Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved-Chapter 226 - Your Father Secretly Came to Beijing
Chapter 226: Chapter 226 Your Father Secretly Came to Beijing
Chapter 226 -226 Your Father Secretly Came to Beijing
About Princess Consort Ling’s twin pregnancy, indeed, the news spread throughout the city overnight.
The Second Prince’s faction always used every trick in the book.
They spread the news of Princess Consort Ling’s twin pregnancy and deliberately linked it to the continuous heavy rains in summer that flooded the fields, leading to a total crop failure.
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Even the malaria outbreak that killed numerous people in a distant town, which occurred around the same time as Murong Jiu’s pregnancy, was brought up again.
They also claimed that the Xiongnu’s dispatch of troops was an ominous sign.
The content they spread did not specify, but the implicit message was that disasters and calamities were all caused by the inauspicious event of Murong Jiu’s twin pregnancy, and even suggested that it could lead to the nation’s downfall.
These rumors intensified in the Capital City, gradually spreading to neighboring towns and continuing outward, and gradually, many unkind voices emerged among the crowd.
Many commoners were ignorant, especially those who had never been educated, whose thinking was even more outdated and conservative.
The notion that twin pregnancies were ominous originated from those conservative rural clans.
Even in some places, women who could not bear a son and had several daughters were considered to have violated one of the “Seven Grounds for Divorce” by having no sons and could be abandoned.
In some households, if the husband died, the clan would ask the wife to commit suicide in his honor, and her maternal family would even take pride in this and promote it widely.
In Great Yan, it was common to look down upon women who gave birth to daughters, and there were those who would drown their newborn daughters in a urine pot, favoring sons who could carry on the family lineage.
Murong Jiu grew up in the countryside and later followed her master to practice medicine outside, witnessing the plight of many unfortunate women.
She was not afraid of temporary infamy or curses from others because she believed that her good deeds would eventually bring good fortune.
If it was just a matter of having a poor reputation for a while, in the future, she could save many children who, because of being twins, were deemed ominous and might otherwise be drowned; Murong Jiu felt it was worth it.
Let her be the last victim of such archaic thinking.
Anyway, she would not go out during this time.
Let the turmoil surge outside, within the tranquility of the Prince Mansion.
After a few days of calm, suddenly, there was joy in the harem, as the Princess of the Western Regions, Consort Qin, was found to be pregnant.
Murong Jiu’s expression was strange when she heard the news.
The Emperor’s health had been severely damaged by the bewitching fragrance of Noble Lady Hui, affecting both his liver and kidneys. Further compounded by a long period of indulging in alcohol and pleasure, it had a significant impact on his virility.
At that time, Murong Jiu had spoken tactfully, only mentioning that he needed a long period of recuperation; in truth, the Emperor had already lost his ability to father children.
If the Emperor could recuperate for ten years, then if he were still sexually vibrant, the situation might change.
But from her frequent examinations of the Emperor’s pulse, he was currently incapable of fathering children.
This meant that the person who impregnated Consort Qin might not be the Emperor.
Moreover, wasn’t it reported in the palace that Consort Qin had been pregnant for two months?
At that time, the Emperor was in a particularly weak state.
“The Emperor was overjoyed and generously rewarded her, immediately declaring that if Consort Qin gives birth to a son, she would be promoted to Noble Consort,” said the guard as he relayed the message.
The Emperor was quite pleased, not sensing anything amiss, possibly thinking he was still virile and that his body had already recovered.
Wasn’t Consort Yun Pin also pregnant this spring?
The Emperor definitely underestimated the impact Noble Lady Hui’s bewitching fragrance had on his body.
Moreover, most men are arrogant, not to mention the Emperor. He is the Son of Heaven, the Human Emperor, who probably thinks such poison is nothing to him. He believes that heaven and his ancestors will protect him.
The Imperial Physician from the Imperial Medical Office, even if he could guess something, would absolutely not speak out. That group is best at preserving their own safety.
Murong Jiu didn’t plan on meddling too much, but she had informed Jun Yuyan about everything that was happening here.
Luckily, this time the Emperor did not call Murong Jiu into the palace to check on Consort Qin’s pulse or anything. He probably felt her own pregnancy was unstable and didn’t want to bring himself bad luck.
Based on Murong Jiu’s understanding of the Emperor, she felt this was quite likely.
That was fine by her. She was happy to have some peace.
But within a couple of days, a guard came to report, “Princess Consort, the Prince of Yundian has secretly come to the Capital City. He must be here to find Young Master Xiao Wen.”
Murong Jiu frowned and stood up, “The Prince of Yundian? He’s got some nerve. Coming to the Capital City without being summoned—if he gets discovered and someone reports it to the Emperor, he won’t live to make the journey back.”
The Emperor, being so suspicious, would possibly suspect that the Prince of Yundian came with the intention to rebel while the Xiongnu were mobilizing troops.
Even if that wasn’t the case, the Emperor would likely pin such a charge on him, providing a perfect pretext to eliminate the Prince of Yundian.
“Keep a close watch on the Prince of Yundian. I’ll go see Xiao Wen.”
Saying this, Murong Jiu quickly walked towards the outer courtyard, with Hong Yi and Chun Tao following closely behind.
Despite her large baby bump making her seem cumbersome, and her acting as though she could barely walk in front of the Fifth Princess, she was actually quite agile and moved swiftly.
She had started exercising from the second or third month of her pregnancy, which improved her flexibility and overall health.
The baby wouldn’t be too heavy because she controlled her diet well. Her stomach only appeared large because she was carrying twins.
After the start of winter, the days obviously became shorter. Today, the sun was quite good. Xiao Wen was helping his master dry herbs, naming them and describing their properties while doing so.
Xiao Wen was indeed talented and willing to endure hardships. His days were fully scheduled: starting with martial arts early in the morning, followed by studying medicine, attending various classes, and even practicing archery and horse riding in the afternoon. He never missed a session.
“Princess Consort!”
Upon seeing Murong Jiu, Xiao Wen immediately washed his hands then came over to brew her tea, showing great filial piety.
He treated Murong Jiu as a second mother. In this world, apart from his birth mother, the Princess Consort was the best to him, and he owed her a lifelong debt of gratitude, along with Grandpa Zhai and the Prince.
Murong Jiu smiled as she took the tea, saying, “Xiao Wen seems to have grown taller again.”
Divine Doctor Zhai also took the tea Xiao Wen offered, saying, “He used to be too thin from malnutrition. Now that he’s properly nourished and practices martial arts for strength, it’s natural for him to have spurted up.”
Speaking of which, Xiao Wen was only six years old, having just celebrated his birthday a few days ago, but he already looked as tall as other children aged seven or eight.
He was particularly tiny and thin when he first arrived, resembling a child of three or four years old, so his recent growth spurt was quite noticeable.
Murong Jiu remembered that in her past life, she had seen the Prince of Yundian from a distance. He was tall and imposing. Xiao Wen’s quick growth was certainly inherited from him.
After taking a sip of tea, she noticed that Xiao Wen had brewed her honeysuckle tea, which moistens the lungs and reduces swelling in the lower extremities, while he brewed Dahongpao for his elderly master.
Such a thoughtful child.
After drinking a few sips of the tea and sending others away, she brought up the matter at hand:
“Xiao Wen, your father has secretly come to the Capital City. Do you want to see him?”
Xiao Wen was initially stunned, then his little face turned cold, and he shook his head, “I won’t see him. If it weren’t for him, my mother wouldn’t have died.”
