Chapter 723: The Fetus Was Growing Too Fast
Seeing this, Helian Wei Wei raised her brow in doubt and asked, "What is it, Imperial Physician Liu? Is there a problem with my pulse?"
"No... Perhaps, my golden thread is broken," Imperial Physician Liu replied, while he examined the golden thread he used to check the pulse. This is weird, the thread is not broken, so what exactly happened?
Helian Wei Wei knew things were not that simple when she saw Imperial Physician Liu's expression.
Based on the series of events that happened in the past few days, she knew the doubt and confusion on Imperial Physician Liu's face undeniably had something to do with the fetus in her womb.
Imperial Physician Liu could not figure anything out even after racking his brains. He said to Helian Wei Wei, "If you do not mind, please allow me to check your pulse directly."
In the olden days, there were many rules in place when the imperial physicians wanted to examine the women in the harem.
Checking the pulse with a golden thread between the patient and the physician was one of them.
Imperial Physician Liu only dared to suggest this to Helian Wei Wei because he knew that the Third Princess Consort was different from all the women he had seen before.
Sure enough, Helian Wei Wei stretched out her left hand with a smile, saying, "I don't mind medical practitioners touching me. Go ahead, Imperial Physician Liu."
Imperial Physician Liu nodded. With a grim expression, he checked her pulse again. As he became more serious, his eyes gradually widened until his pupils began shaking in disbelief.
Helian Wei Wei could tell that he was trying his very best to suppress his shock. Maybe this was because the other imperial physicians and palace maids were present there. Imperial Physician Liu did not describe the pulse immediately. Instead, he glanced around furtively.
Helian Wei Wei had always been considerate. Seeing him like this, she waved her hands to order the palace maids to leave. She even thought of a good excuse and sent the other imperial physicians away. Finally, only Imperial Physician Liu was left by her side.
Seeing that the others had left, Imperial Physician Liu thought carefully about his words before saying, "Princess Consort, your pulse seems weird... A normal two-month-old fetus won't produce this kind of pulse. When I checked your pulse a few days ago, it was not like this. Your pulse have changed drastically within the past few days. Logically speaking, it's impossible for a fetus in the womb to grow this fast. This does not seem like a two-month fetus, but more like a five-month-old. I have no idea how it grew so quickly. Allow me to say something offensive. When I was practicing, I heard from the elderly that in some villages near the jungle, some ladies would get pregnant suddenly and couldn't identify the fathers. The fetuses were so tenacious that they couldn't be aborted. Not only that, the fetus would grow extremely fast. They could absorb the amount of nutrients a normal fetus needs in a month, in just a few days. Usually, these ladies would lose their mind or sanity. Eventually, their life essence would be sucked dry by the fetuses, becoming skinny as a bag of bones before dying. My master told me that they were pregnant with ghost fetuses. A lady would only behave like that when she's pregnant with a ghost fetus." Imperial Physician Liu paused, and kneeled down abruptly, saying, "I am not trying to scare you by saying this, but the pulse is too similar to the pulse I felt back then. I am worried that..."
Helian Wei Wei helped Imperial Physician Liu to his feet and reassured him, "Imperial Physician Liu, you don't have to worry about my health, but I would like to ask a favor from you."
"Princess Consort, you..." Imperial Physician Liu realized that the Third Princess Consort might have already known that her fetus was different. Then, he continued, "Please say it."
Helian Wei Wei's voice was soft but her smile never left her face as she uttered, "My fetus just eats more than usual. He's normal in every other aspect. You have checked my pulse, so you must know he's a healthy fetus. Please say so when you see His Highness and the Retired Emperor."
Imperial Physician Liu's voice tightened as he said, "But Princess Consort, if the fetus continues growing this way, your body might not be able to take it."
"I'm fine." Helian Wei Wei stroked her tummy and added, "It's an obedient fetus. However, Imperial Physician Liu, you must remember that this is an ordinary fetus. Furthermore, you don't have to doubt his bloodline. He belongs to the royal family and isn't some ghost fetus."
Imperial Physician Liu silently sighed in his heart, well aware that the Princess Consort intended to keep the baby.
He had seen countless women in the harem.
All of them regarded the child in their womb as a bargaining chip, and many did not hesitate to abort their babies after noticing any abnormality.
Especially when they found out they were pregnant with girls. Those imperial concubines would rather pretend that they were framed by others to obtain even the tiniest bit of empathy from the Emperor.
Many years back, even the Empress wanted to abort the Third Prince because the position of the fetus' heart was improper.
Of course, that was what was told to outsiders.
In reality, the imperial physicians in the imperial palace knew that when the Empress was pregnant with the Third Prince, she suddenly became unusually addicted to eating chicken. She would seem possessed when she ate ravenously, frightening every person who witnessed the scene.
After that, the Third Prince was born and the imperial palace finally became peaceful again.
However, because of this matter, the Empress loathed the Third Prince and never changed.
Imperial Physician Liu even reckoned that the Empress had never wanted the Third Prince in the first place.
People like the Third Princess Consort, who still wanted to keep the baby wholeheartedly after finding out something was wrong, were extremely rare in the harem.
Moreover, it was highly possible that the birth of the baby would take the Princess Consort's life...
Imperial Physician Liu was old, but he was soft-hearted and never regarded Helian Wei Wei as an outsider. After hearing her decision, he felt slightly uneasy. Eventually, he could only mutter, "Yes."
Helian Wei Wei chuckled when she saw his expression. Then, she said, "Imperial Physician Liu, I'm really fine. The fetus needs spiritual aura, so he'll be fine as long as we give him enough of it." Obviously, the fetus also needed something else other than spiritual aura. However, Helian Wei Wei could not place a finger on what that really was. She could only sense that there would be Qi fusing in her womb every night, giving her the false impression that the fetus had gone out to hunt for food.
"If he needs spiritual aura..." Imperial Physician Liu plunged deep into thought for a moment, and pressed on, "Wouldn't it be better if we tell His Highness?"
Helian Wei Wei paused mid-action, her fingers drumming a rhythm on the wooden table as she replied, "Wait for a little while more. I'll tell him after I think of an appropriate way to say it." She would definitely tell Baili Jia Jue, but she knew the man better than anyone else. He would not hesitate to immediately destroy anything and everything that would be harmful to her, so she did not want him to be hostile to the fetus even before he was born.
Not to mention that, just like what she said, she did not think there was any significant problem.
After all, the strawberries in the Fantasy Space could still support her for a considerable period of time.
However, there was one thing that Imperial Physician Liu did not diagnose, as she had also only found out about it on that day. Her body no longer had the spiritual energy for warding off demons and monsters. Furthermore, her martial Qi for adjusting wind direction had also weakened...