In the eighth month of the sixth year of the Qiyuan era, Consort Hui successfully gave birth to a royal prince.
Xiao Jingheng was overjoyed, and he bestowed the name Chengjing upon his third son.
With the birth of a male heir, there was much speculation in the palace that Consort Hui's promotion to Noble Consort was not far off.
In the ninth month of the same year, the disaster in Jiangnan was resolved, and the bordering small nations submitted to the Qi Dynasty. The people's hearts were at ease.
That year, Xiao Jingheng's Wan Shou Festival was grandly celebrated and filled with festivities.
On that day, he drank a lot of wine. Just as he was about to leave the gathering, Rongyue took the opportunity of offering him a toast to whisper in his ear, "Your Majesty, I have prepared a surprise for you. But this surprise can only be seen by Your Majesty alone."
As she spoke, she didn't forget to send a breath of warm and fragrant orchid scent into Xiao Jingheng's ear.
Xiao Jingheng was aroused with desire. After the gathering dispersed and he returned to the palace, he immediately summoned Rongyue.
The weather tonight was stuffy and devoid of the refreshing coolness of autumn.
It was already September, yet the Chaoyang Palace was still icy.
But when Rongyue arrived, she was wearing a cloak, wrapping herself tightly.
Xiao Jingheng reached out his hand, gesturing for her to come closer, and teasingly said, "They say the autumn tiger is fierce, yet you're wrapped in a cloak. Aren't you feeling suffocated?"
"Then let Your Majesty help me, and remove the hassle of this cloak," Rongyue said, grabbing Xiao Jingheng's hand and guiding it to the clasp of the cloak around her neck.
Xiao Jingheng then pulled her waist closer, reclaiming the initiative, and roughly undid the clasp of the cloak.
With a "rustle," the clasp came undone, and the smoky green cloak fell to the ground, revealing the clothes Rongyue wore underneath.
At first glance, it was a dance costume from the Ada Tribe, gleaming green all over.
Rather than calling it clothing, it looked more like a few pieces of fabric haphazardly wrapped around to conceal her modesty.
Xiao Jingheng had seen the same style of clothing on another person before.
That person was Song Zhao.
A sudden thunderclap outside the window echoed, as if a string of large and small pearls fell onto a jade plate.
Xiao Jingheng suddenly snapped back to reality.
But Rongyue had already thrown herself into his arms, trembling with fear.
"Your Majesty... I'm scared..."
Her actions were reminiscent of the first time Xiao Jingheng met Song Zhao.
Recalling the past, he could only sigh.
Xiao Jingheng's excitement plummeted in an instant.
That night, he did not let Rongyue share his bed. Instead, he used drunkenness as an excuse and sent her away.
As the night grew deeper, Xiao Jingheng was alone in his inner chamber, gazing at the rain outside the window. He felt as if something was missing, and no matter what, he couldn't fill that void.
In the blink of an eye, it had already been a year since Song Zhao was banished to the cold palace.
Yet Xiao Jingheng would still think of her at many unexpected moments.
He was too mindful of Song Zhao,
to the point that he hadn't named his daughter with her, nor did he dare to visit her.
His emotions were always conflicting, filled with guilt and fear towards Song Zhao.
Regretfully, he had believed the advice of Tan Yue about the conflict between father and son. He had also encountered several dangerous situations one after another. In order to secure his own safety, he had no choice but to personally bury Cheng Yu in the imperial tomb, thus extending his own good fortune.
He was apprehensive because all the evidence from the past assassination attempt on the ship pointed to Song Zhao. If the assassination had succeeded, only Song Zhao would have benefited from it.
He always felt that everyone in this world coveted his throne. If even the person lying on the bed had such thoughts, it would make him shudder even more...
Therefore, even if there was only a one in ten thousand chance that Song Zhao had intentions to seize his throne, he couldn't leave such a hidden danger by his side.
After all, this world was originally obtained through illegitimate means by him. He cared more about the throne than his own life, let alone a romantic relationship?
On the eve of the Lunar New Year in this year, Consort Hui once again received good news from her belly.
She informed Xiao Jingheng of this good news at a banquet in their residence.
"Your Majesty, I beg to inform you that it is not suitable for me to drink alcohol tonight."
She gently touched her flat abdomen and said with great joy, "The imperial physician has examined my pulse, and I am already two months pregnant."
As soon as these words came out, the entire hall was in an uproar, followed by a flurry of congratulations.
Xiao Jingheng had few heirs, and Consort Hui had given birth to several children in succession. It was clear that he was very happy. He immediately issued an edict, saying, "You have endured enough as a consort. After the Lunar New Year, you will be promoted to the position of noble consort."
Consort Hui, however, was not disrespectful and said, "Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty."
Just as all the attention was focused on her, Rongyue suddenly stood up, bowed to Xiao Jingheng, and smiled, "I originally thought that only I, as a noble consort, had such good news to present as a gift to Your Majesty. I didn't expect Consort Hui to have it too. It seems that my gift is not as surprising."
Upon hearing her words, Xiao Jingheng hurriedly asked, "What about Noble Consort Tong?"
Rongyue smiled and replied, "Just like Consort Hui, she is also two months pregnant."
"Good! Very good!"
Xiao Jingheng was overjoyed, raised his wine cup and drank it all, then smiled and ordered, "Where is the attending physician tonight?"
Jiang Deshou responded, "Your Majesty, the attending physician from the Imperial Medical Bureau tonight is Vice Director Zhang."
Xiao Jingheng said, "Go and summon him. Let him examine Consort Hui and Noble Consort Tong's pulse for their well-being."
Vice Director Zhang was quickly summoned.
He examined the pulses of Consort Hui and Rongyue in order, and then smiled and congratulated Xiao Jingheng, "Congratulations, Your Majesty. Consort Hui and Noble Consort Tong are indeed two months pregnant!"
Xiao Jingheng smiled with great satisfaction, "Good. You took care of Consort Hui's first pregnancy and everything went smoothly. I will entrust you with the care of Noble Consort Tong's pregnancy as well. If you handle things well, I will reward you generously!"
Vice Director Zhang bowed and replied, "I will definitely not disappoint Your Majesty's trust!"
Only then did the other concubines express their congratulations to Consort Hui. Now they had to put on a show of joy for Rongyue as well, and they were truly exhausted.
Consort Yun glanced around, and even if others didn't truly feel happy in their hearts, they all plastered smiles on their faces, ready to congratulate Rongyue.
Only Ning Wanshuang, with a face full of resentment, sat in her seat, drinking her sorrows away, not even willing to look at Rongyue.
Consort Yun knew that she must be feeling miserable inside, so she deliberately provoked the situation and whispered to Xiao Jingheng:
"Your Majesty, Noble Consort Tong has been serving you in the palace for quite some time now. Now that she is pregnant, you have elevated Consort Hui's status. There are no vacant positions for consorts in the palace anymore. Why not reward Noble Consort Tong with a consort position as well, so that good fortune comes in pairs?"
Xiao Jingheng remained silent for a moment and then smiled, saying, "Consort Yun, your words make sense. It's not appropriate to have vacant consort positions. Let's promote Consort Hui to the position of Consort after the Lantern Festival and elevate Noble Consort Tong to a consort position. They shall be granted titles accordingly."
As soon as these words came out, Ning Wanshuang's face turned even uglier.
Consort Yun, on the other hand, looked delighted and quickly led everyone to offer their congratulations, saying in unison:
"We, the concubines, congratulate Your Majesty on the double blessings. Congratulations to Consort Hui for her promotion to the position of Consort, and congratulations to Noble Consort Tong for her promotion to the position of consort."
