Chapter 297: "Wrestling with the Wicked Consort (1)"
Becoming pregnant after over a decade of nothing was truly a joyous event. Furthermore, due to her generally well liked personality, many had taken the liberty of visiting the Morning Flower Wing of their own volition.
Naturally their reasons varied from goodwill to political reasons, but one thing was certain, they all meant well for the queen and her child. In contrast, Consort Luo's own residence had taken a steep dive in popularity.
Outside the bedchamber, several maids and eunuchs were all on edge, afraid to move an inch from their spot due to the constant smashing sound from the inside.
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Whether it be vases or furnishings, anything within an eyes view were thrown to the ground by Consort Luo.
"That bitch is pregnant again!" Cursing the entire time, the mad woman went as far as to start cursing the king too, "What's so special about her, it's only a child. If she's so good then pop a crown prince like I did!"
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Listening in to all of this were Prince Hou Qi and Alchemist Chou. While the latter was nervous in the face, the former was more distracted by his own luck in recent days rather than paying attention to his mother's frustration. For some unknown reason, the boy had the strange feeling that he's been cursed with misfortune.
Take the Tai Yi School venture for example. Not only did he return without the sacred artifact, Marquis An also lost a hand. This naturally infuriated the king, hence the reason for the prince here being reprimanded by his father.
That's not all though. Ever since his father the king became increasingly distant to his own mother here, her temperament had turned increasingly violent like today. In fact, Xia Hou Hong found it very hard to associate this woman before him as the very same elegant mother from his memories.
"Mother, it is useless to get angry in these circumstances. If we continue like this, it will just be a matter of time before I get abolished from my Crown Prince title and you being turned away." In recent days, there's been no end to the constant buzzing of changing his younger brother Xia Hou Qi into the Crown Prince of Da Xia.
"My son, then your meaning is?" Consort Luo was lost for ideas at this point.
"The plan needs to be changed. That vile spawn from Queen Liu's belly cannot be born and her son also needs to be dealt with." Xia Hou Hong had wanted to wait until next year's royal competition before dealing with the queen, but now that the woman's pregnant, things must be pulled ahead or risk having all their plans turned to ruin.
Originally he intended to induce his younger brother into participating. By then, all he needed to do was hire an assassin and then secretly kill the boy while making it look like an accident. But with the extra child in the equation, nothing was certain anymore.
That's where Xia Hou Hong came up with the idea of killing two birds with one stone. Eradicate them both at once and be done with it rather than postponing the issue.
Hearing the entire conversation on the side, Alchemist Chou was literally shivering in the knees. He had long known Consort Luo and Prince Hou Hong weren't good people, but he never expected this pair of mother and son to openly attempt a murder.
"I will eventually take care of Hou Qi, that we don't need to worry. What's important now is to deal with Queen Liu and her belly. Alchemist Chou, I'm leaving this matter in your hands." Dark in his gaze, Prince Hou Hong stares intently at the old alchemist.
"Your Highness, I-I... I fear I'm not up to the task with my measly ability." Stuttering in his words, the old master didn't dare accept the request.
Poisoning the current queen and her unborn child, such a deed was enough to warrant the death penalty if discovered.
"Alchemist Chou, don't forget it is us who brought you out of the prison and allowed you to keep working in the Royal Hospital. If you don't obey our command, you can forget about ever making it back on top. Are you just willing to accept your fate and listen to that Alchemist Mei's order for the rest of your life?" Consort Luo directly points out the pros and cons.
"Think about it carefully, its either now or never if you wish to regain everything that you lost." Prince Hou Hong also chimes in to help persuade the old master.
Recalling his prestigious days in the past, then to his current self where even an old granny of the palace could give him attitude, Alchemist Chou's expression promptly turned unsightly.
He knows it inside too, offending Lan Ling Yue was the same as offending the sixth prince. If the boy does succeed the throne in the future, it's a given that the new king will remove any untrusted variables in the palace. However, if he helps the current crown prince here become the next king, things will be entirely different.
As the old saying goes, wealth comes with risk and danger.
"I will forever pledge my loyalty to Your Highness and Your Grace."
"Alchemist Chou, I have here a bottle of abortion drug. All you have to do is put some of it into Queen Liu's food." The woman's laughter was extremely insidious that it gave even those outside the bedchamber the chills.
Now that Queen Liu had become pregnant, there are no other alchemists allowed to diagnose her - the only exception being Alchemist Mei and Ling Yue.
As such, Consort Luo's people never even came close to touching the queen's dietary food. But of course, if there's a will, there's a way. With enough money as temptation, she's certain there will be one or two servants inside the palace willing to sneak the drug into the dishes.
Before anyone knew it, another half a month had gone by since it became known that the queen was pregnant. Everyday, Queen Liu's stomach would get bigger and bigger with nothing odd out of place.
"It's not good Your Majesty, the queen just had a miscarriage!"
The morning court meeting had only just started when one of Queen Liu's personal grannies came rushing inside with a panicked face. As a result, the king immediately dismissed everyone and went straight to the Morning Flower Wing.
"Her Queenship hasn't been feeling well since early this morning, but even with Alchemist Mei and Alchemist Yue's effort, the child couldn't be saved." Kneeling on the floor, every single lady in wait were uneasy with fright.
Gloomy in the face, the king didn't get any response from his queen as he went over to comfort her, only a constant murmuring weep from that weakened body.
"Useless, all useless! What were you all doing the entire time?" Interrogating every single person present, the king left no stones unturned here. Sadly, the final answer was the same - it came too suddenly.
Just like that, the king only left a few comforting words for his wife and then departed by himself in low spirit.
"Consort Luo is entering!" Like a timed entry, the unwelcomed woman arrives as soon as the man's gone.
When this scheming woman first learned of the slip in the queen's belly, she immediately became elated. Dressing herself up like a peacock, Consort Luo simply had to make a personal visit to her enemy.
"Oh sister, I came as soon as I heard the news. You mustn't be too sad, there will always be another chance." Full of sadness in her face, the sobbing woman literally barged into the bedchamber without permission.
When seeing it's the pretentious Consort Luo, none of the members of the Morning Flower Wing were good in their facial expression.
It's no secret that the relationship between Queen Liu and the woman here were at odds. So whatever compassion she's showing, it's all fake.
"Consort Luo, her Highness is still weak right now. Please go back because we are not seeing any guests today." Not going to let this slide, one of the queen's faithful granny stepped forward to block off the hateful intruder.
"Move aside, it's because of incompetent servants like you that the queen had lost her child. To make up for your failures, I specifically brought over some valuable tonic to help rejuvenate her body." There's no way Consort Luo was going to be stopped today. She must see the miserable state of that queen regardless of the blockade.
"Luo Wan Wan, you intentionally came to see me in this state didn't you!" With her hair a scattered mess, Queen Liu looked exactly like someone that had just faced a miscarriage on the bed.