"Your Majesty, please rest assured, the Imperial Noble Consort's pregnancy is very stable. Although it is twins, the Imperial Noble Consort is in good health and there should be no problem," Imperial Physician Liu reassured her.
Yinzhen stood with his hands behind his back in front of the imperial desk, his back to the two imperial physicians, so neither of them could see the expression on his face.
Childbirth is extremely dangerous for women. No matter how good Qian Shengyan's health is, the knife wound inflicted by Hongshi back then still damaged her fundamental health. Now, she coughs whenever the weather is extremely cold in winter or when she walks a few steps quickly.
Yinzhen wanted to ask the imperial physician if there was any way to reduce the number of fetuses, as having only one child would be ideal. However, after thinking it over, he still felt it was dangerous, and the thought of simply not having either of them even crossed his mind.
Having a prince is enough. He lived out his life in his dreams, and in the end, he only had two children left: Hongli and Hongzhou. Now, with the addition of Fuerguochun and Hongshan, that's enough.
But once you're five months pregnant, it's not easy to not have the baby, even if you want to.
I'm really torn.
The two imperial physicians watched the imposing figure with trepidation, cold sweat pouring down their backs, completely baffled as to what the emperor meant.
The fact that the empress is pregnant, especially with twins, is a joyous occasion for the nation. Why does the emperor not seem happy?
Could it be... that the Imperial Noble Consort is about to fall out of favor?
The two were filled with anxiety when they heard the Emperor's deep voice say, "On the day of the delivery, no matter what, you must ensure the safety of the Imperial Concubine."
Both Imperial Physician Liu and Physician Yu stood up abruptly and bowed, replying, "Yes."
In the past, doctors only cared about ensuring the safety of the princes and princesses during childbirth, regardless of the mother's life or death. In fact, this was the first time in his forty years as a royal physician that he had ever heard of such a request from the royal family...
The Imperial Noble Consort has fallen out of favor? Ha, even if he dies, the Imperial Noble Consort could never fall out of favor.
The two imperial physicians left the Hall of Mental Cultivation with heavy hearts. Yinzhen sat down and reviewed some memorials for a while, then put down his pen, still feeling uneasy.
He is now very familiar with everything from the previous dynasty, and doing it again would only make him more skilled. The only variable in his life now is Qian Shengyan.
And him and her children.
Yinzhen took a few deep breaths, still not interested in reading the memorials, and simply called out, "Summon Prince Yi, Zhang Tingyu, and Ortai here."
"Yes, sir!" Su Peisheng, who had been standing by the wall as a background figure, quickly responded and bowed as he withdrew. The eunuch who was guarding the door and was responsible for running errands received the order and ran to the Military Affairs Office and the Examination Hall. Su Peisheng did not go back immediately, but stood at the entrance of the Hall of Mental Cultivation and took a deep breath.
The Emperor's aura was incredibly imposing today. Su Peisheng hadn't understood why at first, but after what happened with the two imperial physicians, he finally understood.
The Emperor is worried about the Imperial Noble Consort.
Before she knew it, it was October's Golden Festival. Although Qian Shengyan was more than six months pregnant, her belly was as big as when she was eight months pregnant with a single child. She had long since handed over the affairs of the harem to Geng Shi and others. Geng Shi and Guo Shi, along with the Palace Administration Office, handled everything perfectly.
Yinzhen gently touched her belly and said with a smile, "It just so happens that I want to go to the Mulan Hunting Ground next autumn. By then, you will have given birth for half a year, so you can go out and relax."
"Your Majesty plans to go to the Mulan Hunting Grounds?" Qian Shengyan looked at him with some surprise.
Here it comes again, that strange feeling is back.
During his thirteen-year reign, Emperor Yongzheng never left the capital. He never went to the Mulan Hunting Grounds, the Summer Palace, or made any southern or eastern tours.
Qian Shengyan couldn't control her gaze. She looked at Yinzhen with surprise and astonishment. Yinzhen smiled slightly, then solemnly said, "I went to see the guards the other day, and I didn't feel well. It seems that I have been too focused on civil affairs and too much on military affairs in recent years, which has led to the Eight Banners soldiers not valuing archery and horsemanship anymore."
Qian Shengyan nodded, seemingly accepting the explanation, but a strange feeling still lingered in her heart.
Seeing her slightly puzzled expression, Yinzhen turned away and chuckled softly.
In fact, it was in a dream. The Dzungar War of the ninth and tenth years of Yongzheng's reign showed him how weak the Eight Banners were when they no longer valued military prowess. They didn't even have a single capable general. In the end, they relied on the Mongols and on Lingze, the son-in-law of Princess Chunke, to defeat the Dzungars.
With three years remaining, Yinzhen not only needed to inspect important strategies, but also to strengthen the training of the Eight Banners' sons, and at the same time hoped to select some more generals from the Eight Banners. In short, he was very greedy.
Sure enough, even if we could do it all over again, there would be no end to the political affairs.
However, this time, for him, there were more things to care about than just politics. Going to the Mulan Hunting Grounds was not only for training troops, but also to relax. He didn't want to exhaust himself like in his dream and die in the thirteenth year of Yongzheng's reign.
He wanted to spend a few more years with Qian Shengyan.
Yinzhen didn't explain much, and Qian Shengyan didn't ask any more questions. She had never been to the Mulan Hunting Grounds before, and she was quite looking forward to it.
But before that, she still has to unload the cargo and give birth.
October 30th was the 50th birthday of Emperor Yinzhen. Because it was a special birthday celebration, it was held with extra pomp and circumstance. Officials from all over the country sent their greetings and birthday gifts from afar.
In order to make it in time for the Emperor's birthday celebration, Hongli and Hongzhou also returned to the capital on October 20th. In the two months that had passed, the two children looked much more mature, especially Hongzhou, who had become several shades darker.
When they came to pay their respects to Qian Shengyan, both of them were startled.
Qian Shengyan: "...Why is Fifth Prince so dark-skinned?"
Hongzhou choked, the question he wanted to ask stuck in his throat, but Hongli said worriedly, "Mother is only six months pregnant..."
“That’s how it is with twins. The imperial physician examined them and said there’s nothing wrong with them,” Qian Shengyan said with a smile.
She also knew that twins are usually difficult to deliver at full term, and can be delivered in eight months or so, and that her body was probably very suitable for childbirth... even when pregnant with twins, she rarely experienced any discomfort.
Hongli looked at his mother's big belly with some heartache. In order to make his mother happy, he picked out the interesting things that happened along the way and told her about why Hongzhou had gotten tanned.
Hongzhou was embarrassed by his own words: "Your subject did not know that Guangzhou would be so hot... No, Fourth Brother, we all went out together, why aren't you tanned?"
Hongli shrugged. He didn't know either, but he certainly hadn't gotten much of a tan.
After the commotion subsided, Hongzhou took his leave, as he still needed to pay his respects to Consort Yu.
Qian Shengyan smiled and looked at her son, who seemed to have grown taller again, and said, "You should go back soon. These days you've been away from the capital, but Lady Fucha has come to pay her respects every day, even when it's raining."
Hongli knew that his mother was urging him to go back and reunite with his wife, but he was in no hurry to leave. He just smiled and said, "Mother, do you know that when we go to the south this time, Uncle Fifteen has a secret order from Father Emperor?"
"Father Emperor ordered my fifteenth uncle to find a scholar named Zeng Jing, but there's no need to bring him to the capital; he and his disciple are to commit suicide immediately."
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