Selling wife for fame? Kick out the scumbag and marry the new emperor to enjoy the harem of favors

Chapter 182 Suspicion

"Yes, I'm very worried about the food this time. Everyone around the princess is extremely nervous. I have to ask about everything Wenxi eats, for fear that something might go wrong," Xie Jiu sighed.

The main reason is that Princess Wenxi's last attack was too frightening.

Urticaria, which is what we now call allergies, causes rashes, but that's nothing compared to the swelling of the throat, which can lead to suffocation at any time—that's what's truly frightening.

Last time, Princess Wenxi not only had a swollen throat but also vomited, which was like adding insult to injury. If she was not careful, her trachea could be blocked, which could lead to serious problems.

Furthermore, the imperial physician instructed that since Princess Wenxi could not eat yams, there were likely other things she could not eat as well. In the future, she should try a small bite of anything new or unfamiliar to her first, and only eat it if there were no problems.

Especially seafood such as fish and shrimp.

Zhao Xingjin nodded. "I didn't know about this illness before. Now that I've discovered it, I can't help but worry about it every day. The Empress mentioned it to me today, and she was also filled with fear and self-blame. It has made me think about something."

"What is it?" Xie Jiu put down her chopsticks and looked up at him.

“I previously said that the children should be moved out to live separately so that they wouldn’t be too spoiled. But now it seems that it’s not safe enough. The servants are not being watched by anyone, so they are bound to be careless. The children are young and I’m afraid they won’t be able to keep order. The servants in the palace are cunning and shrewd. I’m afraid they might become too powerful and bully their masters,” Zhao Xingjin said in a deep voice.

Xie Jiu's eyes flickered. "It's not that serious. Qinlan, who serves Wenxi, is someone left behind by Consort Xian. She is always meticulous and attentive, and she serves the princess with the utmost care. To be honest, she cares about the princess even more than I do."

She liked Qinlan very much and was a loyal servant, so when she thought of this topic, she thought of speaking up for Qinlan, since there was still punishment to be handed down and it would be best to avoid it.

After all, Princess Wenxi's accident was unexpected.

"As for moving out to live separately, I'm easy to talk about. I just brought Wenxi to Jingming Palace. Even if we were to move, we should wait until she's fully recovered. The New Year is just around the corner, so it's not too late to talk about it after the New Year," Xie Jiu said softly.

If they disliked her, they wouldn't have taken the initiative to bring Princess Wenxi here.

The child was close to her, seemingly regarding her as her mother. Xie Jiu herself had recently lost her mother and understood Princess Wenxi's grief, so she wanted to give the little girl as much warmth as possible.

"Qinlan has indeed served you well, I know what you're thinking." Zhao Xingjin lowered his eyes. "Here's what we'll do: once she's taken care of Wenxi and he's recovered, we'll consider it a case of merit offsetting demerit, and reduce his punishment by half. We can't leave him unpunished, otherwise the servants in the palace will see this and follow suit, and there will be no discipline."

After speaking, she paused for a moment, then put some food into Xie Jiu's bowl.

"Furthermore, I am thinking of having Wenxi stay in Jingming Palace for a while longer, until she turns ten, and then she can move out to live on her own. What do you think?"

"Of course I have no objection. I can stay until I get married," Xie Jiu said with a smile.

To be honest, life in the palace was quite monotonous, but having a child playing around could really lift one's spirits.

Seeing that Xie Jiu agreed without hesitation, Zhao Xingjin then said, "Zhaoqing is now ten years old and has always been steady, so she will move to Ruiyu Palace after the New Year. Lingyi is still young, so let her live with the Empress for a few more years."

Xie Jiu hadn't thought much of it at first, but upon hearing Zhao Xingjin's words, a thought suddenly flashed through her mind. Her eyes flickered, and she immediately asked.

"Why did Your Majesty suddenly change your mind? Is it because of Wenxi's illness?"

"Not entirely. When the Empress came to tell me about Consort Chen's pregnancy today, she mentioned that Lingyi caught a cold last night and was listless and coughing this morning. I thought that she was indeed still a bit young, and girls are bound to be more delicate. Now that she has left her birth mother to live alone, Zhaoqing, as the older sister, has to take care of her younger sister, which is tiring for Zhaoqing."

Zhao Xingjin was quite satisfied with his eldest daughter; she was intelligent and steady. Therefore, Zhaoqing should move out of Weiyang Palace no matter what.

The older the child is, the deeper the impact.

"It seems Her Majesty the Empress is very reluctant to part with the First Princess, but fortunately Princess Lingyi can stay by Her Majesty's side for a few more years," Xie Jiu said. Zhao Xingjin lowered his eyes, "Lingyi's personality is too impulsive. I'm afraid she will become arrogant in the future, so I need to ask her tutor to pay close attention to her and teach her strictly."

Xie Jiu didn't respond to that.

She wouldn't interrupt other people's children.

Xie Jiu now suspects whether the Empress knows that Princess Wenxi cannot eat yams. After all, when the plum blossom viewing banquet was to be held, it was the Empress who specifically suggested that the snacks be prepared by the small kitchen of Weiyang Palace.

Consort Xian had been with Zhao Xingjin since his time as a prince. Although she had never told anyone that she couldn't eat yams, the Empress had spent a lot of time with her and might have discovered something, but she just kept it to herself.

Xie Jiu hadn't thought about this before, but now that the Empress was using Princess Wenxi's illness as an excuse to suggest that Zhaoqing and Lingyi stay in Weiyang Palace for a while longer, Xie Jiu became suspicious.

Could it be that the Empress didn't have a good excuse to keep her two daughters from moving out, and she was reluctant to make a fuss about her own daughters, so she used Princess Wenxi as a pretext for the plum blossom banquet?

Chunrong couldn't find out anything about the scar on Zhang Liquan's hand, which shows that it was discovered too late. The other party had already erased the traces. Even if she had any doubts, it could only be a cat scratch.

Consort Ke Yi's death was irrelevant to Xie Jiu, but Princess Wenxi's death was different.

If things were as she suspected, and the Empress was deliberately using the child's life to set a trap, Xie Jiu would not let it go easily.

After lunch, Zhao Xingjin didn't leave but rested at Jingming Palace.

The plan was to visit Fukang Palace in the afternoon. The Empress Dowager had a habit of taking a nap after lunch, so he decided to take a nap as well before going.

When Xie Jiu woke up, she was still sleepy, so she stayed in bed and didn't get up to see the emperor off.

Zhao Xingjin himself said, "Go back to sleep. You've been working hard taking care of the child lately."

So Xie Jiu went along with it and didn't get up.

It's okay to do it a few times occasionally, but being too honest isn't good either.

She didn't get up, but Princess Wenxi did.

When Zhao Xingjin went out, he ran into Princess Wenxi, who was sitting on a swing in the courtyard.

The father and daughter chatted for a while, and seeing that his daughter was in good spirits, Zhao Xingjin left with peace of mind.

At Fukang Palace, Zhao Xingjin told the Empress Dowager about his wish to have Consort Chen come to rest during her pregnancy, and the Empress Dowager readily agreed.

“It is right to be careful. Sun Baolin’s pregnancy is not stable, and it is not easy to move her when she is more pregnant. Now, Chen Meiren is just pregnant and has been staying here with me for three months. It is not too late to move her away then.”

The lack of male heirs in the palace is a major concern for the Empress Dowager, who now hopes that Consort Sun and Consort Chen will both give birth to princes.

"By the way, how is Sun Baolin doing? Have you gone to see him?" the Empress Dowager asked.

Zhao Xingjin nodded, "The pregnancy is stable, and she looks well. She's just waiting for the New Year to come before she gives birth. The Empress has already arranged for a midwife, a wet nurse, and a nurse to take care of her. Everything is in order."

After hearing these words, the Empress Dowager nodded in satisfaction, and then continued.

"I've thought it over and over, and I still think it has to be put on the agenda. You've been organizing the plum blossom viewing banquet, worrying about other people's marriages, and even summoning the Earl of Qing'an. You need to take care of your own affairs too. A few days ago, Yu Shu came to the palace to talk to me, and that's when I found out that she's pregnant again."