The sky outside is a pale white, and it's almost dawn, but inside the delivery room, she's still struggling between life and death.

  "Come on, use a bit more strength, take a deep breath and push!" Xia Momo stood beside Su Jingzhen, loudly cheering her on.

  Jingyu saw that the empress was already exhausted, her heart full of worry, and she couldn't care about anything else. She leaned in close to her ear, "Your Majesty, you need to hold on a bit longer. Do you want the young prince to be born without an empress?"

  Su Jing's consciousness was somewhat scattered, and her mind only kept wandering around one sentence: Did she want her own child to not have a mother from the moment they were born?

  Absolutely didn't want to. Forcing myself to open my eyes, gritting my teeth, and trying hard to cooperate with Xia Momo's encouragement.

  Ying Yao was overjoyed and still conscious, "Your Highness, just try a bit harder, I'll definitely let you and the young prince be safe and sound."

  Su Jing forced a faint smile, nodded her head, and she didn't know how long it had been, so long that she had forgotten who she was, forgotten her past life and present life, all her attention was only on the child in her abdomen, persisting in this most powerful struggle for life and death.

  Finally, I felt a slip below, accompanied by the excited shouts of the birth assistant, "Born, born!"

  Fainted completely.

  "Your Majesty, it's a boy!" The midwife came out with a big smile on her face, holding the newborn in her arms.

  Zong Zhengjin glanced at the child in her arms and shifted his gaze to behind her, "How is she?"

  "Your Majesty, the empress has fainted due to postpartum weakness and is currently being treated by the imperial physician."

  Zong Zhengjin furrowed his brow, got up and wanted to go to the delivery room, Su Shunxian and others hurriedly stopped him, "Your Majesty, the delivery room is unclean, you absolutely cannot enter."

  Zong Zhengjin coldly brushed off his hand, pretending not to care. Qiao Jingyu also stood up and advised, "Your Majesty, Zhen's sister has just given birth and the delivery room hasn't been cleaned up yet. Why don't we wait until it's tidy? The Empress Dowager must be waiting for news too. Why not send someone to report first?"

  This was a subtle reminder to him that if he had rashly entered the delivery room as soon as it was just produced, others in the palace would have received news and would certainly be unfavorable to Su Jing. After all, it was too much for the emperor to break the rules.

  Zong Zhengjin thought for a moment and understood the meaning behind her words. At this time, there were many people in the delivery room, and his every move might be known to those with ulterior motives. It would be better to wait until the unrelated people left before entering the delivery room again.

  Turned around and sat back down.

  Qiao Jingyu saw him staring at the child in Momo's arms, not saying a word. Although she felt a bit sour in her heart, she found it more amusing and revealed a smile. "Summer Momo, I wonder if Sister Zhen gave birth to a prince or princess?"

  "Replying to Your Majesty and Her Highness Shu Gui Fei, the princess has given birth to a little prince."

  Then suddenly realized something, feeling a little embarrassed, and subtly brought a few points of vigilance.

  Qiao Jingyu knew her thoughts, but didn't mind, "This palace might just give you a hug"

  Xia murmured in agreement, turning her gaze to the Emperor, after all she was just a slave and had no right to make decisions. Seeing him nod, she carefully handed the child over to Consort Shu.

  Qiao Jingyu took off the armor on her hand and took over the child. Although the newborn baby was not fully developed, she knew that this child would be extraordinary in the future, whether in appearance or prospects.

  This is her ultimate goal, which concerns the fate of the Qiao family.

  "Your Majesty, look, the fourth prince is really handsome. His eyebrows and eyes are just like yours." Zong Zhengjin leaned over to take a look, but the little guy had his eyes tightly closed, only his lips were moving, and his skin was not as smooth as that of a young woman. His facial features were neither as delicate as those of a young woman nor as handsome as his own.

  It's really hard to say what looks good about it.

  However, he didn't say anything else and just responded with a "I'm fine."

  Qiao Jingyu was indifferent to his attitude and didn't find it strange, after all, with the previous few children, his attitude had always been aloof, as if he disliked kids.

  Xia Momo watched from the side, feeling a bit worried. Previously when the empress was pregnant, the emperor had been extremely caring and attentive to her every need. No one expected that after the child was born, the emperor would have this attitude.

  "You go ahead and watch for now, I'll join you later," Zong Zhengjin suddenly said.

  Qiao Jingyu was taken aback for a moment, then immediately understood his meaning, nodded and smiled, "Yes, I understand."

  It was unexpected that this child would be born at such a time, sharing the same birthday as the emperor. Whether she was truly blessed or not, she did not know. "Your Majesty, Zhenxiu has given birth to a baby boy," said the palace maid, entering quietly.

  As soon as the words fell, the sound of shattering porcelain was heard. Without a trace, she shrunk her body and her face remained calm and unruffled.

  Xian Fei never thought that she would safely give birth to this child.

  "I heard that Zhenxiu Rongniang had a postpartum collapse and was unconscious, but the imperial physician said it's nothing serious."

  "Hmph," said Xian Fei coldly, "how can she be so lucky?"

  She had been worried about many things, so she didn't take action and missed the best time in the first three months. Later, when she wanted to take action, it was much more difficult, so she thought of waiting until she was seven or eight months pregnant, and then taking direct action, killing two birds with one stone. However, she never expected that something like the Shu Fei affair would happen.

  Moreover, I don't have many people at my disposal and I didn't dare act rashly, so it has been delayed until now.

  "Your Ladyship, this can't be blamed on us. The Guan Yin Temple is as secure as an iron barrel, and the slaves inside are all loyal and devoted to their master, with no second thoughts. It's hard for us to make a move," Qing Yi advised.

  This is indeed the truth, everyone in the palace knows that the master of Guan Yu Palace is lenient and does not easily scold or beat the servants. The rewards are generous, and the workload is not heavy. Therefore, no one would risk their life and reputation for a small gain, betraying their master and suffering humiliation.

  Xian Fei shook her head, "This palace didn't expect that, the woman looked like she had no brains, but she was actually good at handling people and governing properly."

  Qing Yi didn't respond and remained silent.

  "Let me think about it, after all, giving birth is one thing, but raising them to adulthood is another," Xian Fei said, having spent many years in the palace and understanding this principle.

  Previously, it wasn't just the two daughters, Da Gong Zhu and Er Gong Zhu. Many of Shu Fei's children, including her eldest son, either didn't survive childbirth or didn't make it to adulthood.

  There are countless examples of this kind, and she doesn't have to limit her vision to just this.

  "Shu Gui Fei is also about to give birth, it's already been seven months," Xian Fei naturally wouldn't forget that there was another pregnant woman in the palace, and this one posed a greater threat than Guan Yu Gong.

  Qing Yi nodded, "That's right, the imperial physician said that the mother and child are very healthy, and it is highly likely to be a boy."

  "It's highly likely that it's not entirely certain, and whether it can be born or not is also uncertain," said Xian Fei coldly.

  Since Guan Yu Gong has already "accidentally" had a child, and it's a boy, then it's impossible for Chong Hua Gong to also have a child.

  But as it turns out, Shu Guifei is indeed worthy of her name. Despite being plotted against multiple times, she has managed to protect the fetus until now and both mother and child are safe and sound. Her methods are also not to be underestimated.

  The more it is so, the less she can have her way.

  It's not just Xianfei who thinks this way, other consorts also think so.

  As for Su Jing's safe delivery of the fourth prince, although she initially felt a bit uncomfortable in her heart, after calming down, she didn't feel so resentful anymore.

  After all, future things can never be predicted.

  What one thinks in their heart is one thing, but how to do it is another matter. Each palace sent people to present their carefully prepared gifts to express their congratulations.

  Including Cining Palace.

  Su Jingxiao was completely unaware of this, and when she woke up, she felt quite bewildered.

  I slept for what felt like several centuries, with scenes from the past flashing through my mind one after another, from past lives to this life, from childhood to adulthood, a mix of sadness and joy, dreams and reality, all jumbled together, real and unreal, indistinguishable.

  "The Emperor" Su Jing opened his eyes, and at a glance, he saw the man sitting on the edge of the bed, his hand also tightly grasped, his eyes suddenly sour, almost shedding tears.

  The driving force behind her waking up was this man in front of her.

  Zong Zhengjin slept lightly, and as soon as she made a sound, he woke up, hooked the corner of his mouth, and leaned in front of her, "You're awake."

  A thousand words and phrases all boil down to a single sentence: "You're awake."

  "Ah, I'm back," Su Jing also smiled, somewhat embarrassed, "Does the Emperor think I'm ugly?"

  Zong Zhengjin looked her up and down very seriously, nodded, "A bit."

  But I don't mind.

  Su Jing let out a soft laugh, "The Emperor is also watching, I have no way either."

  "Good," Zong Zhengjin nodded.

  Outside, Yao and others heard the movement inside, they were overjoyed in their hearts but didn't dare to make a sound to disturb them, until the baby's crying successfully caused a commotion among the people inside.

  Zong Zhengjin heard the voice and knew what the little woman in front of him was thinking without having to think about it. He patted her little head and shouted, "Bring the child in."

  Su Jingxi sat up and carefully took over the child. Under Xia Momo's guidance, she adjusted her posture and held the child in her arms.

  Although he was born not long ago, he has slowly grown up, and there are no more wrinkles on his face. Perhaps because of the mother-son connection, Su Jingchuan only stretched out her hand beside his, and a finger was tightly grasped.

  This is the child she gave birth to at the cost of her life.

  He looked at them with a calm expression, but his eyes were filled with tenderness. "Your Majesty wants to hold him?"

  Zong Zhengjin shook his head and was about to speak when something was suddenly thrown into his arms, which he caught subconsciously. "You"

  Su Jing shrugged her shoulders, anyway she was fearless now, "Your Majesty can hold you in his arms, I'm tired."

  Anyway, she absolutely doesn't believe in the absurd logic of doting on grandchildren but not on children. Even if they are blood relatives or biological parents and children, emotions still need to be connected and maintained.

  Palace Concubine (Yi) / 33 / 33265

  Gong Shu