White Fence Dream

Chapter 198 Waiting for Life
The wailing sounds in the mourning hall were more chaotic than before, as if someone got distracted and forgot about crying, then remembered it the next moment and continued crying.

Even when they were crying, the concubines would exchange glances from time to time, wondering whether Bai Ying had given birth, what baby she would give birth to, and even whether she could give birth safely...
The officials wrapped in cloaks and sitting in the corridor outside the mourning hall were whispering from time to time. They no longer pretended to be sad, but some frowned, some were relaxed, and many even looked expectant.

"I hope to have a boy at the first try."

"It should be a boy. Didn't Xuan Yangzi confirm it after seeing it?"

"It's time to have a prince. The succession of the country is imminent."

"You don't have to say that. Your Majesty is in his prime."

"Yes, it's not like there are no princes or grandsons..."

"What does this mean, Mr. Han?"

"No, it's nothing...it's really cold, I'll stand up and walk around."

"Report——"

Amidst the noisy discussions, the eunuchs from Hanliang Palace came running over and would report on Concubine Bai's condition every half an hour.

The emperor's voice came from inside the room in a hurry, "Come in quickly, what's going on?"

The officials' discussions and the concubines' cries stopped, and everyone listened attentively.

"The amniotic fluid has broken. Concubine Bai is in good condition. She just ate a bowl of egg custard to gather her strength."

The emperor said yes, yes, yes.

The eunuch had not left yet, and continued, "The Queen told Your Majesty not to worry, and told Your Majesty to tell the Queen that the child is still born to the Queen."

The emperor was both relieved and sad: "At this time, she is still thinking about these things." He nodded again and again, "Okay, tell her, I know everything."

The eunuch then took his leave and returned to Hanliang Palace at a rapid speed.

The emperor then asked the people around him, "Have you hung up the lucky bag given by Xuan Yangzi? Have you placed the Emperor Bell?"

The palace was previously haunted by the ghost of Empress Jiang, and now the Empress has died. Bai Ying is giving birth to a child at this time. Although the Emperor Bell has been moved away to suppress all evil, the Emperor is still very uneasy and asks someone to invite Xuan Yangzi to take charge personally.

Xuan Yangzi refused and only said that he would burn incense and pray in front of the Holy Ancestor, and also sent a lucky bag.

The former chief eunuch Gao Twelve was involved in the Yang case and was also taken away. At this time, a young eunuch was serving beside him. When he heard the emperor's question, he immediately answered eloquently: "It has been arranged according to your majesty's instructions. Your majesty, don't worry." Then he picked up the tea beside him and said, "Your majesty, warm yourself up and don't let Lady Bai worry."

The emperor wanted to laugh. Even at this time, Bai Ying was still thinking about him. He felt much better and ordered some midnight snacks to be served to the concubines and officials who were keeping vigil.

Looking at the hot tea sent from the imperial kitchen, Zhou Jingyun stood up and walked out.

"Where is the prince going?" asked an official.

Zhou Jingyun turned around and said, "Go to the bathroom."

Another official heard this and laughed: "Look at what you are asking. The prince is also a human being and has three urgent matters."

Zhou Jingyun did not look back and went towards the bathroom, but when he reached a dark corner where no one could notice him, he stopped and looked towards the Hanliang Palace.

Compared to the crying sounds gradually stopping in the mourning hall, a faint groaning sound that sounded like crying and shouting could be heard from the other side in the night.

He is very familiar with this imperial city.

Especially the Hanliang Palace.

That was Empress Chiang’s favorite place. The late emperor’s banquets and Empress Chiang’s administration of the country were all held here.

Although Bai Ying's childbirth had nothing to do with him, he still wanted to go and see, or rather, see what they would do.

Zhou Jingyun turned around and disappeared into the night.

.......
.......
Bai Li hid under a rockery. She was unfamiliar with the imperial city and didn't know where she was.

After entering the imperial city, she followed the scent all the way to find the pregnant women.

This is a not very big palace, with dim lights and closed doors and windows. Occasionally, a figure can be seen swaying inside, and faint moaning sounds that sound like crying and laughing can be heard.

There were several soldiers standing outside the hall, talking in low voices from time to time with a sense of ease.

"…The Queen has been buried, and Yang has been escorted out of the capital. The people imprisoned in the palace will be dealt with soon."

"Yes, we will be able to withdraw in three days at most."

"What do you think will happen to these people?"

"What else can we do with them? Regardless of whether they are Yang's accomplices or not, they cannot be kept in the imperial city. Those with good luck will be sent to do hard labor, and those with bad luck will be buried with the queen."

It sounds like a place where criminals are imprisoned, and it looks casual, but Bai Li is hidden behind the rockery, holding her breath and not moving. If she were the dry bushes in front of the palace in winter, she could sense the soldiers hiding in them. If she were a bird flying by at night, she could overlook the soldiers crawling on the roof. If she were a mouse crawling along the corner of the wall, she could smell the bloody smell coming from the cracks in the bricks and stones on the wall...

There was a splash, and blood seemed to fall to the ground, accompanied by a hoarse scream from the woman and the cry of a baby.

"A baby girl."

"keep it."

"next."

The mouse clinging to the wall was attracted by the strong fishy smell and tried desperately to drill into the gaps between the bricks and stones. The light in front of its eyes became brighter and brighter, but the next moment it was blocked by a human figure that suddenly appeared.

"…..There are two more….Zhongcheng, should we induce labor now or wait a little longer?"

Hearing a palace woman's question, Zhang Ze looked at the pregnant woman lying on the wooden bed.

The pregnant woman was already sweating profusely and breathing rapidly.

"Hurry up." Zhang Ze said, "There may be a difference between one day and two days for a baby, but there is no difference between one hour and two hours."

As he spoke, the palace woman responded, picked up the medicine bowl beside her and walked towards the pregnant woman. Suddenly, her legs went soft and she subconsciously lowered her head. She saw a big rat looking up at her with red eyes.

The palace lady screamed and the medicine bowl in her hand fell to the ground. "Rat, rat," she shouted.

The others in the room subconsciously looked towards the ground, and indeed saw one, no, it seemed like many rats were running around...

Once it is used to detain prisoners, torture, blood and flesh, and the filth of feces and urine, even the imperial palace will attract rats.

There was chaos in the room. Some people were hitting mice, some were hiding in fear, and the table with various utensils and medicines on it was instantly overturned.

Zhang Ze stood in the middle, watching the scene with an annoyed expression, but frowned the next moment, feeling that something was wrong. Just when he was about to say something, there was a loud splash, and water splashed from all directions.

The people in the room who were in chaos because of the rats subconsciously raised their hands to cover their heads, but with the action, the noise disappeared, and at the same time, there was no water pouring down on their heads, only a little bit of ice fell on the back of their hands and heads.

"There are no real mice, it's an illusion."

At the same time, a sound was heard.

Zhang Ze put down his sleeves and his vision became clear again. Although there were stains on the ground, there were no rats running around.

He looked at the two men in the room holding bowls of water.

This was the collection of quacks he had collected and he always kept it with him just in case, and it turned out to be true!
The two men's fingers were wet with water. It was obvious that only a little water was spilled, not a bucket of water.

“Zhongcheng, the easiest way to break the illusion is to be prosperous.” They said.

Zhang Ze smiled coldly: "Sure enough, the thief is still intent on doing this."

Needless to say, it must be the remnants of Empress Jiang who are taking advantage of the Queen's death and Concubine Bai's life to stir up trouble.

Did you think that since he didn't have the Emperor Bell and the magic weapon given by the Holy Ancestor Temple, you could take advantage of him? Did you think that he had no defense at all?

There are people in this world who can perform illusions, and naturally there are other people who can perform illusions as well.

"Go break it!"

Following Zhang Ze's order, the two sorcerers blew a sharp whistle.

The soldiers who were laughing and chatting outside the hall suddenly became like wooden sculptures and clay statues, motionless. There were splashing sounds on the eaves, and buckets of water were pouring down. In the open space in front of the hall, soldiers were waving large fans in all directions, and a strong wind was sweeping in the night.

Along with the noise outside, the moans of the pregnant woman in the room suddenly increased.

"Zhongcheng, she is about to give birth." A palace woman said happily.

Although the labor-inducing drugs were knocked over, the pregnant woman still went into labor prematurely.

Zhang Ze ignored the outside and looked at the pregnant woman on the wooden board: "I hope you have better luck."

……

……

The woman's sharp scream broke the silence of the night.

Zhou Jingyun stood at a corner of the palace wall and looked at the Hanliang Palace in front of him. In fact, he had never seen a pregnant woman giving birth. It turned out that giving birth would make people cry out in such severe pain.

Being a mother is not easy.

He thought of his mother and Bai Li's mother.

Bai Li said her mother died in childbirth.

No matter what, Zhou Jingyun looked ahead, hoping that Bai Ying would have better luck.

……

……

Pain, pain, pain.

Bai Ying grabbed the bed, raised her head and screamed, tears streaming down her face, filled with grievance, anger, and fear.

It turns out giving birth is so painful.

Will she die?
Mom is dead!

My mother was killed by my sister!

"I don't want to have a baby anymore." She screamed, grabbing the palace lady beside her, "Get rid of it, get rid of it!"

The palace lady was sweating profusely, her arm was almost broken by Bai Ying, and she couldn't help but let out a cry of pain: "My queen, please use more force, use more force——"

No, no, Bai Ying wanted to shout, but now she had no choice. The pain made her try harder and scream harder.

Accompanied by a scream, the body lightened and the palace women's joyful shouts were heard.

"gave birth!"

Bai Ying collapsed on the bed, her ears buzzing. It was over? Was she still alive?
Accompanied by two slapping sounds, the baby's crying sounded, and the next moment the baby's crying sound disappeared, as if it was blocked by someone's hand.

"What's wrong?" Bai Ying was startled and asked weakly, "Wang Degui - the child -"

Wang Degui tremblingly walked forward holding a naked baby in his hands, covering the baby's face with one hand, and the baby's originally loud cry became muffled.

He said in a trembling voice: "My lady, please hold on for a while."

To hold on for a while means to pretend that the baby hasn't been born yet, and then continue giving birth...

Bai Ying looked at the baby that was brought over. It was red and wrinkled and was struggling. Its little face was covered by Wang Degui's hands, so she couldn't see its appearance clearly, but she could tell its gender.

Bai Ying's pale face instantly turned red: "I'm so angry——"

Why is it a baby girl!

She has such bad luck!