Chapter 298: She Won’t Give Up
Shen Ruoxi only realized afterward that the person she encountered in the Imperial Garden was Noble Lady An, who was pregnant. She no longer felt like bathing, worried that something might happen. She hurriedly changed into a set of clothes and rushed to the Imperial Garden, just in time to see Noble Lady An throwing herself at the Jin Kingdom Emperor. She paused in her steps.
The Jin Kingdom Emperor disliked the scent of cosmetics, but seeing her bulging belly and thinking that she was carrying his child, he was about to reach out and hold her shoulder to prevent her from throwing herself at him and also to prevent her from falling and hurting the baby in her womb. At this moment, he caught sight of Shen Ruoxi’s figure out of the corner of his eye. He was so startled that he retracted his hand and directly dodged, saying to the eunuch behind him, “Protect her!”
The Jin Kingdom Emperor’s sudden jump startled the eunuch standing behind him.
Seeing Beautiful Lady An rushing towards him, the eunuch’s eyes widened. How could he dare touch a concubine from the imperial harem? He was just about to dodge when he heard the Emperor speak.
Upon hearing this, the eunuch didn’t dare to move, so Beautiful Lady An crashed into the eunuch!
Beautiful Lady An: “…”
After steadying herself in the eunuch’s embrace, Beautiful Lady An immediately pushed him away. She wanted to slap him, but seeing that he was the Emperor’s eunuch, she didn’t dare. Red-eyed, she turned her head to look at the Jin Kingdom Emperor standing to the side, her face full of grievance, a sight that would move anyone to pity: “Your Majesty!”
The Jin Kingdom Emperor walked past her directly, arriving in front of Shen Ruoxi. He grasped her shoulders, seeing that her hair was dripping wet. He reached out to touch it, frowning: “Why is your hair so wet?”
Her clothes were all wet!
Beautiful Lady An, who was being ignored: “…”
Shen Ruoxi was both amused and annoyed by the Jin Kingdom Emperor’s dodging. She wouldn’t even be jealous if he just helped a pregnant woman, let alone this Beautiful Lady An who was carrying his child. She shook her head: “It’s nothing. There were poisonous bees in the Imperial Garden just now. I was so scared that I ran back and jumped into the bath. However, Noble Lady An is pregnant. I don’t know if she was stung by the poisonous bees or if it affected her pregnancy.”
Poisonous bees? The Jin Kingdom Emperor’s face changed. He cupped her face, looking left and right, then lifted her hand and rolled up her sleeve to check: “Were you stung by the poisonous bees?”
Shen Ruoxi shook her head: “I’m fine. I ran fast. It seems they were the ones who got stung! It’s all my fault for asking Little Linzi to cut peony flowers to take back and arrange. That’s what attracted the poisonous bees. Noble Lady An, were you stung by the poisonous bees?”
Beautiful Lady An was too scared just now, and then too surprised to see the Jin Kingdom Emperor. Seeing the Jin Kingdom Emperor protecting Shen Ruoxi and ignoring her, she felt wronged. At this moment, hearing Shen Ruoxi’s words, she felt a faint pain in her stomach. She clutched her belly: “Your Majesty, my stomach hurts.”
Beautiful Lady Li didn’t want to be completely ignored. One of them ran away so quickly, and the other hid under her skirt. How could they be hurt? The one who was hurt was her! She covered her face, whimpering: “Your Majesty, I was protecting Noble Lady An and got stung by a poisonous bee! It hurts so much! Sob, sob…”
The implication was that she was injured by the poisonous bees while protecting the dragon seed in Noble Lady An’s womb. Surely the Emperor wouldn’t ignore her, right?
The Jin Kingdom Emperor turned to look at Noble Lady An, his eyes filled with scrutiny. Seeing her rushing over so quickly just now, she didn’t look like she had a stomachache at all.
But seeing that her face was indeed a little pale, and she was carrying his child after all, the Jin Kingdom Emperor said to the eunuch beside him: “Summon the Imperial Physician!”
Then he said to the palace maids and eunuchs behind Noble Lady An: “Why aren’t you taking your mistress back?”
“Yes!” The palace maids beside Noble Lady An immediately stepped forward to help her leave.
However, Noble Lady An reached out to the Jin Kingdom Emperor, her eyes filled with tears, her voice sweet and soft: “Your Majesty~”
Shen Ruoxi felt goosebumps all over her body. She hurriedly said: “Your Majesty, I’m afraid Noble Lady An’s pregnancy is affected. You should escort her back!”
Noble Lady An looked at the Jin Kingdom Emperor with anticipation.
The Jin Kingdom Emperor: “I’m not an Imperial Physician. There are palace maids and eunuchs to escort her. It’s enough that I’ve summoned the Imperial Physician.”
Noble Lady An: “…”
So the palace maids immediately helped Noble Lady An to leave.
Noble Lady An left, looking back every few steps.
The Jin Kingdom Emperor embraced Shen Ruoxi: “Let’s go back to Kun Ning Palace too. Your clothes are all wet. Don’t catch a cold.”
Shen Ruoxi glanced at Beautiful Lady Li and the other palace maids and eunuchs who were completely ignored: “Your Majesty should summon the Imperial Physician for them too!”
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The Jin Kingdom Emperor surveyed the people around him, noticing that although these eunuchs and palace maids had their heads bowed, every single one of them had large and small swellings on their faces. “Don’t worry, Little Li knows what to do.”
The eunuch by his side wouldn’t be so incompetent. Even if he didn’t instruct him, he knew what to do.
If he had to give instructions for everything, then even twenty-four hours a day wouldn’t be enough.
As for those he specifically instructed, it was their honor!
Only Noble Lady An, with his child in her womb, had this honor.
In fact, in the Jin Kingdom Emperor’s heart, he didn’t have much affection for the concubines in his harem.
In his eyes, their relationship was one of mutual benefit. He needed to continue his lineage, and they entered the palace as concubines to gain power for their families, nothing more!
He didn’t have much affection for them, and what they sought from him wasn’t actually affection either.
The Jin Kingdom Emperor never felt that he owed them anything, because he had already compensated them in the court, and they had gotten what they deserved.
Moreover, it wasn’t him who wanted to take in so many concubines; it was the ministers who proposed imperial selections every three years, actively sending their daughters into the palace. He only took them in to satisfy some of the ministers.
All the concubines who entered the palace, whether favored or not, with children or not, their families had all been promoted to some extent. He treated them all equally!
Therefore, in the eyes of the Jin Kingdom Emperor, this was just a mutually beneficial transaction! He owed them nothing.
However, how could there be poisonous bees in the Imperial Garden? The Jin Kingdom Emperor looked at the black poisonous bees that had been swatted dead on the ground.
He thought of how Shen Ruoxi would stroll in the Imperial Garden every day, and how she liked to cut some fresh flowers to take back and arrange in vases. The Jin Kingdom Emperor, who had grown up amidst various palace schemes, couldn’t help but suspect that someone had deliberately done this.
After all, the flowers in the Imperial Garden were carefully tended every day. How could they not have discovered a beehive?
The Jin Kingdom Emperor didn’t pursue the matter for the time being. Shen Ruoxi hadn’t experienced palace schemes and didn’t know that palace scheming methods were endless. There was no need to frighten her. He put his arm around Shen Ruoxi, “Let’s go back!”
So Shen Ruoxi left with the Jin Kingdom Emperor.
Beautiful Lady Li watched the Jin Kingdom Emperor protect Shen Ruoxi and leave, without giving her a single glance from beginning to end. She covered her aching face, lowered her eyes, and turned to leave.
In fact, some time ago, she had noticed a few black bees flying around the Imperial Garden from time to time. She guessed that there must be a black beehive somewhere in the Imperial Garden, but she didn’t say anything. Instead, while pretending to admire the flowers, she had someone find it.
The eunuch in charge of this area of peonies happened to be one of her people, so the beehive was left there.
She had originally intended to use this beehive against Noble Lady An, who was pregnant, but she didn’t expect the Emperor to bring back an Empress, and this Empress happened to like strolling in the Imperial Garden and cutting flowers to take back and arrange.
Seeing that the peony bush near the beehive was in full bloom today, she thought that the Empress would probably cut flowers near the beehive these days, and then she would disturb the black bees and get stung. In her panic, she would bump into Beautiful Lady An, killing two birds with one stone.
Things went very smoothly, but she didn’t expect that neither of them would be hurt, and the only one injured was herself.
However, she wouldn’t give up!
The Empress Dowager was her aunt, and the Empress Dowager doted on her the most when she was around. She even intended for her to become the Crown Princess. Now that the Empress Dowager was gone, she didn’t become the Crown Princess, and instead became the Emperor’s concubine. Then the position of Empress could only belong to her!
