C118

Xue Liuhua glanced at Xianghe and received the hot tea from her hands, then smiled: "Liu Cai Man's personally making the tea really scares me."

Chu Lingyun pursed her lips, "A mere human being's position is already lower than the Empress, they should be serving the Empress, making tea is nothing."

Xue Liuhua smiled sweetly, opened the teacup and took a sip, "En, this tea is really fragrant, did Liu Cai put flowers inside?"

Xianghe respectfully lowered her head and replied, "In reply to the Empress, your concubine has been released …"

"Aiyo, look at my memory," Xue Liuhua pretended to be extremely careful, touched her round belly, and smiled at Chu Lingyun, "I'm not allowed to drink flowery tea, I got drunk from the fragrance of the flowers and forgot." She placed the teacup back on the table and said with a smile, "Liu Cai, I'll have to trouble you to pour a cup of water."

Chu Lingyun's smile turned cold, how could a pregnant woman not be able to drink scented tea, this Consort Hua was obviously showing off that she was about to give birth to the emperor’s kid for the Emperor, the crown prince had just passed away and this woman was already so proud, it was hard to swallow this anger.

"Xianghe," Chu Lingyun raised her eyebrows slightly, "Consort Hua's body is so noble, it's better if you pour him some water."

Xianghe replied and returned back to the hall with her head lowered.

Xue Liuhua comfortably laid back on her seat, "I'm really sorry for troubling Liu Cai."

Chu Lingyun watched her repeatedly rubbed her stomach without batting an eyelid, a sinister look flashing past her eyes.

"I don't have any brothers or sisters in the palace," Chu Lingyun warmly reached out and stroked her belly. "Now I can finally have one."

A gentle smile appeared in Xue Liuhua's eyes as she caressed her fingers.

"If only the Empress had given birth to a prince," Chu Lingyun purposely sighed, "When the Royal Brother left, the only thing left in the palace was the Prince Duan.

Xue Liuhua nodded in agreement, "It seems that the Emperor also wants a prince."

Chu Lingyun narrowed her eyes. "When I give birth to a prince in the future, Royal Father will definitely be extremely happy. I'm afraid that the Empress's position will rise again."

Xue Liuhua's cheeks flushed red. She said embarrassedly: "With the princess's blessings, I don't seek wealth or riches, but to always be by the side of the emperor is the best."

"Empress, you are right," Chu Lingyun stopped smiling and shouted towards the back of the palace, "Xianghe, why have we not brought the white water from the Consort Hua up yet?"

"Princess, please forgive us." Xianghe carried her teacup and quickly walked out from the back of the hall, placing both hands in front of Consort Hua, "The Empress has been waiting for a long time."

Xue Liuhua smirked as she carried the tea over, but her eyes were looking at Chu Lingyun, "I thought Liu Cai wouldn't come, but my mouth is already dry."

Xianghe said dejectedly, "Please forgive me, Empress."

Xue Liuhua placed the teacup onto the table, she did not seem like she was going to drink it, "A talented person is now the sole pet of the harem, the emperor's rain and dew are all on you, as expected, you're from Princess Poyang's side."

Xianghe immediately laughed: "I dare not concubine, the Empress is currently the most favored person in the imperial harem, I wonder how many people have their hearts set on the Empress's stomach."

Xue Liuhua smiled proudly as she lifted her glass of water and drank a few mouthfuls.

"Empress," Chu Lingyun's eyes were fixed on the cup in her hand, "It is now time for you to drink the medicine."

Xue Liuhua looked at her strangely, "How did the princess know?"

Xianghe said: "The emperor is concerned about the Empress, he mentioned this to the princess."

"So that's how it is," Xue Liuhua couldn't help but feel a little proud, "As for the matter that the princess reminded me to do, it's time for me to go back and drink some medicine."

Chu Lingyun had a warm smile on her face, but her eyes were bone-chilling cold.

Watching the Consort Hua leaving the palace under the escort of numerous palace maids, the last remaining smile on Chu Lingyun's face disappeared.

"Princess," Xianghe lowered her head, feeling somewhat guilty, "It was this servant who acted recklessly, causing trouble for Princess."

Chu Lingyun waved her hands nonchalantly, "It's not your fault. Consort Hua is such a person, you should give me a chance."

Xianghe had a faint smile on her face as she softly replied: "This servant should be the one to help the princess out of her worries."

Chu Lingyun slowly raised the glass of white water, a layer of dense fog covering her eyes. "I never thought that I would also use the mother technique."

"Princess," Xianghe pursed her lips, and said in a low voice, "You won't do it very heavily …"

"I'm not in a hurry, it's just some light poison, making her feel worse when she's giving birth," Chu Lingyun lazily stretched her body, "Even if mother is worried about her child, she'll have to wait for her to give birth. What if she dies now?"

Xianghe heaved a sigh of relief and laughed: "Thank goodness Princess was able to endure this."

Xue Liuhua proudly and complacently returned to the Yongle Palace. That Liu Zhenren, who was rumored to have dominated the Emperor for several days, was only a servant who brought tea to her servant, and the Grand Princess, who was doted upon by the Emperor, had to lower her head in front of the prince in her stomach. She could finally be at ease with her status in the imperial harem.

The palace maid nervously came forward and asked, "Empress, what happened to you when you went to the princess?"

"The princess is very friendly towards me," Xue Liuhua said as she gave her a bland glance, "Could it be that you're looking forward to something happening?"

The palace maid hurriedly smiled apologetically: "This servant is concerned about the Empress. I've heard that the Princess is not easy to get along with, and has never interacted with the concubines of the imperial harem."

"Is that so, Princess's actions are also right, those concubines' chattering is really annoying," Xue Liuhua tidied up her bun in a leisurely manner, "However, the one in my stomach is the Princess' royal brother, so can she show me anything?"

The palace maid nodded, then called for the others to bring the birth control medicine over.

Xue Liuhua's eyes revealed the gentleness of a mother, she rubbed her stomach, and felt the life inside, "I'm probably going to give birth soon, why do I still have this baby protection medicine to drink?"

"This was specifically instructed by the imperial physician," the palace maid said as she placed the dark soup in front of her. "It said it could ease the Empress's pain when she gave birth again."

Xue Liuhua frowned, "I've just drank water at Princess's place, and want to drink this right now, so I'll leave it there for now, wait for me to rest for a bit, then heat it up and send it over."

The palace maid looked troubled. "Empress, this medicine is not good to drink once more."

"I've been drinking for so long, but it's still the same," Xue Liuhua pushed away the steaming soup impatiently. "I told you to put it on hold first, it makes me feel uncomfortable just by smelling it."

The palace maid was afraid that the Consort Hua's discomfort would harm her body, so she quickly ordered the servants to send the soup down.

Ru Yan passed through a long alley as the cold wind of early winter slashed past her pale cheek like knives. She shrunk her neck back and tightened the lapels of her clothes, then rushed forward as she faced the cold wind.

The Yongle Palace would always be abnormally quiet when the Consort Hua went to sleep, because she could not bear to make any noise while resting. It was the same when she left just now, all the palace maids remained absolutely silent in their own rooms.

However, this would give someone who harbored ill intentions an opportunity to do so. Ru Yan pursed her lips and laughed, then quickly rushed to the Cheng Huan Hall.

Shouxiang looked at Ru Yan who was trembling from the cold and asked curiously: Such a cold day, where did you go?

Ru Yan shook her head and quickly went into the hall.

"Fortunately, the Emperor did not come," Shouxiang reprimanded. "Otherwise, if there was one less person to help, I would have been exhausted to death."

Ru Yan pointed at the figure of the Consort Fu in the curtain and revealed a doubtful expression.

I just went to get an imperial physician, "Shouxiang said as she placed a piece of jujube cake in her hands," I heard that your appetite isn't good and that it's useful. I made this, how about you try it and see if it tastes good?

Ru Yan took a bite and revealed a happy expression and nodded with a smile.

Shouxiang proudly ate a piece of meat, "Seems like my cooking skills are not bad. Prince Duan has sent someone over to give me a fox skin cloak, saying that it's a gift.

Ru Yan turned her head to look at the grey and white fox skin cloak hanging on the clothes rack.

"The relationship between the Princess Duan and the Empress is very close, so the fox skin cloak that the Prince Duan gave should have been given to the imperial concubine," Shouxiang said. "Otherwise, why didn't the Prince Duan give it to the Consort Hua who was pregnant with the emperor’s kid?"

Hearing the two words "Consort Hua", Ru Yan paused for a moment and then tidied her clothes in an extremely natural manner.

"It's such a pity, if you could talk, you could chat with me during your free time," Shouxiang said in a sympathetic tone.

Ru Yan only pursed her lips, lowered her head, put the clothes back into the box and placed an incense bag.

"After the crown prince passed away, there would only be one prince left in the palace. If the Consort Hua gave birth to two, that would be two," Shouxiang said with a regretful expression.

Ru Yan turned around and pointed at herself, then pointed at the guards outside.

"Are you talking about the princess or the prince?" Shouxiang rolled her eyes, "Of course I hope that the Empress will be pregnant with a prince, what use is a princess?"

Ru Yan smiled and nodded, meaning that he agreed with her view.

"When the Consort Hua was pregnant with the emperor’s kid, it was already extraordinary. If she gave birth to a prince, she would definitely soar into the heavens," Shouxiang pouted, "I wonder if she will be promoted to Noble Consort after giving birth to a prince, that would already be above the Empress."

Ru Yan's lips raised into a faint smile, and an unfathomable dark light surged in her eyes.

From inside the curtain came the sounds of vomiting. Li Xiuse weakly held onto the side of the bed and covered her mouth with difficulty.

Shouxiang hurriedly returned to her side and patted her back to ease her anger. She immediately poured her a cup of cold tea.

"Imperial Physician..." Li Xiuse took a deep breath and asked with a trembling voice, "Why is the imperial physician not here yet?"

Shouxiang choked with sobs, she lowered her head and said: "This servant has gone to call for someone at Royal Hospital, they will arrive soon."

Li Xiuse squinted her eyes, revealing a tired expression. She took the cup of tea from Ru Yan's hands and took a sip, feeling much more comfortable.

"The Consort Hua is about to be delivered, the imperial doctors should be waiting for her," Li Xiuse squeezed out a smile, then waved his hand, "Forget it, forget it, let's not come anymore, I'll take it slowly myself."

"Empress Dowager," Shouxiang called Ru Yan over and brought out the sour date cake that she made. "The sour date cake is the one that heals your spleen and stomach the most.

Li Xiuse leaned on her chest, staring at the pastry in confusion, and slowly extended her hand to grab it.

"En, it's quite tasty," Li Xiuse licked her lips, and took another piece with reluctance, "Your cooking skills aren't bad."

Shouxiang smiled and gently helped Consort Fu out of her bed. "Empress, eat a few more pieces, I will have an appetite for food tonight."