The Qing Palace Never Meets Spring

"Madam, Lady Li has sent it back."

"Is it only Li? What about the others who went to serve? Have you heard anything?"

"No, only Li Shi was the Dai Jia Shi that the master asked the Crown Princess for back then."

"Indeed, Li is, after all, a member of the inner circle, and is different from the others. Let Daijia come to see me."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a commotion broke out outside: "What's going on?"

"Madam," Zhang Chun entered the room with hurried steps, "The master is in trouble, and Princess Shijia is also in bad shape."

Qingwan quickly stood up: "Let's talk as we walk."

Zhang Chun immediately followed behind Qingwan: "Yes, Li..."

Because Yinxiang had said that day that he would give Li Shi to Qingwan, Li Shi would not have a rank. Zhang Chun hesitated for a moment, then continued,

"The Fujin (princess) wouldn't let Shi Jia Gege go any further, so Shi Jia Gege could only walk around the small courtyard. Just then, she ran into Concubine Li, who was on her way to the main house."

Perhaps because Princess Shijia had been looking well lately, Concubine Li couldn't stand it and blurted out that the master had gotten into trouble. Her words were rather unpleasant.

Upon hearing that her master was in trouble, Shi Jia Gege grabbed Li Shi and demanded an explanation. During the argument, Li Shi pushed Shi Jia Gege to the ground.

Blood was drawn immediately, and the guards at the gate have been sent to fetch the imperial physician.

"Wasn't Yingyu accompanied by anyone? They just watched her get pushed down."

"Those who followed tried to stop her, but they couldn't. When Shi Jia was pushed down, it was her maid who cushioned her fall."

But Princess Shijia's health was already weak...

"Take Li into custody, and then bring Daijia to see me."

Yingyu's pregnancy was said to be eight months, but it was actually only seven months. Qingwan was planning to wait a few days before reporting to the Imperial Household Department to prepare everything, thinking there was still more than a month to go. But then this unexpected incident happened.

"How is she?" When Qingwan arrived, Yingyu had already been carried back into the house.

"She's going to give birth prematurely, but the baby is too small, and the delivery room hasn't been properly prepared yet. I'm afraid Shi Jia is going to suffer a lot this time."

Aunt Yan had just heard that Yingyu had started bleeding, so she came over to have someone make arrangements.

"Thank you for your help again, Aunt Yan."

"What can I say? I can only try to ease your worries in these small ways."

"I've asked them to prepare everything needed for production. Please have a seat."

"Go get some ginseng to boil," Qingwan said, remembering how Fuling had been giving birth.

He then said, "Call Zhang Chunlai." There will definitely be a lot of people coming and going today, and things are bound to get chaotic.

The midwife and the imperial physician arrived quickly. After Qingwan saw that they were all in the right place, she finally went to see Lady Daijia and Lady Li.

Li Shi was still the same delicate and frail woman she had been when they first met. Qingwan stepped forward slowly, and only after Li Shi raised her head did she slowly raise her hand.

"Slap." The slap came so suddenly that Li was already on the ground when she came to her senses.

Qingwan had practiced riding and archery, and her hand strength was considerable. After the slap, Li's face quickly became red and swollen.

Madam Li looked at Qingwan in disbelief: "What did this servant do wrong that the Fujin treats this servant like this?"

"You knew that Princess Shijia was pregnant, yet you still revealed my affair to provoke her, and even dared to argue with her."

"This servant simply forgot that Consort Shi Jia was pregnant, and thinking of how you are suffering while Consort Shi Jia is only seeking pleasure, I got angry for a moment."

Qingwan didn't say anything more to her, but only asked Daijia, "Has the master used her during this time?"

"No, Master is very busy every day. After Master had his accident, he..." Qingwan raised her hand to interrupt Dai Jia.

"Very well, Madam Li, what do you think would happen if I sent you back to the Imperial Household Department?"

What would happen? Lady Li dared not think about it, for there had never been a case where a candidate selected by the Imperial Household Department was sent back.

Once she is sent back, forget about getting married in the future; her family might even strangle her with a rope, not to mention implicating the women in her family.

"I am the Empress Dowager..." Qingwan pointed to Daijia and went out, leaving Li's voice inside the door.

"Tell me what you know."

"Yes, everything was fine until the fourth day of the ninth month when we heard a commotion outside from inside our tent."

Then came the news of the death of the Eighteenth Prince and the Emperor's intention to depose the Crown Prince.

The deposed crown prince? Qingwan pinched her palm hard, using the intense pain to suppress the shock in her heart.

He took a deep breath, slowly sat down on the veranda, and then asked, "Anything else?"

"After that, we were locked up with the Crown Prince's female relatives. On the way back, we vaguely heard that the Crown Prince had been deposed and the Thirteenth Prince had also been implicated and imprisoned."

I don't know about the rest. After we returned to Beijing, we were detained in other places for a few days before being released.

"You go back first."

Qingwan felt her voice trembling. She had considered countless possibilities, except for the possibility of the deposed crown prince.

The Crown Prince was born to Empress Renxiao, the first empress of Emperor Kangxi. He was by Emperor Kangxi's side from birth. Among Emperor Kangxi's many children, he was the only one who was raised by Emperor Kangxi himself.

Everything about the Crown Prince was second only to Kangxi. How could Kangxi bear to depose the Crown Prince, especially since the deposition and establishment of the Crown Prince was a matter concerning the foundation of the country?

What about Yinxiang and Marhan? Yinxiang has already been imprisoned. What about Marhan? Has he also been implicated?

Qingwan was finally awakened by Li's voice. She calmed down after listening to Li's wailing inside the room.

Inside the room, Madam Li held onto the incense stick tightly, saying, "I was appointed by the Empress Dowager and all the ladies. You cannot send me back, my lady."

And Master, I am Master's person. If it weren't for Master, how would the Fujin dare to do this? Isn't she afraid of incurring the displeasure of the masters above and Master?

You are a trusted confidante of the Princess Consort; please advise her that she cannot treat me like this.

"What you said is true, but the masters appointed you here to serve the master and his wife, and even more so for the sake of the master's offspring."

But what you did today has harmed the master's offspring, and the princess has already been lenient with you today.

“If I am driven out, my life will be over. My clan will not let me off the hook. I still have unmarried sisters in my family.”

I beg you, please plead with the Princess Consort not to send me away. I'll give you anything. When I entered the palace, my family gave me some money; I'll give it all to you. If that's not enough, I'll have my family send more.

Seeing Li Shi crawling to her knees again and kowtowing repeatedly, Chenxiang quickly stepped back: "You should pay for the sins you have committed. I only ask that the Fujin help you out."

"Yes, what you say is true. I will go and serve Princess Shijia like a slave, as long as the Princess Consort doesn't kick me out."

"If only you had known then what you know now," Chenxiang muttered, and seeing that Li was about to speak again, he took a few steps out and closed the door behind him.

Then she saw Qingwan's brows furrowed and her expression dazed. She stepped forward to support Qingwan and was startled by the warmth of Qingwan's hand. She assumed it was because of Li Shi and Yingyu's matter and comforted her:

"Madam, what's wrong with you? Your hands are freezing cold. Don't let Li's matter upset you and ruin your health."

"It would be best if Princess Shi Jia's child could be saved, but if not, it has nothing to do with you."

Qingwan simply raised her hand: "Help me up." Although she didn't show it on her face, her body couldn't help but react to the news of the Crown Prince's deposition.

"Have someone lock Li up and don't let her out again."

"Does the Princess Consort really intend to send Lady Li back to the Imperial Household Department?"

"It's not that simple," Qingwan murmured, especially since their situation was different now.