PFC Chapter 187 Children
Chapter 187 Children
In the ninth year of Jingzheng, the lotus blossoms bloomed in May and the wind blew from the south.
Qin Zhi and all the concubines in the harem, except Concubine Zhen Lu Xinyin who was still imprisoned in Chongde Hall, gathered in the side room of the delivery room in Jiaofang Hall.
Because Queen Shen Ningyue's second pregnancy has reached the point where the time has come for her to give birth.
Qin Zhi and the concubines had been waiting in the Pepper Room for more than three or four hours. He did not show any impatience, and the others did not dare to show any annoyance.
He held the cup and sipped the tea with his thin lips, looking at the door and wall of the delivery room from time to time.
The concubines gathered in twos and threes and talked in low voices, with inevitable blessings and prayers such as "praying for the queen to safely give birth to a legitimate son", pretending to be very serious.
Qin Zhi took a quick look and felt that none of them was sincere.
Concubine Zhi Fu Mengli was wearing a long silk dress that was embroidered with magnolia in a tea-white color. Her hair was tied up in a simple and refreshing bun with an ebony hairpin. She lowered her head and drank tea calmly.
The other concubines' attire looked similar from a distance.
The difference is that Fu Mengli liked this style, while the others had to live simply during the period of mourning for the empress dowager.
Apart from occasionally looking up at His Majesty, Fu Mengli simply ignored the concubines who were talking softly in the hall, appearing cold and distant in the crowd.
Imperial Concubine Yi, Meng Wuyue, has been pregnant for five months, and her beloved wife, Jiang Lanzhi, is four months pregnant. Both were diagnosed during the period of the Empress Dowager's funeral.
Although Fu Mengli possessed her daughter He Heshui, a powerful weapon in the palace fight, she had no intention of targeting the two of them at this time. She just felt it was boring.
If it weren't for the Queen's repeated...
That time, in order to make Shen Ningyue drink the water from Daughter River, Fu Mengli chatted with Shen Ningyue and her servants in the Pepper Room for a long time. Feeling exhausted, she realized that she was indeed her father's good daughter.
It was like an instinct for her to speak sweet words, and she rejected herself for being so much like her father Fu Buzhi.
She hoped that her child would become a free and easy king and live a long life.
Fu Mengli did not have such great ambitions. She did not have the hope that the fifth prince Qin Mingzhang would compete with his brothers for something. This would remind her of her father, who seemed to have been struggling all his life.
He was very capable in official circles, caring about his colleagues and loving his subordinates, but he could not say a word of concern to her and her mother.
Fu Mengli hopes that her fifth prince will stay away from the vortex of human fighting when he grows up and live his own life, which is better than anything else.
"Your Majesty, the Queen has given birth. The Queen has safely given birth to the third princess." The palace servant came out to announce the good news with some trepidation.
She was a little worried that His Majesty would show obvious disappointment or even anger when the concubines, palace maids and eunuchs did not give face to the Empress.
When the Empress was pregnant with the Third Princess, everyone in the Pepper Palace knew about it, and His Majesty was looking forward to the Empress giving birth to Dayong's eldest son.
Although His Majesty dotes on the Empress Dowager on weekdays, nothing can be good forever, and no flower can be red forever. Who knows if His Majesty will become tired of the Empress Dowager for failing to give birth to a legitimate son?
"I understand." Qin Zhi's tone was somewhat flat, and no emotion could be heard.
Qin Zhi quickly suppressed his disappointment and did not show it. He curled the corners of his mouth, his eyes full of softness and warmth.
Qin Zhi strode into the delivery room with big strides, took a look at Queen Shen Ningyue who had safely given birth to a daughter, and the third newly born princess, gave them routine instructions and expressed a few words of concern before heading to the Taimiao to offer sacrifices to the ancestors, heaven and earth.
Queen Shen Ningyue fell asleep due to exhaustion and did not see Qin Zhi's perfunctory behavior, but this scene was quietly remembered by Shen Ningyue's mother Xiao Yanran, who came to the palace to accompany her during childbirth.
Compared with His Majesty's earnest and caring attitude before her daughter gave birth, Xiao Yanran couldn't help feeling a little anxious at this moment.
Xiao didn't understand why her daughter, who had the magical power to choose whether to have a son or a daughter, would choose to give birth to another princess?
His Majesty is in the prime of his life, and the Queen chose to give birth to the princess first and then the prince, the sister first and then the brother. Xiao Yanran understood and agreed with Shen Ningyue's choice to give birth to Princess Hengshan as her first child.
But now the princes’ seniority has reached the eighth prince.
Almost every concubine in the palace was pregnant with a prince.
As His Majesty had clearly expressed his expectation for a legitimate son, the concubines were unable to conceive during the long 27-month mourning period for the Queen Mother.
Her daughter actually gave birth to another princess. Looking at the delicate and lovely princess in the cradle, Xiao Yanran was worried.
Xiao Yanran couldn't help but wonder if her daughter's magical ability had lost its effect?
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On the dragon chariot returning to Zhaozheng Hall from the Taimiao, Qin Zhi pressed his forehead, feeling a little irritated.
He is almost thirty years old, but there is still no trace of the crown prince.
If Shen Ningyue gave birth to a prince, Qin Zhi planned to make him the crown prince directly.
What Qin Zhi said to Queen Shen Ningyue that day was not a joke. He could understand that Shen Ningyue didn't want to respond to him, but he didn't expect that her words would come true and she really gave birth to a princess.
It’s not that Qin Zhi doesn’t like his daughter, but he wants to establish a crown prince.
The harem has been a bit boring lately, and his mother has also gone there, so he wants to educate his sons to play.
Qin Zhi suddenly smiled faintly, and said:
"Zhang Deli, pass on my decree to confer upon the Empress the title of Princess Zhaode on the third daughter of the Empress, and upon the title of Princess Wuyang on the eldest daughter of Imperial Concubine Yi, Qin Ronglu."
The second princess Qin Mingyue was given the title Hengshan, which is not only the name of one of the Five Sacred Mountains, but also the name of a county. The title Wuyang, which Qin Zhi gave to the eldest princess Qin Ronglu, is also the name of a county. The third princess' title, Princess Zhaode, has the word Zhaode, which not only means to show virtue, but is also the name of a county.
"I will obey your majesty's order."
Originally, Qin Zhi planned to bestow the title of "Princess Wuyang" on the eldest princess Qin Ronglu after the empress dowager's mourning period was over.
But today, the Queen gave birth to the third Princess Zhaode, and there is nothing wrong with showing favor to the third princess's elder sister Qin Ronglu and granting the eldest princess the official title of princess.
It's ahead of schedule.
I just don’t know whether Queen Shen Ningyue and Noble Concubine Yi Meng Wuyue are happy or not.
However, Qin Zhi didn't intend to care whether they were happy or not. He only knew that he was unhappy.
Qin Zhi began to think about his son in his mind, pondering the prince's education and whether he should participate in politics.
Qin Zhi was educated by his grandfather since he was a child, and was exposed to the handling of state affairs.
His sons were not in the same situation. They just needed to study hard when they were underage. After all, Qin Zhi was the crown prince and the legitimate heir.
Back then, Emperor Qin He of Dayong would always bring the young Qin Zhi with him even when he went to court. Emperor Qin He sat on the dragon throne with a small child beside him.
After Qin Zhi grew into a little boy, Emperor Taizu Qin He placed a smaller chair for Qin Zhi next to the dragon throne and let Qin Zhi sit on it by himself.
At that time, on both sides of the dragon throne of Emperor Taizu Qin He, on one side sat the late Emperor Qin Yi, who was the crown prince, and on the other side sat Qin Zhi, who was the grandson of the crown prince. The three generations of the family lived in great harmony.
The envy of others refers specifically to Qin Mu, the King of Wu who was not yet the King of Wu.
Qin Zhi recalled the scene when the whole family went into battle together. No, he couldn't let any of his princes become a pitiful man like his uncle, the King of Wu.
The eldest prince, Qin Mingyu, was born in January of the fifth year of Jingzheng, and is five years old this year.
Qin Zhi then remembered that he had not yet arranged enlightenment for the eldest prince. However, there was no rush, as he could issue an order at any time to select a teacher and a study partner for the sixth prince.
Qin Zhi planned to wait until the New Year and then order a palace to be cleaned up for the princes to study together.
Giving the princes the opportunity to spend more time together, cultivating their political and cultural qualities, while nurturing brotherly affection, making them both civil and military, and being friendly and respectful to each other, wouldn't that be a joy.
Next year, the eldest prince Qin Mingyu will be six years old, the third prince Qin Mingjin will be five years old, and the fourth prince Qin Mingyin will be five years old. The three of them will be able to go to school together.
As for the princesses, the age difference between them is too big, the older one is older and the younger one is younger, so it is difficult to arrange them together to cultivate sisterhood.
The eldest princess Qin Ronglu is ten years old, so let Concubine Yi teach her herself.
The three-year-old second princess Qin Mingyue and the newly born third princess are from the same mother and are of similar age. It will not be too late to consider it when they are as old as the eldest prince.
"Mother, where is His Majesty?" Shen Ningyue's first reaction after waking up was to look for Qin Zhi.
As soon as Shen Ningyue said this, she realized that His Majesty must have gone to the Taimiao to offer sacrifices to the heavens, the earth, and the ancestors.
When she gave birth to Princess Hengshan, His Majesty went to the Taimiao first. After she woke up and fell drowsy again, His Majesty returned to the Pepper Palace to see her and Mingyue.
She really gave birth to another little princess. I wonder if His Majesty will be disappointed and dissatisfied?
Probably not.
"Seventeenth Lady, His Majesty has gone to the Imperial Ancestral Temple." Xiao Yanran consoled her softly.
"Mom, I know, but I just woke up and my mind hasn't figured it out yet. Mom, I want to see my little princess." Shen Ningyue lay down with a smile on her face and said coquettishly to her mother Zhao Yanran.
"Okay, okay, mother will go and bring the little princess back to show Seventeenth Lady. She is so pretty, and looks exactly like Seventeenth Lady when she was a child."
Xiao Yanran saw that her daughter had just woken up. Considering that her body had just given birth, she did not directly tell her about the slightly cold attitude of His Majesty compared to before that she had witnessed with her own eyes.
Xiao Yanran skillfully picked up the third princess who was sleeping soundly in the cradle after drinking her fill of milk, and walked slowly to the side of Shen Ningyue's bed and squatted down.
"Seventeenth Lady, come and look at our little princess. She is so pretty."
Shen Ningyue first looked at her mother shyly, then slowly raised her hand and gently stroked the soft hair on the little princess's head, touching her eyebrows and eyes, her whole body emitting the soft light and satisfaction of motherhood.
This is her second child with Your Majesty, and she will have many more children with Your Majesty.
"Xiao Ji, take all the palace servants and eunuchs serving in the room away first. When I call you, let them come in to serve." Xiao Yanran ordered suddenly.
Xiao Ji glanced at the lying Shen Ningyue and saw that she nodded slightly at him. He did not rashly ask the lady to show his presence, but quickly led all the palace servants out of the bedroom, leaving the two of them with a private space for conversation.
"Mother asked Xiaoji to take all the palace servants away. Is there anything you want to say to your daughter?"
Shen Ningyue opened her beautiful phoenix eyes and asked in confusion.
"Seventeenth Mother, why did you give birth to another daughter?" Xiao Yanran's tone was a little anxious, and sounded a bit like an accusation.
But Xiao Yanran did not mean to blame her daughter. Instead, she wanted to know whether her daughter's magical ability disappeared after entering the palace, or whether her daughter was confused and chose to give birth to a princess.
"Mother!"
Tears suddenly welled up in Shen Ningyue's eyes, and the tears swirled in her eye sockets. The feeling of grievance drowned her like a surging tide in an instant.
"Mother, how could you say that? Sob…."
Shen Ningyue finally couldn't hold back her sobs.
The third princess also woke up and started crying along with Shen Ningyue. The crying of the mother and daughter, one big and one small, rose one after another.
"Seventeenth Mother, don't cry, don't cry. Mother said the wrong thing. Mother didn't mean it like that. Be good, don't cry, don't cry, grandma's little princess, don't cry, don't cry!"
While Xiao Yanran was coaxing her daughter, she was also frantically rocking the swaddle in her arms to coax her granddaughter.
Seeing that the two had gradually stopped crying, Xiao Yanran revealed her original discovery, and Shen Ningyue only then realized her own strange abilities.
"Seventeenth Mother, it is because I understand your abilities that I ask this question. Can you tell me why you chose to give birth to the princess again?" Xiao Yanran gently stroked Shen Ningyue's forehead.
"I had hoped that Your Majesty would give birth to a legitimate son this time, but one day, I suddenly felt inexplicably that the baby in my belly should be a daughter.
During that time, I was always wavering and conflicted.
Later one day, His Majesty told me that if I gave birth to a prince, he would immediately issue an edict to appoint him as the crown prince. If it was a princess, he would name her Princess Zhaode.
At that time, I did not dare to casually accept Your Majesty's promise to appoint a crown prince, so I said that I thanked Your Majesty for the title bestowed on me on behalf of the third Princess Zhaode.
Mother, do you think it is because I told His Majesty that it came true? "After all, when she was a child, she would always say words of blessing when she gave birth to a child.
"Then Seventeenth Madam, next time you have to be firm again and again and don't say anything like giving birth to a little princess. You failed to give birth to a legitimate son this time. I saw with my own eyes that His Majesty is extremely disappointed in you." Xiao Yanran was afraid that Shen Ningyue would not take it seriously, so she threatened.