As soon as Tang Shiliang finished speaking, he received a kick on his shoulder from Wang Dequan: "Don't you know how to talk? Concubine Zhen going into labor is a good thing, how can you say it's not good?"
He did this out of fear that the Emperor would blame Tang Shiliang and harbor resentment, making Tang Shiliang's future path difficult.
"That's not what I meant..."
Tang Shiliang's forehead was covered in sweat from anxiety: "If Concubine Zhen had gone into labor naturally, that would indeed be good news, but... the bad part is that Concubine Zhen was pushed by Consort Liang and hit a table corner, losing a lot of blood. Right now, Yan the Imperial Physician and Miss Yan, along with Nanny Li and Nanny Xiang, are in the delivery room of Hexi Palace with four midwives. I hear Concubine Zhen's screams are agonizing, and we don't know if..."
A flash of imperial yellow passed before their eyes as the Xuanwu Emperor rushed out of Chengqian Palace.
"Your Majesty... an umbrella... you need an umbrella..."
Wang Dequan reacted quickly, pulling out an oilpaper umbrella from the doorway and handing it to Tang Shiliang: "If His Majesty catches a cold, your backside will be in trouble."
Tang Shiliang was only eighteen, still a young lad in Wang Dequan's eyes, and accustomed to serving others since childhood, so he ran very fast.
He dashed out like the wind, catching up to the Emperor and handing him the oilpaper umbrella: "Your Majesty, the Empress and all the other consorts are already at Hexi Palace. If you arrive soaking wet, it may be seen as undignified."
No matter what happens, the Emperor must not lose his composure in front of others.
Heeding Tang Shiliang's reminder, the Xuanwu Emperor took the oilpaper umbrella and quickened his pace towards Hexi Palace.
Fortunately, Hexi Palace was not far from Chengqian Palace, so it didn't take long to arrive. However, the rain was heavy, and the Emperor's dragon robe was still half-soaked, with traces of rainwater visible at the hem.
"This concubine greets..."
"Where is Concubine Zhen?"
The Xuanwu Emperor interrupted Empress Zhu as she was about to curtsy, walking straight inside.
Left with no choice, she quickly stood up, with the other consorts following behind in a large group.
"Concubine Zhen is inside. Yan the Imperial Physician is waiting outside, while Miss Yan is inside, reporting Concubine Zhen's condition to Yan the Imperial Physician from behind a screen."
"Ugh... Ah... It's killing me! I don't want to do this anymore! I can't give birth!"
"Your Highness, you can't push yet, be careful not to tear. You must wait until you feel an overwhelming urge to push before exerting yourself. Listen to Nanny Xiang, inhale... that's right, inhale... exhale... inhale... exhale..."
As soon as they entered the small reception room outside the temporary delivery room in the back of Hexi Palace, they could hear Jiang Xinyue's agonized screams and the voices of Nanny Li and Nanny Xiang giving instructions.
"Yan the Imperial Physician!"
The Xuanwu Emperor grabbed Yan the Imperial Physician standing at the door: "How is Concubine Zhen?"
Yan the Imperial Physician sighed heavily: "Concubine Zhen's belly was violently struck, and her water broke before it was time for delivery. If we're not extremely careful... I'm afraid we might lose both mother and child!"
He didn't want to make it sound so serious, but Concubine Zhen had ordered him to describe it this way.
She had said: "You must make the situation sound grave, otherwise all my scheming today will have been for nothing. Why else would I go through all the trouble of hitting the table and using pigeon blood?"
Who could she implicate? Why had she gone to such lengths, hitting the table and using pigeon blood?
The Fourth Prince, who had already woken up, saw the Xuanwu Emperor arrive and rushed out of Qian Sheng's arms. He threw himself at the Emperor's legs, crying so hard he was hiccupping: "Father, is it... is it because Little Man wasn't good? If Little Man had been better and not gone out, would Mother not be in trouble? Wuwuwu..."
Tang Shiliang had clearly said that Consort Liang had pushed Concubine Zhen, so how did this involve the Fourth Prince now?
The Xuanwu Emperor picked up the Fourth Prince: "Qian Sheng, you tell me, what exactly happened? Why did Consort Liang push Concubine Zhen?"
Since the Fourth Prince said it had something to do with him, it must have involved him somehow. Asking the Empress would be useless, as she would surely take Consort Liang's side. It was better to ask those directly involved.
Qian Sheng's eyes were red as he recounted how the Fourth Prince had been playing in the Imperial Garden when he was led to a secluded area by a eunuch who had bullied him before. The eunuch said things to provoke discord between Concubine Zhen and the Fourth Prince, angering the prince so much that he fainted.
"When Concubine Zhen learned from the eunuchs that Consort Liang was behind this, and considering Consort Liang's recent actions, she was furious that Consort Liang would target the young Fourth Prince. So she brought people to Shunan Palace to demand an explanation. The servants at Shunan Palace kept making excuses and wouldn't let Concubine Zhen in, so in her anger, she smashed things in Consort Liang's Shunan Palace. Only then did she get to see Consort Liang."
"Afterwards, the two ladies confronted each other for a few words. For some reason, Consort Liang suddenly pushed Concubine Zhen. At the time, they were speaking quietly, and none of the servants present could hear what they were saying."
Whatever was said, it shouldn't have led to pushing a pregnant woman into a table corner. That would be attempted murder, premeditated murder.
"Where is Consort Liang?"
The Xuanwu Emperor's voice was deep, brewing a great storm.
Empress Zhu chose her words carefully: "Knowing she had done wrong by accidentally pushing Concubine Zhen, Consort Liang went to kneel in the back courtyard in the rain of her own accord."
"Bang!"
"Crash!"
"This poisonous woman tried to kill Concubine Zhen and my child, and she thinks getting rained on will make everything alright?"
The teacup on the table beside Empress Zhu was thrown onto the table, rolled off, and shattered on the ground.
"Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"
Led by Empress Zhu, all the consorts obediently knelt on the ground.
"Let her kneel there properly. I'll deal with her later."
Right now, the most important thing was for Concubine Zhen to deliver safely.
"I can't hold it anymore, I really can't hold it anymore. Can I push now? It's killing me, ahh..."
Inside the delivery room, Jiang Xinyue's forehead was covered in sweat. Nanny Xiang and the four midwives were gathered at the foot of her bed, guiding her to deliver the baby.
Nanny Xiang counted for her: "Your Highness, push now, you can push now. Use all your strength, hold your breath and count to twenty, then take another breath."
This meant she had to maintain the push for at least twenty seconds.
She knew some childbirth techniques and knew that Nanny Xiang's instructions were correct. Following her directions, she was already numb with pain, her mind focused solely on getting this child out of her belly as quickly as possible, no matter how much it hurt.
No pain could compare to the burning, stretching sensation in the birth canal during childbirth.
That feeling was truly something she didn't want to experience again anytime soon.
The pressure made her want to cry.
But she couldn't cry; Nanny Xiang said she needed to conserve her strength.
"I... I really can't do it anymore. I can't give birth!"
Jiang Xinyue took back her bold declaration of wanting to have several more children. This one had already caused her excruciating pain, making her feel like dying and coming back to life repeatedly.
The contractions before her water broke were still bearable, but once it broke, the intense pain was truly unbearable.
At this point, all she could think was that even if she tore, she just wanted this child to come out quickly.
She had pushed so hard that she was seeing stars, her fingers were shaking, and she couldn't muster any more strength. She felt like she was about to pass out.
