RCDSA 10

Chapter – 10

The Pregnancy Exposed

Xie Linchao waited outside the Qin Hall for a moment. Then, Gao Li, the most powerful eunuch director by Emperor Xuanhe’s side, walked out with a courteous smile on his face. “Prince An, His Majesty requests your presence.”

Linlang remained outside the hall, carrying a food box, while Xie Linchao was pushed inside in his wheelchair by Bai Qi.

Emperor Xuanhe had just finished meeting with several ministers and was taking a brief break.

After Xie Linchao entered, he tremblingly rose from his wheelchair, then knelt straight to the ground, performing the kowtow ritual to pay his respects to Emperor Xuanhe:

“Your son pays respects to Father Emperor. May Father Emperor be blessed with peace.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Xie Linchao seemed unable to help himself and broke into a fit of coughing.

Emperor Xuanhe frowned at the sound: “If your body hasn’t recovered yet, there’s no need to force yourself to come to the palace.”

Before seeing this second son of his, Emperor Xuanhe hadn’t really believed that the whip wounds could still be unhealed after so many days. Surely he was just sulking over the enfeoffment decree, deliberately refusing to enter the palace to express gratitude.

Clearly it was this son of his who, disregarding all decency, had committed such a scandalous act in public, shown no remorse afterward, kept stubbornly denying it, and brought utter shame to the imperial family.

But now that he saw him—this sickly, frail figure that looked like a gust of wind could knock him over—Emperor Xuanhe rarely felt a trace of fatherly tenderness.

Facing this second son, who no longer posed any threat, Emperor Xuanhe was willing to show a little goodwill.

“Speak. What did you come to the palace to say?”

Xie Linchao remained kneeling on the ground, his face filled with shame and remorse:

“Father Emperor, your son knows his mistake.”

“Your son should not have taken advantage of drunkenness to foolishly attempt to molest Talented Lady Lan, nearly causing her, a woman of fierce chastity who could not bear humiliation, to take her own life. Nor should I have lacked any sense of responsibility afterward, insisting I had no memory of it, refusing to admit my fault, and causing such a scene before all the ministers, bringing shame upon the royal family. Your son has disgraced you, Father Emperor.”

“In the future, when your son goes to Shuo County to take up his fief, Father Emperor will no longer have to see this unfilial son, and should feel better for it. Though your son cannot serve at your side and fulfill his filial duties, I beg Father Emperor to take care of your sacred health. No matter how busy with state affairs, you must remember to rest. Your son will pray day and night to all the gods and Buddhas in his fief, beseeching them to bless Father Emperor with long life and endless fortune, and to bless Great Qi with favorable winds and timely rains.”

Emperor Xuanhe looked at his second son kneeling below with a complex expression.

When he had first learned that the late Empress was pregnant with this child, Emperor Xuanhe had held expectations for him.

Emperor Xuanhe had not been blessed with many offspring. During his days as Prince Ning vying for the succession, this had put him at a disadvantage. But because his consort, Yang Mingshu, had conceived this child, he was finally about to have a legitimate son—an added bargaining chip in the struggle for the throne.

The Marquis of Loyalty and Courage’s household had also joined the succession struggle because of this child, and the scales of victory had begun to tip in his favor.

However, after ascending the throne and wielding supreme power, Emperor Xuanhe had gradually come to look askance at this second son named “Linchao” [*meaning “Facing the Court”*]. Every so often, ministers would petition for the establishment of a crown prince, and most of them supported his second son.

Emperor Xuanhe was deeply displeased.

He had only just become emperor, and already the court officials were urging him to name a crown prince—were they cursing him to die early so the crown prince could take his place?

Moreover, the late Empress and the Marquis of Loyalty and Courage’s household were truly too arrogant. He had only casually chosen the name “Linchao,” yet they actually used it in earnest.

Did the Marquis of Loyalty and Courage’s household, with its formidable military power, harbor disloyal intentions?

Did the late Empress wish for him to die early so she could hold a young son and act as regent?

All these chaotic thoughts—with the late Empress’s death, the Marquis of Loyalty and Courage’s household handing over military authority and leaving the capital, and the second son bearing the Marquis’s blood about to be enfeoffed—could finally be laid to rest.

Feeling an unprecedented sense of relief, Emperor Xuanhe softened his tone toward Xie Linchao: “Ahem. Since you’ve admitted your mistake, you may rise. Once you go to your fief, you must not be so reckless again.”

“Your son humbly obeys Father Emperor’s instruction.”

Xie Linchao was helped up by Bai Qi and sat back in his wheelchair.

The first act was over. Now it was time for the second.

Xie Linchao spoke in a hesitant voice: “Father Emperor, your son has one request.”

Emperor Xuanhe: “What request?”

Xie Linchao: “Your son wishes, with Father Emperor’s accompaniment, to express his apologies to Talented Lady Lan. After all, it was because of your son that she nearly took her own life. Your son feels terribly uneasy about it and has been tormented these past days—cough, cough, cough…”

Emperor Xuanhe was somewhat reluctant to have his son entangled with his consorts, even one as insignificant as a Talented Lady whom he had long since forgotten—especially so soon after the incident at the Autumn Golden Palace Banquet.

Xie Linchao coughed violently while speaking haltingly: “I beg Father Emperor… cough, cough… to grant this… cough, cough… your son begs…”

Emperor Xuanhe sighed.

Ah well.

After all, his second son would soon leave for his fief and would hardly ever return to the capital.

Besides, Xie Linchao’s willingness to openly apologize to Talented Lady Lan, without continuing to make excuses, actually convinced Emperor Xuanhe that Xie Linchao harbored no improper desires toward her.

Emperor Xuanhe stood up: “Then I’ll accompany you.”

“Thank you, Father Emperor.” Xie Linchao kept his head bowed and his eyes lowered, concealing the dark gleam beneath.

On the way to Green Bamboo Pavilion, Emperor Xuanhe and his party “coincidentally” encountered the four princes who had just been dismissed from the Imperial Study.

“Your sons pay respects to Father Emperor. May Father Emperor be blessed with peace.”

“Greetings to Second Imperial Brother.”

This was Xie Linchao’s first time seeing these several younger half-brothers of his in person.

The four princes were quite different in temperament.

The Third Prince, born of Consort De, was composed and restrained, with a noticeable scholarly air.

The Fourth Prince, born of Consort Shu, had maternal family ties to one of Yangzhou’s wealthiest merchant families. Both mother and son shared a love for luxury and jade—if money could solve it, it wasn’t a problem.

The Fifth Prince, like his birth mother Consort Rou, was something of a nonentity—not competing, not contending, with an ordinary maternal family. Who would have thought that after Emperor Xuanhe’s death in the “future,” he would successfully rise to become the second emperor of Southern Qi?

The Sixth Prince, born of the Second Empress, was also a legitimate son. In the original owner’s memories, he was the one who disliked Xie Linchao the most.

After greeting, the Sixth Prince grinned at Xie Linchao: “Second Imperial Brother, you’ve finally come out of your manor. These past days, we brothers wanted to visit you, but you turned us all away.”

“Cough, cough, cough…”

Xie Linchao suddenly burst into a violent fit of coughing, directly cutting off the Sixth Prince’s snide remark.

“Sixth Imperial Brother, I do apologize. My body isn’t very cooperative, so I couldn’t receive guests.”

[TL Note: The blank line indicates an untranslatable pause or non-verbal reaction in the original text.]

Emperor Xuanhe’s face darkened: “Enough. You’ve finally been let off from your studies, yet instead of going to enjoy yourselves, you’re all blocking the way here for what?”

The Third Prince’s steady voice rang out: “Father Emperor, we have not seen Second Imperial Brother for a long time. When we learned he had entered the palace, we thought that once he goes to his fief, it will be hard to see him again, so we came together.”

The Fourth Prince also couldn’t help chiming in: “Father Emperor, where are you all heading?”

This direction didn’t seem to be toward the Imperial Garden for a stroll.

Xie Linchao stopped coughing and smiled at the Fourth Prince: “Father Emperor and I are going to see Talented Lady Lan. I wish to apologize to her.”

The Fourth Prince: “…”

A flicker of surprise crossed the Third Prince’s face. Even the Fifth Prince, the transparent one, couldn’t help casting a curious glance at the handsome young man in the wheelchair, calm and composed… and at Bai Qi pushing the wheelchair behind him.

Bai Qi’s face was too unfamiliar. The Fifth Prince couldn’t help feeling a strange, inexplicable sensation—because of his low profile, he was used to observing people around him carefully, and he had never seen such an attendant by Xie Linchao’s side…

As for the Sixth Prince, he looked as if he was about to enjoy a good show: “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go, let’s go!”

Thus, the group heading to Green Bamboo Pavilion now included several princes.

When Talented Lady Lan in the Green Bamboo Pavilion saw Emperor Xuanhe and the princes arriving—including Xie Linchao and the Fourth Prince—her expression turned rather peculiar.

Xie Linchao began his performance, gesturing with his eyes toward Linlang who was carrying the food box, while speaking in a gentle yet apologetic tone:

“Talented Lady Lan, I was rude at the Autumn Golden Palace Banquet. I’ve come today to express my apologies. With Father Emperor and several imperial brothers as witnesses—and since I am short of funds lately—I’ve had my manor’s chef prepare some dishes from your hometown as a token of apology. I hope you will accept it.”

Talented Lady Lan cautiously glanced at Emperor Xuanhe, whose expression was complex. Seeing that he did not stop her, she spoke coldly: “Second Prince is thoughtful. Since His Majesty is willing to come, I suppose I shouldn’t dwell on it further. I’ll shamelessly accept this apology gift.”

Linlang opened the food box and placed dish after dish of strongly aromatic food on the table.

As soon as Talented Lady Lan smelled the food, a sudden wave of nausea and the urge to vomit hit her. She couldn’t suppress it no matter how hard she tried, and ended up dry-heaving right in front of Emperor Xuanhe and the princes.

Emperor Xuanhe’s face turned cold, and he discreetly stepped back two paces in disgust.

This Talented Lady Lan—why did she always have to embarrass him in public?

At the previous palace banquet, if it hadn’t been that keeping her alive was more useful, and that the entire court knew about the incident so it couldn’t be covered up, plus the fact that she had chosen to take her own life to prove her innocence—Emperor Xuanhe would have long since sent someone with a cup of poisoned wine.

Xie Linchao’s voice rang out in feigned alarm: “Oh my! Talented Lady Lan, what’s wrong? Why are you suddenly nauseous and retching? Is the food I brought not to your liking?”

Xie Linchao thought to herself inwardly:

Of course it doesn’t suit her taste.

This is a specially prepared “morning sickness feast,” lovingly made by her little Bi Zhu.

It’s a mix of various ingredients that, when smelled by a pregnant woman, easily trigger a physiological urge to vomit. Surely at least one of them is something Talented Lady Lan now can’t stand to smell or eat.

Talented Lady Lan tried to speak, but as soon as she opened her mouth, another bout of dry-heaving overtook her.

Xie Linchao turned to Emperor Xuanhe with a worried tone: “Father Emperor, Lady Lan is reacting so severely—it looks like she might be ill. It couldn’t be that my reckless behavior at the banquet has been weighing on her mind all this time, could it? What a sin that would be.”

“Father Emperor, please summon an imperial physician for her at once. Otherwise, your son will never be at ease.”

Emperor Xuanhe simply thought Talented Lady Lan was being overly dramatic and committing a breach of court etiquette. But seeing her looking as if she might cough up her very innards, and it did seem like a serious illness, he casually pointed to a eunuch and sent him to the Imperial Medical Institute.

Xie Linchao caught a glimpse of Talented Lady Lan’s forcibly composed expression that couldn’t hide her panic, and the Fourth Prince’s utterly oblivious face. She gave a quiet snort of amusement.

How kind she was.

She’d only brought some dishes that would make a pregnant woman nauseous at the smell.

If she’d brought something laced to induce a miscarriage on the spot, she wouldn’t have had to waste so many words.

Because it was Emperor Xuanhe’s own eunuch who had been sent to summon the physician, he arrived quickly—and it was none other than the most renowned Imperial Physician Zhang from the Medical Institute.

As soon as he arrived, Xie Linchao immediately spoke up: “Physician Zhang, you’re free this time, are you? Come quickly and see if Talented Lady Lan is ill.”

Physician Zhang paused slightly at Xie Linchao’s unexpected jab, gave an awkward smile, and after bowing to Emperor Xuanhe and the princes one by one, stepped forward to take Talented Lady Lan’s pulse.

Talented Lady Lan still tried to resist: “Your Majesty, Prince An, I’m really fine. There’s no need to trouble Physician Zhang…”

With Emperor Xuanhe and all the princes present, Physician Zhang naturally paid no heed to Talented Lady Lan’s protests. But the moment his fingers touched her wrist, his brow furrowed deeper and deeper, until finally his face contorted in shock and he fell off his stool.

Xie Linchao looked “worried”: “Physician Zhang, it’s not some terminal illness, is it? Why do you look so pale?”

Physician Zhang trembled as he looked at Emperor Xuanhe, unsure whether he should speak in front of so many people.

Emperor Xuanhe felt a sense of foreboding and said impatiently: “Prince An is asking you a question! Speak!”

Physician Zhang gritted his teeth and stammered: “Your Majesty… the Lady… she is already two months pregnant!”

Having said that, Physician Zhang knelt on the ground, not daring to lift his head.

Talented Lady Lan hadn’t had her regular pulse check in over a year. Other imperial physicians might not remember, but there was no way Physician Zhang could forget.

Emperor Xuanhe’s face instantly darkened. In a fit of rage, he kicked Physician Zhang: “Zhang Zhiwei!”

“Are you incompetent in your medical skills? Are you trying to fool me!”

Physician Zhang was knocked over but, ignoring the pain, quickly resumed his kneeling posture and trembled: “Your humble servant… truly detected a slippery pulse. If Your Majesty does not believe it, you may summon several other physicians to examine her as well.”

Talented Lady Lan’s face turned ashen as she slumped limply in her chair.

Seeing this, what more was there for Emperor Xuanhe to understand?

This *bitch*!!!

He hadn’t visited her chambers in an entire year! Where had the bastard in her belly come from?!

“Wow! Congratulations, Father Emperor! You’re going to have another prince!”

As though completely oblivious to the strange tension in the room, Xie Linchao cheerfully offered his congratulations, while also patting the dazed Fourth Prince beside him:

“Fourth Imperial Brother, aren’t you happy? You’re going to have another imperial brother.”

The Fourth Prince, whose legs had already begun to tremble: ….Do I look like I dare to be happy right now?!!!