If the Xuanwu Emperor were here, he would defend himself by saying that his precautions were aimed at all the concubines in the harem, not any particular individual.
But he wasn't here now, so Empress Zhu interpreted it as the emperor guarding against her, guarding against her harming Concubine Zhen's unborn child.
Empress Zhu felt both angry and desolate inside.
She herself had lost two children, and knew that kind of pain never fades no matter how much time passes.
That pain was like something etched into her bones - the slightest touch felt like scraping bone, piercing her heart.
How could she possibly harm a child?
Over these past dozen years, she had taken many lives, but never that of a child.
She always felt that any child could be the reincarnation of one of her own two lost children. If she killed a child, she would be destroying the chance for her own children to be reborn.
How laughable that her one act of mercy was seen as vicious by the emperor.
"Imperial Physician Yan! Imperial Physician Yan..."
Wang Dequan ran ahead of the emperor, ignoring the corpses strewn on the ground outside Hexi Palace and the Black Armor Army soldiers dealing with the bodies. He grabbed Xi Que and demanded: "Where is Imperial Physician Yan? Bring him quickly, Concubine Zhen is having stomach pains."
It was most likely fake, her mistress knew what she was doing!
But on the surface, Xi Que still rushed anxiously to the side hall to summon Imperial Physician Yan: "Imperial Physician Yan should know what to say, my lady says her stomach hurts."
Imperial Physician Yan waved his hand dismissively. How could he not know about Concubine Zhen's dramatic tendencies?
He had been fooled by her acting before and dragged onto this ship of thieves.
Usually when taking a pulse, he could get results in just a moment. But this time, after half an incense stick's time had passed, Imperial Physician Yan was still stroking his small mustache, his expression unreadable.
The emperor sat by the bedside, appearing outwardly calm, but inwardly extremely anxious. The fingers tapping restlessly on his knee betrayed his agitation.
Jiang Xinyue secretly glared at Imperial Physician Yan: That's enough, there's nothing wrong to begin with. You're getting carried away with the act. If His Majesty gets angry, I won't be able to save you.
Imperial Physician Yan coughed a few times and removed the handkerchief covering Jiang Xinyue's wrist. "Your Majesty, please forgive me. Concubine Zhen has received too many shocks today. I was worried the fetus might be affected, so I took extra time to be thorough."
"No matter."
The Xuanwu Emperor furrowed his brow. "How is Concubine Zhen?"
"Your Majesty can rest easy," Imperial Physician Yan smiled. "Concubine Zhen has a strong constitution. The child is unharmed, but Concubine Zhen herself was quite frightened. I will prescribe two doses of a calming decoction for her."
"Then why did her stomach hurt?"
Imperial Physician Yan had prepared an explanation: "In response to Your Majesty's question, it is normal for pregnant women in late stages to experience abdominal tightness and pain when they walk too much or overexert themselves. This is due to the growing fetus stretching the abdomen. Some rest should alleviate it. In my observation, Concubine Zhen could go into labor at any time. I will return home tomorrow and send my unworthy daughter to Hexi Palace to care for the Concubine."
Imperial Physician Yan's daughter, Yan Xinyi, was once a close friend of Concubine Zhen. Since learning of Concubine Zhen's pregnancy, she had been pestering her father to teach her midwifery. After eight or nine months of study, she had mastered the arts from Imperial Physician Yan and the midwives.
When the time came for Concubine Zhen to give birth, Imperial Physician Yan would not be allowed to enter. Yan Xinyi could take his place perfectly.
The emperor also breathed a sigh of relief. "Your daughter and Yue'er are fated to be friends. Even their names are similar. It is fitting for her to come to the palace to keep Yue'er company."
By saying this, the emperor was ensuring that Yan Xinyi's role as a medical practitioner would not be revealed, preventing others from finding a weakness to exploit.
It was simply that Concubine Zhen had experienced a palace upheaval and received a fright. The emperor worried it might affect the health of the child in her womb, so he was allowing her childhood friend to enter the palace to keep her company and lift her spirits.
Originally, the emperor had wanted to bring Jiang Xinyue's mother into the palace as well, but she refused: "Your Majesty, my mother is unfamiliar with palace etiquette. I fear she would be uncomfortable, and I do not wish for her to be unhappy here, worrying about home. Could we wait until I am close to giving birth before summoning her to the palace?"
The pregnancy itself wasn't the most important time - what mattered most was the month of confinement after birth. The more trusted people around then, the better.
The Xuanwu Emperor considered briefly, realizing this point as well, and nodded in agreement.
After that day, Nanny Li and Nanny Xiang hardly left Jiang Xinyue's side for a moment, fearing something might happen to her.
With just over a month left, they couldn't be careless. Otherwise all their efforts would be wasted.
When Jiang Xinyue returned, she didn't forget to bring back the sword from the Black Armor Army soldier: "I did not encounter any danger on my journey, but thank you for your sword. Holding it gave me peace of mind."
The Black Armor Army soldiers rarely interacted with others and served as covert guards. They didn't realize Concubine Zhen was covering for herself with this lie.
He only thought Concubine Zhen was rather foolish. The people outside were trying to lure her out of the palace. When she heard the emperor had been shot, she rushed out. It was fortunate nothing happened to her, otherwise they would have had difficulty explaining to the emperor.
The emperor blamed them for letting Concubine Zhen run out alone, and they could only repeat one phrase: "We deserve death."
The advantage of being a secret guard was the willingness to admit mistakes.
What else could the emperor do?
He could only dismiss them.
Qian Sheng was unconscious for two days, and the Fourth Prince kept vigil by his bedside for those two days. On the third day when Qian Sheng awoke, the Fourth Prince who had been holding back his fear finally burst into tears in his embrace.
"Grandpa... waaah... I thought Grandpa didn't want me anymore... waaah..."
Qian Sheng felt as if he had taken a journey to the gates of hell. While unconscious, he saw strange tall buildings and small boxes with four wheels that moved incredibly fast, carrying people inside.
Beeping sounds filled his ears. The sky was very blue, but he didn't know where he was. People wore odd clothing and seemed unable to see him, passing right through his body.
"Old man, be careful!"
Just as he took a few steps forward, suddenly a figure rushed out from the blurry crowd and collided with him. The impact jolted him awake.
The terror had not yet faded from his eyes as Qian Sheng gasped for breath.
Just now...
The woman who had called out "Old man, be careful!" seemed to have been hit by one of those four-wheeled boxes. She lay not far from him, blood pooling around her.
Had she died trying to save him?
What terrified him most was that although the woman had bright red curly hair and wore strange revealing clothes that exposed her arms and legs, he recognized her at a glance - it was Concubine Zhen.
How could Concubine Zhen appear in his dream?
And... and she had died so tragically trying to save him from being hit by that small box.
"Grandpa, why aren't you saying anything? Are you still feeling unwell somewhere? Grandpa... I'll go ask Uncle Yan the Imperial Physician to come again..."
"No need, no need." Stroking the back of the Fourth Prince's head, Qian Sheng finally felt the reality of being alive again. "Grandpa is fine now."
The Fourth Prince smiled as he wiped away his tears. "I knew Grandpa would be alright. Aunt Zhen also said Grandpa would definitely wake up."
A realization struck Qian Sheng's mind like a thunderbolt: Concubine Zhen was an otherworldly being from that strange world. He was the one who had brought Concubine Zhen here.
