Chapter 137 (2/2): Extra- Triplets in the Dragon Womb

At this point, Kangxi and Imperial Physician Zhao spoke up at the same time—

“What way do you have to guarantee your own safe delivery?”

“I may have a method to ensure Her Ladyship’s safety.”

‘Hm?’ Fang He leaned on Kangxi’s arm and sat up, both she and Kangxi looking with expectation at the white-bearded Imperial Physician Zhao.

Kangxi adjusted Fang He to a comfortable angle, unable to wait.

“What method? How sure are you?”

Imperial Physician Zhao thought for a moment, then spoke steadily, “Reporting to Your Majesty, this old subject has a recipe for a labor-inducing medicine in my family that causes minimal harm to women, and is safe for the child.”

“Multiple births rarely go to full term. The larger the babies, the more dangerous it is for the mother. Around the seventh month, labor can be induced while the babies are still small, allowing the Imperial Noble Consort to deliver early; mother and children will be safer.”

With the mother’s body gradually recovering, the babies could slowly be nursed back to health.

Kangxi’s expression wavered—if only Guoguo could deliver safely, then even if the children were weaker, the Imperial family had so many rare medicines, surely the children could be brought up strong.

Fang He didn’t agree.

She asked calmly, “If I deliver at seven months, can you guarantee the weaker baby will be born healthy?”

Imperial Physician Zhao lowered his head with difficulty and said, “I am uneasy, Your Majesty. At that age the babies are not mature. I cannot guarantee their survival…”

Fang He cut him off, “Then don’t mention it again. Do your utmost to help me carry these children as long as possible.”

Fule couldn’t hold back, “But Mistress, the bigger your belly, the weaker you’ll become. Multiple pregnancies rarely reach full term—at most a little past eight months. By then you may not have strength to deliver!”

‘Better to follow Imperial Physician Zhao’s method’—she hadn’t thought of it before, but now she felt it was the safest way for her mistress and the babies.

Fang He raised her brow, glancing at the increasingly anxious Kangxi and said, “I won’t gamble with my own life or the children’s. But I’ll trouble Your Majesty to help me with a few things.”

Kangxi glared at her helplessly—now she remembered to be polite, but when she was making him anxious, where was that?

Fang He hugged Jiujiu with a sly smile and said, “By the way, Jiujiu hasn’t met her sworn brother yet. And I want to eat Xiao Qiao’s cooking. Your Majesty, you understand?”

If she gave birth, she’d be stuck for years again—forget about going south.

But Sister Naren and Sister Liang were doing well in the south; it was time for them to open branches in the capital!

If not for all the people in the hall, Kangxi would’ve wanted to press her beneath him and bite that mischievous mouth.

She was blatantly bringing up those “Little Fang, Little Yuan” again.

He shouldn’t have let her know his true feelings at Gubeikou!

Jiujiu and Er Bao both looked up with big curious eyes—Kangxi couldn’t argue in front of them and left for Qianqing Palace with a dark face.

It was still before dinner when Liang Jiugong arrived, his face all ingratiating smiles.

“Master Zhen, the Imperial Kitchen has especially prepared your favorite chicken with mushrooms, and His Majesty ordered Buddha Jumps Over the Wall just for you and the little masters. Please do us the honor!”

Fang He didn’t really want to move.

The closer she felt to Kangxi, the less she wanted to put on airs in front of him.

Maybe it was the mood swings of this pregnancy—sometimes she couldn’t even control herself.

She never felt at home in Qianqing Palace, especially with her current condition.

Yanxi Palace felt safer, so she let herself be.

Besides, there was nothing else she could do; her sleep was troubled and restless, disturbing Kangxi’s rest as well.

Better to let him get a good night’s sleep.

He wasn’t young anymore, and after a serious illness, she’d need him in the future.

But Liang Jiugong didn’t dare leave, and instead said with a laugh, “Just now I saw Zhao Chang waiting with a secret edict in the side hall. Strange, I haven’t heard of any big matters at Court lately. I wonder what he’s waiting for…”

Fang He sat up slowly, smiling at Liang Jiugong, “Waiting for… a catch-in-the-jar… lock the door… damn, pregnancy brain for three years, can’t even remember how to retort.”

But she got Kangxi’s threat, so she let Xinhua and Fule help her out.

Liang Jiugong bowed to Cui Wei in the harem, silently pleading for Auntie Cui Wei to pack up Fang He’s things and send them to Qianqing Palace.

His Majesty had ordered him, no matter what, to coax Imperial Consort Zhen to move in for good.

Even Liang Jiugong didn’t trust the mistress to stay with five little ones where His Majesty couldn’t see them.

Knowing his own master’s controlling nature, that’d truly drive His Majesty mad.

Cui Wei was amused by Liang Jiugong’s odd appearance and did as he asked, packing Fang He’s daily necessities and moving them to Qianqing Palace.

She, too, was worried about her mistress’s belly.

After all, being before the Emperor’s eyes in Qianqing Palace, with everyone’s attention, was safer than in Yanxi Palace.

Even if someone lost their mind and wanted trouble, no one would dare act openly.

It wasn’t that Qianqing Palace lacked anything, but everyone now treated Fang He like fragile treasure, doing their best to keep her content.

So they moved things from Yanxi Palace to make her more comfortable.

As soon as Fang He arrived at Qianqing Palace, she learned that Liang Jiugong had lied—Zhao Chang had already left the palace with the edict.

Liang Jiugong grinned, “After I’ve served you your meal, I’ll go accept my beating!”

As long as the Emperor was happy, no eunuch, no matter how brave, would dare actually hit him.

Later, His Majesty would reward him anyway—Liang Jiugong knew exactly what to do.

Fang He, too, understood, and raised a brow at Kangxi with a half-smile.

Kangxi coaxed her, smiling, “Let’s eat first—after dinner…”

He glanced at the two eavesdropping little spies, leaned in close to Fang He, and whispered in her ear.

“I have something good to show you—just for our Guoguo!”

Fang He’s mood now changed as quickly as ever, and before Jiujiu could ask, she pulled her and Er Bao to sit down.

“Mother’s hungry, let’s eat first, and after dinner, I’ll tell you a mermaid story!”

Jiujiu and Er Bao immediately lost interest in questions.

Compared to the adults’ incomprehensible secrets, little rabbits, little turtles, princesses and fish were much more fun!

Fang He and Kangxi finished dinner with Jiujiu and Er Bao, and in the side hall, they lulled the two children to sleep with a story about a mermaid who’d lost her mind.

When the couple returned to Zhaoren Hall, as soon as they entered the east warm chamber, Fang He stopped in shock.

“Your Majesty, did you move my whole bed here?” Fang He stared dumbfounded at the east warm chamber, nearly identical to her Yanxi Palace quarters, at a loss for words.

Was there only the load-bearing wall left at Yanxi Palace now?

Kangxi helped her sit on the embroidered couch—also moved from Yanxi Palace—and gave a cold snort.

“So you won’t want to run back to Yanxi Palace anymore. If you want to run away from home again, just come to the east warm chamber.”

Fang He turned to look at him, a little oddly, “Then what about Your Majesty?”

Kangxi turned and headed to the west warm chamber with a little chilly voice, “If I’m annoyed by the Imperial Noble Consort, I’ll just go back to my own chambers.”

Fang He was touched, and couldn’t help but follow him, giving him a sweet smile.

“Oh, Your Majesty, you’re so temperamental, I really do like it!”

“I’m pregnant, I’ve even forgotten what your rooms look like. Let me see more, to remember them well…”

She followed Kangxi into the chambers and was truly surprised by the west warm chamber.

It hadn’t changed much; the outer room was still the same, and past the screen was the sleeping area—the center held Kangxi’s dragon bed.

But this dragon bed—after more than six years, Fang He recognized at a glance it wasn’t the old zitan wood antique with carved dragons.

The original bed, like all palace beds designed to gather qi, had been rather narrow.

But this one was much wider, with auspicious swirling patterns of dragons and phoenixes.

It looked oddly familiar, though she couldn’t recall where she’d seen it before—maybe at the hot springs palace or somewhere else…

“Didn’t you always want to count how many women have laid in my dragon bed?” Kangxi tapped her head gently.

“Count this one—only one troublemaker’s ever lain here.”

Fang He reflexively protested, “As if! I haven’t even lain on it yet—”

She suddenly stopped, remembering where this bed came from.

With a strange expression, she approached and lifted the canopy, revealing a scratch on one of the bedposts.

It was the mark left the year she and Kangxi returned to the palace at age twenty-six, the two of them messing around on the dragon boat—he hadn’t even changed out of his dragon robe, and she’d pushed him impatiently, breaking the red jade dragon eye and leaving that scratch.

“You…” Fang He slowly straightened, torn between laughter and exasperation as she looked at Kangxi.

That boat was guarded by soldiers at the shipyard in Yangliuqing—how did they manage to bring out a bed, especially a dragon bed?

The commotion must’ve—

His Majesty really had no intention of saving face!

News must have already spread among those with sharp ears.

There was still fighting outside, and the Crown Prince was under house arrest in Yuching Palace.

At such a sensitive time, he went to all this trouble to bring in a bed?

Was he really too stingy to order a new dragon bed from the workshops?

Kangxi gently hugged Fang He from behind, resting his head lightly on her shoulder, and sighed softly.

“Guoguo, every memory related to you is a treasure to me—even our future together. If anything happens to you… I don’t know what I’d do.”

For the first thirty-some years of his life, he valued the empire above all, never thinking a day like this would come.

But now he truly couldn’t imagine life without Fang He.

That loss of control made him anxious and afraid.

He didn’t say it directly, but Fang He inexplicably understood, her gaze softening.

She turned, lovingly cupping his face, her voice tender as water.

“Your Majesty, you must trust your own judgment. Even if your head’s been muddled, I’d never risk my own life—I haven’t lived enough yet.”

Even her burial arrangements were for after a hundred years.

In this life, unless it was from old age, she refused any other ending.

Kangxi: “…..”

‘If you keep talking like that, I’ll have to use my palm on you.’

The only part of this troublemaker he couldn’t touch was her belly—she really did know how to rile him up.

Fang He burst out laughing, making Kangxi nervously rub her back to calm her down until she helplessly shook her head.

She was just carrying multiple babies, not dying.

She wasn’t that fragile yet.

“Does Your Majesty remember the story of Hua Tuo offering to open Cao Cao’s skull for his headache?” she asked cautiously.

“I think, if not for Cao Cao’s suspicion, Hua Tuo might really have cured him—after all, Guan Yu had his bone scraped to heal his wound!”

Kangxi glanced at Fang He’s bulging belly, thoughtful.

He’d dealt with so many slippery ministers, he immediately caught Fang He’s meaning—the vein in his forehead throbbed.

Fang He grinned, “So, by the same logic, if we find a truly skilled doctor, delivering babies by cutting open the belly should be possible too!”

Cesarean section, ever heard of it?