Yuxiang didn't know what she saw, but she knew how serious it had to be to scare an old man who had been in the palace for many years to the point of screaming. She leaned over to the Queen Mother and whispered a few words. The Queen Mother's expression turned cold and she glanced around. "The prince, please stay. Everyone else, please wait outside."
The concubines stood up without daring to raise their heads. They had no curiosity at all and didn't even move their eyes towards Haoyue. If they wanted to live long in the palace, the fewer secrets they knew, the better.
"Empress Xu, you are not an outsider."
Concubine Xu paused and trembled slightly, but she didn't even have the courage to turn around. Some things, once done, there is no turning back.
Hua Zhi was also called over, "You and Yan Xi are only separated by a name, so keep your eyes open and watch everything for him."
Hua Zhi didn't want to stay, but she couldn't refuse. The words spoken from the emperor's mouth were imperial decrees, and the words spoken from the empress dowager's mouth were also imperial decrees that could not be disobeyed.
"Tell me, what's going on."
Yuxiang glanced at the only old palace maid who knew about the situation and walked towards her.
The old palace maid's face turned pale. According to the usual rules in the palace, she was afraid that she would not survive.
Giving a look of resentment to Haoyue, she lifted up the hem of her dress forcefully, revealing a tiny baby lying in a pool of blood. The baby's umbilical cord was wrapped around its neck, something Yuxiang didn't notice at all at this moment. When she saw the baby's face, she almost couldn't hold back her screams even though she had experienced countless storms. This child... this child... actually had no facial features, and only a vague shape could be seen.
Yuxiang clenched her fists tightly and looked at the emperor and the empress dowager, not knowing what to say. This was royal blood. No matter, whether it was the emperor's or the prince's, this was the royal blood of the surname Gu!
The reactions of the old palace maid and Yuxiang all revealed the problem. If it was just a stillbirth, it wouldn't be so serious. After all, it was not full-term and the chance of it not surviving after being born was too high. Haoyue had a bad feeling in her heart, and she forced herself to sit up and look down.
"ah!"
After just one look, the frightened Haoyue screamed and crawled backwards. Without her clothes covering the child, the child came into the sight of several people present.
The Queen Mother's heart was slightly moved, and she ordered loudly: "Bring it here."
Before Yuxiang could respond, Haoyue had already reacted very quickly and crawled back, suppressing her disgust and fear and covering it with her skirt again. She couldn't let the emperor see it, she absolutely couldn't let the emperor see it. If the emperor knew that she had given birth to such a monster, then...
Haoyue shuddered and raised his head to press the emperor's soft spot, but he didn't expect to be met with a pair of eyes without any expression. He opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything.
The Queen Mother snorted coldly, "Carry him up."
The old palace maid was very strong and knew that her life and death was in the hands of the Queen Mother. Without Yuxiang's order, she stepped forward and pushed Haoyue away, picked up the child with the placenta from under her and walked up. Haoyue wanted to stop her, but Yuxiang stepped sideways to block her, looked at her coldly, and quickly followed her.
Haoyue fell to the ground and could only watch as the distinguished people at the top of the table all showed expressions of shock and disgust. The Fourth Prince even stepped back again and again, covering half of his face with his hands, showing with practical actions that he didn't want to look at them any more.
Instead, the emperor stared at the child and suddenly burst into laughter.
Retribution, retribution! He ate other people's children, so God gave the royal family such a descendant. The law of nature is clear, and no one can escape it!
Signaling the palace maid to take the child away, the Queen Mother held her son's hand. It was not known whose hand was shaking, but both mother and son were holding on with extra strength.
This is the time in recent years when the mother and son are closest both physically and mentally.
"Mother, I'm sorry to disappoint you."
The Queen Mother sighed. Yes, she was disappointed. How could she not be disappointed? She had to watch him go to this point but was powerless to do anything. She couldn't pull him back, couldn't protect him, and now she couldn't even save his life.
The emperor looked at Divine Doctor Yu and asked, "How long do I have left?"
Seeing the grayish-blue color on his face, Divine Doctor Yu shook his head slightly and stepped forward to take out the golden needle. "It's been a quarter of an hour."
The emperor closed his eyes, his expression unexpectedly calm. He looked at his mother and several children in turn. Even Hua Zhi, who was not far away, got a look from him. Only Concubine Xu and Haoyue no longer caught his attention.
"In that case, summon all the officials into the palace."
The palace door opened again. The sky was dark and the rain was pouring down. All the ministers were kneeling in the corridor in a miserable state. They looked up and saw Lai Fu, whom they were very familiar with, coming out.
Lai Fu tried to keep his voice steady, "The Emperor has ordered all officials to enter the palace."
The ministers supported each other and stood up. They glanced at each other quietly, and they all knew what was going on.
When the cheers of "Long live the emperor" rang out, the emperor was in a trance for a moment. He had heard "Long live the emperor" so many times in his life that he really wanted to live a long time. But what right did he have to dream of living as long as the sky? Even the Taizu only lived for more than fifty years, and he had accomplished nothing in his life, nothing at all!
"Cough, cough, cough..."
"emperor!"
The emperor coughed and waved his hands to stop others from coming forward. He forced himself to sit up and said in a hoarse voice: "I have no merits and only faults in my life. I am far inferior to the previous emperor."
"emperor!"
"I only hope that the new emperor can bring new vitality to Daqing and make up for my mistakes."
The ministers cheered again.
The emperor clung to the bed tightly to prevent himself from falling. The strength was gradually drained away from his body. He knew that he really didn't have much time left.
"Decree, the sixth prince is the crown prince, and heir to the throne of Daqing."
Xiaoliu instinctively stepped out of the line and knelt down with his forehead touching the ground. His head was buzzing. Was it really... done
"Decree that the Crown Prince Gu Yanxi will be the Regent and Duke Dingguo will be the Prince's Grand Tutor, and they will jointly assist in governing the country."
Duke Dingguo stepped out and said, "Old minister, I obey your order."
"The decree states that Hua Zhi is the Prince's tutor, and does not need to attend court, nor is she allowed to participate in government affairs."
When these words were spoken, everyone in the room was shocked. Although everyone knew that Hua Zhi was the Sixth Prince's husband, the meaning of being conferred the title by the Emperor was very different. Strictly speaking, this was the first female official in the Daqing Dynasty!
Even if she has no power, she is still an official. Who can compare to her close relationship with the new emperor? Who will dare to look down on her in the future!
Hua Zhi herself was also extremely surprised. She thought that considering the emperor's dislike for her, not causing trouble for her or ordering her death when she was dying was already a favor, but unexpectedly he gave her an official title? !
Subconsciously she was about to refuse, but when she looked up she realized she was wrong. There was no room for her to refuse at this moment because this was a will!
She could only walk out from a secluded place and kneel down to accept the official title.
The emperor coughed a few more times, and was obviously weaker when he spoke again. Lai Fu knelt down and stepped forward, resting his shoulder against the emperor, letting the emperor lean on him.
"Imperial decree: Concubine Xu and her son are responsible for causing chaos in the palace. They are to be executed. They are not to be buried in the imperial mausoleum after death. Anyone involved in this matter will not be spared. I decree that the Xu family's property be confiscated and their entire clan be exterminated."
After taking a few quick breaths, the emperor took a break and continued, "Posthumously confer the title of Empress Yuan on Consort Zhen and bury her with me. Xiao Liu will be my legitimate son and the legitimate crown prince of Daqing. All of you, my dear ministers, must assist him with all your strength and help him become a wise ruler."
"I respect your order. Long live the emperor!"
He waved his hand weakly, "Stand back, Hua Zhi, come forward."
"Long live the emperor!"
PS: Why is it so difficult to write!