Chapter 053

Chapter 053

Before she could think further, Lady Uya adjusted her efforts based on her previous experience, not screaming or wasting energy, which relieved the midwife, who rarely saw such a cooperative lady.

"Yes, my lady, that's the way to push. You're so clever, you've got it right away. In my previous deliveries, I had no experience and didn't even know how to exert force!" The midwife encouraged from the side.

Lady Uya was in such agony that she wished the midwife would stop talking.

The pain made her wonder if this was similar to her first childbirth.

Then, wave after wave of pain overwhelmed her, leaving her no time to think of anything else, only wanting to get the child out quickly.

The pain made time pass unbearably slowly, and she had no idea what time it was. Suddenly, Lady Uya felt the pressure ease below, and the midwife exclaimed joyfully, "It's born! Congratulations, my lady, it's a little prince!"

Lady Uya, relieved, fainted, while the midwife quickly cleaned the newborn prince's mouth and nose, cut the umbilical cord, roughly cleaned him, and then wrapped the precious little prince to take him outside to announce the good news.

The Imperial Noble Consort had stayed up all night, refusing to leave, her eyes bloodshot from exhaustion. Since the Imperial Noble Consort didn't leave, Consort Tongjia couldn't return to rest or take it easy, wondering what had possessed the Imperial Noble Consort to stay up all night for a child born to a low-ranking concubine.

By the time Lady Uya gave birth, Consort Tongjia was stifling yawns, constantly thinking to herself, why was Lady Uya taking so long to give birth.

The other concubines were also enduring the ordeal, as the highest-ranking Imperial Noble Consort and Consort Tongjia didn't leave, they couldn't go back either, compelled to stay up all night. If not for the chairs, standing all night would have left their legs numb.

They couldn't help but feel envious of Consort Rong, who was sick and didn't have to endure this, making it too obvious if they pretended to faint.

At last, hearing the baby's cry from within, the concubines breathed a collective sigh of relief; it was finally over.

In the past, if the Imperial Noble Consort merely sat briefly before departing, they could also find excuses to leave one after another, rest, and then come back if the baby hadn't been born yet.

But now, they were on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion.

And the fact that it was a little prince made all the concubines even more irritable. Few were pleased, but some of the higher-ranking concubines contemplated adopting the child, as Lady Uya's rank was too low to raise a prince, only concubines of higher rank could raise children.

Consort Tongjia stepped forward to look; the little prince still had a thick layer of vernix on his head, white and sticky on his skin. The newborn's face was red and wrinkled, not particularly appealing.

The vernix on his head made him appear even less appealing, and Consort Tongjia almost couldn't help but comment on the child's unattractiveness.

The Imperial Noble Consort gazed at the safely delivered fourth prince with mixed emotions.

She had stayed up all night, unable to believe that Lady Uya could deliver safely. Her eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion, and now looking at the little prince in the midwife's arms, she finally asked softly,

"How is the child, is he healthy? I was worried that Lady Uya's fall into the water might have affected the child, and I wasn't very reassured. Now that the child is safely born, my heart is finally at ease."

The midwife continued to offer congratulations, "Your Highness, it's a healthy little prince, six pounds and seven ounces! The little prince is quite handsome."

Consort Tongjia gazed at the wrinkled infant in the swaddle, her expression inscrutable. Handsome indeed!

Like a skinny monkey, the midwife really knew how to lie with her eyes open. Thinking about raising this child, Consort Tongjia's feelings became even more complicated.

She looked at Liang Jiugong standing by and said, "It's good that the little prince is healthy. Liang Jiugong, you can go back to the Qianqing Palace to report the good news to His Majesty."

"Your Highnesses have worked hard, the little prince is safely born, I won't disturb you any longer, I will go back to report the good news to His Majesty." Liang Jiugong smiled and bowed, then took his leave.

"Sister Imperial Noble Consort, you haven't rested all night, you must be tired, you should go back to the Yikun Palace to rest earlier." Consort Tongjia said with a forced smile.

If it weren't for the Imperial Noble Consort's meddling, she would have woken up comfortably, just waiting for the maids to bring her the news, not having to trouble her noble self to wait for a low-ranking concubine to give birth.

It was really elevating Lady Uya.

Thinking that Consort Tongjia was dissatisfied with her, the Imperial Noble Consort pretended not to notice and continued politely, "You too, sister, you must be tired. Since Lady Uya and the child are safe, I will take my leave." Then she slowly left.

As soon as the Imperial Noble Consort left, all the concubines hurriedly left as quickly as possible. They had to rush back to change and wash up; there was no chance for a nap. They would drink a cup of strong tea to refresh themselves, and after grooming, it would be time to pay respects to the Grand Empress Dowager.

The mere thought of not being able to rest gave these concubines a headache.

——

Speaking of Su Yi, who was carried onto the sedan chair last night, her emotions were quite mixed.

Looking at Kangxi's nervous expression, there was no need to act so convincingly.

She really couldn't handle staying up late anymore; it was too damaging to her health, especially her fragile body.

"Actually, this is just an old ailment of mine. Your Majesty could have someone send me back to Yonghe Palace," Su Yi thought it would be better to return to Yonghe Palace.

'It's hard to find a place to dump the medicine in Qianqing Palace.'

'It's better to just go back directly, why go through all this hassle?'

Kangxi's temple pulsed. The medicine hadn't even been prescribed yet, and she was already thinking about how to dump it. "Qianqing Palace is closer. It was an emergency, Consort Rong, please don't refuse anymore. Until you recover, it's not advisable to move around. Just stay peacefully in Qianqing Palace."

I want to see how you'll manage to secretly dump the medicine once you're away from Yonghe Palace.

Su Yi feigned a moved and tearful expression, "How could a lowly concubine like me deserve such care from Your Majesty."

Just as she was about to take out a handkerchief to wipe her tears, she found it missing. Oh, where did the handkerchief go? Never mind, just wipe it roughly.

She roughly wiped the corners of her eyes with her hand while observing Kangxi's expression.

"Consort Rong, there's no need to be so moved," Kangxi teased her, noticing she seemed more lively. He took her hand that was wiping her eyes and held it in his.

Su Yi tried to squeeze out more tears but couldn't. She twitched her mouth, not knowing what to say, and just leaned on Kangxi's shoulder, silent.

'Moved, I'm really moved to death!!!'

'Only you know how to be considerate!'

'Ahhh, it's so annoying, I don't want to drink medicine, I don't want to get acupuncture!'

Last time with the needles, the pain was secondary, but the sight was quite shocking, like a porcupine.

Kangxi heard her inner complaints, his lips twitched into a smile, but he quickly suppressed it.

When they arrived at Qianqing Palace, Kangxi was about to carry her inside like before, but Consort Rong dodged, and he ended up empty-handed. Looking again, Consort Rong was already standing beside the sedan chair.

Kangxi: .....

Su Yi stood by the sedan chair, extending her hand with a gentle smile, "Your Majesty, please come down, let me help you."

'Hmph, as long as I'm fast, you can't catch me.'

'Qianqing Palace is so big, if you carry me and run out of strength but refuse to let go out of pride, wouldn't I become your cushion? Then no one would dare to laugh at you, they'd laugh at me.'

Su Yi felt quite spirited, nothing wrong, but her face was really pale. If she wore white again at night, it would be as eerie as that time she couldn't sleep and crouched watching Kangxi wake up.

"Sigh," Kangxi shook his head, unsure who was really the sick one. He reached out and patted her palm, didn't let her help, and just stepped down himself.

"Let's go, Consort Rong," he said, putting his arm around Consort Rong and walking inside. Yun Hua silently retracted her hand that was about to support her mistress and followed a few steps behind.

"Have the imperial physician come as well," Kangxi instructed the eunuch beside him while watching Imperial Physician Wang administer acupuncture to Consort Rong.

Su Yi lay there as Imperial Physician Wang continued inserting the needles, unable to hold back another mouthful of blood. Her face showed discomfort, her complexion darker than before, and the attending servants were visibly panicking.

"Consort Rong!" Kangxi immediately stood up and moved closer, at a loss, unsure what to do. Finally, he gently patted her trembling back, "It's okay, it's okay."

Imperial Physician Wang calmly said, "Your Majesty, rest assured. It's beneficial that Consort Rong is vomiting. This is the residual blood that wasn't expelled earlier, which was harming her spirit by stagnating inside. It's better now that it's out."

He then began to withdraw the needles, and the servants around started to change the soiled sheets. Su Yi, half-closed eyes, lay weakly, her hair disheveled and spread out on the bed.

She was really tired of her weak body and didn't want to speak.

Feeling unhappy, she didn't want to engage with Kangxi at all, just lying there silently, her hair strands drooping over her face, looking somewhat aggrieved. Seeing the medicine prescribed by Imperial Physician Wang being brewed and delivered at the fastest speed made Su Yi even more uncomfortable.

She turned over, trying to escape reality, burying her face in the quilt, her voice muffled, "Just leave it there, I'll drink it later. I want to rest now, Your Majesty, you should go and rest too."

'Hurry up and leave, hurry up.'

Kangxi sat there, looking at Su Yi, who only showed the back of her head, the servant holding the medicine bowl standing awkwardly, "Set the medicine down and fetch some preserved fruits."

The servants quickly brought a small jar of preserved fruits and placed it next to the medicine bowl, then, before leaving, pulled Qinxin and Yun Hua, who were still somewhat out of it, to stand guard outside.

"Are we just going out like this? Don't we need to serve Her Highness the medicine?" Yun Hua whispered to Qinxin, unfamiliar with the Qianqing Palace and too timid to speak loudly.

Qinxin looked at Yun Hua, really wanting to ask her if she had ever successfully seen Su Yi obediently take her medicine. Not to mention, the potted plants in Su Yi's room had died from drinking the medicine, the soil reeking of bitterness. Yun Hua still thought Su Yi took her medicine obediently every time!

But she couldn't say that, so she just said, "The Emperor is watching."

"Oh." Yun Hua nodded, thinking it made sense.

But the Emperor wasn't good at taking care of people either.

Kangxi glanced at Su Yi, who was still burying her face in the quilt, "Rest well, the medicine and preserved fruits are here. Remember to take the medicine later. I'll leave now."

After saying that, he stood up, watching as Su Yi's head moved slightly, turning half her face, still half-covered by her hair, looking dejected, barely responding with an "Mmm," before turning back.

It was obvious she was just going through the motions.

Kangxi walked out, opening the door and making a motion to step out.

Su Yi heard the door close, waited a bit longer, and when the footsteps faded, she slowly lifted her head and glanced around. Good, now she was alone.

She wanted to flip over like a fish, but thinking it would take too much effort, she just flailed a couple of times, like a fish out of water. Well, a sense of ceremony was still necessary.

Then she got up from the bed, looked at the dark medicine placed there, scanned the room, thinking about where would be the best place to pour the medicine.

She didn't need to drink the medicine at all; just meditating at night would be more effective than this medicine, but they didn't know that.

Su Yi originally wanted to look out the window, but the windows were all sealed decorations. Potted plants, she thought, looking for a potted plant to deal with it temporarily. After that, she would return to Yonghe Palace the next day.

But after scanning around, she only saw a fake potted plant, the kind carved from jade, beautiful but...

"Why not put a real one? You can put a jade one, but not a real one?" Barefoot on the carpet, Su Yi looked at the fake jade potted plant in her hand, frustrated.

Then her eyes fell on a decorative vase placed to the side, and she brightened up. This could be used to pour the medicine, and by the next day, the smell would have dissipated.

Wait, but it would be discovered.

Su Yi's gaze swept under the bed, and she immediately thought that would be a good spot. She moved the footrest aside, poured the medicine in, and then moved it back. Usually, cleaning wouldn't pay attention to this area, and by the time the medicine dried, even if they cleaned, they would just think it was dirt from not being cleaned for too long.

Su Yi moved the footrest from under the bed, and indeed, after vomiting blood, she felt so weak that even this was somewhat strenuous. Su Yi clapped her hands, picked up the bowl of now almost cool medicine, and just as she was about to pour it under the bed.

"Ahem, ahem."

The sudden coughing sound startled Su Yi, causing her to instinctively pull the medicine bowl back.

Turning her head, she saw Kangxi standing behind the screen.

Su Yi: ?!!!

Kangxi walked out slowly from behind the screen with his hands behind his back, "Why are you sitting on the ground for no reason?"

Su Yi replied with a look of mixed emotions, "Didn't you leave?"

Is me sitting on the ground really the point here?!

The point is, didn't you leave?!

"I thought about it and was worried, so I came back to see if you were taking your medicine properly," Kangxi said with a righteous and confident tone.

Kangxi stepped forward, crouched down, helped Su Yi up, and steadily took the bowl of medicine from her hand. His handsome face carried a gentle warmth as he tapped her nose with his finger, his voice tinged with a hint of indulgence, "It seems my coming back was necessary after all. Look at you, how can I not worry?"

Su Yi: I'm speechless!

'You dare come back and catch me off guard?!'

"You might as well admit you never left."

'Otherwise, why would the door only open once?!'

In fact, Kangxi hadn't left. He had the door opened earlier, but after gesturing to a maid to close it, he pretended to leave but actually stayed put. He watched as Consort Rong immediately got up to find a place to dump the medicine as soon as he "left."

The window was sealed shut—no escape there. The potted plant was fake—another no-go.

Kangxi knew what Consort Rong was planning when he saw her fiddling with the footrest by the bed.

He deliberately held his tongue, waiting to catch her red-handed just as she was about to dump the medicine.

"Your Majesty, I was just trying to move this item to make space to sit down and drink the medicine. Do you believe me?" Su Yi let out a forced laugh, she sat awkwardly on the bed with her legs hugged, looking at Kangxi.

Kangxi smiled back, tossing the question back at her, "Do you really think I'd believe that?"

Su Yi withdrew her smile, 'Fine, I get it. You don't buy it.'

Kangxi held the medicine bowl, picked up the spoon inside, scooped a spoonful, and spoke in a deep, magnetic voice, "Here, let me feed you your medicine."

Su Yi stared intently at Kangxi, her eyes flickering, her peach-blossom eyes seemingly hiding stars, always carrying a sense of affection when she looked at someone.

This guy actually looks quite handsome, and his voice is especially magnetic when he lowers it, the kind that gives you goosebumps.

But how can you say such cold words with such a deep and magnetic voice???

'One spoonful at a time.'

'Are you that worried I won't suffer enough from the bitterness???'

Kangxi's hand holding the spoon trembled slightly, spilling some of the medicine back into the bowl.

Well done, Consort Rong. He hadn't initially thought of this method, but she had reminded him.

"No need, Your Majesty. I'm not that fragile, needing someone to feed me to take medicine."

Su Yi smiled and politely declined Kangxi's offer, wanting to take the medicine bowl and drink it all in one go to be done with it.

Kangxi, however, did not let go of the bowl. "I know you're not, but I want to feed you myself. Wouldn't you like that, Consort Rong?" As he spoke, the smile on his face gradually faded, and the coldness appeared when he wasn't smiling.

Su Yi watched as this jerk's expression changed as he spoke, and she cursed inwardly. Oh, fine, fine, it seems there's no escape today.

"If you insist on feeding me, what choice do I have?" Su Yi leaned back against the pillows behind her, with a look of resignation.

Only then did Kangxi's smile return, and he reached out to feed a spoonful to Consort Rong's lips.

Su Yi reluctantly opened her mouth and drank the medicine, the bitterness was so intense that she couldn't control her expression, her whole face contorting, the medicine seemed to stick in her throat, making it hard to swallow.

Chugging this kind of brewed Chinese medicine only makes the last sip bitter, but sipping it slowly is a different story—each sip is bitter, and you don't even need anything bitter to feel the bitterness.

After Su Yi struggled to swallow a mouthful, Kangxi had already scooped another spoonful and brought it to her. Su Yi glanced at Kangxi, took a deep breath, opened her mouth, and drank, feeling numb.

Kangxi wasn't used to feeding others medicine, so some of it spilled. The brown medicine trickled down her pale lips and onto her pure white nightgown.

Kangxi paused, then quickly grabbed a nearby cotton cloth to wipe Consort Rong's chin. They moved closer, his eyelids slightly lowered, hiding the emotions in his eyes. "This is my first time feeding someone medicine; I'm not very good at it," he said.

Su Yi was so overwhelmed by the bitterness that her eyes squinted, ignoring the spilled medicine. The bitterness was the main issue. After just two sips, she couldn't take it anymore.

As Kangxi leaned closer, she suddenly sat up, reaching out to grab the medicine bowl from his hands. At the same time, her forehead bumped into something with a thud, a bit painful but bearable.

Before Su Yi could think much, she saw the medicine bowl in Kangxi's hand about to spill. With quick reflexes, she reached out and caught the bowl, marveling that not a single drop had spilled—impressive.

A low groan came from beside her. Su Yi looked up and saw Kangxi covering his chin with his hand, his face showing some pain. "You!" Kangxi pointed at her, trembling with anger, unable to say anything beyond "you."

Su Yi finally realized why her forehead had bumped into something painful earlier—it was the jerk's chin. Watching Kangxi tremble with anger, pointing at her but unable to speak, she couldn't help but want to laugh.

Su Yi swallowed, then knelt on the bed, putting on an innocent and obedient look. "Your Majesty, are you alright?" she asked with concern.

But inwardly, she thought, 'Did your chin fall off? Hahaha, serves you right for showing off!'

Kangxi was so angry he couldn't speak. How could she be so infuriating?

Even after causing trouble, she could still act innocent!

Kangxi covered his chin, his tongue aching. When Consort Rong suddenly bumped into him, not only did he hit his chin, but he also bit his tongue. Now his tongue hurt badly, and there was a taste of blood in his mouth.

Just then, a maid outside said, "Your Majesty, the imperial physician has arrived."

Well, the imperial physician who was called for Consort Rong ended up examining Kangxi himself.

Su Yi had already downed the medicine in one go and was now sitting by the bed, holding a jar of candied fruits and eating them while watching the imperial physician examine Kangxi's chin.

Kangxi's chin was red from the bump, and his tongue was bitten. Su Yi's forehead didn't even have a red mark. If it weren't for Kangxi being the one who got hurt, Su Yi's calm demeanor would be highly deceptive!

She was even eating candied fruits!

This made Kangxi's heart burn with anger.

The imperial physician examined Kangxi's mouth, stroking his beard, and with professional ethics, said, "Your Majesty's injury will heal in a few days. Since the tip of your tongue is injured, you should avoid eating stimulating foods for the next few days."

No medicine was needed; it wasn't a serious issue.

Though, he might have a lisp when speaking for a while.

The imperial physician had always been responsible for the Emperor's pulse diagnosis, but recently, the number of incidents had become more than all those in the past twenty years combined.

Initially, he thought he was being summoned to examine Consort Rong, but who would have thought the Emperor himself was involved as well.

The imperial physician remained mostly silent, but his expression said it all. It was like he was thinking, "Your Majesty, you're a grown man, how did you manage to bite your tongue like that?"

Kangxi's tongue still hurt a bit. After rinsing his mouth, he said, "Imperial Physician, since you're here, you might as well check on Consort Rong as well."

Because his tongue was still sore, his words came out slightly slurred. Realizing this, Kangxi immediately closed his mouth.

Turning his head, he saw Consort Rong already turning away, her shoulders slightly shaking. She actually dared to laugh!?

Kangxi narrowed his eyes dangerously. He planned to ask the imperial physician, after finishing Consort Rong's pulse diagnosis, if coptis root could be added to her prescription without reducing its effectiveness.

If it was feasible...

Hmm? Su Yi, struggling to hold back her laughter, suddenly felt a chill creep up her spine.