Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 410 Jujube Paste Paste

"No, let him get some sleep. The child has suffered." Empress Liang sighed. "I've already heard the gist of what happened from the Crown Prince. It was the Second Prince's fault. Tomorrow morning I'll summon Consort Xie and order her to discipline the Second Prince properly. Brothers should love and help each other; how could he act so recklessly?!"

Jiang Meiren whispered, "The Second Prince probably just wants to play around with A-Zhou."

"Even if it was just playing around, this is going too far." Empress Liang seemed genuinely angry, her tone quite stern.

Consort Jiang knelt down and said, "This concubine thanks Your Majesty the Empress for your kindness. This matter is over, please do not pursue the Second Prince's responsibility any further."

Empress Liang personally stepped forward to help Consort Jiang up.

Looking into Consort Jiang's tear-filled eyes, she asked gently, "Are you afraid that if things get out of hand, Consort Xie and the Second Prince will retaliate against you?"

Consort Jiang gently shook her head: "I don't want Her Majesty the Empress to clash with Consort Xie over such a trivial matter. The Xie family is powerful now, and even the Emperor has to avoid them, let alone me. Anyway, A-Zhou is alright, so let's just let this matter go."

"But this would be too unfair to you and the Fifth Prince."

"When my family suffered a great calamity, I was forced to become a servant. What grievances haven't I endured? This little thing is nothing to me. As long as A-Zhou is safe, I can tolerate anything else."

Empress Liang's eyes were filled with pity. She handed over a token and instructed, "This is my token. Have someone take it to the Imperial Hospital to get the medicine. The Imperial Hospital will not dare to refuse you the medicine."

Consort Jiang accepted the token with both hands, her eyes brimming with gratitude: "Thank you, Your Majesty the Empress."

Empress Liang took her hand, and the two sat down together on the soft couch.

“I know that the reason why the Second Prince is making things difficult for the Fifth Prince is actually because of the Crown Prince. The Second Prince has always been dissatisfied with the Crown Prince and has competed with him a lot over the years. He must be unhappy to see the Fifth Prince getting close to the Crown Prince, so he deliberately picked a fight with you. In the end, it is actually the Crown Prince who has implicated you.”

Consort Jiang hurriedly denied it: "Your Majesty, please don't say that. His Highness the Crown Prince has always taken good care of A-Zhou. Both Your Majesty and His Highness the Crown Prince are good people. When I was pregnant, someone tampered with my food, and I almost lost my life along with my unborn child. It was Your Majesty who asked the Imperial Physician to save me and my unborn child. Later, Your Majesty even took me to live in a side hall of the Zichen Palace until I safely gave birth to my son. Over the years, it is because of Your Majesty's protection that I have been able to raise A-Zhou successfully. Your Majesty is a great benefactor to A-Zhou and me. I have worked like a slave to repay you!"

“You don’t need to do that. As the Empress, it is my duty to protect the concubines and the imperial heirs.”

Consort Jiang sincerely said, "Your Majesty the Empress's health has been deteriorating in recent years, and she should rest properly. I cannot let you worry and tire yourself out over these trivial matters. Let's just leave A-Zhou's matter behind."

Empress Liang sighed: "Since you've made up your mind, then let's do as you say. It's getting late, so we'll head back now."

Li Xuanhe said to Jiang Meiren, "Fifth Brother should rest for a while. I will ask the teacher for leave on his behalf tomorrow. Once he is feeling better, I will personally tutor him."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Yan Ciwan stood there watching Empress Liang and Li Xuanhe leave. Both mother and son had gentle and kind eyes. Whenever Yan Ciwan saw their eyes, she would involuntarily think of Xiao Wang, who also had the same eyes.

As the voices of Empress Liang and Li Xuanhe faded into the night, the surrounding lights went out, and the scenery vanished in an instant.

In the blink of an eye, Yan Ciwan arrived at the study, where Li Baizhou was sitting upright behind the desk, writing characters stroke by stroke.

After finishing writing a piece of calligraphy, he blew on the ink to dry it, then took the Xuan paper and ran to find Li Xuanhe.

"Crown Prince, I've finished writing!"

Li Xuanhe was sitting by the window, holding a book in his hands. He looked at the contents of the book but did not turn to the next page for a long time.

He was pulled back to his senses by Li Baizhou's voice, immediately put down his book, took the Xuan paper and looked at it carefully, then smiled and praised, "It's much better than last time, you've improved very quickly."

Li Baizhou was embarrassed by the praise. He blushed and said, "It's all thanks to my elder brother, the Crown Prince, for his guidance." Li Xuanhe patted his head and said gently, "You are very smart. If you study hard in the future, you will definitely achieve great things."

At this moment, Jiang Meiren walked in carrying a tray.

"Your Highness, A-Zhou, come and have some snacks. These are jujube paste pastries I made myself, and freshly squeezed sugarcane juice. Please try them."

Li Xuanhe thanked him, washed his hands, picked up a piece of jujube paste pastry, tasted it, and praised, "Sweet but not greasy, fragrant and crispy, very delicious."

Jiang Meiren smiled and said, "If you like it, please eat more. If you're not full, I'll make more."

Li Baizhou showed the calligraphy he had just written to Jiang Meiren.

"My elder brother, the Crown Prince, just praised me for making great progress!" He raised his little head, his eyes sparkling, his face seemingly saying, "Come and praise me!"

Jiang Meiren was amused by his adorable appearance, and said in a serious tone, "Your handwriting is indeed quite good, but there is still a lot of room for improvement. You must not be complacent and must continue to work hard in the future."

"I know!" Li Baizhou picked up a piece of jujube paste pastry and stuffed it into his mouth, his cheeks puffed out.

"Eat slowly, be careful not to choke." Jiang Meiren used a handkerchief to wipe the crumbs of pastry from the corner of his mouth. She reached for the sugarcane juice and caught a glimpse of Li Xuanhe staring out the window in a daze.

She placed the sugarcane juice in Li Baizhou's hand, telling him to drink it slowly, then sat down in the chair opposite Li Xuanhe and asked cautiously.

"Your Highness seems to have something on your mind?"

Li Xuanhe came to his senses, placed the jujube paste cake in his hand into the porcelain dish, and hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"Recently, the Empress Dowager has been feeling unwell. This morning, the imperial physician examined her pulse and said she is pregnant."

Jiang Meiren was overjoyed: "This is wonderful news!"

Li Xuanhe smiled wryly: "Father and Mother also think this is a good thing, but as you know, I am very worried about whether her body can withstand the pain of childbirth."

His reminder caused the joy on Jiang Meiren's face to fade, and she began to worry.

She asked, "What did the imperial physicians say? Is Her Majesty's pregnancy stable?"

"The imperial physician said the pulse is a bit weak and needs proper care. We'll observe it again after some time."

Consort Jiang volunteered: "If you trust me, please let me take care of Her Majesty the Empress. I have given birth before and know how to take good care of a pregnant woman."

Li Xuanhe was somewhat tempted. There were nannies in the palace who were specifically responsible for taking care of pregnant women, but compared to them, Consort Jiang was more trustworthy. With her by his side, Empress Liang's mood would probably be better.

"If you go to take care of Mother, who will take care of Fifth Brother?"

Li Baizhou put down his cup and said, "I can live with my elder brother, the Crown Prince!"

Consort Jiang quickly stopped her: "What nonsense are you talking about? You can't disturb the Crown Prince. I'll tell the wet nurses to take good care of you later."

Li Xuanhe said, "I think Fifth Brother's idea is good. Let him move in and live with me."

Li Baizhou cheered excitedly, "Yay!"