Chapter 108 Chapter 108 Concubine Chen's Second Day
The matter of the chili peppers was handed over to the Shen family.
After hearing Ji Chen's thoughts, Shen Qing thought for a while. Shen Xiuxiu had indeed been dabbling in spices in recent years and had some experience.
However, even with the chili peppers, Shen Qing was concerned about the baby in her belly and did not dare to eat too much. She only ate a little to satisfy her craving.
Because it was snowing outside, Shen Qing was too lazy to go out.
Time flies.
Perhaps the events of the Li family had frightened the harem, and she was no longer subject to plots. Even so, she still did not take it lightly.
After Laba Festival comes the New Year.
During this period, Li Bin's health was not good and she was sick. Everyone was guessing how long she would last, but until New Year's Eve, Li Bin was still alive and even attended the New Year's Eve banquet.
At the New Year's Eve banquet, Concubine Zhang appeared with the third prince.
The Third Prince had become much more taciturn at a young age, and kept a distance from Concubine Zhang. It was not until he met Concubine Li that he revealed some of his emotions.
Concubine Li took the time to meet with the third prince.
The third prince had his own ideas. He was followed by people sent by Concubine Zhang, but he was a prince after all, and had been praised by the emperor, so he easily sent the servants away.
Shen Qing raised his eyes and saw this scene, then looked at the queen. Sure enough, he saw that the queen's face was gloomy, so he pretended nothing had happened and shifted his gaze.
But soon, there was news from the Queen that Qinggu was scolded for a trivial matter.
Shen Qing pursed her lips, knowing that the Queen was dissatisfied with Qinggu for not getting things done.
But it is not so easy to kill a living person. One has to give him medicine to make him die of illness rather than letting the imperial physician find out that he died of poisoning.
A trace of annoyance flashed across Shen Qing's brows. She knew the Queen too well and could tell whether her feelings were false or sincere just from her expression.
So Ji Chen exempted her from paying her respects, and she really never went to Kunning Palace again.
I'm afraid that a little incense or a cup of tea would be bad.
The Queen is cruel to others and even crueler to herself. If the Queen is poisoned along with her, it would be even crueler. The Queen will lose her fertility. Who can suspect the Queen?
Shen Qing didn't dare to gamble.
At the banquet, Shen Qing met Ji Can. They hadn't seen each other for a long time. The little guy was holding Ji Min's hand and was saying something to Ji Min patiently. It was obvious that he was well protected by the Queen.
The virtuous concubine was also allowed to leave Changchun Palace today.
Shen Qing ignored Concubine Xian's gaze and tasted a few bites of the imperial meal that Ji Chen brought to her.
When leaving the banquet and heading back to Chengqian Palace, Wenxi noticed that the palace road ahead was brightly lit. He raised his hand to have the sedan chair stopped, walked quickly forward to check, and then turned back and said, "Your Majesty, there is water frozen on the palace road ahead."
Shen Qing held his forehead and said, "Go back and go with the emperor. Also, check who passed this palace road today."
It has been snowless and dry these days, so there is no possibility of ice on the palace road. It must be that someone sprinkled water on it, and the weather was so cold that it turned into ice.
Today is New Year's Eve, and she doesn't want to ruin such a good day and spoil the good mood of the Emperor and the Empress Dowager. She can just find out and deal with it privately with a pretext for insubordination.
Wenxi agreed.
Ji Chen was surprised to see Shen Qing.
"Why don't you go back to Chengqian Palace and wait for me here?"
Shen Qing smiled and said, "I was going to go back, but I missed the emperor so much on the way, and the baby in my belly was moving, so I came to see the emperor on my own initiative."
"This is not called being willful." Ji Chen disagreed. He put his arm around her shoulders, held her hand, and greeted the little one in her belly seriously.
Shen Qing pursed her lips and smiled at him.
Ji Chen took the person directly back to the Qianqing Palace.
The next day, Wenxi found out the truth.
"Your Majesty, the only people who passed through that palace road yesterday were Concubine Zhang and the Third Prince and his entourage. The water was spilled by mistake by a servant of the Third Prince, and someone was later hired to clean it up."
Shen Qing's fingers paused slightly. The servants around the Third Prince were still the same as before and had not changed.
If she had nothing happened yesterday and had made a big deal out of this matter, she would definitely be accused of making a mountain out of a molehill and being paranoid.
It’s really annoying to think about it: “What’s the name of the servant next to the Third Prince?”
Wenxi had already investigated the person thoroughly: "Loquat was once a maid beside Concubine Li, and was later transferred to the Third Prince to serve him. The Third Prince trusted her very much."
Shen Qing remembered Loquat. When she was a palace maid, Loquat almost spilled sour plum soup on her. She was very loyal to Concubine Li.
Of course, yesterday was by no means an accident.
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In the first month of the year, all kinds of things piled up at the beginning of the year, and the Queen had no time to deal with Concubine Li.
However, what she didn't expect was that the emperor actually took the initiative to replace the people around the third prince and re-selected a group of honest palace maids. The reason he gave was also very perfunctory, saying that he didn't want to be close to his mother, Concubine Zhang, because of the stubborn slave.
Speaking of Concubine Zhang, she didn't have any tricks. The only thing worth praising about her was that she knew what was best for her.
After getting the third prince, Concubine Zhang never interfered in disciplining him. The third prince had only a superficial relationship with her, and she was happy with it. Whenever the Queen mentioned the third prince, she would express her true feelings and complain bitterly.
As time went by, the Queen could only feel disappointed with Concubine Zhang.
But Concubine Zhang always responded to whatever she asked, and always followed her lead, doing her best.
Only disciplining the third prince is of little use.
Concubine Zhang is honest, but precisely because of her honesty, it is impossible for the emperor to suddenly notice her.
I wonder if someone said something to the emperor.
The Queen called Qingyu and asked her to investigate recent events regarding Imperial Concubine Chen.
The only person in the palace who could persuade the emperor was Concubine Chen.
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In Chengqian Palace.
When Wenxi came back, he went to Shen Qing and reported: "My lady, Loquat has been arranged to work in the laundry department. I have already ordered that no one can take her away."
Shen Qing was relieved: "Well done, go to the warehouse and pick out something you like."
Wenxi did not bother to be polite with his queen and immediately agreed happily.
Shen Qing gave birth in mid-April. Now it's January, and her belly has become very round. Her waist becomes sore if she stands for a long time.
Perhaps it was because of her good physique and the plenty of exercise during pregnancy that Shen Qing felt uncomfortable, but compared to other pregnant women, her reaction was mild.
Even Ji Chen often praised the well-behaved baby in her belly.
Once, when Ji Chen was praising, Shen Qing's belly suddenly moved, as if responding to his father's words, and Ji Chen was excited like a young boy.
As her health deteriorated, Shen Qing went to the Cining Palace less frequently. In her free time, she would sew things with Concubine Lan and Concubine Chen.
There were two pieces of soft silk in front of Shen Qing, one was aqua blue and the other was white pink.
Her belly was getting bigger and bigger, and perhaps because of telepathy, she had a guess as to whether it was a princess or a prince.
She picked up the soft white and pink silk and began to make the dress.
When Concubine Lan looked up, she saw Shen Qing's gentle eyes and a faint smile on his lips, and he was carefully making clothes. Her expression softened.
In March, Chengqian Palace began to prepare for Shen Qing's delivery. The midwife and the imperial physician had already stayed in Chengqian Palace, and the wet nurse was also ready.
Ji Chen came to Chengqian Palace every day and never missed a day.
As the delivery time approached, Shen Qing was not nervous, but Ji Chen became nervous first.
In order to ensure a smooth delivery, Shen Qing was still walking back and forth in the house even when she was about to give birth. The experienced midwife said that this would help the baby to be born faster.
Her fetal position was very normal. Whenever she worried that the fetus in her belly was too quiet, the little guy would move a little to show his presence. However, normally it didn't make Shen Qing uncomfortable.
As soon as April arrived, the atmosphere in Chengqian Palace became increasingly tense, with everyone on the alert fearing that something might be inappropriate for the Empress.
But the little guy was very calm and didn't make any movement until the morning of the Grain Full Moon in April.
As soon as Shen Qing's water broke, she was sent to the delivery room.
Because the labor occurred in the morning, Ji Chen heard the news right after the morning court session. He hurried to Chengqian Palace and rushed into the delivery room in confusion.
Neither the Empress Dowager nor the Queen came, and no one dared to stop him. In a moment of distraction, Ji Chen had already entered.
In the delivery room, Shen Qing was pursing her lips to conserve her strength. Once her amniotic fluid broke, the birth would not take long. Sweat oozed from her forehead as she endured the pain.
The midwife's tone calmed down when she saw that she knew what to do.
Suddenly, her hands were firmly held by a pair of familiar, large and warm hands.
Ji Chen said: "I am here."
Shen Qing felt as if she was in so much pain during the birth that she had hallucinations. How could Ji Chen appear here?
Isn't he in court?
Shen Qing pulled Ji Chen's face with her hand and found it was a real person. Then she smiled and put her hands on Ji Chen's hands that were wrapped around her.
"Your Majesty, it hurts!"
Shen Qing laughed and cried, and at this moment, she felt a continuous pain in her body.
If Ji Chen hadn't come, she would have stayed calm until the end of the delivery, but as soon as Ji Chen appeared, her emotions fluctuated and she just wanted to scream out in pain.
I wasn't wronged at first, but why do I feel like I have to endure such humiliation when he comes?
Outside the delivery room.
The Queen Mother and the Empress have arrived.
Listening to the cries of pain from inside, the Queen Mother frowned and asked, "Where is the Emperor? No one knows where the Emperor is when Concubine Chen is in such a critical moment."
Qian Ji, who was standing here like this without being noticed, said: "…Empress Dowager, the Emperor has entered the delivery room."
The Queen Mother fell silent upon hearing this.
The queen held her hands and tried to keep her composure. She felt a lot of regret in her heart. She had created a hidden danger with her own hands... Now she only hoped that Shen Qing could give birth to a little princess smoothly.
After Concubine Lan and Concubine Chen arrived, they hurriedly paid their respects and then waited anxiously for news.
In the delivery room, the midwife had already started delivering the baby: "My lady, the cervix is fully dilated, you can start pushing!"
After hearing this, Shen Qing used all her accumulated strength. She followed the midwife's instructions and exerted force in a specific direction.
Her hands were sweaty, and her neck and forehead were wet with sweat.
Ji Chen took over Bai Tao's job and carefully wiped the sweat off her body with a handkerchief over and over again.
Shen Qing's fingers turned white from being pinched so hard.
She listened to the midwife constantly talking about where the baby was, and she felt strong in her heart.
Finally, a sense of relief came over her, and the midwife exclaimed happily: "It's born! It's a little princess!"
Shen Qing was still in pain, but it was much better than before. Her eyes were bright and she smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I knew it was a princess. I made a pink dress for her."
The sound of crying was heard in the house, and Ji Chen's heart was divided into two, one half on Shen Qing and the other half on his daughter.
I was deeply moved: "My beloved concubine is as good as a god."
Shen Qing's delivery was smooth. Her water broke in the morning and she was born within an hour.
It’s much better than the pain that lasted a day and a night.
The midwife handed the little princess to Ji Chen, and Ji Chen put the little girl, who had stopped crying but still had tear marks on her face, next to Shen Qing.
Shen Qing looked greedily at the wrinkled, pink-skinned little princess with black hair half a finger long. He couldn't tell who she looked like, but she was definitely not ugly.
Shen Qing's heart felt like it was soaking in warm spring water. This was her child, the child she had given birth to with all her efforts.
She kissed the child's forehead gently and lovingly.
"Your Majesty, today is Xiaoman, so the princess' nickname should be Xiaoman."
Ji Chen's face was full of smiles: "Small but full, that's good."
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