The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

The mother and son already had some issues due to the issue of the two palaces being established side by side. If Qingying were to publicly embarrass the Empress Dowager again, the conflict would only escalate further.

In the end, he could only nod and say, "Then I will trouble Your Majesty."

After speaking, he subconsciously looked at Qingying, his eyes filled with a hint of apology.

But Qingying didn't even look at him.

Hongli was slightly taken aback.

Ruofe sat to the side, not saying a word from beginning to end.

Logically speaking, a virtuous and kind wife who shares her husband's burdens should stand up and say that she is only newly pregnant and her health is fine. The late emperor's funeral is so important, how can she abandon her responsibilities because of such a small matter?

Especially now, there is a clear rift between the Empress Dowager and her son, Hongli.

If she were more sensible, it would be best for her to stay and act as a mediator.

Only in this way can everyone in the palace see just how virtuous, capable, and sensible she, Lady Fucha, truly is as a future empress.

But on what grounds?

The estrangement between this mother and son is not a recent phenomenon.

They both know what one wants and what the other fears, yet they still put on airs and speak in roundabout ways.

Even they, the mother and son themselves, couldn't understand why she, pregnant, was forced to be caught in the middle like a human plaster.

Besides, does she really need that reputation for being virtuous?

Who has managed the household affairs of this Prince's mansion for so many years without making any major mistakes? Who gave birth to the eldest legitimate daughter? And who gave birth to the eldest legitimate son?

The sons of the Fucha family have become more and more successful in recent years; who in the court and the harem doesn't know that?

Her position as empress was already a foregone conclusion.

Unless she suddenly goes mad and storms into the Imperial Clan Court with a knife in the middle of the night, killing a dozen or so people, who can possibly pull her down from her position as Empress?

not to mention--

Ruofu lowered her head and touched her lower abdomen. Her Rulan had arrived.

What reputation and dignity? Where is her precious child?

So Ruofu did not refuse at all.

When the Empress Dowager told her to go back, she obediently got up and bowed: "Then I will trouble Your Majesty. I am indeed a little tired right now, and I am afraid that if I am not careful, I will cause trouble for the palace. I will come to pay my respects to Your Majesty after I have stabilized my pregnancy. As for Hualan, I will leave her in Your Majesty's care for the night and will come to pick her up tomorrow."

The Empress Dowager glanced at her, a rare smile appearing on her face: "Why bring her along? Such a sensible child, what trouble could she possibly cause me? With her and Hengti around, I feel truly at ease."

If Fu then has no psychological burden.

With Gao Xiyue and the other women from the Prince's mansion, they went home in a grand procession to rest and prepare for childbirth.

As soon as the carriage entered Prince Bao's mansion, the group of people immediately felt much more relaxed.

Su Luyun was the first to burst into laughter, and Chen Wanyin also smiled broadly, a rare occurrence for her.

Fucha Zhuying led people over to offer their congratulations, repeatedly congratulating Ruofu and Gao Xiyue.

Jin Yuyan smiled sweetly, offering auspicious words one after another, saying that the Fujin was blessed with great fortune, and that the Gao Ce Fujin had also finally reaped the rewards of her hard work. Now that the Emperor had just ascended the throne, the household had been blessed with two more happy events, which was truly an extremely auspicious omen.

If he is pleased to hear this, he will wave his hand in delight.

reward!

Everyone will be rewarded!

Even the servants who performed their duties well in each courtyard today benefited from the honor.

Gao Xiyue is now even more wealthy and generous. If the gift is not finished, she will also give a gift, making the whole mansion joyful.

If it weren't for the ongoing national mourning period outside, which prevents people from hanging red banners and setting off firecrackers, this spectacle would probably look like someone celebrating the Lunar New Year.

After the congratulatory guests had mostly left, Ruofu was thinking of returning to the main courtyard to rest, but Gao Xiyue showed no intention of returning to her own courtyard and clung to her all the way.

Even after entering the main courtyard, they still followed.

If she doesn't sit down, she will sit down too.

If she doesn't drink tea, she touches her stomach.

After touching herself for a while, she finally couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, do you think I'm really pregnant? Could it be that the imperial physician misdiagnosed me? I've been hoping for this for so many years without success, how come I'm suddenly pregnant? Also, he said it's been a month and a half, but I don't feel anything at all. My belly is still so flat, and my waist is still so thin. Is there really a baby inside?"

It's always the same few sentences over and over again.

If at first Fu could have been patient and tolerant, he would have been able to respond.

By the end, I was finally fed up.

"Are you ever going to stop? A one-and-a-half-month-old baby is only a month old. How big do you expect your belly to be? You'll only be happy when it's swollen like an eight-month-old baby?"

Gao Xiyue shrank her neck.

If Ruofu noticed the platform shoes on her feet, his brow furrowed again, and he simply gave her all his orders in one breath: "Also, forget about your belly being bulging, go back and change those shoes right away! From today onwards, wear less of those platform shoes, and choose loose and comfortable clothes. Remove all the incense in your room, no matter how expensive it is, just in case something goes wrong. Where's the booklet that Lüyun gave you before? Where's it propping up the table? Find it quickly and replace all the poems and songs you read every day with it. Be extra careful with the food you eat every day; it's best to have Lady He check it first. You were already weak, and this child is finally here, so take good care of yourself. If you want to take a walk, go for a couple of slow laps, and don't eat whatever you want, understand?"

Gao Xiyue initially had a silly grin on her face, but she was soon taken seriously by her words and straightened her back unconsciously: "I heard you."

Looking into her clear eyes, which seemed to hold almost no secret, Ruof's heart softened again. He suddenly asked, "Is there something else you've forgotten?"

Gao Xiyue was taken aback: "What?"

"Your father."

Ruofu sighed helplessly, "Such a joyous occasion, why don't you send a message to your father? What has been Gao Daren's biggest worry all these years? Others may not know, but don't you? If he hears that he's going to have a grandson, he probably won't be able to sleep tonight."

Gao Xiyue's face immediately broke into a smile.

"Yes!"

She suddenly stood up, then quickly grabbed the table for support.

Ruof's eyebrows shot up: "Slow down!"

"I know, I know!" Gao Xiyue was so happy she didn't know what to do. She quickly called to Moxin, "Come on, let's go back and write a letter! No, we should send someone to tell Father in person as soon as possible!"

The master and servant arrived in a sticky, affectionate manner, but left in a flurry of activity.

Ruofu, watching from behind, shook his head in disbelief.

"A talented woman, my foot! She looks like a child who hasn't grown up."

Zhao Ying suppressed a laugh and helped her into the inner room to change.

She took off her mourning clothes and changed into soft, loose everyday clothes, and also removed the white silk flowers from her hair.

As Zhao Ying loosened her hair, she sighed, "Consort Gao has finally gotten what she wanted. Over the years, every time I saw the way she looked at the First Princess, the Second Princess, and the Second and Third Princes, I always felt sorry for her."

Ruo Fu thought about it for a moment, then couldn't help but sigh, "Who says it isn't true? I always say that children are all here to collect debts. They cry when they're little, and they make a fuss when they grow up. Before you know it, they can keep you on edge for days or weeks. But if these debt collectors don't come, you inevitably feel empty inside. She's been waiting for this for so many years, and now she finally has one. It's a blessing from heaven."

Zhao Ying smiled and responded.

After removing the last hairpin from Ruofu, she remembered something else: "But in my opinion, this kind of thing seems to vary from person to person. Take Consort Chen, for example. I've never seen her long for a child. What she likes most all day is painting. She's naturally gentle with the princes and princesses, but she's not like Consort Gao, who looks on with such eager anticipation."

"Of course."

Ruo Fu leaned back on the soft couch and said quite matter-of-factly, "How can people be the same? Some people just don't like children. If others don't like them, they may not like them themselves either. It's just that this world always thinks that women should love and long for children, so even if some people aren't very interested, they still have to pretend to be."

Zhao Ying was taken aback.

Ruo Fu continued, "What's so strange about that? If everyone in the world naturally loved their children after they were born, where would all these heartless parents come from? It shows that you have to be selective about who you are as a parent. Just because a child is born doesn't mean you can automatically treat them as your precious child."

Zhao Ying thought about it carefully.

"Too."

After saying that, she continued to tidy up Ruof's clothes.

The room was quiet for a while.

Ruofu suddenly felt something was amiss: "Hey, why did you only mention that she was looking at the First Princess, the Second Princess, the Second Prince, and the Third Prince? What about our First Prince?"

Zhao Ying paused for a moment.

After a moment of silence, he carefully considered his words: "My lady, a son like our eldest prince... is not someone that just anyone can afford to have."

Ruof: ...

Ruofu opened his mouth to refute, but the first thing that flashed through his mind was Changbai's face, which was dignified even at a young age, just like his father in his previous life.

He silently shut his mouth again.