that the winter nights were long and the room was dim, so I went to ask Consort Jiang for some beeswax. Consort Jiang wasn't there, and I was disappointed. I became angry without realizing it. Just then, at the alleyway of the candle storeroom, I encountered Consort Jiang and asked her a few questions in a rather unfriendly tone. It's all my fault; I was disrespectful and angered Consort Jiang. When she stormed off, I was startled and, in my haste to avoid her, I stumbled and almost hit the alleyway wall. At that moment, my stomach throbbed with pain."
Jiang Ling listened intently, thinking to himself, "Look at how well he speaks! That's really eloquent!"
Emperor Yuanming lifted his eyelids and glanced sideways at Jiang Ling, unable to help but curse inwardly, "A single glance has caused trouble, and he still has the mind to think nonsense!"
Consort Gao choked back a sob and continued, "After a while, my stomachache subsided, and I thought that since I was already at the storeroom, I might as well take the beeswax back with me. So I went to the beeswax distribution point and asked Consort Jiang for some. Consort Jiang said that the accounts were perfectly clear and that she didn't owe me any beeswax. I panicked and went to get the ledger to check. I don't know what happened, but my stomach was suddenly hit by a table, and the pain almost made me faint. After that, I don't remember much. I don't know how I got back, or that the baby in my womb was gone..."
At this point, Gao Cairen stopped speaking and only sobbed sadly and in a suppressed manner.
Jiang Ling had long known that Gao Cairen had ill intentions. She had already calmed down, but suddenly she was so angry that she trembled. Her mind screamed, "Pah, you filthy thing! You're shameless!"
Emperor Yuanming's ears were practically ringing from her words, and his face turned ashen as he said, "Consort Jiang, what do you have to say?"
Jiang Ling, having been singled out by Emperor Yuanming, no longer held back, angrily retorting, "Consort Gao, firstly, your words imply that I deliberately caused your miscarriage. Even you are unsure of your own pregnancy, how could I have known, let alone intend to harm you? Secondly, I did not bump into you at the alleyway; your scream startled me. Of course, you can do this because you insist I have no witnesses, as your palace maids will not speak for me. And Wen Juan, who is with me, will not be trusted."
Ever since Gao Cairen came looking for her, Jiang Ling had been thinking about this matter over and over again. At this moment, although her words came out all at once, they were clear and logical.
"When we were collecting the beeswax, there was a table between us. I was holding the accounts in my hand, and you reached out to take them. When I saw you reach for them, I gave you the accounts. Then, you suddenly screamed, and blood appeared on your clothes. You were wearing a winter coat, so the blood had to gush out for your clothes to be soaked so quickly. In the case of miscarriage bleeding, the blood would meander downwards, not splash, and with your underpants covering it, the blood couldn't possibly splatter everywhere."
Jiang Ling used to spend all day watching videos, mostly of silly Florida jokes and science videos.
Even if Consort Gao did indeed miscarry, based on the time she served the Emperor, she was at most a month pregnant. At that stage, the fetus is only the size of a pinhead, difficult to accurately identify with the naked eye. Moreover, early miscarriage symptoms are mild; if there were truly such a large amount of bleeding, it would only be due to a ruptured ectopic pregnancy or incomplete bleeding. Without emergency blood transfusions, she would have already lost too much blood and fainted. Where would she find the strength or intellect to falsely accuse someone?
Jiang Ling paused for a moment, then said, "I would like to ask the imperial physician how to determine if Consort Gao has miscarried."
Consort Lin and the others had different expressions, and all looked at Jiang Ling as if they didn't recognize her.
Gao Cairen became anxious and cried even louder, saying, "Jiang Meiren, I have no intention of blaming you. I am clumsy with words and do not know how to speak. If I have offended you, please forgive me for losing my child. I will apologize to Jiang Meiren after I recover."
Jiang Ling said no more, waiting for the extremely ugly Emperor Yuanming to speak, constantly advising himself: "Stay calm, stay calm, don't just vent your emotions, speak the facts."
Emperor Yuanming glanced at Jiang Ling, quite surprised. He hadn't expected her to be so clever.
After a moment's hesitation, Emperor Yuanming followed Jiang Ling's advice and issued a series of orders: "Summon Zheng Ze and Wu Shishan to an audience. Huang Liang, have someone bring the sedan chair that Consort Gao was riding in earlier, and fetch the clothes that Consort Gao was wearing!"
Huang Liang hurriedly sent a eunuch to deliver the message, while he himself went into the bedroom. The clothes that Consort Gao had taken off were still draped at the foot of the bed. He apologized, picked them up, and returned to the side room.
Zheng Ze and Wu Shishan were waiting in the west wing when they quickly entered. Emperor Yuanming questioned, "How did you determine that Consort Gao suffered a miscarriage?"
Wu Shishan, an expert in gynecology, respectfully replied, "I heard from the palace maids who serve Consort Gao that her menstruation is late and she occasionally feels nauseous and unwell. Consort Gao has never had any gynecological problems before, and her menstrual periods are never painful. Consort Gao is experiencing severe abdominal pain, and I have carefully examined the blood she is vomiting. There are blood clots in the blood, and it smells foul. Based on this, Physician Zheng and I have determined that Consort Gao is pregnant but has miscarried."
Zheng Ze chimed in, "When a woman is still young, we can often tell the pregnancy by observing her symptoms, blood, and qi."
Emperor Yuanming gestured to Huang Liang, "The bloodstains on the shirt he's holding can probably be traced to a miscarriage?"
The two were stunned and didn't react for a moment. Huang Liang stepped forward, holding the dress, and Wu Shishan took it in his hands, examining it carefully with Zheng Ze.
The nearly new brocade skirt was stained with blood, not only on the back hem, but also on the front and waist.
The Imperial Carriage Office brought over the sedan chair that Consort Gao had been riding in. Emperor Yuanming said, "Go out and take another look at how much blood is left inside."
Zheng and Wu exchanged a glance, and had a general idea of what was going on. The two hurriedly went out to carefully examine the sedan chair, quickly whispered a few words to each other, and then rushed back inside to report.
"Your Majesty, judging from the bloodstains on the dress and in the sedan chair, the blood is not much. This is also the case for miscarriage in the early stages of pregnancy; it is not much different from menstrual blood," Zheng Ze said.
Wu Shishan looked down at his nose and seemed to be pondering something, but after a moment of hesitation, he remained silent.
If early miscarriage is no different from menstrual blood, and Gao Cairen's clothes quickly became red, where did it come from?
Furthermore, the blood splattered on both the front and back of the dress seems particularly fake. Unless, of course, the blood was hidden on the body beforehand and then accidentally torn in the chaos, staining the dress.
Emperor Yuanming snapped out of his daze, recalling his earlier anxiety and the grief of losing his children. He was instantly enraged and hissed, "Huang Liang, tie up all the servants and take them to the Palace Justice Department for a thorough interrogation. If they don't confess the truth, have them beaten to death!"
Inside the bedroom, red leaves and green branches lay sprawled on the footstool, looking utterly terrified.
Consort Gao turned pale and cried out in anguish, “Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you are wronged! I did not lie! I was truly pregnant with your child, but I miscarried!”
Emperor Yuanming exuded a chilling aura and said with a ferocious grin, "Seal off the west courtyard. Without my decree, the Gao family is not to leave even a step!" With that, he rose and left.
Huang Liang directed the eunuchs to enter the room and pull up the red leaves and green branches. The two had just started to cry when their mouths were stuffed with handkerchiefs.
"Behave yourself, and you might suffer less!" Huang Liang said to Gao Cairen, who was sitting on the bed looking dumbfounded, and waved his hand, "Take him away!"
A eunuch dragged out red leaves and green branches. Consort Lin watched expressionlessly, then walked away without lingering. Consort Zhao lowered her eyes slightly and followed. Consort Liu, who had been leaning against the long table, stood up, glanced at Jiang Ling, and slowly walked out of the room.
Zheng Ze and Wu Shishan, fearing they might linger, raised their hands towards Jiang Ling and fled as if escaping.
Jiang Ling walked out of the house with a blank expression. A biting chill hit her, and she couldn't help but shiver. Wen Juan stepped forward, looking her over with concern, and asked, "Are you alright, my beauty?"
Apart from the eunuchs guarding the west courtyard, all the servants had been taken away. Dusk was falling, and no lamps were lit under the eaves; crows, their calls hoarse, echoed from somewhere.
"I'm fine," Jiang Ling said, shaking her head and adjusting her clothes.
"It's cold outside, my beauty, why don't you go back inside?" Wenjuan said.
Jiang Ling looked back, then suddenly turned and went into the house, lifting the curtain and rushing into the bedroom.
Gao Cairen, still shaken and leaning against the headboard, sat up with a start at the sound of the voice. Seeing that it was Jiang Ling, his expression gradually turned cold.
"I have no grudge against you." Jiang Ling couldn't hold back any longer and asked, "Or have I offended you without realizing it?"
Consort Gao was surprised for a moment, then said sarcastically, "Everyone in the palace knows that Consort Jiang is dull and dull, yet she has won the Emperor's favor. In fact, they have all misjudged her. Consort Jiang is very cunning and has deceived everyone."
"Why?" Jiang Ling asked persistently.
"The day you left Xiefang Pavilion, I watched you leave from the door. I was ashamed, scared, and hateful. I happily accepted your false compliments, waiting to move into the main house. Who would have thought that you would turn around and make me a beauty, and move to the enviable Fanying Pavilion. I was afraid of your revenge, and I couldn't sleep well at night."
Gao Cairen raised her hand to smooth the hair at her temples, and suddenly smiled: "When I have nothing to do, I'm either looking at the main house or walking around outside it. I'm so sad that the main house is empty and I'm shut out, while you have everything."
Su Yue remembered saying something similar to Jiang Ling before. People's hatred always comes out of nowhere. She was in a daze for a moment and said, "So you want to fight, to snatch, to frame me."
"I wasn't lying, I really am pregnant." Gao Cairen stroked her lower abdomen, her eyes softening, and said softly, "Unfortunately, I couldn't keep him; I miscarried the day before yesterday."
Jiang Ling stared at Gao Cairen in astonishment. Her expression was so frantic that it was hard to tell whether it was real or fake.
"I actually knew I was pregnant a few days ago, but I didn't dare tell anyone, for fear of something going wrong. Unfortunately, no matter how careful I was, I still couldn't keep the baby."
Tears streamed down Gao Cairen's face as she looked at Jiang Ling. The hatred that burst forth from her tearful eyes sent chills down one's spine.
"Do you know how painful a miscarriage is? I felt like I was going to die, like I couldn't go on living. This is the only child I have in my life."
Jiang Ling recalled the pained expression on Gao Cairen's face when she collapsed in the warehouse. No wonder she felt it so vividly; she had truly experienced that pain.
"You'll understand when you miscarry too," Gao Cairen said with a sinister smile, cursing through gritted teeth.
Jiang Ling was horrified by her laughter and angrily said, "You miscarried yourself, what does that have to do with me!"
Gao Cairen snarled, "You're in charge of the lamps and candles, and I've never seen a single beeswax in the monthly allowance. You dare swear that if you've taken it, may you be struck by lightning!"
Jiang Ling was speechless and said, "I won't play these little tricks with you. The beeswax shortage isn't something that happened overnight. I never intended to get involved, and taking over the candle-making department was not my intention. I've never been involved in it at all. You don't dare to go to Consort Zhao, but you come to me. You just think I'm easy to bully."
Gao Cairen lowered her eyes and said calmly, "I've said it before, I've never blamed you. You don't deserve to occupy that position, and you're even less worthy."
Jiang Ling was taken aback, thinking about the recent turmoil, and said, "You look down on me, yet you deliberately made such a big fuss by using the already lost fetus, pointing the finger at me both openly and secretly. You must have thought about the consequences, what your fate would be if you were exposed. Either someone promised you benefits, or you've really gone mad."
Gao Cairen closed his eyes, lay there half-reclined, and remained silent.
Jiang Ling stared at her for a moment, then turned and left the room without looking back.
For money, for love, for fame and profit, all the things in this world are nothing more than this.
Upon returning to Fanying Pavilion, Jiang Ling was greeted by a warm, fragrant aroma as soon as she entered the room. She was surprised and asked, "It's not the opening ceremony of the furnace yet, where did you get the charcoal?"
Qingwen stepped forward to help Jiang Ling take off his hood and said, "Earlier, Zhang Shan sent two baskets of the finest silver charcoal, saying it was the Emperor's decree that since the weather is cold, regardless of the opening of the furnace festival, we should put up the incense burner to keep warm."
Jiang Ling thought to himself, "So it's Emperor Yuanming. The Chuigong Hall is so cold and impersonal that even I can't stand it."
After changing his clothes, Jiang Ling had dinner and sat on the tatami mat drinking tea, pondering the recent events.
The intention behind instructing Gao Cairen to step forward was always related to the place of the lamps and candles. This was because the place of the lamps and candles was originally connected to Consort Lin and Consort Zhao.
The Lin family presented lamps and candles as tribute, and Consort Zhao was in charge of them. The two were able to remain peaceful and the matter of the lamps and candles did not escalate because neither of them was clean and each benefited from it.
Consort Zhao handed over the management of the candle and lamp department, which Jiang Ling took over for a year and a half. All the unclear accounts Consort Zhao had kept before were wiped clean, and she was no longer involved. The delicate balance that had existed between Consort Zhao and Consort Lin was thus broken.
When two tigers fight, one will always be injured. At the Lan Yue Palace, an incident occurred involving beeswax; both Consort Lin and Consort Zhao, like tigers, were injured by a trap.
Jiang Ling himself was innocent, but he was dragged into this as an afterthought and was dealt with along with everyone else.
Who exactly is it?
Jiang Ling held the fragrant tea, deep in thought, feeling that everyone was a suspect. Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck her, and her eyes lit up.
Everything that is done will leave a trace!
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