Harem Daily Life

The war situation in Yan State is tense, and all the soldiers and generals of the Great Zhou have been sent there. Now they can only fight to the end and strive for the greatest benefit.

The Queen Mother consoled him, "It's useless to think too much. We have enough food and fodder, and enough money for the military pay. If something happens to the Prince of Yan, Princess Pingning will probably have to rely on the Great Zhou."

The Queen Mother paused and said, "Back then, she and you were childhood sweethearts, but your father liked the daughter of the Duke's Mansion. She knew that she could not become your legal wife, so she asked to go to the Kingdom of Yan to marry. It has been difficult for her all these years."

He Linzhang choked: "Mother, I only have a brother-sister relationship with her, nothing else. I hope you won't mention childhood sweethearts anymore, lest... ahem, lest someone think too much." A blush appeared on the tips of He Linzhang's ears.

The Queen Mother glanced at him and said, "Who thinks too much? Concubine Tao?" The Queen Mother looked at her son with some amusement and said, "I think that others may think too much. You won't mind, right?"

The emperor has three palaces and six courtyards, but has he ever considered the thoughts of his concubines?

He Linzhang cleared his throat and said, "I just don't want to cause any trouble. I finally got her back and I don't want her to be sad because of something that doesn't exist."

The Queen Mother nodded and said, "I am very pleased that you can consider her thoughts. I will be old one day and will follow your father. I hope most that you can have a confidant in this life, to accompany you, take care of you, love you, and live in harmony with you until old age. I wanted Shu Fei to be this person, but my good intentions led to bad results. You never liked Shu Fei. You had some signs at the beginning and liked Li Jieyu, which made me very angry. Fortunately, you finally opened your eyes and found Tao Yanyan."

The Queen Mother slowed down and said earnestly, "Zhang'er, it's not easy for a person to meet someone he deeply loves in his life, especially in the imperial family. What kind of love is pure? Tao Yanyan doesn't have any ambition for fame and gain. I don't think she wants your identity, status, or power. You must remember, don't let her down! Don't think she is easy to talk to, well-behaved and cute, but if you break her heart, even if you have ten cows, you can't pull her back. You should treat sincere people with your heart, and the love will last long."

Since He Linzhang's wedding, the Empress Dowager seldom asked about his feelings. This time, as a mother, she had a heart-to-heart talk with him.

He Linzhang stood up and said, "Thank you, mother, for speaking to me. I will keep it in mind."

"Okay, it's getting late, so you should go back early. I am busy with government affairs, so I won't keep you here."

He Linzhang respectfully took his leave and on his way back to the imperial study, he passed by the imperial garden. Unexpectedly, he saw a figure waiting in the moonlight from afar in front of him.

Eunuch Zhang stepped forward and squinted his eyes to take a look. When he saw that it was that person, he trotted back and whispered, "Your Majesty, it's Concubine Li in front. It seems that she is waiting for Your Majesty."

He Linzhang frowned: "...Let's take a detour."

Li Jieyu, who was waiting on the road that the emperor had to take to return to the imperial study, watched the imperial chariot coming from afar and stroked her hair excitedly, hoping that the emperor would go back to Baozhi Pavilion with her tonight. But the imperial chariot stopped for a while and took a detour.

Li Jieyu chased after him with eyes wide open in disbelief, but the distance was too far and she couldn't catch up at all. She stamped her feet in anger and said, "Why? Why didn't you come over? Did you see me and hide on purpose?"

Jing'er stepped forward and advised, "Maybe he has other things to deal with, so he won't go back to the Imperial Study for the time being. Please be patient, Concubine. Your Majesty has been away for the past few months, and he must have a lot of things to deal with. It's understandable that he doesn't have time to visit you for a while."

Although she said this, Jing'er still felt a little uneasy.

Qing Er supported Li Jieyu and said, "It's cold at night, Jieyu should go back and rest early. Only when you are well can you enjoy the emperor's favor in the future."

Li Jieyu looked in the direction where the emperor's imperial carriage left, and a tear slid down her eyes: "No matter where he went before, he would come to see me first when he came back. Now it has changed, everything has changed."

Li Jieyu clenched her fists, her eyes darker than ink in the darkness: "It's all Concubine Tao's fault, it's all her fault, she took away everything, everything that belonged to me!"

Qing Er looked around quickly and advised, "Jieyu, be careful of ears. You have just been released from house arrest. If you are punished again at this time, it will be a long time before you can see His Majesty again."

Li Jieyu wiped away her tears and said with resentment: "Let's go back." Go back and plan carefully how to deal with that bitch!

The imperial carriage took a detour and passed by Fengyi Palace. Thinking that he had been back for two days and had not had time to visit the empress, He Linzhang went to Fengyi Palace.

Upon learning that His Majesty was coming late at night, the Queen, who had already taken off her makeup, had no time to put it back on, so she had no choice but to meet the Emperor in her original attire.

He Linzhang personally helped her up: "You are pregnant, no need to be polite, lie down and rest quickly, I just came to see you." After saying that, he touched the queen's belly and smiled: "This baby seems to be bigger than when Yue'er was born."

The queen smiled like a loving mother: "When I was pregnant with Yue'er, I had no experience and was weak, so I was sick for a long time after giving birth. This time I was well prepared and took good care of my body to get pregnant. Everything went smoothly and I paid attention to my diet. I hope I can give birth safely and give Your Majesty another prince."

He Linzhang was also looking forward to the birth of his legitimate son: "You have worked hard. When the child is born, we will raise him well together and find the best teacher to teach him. I will teach him everything I have learned in my life and raise him to be a talented person."

The queen was very happy. The emperor's words were like a promise to her: as long as she gave birth to a legitimate son, he would be trained as the crown prince.

The imperial physician had examined her before and said that she looked like a prince.

The queen was delighted, but her face was calm: "It is a blessing for this child to be favored by your majesty."

As if thinking of something, the Queen said, "Speaking of which, this child seems to be more blessed than Yue'er at that time. I don't know if Yue'er has encountered something. Not only does she have a weird personality, she always likes to play with scary things and is not even afraid of snakes. On Duanwu, she had an upset stomach and fell ill. Alas, I am pregnant and cannot take care of her. Otherwise, I must ask a monk to come and see if there is anything wrong with her."

He Linzhang frowned, "It's normal for children to like to play around. As for those weird little animals... just remind them more often. You just said you had a stomachache during the Dragon Boat Festival. Have you checked what you ate?"

Seeing the emperor asking, the queen thought for a moment and said, "The palace distributed gifts on the Dragon Boat Festival, and nothing else was made that day. They were all sent by the imperial kitchen according to regulations."

He Linzhang's eyes darkened: "Did you check it out at the time? Was it food rotten, or... was it poisoned?"