Chapter 057 Chapter 57
Chapter 57
The Moon-picking Pavilion.
Ruan Yun did not go too early. Ever since she attended the New Year's Palace Banquet, she had been more careful. Whenever there was any banquet afterwards, she would not use the food from the Palace Banquet to avoid being plotted against.
Tingxu came back from outside with a lunch box. Ruan Jun looked at her panicked face and thought something had happened. "But what's wrong with Jicairen?"
Last time, she was free and wanted to go to Yu Garden to sit for a while. She happened to meet Ji Cairen who was strolling in Yu Garden with an upset belly. When the two of them met Ruan Yun, she naturally asked Ji Cairen to sit down. There was sour date cake made by Yingning on the table, which Ji Cairen liked very much. Ruan Yun asked Yingning to make some from time to time and send some to Ji Cairen, as a way of repaying Ji Cairen for his kindness to her in Qingxuan Palace that day.
Tingxu's face lost its usual cuteness. She gulped down a cup of tea and wiped the sweat off her face before speaking breathlessly, "I've never seen Ji Cairen like this before. Today I saw her vomiting non-stop, and her whole body was terribly thin. Seeing Ji Cairen like this, I..."
Ruan Yun took Tingxu's hand and saw that she was still in shock. She patted her hand and said, "You should rest well in the palace today. You don't have to accompany me."
Tingxu nodded with tears in his eyes. He knew that he was frightened and it was not suitable for him to stay and work any longer, so he returned to the ear room.
Ying Ning said worriedly: "Ting Xu is still young, so seeing these things...it's inevitable that he will overthink."
After saying that, he looked at Ruan Yun, and seeing that the young lady had lost her appetite, he remembered that the young lady was only sixteen years old this year.
Ying Ning squatted down, and Ruan Yun felt a chill in her palm. Ruan Yun frowned and said, "I have always known that she was not in good health, but I didn't expect that now..."
There are too many intrigues in the palace, and Concubine Ji is due to give birth in three months. Ruan Yun is a little worried about what will happen next.
"Today is the little princess' birthday and the emperor will go. Ji Cairen has been paying respects every day and has never asked for leave. If I don't go to Zhaiyue Pavilion today, someone will definitely complain."
Ruan Yun slowly put down the chopsticks in her hand, showing no intention of touching the table full of delicacies. "Let's clear it."
They arrived at the Zhaiyue Pavilion in a procession. Ruan Yun asked Chunqing to stay outside the water pavilion while she brought Yingning into the palace.
The Emperor and the Empress had not arrived yet, and neither had Shen Chongyi and the little princess. The palace maid brought Ruan Yun to her seat. Ruan Yun looked around and found that she was only one or two seats away from the top seat.
After taking a rough look, Ruan Jun knew clearly that Du Xuanshi would not be allowed to come today.
Soon all the concubines in the palace had arrived. Lady Meng looked as beautiful as ever, but she was not as gentle and lovely as before.
He glanced at Ruan Yun with contempt, and found that his seat was on Ruan Yun's left hand side. He sneered and questioned the palace maid behind him, "Is this how the Ministry of Internal Affairs does its job?"
The maidservant was hit by the wide sleeve of Lady Meng's palace skirt and knelt down in panic, "Lady Meng, please forgive me."
Mr. Meng gritted his teeth and said, "Why is my position here?"
How could Ruan Yun sit below her? In the past, her position was always beside the emperor. Now that Concubine Xian has not returned to the palace yet, how could she sit with a bitch like Ruan Yun?
The palace maid was terrified and kept kowtowing, saying, "Empress Defei ordered that although Empress Xianfei has not returned to the palace yet, a place should be reserved for her, which happens to be right here."
After hearing the explanation from the palace maid, Meng Guiren raised her hand and was about to strike her down. Suddenly, she heard laughter from her side. Ruan Yun's clear and sweet voice fell into Meng Guiren's ears. She turned her head away with a face full of hatred, pointed at Ruan Yun with her hand, and her arm trembled slightly. "How dare you laugh at me?"
Ruan Jun stood up and bowed softly, with a trace of grievance on her pretty face. "Sister Meng, you really misunderstood me. I just wanted to remind you that in ten days, when the Concubine Xian returns to the palace, Sister Meng will definitely sit here. What's wrong with doing it a few days earlier?"
As if she suddenly remembered something, Ruan Yun wiped the tears from her eyes with a handkerchief, "Did I offend you in some way that made you hate me so much?"
Mr. Meng said angrily, "I haven't said anything yet, but you've spoken first. Come, hold her down and make her kneel!"
The palace maids behind Meng Guiren were quite hesitant. Liu Jin even stepped forward to support Meng Guiren and wanted him not to act impulsively. However, Meng Guiren was so angry at Ruan Yun's words that he turned his head and scolded, "What are you doing?"
Ruan Yun leaned on Ying Ning's body, and seeing this, she looked at Mr. Meng with a weak look in her eyes, "What did I do wrong, Mr. Meng, to treat me like this?"
Mr. Meng was obviously very angry with Ruan Yun. He stepped forward and raised his hand. However, before his hand was halfway in the air, the eunuch outside announced:
"The Emperor and Empress have arrived."
As soon as Yan Shiyu stepped into the main hall, he saw Meng Guiren's arrogant look, with his hands raised high and still not put down. When he saw the emperor, Meng Guiren was obviously frightened and put down his hands in anger.
Ruan Yun, who was standing in front of her, looked at her with pitiful eyes. The queen put away her gentle frown and asked, "What's going on?"
Ying Ning immediately knelt down and said, "Just now, Mr. Meng was dissatisfied with the seating arrangement, and my young master kindly reminded Mr. Meng, but who knew that Mr. Meng was going to hit our young master."
When Yan Shiyu heard this, he looked at Meng Guiren with sharp eyes. Meng Guiren panicked instantly and knelt down, "My concubine..."
But who would have thought that the Emperor would walk straight towards Lady Ying, lift her chin with his fingertips slightly bent, move his hands left and right to make sure there were no traces before withdrawing his hands. The feeling of her smooth skin was still in his hands, her pair of almond-shaped eyes were very lovely and open-minded, and her peach cheeks were slightly red, perhaps because she was too embarrassed to be intimate with him in public.
Ruan Yun silently pulled her sleeves. She looked up at the emperor, grabbed his golden dragon robe and said, "I remember what the emperor said. I didn't let anyone bully me today, but the emperor must not scold me."
Yan Shiyu didn't let her go in the end, but Ruan Jun lowered her head and saw her white neck exposed, with a large patch of crimson behind her ear, her eyelashes were wet, and there were crystal tears in the corners of her eyes, and her fingertips were a little pale because she clenched them so tightly.
If I hadn't been bullied, would I be what I am today?
Yan Shiyu scolded her unhappily, "Sit back."
Ruan Jun raised her eyes timidly, shook Yan Shiyu's sleeve silently, and sat back in her seat.
Yan Shiyu walked straight past Concubine Meng without saying a word to her. All the concubines in the palace saw this and smiled a little. In the past, Concubine Meng was very favored by the emperor and could be released early even from house arrest. It was thought that Concubine Meng could return to the throne of Concubine Shu, but now the emperor didn't say a word to Concubine Meng. This was probably more uncomfortable than putting Concubine Meng under house arrest.
Ruan Yun was helped to sit back in her original position. She caught a glimpse of Mr. Meng, who looked unhappy and even spilled the wine in his cup, which she found ridiculous.
I looked at Ji Cairen and found that she breathed a sigh of relief. Because she was pregnant and couldn't use makeup, her face looked a little pale, but it was not as scary as Xu said, so I felt relieved.
If Mr. Meng could stop causing trouble, it would be worth it for her to take such a big risk.
After the palace banquet, everyone moved to the waterside platform to watch the newly rehearsed play by the palace actors. Ji Cairen was carefully helped up by the palace servants and walked outside. Ruan Yun walked in front of Ji Cairen.
Suddenly a voice was heard from behind. Ruan Yun turned around in panic and saw a figure falling down. She reached out her hand to hold Ji Cairen, but Ji Cairen stuffed a note into her hand and shook his head at Ruan Yun with his last bit of strength to stop her from holding her back.
Ruan Jun paused in her movements, and the note in her hand was almost crushed by her.
The sound of someone falling into the water was heard soon, and Ruan Jun shouted, "Hurry up and rescue Ji Cairen."
Ying Ning was still in shock, as everything happened so suddenly that she did not see clearly what Ji Cairen did, but she vaguely felt that the young lady had stuffed something into her hand.
Yan Shiyu strode over with a sullen face. The little princess was frightened and cried loudly, "Mother, Shui...Xin'er is scared."
Shen Chongyi covered the little princess' eyes and told her not to look anymore. Then she quickly called the wet nurse to take the little princess away.
Ji Cairen has been rescued from the pond. Zhaiyue Pavilion is a water pavilion in the palace. The entire palace is built on the water. It has an excellent location and is blessed by the Purple Star. That's why Shen Chongyi was so happy when she heard that the little princess' birthday could be held in Zhaiyue Pavilion.
Ruan Yun held on to the railing and saw Ji Cairen being helped to the shore. Yan Shiyu personally picked up Ji Cairen and sent her into the inner hall. During this time, Ji Cairen whispered "Your Majesty" and couldn't stop crying, her hands tightly grasping the clothes on her lower abdomen and refusing to let go.
The Queen also entered the palace and the Imperial Physician soon arrived. Ruan Yun listened to the cries of Ji Cairen in the inner hall, which overlapped with the cries of pain she heard in Yin Lanxuan that day, and her palms felt cold.
After the imperial physician examined the patient, he wanted to greet him, but Yan Shiyu said coldly, "How is Mr. Ji?"
The imperial physician quickly said, "Ms. Ji had already shown signs of miscarriage during her pregnancy. Now that she fell into the water and got frightened, I'm afraid she's going into labor prematurely."
Upon seeing this, the Queen immediately said, "The inner hall smells bloody. Why don't you leave first?"
Yan Shiyu turned the ring on his finger and said, "No matter what, we must protect Ji Cairen and the royal heir in her belly."
The imperial physician kept wiping his sweat and hurriedly ordered people to prepare everything.
Ruan Yun's face was not good and her eyes were tightly closed. Ying Ning had already finished reading the note and whispered in Ruan Yun's ear: "My lady, there are only two words on it..."
"Save me."
Ruan Jun's palms were wet, and her back was covered in cold sweat in the midsummer weather.
Ji Cairen must have guessed that something would happen today, as she wrote this note in advance. But why didn't she tell the emperor or the empress in advance, but let things develop to this point?
When Yan Shiyu came out, he saw Ruan Yun's forehead was covered with cold sweat, and said coldly: "Please take a seat and ask the imperial physician to come."
Ruan Yun's words were stuck in her throat and she couldn't speak. Wei Maoyuan brought a stool himself, and Yan Shiyu stood beside Ruan Yun with his big hands clasping her shoulders.
The imperial physician breathed a sigh of relief after examining Ruan Yun's pulse. Concubine Ying was the apple of the emperor's eye. If anything happened to Concubine Ying again today, they would be in great danger.
"Your Majesty, Lady Ying was just frightened, nothing serious is wrong."
Yan Shiyu glanced at Wei Maoyuan, and Wei Maoyuan understood and ordered people to prepare the sour plum paste that Concubine Ying liked. It was said that Concubine Ying was favored. Whenever there were concubines coming to the Zichen Palace, only the cakes favored by Concubine Ying were remembered by the people in front of her. Even the emperor acquiesced. This was a special honor that Meng Guiren had never had before.
Ruan Yun's fingertips felt cold as she hooked them around Yan Shiyu's and sobbed, "I don't know how Talent Ji fell down."
"Your Majesty, I am afraid."
Meng Gui was so angry that he almost vomited blood. Ruan Jun, this vixen, always relied on despicable means to seduce the emperor's soul. Why should she be afraid of Ji Cairen falling into the water? Is she afraid that the emperor will find out that it was her who did it?
Seeing Ruan Yun leaning against the emperor, Chen Baolin couldn't help but say, "It's no wonder that Lady Ying is afraid since Lady Ji is so close to her."
Shen Chongyi entered the hall at this time. When he saw the scene in front of him, he paused slightly and wiped his eyes as if nothing had happened.
Meng Guiren couldn't help but sigh when he saw this. "Princess Xinsi finally had a birthday, but it was ruined. The emperor must give the little princess and Shen Chongyi an explanation."
The concubines in the harem couldn't help but panic. What would they do if they got pregnant in the future and were plotted against in this way? Today it was Ji Cairen, but tomorrow it could be one of them.
"Your Majesty, please investigate this matter thoroughly and restore peace to the harem."
All the concubines knelt down. Seeing this, Ruan Yun could only pull her hand out of the emperor's palm and kneel down with everyone else.
Only the Empress stood beside the Emperor, and said in a gentle voice: "Today's incident is indeed strange. How could Ji Cairen fall into the water when she was walking well? Moreover, those standing behind Ji Cairen were all her own palace maids. I'm afraid someone has tampered with Zhaiyue Pavilion, or the servants beside her have had ulterior motives."
Yan Shiyu uttered a word, "Check!"
Wei Maoyuan immediately led his men there, and Ruan Jun also leaned on Yingning with her eyes closed, thinking about what would happen today.
The banquet was hosted by the Empress and assisted by Concubine De. Shen Chongyi was the biological mother of the little princess and had once been close to Lady Meng.
Ruan Yun didn't want to believe that the Queen did this. She slightly opened her eyes and saw the Queen's worried expression. If it was really the Queen...
Shivering suddenly, Yingning tightly held Ruan Yun's hand.
Yan Shiyu brushed away the strands of hair on Ruan Yun's forehead. Although she was not the one who fell into the water, when he looked back today, he saw her standing by the railing. Her steps, which were calm in the past, had a few mistakes, and her heart was not as calm as before.
In the inner hall, Ji Cairen was exhausted. The womb looked at the scene in front of them and felt that it was not good. Several people looked at each other:
"This... Although Ji Cairen's fetal position is correct, this premature baby has already run out of strength. If the labor-inducing drug is taken, I'm afraid that Ji Cairen's last bit of energy will be used up on this."
"The fetus is already weak, and now it's in this state, it's going to drag Jicairen to death."
"Don't say such unlucky words. Think about what to do next."
The old woman walked out of the curtains, still smelling of blood, and knelt in front of the emperor and the empress. "If Ji Cairen gave birth to an heir, I'm afraid I'd die. I'm guilty, and now... I can only save one."
Yicui looked at the young lady lying on the bed with tears all over her face and almost unconscious, and ran out of the inner hall crying:
"Please, Your Majesty, please save my lady. It's not easy for my lady to be pregnant. My lady is a living person."
Mr. Meng sneered, "Is your young master more important than the heir to the throne?"
Yan Shiyu's face was so cold that it almost looked like it was about to fall apart. He stood there quietly with a hint of hesitation.
Ruan Yun heard the weak shouts from the inner hall, and remembered the note that Ji Cairen had desperately stuffed into her hands. She knelt straight down, knocking her knees on the stone slabs:
"Please, Your Majesty, protect Ji Cairen. There will definitely be an heir to the throne in the future."
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