He assured Bai Qingyan to rest easy, that he would definitely spare no effort to find Bai Qingyu and Xiao Qi, Bai Jinse.
Life and death are unknown…
At this moment, Bai Qingyan’s mind was filled with that dream—A’Yu struck by multiple arrows, covered in blood, calling to her… begging her to save him! In her mind was the image of Xiao Qi, Bai Jinzhi, looking up at her with a smile.
She should have been more vigilant!
Her rebirth was already heaven’s grace, and this time, heaven had given her a dream as a warning, yet she had merely treated it as just a dream!
Those four words, “life and death unknown,” burned through her like fire consuming her very soul.
Bai Qingyan’s lips were tightly pressed together. The pain had soaked her entire body in sweat. She gripped the military report tightly, unwilling to let her mother see it, unwilling to let her mother worry.
Yan…
Was it Yan?
Was it Xiao Rongyan?
If it was Xiao Rongyan…
Pain struck again. Bai Qingyan was in such agony she nearly fainted, yet she forced herself to endure without crying out even once.
No, it wasn’t Xiao Rongyan!
Could it be… the Empress Dowager of Yan?
Bai Qingyan recalled what Bai Jintong had written in her letter, saying that the Empress Dowager of Yan seemed to have secretly sent people to Western Liang, and that Western Liang also had people who secretly entered the Yan imperial palace.
Then, could it be that Xiao Rongyan, to reassure his sister-in-law, had told the Empress Dowager of Yan about the battle strategy that Great Zhou and Yan had agreed upon, thus causing the Bai family army… causing A’Yu and Xiao Qi to suffer this disaster?
Before Bai Qingyan’s chaotic and confused thoughts could sort out this matter, she had already been carried into the delivery room that had been prepared long ago… arranged in the side hall of her bedchamber.
Dong Shi sat by the bedside, using a handkerchief to wipe Bai Qingyan’s sweat. Bai Qingyan’s several aunts were also present. After all, they had all given birth before and had experience, so they could manage until the midwives arrived.
Liu Shi had Nanny Luo take Wang Ge’er back and arranged for someone to brew strong ginseng soup to give to Bai Qingyan when necessary.
Li Shi spoke to Bai Qingyan in a low voice: “A’Bao, this pain… it comes in waves. When it doesn’t hurt, drink a couple of sips of water, don’t shout… conserve your strength. When the midwives arrive and tell you to push, then you push with all your might! Never push too early—pushing too early will hurt you!”
After Li Shi finished speaking, she felt she had said something pointless. A’Bao was the most enduring person; no matter how severely injured she had been in the past, she always bore it silently.
Eighth Miss Bai Wanqing hadn’t even gotten close to Bai Qingyan’s bedchamber before being intercepted and sent back by Nanny Zhai from Fifth Madam Qi’s side.
Soon, news spread that Bai Qingyan had received the Western Liang military report and had accidentally fallen from her carriage.
Grand Commandant Lu, Minister Shen, and Minister Dong had also learned of the Western Liang battle report and dared not delay, immediately entering the palace together.
When Grand Commandant Lu was leaving his residence, Minister of Revenue Wei Bugong, Minister of Justice Lu Jin, and Minister of Personnel Zhang Duanning learned the news and coincidentally came to Grand Commandant Lu’s mansion, blocking Grand Commandant Lu, who was about to enter the palace.
“Grand Commandant Lu, should we enter the palace together?” Wei Bugong respectfully inquired of Grand Commandant Lu. “According to protocol, if His Majesty’s dragon body is unwell, ministers of our rank should enter the palace! But we’ve never encountered a female emperor before, and we don’t know whether we should enter the palace when the emperor is giving birth!”
Bai Qingyan giving birth meant stepping into the gates of hell—it could be considered a matter of life and death. These ministers should enter the palace when the emperor’s life hung in the balance.
“Yes! Minister of Rites Liu went to Minister Dong’s place! Minister of Works Shen went to Minister Shen’s mansion.” Minister of Justice Lu Jin also bowed deeply to Grand Commandant Lu. “Please instruct us, Grand Commandant Lu!”
“This old man didn’t let Jinxian enter the palace precisely because I was worried it would be too chaotic! Like this… honored Ministers, please wait in Lu’s mansion for now. This old man will enter the palace immediately to ask the Empress Dowager how to proceed!” Grand Commandant Lu cupped his hands toward the three ministers, lifted the hem of his official robes, and departed in his carriage.
Lu Jinxian, following behind Grand Commandant Lu, made a welcoming gesture to the ministers: “Please, honored Ministers!”
Wei Bugong was still hesitating when he saw Lu Jin return Lu Jinxian’s courtesy: “Then we shall impose upon you!”
Minister Dong Qingping arrived earliest, followed by Grand Commandant Lu and Minister Shen. However, they couldn’t go to Bai Qingyan’s bedchamber and could only wait in the front hall.
Grand Commandant Lu couldn’t help but sternly scold Fu Ruoxi: “How could you be so reckless! You should have at least waited until His Majesty reached the bedchamber before presenting the battle report! Don’t you know His Majesty is with child? Even if His Majesty weren’t pregnant, this military report concerns His Majesty’s own younger brother and sister. You…”
“It is this general’s fault!” Fu Ruoxi lowered her head. She was nearly dying of regret now.
Seeing Fu Ruoxi’s apologetic appearance, Grand Commandant Lu had a belly full of anger but didn’t know whom to direct it to.
Because Bai Qingyan had always valued military reports highly, he had urgently delivered the report. If he had known that Bai Qingyan would fall from the carriage after reading it, even if they had cut off his head, he wouldn’t have been so hasty in delivering the military report!
The imperial physicians had all gone to Bai Qingyan’s bedchamber. Grand Commandant Lu paced anxiously in circles.
He looked up at the sky, silently praying for heaven to bless Bai Qingyan with a safe delivery. After all… in such a vast nation, having an enlightened and virtuous ruler like Bai Qingyan was too rare!
Since Bai Qingyan’s ascension to the throne, he had finally seen the clear and honest court he had once hoped for, and finally saw hope for the unification of the realm.
He didn’t want anything to happen to Bai Qingyan at this time!
Even if… it meant shortening his own life by ten or twenty years! Even if it meant giving up his old life right now! He hoped heaven would bless Bai Qingyan’s safety!
Having been an official his entire life, Grand Commandant Lu knew too well that a good emperor’s effect on a nation was far more important than ten, a hundred, even a thousand or ten thousand grand commandants. The emperor of a dynasty was the source of the entire nation.
In Bai Qingyan’s bedchamber, the imperial physician had prescribed medicine to boost her strength, having Nanny Tong personally brew it strongly for Bai Qingyan to take.
Dong Shi had her sleeves bound up with strips of cloth, staying by her daughter’s bedside inside the bed curtains. Seeing her daughter clearly in tremendous pain yet gritting her teeth without making a sound, her heart ached.
“Wei Zhong!” Bai Qingyan called out loudly.
Wei Zhong immediately stepped forward and responded through the screen: “Your Majesty!”
“Immediately send Fu Ruoxi with the military tally to Anping Camp, mobilize twenty thousand Anping troops to head straight for Western Liang, flatten Western Liang, depart immediately!” Bai Qingyan was in such pain her teeth chattered, her mind going blank in waves. Her ashen cheeks were covered with beads of sweat the size of beans. She propped herself up on her elbow, her breathing erratic, disheveled hair clinging to her slender neck where the tendons stood out prominently from her labored breathing. Yet she still gave clear, methodical orders: “Command Grand Commandant Lu to immediately issue an edict, mobilize the Hancheng garrison to rush to the Yan border. Have General Shi Panshan and General Zhen Zeping lead troops to station at Guangling at the Zhou-Yan border. If Yan makes any unusual moves, drive straight to Yan’s capital without need to report! Have General Jiang Ruhai rush to Pingyang City to prepare for war against Yan. There must be no mistakes!”
Bai Qingyan hoped it wasn’t Xiao Rongyan who had betrayed Great Zhou, but that didn’t mean Bai Qingyan could trust the Empress Dowager of Yan.