After killing four concubines, the queen was sentenced to death and reborn

"You're here." Qingzi smiled and pulled Qinglan to sit down.

Qinglan quickly declined, "Cai Nu, this is against the rules."

Qingzi immediately pretended to be angry and said, "Where are the rules between you and me?"

"You guys go down!" Qingzi said to the palace servants again.

"Yes."

After the palace servants closed the door, Qingzi forcibly dragged Qinglan to sit down.

"Sit down!" Qingzi held Qinglan's hand.

"What's wrong? Did something happen?" Qinglan asked worriedly.

"No, what could be the matter?" Qingzi replied with her head down.

"Didn't His Majesty come to your place?" Qinglan asked carefully.

Qingzi smiled slightly, "Your Majesty just had lunch here and took a nap in the main hall. It has nothing to do with me."

"Then...did His Majesty say anything to you?" Qinglan continued to ask with a slight frown.

"No!" Qingzi shook her head slightly, with no expression on her face.

"Nothing?" Qinglan couldn't believe it. Then... why did His Majesty come?

"I didn't say anything. His Majesty doesn't like me at all. I came to Hanyue Palace just to show off to others. His Majesty's heart and eyes are now full of the Empress. I don't have to do anything. I just go to visit the Empress every morning and evening, pay my respects to the Empress, grow flowers, and take care of the small courtyard. My life is so leisurely." Qingzi said with a smile on her face. She looks much better now.

Seeing that she was so open-minded, Qinglan felt relieved.

"I feel relieved that you think this way. In fact, Your Majesty has always felt sorry for you these days. It was Your Majesty who recommended you to His Majesty, but His Majesty has been slow to summon you to sleep with him, and I have always been worried that it would delay you. I didn't expect that you would be so open-minded about it." Qinglan was a little surprised.

"Qinglan, even if you and I turn 25 and leave the palace to get married, the most respectable man we could marry is probably just the shopkeeper outside. But now I think that being His Majesty's concubine, even an unfavored concubine, is also good. At least my family can do well outside. Isn't this the reason why we chose to follow Her Majesty into the palace?" Qingzi said bitterly with a smile on her lips.

"Yes!" Qinglan felt a little sad when she thought of her family. She hadn't seen her family since she entered the palace.

"I'm fine now. You can tell Her Majesty that I don't feel wronged. On the contrary, I'm very grateful to Her Majesty." Qingzi said sincerely.

"I know." Qinglan smiled, with a hint of loneliness in his eyes.

In the evening, Xiao Chengji brought her a message that his mother was coming back.

"When?" Lu Lingyuan asked calmly.

"It will take about a month on the road." Xiao Chengji replied in a gentle voice.

"In one month, I will have to send people to clean up the Cining Palace, and I will also have to clean up the Yuehua Palace."

"Your Majesty said before that when the third prince returns, he will be allowed to move into the palace. Should I send someone to take care of the palace?" Lu Lingyuan asked in a deep voice.

"Okay, I will arrange Rong'an and the Shang Palace Bureau to keep an eye on these matters. Don't worry about it. Taking care of yourself is the most important thing for you right now." Xiao Chengji stroked her belly with a tender look on his face.

"Yes, I understand." Although Lu Lingyuan said this, she would still do it herself. These were what she should do as the queen. If anything went wrong, it would be her dignity as the queen that would be lost.

Lu Lingyuan sat on the bed with a slightly rosy cheek. Xiao Chengji went to the bath room to take a bath. These days, Xiao Chengji still stayed in Weiyang Palace every night. Several times, she hinted and suggested that he should stay in Hanyue Palace, but Xiao Chengji pretended not to understand.

When Xiao Chengji came out of the bath room, his face was red and warm, and his body was still hot.

It is summer now and the weather is hot. Because Lu Lingyuan is pregnant, there are not many ice cubes in the hall.

Lu Lingyuan was afraid of heat, and when the two of them slumped together at night, she would often wake up from the heat, so she didn't sleep well.

"What's wrong? Your face is so red? Are you feeling uncomfortable?" Xiao Chengji quickly touched Lu Lingyuan's forehead, and then put his forehead against hers.

"It's a little hot." Xiao Chengji frowned slightly, then said, "Come here, call Doctor Zhao."

"No need, Your Majesty, I'm fine. I just feel a little hot." Lu Lingyuan hurriedly stopped him.

"If you were not pregnant, I would have asked someone to put more ice cubes there. But now that you are pregnant, you should not be too greedy for the coolness. Please be patient. I would have someone put a few more basins of cold water in the bedroom, which will also be helpful." Xiao Chengji said in a gentle voice, and wiped the sweat from her forehead.

Lu Lingyuan nodded slightly, raised her eyebrows, and said in a deep voice: "I heard that His Majesty went to Hanyue Palace at noon today?"

After hearing this, Xiao Chengji looked into her eyes intently, as if he wanted to see something in her eyes.

"Yes, the Queen has repeatedly asked me to visit Qingcainv, so I can only go and visit her." Xiao Chengji curled his lips and chuckled, wanting to see the jealous expression on Lu Lingyuan's face.

"I feel relieved that Your Majesty thinks so." Lu Lingyuan said with a smile.

"Qingcai is a woman with a gentle temperament and is very considerate. With her accompanying Your Majesty, I can feel more at ease." Lu Lingyuan smiled gently, with no other unnecessary expressions on her face.

The corners of Xiao Chengji's mouth slightly raised, revealing an unfathomable smile on his face.

"It's getting late, go to bed!" Xiao Chengji said in a deep voice.

"Yes." Lu Lingyuan lay down slowly. It took her a while to fall asleep because of the heat.

……

One night a month later, Xiao Chengji summoned Qing Cainu to his bed. When Lu Lingyuan found out, she sent Qinglan to Hanyue Palace to give her a lot of rewards.

Two days later, I, Zheng Xiyan, came back with Xiao Shuyue and Xiao Chengyi.

At this time, Lu Lingyuan was almost three months pregnant.

Xiao Chengji felt sorry for Lu Lingyuan, so he didn't let her go to the palace gate to greet her.

Lu Lingyuan waited directly in Shoukang Palace.

At the palace gate, just a few months later, Zheng Xiyan went out and looked full of energy, as if she had suddenly become ten years younger.

Xiao Chengji was delighted. He strode forward and said with a smile, "Your son greets the Queen Mother. May the Queen Mother be blessed with good health!"

"Royal brother!" Xiao Shuyue got off the carriage and shouted excitedly.

"Don't be so polite." Zheng Xiyan walked forward with a loving face, bent down and helped him up.

"Thank you, mother. I was unable to go outside the city to greet you in person. Please forgive my unfilial behavior!" Xiao Chengji said in a deep voice, his face full of guilt and apology.

"Mother knows how filial you are. Your Majesty is very busy. I am very happy that you can take time out to welcome mother back to the palace." Zheng Xiyan said quickly, with a gentle and loving face.

"Yes, thank you mother for your understanding!" Xiao Chengji said softly.

At this time, Xiao Chengyi also stepped forward and said in a gentle voice: "I, your humble servant, greet my brother the Emperor!"

"Get up! You seem to be more stable after going out." Xiao Chengji walked forward, patted Xiao Chengyi on the shoulder, and said, "You seem to have grown taller and stronger."

"After this trip, I have learned a lot, and I can understand the difficulties and hardships my royal brother has gone through over the years." Xiao Chengyi's face showed some guilt. When he thought about how he had been willful and mischievous and had wasted his time before, he wanted to slap himself.

"It seems that you have made progress. As expected, people still need more experience. After coming back to rest for a few days, you can prepare to attend court and attend government affairs!" Xiao Chengji said with a serious expression.

He only has this one brother, so he will naturally plan for his future and always hopes that he can lead Daliang to prosperity as they agreed when they were young.

Zheng Xiyan's expression seemed to be unexpected, a little surprised, and she said with a smile: "Yier, your royal brother trusts you so much, you can't let him down!"

"Yes." Xiao Chengyi became a little excited, and immediately knelt on the ground, saying excitedly: "I obey your order. I will assist you wholeheartedly and will not let you down."

Over the years, Xiao Chengyi has always remembered the promise he made to his brother when he was young and has never forgotten it.

"Get up quickly!" Xiao Chengji raised the corner of his mouth slightly and pulled him up.

Zheng Xiyan looked at the two brothers with satisfaction and was very content.

Xiao Shuyue stepped forward, put her arm around Xiao Chengji, and asked excitedly, "Brother, how is the emperor's sister-in-law? She is pregnant now, and it will be three months!"

"According to the count, it's been three months. How is the Queen's baby?" Zheng Xiyan also hurriedly asked with concern.

"Don't worry, mother. The Queen is in good health and the baby in her belly is doing well." Xiao Chengji couldn't stop smiling when he mentioned Lu Lingyuan and the child.

"Then mother, let's go back quickly. I have missed you so much these days." Xiao Shuyue urged.

Zheng Xiyan had a helpless smile on her face and said, "Okay!"

Outside Shoukang Palace, Lu Lingyuan stood there, and Qing Cainu stood behind her with a respectful look on her face.

When Lu Lingyuan saw them coming back, she immediately stepped forward and saluted with a smile, "I pay my respects to the Queen Mother and His Majesty!"

"Okay, you're pregnant. How can your body bear it if you stay here in such a strong sun?" Zheng Xiyan held her hand and said with a distressed look on her face.

Xiao Chengji saw Lu Lingyuan standing in the sun from afar, with a thin layer of sweat on her forehead and flushed cheeks. Her face immediately became gloomy. She has always been afraid of heat and she was pregnant, so how could she bear it?

Xiao Chengji was very angry and said in a restrained voice: "What the Queen Mother said is true. Didn't I tell you to have a good rest? Why didn't you listen? Did someone close to the Queen die?"

Yun'er and the others quickly knelt on the ground and said in fear, "Your Majesty, please forgive me!"

"Your Majesty, don't worry about their business. It was I who insisted on coming to greet our mother. I know I was wrong." Lu Lingyuan quickly pleaded for them. She felt very guilty for having implicated them.

"Okay, Emperor, let the Queen go in and rest first!" Zheng Xiyan hurried out to smooth things over.

Xiao Shuyue hurried forward, holding Lu Lingyuan's arm, and said softly: "Sister-in-law, let's go in first!"

"Yes, mother!" Xiao Chengji was helpless with her.

Before Zheng Xiyan went in, her eyes inadvertently fell on the beautiful girl standing behind her, but there was no reaction on her face.

She had known this for a long time. The empress was magnanimous. Not long after she became pregnant, she took the initiative to propose that the emperor take a palace maid as his concubine.

The moment Qing Cainu made eye contact with the Empress Dowager, she hurriedly lowered her head and looked away, instantly becoming terrified.

Before Xiao Chengyi entered, he also saw the Qingcai girl beside him and frowned slightly. She was wearing the clothes of a concubine? But hadn't the concubines entered the palace yet?

As Xiao Chengyi walked, he lowered his voice and asked Rong An, "Who is that person outside?"

Rong An glanced outside and noticed that Qing Cainu was also there. He quickly said, "Reporting to the prince, the young lady outside is the newly appointed Cainu by your majesty. She used to be a maid in the palace of the queen. After the queen became pregnant, she was afraid that there would be no one around to serve your majesty, so she took the initiative to marry Qing Cainu for your majesty."

"Did the Emperor's sister-in-law take the initiative to marry him to our father?" Xiao Chengyi said meaningfully, with an expression on his face that was hard to read.

"Yes." Rong An replied, bending his body.

In the main hall

Xiao Chengji helped Lu Lingyuan sit on the couch and arranged for several palace maids to fan her.

Lu Lingyuan didn't dare to refute and could only sit there obediently.

Zheng Xiyan saw everything and spoke softly, "The Queen is filial, I know it in my heart, don't be so stupid in the future. It's so sunny outside, if the Queen makes any mistakes, it will be my fault."

"Yes, I know I was wrong. Please forgive me, mother!" Lu Lingyuan looked ashamed.

"Okay, Your Majesty, please don't blame the Queen too much. The Queen is filial and did it for me. Let's just forget about this matter." Zheng Xiyan said solemnly, looking at Xiao Chengji seriously.

Xiao Chengji would not really be angry with her, and said in a deep voice: "Yes, I will listen to you, mother."

Zheng Xiyan asked about Lu Lingyuan's health and chatted about family matters, then Xiao Chengji took Lu Lingyuan back to Weiyang Palace to rest.

After a while, Xiao Shuyue and Xiao Chengyi also left Shoukang Palace and returned to their residences.

When only Zheng Xiyan and Biluo were left in the palace, Biluo spoke in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, I heard that His Majesty only summoned Qingcai once, and it was only after the Empress persuaded His Majesty many times that His Majesty summoned Qingcai to sleep with him."

"In this respect, Ji'er is not like him at all." Zheng Xiyan's expression was cold, and her voice was devoid of warmth.

Biluo frowned slightly and didn't respond.

"But I am also worried about this now. It is not a good thing for the emperor to be too devoted." Zheng Xiyan said in a serious voice.

"In the previous dynasty, Emperor Zhao favored Empress Xu, and Concubine Huo in the harem became jealous because of this, so she poisoned Empress Xu to death, and then caused many troubles." Zheng Xiyan was a little worried. The concubines were about to enter the palace, and the palace would soon become "lively".

"Your Majesty is a man who takes the overall situation into consideration and will not let this happen." Biluo hurriedly comforted.

"Who can be sure of some things? The harem has always been a battlefield. Sometimes, if you take a wrong step, your whole life will be wrong." Zheng Xiyan sighed.