amaotonovel Chapter 179 Concubine Yi
Chapter 179 Concubine Yi
Emperor Shenwu's eyes turned slightly. He sat in the hall for a while before getting up and walking towards the side hall of Suowu Palace.
Lan Qingwu slept for three days and three nights before waking up. During this period, Emperor Shenwu stayed with her every step of the way. Every day, Emperor Shenwu would order Ruping to hold the Sixth Prince at the head of Lan Qingwu's bed, waiting for Lan Qingwu to see the Sixth Prince as soon as she woke up.
So the moment Lan Qingwu woke up, she saw the figure of Emperor Shenwu guarding her and the little baby in the cradle.
The Shenwu Emperor was resting his eyes with his hand on his forehead. He seemed to sense something and suddenly opened his eyes. "Ruo Ruo, you're finally awake! Are you still feeling unwell?"
Ruhan, who was lying beside the bed, almost cried with joy: "Master, you're awake! Imperial Physician Nie said you'd wake up today, and you really woke up!"
Lan Qingwu looked at Emperor Shenwu and everyone guarding him by the bed, and felt extremely relieved.
It was a long time later that Lan Qingwu learned that after giving birth to the Sixth Prince, she had bled profusely, and it took Nie Wushuang and his master, Zhao Wubing, a great deal of effort to save her. That was why she had been in a coma for three days and three nights.
Emperor Shenwu asked Ruping to come forward holding the Sixth Prince: "Ruoruo, this is our son, please take a look at him. You are still weak, don't think about anything, I am always here."
Lan Qingwu nodded slightly, her face was still pale and bloodless, and her whole body was weak.
Emperor Shenwu continued, "I have named the child 'Chen'—Zhou Chengchen. Do you like this name?"
Lan Qingwu's eyes turned slightly and he nodded again.
Emperor Shenwu caressed Lan Qingwu's black hair lovingly and said, "Drink some nourishing soup first, then have a good sleep."
After Lan Qingwu drank some nourishing soup, he fell asleep again.
In Wenhua Palace, Concubine Wen sat blankly on the imperial concubine couch. She sat there motionless for a long time.
Until Concubine Wen was awakened by the voice of the head palace maid.
"My lady, my lady."
Wenpin came back to her senses and said, "Go and send the message back home and let father prepare."
Emperor Shenwu also resumed his morning court session, with civil and military officials standing in line in the Golden Throne Hall.
Censor Yan stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I have heard that Your Majesty has given birth to a sixth prince. May Heaven bless our Great Sheng Dynasty and its prosperity continue."
Emperor Shenwu stretched out his wide sleeves and said, "Please stand up. Left Censor, do you have anything else to say?"
The Left Censor paused for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, the birth of the Sixth Prince is a joyous occasion, but it would be inappropriate for his mother, Concubine Yi, to skip a level and become Concubine Yi. In my opinion, we should promote her to Noble Concubine Yi according to the ancestral system."
Prince Ding glanced at the Left Censor and stepped out, saying, "Left Censor, this is Your Majesty's family matter. Is such a trivial matter worthy of being discussed in the Golden Palace?"
Another minister immediately stood up and said, "Your Highness Prince Ding, that's not the case. The affairs of Your Majesty's harem are also the affairs of the world..."
Prince Ding said bluntly, "Come on, that Bai Cairen gave birth to the Fourth Prince, and His Majesty was promoted to a higher rank. Why aren't you all complaining about it?"
"This...how can this be the same?"
Wei Yanting's loud voice rang out: "Tell me, what's the difference?"
……
Amidst the clamor, King Kang remained silent with his head down as usual, but his lowered eyes were slightly deeper.
There was another person who remained silent. The Emperor of Divine Martial Arts turned his eyes towards the Grand Master: "Grand Master!"
The master immediately stepped out and said, "Your Majesty!"
"I have heard that Master Shi Binyuan traveled to the south and wrote poems and eulogies that were quite successful. This is the credit of the Master family."
The Master's tranquility was disturbed: "Your Majesty, thank you for your compliment."
Emperor Shenwu looked at all the civil and military officials with his unfathomable eyes. All the ministers who came out of the line felt the pressure of the emperor's power and lowered their heads unconsciously.
The Emperor Shenwu spoke calmly, "The Shi family is a literary powerhouse, and Shi Binyuan has made invaluable contributions. I have decided to confer the title of Concubine Wen as Consort Wen. Master, what do you think?"
The master's heart was shocked: "Your Majesty, this..."
The Left Censor could no longer contain his excitement: "Your Majesty is wise! This is truly the work of our Master!"
The ministers below successively seconded the proposal.
The Grand Tutor was interrupted. Although he roughly knew the emperor's plan to use Concubine Wen to distract the attention of the ministers and the harem, the temptation was too great. Only by being promoted to a concubine would he have the opportunity to move to the most honorable position in the harem.
Emperor Shenwu rose to his feet and made the final decision: "Since that is the case, Concubine Yi has contributed greatly to the state by giving birth to the Sixth Prince. She is hereby promoted to Concubine Yi, and Concubine Wen to Concubine Wen. If there is nothing else, please adjourn the court!"
The structure of the harem that had existed for nearly ten years was changed all of a sudden. Concubine Wan was demoted to Changle Palace, and there were only two concubines left in the harem. Now, two more concubines were suddenly given the title, and the four corners were complete. There was a lot of discussion in the harem.
Some said that it was natural for Concubine Yi to be promoted after giving birth to a prince, but the reason for Concubine Wen's promotion was too far-fetched, as if His Majesty had given her the title by chance.
Shi Qingluan, now promoted to Concubine Wen, naturally understood this truth. This feeling of being ignored naturally made her feel nauseous and indignant. She knew that the Emperor Shenwu was using her as a shield. Concubine Wen gave a wry smile. This outcome was what the family welcomed. Who would speak up for her when she felt resentful and indignant? Who would truly consider her?
Lan Qingwu rested quietly for several days and finally regained some energy.
She gladly accepted the path paved for her by Emperor Shenwu. She was ready to be the one walking shoulder to shoulder with Emperor Shenwu. She would no longer back down. She wanted to stand by that person's side openly and walk hand in hand with that person.
On the sixth day of the eleventh month of the eighth year of the Shenwu reign, at the hour of the morning, the Sixth Prince, Zhou Chengchen, was born. Three days after his birth, the Dasheng Dynasty welcomed the first auspicious snowfall of the winter. Heavy snow fell all day, heralding a good harvest and another prosperous year. Zhou Chengchen was also the next emperor of the Dasheng Dynasty.
Lan Qingwu regained some spirit, but the Emperor Shenwu still wouldn't let her get off the ground. She could only wait for the Emperor to come around, letting her get off the ground and take a few slow steps.
Lan Qingwu rested well for over three months, during which time the Shenwu Emperor held a grand full-moon banquet for the Sixth Prince. Lan Qingwu and Shi Qingluan were both promoted to concubines, retaining their titles. Then, as the New Year approached, the Shenwu Emperor became busy again, and Lan Qingwu spent the New Year in bed.
Emperor Shenwu spent the New Year and Lantern Festival with Lan Qingwu as usual, but this year the two of them did not go out together.
The Sixth Prince grew fatter and whiter day by day. Lan Qingwu looked at the Sixth Prince babbling and couldn't help but smile knowingly: "Brother Heng, Chu Ming really looks like you."
Because the Sixth Prince was born at daybreak, Lan Qingwu gave him the nickname "Chuming", which means the first ray of sunshine in the morning.
Emperor Shenwu also looked at the swaddled Sixth Prince, "He looks much weaker to me."
Ever since Lan Qingwu's difficult childbirth, Emperor Shenwu never mentioned giving birth to another little princess again. He didn't want to experience that again.
Lan Qingwu naturally noticed something, but she never mentioned it again. For some things, only time can slowly dilute the painful memories.