Chapter 209 Ma Jia is going to die
Just then, Lady Tongjia, supported by her nanny, entered the side hall and, upon seeing the Emperor and Empress, quickly bowed.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to the Empress."
Kangxi nodded and spoke.
"My cousin is here."
Tongjia's tone carried just the right amount of concern.
"When I heard that Consort Ma Jia had gone into labor, I was worried about her and thought I would come to see if I could be of any help."
Jiang Nan looked at her, a half-smile playing on her lips.
If I hadn't known beforehand that my cousin had been getting along so well with Uya recently...
You really think she's an innocent little white rabbit?
Kangxi clearly hadn't thought that far ahead, and simply said...
"You're so kind. Please sit down."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Tongjia gave Jiang Nan another curtsy.
Before long, a simple meal was served: a few snacks and two bowls of steaming chicken noodle soup.
It's not exactly exquisite, but in the midst of this tense wait, being able to have a hot bite is a rare treat.
Jiang Nan didn't mind; it wouldn't look good to be eating and drinking outside the delivery room at this time.
The group ate a little something to tide them over.
As darkness fell completely, the palace lanterns lit up one after another, illuminating the courtyard of Yikun Palace as if it were daytime.
The waiting time felt exceptionally long.
Finally, a commotion came from inside the bedchamber.
First came Ma Jia's suppressed, but gradually rising, cries of pain.
Then, the midwife's urgent straining and urging that the baby was about to come out gradually became interspersed.
Jiang Nan listened with great interest, even slightly adjusting her posture to hear more clearly.
Ever since she became empress, she has never encountered anyone so stubborn as to dare to act arrogantly in front of her.
She hadn't heard such a heartfelt and poignant voice in a long time.
Surprisingly, she found it quite refreshing to listen to.
Emperor Kangxi could no longer sit still. He suddenly stood up and began pacing back and forth in the hall.
He would occasionally glance anxiously towards the direction of the sleeping quarters.
The more Tongjia listened, the paler her face became.
Those piercing screams made her involuntarily imagine that she would have to go through the same suffering in the future.
A chill suddenly ran through him, spreading to his limbs and bones, and he even felt a sense of fear and regret for coming here.
Jiang Nan glanced at the Kangxi Emperor, who was making her dizzy, and finally couldn't help but speak, her tone tinged with a helpless teasing.
"Your Majesty, please stop turning around. Didn't Empress Nala go through the same thing when she gave birth to the Second Prince? Please sit still. No matter how anxious you are, you can't help."
Kangxi paused, inwardly rolling his eyes. How could this be the same?
Inside the bedchamber was the child he had been longing for.
He knew he couldn't help, but he was still worried, especially since his leg wouldn't obey him!
Jiang Nan stopped trying to persuade her and just listened quietly to what was happening inside.
Two more hours passed, and the night outside the window had turned pitch black.
Inside the bedchamber, Ma Jia's screams gradually weakened due to her exhaustion, turning into intermittent groans.
Suddenly, Ma Jia's groans rose sharply, turning into a shrill, almost inhuman wail.
"Ouch—it hurts...it hurts so much!"
The scream came so suddenly and violently, as if the victim had been subjected to the ultimate torture, that it instantly shattered the oppressive and tense atmosphere that had been hanging over the side hall.
Immediately, the bedchamber fell into a deathly silence.
Even Ma Jia's faint groans and the midwife's urging voices disappeared, and there was no sound of a newborn baby crying.
Jiang Nan's face darkened, and she abruptly stood up.
No! That scream was too sudden and too intense; it sounded more like the pain that had suddenly escalated.
This is definitely not a normal situation during labor.
Kangxi also turned his head sharply, his face drained of color, his voice filled with shock and anger.
"Nannan! What's going on inside? Why is there no sound?"
Jiang Nan's gaze sharpened, and she immediately gave the order.
"Chunlan! Go in and take a look!"
"yes!"
Chunlan responded and was about to make a move when the door to the bedchamber was pulled open from the inside, and a midwife rushed out, tumbling and crawling.
She knelt on the ground, her voice trembling uncontrollably.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty the Empress! Something terrible has happened! Consort Ma Jia... Consort Ma Jia... she just fainted from the pain and is unconscious. She can no longer... let alone continue giving birth!"
Kangxi felt a rush of blood to his head. He strode over to the midwife, his voice so cold it could freeze a person to death.
"What did you say? Say it again!"
The midwife was so frightened that she trembled all over and kowtowed repeatedly.
"Your Majesty... Consort Ma Jia... has fainted. This servant... is truly helpless!"
"waste!"
Enraged, Emperor Kangxi kicked the midwife in the shoulder, knocking her to the ground.
"What are you all good for?!"
Hearing the unusual scream and seeing the midwife's panicked yet shifty eyes, Jiang Nan made up her mind.
There must be something wrong with those two midwives.
That scream was probably the key moment they tampered with things, but now is not the time for interrogation.
She took a deep look at the midwife kneeling on the ground, and then said to Chunlan.
"Chunlan, go in and check carefully, then come back and report to me immediately."
At this moment, Consort Niohuru also stepped forward, her face solemn.
"Your Majesty, I'd like to go in and take a look as well; perhaps I can be of some help."
Jiang Nan waved her hand.
"Go."
Chunlan and Consort Niohuru immediately entered the bedroom.
Seeing that Jiang Nan had made arrangements, Kangxi's anxious heart calmed down a little, but his hands behind his back were still tightly clenched.
He was clearly restless.
A moment later, Chunlan hurried out, her face extremely pale. She quickly walked to Jiang Nan's side.
He lowered his voice and spoke very quickly.
“Your Majesty, I have examined her carefully and taken her pulse. She did indeed faint due to sudden, unbearable pain. Her breathing is weak, and her contractions have stopped, making it impossible for her to give birth. Moreover… I believe that the pain caused her uterus to rupture, and the fetal heartbeat is rapidly weakening. She is in critical condition and there is no hope of recovery.”
She paused, looked up at Jiang Nan, and her voice became even deeper.
"Your Majesty, should I use acupuncture to forcibly revive her, allowing her to endure the pain of childbirth while she is still on her deathbed? Perhaps there is a sliver of hope that she can give birth to the imperial heir, but the process will undoubtedly be extremely painful, and there is a high probability that both she and the unborn child will die. Or... should we let her remain unconscious and perform a cesarean section to remove the child without her being aware of anything?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Nan's gaze sharpened.
"According to you, Ma Jia is definitely going to die this time?"
Chunlan glanced at Kangxi and said with difficulty.
"Your Majesty, in your wisdom, when I asked whether to administer acupuncture to revive her, I was essentially asking whether to let her die in this state of ignorance and unconsciousness, or to revive her and allow her to continue to suffer inhuman pain, but the result would likely still be the death of both mother and child. Moreover, the fetus should not remain in the womb for long."
After hearing what Chunlan said, Jiang Nan understood that Ma Jia was doomed to die, and that Consort Rong would be leaving the stage ahead of schedule.
She looked at Kangxi, her tone more serious than ever before.
"Your Majesty, you have heard what Chunlan said. Lady Ma's uterus has ruptured, and the fetus is in distress. She is doomed. There are only two options: either revive her and let her try to give birth in extreme pain, which may result in the death of both mother and child, or... perform a cesarean section to save the child. What is your... decision?"
She left the choice to Kangxi.
She didn't want to take the blame for deciding the fate of offspring and concubines alone, especially with Emperor Kangxi present.
However, seeing Ma Jia being so secretly plotted against, Jiang Nan felt a surge of anger.
Although this Lady Ma Jia was not her confidante, she was nominally under the command of Kunning Palace. Even when beating a dog, one should consider its owner!
She glanced at the two midwives kneeling on the ground, a chilling glint in her eyes.
That look was clearly directed at a dead man who wouldn't live past today.
Just now she was secretly laughing at herself for not having anyone in the harem who dared to be so headstrong.
Little did I know that the moment this thought crossed my mind, someone foolishly walked right into the line of fire.
She wanted to see who in this harem dared to be so arrogant as to slap her in the face and challenge her bottom line!
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