Female Consort Chapter 64: Pregnancy

This audience with the Emperor went just as expected. Though he was shocked, the Emperor still expressed immense delight and relief at learning that Qiu Che and Li Qingwu were alive.

After an emotional exchange of tearful words between ruler and subject, Qiu Che glanced at the Emperor’s perfectly composed face and thought to herself, This old fox really was faking his illness.

Li Shi, beaming with a kind smile, voiced his sentiments and then used the excuse of a long separation to keep Li Qingwu back for a private talk between father and daughter.

Qiu Che gave Li Qingwu one last look. Receiving a subtle, reassuring glance in return, she lowered her eyes and retreated with a respectful salute.

Once she exited the imperial study and the doors were closed behind her, the palace maids and eunuchs tactfully withdrew as well, giving the father and daughter some space.

Delicate trails of dragon incense drifted lazily from the burner. Li Qingwu, calm and composed, subtly raised her hand to cover her nose and mouth with a handkerchief.

From the moment Qiu Che left, the hall had fallen into complete silence.

The Emperor sipped his tea. His gaze casually swept past Li Qingwu’s gesture, then suddenly paused.

Li Qingwu’s heart tightened, afraid he had noticed something, but instead, the Emperor said, “That handkerchief, did you embroider it yourself?”

Li Qingwu replied evenly, “If Father refers to the ones I made before my marriage, then yes.”

“Lotus flowers, hmm,” Li Shi murmured thoughtfully, taking another sip of tea. “Unstained by the mud it grows from… Why didn’t I realize before how fond you are of lotuses?”

Li Qingwu tightened her grip on the handkerchief but remained calm. “Father has always been forgetful. I’ve always loved lotuses and often wear accessories with lotus motifs.”

“Indeed, when you love something, you should always keep it close.” Li Shi nodded meaningfully. “This is true for objects, and people as well.”

Li Qingwu feigned ignorance, lowering her gaze with a respectful tone. “Would Father kindly speak more plainly?”

“You understand me perfectly.” Li Shi said lightly, “So, have you considered it?”

He continued, “I don’t care what you two have been doing the past couple of months. But while you were missing, Zhu Yan’s business took a severe hit. If you want to preserve its reputation, it’s simple, agree to my terms.”

He pointed at himself and smiled. “In all the world, besides Qiu Qing, you’re the first person I’ve ever considered for a true partnership. I’ve turned a blind eye again and again because you’re my daughter. But you and your husband mustn’t overstep.”

During the autumn hunt, the Emperor had summoned Li Qingwu alone.

Back then, he had subtly hinted that Li Qingwu should poison Qiu Che slowly, to make her easier to control, to break her spirit, and bring her firmly under the Emperor’s thumb. He said, “Your mother was from the Southern Yi, and those people are born with a gift for poisons. If you really set your mind to it, I doubt she’d notice a thing.”

As Li Qingwu had told Qiu Che, she refused. But what she hadn’t mentioned was that, just like in her past life, the Emperor also tried to blackmail her into giving up 80% of Zhu Yan’s profits.

Though merchants held the lowest status among the four occupations, scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants, and were scorned by the nobles, that didn’t change the fact that business was lucrative.

And now, with the state treasury nearly empty, what the empire needed most was silver.

They curse money for its stink yet count every coin with glee, such is the hypocrisy of the world.

Li Qingwu neither agreed nor refused, deliberately leaving herself a way out.

But she also knew the Emperor’s patience would not last long.

After seeing how Yuan Fu managed to breach the heavily guarded mountain to abduct them, Li Qingwu understood.

If there was anyone capable of spiriting a criminal away from an execution ground and sneaking them into the hunting grounds unnoticed, it could only be the Emperor.

She suspected Qiu Che had figured that out too, but neither of them had said it aloud.

The Emperor’s joy at their safe return wasn’t fake either. He hadn’t lost a cash cow, nor a newly trusted confidant. Of course he was happy.

Because from the beginning, the fall off the cliff hadn’t been part of his plan.

Li Qingwu guessed his intention was merely to intimidate them, but he overplayed his hand. Once they fell, he had to scramble to find new allies, dragging the Empress Dowager back into the power struggle.

It was bold, and foolish.

Li Qingwu couldn’t suppress her fury at how lightly he treated their lives, like pawns in a game.

But she knew, even with the truth in her heart, this wasn’t the time to act.

A good hunter waits in silence.

Until the moment comes, and strikes the prey down in one blow.

Li Qingwu curled her lips into a faint smile, drawing on the years of acting that had kept her alive in the deep palace, and said hesitantly, “After all this… Zhu Yan really has suffered. On our way back, business was bleak everywhere. Father truly intends to help me restore the shop and reopen it?”

Li Shi answered grandly, “Of course. As long as you do as I say, there will be endless benefits. You know well, I value you and your consort most highly now.”

Li Qingwu smiled obediently. “Then I must thank Father in advance… Though, a few months ago, the Crown Prince didn’t approve of my business dealings and had a conflict with my husband. Now he’s even…”

Of course, Li Shi had heard of this before, though he dismissed it as nothing important. Raising an eyebrow, he asked, “Even what?”

“Even took advantage of our injuries and absence to plant a spy in our residence,” Li Qingwu lowered her head, her voice almost tearful. “I caught the spy delivering a message to the Crown Prince. It was a real shock, has the Princess Residence that you bestowed upon me truly become a place where anyone can come and go as they please?”

She sighed. “I know I’m not as important as rumors make me out to be, but I was still raised well by you, Father. If people can bypass your authority and plant spies in our home, how can my husband and I ever live in peace, without fearing for our heads?”

“If that’s the case, what’s the point of doing business, of making money? My husband and I might as well retire to the mountains and live in seclusion, ”

Li Shi’s face darkened. “Nonsense!”

Li Qingwu pressed her lips together and said softly, “...I misspoke.”

His expression eased. He consoled her, “You’ve been away from the residence, so the guards must’ve slacked off. That’s how the spy got in. Don’t worry, I promise you, this won’t happen again.”

That she’d brought the matter of the spy to him showed that she still trusted him.

This eased Li Shi’s persistent suspicion that she might be slipping from his control.

The spy wasn’t the issue. That he was one of the Crown Prince’s men wasn’t either.

What mattered was that they’d been caught, and worse, that Li Qingwu had come straight to him. It was a slap to the face.

He’d promised to favor her as long as she obeyed, but now spies were crawling through her home and he, her father, knew nothing of it. How could she not be alarmed?

Strangely, this made him feel more reassured about her. His tone turned firm. “Don’t worry. I said it, and I’ll do it. If the Crown Prince dares to be so bold, planting spies in the homes of court officials, I will punish him severely!”

The more he spoke, the angrier he got. Thinking of the Crown Prince’s recent antics in court only made his blood boil.

Li Hengyu! Useless fool who ruins everything he touches!

Li Qingwu gave a faint smile, looking as though she wasn’t reassured, but was trying her best to be, for her father’s sake. She hesitated, then bowed. “Perhaps Crown Prince Brother only acted out of concern for us. A light punishment from Father should be enough. I’m sure your words will stay with him forever.”

Li Shi softened. “At least you’re sensible.”

After a few more polite exchanges, Li Qingwu finally withdrew.

Once she left, Li Shi frowned and suddenly began coughing violently. “Wait…”

Fuzi stepped forward quickly, gently patting his back with concern. “Your Majesty, what’s wrong?”

“She never agreed to give me the profit share…” Li Shi said irritably. “Damn that Li Hengyu, got me so worked up I forgot, my memory’s been getting worse lately.”

He broke into another fit of coughing.

Fuzi said, “Your Majesty must take care of your health.”

After the coughing passed, Li Shi leaned back and sighed, “Fuzi.”

“I am here, Your Majesty,” Fuzi said respectfully.

“All my sons are disappointing. Only my daughters are still thoughtful. But one’s married, and the other is still young…” Li Shi muttered, lost in thought. “If I really die… who will inherit this vast empire of Great Xia…”

Fuzi panicked. “Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, protected by true dragon qi. You are destined for ten thousand years of fortune, please never say such things!”

Li Shi chuckled. “Alright, alright, I won’t say it again.”

“Send out my decree, ” He sat up straight and said seriously, "The prince... has bad conduct. He will be fined for half a year, confined for one month, and forced to face the wall to reflect on his mistakes. He cannot go out without being summoned."

Fuzi replied, "Yes."

When the news of the prince's confinement came out, Qiu Che and Li Qingwu were still in Fengyang Pavilion, sitting in the garden and making grasshoppers for the children to play with.

Hearing this imperial edict, Qiu Che realized something and looked at Li Qingwu: "You did it?"

Li Qingwu blinked: "I just... mentioned that the prince had planted spies in the princess's mansion, and I don't know anything else."

Qiu Che laughed and shook his head: "For such a small matter, His Majesty may give you a little warning for your sake, but he won't really do anything to him."

The current emperor has only three princes. The second prince died of weakness and illness when he was young. The eldest prince is the current crown prince.

If he is abolished, he can only support the more useless and more dissolute third prince to take the throne.

This is an unprofitable deal for the emperor.

So even if he is angry with the prince and cares about the queen's affair, he can only turn a blind eye to the other party before there is a more perfect heir.

Li Qingwu said softly: "I know."

But she was just unhappy.

If the Crown Prince dared to plant spies in their residence today, then he might dare to send assassins for their lives tomorrow.

Without some show of force or warning, the other side would only become more brazen.

Qiu Che lazily wove a decorative grasshopper out of reeds as she spoke slowly, “Do you really believe it was the Crown Prince?”

Palace maids weren’t far off, so they couldn’t speak too plainly.

Still, Li Qingwu clearly understood her meaning.

She hesitated, then said, “It doesn’t seem like him.”

The Crown Prince was arrogant and foolish, naive in his self-assurance.

If he were truly pretending to be weak while hiding his claws, and capable of planting spies so quietly, he wouldn’t have let them be discovered so easily.

But so what? They both understood that what Li Qingwu had done was nothing more than a warning, a message to scare the true mastermind.

“To kill the chicken and warn the monkey.”

Qiu Che glanced over as she tied off the final knot in her weaving. “While you were speaking with His Majesty, I received a message from Yu Yan. Guess what?”

She smiled faintly. “When that letter was sent out, the Third Prince was also present in the Crown Prince’s manor.”

Li Qingwu fell silent for a moment.

“You suspect him?”

“No,” Qiu Che shook her head. “I don’t know if it’s a smokescreen or if there’s someone else behind it, trying to mislead us by making A-Nan use that title in the letter…”

“But that’s not what matters right now,” Qiu Che continued in a low voice. “Now that we’ve returned to the capital, the political landscape has surely shifted. Besides… the case I’ve been preparing is nearly at its critical moment. Your pledge of allegiance to the emperor has bought us some time and protection. You did well.”

For some reason, Li Qingwu’s eyelid twitches. “Are you talking about… your father’s case?”

“Mhm.” Qiu Che nodded softly. “It’s thanks to your persuasion that they were willing to come forward and testify.”

Li Qingwu smiled faintly, but an odd sense of unease crept into her heart.

She suddenly realized, this case could completely crush the entire Qiu family.

Would the emperor really protect Qiu Che just because he valued her talent?

As the two chatted quietly, Li Qingshu, who had been sitting beside them, didn’t blink as she stared intently at the slowly forming grasshopper in Qiu Che’s hands.

When Qiu Che finished the final twist, the girl immediately reached out her chubby hands and grabbed it with excitement, breaking their conversation. “A grasshopper! Look, Sister! It’s a big grasshopper!”

Li Qingwu turned to her, eyes softening with a gentle smile. “Yes. I see it.”

Qiu Che patted the girl’s head. “Do you like it?”

“Love it!” Princess Pingyi beamed. “This princess will graciously forgive you both for not bringing any sugar figurines this time. But next time, don’t forget!”

Yes, on their way back to the palace, they had been caught by Pingyi, who was out playing. She grabbed one of them with each hand and dragged them straight back to the Fengyang Pavilion courtyard.

The moment she saw them, she dove into Li Qingwu’s arms and cried loudly, shouting, “Mother said you were dead! I didn’t believe it! I said my sister is so pretty, how could she die?!”

Such childish words, what does being pretty have to do with being dead?

Everyone present couldn’t help but laugh.

But the very next moment, she turned and glared fiercely at Qiu Che: “Where’s my sugar figurine?”

Qiu Che: “…”

She was speechless.

Only then did she remember, last time, she’d promised to bring Pingyi a sugar figurine the next time she entered the palace.

To make it up to the little princess, she offered to make her a grasshopper.

That did the trick, Pingyi stopped crying right away.

Say what you will, children are easy to coax. A simple grasshopper was enough to make her happy.

Before Qiu Che could respond, a slow, deliberate set of footsteps sounded behind them.

“Well, well. So it’s the esteemed Princess Royal and the Commandant.”

Qiu Che immediately straightened her expression, stood up and took a step back, bowing. “Greetings, Your Ladyship.”

Li Qingwu also rose and gave her a silent nod.

Technically speaking, a concubine was still beneath a legitimate-born royal princess. As a favored Princess Royal of the first rank, Li Qingwu should have been saluted by Consort Xian.

But Consort Xian, with her hands painted crimson with bean-paste-red nail dye, rested one on her maid’s arm and made no move to bow.

She gave Qiu Che a cold glance, then turned to the palace staff nearby and snapped, “How can an outsider like the Commandant be allowed into a young, unmarried princess’s quarters? Are you all so useless? Do you want to lose your heads?”

Clearly, she wielded significant authority in the palace. At her words, the attendants all dropped to their knees in fear, not daring to make a sound.

Qiu Che knew she was the real target of that outburst, though she wasn’t sure why. She didn’t argue, only gave a humble smile and said, “Indeed, it was improper. Apologies for disturbing Princess Pingyi and Your Ladyship. I will take my leave.”

Consort Xian smiled sweetly. “Not at all, Lord Qiu. Don’t take it to heart, it was the servants who were careless. I don’t hold you responsible.”

As they spoke, Pingyi ran over and tugged at her mother’s robes, looking up with pleading eyes. “Mother, I was the one who asked them to come! Don’t be mad, okay? Look! Brother Qiu made me a grasshopper, it’s huge!”

Consort Xian’s expression softened. She bent down and dusted off her daughter’s robes, gently scolding, “I see it… Look at you, not acting like a proper princess at all. If your father saw this, he wouldn’t like his darling girl anymore.”

Pingyi pouted and turned back to play with her grasshopper.

Soon, Qiu Che and Li Qingwu took their leave.

As they reached the gates of Fengyang Pavilion, Qiu Che paused and looked back, as if sensing something.

Only once they were inside the carriage did she speak again. “Did it seem to you like Her Ladyship doesn’t like me?”

Li Qingwu shook her head and smiled. “She’s the legitimate daughter of the Xu family, she acts that way with everyone. Now that the position of empress is vacant and she’s so favored, it’s no surprise she’s a bit arrogant. But she’s not a bad person. Don’t take it personally.”

“Is that so?” Qiu Che raised an eyebrow.

She recalled what she’d seen when she glanced back, Consort Xian had her head slightly bowed, one hand pressed to her lower back, the other resting on her belly. For a moment, her face held a fleeting look of tenderness.

A concubine without a son, from a family the emperor despised, no matter how favored, no matter how arrogant, shouldn’t dare act this way toward a rising court favorite.

Unless… she was pregnant. And feared anyone who might threaten her child’s future.

Halfway through the journey, Li Qingwu got off the carriage to check the ledgers at Linglong Pavilion.

Qiu Che watched her go, then let down the curtain.

She sat in silence until they arrived back at the Princess’s residence. Once she entered the study and opened the door to see Yang Qiu waiting inside, she finally came back to her senses. “When did you get here?”

Yang Qiu sat properly on the side, holding a scripture in hand. “Just now.”

He looked her over, confirming she was truly unharmed, then sighed in relief and put down the book. “You’ve been enjoying yourself for two months while we were left cleaning up your mess.”

“Those with ability do the work,” Qiu Che said nonchalantly, circling past him to sit at the desk. “What brings you here now, something happened?”

“Not exactly. Just wanted to fill you in while there’s still time… Don’t worry, no one saw me come.”

He pulled a scroll from his sleeve and handed it over. “This lists the recent personnel changes in the capital.”

Qiu Che flipped through it. “You’ve been promoted to fourth rank. Wu Yiqi’s made fifth… not bad.”

Then something struck her. “How’s Yao Tai’s injury?”

Yang Qiu fell silent again.

His usually calm, gentle face looked unusually tired as he lowered his eyes. “…It’s serious.”

“She didn’t want to worry you while you were away in Jinzhou, so she made me promise not to tell.”

His voice dropped. “She’s been bedridden for two months… and less and less conscious. She’s barely hanging on with medicine.”

Qiu Che froze. “…What did Doctor Chen say?”

Yang Qiu shook his head. “If he could treat her, I wouldn’t be saying this.”

“She was stabbed too many times, every wound was critical. The fact that she’s still alive is already a miracle.”