blenderwars Chapter 312 Afraid of two more like you
Chapter 312 Afraid of two more like you
Shen Shixi and Li Yuanke rode together in the imperial carriage, mainly because Li Yuanke's carriage was very smooth.
He held Shen Shixi in his arms, his hands covering her belly. Ever since he noticed the baby moving, Li Yuanke had been particularly fond of playing with her belly, and the more time passed, the more active her belly became.
Li Yuanke's hand roamed over her stomach, and wherever it touched, he would get kicked.
Li Yuanke was amused, while Shen Shixi was getting a little annoyed by the three of them. "Li Yuanke, that's enough! You didn't kick your stomach, did you? Why don't you try it and see if it hurts?"
"Are you in pain? Why didn't you say so earlier?" Li Yuanke quickly let go and saw four bulges on Shen Shixi's stomach, rising and falling in different places.
Shen Shixi was utterly speechless, so she asked Li Yuanke, "Did you figure anything out?"
Because Li Yuanke kept insisting that the imperial physician take her pulse, she became very annoyed and didn't want to have her pulse taken, leading to an argument between the two.
Li Yuanke watched for a while, still not understanding, and asked, "What is he/she doing? Using both hands and feet?"
Shen Shixi rolled her eyes. "Li Yuanke, this means you're amazing. You got me pregnant with twins at once, so you can relax now. Why is my belly so big?"
"Sigh, I also used you to deal with Consort De that day. She's really restless, always jumping around and causing trouble..."
Li Yuanke only heard the first half, not the second half.
"What did you say? What two?"
Shen Shixi was turned around by his shoulder, looking at his reddened eyes, speechless. "Didn't Que Chongyi also give birth to twins for you? Is it really necessary to get so agitated?"
"Shut up, you bastard! Can't you speak properly?" He was really too excited. He hugged Shen Shixi tightly, burying his face in the crook of her shoulder. "Xi'er, Xi'er, aren't I amazing? Haha, two at once!"
But he quickly realized, "Won't this be too strenuous?"
"I'm alright, anyway, I don't have any reaction. I can eat, drink, and sleep well. It's just that our Majesty has had a hard time!" She touched his cheek.
Li Yuanke lowered his head and kissed her, "I'm not tired, it's only right that I am tired!"
He kissed her here and there, overjoyed.
However, Shen Shixi had something more important to do at this moment. She pushed Li Yuanke's head and said, "Li Yuanke, I'm scared!"
"With your father here, what's there to be afraid of?"
"What if I give birth to twin sons? What if they look exactly alike?" Shen Shixi said. "If that happens, I won't ask for anything else. Just let the three of us, mother and children, leave the palace, okay?"
"You're dreaming!" Li Yuanke hugged her even tighter. "I can't let you leave the palace, Xi'er. Stay in the palace with me. I don't want to be alone!"
"But, Li Yuanke, if they are exactly the same son, I've heard that in all dynasties, if a pair of identical twin princes were born, only one could be kept..."
"Who told you this nonsense?" Li Yuanke lowered his head and kissed her lips. "Don't worry, I'm here. They're all my children. If they were really identical twin sons, I wouldn't be able to bear losing either of them. So we'll just have another one. Don't worry, we won't be that unlucky!"
It's impossible to make an identical twin son the crown prince.
Shen Shixi said, "Then you promised me that no matter what, you have to protect my son and not hurt them."
"I'm not a beast; even a tiger wouldn't eat its own cubs."
"That's hard to say. How can there be fathers and sons in the imperial family? Look at all the dynasties throughout history, there have been many instances of fathers and sons fighting each other for the throne. Anyway, I don't care, you're not allowed to do that."
"I don't know how. Don't overthink it. What if you ruin your brain by thinking about it all the time?"
Shen Shixi wasn't one to overthink things, and then she thought, "What if I have twin daughters? You're not allowed to complain then."
"I don't mind at all! I like them more than anything. They should all look like me, not you! My son can look like you!"
Shen Shixi laughed, "Li Yuanke, why? Do you dislike me?"
"No!" Li Yuanke smiled without saying anything, thinking to himself, "I'm afraid if two more like you come along, I won't be able to handle them."
He lowered his head and kissed Shen Shixi, then they lingered, kissing her until she was uncomfortable, and he himself was uncomfortable too, before they finally stopped.
Inside the palace, Wang Yuehuai waited anxiously. She sent a letter to Consort De, requesting her help.
Even if the emperor were in the palace, it would be extremely difficult for her to see him given her rank.
When the imperial carriage arrived at the palace gate, the concubines came to greet it. Seeing the emperor helping the empress carefully down from the carriage, the concubines had different thoughts.
Wang Yuehuai wanted to rush forward to see the Emperor, but was stopped by a look from Consort De. Fortunately, otherwise the guards would have arrested her as an assassin.
Shen Shixi looked around at everyone and said, "Let's hold a morning meeting at Fengyi Palace tomorrow, at 1:15 AM. Bai Ping, please make arrangements to bake some small pastries. We can all get together later. If you have imperial heirs, you can bring them along."
"Your Majesty, we obey!"
Shen Shixi then said, "Everyone, please disperse!"
She then rode in Li Yuanke's imperial carriage back to Qianyuan Palace. She was too tired on the way, so she took a bath and went straight to bed. Li Yuanke still had a lot of things to do, first going to Cining Palace to pay his respects to the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager then began to find fault with Shen Shixi, saying, "Does the Emperor know that the Empress has delegated the duties of the Imperial Household Department to the Prince of Huainan? Since when has the Empress been in charge of matters concerning the Imperial Household Department?"
The Emperor said, "The Imperial Household Department has its ministers, while the Empress is concerned with matters such as glass, mirrors, and porcelain. These are all things the Empress herself has arranged, so naturally, she can give them to whomever she wants!"
The Empress Dowager said, "She was the one who started all these new things, and it's her achievement. No one can deny that. But now that they've been transferred to the Imperial Household Department, it's the Imperial Household Department that will be in charge from now on. It's not appropriate for her to interfere in these matters."
"The Imperial Household Department deals with matters within the palace. She is the Empress, so why can't she interfere? I would never do something like discarding a used tool after it has served its purpose. Besides, she is my wife, so why can't she interfere?"
The Empress Dowager was furious. It's no wonder she felt sorry for her youngest son; look at how her eldest son had forgotten his mother after getting married!
"When Empress Pei was Empress, did she ever interfere with the Imperial Household Department like this? How come now that Shen is Empress, she can just boss people around? You don't care, but you won't even let me speak up?" The Empress Dowager was also annoyed.
"I do not wish to mention the matter of Pei becoming Empress! Mother, you should know better than anyone that I have only ever wanted to marry Shen Shixi. She is my only Empress. I have already issued an edict that neither the court nor the harem is allowed to mention Pei as Empress. Anyone who dares to disobey this edict will be severely punished!"
The Empress Dowager was incredulous. "You... what kind of bewitching potion did Shen give you to make you like this! Do you even remember how long it's been since you last summoned any concubines? You are the Emperor, how can you be so infatuated with women? The harem is closely connected to the court; aren't you afraid the censors will impeach the Empress for being jealous?"
"This is my matter, Your Majesty need not worry about it. If Your Majesty has no other instructions, I will return now, as there are still many state affairs to attend to."
After saying that, he got up and left.
The Empress Dowager was so angry she nearly fainted. Then she heard that someone outside the palace had handed her a plaque, and the wife of the Grand Chancellor wanted to come in to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager granted her request and told her to come over early the next morning.
The next morning, Shen Shixi held a morning meeting at Fengyi Palace. The day before, she had someone notify Yuan Zhaoyue and Consort Jing. Consort Jing was seriously ill and unable to get out of bed, but given this opportunity, she crawled over no matter what.