The harem is too complicated; the empress, a lazy bum, wins by doing nothing.

Chapter 146 Wasted Time
After taking the pulse, Physician Zhang's expression became somewhat grave.

Consort De withdrew her hand, her two hands clasped tightly together in nervousness: "Imperial Physician Zhang..."

"Your Majesty, Your Highness, Consort De has always been cold-natured and has been taking warming and nourishing medicines to regulate her body. Now that Your Highness is pregnant, the first three months are the most unstable time, so Your Highness must be careful in everything."

"Be careful?" Consort De's eyes widened in surprise. "But I've been very careful. I've had bleeding twice in just a few days. Does that mean I can't bathe anymore?"

"It's not that you can't take a bath, but you should be careful that the water temperature isn't too hot, and you shouldn't bathe for too long. Your Majesty, I'll go and prescribe some medicine to help with the pregnancy. Please remember to take it on time," Physician Zhang instructed.

"Thank you for your trouble, Imperial Physician Zhang." Consort De said, her eyes lowered with a heavy heart, tears streaming down her face. The bath water should not be too hot, nor should she bathe for too long. In the cold winter, if the bath water is not hot, it will cool down as soon as she starts bathing. Even if it does not affect the imperial fetus, she is afraid that she will catch a cold. "Your Majesty, do you think I am not fortunate enough to have this? I have really been very careful. How could this happen?"

"You heard what the imperial physician just said. You must be more careful next time you bathe," Emperor Yuanwu comforted him.

Consort De nodded silently, and Pei'er brought over the medicine to prevent miscarriage.

"Your Majesty, I heard that the Empress encountered danger outside the palace today. Is it inappropriate for me to summon you from Kunning Palace at this time?"

"The Empress is still asleep. Tomorrow morning, after the morning court session, I will go to Kunning Palace to see the Empress." Emperor Yuanwu raised his eyes and glanced at the medicine bowl in Zhen'er's hand: "Consort De, drink your medicine and get some rest."

Consort De drank the medicine with relish, after all, she longed for the birth of this child more than anyone else. In the harem, a mother's status always depended on her son, and she did not want to end up like the late emperor's concubine, wasting her later years in a temporary palace.

"Your Majesty, could you stay and keep me company tonight? I was truly terrified today."

Emperor Yuanwu did not refute it. After all, he was really tired from the trip to Huguo Temple today and wanted to rest. So he did not choose any of the concubines. In any case, he would be resting alone in Yangxin Hall when he got back. Consort De was pregnant and could not serve him. So he simply stayed.

After all, the Empress was ill, and Emperor Yuanwu was invited from Kunning Palace by Consort De. Now that she was pregnant and unable to serve the Emperor, she left him in her palace. This matter quickly spread throughout the harem and even reached the ears of the Empress Dowager.

"Outrageous, utterly outrageous! This Consort De is taking advantage of her pregnancy to act arrogantly and domineeringly. Isn't this breaking the rules of the palace?" The Empress Dowager's face turned ashen.

Xi Changzai was sitting beside the Empress Dowager, talking to her. Seeing the Empress Dowager suddenly lose her temper, she was at a loss.

Although she was the Empress Dowager's cousin, she had only met the Empress Dowager a few times since she was a child. She had only heard that there was an outstanding concubine in her family who was favored by the late Emperor. Apart from that, what she heard most often was that if you said the wrong thing in the harem, you could lose your head if you were not careful.

Xi Changzai hesitated for a moment, thinking that the Empress had helped her a lot before. If it weren't for the Empress, she probably wouldn't have had the chance to see the Emperor since the selection of concubines, let alone serve him in bed.

“Aunt, please don’t get upset over such a trivial matter. Perhaps Consort De is truly unwell,” Consort Xi said leisurely. “There have been rumors in the palace that Consort De’s pregnancy has been unstable since she became pregnant, and it seems that…”

"What are you afraid of?" The Empress Dowager's face instantly darkened even more: "Are you afraid she won't be able to give birth?"

Xi Changzai was so frightened that she knelt down on the ground: "Aunt."

The Empress Dowager's eyes darkened: "Whether she can give birth or not, it's a blessing for her. What are you doing kneeling on the ground?"

"Aunt, I spoke without thinking." "Get up." The Empress Dowager sighed inwardly.

She had only just become pregnant, yet Consort De was already so arrogant and broke the rules.

If a prince is born in the future, wouldn't the harem never have a day of peace?

"Although Consort Xian made some mistakes in handling the hostage affairs, firstly, she did not have the authority to assist in managing the six palaces, and secondly, she had no grudge against the hostage, so she probably did not mean it. After reflecting on her mistakes in seclusion for so many days, she should have learned her lesson. Now that the Empress is not well, let her go to Kunning Palace to pay her respects to the Empress tomorrow morning."

"The Empress Dowager wants me to pay my respects to the Empress first thing tomorrow morning?" Consort Xian looked at Xia Mei in disbelief.

"Yes, Your Highness, that's what Zhang Mama just said."

"Why does the Empress Dowager want me to pay my respects to the Empress? I'm still under house arrest, what kind of respects am I supposed to offer?" Consort Xian frowned deeply. "I'm afraid the Empress Dowager doesn't know about the hostage situation yet. Is she blaming me for not getting up early to pay my respects to the Empress?"

"Your Majesty, are you confused with joy? Who is the Empress Dowager? Even though she lives deep in Cining Palace, what in the entire harem can escape her discerning eyes?"

Consort Xian listened to Xia Mei's words and felt they made sense, nodding in agreement: "But..."

"Your Majesty may not know, but today the Empress accompanied the Emperor to Huguo Temple to burn incense and pray for blessings. I heard that the Emperor had to return halfway due to other matters. Then, on her way back to the palace, the Empress encountered bandits. Although she was not seriously injured, she was frightened. As soon as she returned to the palace, she summoned the imperial physician. The Emperor had just finished his business and went to Kunning Palace to see the Empress when he was invited by Consort De. So, she stayed at Yanxi Palace tonight," Xia Mei said.

"Oh~" Consort Xian drawled, a meaningful smile playing on her lips, "There's actually such a thing."

"That's right. Now that Consort De is pregnant with the imperial heir, she is very precious. I heard that she bled while taking a bath last night."

Consort Xian scoffed, "Consort De, is this a sign of being noble or unlucky? No matter how out of favor the Empress is, she is still the Empress. Even if she is pregnant with the Emperor's child, it is uncertain whether she can give birth. Even if she does give birth, she is still a concubine. Consort De is an old servant in the palace, yet she is still so clueless."

"Regardless of Consort De's situation, now that the Empress Dowager has instructed her to pay her respects to the Empress early tomorrow morning, her confinement should be lifted."

“Then tomorrow I will say goodnight to Her Majesty the Empress, and then go to Yanxi Palace to properly thank Consort De…” Consort Xian paused, gritting her teeth, “…and the peculiar dragon fetus in her belly.”

The next morning.

When Shen Qingwan woke up, Emperor Yuanwu had just finished his morning court session.

After a good night's sleep, she felt much more relaxed.

"Yesterday was all my fault. I should have waited for the Empress to return to the palace together, so that she wouldn't have been frightened."

"Your Majesty is overthinking it, I'm fine." Shen Qingwan said calmly. She felt her mind was in a mess and her senses were a little unclear. Faced with Emperor Yuanwu's perfunctory concern, she only gave a faint reply.

(End of this chapter)