Chapter 054 Chapter 54
Chapter 54
In the inner hall, Du Cairen's screams of pain rang out again. Ruan Yun's face turned even worse when she heard the sound. She clenched the handkerchief tightly in her hand, trying to endure the pain and unable to speak.
The queen's eyes fell on Ruan Yun, and she saw that even with her rouge-stained lips, she still couldn't hide her whiteness. She wanted to speak, but a deep and solemn voice beside her interrupted her words, "You slandered the throne and have no mercy. Kneel outside and pray for Du Cairen!"
Chen Baolin's eyes flashed with surprise, and then she came to her senses and quickly knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, what I said is the truth. I...I..."
He was speechless and didn't know what to say. Yan Shiyu didn't even want to look at him. Wei Maoyuan had already stood beside Chen Baolin and whispered, "Chen Baolin, please come in."
All the concubines fell silent as they watched the scene before them, not daring to say anything. Could it be that Concubine Ying had played a trick on the Emperor? Even at this time, the Emperor was still partial to Concubine Ying.
Meng Guiren arrived late, and had already heard about what happened in Yinlanxuan on his way here.
Meng Guiren, who had just been released from house arrest, was not afraid of the slightest sign of trouble. She covered her lips and chuckled, saying, "Du Cairen was fine an hour ago. How come she went into labor as soon as the emperor arrived? This is really strange."
Ruan Yun lowered her head, not knowing what she was thinking. It didn't sound like Mr. Meng was trying to help her. Mr. Meng and Ms. Du had always been at odds with each other, and in the end he just wanted to step on Ms. Du.
Tingxu helped Ruan Yun sit down. The queen ordered someone to bring a hand warmer to Ruan Yun. Ruan Yun thanked him weakly. When she turned to look at Zhan Ran, she didn't see Langxi. She asked her with full momentum, "You said that I ordered you to do it. I want to ask you, did I give you the musk, or did I give you money and ask you to find someone to get it? If I asked you to find someone, who did you find and who did it go through?"
Zhuoran blinked unconsciously and said quickly, "Yes...it was given to me directly by you, Miss Ying."
Tingxu wanted to speak, but Ruan Yun gently held her down in a place where no one could see, and then said, "How much did I give you? Did I give it to you personally?"
Zhuoran may have thought clearly about what he wanted to say, and looked at the emperor with a firm expression and said, "The young lady asked Tingxu to give it to me. The musk is only the size of a palm, and I have used it all up."
Ruan Yun nodded, and continued to fiddle with the embroidery in her hand thoughtfully. Ting Xu saw this and said, "Since I gave it to you, it should still be there after the musk was soaked in water. Where did you put it now?"
Zhuoran said evasively, "Things... Lady Ying told me to throw away the musk after soaking it in the water. I have already buried the musk in the woods on the west side of Taiye Lake. It is no longer in my hands."
The Queen noticed something was wrong when she heard this, and Concubine De also looked at Zhuo Ran with some awareness. Seeing the Queen tapping her fingers, Concubine De said, "The Emperor ordered Concubine Du to stay at home and only allowed her to go out to get food every day or go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to get her monthly allowance. How did you get out of the palace? Are you going to say that Concubine Ying bought the palace guards and let you out on purpose?"
Zhuo Ran suddenly became nervous and spoke incoherently, "Of course...Of course not."
"Yes... I heard it go around the back wall and passed it to me through the crack in the door."
Ruan Yun suddenly chuckled, with a hint of contempt in her voice. Her pretty face showed no sign of panic. "Since you have never left Yinlanxuan, how did you get to Taiye Lake? No one in the palace saw you. But I think the musk you buried is really hard to find. I guess you can't prove it by dying?"
When she looked at Yan Shiyu, Ruan Yun's expression changed instantly. She was full of grievances and pity. She glanced at the emperor shyly with her almond eyes, and then lowered her head quickly, fearing that Yan Shiyu would not believe her. "Your Majesty has seen it all. Zhuo Ran's words are full of loopholes. Since she can't leave Yinlanxuan, the musk must still be buried in Yinlanxuan. If she is not buried on the west side of Taiye Lake, who taught her to say this?"
Ruan Yun couldn't help shedding tears as she spoke, "It doesn't matter if I'm wronged, but if you say that Du Cairen's premature birth was caused by me, I will never admit it."
"The palace guards have been patrolling all day long. Besides, Tingxu is Concubine Ying's personal maid. If she leaves the palace, no matter where she goes, she will definitely be seen." When the queen heard Ruan Yun's words, she nodded in agreement imperceptibly, with a hint of approval in her eyes.
There seemed to be ice chips in Yan Shiyu's eyes shooting towards Zhuoran. Zhuoran was frightened by the emperor's expression. She wanted to ask for mercy but Wei Maoyuan and his men covered her mouth directly to prevent her from disturbing the concubines in the palace and Du Cairen in the inner hall.
Du Cairen's cries gradually spread out, and the anxious voices of the old woman and the imperial physician mixed together. The whole Yinlanxuan had already become a mess.
There was some joy in the beautiful eyes of Lady Meng. So what if she had a premature birth? It had nothing to do with her. That bitch Du Cairen had dared to go against her in the Qian Residence before. They were both concubines, but she dared to provoke her everywhere. Now she was seeking death and had signs of a difficult birth. It would be a very good thing if she were gone. Let's see how arrogant she would be in the future!
The sound of Du Cairen's broken heart was heard in the bedroom. Ruan Jun felt cold in her heart. He used clumsy tricks to deal with her, even at the cost of hurting himself. She didn't know that Du Cairen hated her to this extent. Today, anyone with eyes could see what was going on. Zhuo Ran's words were incoherent and he dared to do it without even thinking it through.
What an idiot!
Yan Shiyu's black eyes inadvertently fell on Ruan Jun, and Ruan Jun happened to raise her watery almond eyes, and her clear line of sight intertwined with Yan Shiyu's. Ruan Jun quickly looked away expressionlessly, unwilling to speak any more words to the emperor.
A hoarse voice, Yan Shiyu, looked at Ruan Jun with dark eyes. In the end, he had to find out everything clearly. If he couldn't find out clearly, even if he wanted to protect her, the gossips of the people in the palace would have to be suppressed by thunder and lightning, which would be the most disadvantageous to her.
Du Cai's groaning in the bedroom was interrupted. Qing Ling kept wiping Du Cai's sweat and said, "Young Master, just use more strength, it will be fine soon."
The two midwives were so anxious that they were sweating profusely. Du Cairen's fetus was in an abnormal position and it was premature labor, so they were trying to induce pregnancy, so they were afraid that it would be very difficult.
Du Cairen suppressed her pain and said with hatred in her eyes: "What happened to that bitch Ruan Yun? Has the emperor punished her? Has the emperor punished her?"
Seeing that the young lady was still thinking about the outside world in such a situation, Qingling cried and begged her, "Young lady, please save some energy. It won't be too late to think of a solution after you give birth to your dragon descendant."
Du Cairen laughed coldly, and then another burst of severe pain came. She had to hold the brocade ribbon tied to the bed rails tightly, "My master... My master will not let her have an easy time!"
The old woman said anxiously, "Young Master, please use some strength. Your fetus is not in the right position. I need to put my hand in to help you correct it."
Du Cairen originally wanted to say something, but his mind was overwhelmed by the pain in his lower body, and he cried out in pain with his teeth trembling.
The imperial physician came before the emperor and the empress and said, "The fetus of Du Cairen is in an abnormal position and she is in a state of anxiety and has a lot of blood. I would like to ask the emperor, if something unexpected happens, will you save Du Cairen or the heir in her belly?"
Ruan Yun also turned her attention to the emperor at this time. She also wanted to see what choice the emperor would make.
Yan Shiyu closed his eyes and opened his thin lips and said, "I'll protect them all."
The imperial physician felt that this was too difficult, but the emperor's words were his decree, so how could they dare not disobey?
Suddenly there was a shrill cry from inside. Ruan Jun had never experienced anything like this before. No matter who was inside, she couldn't help feeling depressed and her eyelashes couldn't stop trembling.
The Queen's face remained calm, but Ran Xia looked at the Queen with some worry, paying attention to her thoughts all the time.
Wei Maoyuan led his men in. Zhuoran had been tortured with her hands tied behind her back. Perhaps to prevent the blood from rushing to the emperor and his concubines, a sack was put on her hands to cover the wound. The rest of her body looked the same as usual.
Zhuoran knelt on the ground with his back hunched, completely lacking the high spirit he had just had.
Wei Maoyuan only had someone bring the plate in front of the emperor and take a look before ordering them to leave. "Your Majesty, the imperial physician has checked it. It is indeed musk that has been soaked in water. It was found in the flowerbed of Yinlanxuan. I ordered people to search the west side of Taiye Lake, but they did not find any trace of musk."
The matter was now clear and there was no room for dispute. Ruan Yun glanced at Zhuo Ran and asked, "Aren't you going to tell the truth?"
The bloody taste burned in her throat. "It was Lady Ying who ordered me to do this. I have nothing else to say."
Yan Shiyu waved his hand calmly, and Wei Maoyuan instantly understood what the emperor meant.
Ruan Yun put her hanging heart back to its place, with unstoppable loss in her eyes. She had no intention of continuing the interrogation, nor would she lock Zhuoran up in the Ministry of Punishment again. She would only let Zhuoran keep the truth and never be able to speak again.
Ruan Jun stood up and hugged the hand warmer tightly, saying in a calm voice: "I am not feeling well, I want to return to the palace first."
After saying this, he walked straight out of Yinlanxuan without caring what the emperor said.
Yan Shiyu's face turned pale when he saw Ruan Jun's appearance. What was she thinking about? Could it be that in her eyes, he was a tyrant who didn't even have the ability to distinguish right from wrong?
Tingxu helped Ruan Yun out of the hall and saw the palace maid who accidentally spilled the water crying in the corner.
Ruan Yun glanced at Tingxu, who immediately understood and walked over, saying softly, "Why are you crying here?"
When the maid saw that it was Tingxu, she hesitated for a moment whether to speak or not. Tingxu smiled and said, "Don't cry, wipe your tears quickly. If Lady Du gives birth to a prince, your good days are still to come."
The palace maid swallowed unconsciously and slowly raised her hand to take Tingxu's handkerchief.
Du Cairen's shouting in the inner hall finally stopped after half an hour. The old woman came out with the child in her arms and said, "Congratulations, Your Majesty. Du Cairen gave birth to a little prince."
The concubines could not hide their jealousy on their faces. Concubine Du was so lucky. After so many troubles and a difficult delivery, she still gave birth to a little prince. Not only was mother and child safe, but this was the emperor's second prince.
The old woman held the prince in front of Yan Shiyu, who simply glanced at him and waved to let the old woman take him away. The queen, however, touched the second prince's face with a gentle expression and said, "Why is the second prince crying so softly? He looks particularly thin."
Grandma Wen said quickly: "Du Cairen gave birth to the second prince prematurely and the baby was kept in her belly for too long, this..."
The Queen frowned and looked at the Imperial Physician and asked, "Does the Second Prince have any other questions?"
The imperial physician supported Qiao Shiguan and had to tell the truth, "Du Cairen was very unstable during her pregnancy, often restless and restless, and her qi and blood were insufficient. This premature birth caused the second prince to have a weakness brought from the womb. If he takes good care of himself in the future, he may get better, but he is inevitably weak."
Yan Shiyu frowned, but Meng Guiren raised the corners of her lips silently when she heard that. She was really an unlucky person. What's the big deal about giving birth to a prince? Now she is just a small talent and can't even raise the royal heir by herself. Unless the emperor is willing to let her raise the heir by herself, the mother and son will definitely be separated.
The queen also understood this. She looked at the second prince, whose face was red in the cradle and who kept shaking his arms, and said, "Take him away and let the wet nurse take good care of him."
"According to Du Cairen's current position, she cannot raise the Second Prince. Although Du Cairen made mistakes before, she gave birth to a dragon descendant. Your Majesty, do you want to promote Du Cairen?"
Yan Shiyu pressed his forehead, his dark eyes calm and said: "The second prince will be raised by the queen first. As for Concubine Du, she will be demoted to Concubine Du and will not be allowed to leave unless summoned."
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