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Chapter 51
Upon entering Rongcui Palace, piercing screams of agony could be heard from inside. Gu Han's steps instinctively halted. It had been a long time since any concubine in the palace had given birth. Lu Yu also wore a cold expression. Noticing the woman's hesitation, he turned his head:
"What's wrong?"
Gu Han bit her lip and shook her head lightly.
She could hardly say it was because Concubine Miao's screams were too horrifying, as if she were enduring unbearable pain, that she'd been momentarily frightened.
The two stepped into the hall. Everyone's gazes turned toward them as they hastily came forward to pay respects. Gu Han imperceptibly shifted her body to avoid their bows, naturally positioning herself beside Concubine Zhou.
She heard Zhou lean close and mutter: "Why does something always happen whenever it's your turn to attend His Majesty's bed?"
For a moment, Gu Han had nothing to say. Thinking carefully, since entering the palace, her bed attendance had indeed been interrupted several times. She shook her head imperceptibly at Zhou, signaling her not to speak carelessly at this time.
Concubine Miao's agonized screams continued to emanate from within. Lu Yu's attention couldn't help but focus entirely on the birthing chamber. He frowned deeply:
"When did Concubine Miao go into labor?"
The Empress had arrived earlier than them. At his question, she shook her head with a grave, worried expression: "I heard Concubine Miao had just finished her evening meal when she felt something wrong with the pain. When the midwife examined her, she said the waters had broken and hurriedly sent her into the birthing chamber."
Hearing this, Lu Yu's face darkened.
The imperial physician had said that entering the fourth month would be Concubine Miao's delivery period. It was only the end of March now, Concubine Miao going into labor so suddenly made it difficult for Lu Yu not to be suspicious. He glanced toward the birthing chamber, rubbing the thumb ring on his hand, and asked in a heavy voice:
"Has the imperial physician found any problems?"
The Empress didn't answer this question, only looking toward the inner chambers. The imperial physician was examining Concubine Miao's evening meal, not even sparing any corner of the palace chambers.
What Lu Yu could think of, the Empress naturally could as well. She'd already ordered people to begin investigating.
Seeing this, Lu Yu said nothing more.
During this time, Nanny Wu from Cining Palace also arrived. After paying respects, she stood in a corner, apparently intending to wait until Concubine Miao safely delivered the imperial heir before leaving with the joyous news.
Gu Han glanced at Nanny Wu, feeling she couldn't quite read the Empress Dowager. To say the Empress Dowager didn't value imperial heirs, one only needed to see her rewards to Rongcui Palace to know how much she regarded Concubine Miao. Yet if one said the Empress Dowager valued her greatly, Gu Han couldn't discern it.
When Concubine Miao had several incidents that endangered the pregnancy, Cining Palace hadn't sent anyone to check even once. Now that Miao was giving birth, the Empress Dowager similarly hadn't appeared.
As night deepened, the screams from the birthing chamber gradually weakened. Gu Han's heart sank. She quickly exchanged a glance with Zhou, who also looked bewildered and at a loss. Gu Han wished she could slap herself.
She was truly foolish.
Zhou, like her, had never given birth. If she didn't understand the current situation, Zhou naturally wouldn't know either.
Gu Han swept her gaze over Nanny Wu. Seeing her composed, unhurried appearance, she vaguely guessed this situation was also normal. Gu Han couldn't help feeling somewhat panicked, was being in such pain that one lost strength actually normal?
Inside the birthing chamber, Concubine Miao lay on the bed, covered with a thin quilt, her abdomen protruding high. Her two legs were spread powerlessly apart. She was drenched in sweat from the pain, tears streaming down her face. The tearing pain from below made her wish she could pass out.
Yet the midwives kept saying: "The young prince hasn't crowned yet. Concubine Miao, save your strength."
Concubine Miao was somewhat delirious from pain. She only felt they spoke so lightly. The pain made her entire body tremble, her limbs gradually losing strength. This kind of pain was impossible to endure, wave after wave of agony made her scream uncontrollably.
Inside the birthing chamber, the delivery midwife couldn't help but wipe the cold sweat from her forehead. Seeing Concubine Miao gradually losing strength, she quickly said:
"The ginseng slices! Bring them quickly! Have Concubine Miao bite down!"
Inside was utter chaos; outside the hall, hearts were equally anxious. Watching palace servants rush in and out with varied expressions, everyone's thoughts differed. Gu Han clutched her handkerchief, looking toward His Majesty and the Empress in the center.
The Empress had closed her eyes, seemingly murmuring something softly. Gu Han was too far to hear clearly, but could guess she was roughly praying to various gods and Buddhas for protection.
As for His Majesty, he wasn't as emotionally expressive as the Empress, but just seeing him standing there unmoving, though palace servants had long since brought chairs over, he hadn't even glanced at them, one could tell his heart wasn't as calm as it appeared.
Initially, Gu Han had also been anxious with worry, but the screams from the birthing chamber came in waves. As time dragged on, Gu Han could barely stand steady. It was late into the night now, Zhou had even hidden behind her to yawn, drowsy with sleepiness.
Gu Han shifted her body slightly to shield her, raising her head to glance at the water clock. Only then did she realize they'd been waiting here for over an hour. Gu Han's legs were sore and numb from standing, but she wasn't as carefree as Zhou, she didn't feel the slightest drowsiness.
Midway through, the Empress also wearily massaged her temples. She looked at His Majesty, who was still waiting, and couldn't help but say:
"It's so late. Your Majesty still has morning court tomorrow. Why don't this consort remain here to watch over things while Your Majesty returns to rest first?"
Lu Yu glanced at the Empress and shook his head expressionlessly.
This was his first imperial heir since ascending the throne. The timing of Concubine Miao's labor was already suspicious. If he left now, it would inevitably give others an opportunity to exploit. In other words, he didn't entirely trust the Empress either.
The emotions in the Empress's eyes grew more detached. She looked away as if nothing had happened, only pretending not to notice His Majesty's distrust. But in her sleeves, her hand gripping the handkerchief hadn't relaxed for a long while.
She found it somewhat laughable. If she had truly wanted to harm Concubine Miao, how could Miao have made it safely to this point in her pregnancy?
Gu Han looked at this imperial couple but couldn't find even half the resemblance to how her parents at home interacted. Rather than saying these two treated each other with mutual respect, it was more accurate to say they were outwardly harmonious but inwardly estranged. His Majesty didn't trust the Empress yet respected her, a contradiction that defied belief.
Gu Han couldn't be bothered with this imperial couple. To put it bluntly, the greater the rift between the Emperor and Empress, the more opportunities concubines like them had to exploit.
Tired from standing, Gu Han shifted her body, imperceptibly furrowing her delicate brows. She drew in a low breath and half-leaned into Jiu Nian's embrace. Zhou, standing close by, followed suit and felt somewhat more comfortable.
She complained quietly to Gu Han: "When will this end?!"
Where would Gu Han know? She could only shake her head gently.
Not only was Zhou curious, Lu Yu glanced at the time and also frowned, asking:
"Why hasn't it finished yet?"
The Empress laughed bitterly to herself. Women giving birth was basically like having one foot in the gates of hell. Never mind just one hour now, it wouldn't be impossible for the pain to last several hours, even a full day and night.
Since His Majesty was willing to wait, the Empress was too lazy to urge him to return again.
It was Nanny Wu who answered His Majesty's question:
"Your Majesty may not know, a woman's first child is always more difficult. When Concubine Miao will deliver the imperial heir still depends on the situation inside."
This statement was as good as saying nothing. In summary: the time was uncertain, so just wait.
Lu Yu's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. He couldn't help but glance at Concubine Chen. When Chen had given birth, he hadn't been at the residence at all. So even though he had heard later that her delivery had been difficult, he'd had no real sense of it.
In fact, because mother and child had been safe, Lu Yu's heart at the time had been filled only with joy. He had never taken her birth ordeal to heart at all.
Since being publicly slapped that day, Concubine Chen had sunk into silence within the palace, her face gloomy day after day. Few in the palace outranked her, and with an imperial heir at her knee, few were willing to offend her. For a time, the palace had remained relatively peaceful.
Now, she kept her head lowered, not once looking toward His Majesty.
Lu Yu only swept a glance at her before withdrawing his gaze. From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Gu Han, seeing her with furrowed brows, half-leaning in a palace servant's embrace, and suddenly realized a long time had passed. He raised his head to look at Consort Shu.
Consort Shu looked listless, her eyes downcast, seemingly somewhat distracted.
Everyone saw His Majesty frown as he looked at Consort Shu, then turn to sit in a chair, ordering in a heavy voice: "Grant seats to the ladies."
The concubines who'd had all their attention on the inner chambers couldn't help feeling somewhat sour. They looked at Consort Shu with envy. Consort Shu suddenly came back to herself, tugging at the corner of her lips as she glanced at His Majesty with apparent bashfulness.
Gu Han also looked up at Consort Shu.
Liu An was confused, which ladies exactly?
His Majesty hadn't specified, and the palace courtyard couldn't seat all the concubines. Liu An swept his gaze around, catching sight of Concubine Zhao, then glancing at Nanny Wu. He had a general idea in his heart.
Shortly after, Gu Han saw a round stool being brought before her. Zhou had similarly been granted a seat. The two exchanged glances, both breathing sighs of relief in their hearts as they sat down with weak legs.
Just as Gu Han sat down, she heard an intense scream of agony suddenly erupt from the birthing chamber, far more powerful than before. Gu Han was so startled her body trembled. She abruptly raised her head to look toward the birthing chamber.
This time was clearly different from before. Concubine Miao's cries came in succession. The delivery midwife said something unknown, and alarmed exclamations filled the hall. Gu Han looked up, simply unable to sit still.
She wanted to stand up, her legs were truly weak, but before she could hesitate, His Majesty rose and took several steps toward the birthing chamber.
Gu Han froze, cursing inwardly, what a torturous night!
She hastily stood with Jiu Nian's support. Zhou also numbly followed suit. This time they didn't have to wait long before hearing crying sounds from within the hall. Perhaps exhausted from the long ordeal, Gu Han couldn't muster any emotional response, she only put on an appearance of relief.
However, before anyone could emerge from within to announce the joyous news, alarmed, chaotic sounds came from inside, completely shattering Gu Han's languid emotions. Holding her breath, she looked toward the hall. A palace maid ran out and knelt on the ground in panic:
"My lady is hemorrhaging badly! The midwife sent this servant to summon the imperial physician inside!"
Lu Yu said with a dark expression: "What are you waiting for?!"
At this moment, no one cared about propriety between men and women, moreover, screens would be erected inside. Gu Han gripped her handkerchief, suddenly realizing what had been wrong today. Clearly Concubine Miao's delivery had come early, yet the entire process had been too calm.
Gu Han furrowed her delicate brows, sweeping her gaze across the hall. When she caught sight of Imperial Physician An, she abruptly paused. Imperceptibly, she glanced at Imperial Physician An again, he was tightly gripping his sleeves, head lowered, with what seemed like cold sweat on his temples.
Gu Han recognized this physician, he was the one who'd just examined Concubine Miao's evening meal. Earlier he'd said there were no problems with Miao's dinner.
Gu Han's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly. What was he nervous about?
Everyone's attention was focused on Concubine Miao inside the hall. Taking advantage of the distraction, Gu Han had Little Fang Zi approach and whispered a few words in his ear. Little Fang Zi nodded solemnly and quietly departed.
Gu Han didn't even know what exactly she was suspicious of. She only gripped her handkerchief tightly, waiting for Little Fang Zi's return.
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Author's Note:
Kunning Palace: Empress
Yi'an Palace: Consort Shu
Xianleng Palace: Imperial Consort De
Zhaoyang Palace → Main Hall: Xiuyi He
Zhaoyang Palace → Side Hall: Rong Baolin
Yihe Palace → Changchun Pavilion: Female Lead
Rongcui Hall: Beauty Miao
Cuizhu Pavilion: Beauty Lin
Changning Courtyard: Zhou Meiren
Hanleng Palace → (Main Hall transferred to Side Hall): Talented Lady Yuan
Also appearing: Noble Lady Lin, Liu Baolin
Here are the ranks of imperial consorts:
- Empress (皇后 Huánghoù) — Head of the Imperial Harem
- Imperial Noble Consort (皇贵妃 Huáng Guìfēi) — Rank 1
- Noble Consort, Pure Consort, Virtuous Consort, Worthy Consort (贵妃、淑妃、德妃、贤妃 Guìfēi, Shūfēi, Défēi, Xiánfēi)** — Senior Rank 1 (The Four Consorts, with Noble Consort as the highest)
- Consort (妃 Fēi) — Junior Rank 2
- Bright Deportment, Bright Countenance (昭仪、昭容 Zhāoyí, Zhāoróng) — Senior Rank 3
- Cultivated Deportment, Cultivated Countenance (修仪、修容 Xiūyí, Xiūróng) — Junior Rank 3
- Noble Lady (贵嫔 Guìpín) — Senior Rank 4
- Imperial Concubine (嫔 Pín) — Junior Rank 4
- Beauty (美人 Měirén) — Senior Rank 5
- Talented Lady (才人 Cáirén) — Junior Rank 5
- Precious Grove (宝林 Bǎolín) — Senior Rank 6
- Imperial Woman (御女 Yùnǚ) — Junior Rank 6
- Palace Maid (宫女子 Gōngnǚzǐ) — Senior Rank 7
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