The Lucky Farmgirl-Chapter 1913 - 1888: Pregnant (March Bonus - 1)

Chapter 1913: Chapter 1888: Pregnant (March Bonus Chapter 1)

Manbao heard his laughter, saw his smiling face, and snorted angrily, turning her head away, ignoring him.

Bai Shan chuckled softly and wanted to speak, but two eunuchs had already run over.

Beside him, Bai Erlang had stopped speaking, pursing his lips in displeasure, standing silently as if he had swallowed a couple of pounds of vinegar.

The two eunuchs, panting heavily, came up and bowed, "Imperial Doctor Zhou, His Majesty wants you to go to the Eastern Palace."

Manbao was startled and asked, "Did His Majesty kick the Crown Prince until he’s unwell?"

"... No," the eunuch replied, "it’s to see the ladies of the Eastern Palace."

Manbao was startled again, "Did something happen to the Crown Princess?"

"... Not that either," the eunuch said, hesitating a bit before vaguely stating, "You’ll know once you see them. It’s the two secondary consorts..."

Bai Shan couldn’t help but cast a sidelong glance. Even a secondary consort could summon a sixth-ranked imperial doctor?

Although Manbao never turned down a request, it was curious that an imperial order was made for her to examine a secondary consort...

Bai Shan said to Manbao, "Let’s go, we’ll accompany you to the Eastern Palace."

Bai Shan had thought of it, and naturally, Manbao also understood, so she nodded, turned, and headed to the Eastern Palace with the two eunuchs.

Manbao got along well with most of the palace staff, so she quickly managed to gather some information from the two eunuchs.

It was said that no sooner had the Crown Prince knelt in the shrine than the Crown Princess urgently sent someone to report to Taiji Hall, saying that the two secondary consorts were unwell, possibly pregnant, but she couldn’t be sure.

Because the best doctors from the Imperial Medical Office had been called by the emperor to treat Prince Gong’s leg, she sent for the Empress’s instruction.

Not only the Empress but even the Emperor was aware of her little scheme.

She was merely worried about the Crown Prince being heavily punished, but the Emperor no longer wanted to dwell on it and simply wanted to know if the two secondary consorts from the Eastern Palace were indeed pregnant.

The Crown Prince currently had only one son, which was still too few.

Although born of a concubine, it was still royal blood, wasn’t it?

So the Emperor, while having Imperial Doctor Liu and Imperial Doctor Lu sent to the Eastern Palace from Taiji Hall, also ordered someone to find Zhou Man.

After all, it was about women, so Zhou Man was more convenient than Imperial Doctor Liu and Imperial Doctor Lu.

By the time Manbao arrived at the Eastern Palace, Imperial Doctor Liu and Imperial Doctor Lu were already there. They had taken turns checking the pulse of the two secondary consorts and, after asking some questions, made way for Manbao.

After Manbao asked carefully, checked their pulses, and stood with Imperial Doctor Liu and Imperial Doctor Lu, without needing to discuss, the three confirmed to the Crown Princess and Gu Zhong waiting outside, "They are indeed pregnant. Concubine Cao is approximately three months along, and Jiang Fengyi is a bit less, but already two months."

Gu Zhong rejoiced, continuously congratulating the Crown Princess.

The Crown Princess was also full of joy, happily rewarding the doctors and the entire Eastern Palace. She actually knew all along but had been keeping it secret, intending to wait until things settled before announcing the news.

Originally, she planned to wait another month, but who knew the Crown Prince would make a mistake?

No one knew exactly how harshly his father had scolded him.

The Crown Princess had started planning to reveal the matter as soon as the Crown Prince entered the palace, so she didn’t know that not only was the Crown Prince scolded, but he was also kicked twice by the Emperor and was currently kneeling in the shrine.

Worrying with a handkerchief in her hand, the Crown Princess said to Gu Zhong, "Without His Highness, the Eastern Palace lacks a backbone, leaving the secondary consorts anxious. This uncertainty might affect the heirs..."

Upon hearing this, regardless of what he truly thought, Gu Zhong put on the same worried face as the Crown Princess and said he would report to the Emperor.

The Crown Princess gratefully had Gu Zhong escorted out, then let the winking Imperial Doctor Liu and Manbao leave, and naturally, Imperial Doctor Lu also didn’t stay.

When only the people from the Eastern Palace remained in the room, the Crown Princess asked Manbao, "What exactly happened? I vaguely heard that the Crown Prince broke Prince Gong’s leg?"

Manbao: "... Who spread this rumor?"

The Crown Princess said worriedly, "Who else spread it? It’s been circulating outside. You can inquire in the Imperial City. Some even say the Crown Prince left Prince Gong half-paralyzed. Fortunately, it’s the day off, so only the guards are at the Six Ministries’ various offices, or who knows how wild the rumor would get."

All three were stunned.

The Crown Princess asked, "So, did the Crown Prince break Prince Gong’s leg or not?"

The three shook their heads but then nodded.

The Crown Princess asked, "So, did he or didn’t he?"

Manbao cleared her throat and said, "The Crown Prince sparred with Prince Gong, but it wasn’t the Crown Prince who broke Prince Gong’s leg. It has just a little something to do with the Crown Prince."

Seeing the worried faces of the two pregnant women beside her, Manbao tactfully recounted the incident.

Upon hearing that the Crown Prince was only kicked twice and punished to kneel in the shrine, the Crown Princess suddenly breathed a sigh of relief, "That’s good, I was so worried."

The two concubines also breathed a sigh of relief.

Although Bai Shan and Manbao’s explanation made the punishment of kneeling in the shrine seem light, for Bai Erlang, it was hard to accept because looking at the grievances between the Crown Prince and Prince Gong, it was obvious that the Crown Prince was in the right. It was clear that Prince Gong broke his own leg, so why were they all relieved?

But by now, the Crown Princess had relaxed and said to the two concubines, "The Crown Prince is fine, so don’t worry and take care of yourselves, especially Jiang Fengyi. It’s early in your pregnancy; avoid going out these days. I will promote both of you to Chenghui. Once you’ve given birth, if they’re boys, you’ll be promoted to Liangdi, and if girls, Liangyuan."

Upon hearing this, the two were overjoyed and immediately knelt to express their gratitude.

The Crown Princess didn’t let them kneel for long, having them helped up for rest.

Secondary consorts were the lowest rank beside the Crown Prince, similar to the companions of sons from noble families. Now, being promoted to Chenghui was like skipping two levels.

That Liu, who had lost her child a few years ago, was a Chenghui, a concubine for the Crown Prince. Once pregnant, she was brought to stay with the Crown Princess for careful care, and was going to be promoted to Liangdi; it was only temporarily halted to protect the mother and child.

The whole Eastern Palace knew that at the time, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess promised Liu that as long as she safely gave birth, regardless of gender, she would be made Crown Prince’s Side Consort, second only to the Crown Princess. Once the Crown Prince ascended the throne, a Side Consort could be directly promoted to Noble Consort.

At the time, countless people in the Eastern Palace envied her fortune, and never expected that now they also had the opportunity to become Chenghui, and possibly Liangdi or Liangyuan, thanks to the children in their bellies.

Once everyone had left, the Crown Princess took Manbao’s hand and said, "Though the Eastern Palace now has Yingnu, the lineage is still too thin. We’ll need you to frequently check on them to ensure a safe delivery."

Manbao nodded and asked, "What about the attendants around them..."

"I’ve arranged for experienced ones," the Crown Princess smiled, "You can also help me review them so that no one fools me."

The Crown Princess’s eyes shone; with a few more children in the Eastern Palace, she looked forward to the day nobody would dare say the Crown Prince couldn’t father children!