An Lingrong is reborn to live for herself.

Half an hour later, the midwife came to report.

The baby had been delivered from the womb; it was a nearly seven-month-old male fetus, but unfortunately, it was already dead when it was delivered.

Fucha's bleeding has stopped, and she is now out of danger. However, after all this ordeal, it's unknown when she will fully recover. The implication is that it's uncertain when she will be able to conceive again.

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager frowned. "Where is the child? Let me see him."

"Your Majesty, please don't be too sad..." The Empress stepped forward to comfort her, but was interrupted by the Empress Dowager.

"No matter what, he is still my grandson. Even though he has passed away, I still want to see what this child looks like."

Seeing the Empress Dowager's genuine grief, the Emperor himself felt somewhat melancholy. He had already lost two children since ascending the throne. While saddened, he felt an overwhelming sense of resentment. This resentment was something no one else could understand, but the bond between mother and child was undeniable, and the Empress Dowager's sorrow naturally touched the Emperor deeply.

After a while, the midwife came over, carrying a small brocade quilt embroidered with golden cloud patterns, which was wrapped around the child who had not yet had a chance to see the world.

Zhu Xi took the baby from the midwife. Although she knew the baby had stopped breathing, her movements were still gentle.

The Empress Dowager gently lifted the blanket covering the child's face, and the moment the child's face was revealed, both the Empress Dowager and Zhu Xi gasped.

"This, this is clearly..." the Empress Dowager exclaimed in surprise. At the same time, the Emperor and Empress also turned their gazes to the child in Zhu Xi's arms. The Emperor's face instantly changed color, and he glared angrily, "Go, bring me that ignorant and arrogant Xia Shi!"

The incident happened so suddenly that the concubines nearby were quite frightened. Even Consort Hua was so startled by the emperor's roar that she took a half step back.

Consort Hua had been by the Emperor's side for many years and knew his temperament well. The Emperor had restrained his temper in the previous morning's perilous situation, but now he was so furious upon seeing the infant, which showed that the child's death was suspicious.

Consort Hua slowly walked to the emperor's side and comforted him, "Your Majesty, don't be too sad. Just let the servants deal with the ignorant ones. Please don't hurt yourself."

Upon seeing that it was Consort Hua, the Emperor's brows remained furrowed, but his tone softened slightly. "At this moment, I must make a decision. The Empress can remain here. There are many tedious affairs in the harem that require your assistance in overseeing, so there's no need for you to stay here."

After saying that, he looked at the crowd.

The Empress immediately understood and said, "Noble Lady Fucha is out of danger and needs to recuperate. Consorts who are not in danger may go back first. Only the imperial physician can stay and take care of her."

Consort Hua originally wanted to stay, but seeing the Emperor's unfriendly expression, she said no more and returned with her attendants.

The concubines had only come to make up the numbers, and after such a dangerous ordeal, they were utterly exhausted and drained. Hearing that the Empress wanted them to return to the palace, they secretly breathed a sigh of relief and dared not linger any longer, quickly taking their leave.

This scene was something Zhen Huan and Shen Meizhuang had never experienced before, and they were quite frightened. They helped each other out as they left, as a way of encouraging each other.

However, during this time, the Emperor frequently visited Suiyu Pavilion, and as they spent more time together, Zhen Huan developed a greater fondness for him. Seeing that the Emperor remained silent when the incident occurred, waiting for the imperial physicians and midwives to try their best, and only after the dust had settled and he saw the dead child did he decide to punish Xia Shi, it was likely because he was too heartbroken.

The imperial court and the harem were originally one, a fact Zhen Huan was well aware of before entering the palace. However, because of her affection for the emperor, she saw more of his helplessness as the Son of Heaven. Possessing supreme power did not necessarily guarantee a comfortable life. For example, today, his helplessness and his restraint earlier in the morning deeply pained Zhen Huan.

Therefore, as she was leaving, Zhen Huan couldn't help but turn back to look at the Emperor one last time. But to her surprise, she found that the Emperor was also looking at her.

That look pierced her heart. Zhen Huan had never seen such a deeply affectionate emperor before. His eyes held a mixture of sorrow, reluctance, guilt, and a lingering affection.

Zhen Huan nodded slightly, wanting to tell the Emperor not to be too sad, but worried that she wouldn't be able to convey her feelings clearly in that instant. Anxious, she didn't pay attention to her footing as she left and slipped on something, stumbling. Fortunately, An Lingrong was nearby and quickly helped Zhen Huan up.

"Sister, be careful."

"I don't know what tripped me up..." Zhen Huan said, looking down. It turned out to be the sheep gut glove that the midwife had used when removing the fetus from Fucha's womb. The glove had obviously been cleaned up a bit, as the bloodstains had been wiped off, but when Zhen Huan stepped on it, a large tear appeared in the palm.

"Your Highness, please stop looking at this. It's very unlucky. Let's go back quickly." Huanbi knew the purpose of this thing and dared not look at it for too long. She was also afraid that the emperor might take his anger out on someone else in a fit of rage, so she advised Zhen Huan to go back quickly.

Zhen Huan nodded, then turned to An Lingrong and said, "Sister Lingrong has always been timid, would you like to stay in my palace for the night?"

An Lingrong shook her head and said, "I understand your intentions, sister. I'm not afraid. Besides, this matter isn't over yet. I'm afraid the Emperor and Empress still have questions for me. Please don't disturb your rest. Don't worry, sister, I know what I'm doing."

After saying this, An Lingrong waved to Zhen Huan and then returned home with Baojuan.

Since the incident occurred today, Baojuan has not uttered a single word.

Strangely, even though such a major event was shocking and unsettling for Consort Hua and Consort Jing, who were former members of the Prince's household, Baojuan remained remarkably calm throughout. Many of her actions were merely going with the flow.

Upon closer reflection, how much of today's events were deliberate, and how much were planned from the beginning? What seemed like a casual quarrel between Lady Xia and Lady Fucha actually killed three birds with one stone: the loss of a noble son and the downfall of two newly favored concubines of the emperor.

That's a really clever plan.

An Lingrong was secretly alarmed. She had only thought that things might not develop as completely as in her previous life, but she had not expected that the power struggle among the concubines would be so interconnected that a single move could affect the whole situation. She had only made a slight change, but it seemed that everything had changed, and now it had changed to such an extent.

Baojuan, who was once an unknown figure by my side, has now become involved in such a dangerous conflict; she is truly not to be underestimated.

With these thoughts in mind, An Lingrong couldn't help but wonder what opportunity she could find to seize this girl and get rid of her so she could have peace of mind.

As she was pondering her turn back, she saw several guards dragging Xia Shi towards the palace where the emperor was. It seemed that Xia Shi knew things were going badly today and was trying to escape outside the palace, but she was captured by the guards.

An Lingrong looked around and recognized one of Xia Shi's guards. Bao Juan, who was beside her, also looked somewhat uncomfortable when she saw the guard next to Xia Shi.

Who is this person again?