Harem Daily Life

Fortunately, the emperor and the empress arrived quickly, otherwise the three people in Prince Yong's mansion would have been drowned in spit.

The empress dowager came in with several concubines, and the emperor also supported the pregnant queen into the hall. Everyone kowtowed to greet them, and only after the emperor was seated did they let everyone stand.

"This year, the war has begun, and the Mid-Autumn Palace Banquet will be held as usual. I want you all to know that our Great Zhou is fully capable of responding to every provocation. Xia is no match for us, and neither is Yan. You must trust the Great Zhou and place your trust in our officers and soldiers. Only by persevering will we be victorious this time."

Everyone raised their glasses and drank with the emperor, and shouts of "Long live the emperor" resounded throughout the hall.

The wine glass in Princess Qinghe's hand seemed to weigh a thousand pounds. She raised her glass with the crowd, but it was very difficult for her to drink the wine.

Tao Yanyan knew that she was poisoned. He glanced at her and saw that her face was pale and her body had become much thinner. She looked like a walking corpse and no longer had the spirit that she had seen three months ago.

Thinking of how Princess Qinghe had repeatedly instigated sowing discord between herself and Concubine Lin, Tao Yanyan couldn't help but sigh. It was really wrong to have the intention to harm others. If she hadn't done anything to harm Prince Yong's Mansion, how could she be treated like this?

Princess Qinghe dug her own grave and brought about her own death.

The banquet was going on in a lively and orderly manner, with guests laughing and chatting happily, and dancers in gorgeous costumes dancing gracefully.

However, Tao Yanyan was feeling uneasy. Her belly was growing, and her movements were becoming clumsy. From time to time, she needed to get up to change clothes or go for a walk outside to relieve the discomfort of her back pain.

He Linzhang looked at her with concern, a hint of heartache in his eyes. He knew the hardships of pregnant women, especially in such situations, and needed special care.

He Linzhang then quietly instructed his attendants to clean up the side hall and prepare a comfortable resting place for Tao Yanyan. He also had some exquisite snacks prepared and placed in the side hall for Tao Yanyan to enjoy at any time.

Qingfeng and Mingyue helped Tao Yanyan sit down on the chaise longue, put two pillows under her, and then gently massaged her legs to help her relax her body.

At this time, a palace maid came outside to report that Princess Qinghe wanted to see her.

Tao Yanyan raised his eyebrows, thinking that he had no friendship with Princess Qinghe and had nothing to say to her. He wondered why she came to see him.

The person was allowed in, and Princess Qinghe immediately knelt down before Tao Yanyan and begged, "Please, Queen, save my life!"

Tao Yanyan changed her posture, slightly easing her discomfort, and asked, "Why do you say such things? I see you're fine, so why would you worry about your life?"

Princess Qinghe said hurriedly, "Your Majesty, I've been poisoned, but all the doctors around me, including the imperial physician, are unwilling to treat me. I have no choice but to take advantage of today's banquet to come to you. Please, Your Majesty, have mercy on me and save my life!"

Princess Qinghe spoke sincerely and looked at Tao Yanyan with expectation.

Tao Yanyan asked suspiciously, "Who wants to poison you? And why?"

Princess Qinghe choked. When she talked about the reason, she thought of how she had framed Aunt Lin, which also involved the Empress Tao in front of her. So for a moment, she was unable to speak.

Seeing her expression, Tao Yanyan asked, "Could it be that you are imagining this, and no one is actually trying to harm you?"

Princess Qinghe quickly shook her head. "No, no, no, I was indeed poisoned. Someone poisoned me. Otherwise, I wouldn't be in a trance, weak, or losing my hair in clumps. My mother said that once a person is poisoned, their hair will fall out. It must be true."

After she finished speaking, she began to cry: "I really have no choice. In the palace, the princess doesn't care about me. The concubine has been hot and cold towards me recently. The prince has also become cold. He hasn't set foot in my yard in the past few months, let alone listen to me when I talk about my illness..."

Princess Qinghe wiped her tears as she spoke, looking very pitiful.

However, Tao Yanyan is not a saintly person. When facing someone who has no good intentions towards her, her heart is colder than anyone else.

"I wanted to go see a doctor outside, but they kept their mouth shut and prescribed me a lot of tonics, but the more I took them, the worse my condition became. Your Majesty, I am a princess who was married to a foreign country. If I die, how will the Great Zhou explain to the State of Yan in the future? If the two countries want to negotiate peace, they need a mediator, right? I hope Your Majesty will put the greater good first and save me!"

Tao Yanyan looked at her with amusement. "It would be fine if you didn't mention the State of Yan. As soon as you do, I think of all the money I spent and the blood of my Great Zhou soldiers. I can't wait to grind you, a useless thing, into dust and ash."

Princess Qinghe was stunned and looked at her worriedly.

Tao Yanyan rolled his eyes at her. "You should be thankful that I still have some common sense and know that this war between two countries has nothing to do with a woman like you. Otherwise, just because you kneel before me for no reason and say nonsense about being poisoned, I would have sent for Prince Yong to come over and have him punish you severely."

Tao Yanyan finished speaking and gave Mingyue a look. Mingyue stepped forward and said, "Princess, please stand up, dry your tears, and return to the palace banquet. The Queen needs to rest and take care of her pregnancy. Do not disturb her."

Princess Qinghe had finally found someone who might save her, so how could she give up so easily? She thought for a moment and said, "As long as the Queen saves me, I can tell you a secret."

Tao Yanyan: “…”

Am I someone who can be secretly bribed so easily?

She cleared her throat and said, "Then you have to let me hear first whether your secret is worth it for me to send someone to find a royal physician who dares to tell the truth."

Princess Qinghe saw hope and hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, you must be vigilant against Prince Yong. He harbors a deep affection for you. The portrait from last time and the concubine Lin who entered the palace this year are all evidence of his ill intentions towards you."

Tao Yanyan: “…”

This is a secret? Are you kidding me?

The brother-in-law likes the beautiful sister-in-law, but he only likes her silently in his heart. He has not really crossed the line. Can he still be held accountable?

Mingyue and Qingfeng pretended to be dead, looked at each other, and acted as if they had never heard of this.

Tao Yanyan scratched his ears and said, "If you continue to act recklessly, don't blame me for being rude and kicking you out."

Seeing that Empress Tao was completely unmoved, Princess Qinghe laughed and said, "So, you knew all along. Hahahaha, you saw it long ago, but you kept it to yourself. You didn't make trouble for His Majesty, nor did you make trouble for Prince Yong. You're really patient."

Tao Yanyan looked at her like she was an idiot: "What are you making a fuss about? I have to make a fuss just because someone secretly likes me? I don't think you're poisoned, but rather like you're missing a piece of your brain, a little mentally retarded."

Princess Qinghe was angry at being scolded, but she couldn't refute it. She knew that the most important thing now was to find someone to heal her. So after thinking for a long time, she said, "I can tell you a secret of Yan State, but please believe me, this secret is really something I heard with my own ears."

Tao Yanyan changed his posture again: "Whether I can trust it or not, I will consider it myself."

Princess Qinghe had no other choice but to say, "When I was nine years old, I once accompanied my father to Yanyun Mountain. He said there was a treasure hidden in the mountains, but no one had yet found the entrance. He said that if we could obtain this treasure, the Yan Kingdom would be able to dominate the world."

Tao Yanyan narrowed his eyes and thought about her words.

"Trust me, I won't be wrong. No one knows about this, not even the current monarch of Yan, my cruel brother. I'm only telling you, you must trust me."

After a long pause, Tao Yanyan said, "Go and ask Imperial Physician Liu to come over."

Princess Qinghe saw hope and hurried to express her gratitude. She felt that she was finally saved this time.

But unexpectedly, a voice came from outside the door, and the little palace maid reported that Prince Yong had arrived.

Princess Qinghe was so frightened that she staggered and almost fainted.

She looked at Tao Yanyan pleadingly. Tao Yanyan asked Qingfeng to help Princess Qinghe up and let her sit. Then he asked someone to call Prince Yong in.