The Emperor received the news at the time of the Wenhua Hall and the cabinet deliberations.

It is said that the discussions between the cabinet gentlemen and the emperor are all major state affairs, and the inner palace should not come and disturb unless there is a death and there is any urgent matter. But after the queen's affairs, who dares to delay this news? Ma Shiniao quietly touched the emperor's side, whispered a few words under his knees, and then quietly retreated.

There was no special fluctuation on the emperor's face, just an eyebrow raised. Several cabinet ministers glanced at each other a few times - in front of them, Ma Shi did not dare to whisper in his ear, although several scholars were not small, but they were still deaf and clear-sighted. Otherwise, it can't be firmly rooted in the cabinet position, right?

They are all thirty years old, and they don't have a son yet, and the emperor's mood and ministers are understandable. Many important military matters, originally wanted to quarrel in front of the emperor to produce a result, for example, whether to withdraw the troops on the Jiaozhi side, and how to deal with the relationship between the Warat tribes, etc., these things have been put on hold since the reign of Emperor Zhao to the present, and there is no result, and the money and grain of the imperial court will not stop spending because of the delay in government affairs...... But now, seeing that the emperor was obviously a little absent-minded, the ministers also swallowed the words into their stomachs. After a while, they didn't reach a conclusion, so they closed their mouths one by one.

In fact, the ministers are a little anxious like the emperor, and they are also very sad about the death of the emperor's eldest son - the queen's birth of a ghost fetus did not cause a storm in the city, and the people of Kunning Palace naturally do not talk nonsense everywhere, and the midwives also know the severity. Even the palace is just a shadow and some rumors, and it is even more difficult to receive news here, so for them, the eldest son of the emperor is just unfortunate to be born prematurely and died. If it's lucky, it's actually possible to raise it.

The eldest son of the queen, just the word eldest is enough for all the scholars who maintain orthodoxy. It's been a few times, and now everything has come to naught, so I have to retreat to the next best thing and keep my eyes on' stomachs. The cabinet deliberations were completed in half an hour, and the revision of the records of Renzong was not even decided. Lord Hu, who was specially called in, didn't say a word, and the individuals dispersed very tacitly.

Several ministers retreated in the direction of Wenyuan Pavilion - that low, inconspicuous courtyard was where the cabinet members went to work. It is also the most coveted place for the ministers of the world, although it has only been ten years since the establishment of Emperor Wen, but it has become the center of the power of the imperial court, and even the power of the six Shangshu cannot compete with this class of cabinet scholars who have no prime minister and are actually prime ministers.

Of course, in many cases, the cabinet scholars themselves are also the secretaries of the ministries, so there is no hostile relationship between the cabinet and the six ministries, just like these scholars today, although there are contradictions, but after experiencing the iron-fisted power of Emperor Wen, everyone is more important to deal with the greater enemy - the unpredictable authority of the Wenhua Palace.

Today is a day of great significance to the imperial power, and a few people walked silently for a while, and then one of Lord Yang said in a low voice, "The country is uncertain, and the country is restless." ”

Of course, this emotion is not untargeted, and the meaning of it is not unheard by several adults - they are all close ministers of the Son of Heaven and important ministers of the state, and there is nothing taboo to gossip about the family affairs of the Son of Heaven.

But for a while, no one accosted, only Lord Hu looked a little worried, and then said, "Concubine Zhuang is favored, but I'm afraid of repeating the story of Han Wu." ”

Starting from Han Wu's father, several queens of the Han Dynasty were unstable because they had no children, and then they were favored by their sons to ascend the throne. Although it is said that the rules of the dynasty and all kinds of heirs are raised under the name of the queen, it only means that the queen is responsible for arranging the upbringing, and no matter how much it is taught, it is impossible to confuse the biological mother who she is.

In the harem, it is said that the ministers should not take care of it, but since they are human, how can they not have the heart to gossip. The ministers also knew the disputes between the emperors and queens, but it was not their turn to say more. Obviously, the queen is not only unfavored, but the relationship with the emperor has been indifferent to twelve points, the emperor even said 'she is also worthy of being the queen', and now the emperor's eldest son died prematurely, and it is said that he is also close to death...... If this son is an ordinary palace person, it would be fine, if she is also a well-loved concubine who has always had an extraordinary status in the emperor's heart, I am really afraid that even the queen mother will not be able to protect her.

Moreover, will the Queen Mother be protected? The emperor likes Concubine Zhuang, not to mention, doesn't Qingning Palace often praise and summon Concubine Zhuang over? When the wives of the ministers entered the palace to worship, they all had eyes to see. When dealing with Xun Gui's wife, he will also say some gossip, and his heart is clear: Concubine Zhuang's status in the palace is the same as that of Sun Guifei, sitting firmly on the two and looking at one, and whoever of these two people has an heir, and the throne is likely to change hands.

And Lord Hu, who had a serious conflict with Concubine Zhuang in Nanjing, can he not worry now?

He can't go to the door of the Xu family, Concubine Zhuang's restraint on the family is also notoriously strict, and the relatives of the family will twitch their big mouths when they make a slight mistake. Obviously, the mother's family can't be the master of at all. Besides, Master Hu can't afford to lose this person.

It is naturally even more impossible to ask Concubine Zhuang for guilt in person. The beam between Lord Hu and Concubine Xu Zhuang can be regarded as a conclusion. If Concubine Zhuang is on the throne, the people's hearts will be turned back, and Lord Hu's authority will inevitably fall by a few points.

The corners of the first Lord Yang's mouth curled, half gloating, half jokingly glanced at Lord Hu, "Old Hu is now, for example, there is a fire next door." ”

There was a fire next door, and if you don't save yourself, although Lord Hu and Queen Hu are not related, they must have a strong sense of death now.

The second Lord Yang frowned, but he interjected, "You are cautious, let's not say that there is no result, even if there is a result, the debate of the concubine and the outline of ethics cannot be disturbed in the slightest." Everything has its own precedents, such as the story of Song Shenzong, after the Song Dynasty in the Han Dynasty, the etiquette was complete, and the Song Dynasty was naturally taken as a reference. Before the Han Dynasty, Confucianism and Taoism were not respected, and there were thousands of years of old things, what is worth discussing? ”

This is already an obvious statement: Song Shenzong's queen Xiang has no son, and her only daughter died early, which is indeed somewhat similar to Empress Hu's situation. - At the age of thirty, Shenzong had a son of zhanzhu, who later became Zhezong. And Zhezong's biological mother, Zhu, has always been favored by the emperor, and gave birth three times in a row, including two sons, and they are all zhanzhu, and the emperor's feelings, and the status in the palace, so what else is there to say?

But that's it, the Zhu family has always been just a concubine, the Queen Mother and the Queen Mother's two big Buddhas have crushed her to death one after another, and even the ministers will be reprimanded by the Queen Mother in person, and they have suffered a lot of filth, and their own son Zhezong has also been raised by Xiang's side since he was a child. Even if his father died later and Zhezong ascended the throne, he never crowned his biological mother as the queen mother, and Zhu was only the imperial concubine all his life, and the queen mother repeatedly expressed her attitude to the family, so that she had the treatment above the concubines - after her death, she was posthumously awarded the title of a queen, which was regarded as a consolation prize.

Of course, there are special reasons for Zhu's treatment, but Zhezong, his own son, did not give her the position of empress dowager, which can be regarded as a model of clear distinction between concubines and concubines. In the most ideal Confucian society, what about the concubine inheriting the throne? It doesn't mean that her mother can steal the queen's throne as a mother and a son, and although Xiang Hou at that time was also considered a famous family, and the Zhu family was only the daughter of a commoner, and the birth gap still exists, but now Empress Hu will have the support of a group of ministers because of her orthodox status. Now the ethics are not as chaotic as the Han Dynasty, the Song Dynasty acting greatly, 'filial piety first, Mingzong branch descendants' trend is all over the world. As soon as the second Lord Yang mentioned the story of the Divine Sect, Lord Hu nodded in agreement, and the remaining cabinet ministers, such as Lord Jin and Lord Huang, could not help but say, "Lord Yang is right. ”

The first Lord Yang was all over, he smiled contemptuously, didn't agree, didn't say anything - it's just that the group is all human spirits, and who can't see his attitude? Master Jin ignored him, but smiled, "What do you think of Hongji?" ”

The third Lord Yang who was named shook his head and was silent, as if he hadn't heard his peers' quarrels at all, and just walked along the corner of the wall. When a few people saw his appearance, they unexpectedly felt a little contemptuous: This is also the appearance of a minister?

It's just because of the East Palace lineage, you have to be loyal, you can be in the cabinet, and work with these talented and meritorious ministers. Characters like the first two Lord Yang, how could they take him seriously?

"Isn't it, let's wait until I'm born." In the end, it was still Lord Jin who was old and serious, and said a conclusion. "If it's a man, it's all good, the dynasty finally has a successor."

This is thirty years old, when Emperor Zhao was thirty years old, there was already an emperor, and Emperor Wen had already had Emperor Zhao when he was thirty years old. The first Lord Yang, even if he is arrogant and self-exalted, there is a sentence that is not wrong: the country is not established, and the country is not peaceful. As long as Concubine Zhuang gave birth to a male and can support her, she will definitely be made the prince at Chong Ling to stabilize the country. As for who is on the throne in the harem...... Anyone other than Lord Hu would care about this? Even if Concubine Zhuang is a difficult bone to gnaw, with the emperor here, even if she is stationed in Kunning Palace, it will not be her turn to choke anything.

The ministers went home in peace and grace, enjoying the joy of their children. As for what the childless emperor is feeling now, they don't have to care, anyway, whether it is a man or a woman, all kinds of news channels have to inform them of what they know.

However, what the ministers did not expect - but not very surprising - was that until the next morning, Concubine Zhuang's baby was not successfully born.

Like all the emperor's children, Concubine Zhuang's birth was not very smooth.

#

Xu Xun herself is not in great pain now, she is just very impatient and a little anxious.

Generally speaking, it is not uncommon for four or five hours to elapse between the beginning of labor pains and childbirth. So after Xu Xun was in labor, he was also arranged by the grandmothers to scrub his body, and he also ate a little tonic to give birth for a while. Several midwives and Mama Qian, Mama Sun, and Xu Xun told all the things that should be paid attention to: the water will break for a while, the uterus will be opened, and the uterine mouth will be opened to ten fingers, and the labor pain will reach the maximum and most frequent when the labor will start to give birth. Otherwise, if there is no strength at that time, the child is likely to suffocate in the birth canal and take her life away.

Since Xu Xun was seven months old, the midwife began to explain the pregnancy process and the matters to be paid attention to with her, and she was mentally prepared for all these things they said. Although he saw the scissors, hot water, and white cloth that were brought in, Xu Xun was still nervous, and even regretted that he was looking forward to having a child in the past. But when it comes to the end, she can't stop giving birth, and she can't think about any messy thoughts until now, so let's grit my teeth and get through this difficult time first-

Then she began her long wait.

Her labor pain is really a little too erratic, you say it's a fake pain, it's quite frequent, and it's really getting worse. But you say it's really painful, it's been four hours, and Xu Xun hasn't broken the water. Whether this is to give birth or not, now even Imperial Physician Liu and Imperial Physician Zhou, who was called back, are uncertain.

Then, when the emperor was still guarding outside at first, and in the second half of the night, when he couldn't stay awake and went to sleep, even Xu Xun himself couldn't hold back to sleep, her water suddenly broke without warning. Then something even more bizarre happened—the water broke, but she didn't hurt much, her belly was so quiet, and the baby, who had been tossing and turning for the past few months, was now not moving at all.

Could it be that the fetus was stillborn, and on the eve of dawn, the midwife began to worry. This worry can't be hidden from Xu Xun now, after all, Xu Xun is the one who is pregnant with the baby.

Then it was to quickly invite the imperial doctor to help the pulse, and everyone in Yong'an Palace was tossed again after they rested. Liu Zhien and a few grandmothers didn't go back all night, and now they are waiting outside for news. Xu Xun was lying on the delivery bed with his legs crossed, stretching out his hand to help the Taiyi pulse, not to mention how impatient he was: It's all at this time, what can the pulse be used for? That is, psychological comfort that is better than nothing!

After all, there is a difference between men and women, and the imperial doctor can't go to see Xu Xun's birth door, this is all the work of the midwife. Now I can only rack my brains to guess there, "The child should be fine, and there will be no longer a struggle when the delivery period is approaching, and the head has gone down to the birth canal." Wait a little longer and you should start to have a big contraction and really give birth. ”

haode, now there is no other way but to wait. Xu Xun tossed and turned on the bed, and Imperial Physician Liu and Imperial Physician Zhou retracted their hands, saluted and exited the room - when the concubine gave birth, the imperial physician would at most give off-the-spot guidance, and he would definitely not be able to stay in the house.

As soon as they got out of the house, the faces of the two imperial doctors changed, they glanced at each other, and nodded tacitly: Although there was something bad before, but now they are both the attending doctors of Concubine Zhuang, so they have to help each other get through the difficulties. Otherwise, if something happened to Concubine Zhuang, it would be impossible for the two of them to leave each other alone, right?

"There are no contractions when the water breaks, so I have to open the induced soup." Imperial Physician Liu lowered his voice and discussed with Imperial Physician Zhou.

"Gotta get it." Imperial Physician Zhou didn't hesitate at all, he looked up at the moonlight, "In half an hour, the Qianqing Palace will get up." Send someone to report a message, and Bixia will be able to receive the news together. ”

Although the palace gate should be locked at night, the situation is special tonight, and the people of Yong'an Palace will definitely be able to enter and exit directly. The two imperial doctors pulled Jin Ying, who was left here by the emperor, to discuss, and immediately sent Xiao Huangmen to deliver the letter.

It's a bad day to be a regular dynasty, and the ministers have to afford it on the third watch, the emperor is better, and he just needs to get up and prepare on the fourth watch. At present, the emperor will be able to get up in about a while, and according to the expectations of the two imperial doctors, they should come over to take a look first, and then rush to the front to go to the court. -- But the little yellow door had only been gone for a long time, and the two of them were still working on the manuscript here, and the group of people over there hurriedly entered the courtyard. The emperor only brought two servants, and the pomp was smaller than that of female officials, if it weren't for the fact that Imperial Physician Liu and Imperial Physician Zhou had met Tianyan in person, I was afraid that they wouldn't have recognized him at all.

"How is it now?" The emperor was dressed in a dark robe, standing in the shadows of the pavilion, and he couldn't see his face clearly, but the tone alone was enough to hint at his mood.

The two imperial doctors immediately knelt on the ground, and Imperial Doctor Liu pondered and said, "There are the most variables in childbirth, and there must be someone who can call the shots in Yong'an Palace in an emergency......

This means that it is not very optimistic, your emperor himself can't call the queen mother at the best, anyway, the boss of the royal family must be in charge here, otherwise it may delay the pregnancy.

The emperor stumbled a little, but fortunately he was next to the pillar, so he did not fall. "What do you mean...... Say it! ”

The two imperial doctors had no choice but to say it clearly. "It's too late now, if the contractions are not two hours after the water breaks, there is less water in the cells, and the fetus can't come out, it may suffocate to death, or it will become a fool directly......"

"Then take the oxytocic pill - is there any medicine that can induce contractions?" The emperor is naturally very good at grasping the key points.

"This ...... Yes, yes, but not all of them may be effective. "Imperial Physician Zhou is a little broken jar, and he doesn't cherish feathers as much as Imperial Physician Liu, so he simply said it." If the contractions are delayed and it is useless to take medicine, I am afraid that I can only push the uterus to assist in delivery, but the method is barbaric and has great damage to the mother's body...... It may even be ......"

No wonder the emperor or the empress dowager is in charge, this is Concubine Xu Zhuang, not a palace woman, who is more important to the health and safety of the royal heir and herself, the two imperial doctors and even the grandmother beside her, they can't make this judgment at all, they have to be the emperor or the queen mother.

The emperor fell silent for a moment, and did not speak for a long time. The two imperial doctors knelt beside him, and they didn't dare to breathe, even if the cold stone steps made them seem to be kneeling on a knife made of ice, but both of them just endured the pain in silence.

"Child......" After a long time, the emperor finally opened his mouth, and his voice was extremely low. Can you tell if the child is male or female? ”

There was only a frightened silence that answered him: unless it was a god, who could see through the sex of a child through the belly?

The Emperor cursed in a low voice, paced back and forth a few steps, and struck the pillar again, with such force that a cloud of dust fell, and all the ropes fell on the heads of the three people.

"If you really can't have it both ways...... Keep the kids! In the end, he still made a decision, "Don't delay for too long, if the child is born stupid...... It's up to you to decide! ”

If it is delayed for too long, it will miss the life of Concubine Xu Zhuang, and then the child will be born stupid, isn't this equivalent to stealing chickens and rice? Without the favorite concubine, the child's health is gone, and the result of these two empty ends will definitely make the emperor very unhappy......

And then who will be unlucky, then do you need to ask?

The two imperial doctors glanced at each other, and they both saw the deep helplessness in each other's eyes, but they couldn't say anything on their faces, so they could only respectfully agree.

"It's already been made for people to boil oxytocic drugs." Imperial Physician Liu added, "Concubine Zhuang has always been in good health, and she will definitely be able to be auspicious." ”

The Emperor ignored Imperial Physician Liu's words, he turned around, perhaps glancing at the brightly lit delivery room, then turned around and hurried out of the Yong'an Palace in the twilight of the sky.

Not far behind him, Liu Zhien also bent his □, and slipped along the root of the wall very unobtrusively to the east chamber where Xu Xun's delivery room was located.

Although it is said that he can't enter the current East Chamber, but the imperial doctor can enter, and he Liu Zhien is also the number one person in Yong'an Palace after all, what can't he enter? Xu Xun hadn't even started to give birth at all, and now he was lying there with his eyes closed under a quilt.

Seeing Liu Zhien come in, everyone knew that something must be wrong, so naturally Xu Xun was alarmed, she lifted her eyelids and glanced at Liu Zhien in a little surprise.

"What's wrong?"

His voice was faint, but his mind was clear.

Liu Zhien glanced at Xu Xun very complicatedly, and knelt down beside her.

"Hui Niangniang...... he lowered his voice, almost whispered the whole thing in Xu Xun's ear, and then stepped back a little. This kind of thing is difficult to say in a hurry...... If the mother has anything to say, she will stay—"

He Liu Zhien has great ability, and he can't change the emperor's decision, but Xu Xun is also Concubine Zhuang and the child's mother, if she refuses to protect the small or the big, the emperor will not be able to say anything. Liu Zhien's words, it depends on how Xu Xun understands, if Xu Xun is willing, he can also leave a last word - many times, the mother is simply dead on the delivery bed, and she doesn't even have time to leave a word - if she is reluctant, then there is also a chance to operate.

Xu Xun was stunned, she didn't react for a long time, and after a while, a smile suddenly bloomed on her face.

Yoo Ji-eun just glanced at it, and couldn't help but turn his head away--this kind of smile is too much, too ...... Too......

"It should." Concubine Zhuang's tone was so categorical. "Keeping the small or not the big is an internal matter! I...... I don't have anything to say either. If so, it will be my life. ”

She said it righteously and awe-inspiringly, as if she was really willing, but only a smile on her lips revealed her true feelings.

Liu Zhien knew that he should go, but he just couldn't take this step, his throat was like a large piece of cotton cloth soaked in water, he couldn't swallow it, he couldn't spit it out, and he was on the ground for a while before he whispered, "Then, the slave has retired." Please take care of ......"

"Go ahead." Xu Xun lifted her eyelids and stared at him for a while, she also wanted to speak and stopped, her calmness seemed to briefly appear a crack, but when she spoke, her emotions were filled again. "Thanks to your faithful protection of the Lord, if I can't get out of this bed, the little master will be entrusted to you."

"Slaves and maids should be smeared with their own livers and brains." Liu Zhien kowtowed to Xu Xun twice, and when he saw someone coming in with medicine, he didn't dare to delay any longer, but exited the room, standing in the corner of the porch staring at the shadow on the window lattice.

have never been drug-free, and they won't avoid taking medicine at this time. Yoo Ji-eun quickly watched her shadow look up and swallowed a bowl of medicine down her throat. Then, not long after, there was one snort after another from the room.

The Imperial Doctor, who had just entered the house for a short time, quickly exited the house this time. Everyone's hearts were tense: the irritability and anxiety just now was just the beginning. Now this is the real beginning, whether can survive this catastrophe, but no one dares to make a package ticket.

The midwife's price was high and the doctor returned, and everyone in the courtyard could hear it clearly. "The palace entrance is open to eight fingers—"

"Ten fingers, finally ten fingers!"

"Contractions are frequent, sissy, hard! Holding this piece of wood in his mouth, follow the command of the slave and maid! ”

"Oops!" Suddenly there was an exclamation, Liu Zhien was so frightened that he almost couldn't stand still, and Mama Zhao and Mama Li, who didn't enter the delivery room, were all pale beside him. The three of them looked at each other, they didn't know what to say, and all they were holding in their hands were two handfuls of cold sweat, "Niangniang fainted!" ”

"How so!" The emperor's voice came from behind him, and Liu Zhien realized that he had entered the courtyard at some point, and he didn't even have time to take off the big dress on his body - he should have gone down to the court and rushed directly from the Fengtian Palace.

"Back to Bixia." The two doctors began to wipe their sweat again. "It's not uncommon to faint in pain, and the midwives are all experienced ......"

Sure enough, the gossip in the room now began to speak again, "Niangniang! Mother, bear with me, don't scream, force, follow my rhythm, exhale, exhale, inhale - push! ”

"See the top of your head! Pinch people! Pinch people! Mother, you can't faint, at this time, the child can't get out! ”

"The is not wide enough! Take the scissors-take-"

All the shouts were ended into silence by a sudden and rapid baby cry, followed by a long series of wails from Xu Xun. The two imperial physicians, including the emperor, all rushed to the window, and the imperial physicians asked loudly, "Mother and son are safe?" ”

There was indescribable relaxation in his tone: Finally, the child was born. No one died, or they would have suffered.

The emperor asked in a low and urgent voice, "Is it a man or a woman - how is Concubine Zhuang?" ”

There was silence in the room for a while, and only then did Mama Qian sound a very calm return.

"Back to the emperor, the mother and sister are mother and daughter."

Even if you can't see the emperor's expression, just from the change in his shoulder line, the emperor's loss is also a matter of clarity. He took a few steps back and was silent for a moment before he whispered, "Good! This good news should also be reported to Qingning Palace...... You...... Plan and arrange for yourselves. I'm here—I'm here—"

As he spoke, he retreated down the steps again, and fled as if he had left Yong'an Palace in a hurry.

Mama Zhao and Mama Li glanced at each other, both of them saw each other's complicated feelings, but the two of them couldn't say much, and went past Liu Zhien, who was staring at the window lattice, and went into the delivery room to visit Xu Xun with their front and back feet.

All mothers are naturally not very decent, even Concubine Xu Zhuang is no exception, her face is pale, there are even traces of bite on her lips, there are sweat stains on her forehead that have not been wiped off, and her body is full of a unique smell of blood that is unique to mothers.

But all this couldn't stop the happy smile on her lips, Xu Xun lowered his head, looked at the little swaddling child in Mama Qian's arms gently, smelled someone coming in, and looked up and smiled, "Mother Zhao, Mother Li, you see, how much my sister looks like me-hey, looking at her, I feel that I am really a mother." ”

Between the words, the joy is infinite, and it seems that there is really no sense of loss.