Your Majesty, please do not disturb, the empress only wants to engage in business

Meanwhile, as Yao Jinse prepared for the arrival of the emperor, who might not appear for some time, on the other side of the palace, the real emperor was awake, his lamps burning brightly.

Xie Yun'an held a book in his hand, but after looking at it for a long time, he hadn't turned the page.

Hu Shijie served from the side, naturally keeping a close watch and not daring to make a sound. Having served Xie Yun'an for many years, he naturally knew his master's temperament.

Although Xie Yun'an was reading a book, his mind was not on it at all.

As the saying goes, the emperor's heart is hard to fathom, but Hu Shijie knew that at this moment, the emperor's thoughts, like the eyes hidden everywhere in the palace, were all locked on Chengqian Palace.

Regarding the relationship between their master and the imperial concubine, sometimes even the emperor and the imperial concubine themselves might not be able to explain it clearly. On the contrary, the eunuchs Hu Shijie and others who had served them for many years understood it better.

The Emperor's feelings for the Consort were genuine, even more so than his feelings for the Empress. After all, the Emperor and Empress were betrothed, and the Empress's family background wasn't a significant asset to Xie Yun'an. Naturally, the Consort and Xie Yun'an were more devoted to each other later on.

But there's no way around it. The relationship between the emperor and his son, or the emperor and empress, is so close yet so distant that it's impossible for them to truly and completely entrust their love to each other. An emperor who can't let go of imperial power naturally has to make a choice between power and love.

In fact, Consort Rong had been abandoned, but unexpectedly, this Consort Rong was able to put aside her pride of many years and beg the Emperor for leniency. Thinking of this, Hu Shijie sighed in his heart. The human heart is unpredictable and one cannot make hasty judgments about people. Who would have thought that the Duke's Mansion, which had been almost completely abandoned, could be saved by the Consort Rong's actions?
It is clear that one should not draw conclusions until things have completely settled down.

Not to mention, Consort Rong is now pregnant with this child... If this child can please the Emperor, then Consort Rong will naturally continue to enjoy endless wealth and honor in the future.

Now, all we can do is wait for news. With so many imperial physicians and female doctors taking care of the Consort and the child, if they can't protect the Consort and the child, the Imperial Hospital will probably be completely replaced by the Emperor. Although they won't be dragged down to be buried with the Consort, it's probably close enough.

……

The Hall of Mental Cultivation was brightly lit, and the Palace of Earthly Tranquility was naturally not peaceful at this moment either.

Shen Qingyin held her daughter in her arms, humming a lullaby, while Princess Gaoyang had already fallen asleep in her mother's arms.

As the Empress, Shen Qingyin was naturally entitled to raise her own child and keep the princess by her side. Moreover, Xie Yun'an had always been exceptionally lenient towards the concubines in raising their children.

Even princes can be raised by their birth mothers until they are six or seven years old. Princesses, who are supposed to live in the harem with the concubines, are naturally raised directly in their birth mothers' palaces. In any case, there are plenty of places to live in the six palaces of the east and west, as well as pavilions and towers, so there is no need to worry about not having enough room.

For years, the Shen family has been urging the Empress to give birth to another son for the Emperor. Chunju and the others, who are by the Empress's side, have no idea why the family is in such a hurry to urge her.

Originally, the relationship between the Empress and the Emperor was quite good, but in the past two years, they had become somewhat estranged because of the child. Ultimately, it was all because Madam Shen kept urging the Empress to come to the palace, which annoyed her.

Shen Qingyin was already in an invincible position as Empress. The Empress is the mother of the country and the mother of all the subjects of the world. In the harem, no matter who gave birth to a son, he would naturally be the Empress's child.

Shen Qingyin herself understood this, as did the palace maids around her, but for some reason, her parents, who were able to raise such a perfect empress as Shen Qingyin, did not.

—Actually, it's not that I don't understand.

Shen Qingyin looked down at her daughter's adorable face in her arms, and gently rubbed her daughter's temples with her fingertips. She naturally loved children, especially her daughter who was so cute. But unfortunately, her daughter couldn't inherit the throne and couldn't be the crown prince. The Shen family needed a crown prince.

As the Empress's maternal family, the Shen clan was not originally a powerful family. They only had the face and favor they had in front of the Emperor because of Empress Shen Qingyin.

The phrase "a family of upright officials" already explains everything quite clearly.

When Shen Qingyin first entered the palace two years ago, she went from being a princess to an empress. She had many expectations for her future and naturally listened to her parents' advice, hoping to find an opportunity to have another prince.

However, she was missing her child who had died unexpectedly, and the number of people in the harem was increasing. In addition, Xie Yun'an was busy with political affairs, so he had even fewer days to come to the harem.

The favor that was already scarce was taken up by Consort Rong, so it would be a lie to say that Shen Qingyin did not feel resentment at that time.

But Shen Qingyin has gradually come to terms with it.

Perhaps because she had been spending more time with Consort Lin lately, Shen Qingyin had gradually come to see the merits of Consort Yao. No wonder Consort Rong had enjoyed talking to Consort Yao so much before; she certainly had her strengths.

Although Yao Shi didn't usually say anything particularly philosophical, when she did occasionally utter a few words, they always struck a chord with people.

Everyone in the palace said that Consort Lin was clever and knew how to follow the Imperial Concubine to seek benefits for herself. But in Shen Qingyin's opinion, Yao Jinse didn't seem to have any scheming or cunning look on her face. Shen Qingyin could understand the helplessness she felt in following the Imperial Concubine.

Perhaps because they both had daughters, the few things Consort Lin said occasionally seemed particularly reasonable to the Empress.

Shen Qingyin is no longer willing to follow her family's arrangements and pester the emperor to have another son. After all, the emperor himself is born out of wedlock, so there is no need for a legitimate son to inherit the throne. In that case, what difference does it make who is the emperor?

Even though she tried to think positively, Shen Qingyin still couldn't fall asleep that night.

Having competed with Consort Rong openly and secretly for so long, Consort Rong was the only one in the harem who could be considered a true rival. With the Duke's mansion collapsing, Shen Qingyin, while watching the spectacle unfold, couldn't help but admire Consort Rong's poise.

Such a proud person, with such a strong and unyielding body, can actually bend down.

This is probably because of having children.

As a mother, one can always empathize with these things. Shen Qingyin no longer intends to adopt Qi Shi's child, so naturally, even if Consort Rong gives birth to a prince this time, it will not pose any threat to her.

She waited, simply waiting for an outcome.

In a way, she and Xie Yun'an truly shared a mutual understanding as husband and wife. (End of Chapter)