wear it lord god

Cui Zhaorong knelt before the Emperor and Empress Dowager, tears streaming down her face, feeling wronged: "Your Majesty and Empress Dowager have appreciated me, and I have always been diligent and conscientious in following the rules set forth in the Chuxiu Palace. All the pregnant concubines are treated equally. Their food, medicine, charcoal, and winter clothing are not taken from their monthly allowances. Sometimes, when it is not enough, I have to supplement it with my own money. How could this be considered embezzlement? How could this be considered poisoning?"

Empress Dowager Liu Chenghe naturally knew why Cui Zhaorong was put in charge of Chuxiu Palace; it was because she had a father who was in charge of the Ministry of Revenue and was very greedy.

Cui Zhaorong was notoriously arrogant, but he wouldn't admit it publicly. Therefore, for the safety of the imperial heir, this opportunity had to be seized; if money wasn't enough, they'd have to subsidize it. It was better than facing retribution later, with their property confiscated and their entire clan exterminated.

Xi Ning knew that she couldn't continue to remain silent; she needed to voice her support, since Cui Zhaorong was taking the blame for her.

She knelt down as well, saying with deep sorrow, "Sister Cui managed Chuxiu Palace impeccably, that's obvious to everyone. Medicine, food, clothing, incense—everything was inspected and checked by the imperial physicians before being distributed. Everything was packed in the same box, and the maids from each household went to collect their supplies together, receiving whichever box they received. And yet, she still accused me of poisoning and embezzling... Did she go hysterical after her miscarriage?"

We must thank Cui Zhaorong for taking the blame for us and acknowledge her contributions so that she can continue to shine in this position and even contribute financially.

"What hysteria?!" Cui Zhaorong was furious, exhausted, and raising the emperor's child while seeing so many pregnant concubines every day was like a knife to her heart.

She even used her own money to make up for it, and this is the result of her efforts to raise such an ungrateful wretch. She almost roared, "I see she's afraid of His Majesty's wrath and wants to drag someone down with her."

After shouting, her mind suddenly cleared, and she kowtowed to Liu Cheng: "Your Majesty, I request to examine the medical records and inquire whether there is anything amiss in your daily life. If there are any problems, please request the Court of Justice to assist in the investigation!"

Liu Cheng nodded: "Approved! Imperial Physician, immediately retrieve this person's medical record and check if there are any abnormalities in his daily life."

Cai Nu was stunned; this was not what she had expected.

The Empress does not manage all matters, big and small, in the palace. Even though you often see Cui Zhaorong and Lü Jieyu in Chuxiu Palace, the one in power should not be the Empress.

Everyone says that imperial offspring were rare in the past, with few surviving, so it must be the Empress's fault. Even if the Empress didn't poison them, as long as the blame is placed on her, it's sure to be true. It will also make the Emperor look at them a few more times and feel a little sorry for them.

The investigation results came out shortly afterward.

The medical records documented the pulse of this concubine every three days, while the Chuxiu Palace kept records of everything about her daily life, including what she received and consumed on which day, and even what and how much she ate.

The two palace maids who were in charge of serving her knelt down and replied that the lady seemed rather anxious on weekdays, often looking worried and eating very little.

The servants ate what the masters couldn't finish. They noticed that the palace maids had all gained weight, becoming plump and round.

Xi Ning seemed to understand something, stood up, walked to Liu Cheng's side and whispered, "Your Majesty, it would be best to have the Court of Justice and the Imperial Hospital check the fetus for any problems."

Liu Cheng frowned and went to the Xuan Tingwei Mansion.

Upon hearing the name of the Court of Justice, the concubine immediately begged for forgiveness: "It was my fault, I was truly bewitched. I was so heartbroken at losing my child that I had nowhere to vent my grief and wronged Her Majesty the Empress and Consort Zhaorong. I was wrong, and I am willing to accept punishment. I only beg Your Majesty to forgive me!"

It's too late to realize you're wrong now.

Looking at the records of this concubine's birthplace, age, and family background, she might be considered from a prominent family in the local area, but in the palace, that was nothing compared to what she was made of; she was just a poor, local girl.

We need time to wait, and we also need to have our New Year's Eve dinner; we don't have time to waste any more time.

Liu Cheng stood up: "This woman is under house arrest. Further action will be taken after verification."

He didn't even bother to remember her surname, and stormed off. Everyone who was to attend the palace banquet immediately followed, ignoring the kneeling, trembling maid.

Before everyone could leave, Cai Nu collapsed and fainted!
Although the palace banquet on New Year's Eve was half an hour late, the delay was not too long, and there was still time.

Xining sat beside the emperor, with the empress dowager on the other side. From her elevated position, she could clearly see the singing and dancing in the middle of the dance floor and the actions of the concubines sitting on both sides.

The pregnant concubines did not participate this time, and the three who had just given birth to princes were still in their postpartum period, so there were far fewer concubines here than in the Chuxiu Palace.

The most common toast was, of course, about national peace and prosperity, and the emperor's ever-growing number of offspring. Judging by the current situation, this will certainly continue in the future.

A short while later, people from the Court of Justice delivered bamboo slips, saying that the matter had been investigated and clarified.

Whether things are good or bad, they must be delivered now. If it's delayed until tomorrow, it will be New Year's Day, and bloodshed is not advisable. Liu Cheng opened the bamboo slip, looked at the ink on it that was not yet fully dry, and his expression suddenly changed, becoming extremely gloomy.

"How dare you!" He stood up abruptly and threw the bamboo slips hard onto the ground.

The dancers on the dance floor were so frightened that they stopped and knelt down along with everyone else.

"How dare you be so audacious as to deceive me!" Liu Cheng's furious voice echoed in the hall.

After kneeling down, Xi Ning glanced at Qiu Shi beside her.

Qiu Shi mustered his courage, crawled over on his knees, picked up the bamboo slips, and secretly took them back.

Xi Ning looked at the bamboo slip, which read: "Examination of the fetus: although small and thin, it weighs the same as a six-month-old fetus, but it is complete from head to toe, indicating it is more than eight months along and will soon be born..."

???

This is a huge bombshell!

The young women entered the palace in early summer last year. They were among the first to become pregnant, and the earliest was only six months along. How could they be about to give birth?

In other words, the young woman was already almost a month pregnant when she entered the palace.

No wonder the emperor looked so angry and was so furious; he had become the one who took the fall.

The note on the back said that the fetus appeared to have been dead for at least five days, and it even smelled bad.

To conceal her pregnancy, the young woman deliberately reduced her food intake, creating the illusion that the fetus was born with congenital deficiencies. After all, being born a month or two prematurely is quite normal.

But she was so hungry, and coupled with constant anxiety, she stopped feeling any fetal movement. Sensing something was wrong, she made various excuses to avoid her two recent pulse checks.

He thought he could run away and find a reason to cling to the Empress during the Empress's sacrificial ceremony, but he couldn't even run away. They were all more than ten meters away from each other, and he couldn't get close to her at all.

If this continues, it can't be hidden any longer. If the stillborn baby isn't removed soon, her own life will be in danger.

So, at a certain moment, he fell down, and the imperial physician and the female physician confirmed that the fetus was dead. They then managed to remove the stillborn fetus.

Xi Ning shook her head inwardly, tsk tsk, this is going to be tough on the boss, that's ruthless!

Liu Cheng was furious and immediately sentenced the woman to death by beating, and her body to be chopped up and fed to the dogs.

But that still couldn't quell his anger. He pointed at Consort Xiao and loudly and sternly berated her, scolding her for her incompetence, allowing a pregnant woman to sneak in.

Consort Xiao was initially bewildered, then nearly scared out of her wits, kneeling there and repeatedly saying, "Your Majesty, please calm down, I was wrong, I was confused, Your Majesty, please calm down..."

Ultimately, the unfortunate Consort Xiao was punished by being immediately confined to her quarters for six months, having her salary reduced for a year, and having the selection of concubines handed over to the Empress Dowager.

The emperor wanted the empress to preside, but she just knelt there with her head down. If he spoke, she would definitely refuse, saying that she was unwell and needed to take care of her young children.

Well, for now, the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion is just sitting on the northern frontier, exposed to the elements. This winter, the Tartars have invaded twice, but both times they were repelled. Without the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, this New Year would certainly not be peaceful!

After everything was taken care of, it was almost midnight, and there was less than an hour left before the ancestral worship ceremony.

Liu Chengyu, still fuming, flung his sleeves and shouted, "Everyone get up and eat! Keep the music playing, keep dancing!"

(Wishing everyone a prosperous and auspicious Year of the Horse in 2026! May all your wishes come true and may everything go smoothly. To all my readers who have supported and followed me, may you have abundant wealth and everything you desire next year!) (End of Chapter)