Chapter 4 — Five Lives of Changing Mothers

"Good child, let me feel sorry for myself. From now on, with my mother and concubine here, no one can harm me even half of it."
She whispered in a low voice, every word and every sentence was filled with anticipation from the bottom of her heart, just hoping that the child in her womb would be born safely. The contrast was dazzling with Tham Nhuoc Vi's previous appearance of pretending to be gentle. In just a blink of an eye, Concubine Hoa issued orders, giving three strict orders in succession. The first order was that all palace eunuchs in Duc Khon palace move quietly, no noise or disturbances were allowed, and were not allowed to disturb the souls in the palace. The second order was to send confidants around the world, looking for top rare and precious anti-aging medicinal herbs, and put them all in the inner palace for backup. Third order, anyone in the harem secretly harms the unborn child, the Nien family absolutely will not tolerate it. The order was spread throughout the six palaces, but there were still many people filled with jealousy who secretly discussed it. Some people say that Concubine Hoa has never been pregnant for eleven years, and now suddenly she is pregnant, this is a strange phenomenon, it must be using evil magic from an evil religion. Some people secretly speculate that this child's background is unknown, and he is afraid that he will conflict with the cross. As soon as the rumor spread outside the door of Duc Khon palace, the guards who had been following Concubine Hoa for many years immediately arrested her on the spot and dragged her to the palace door to serve the public. The fierce and bloody punishment shocked all the rumors in the harem. I curled up in the warm air, my soul that had always been tense and tight, finally completely relaxed. In the temple, warm medicinal herbs are continuously brought to nourish the fetus, and the gentle aura day after day envelops my soul. In my mind, I can't control myself and cold memories of the past appear. Five times in Tham Nhuoc Vi's belly, I forever lived under the shadow of planning and death. Now in Concubine Hoa's belly, there is only peaceful warmth. From the day he was diagnosed with the disease, the emperor often set foot in Duc Khon palace. In his heart, he was afraid that Nien Canh Nghieu would control heavy soldiers on the border, worried that the Nien family's power was too great and would threaten the royal power. On the other hand, he was truly looking forward to the belated prince after eleven years, constantly sending out rewards, filling the entire heavenly palace warehouse. But Concubine Hoa did not keep half of it. All rare and precious nutritious foods are decocted into safe food, used entirely to nourish us in the belly. Deep in the cold palace, news finally spread. Tham Nhuoc Vi was dismissed from her job as Canh Doctor. When she heard that Concubine Hoa was successfully pregnant, she went completely crazy on the spot. She rushed towards the cold door, frantically banging on the wooden door. Her mouth repeated "my child", but with her own hands she cut off the relationship between mother and child five times. Now, even though there are countless regrets, there is not even half a chance to make up for it.
7
Concubine Hoa was pregnant, causing jealousy among the concubines in the harem, and sinister calculations behind her back followed one after another. Duc Phi had a prince, on the outside he was gentle and gentle, but behind his back, he ordered a close maid to bring him a plate of delicate, cold cakes. Borrowing the name of nourishing the blood, in fact the cold ingredients will hurt the blood. A few low-ranking nobles colluded together, every late night they sent palace staff to run around the walls of Duc Khon palace and scream loudly. With these petty tricks, Concubine Hoa just took a glance and saw through the cruelty inside. She has never now studying according to Tham Nhuoc Vi, using slander to punish misfortune. She works straightforwardly and directly. Immediately, she arrested all the palace servants who caused trouble. The next morning, he was directly escorted before the emperor. On the main hall, she presented clearly and had complete evidence. The emperor clearly knew that his concubines were jealous, but because of the forces on all sides, he could only issue detention orders one after another. The wind and waves outside the temple continued to rise, and in my stomach I clearly felt malice coming from outside. Instinctively, I curl up, my body suddenly becomes confused and uneasy. Hoa Phi almost immediately noticed movement in her lower abdomen. She leaned over and pressed it against her stomach, whispering softly and softly promising:
"Don't be afraid, mother-in-law is here. Even if the sky falls, no one can harm you even half."
Warmth flows from the jade egg into the fetus, and my agitated soul gradually calms down. Not many days later, the cold palace sent a bloody letter. It was Tham Nhuoc Vi who bribed the guard eunuch and secretly brought him into Duc Khon palace. In the letter, she lied that she knew a method to keep her body safe. I only pray that Concubine Hoa will soften her heart and allow her to enter the palace to meet her. In fact, there is a malicious heart hidden inside, intending to secretly drop powder to harm the fetus after getting close. Concubine Hoa just glanced at the two lines and saw through the cruel thoughts hidden behind her regret. Right on the spot, she told the servants that in the future, any letters transmitted from the cold palace would be burned directly. In the following days, Concubine Hoa rarely attended social banquets in the harem, most of the time she stayed at Duc Khon palace. She lowered her status as a noble concubine, went to the small kitchen herself, followed the Thai doctor's method, and personally prepared the food over a small fire. In her free time, she sat by the lotus pond in the yard, softly telling me interesting stories on the Northwest border.