Pregnant
Ever since that lunch, Yan Shu had been preoccupied with something, something heavy on her mind.
She wasn't some ignorant, sheltered housewife; she possessed a modern soul. Her period was more than ten days late, accompanied by inexplicable drowsiness and occasional nausea... What did this mean? She had a vague guess in her mind.
But this speculation brought not pure joy, but rather waves of growing anxiety.
The cold words in the history books say that Princess Duan "died due to weakness after a miscarriage and an incurable heart ailment."
That unborn child... was hers and Lingyuan's.
The torrent of history seemed to roar in her ears. She was afraid, afraid that this hard-won warmth and turning point would ultimately be no match for a few brief mentions in the history books. For a moment, she felt both joy and fear, but her sorrow deepened.
During dinner, she held her chopsticks and looked at the steamed sea bass that she usually loved to eat, but for some reason she felt a strong fishy smell. Her stomach churned and she barely managed to suppress the discomfort.
Ling Yuan put down the bowl and noticed that her face was a little pale: "What's wrong? You don't look well."
Yan Shu's heart tightened, and she subconsciously avoided his gaze, lowered her head, and gently stirred the rice in the bowl with her chopsticks: "No... I might just have some indigestion, I'm not very hungry."
Her excuses are always so dry and unconvincing.
Ling Yuan looked at her, knowing she didn't want to talk, so he didn't press her further, and simply said, "If you're not hungry, eat less, and have the kitchen prepare some light late-night snacks later."
As they went to bed at night, Ling Yuan habitually pulled her into his arms. Just as his fingertips touched the ties of her nightgown, Yan Shu stiffened and instinctively shrank back.
"Your Highness... I'm a little tired today..." Her voice was muffled by the pillow, carrying an obvious sense of rejection.
This was the first time she had rejected his advances since arriving here.
Ling Yuan paused, and in the darkness, he silently looked at her for a moment before his hand finally rested lightly on her shoulder and patted her gently.
"Go to sleep."
He didn't ask anything, but simply pulled her closer to him and didn't do anything else.
Yan Shu had her back to him, her mind a jumbled mess. She knew she was behaving strangely, and Ling Yuan must have noticed. But she simply couldn't respond to him as usual. She needed time, she needed to confirm things again…
In the following days, Yan Shu was restless. She observed her body: her period was late, she felt increasingly weak and sleepy, and when she woke up in the morning, she could no longer suppress the waves of nausea that rose in her throat...
Everything pointed to the answer she both anticipated and feared.
That morning, Chun Tao had just served Yan Shu a bowl of soft, sticky millet porridge and a few light side dishes when Yan Shu picked up a spoon. Before she could even put it in her mouth, a strong urge to vomit surged up. She dropped the spoon, covered her mouth, and rushed to the spittoon. She dry-heaved for a long time but couldn't vomit anything. She only felt her eyes sting and her whole body go weak.
Chun Tao was terrified and rushed forward to support her, patting her back repeatedly, her voice trembling with tears: "Your Highness! What's wrong? This servant will go and fetch the imperial physician right away!"
"No..." Yan Shu gasped for breath, grabbing her wrist, her voice weak but carrying a calm that seemed to have settled down, "Go... invite the prince back."
At this point, she could no longer hide it, nor did she want to. Regardless of history, this child had arrived, her and Lingyuan's flesh and blood. She had changed the course of her strategy at the palace banquet; why couldn't she try to change this child's and their shared destiny?
Ling Yuan returned quickly. Seeing Yan Shu leaning against the soft pillows with a pale face, his heart tightened, and he walked a few steps to the bedside: "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Yan Shu raised her head, looked into his worried expression, took a deep breath, and gently tugged at his sleeve.
"Your Highness..." she said softly, "My period is almost two months late. I've been feeling sleepy and weak lately, and this morning... I even threw up."
With each word she spoke, Ling Yuan's gaze shifted. He suddenly gripped her hand tightly, staring intently at her, and said, "You mean..."
Yan Shu looked at him and slowly nodded.
"Go and fetch the imperial physician!" Ling Yuan immediately turned around and ordered Ling Ying, who was waiting outside the door, his voice filled with barely suppressed tension and urgency.
The imperial physician arrived very quickly.
Finally, the imperial physician withdrew his hand, stood up, and bowed respectfully to Ling Yuan and Yan Shu, a smile on his face: "Congratulations, Your Highness and Your Highness! Your Highness's pulse is indeed that of a pregnant woman. Judging from the pulse, she is nearly two months along, and the pregnancy is just beginning to take shape. This is a great joy!"
Yan Shu's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, suddenly settled down, only to be overwhelmed by a huge emotion mixed with joy and bitterness, and her eyes involuntarily reddened.
Upon hearing this, Ling Yuan quickly stepped forward and tightly grasped Yan Shu's hand.
The imperial physician paused for a moment, then said, "However... the princess's body seems to have been damaged before, and her qi and blood are slightly weak. Although there is no major problem for the time being, she must be extra careful during her pregnancy and rest quietly to nourish the fetus."
Ling Yuan nodded: "Thank you, Imperial Physician. Please prescribe some medicine to ensure a safe pregnancy. We must be careful."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I will immediately prescribe a formula to stabilize the pregnancy and strengthen the body." The imperial physician bowed.
After the imperial physician left to write the prescription, Ling Yuan helped Yan Shu lie down and tucked her in, saying, "Rest well and don't move around. I'll go check the prescription the imperial physician wrote and come right back."
Yan Shu nodded obediently, watching his retreating figure as he turned and left, a warm feeling washing over her. He seemed genuinely happy.
Inside the study, the imperial physician was already waiting. As soon as Ling Yuan entered, the gentle expression on his face disappeared.
"How is it?" he asked.
The imperial physician's expression grew more serious, and he said in a low voice, "Your Highness, the Princess's pulse is indeed that of a pregnant woman. However... it seems that the Princess has taken some medications that have damaged her health. Although she has improved somewhat after recuperation, her constitution is still weaker than that of an average person. The first three months of this pregnancy are the most crucial. It is imperative to ensure that the Princess remains calm and avoids any fatigue or disturbance. Her diet and medications must also be handled with extreme care. If she can safely pass through the first three months and the pregnancy becomes stable, the subsequent pregnancy will be much smoother."
Ling Yuan's eyes were calm, revealing no emotion. He simply said, "I understand. You should come to check on my pulse every three days, but not too frequently, lest the Princess Consort become suspicious. Everything is for the safety of the Princess Consort and the unborn child."
"Your humble servant understands, and will certainly do his utmost," the imperial physician quickly replied.
Lingyuan waved his hand, and the imperial physician bowed and withdrew.
Back at Lingxiao Pavilion, Yan Shu was still waiting for him with her eyes open. Ling Yuan sat down by the bed, took her hand, and said in a relaxed tone, "The imperial physician said there's nothing serious, but your body is weak and you need to rest well. From now on, leave the affairs of the manor to the steward, you don't need to worry about anything, just focus on your pregnancy."
Yan Shu looked at his deliberately relaxed expression and understood that the imperial physician must have said something, but he just didn't want her to worry. She grasped his hand in return and nodded firmly: "Yes, I will be careful."
This is their child. No matter how cruel the ending history may have written, she will do everything in her power to protect this child and the hard-won bond between them.
The news of Princess Duan's pregnancy spread like wildfire throughout the capital. Gifts from the palace poured into Prince Duan's residence, the Emperor and Consort Lin bestowed generous gifts, and even the Empress sent congratulatory gifts according to protocol.
Yan Shu stroked her still-flat stomach, her heart filled with an unprecedented determination. The tragedy of history would never be repeated in her life.
In the quiet study of Prime Minister Cui's residence, under a solitary lamp, a trusted advisor whispered, "Prime Minister, there's just been confirmed news from the palace: Princess Duan... has been diagnosed with pregnancy."
Cui Chong's hand, holding the brush, paused slightly. A drop of thick ink fell onto the rice paper, quickly spreading into a black patch. He slowly put down the brush, raised his head, and a complex light flashed in his eyes:
"That's great, congratulations Shu'er."
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