The thirty-second year of Kangxi, winter.
When news spread that Fang He was pregnant with triplets, both Liang Madam, now a famed doctor in Jiangnan, and Naren, the head manager of Tianya Inn, were utterly shocked.
Naren had already married Yun Sheng.
These past two years, she had come to terms with herself and asked Liang Madam to help regulate her body, hoping to conceive a child.
However, due to the severe injuries Naren had suffered in the past, she still hadn’t managed to get pregnant.
Upon learning that Fang He was expecting triplets, the usually calm Naren was the first to rush off and pack her things—not for any other reason than to bask in Fang He’s good fortune; even a third of it would do!
Liang Madam had more on her mind.
As a physician, she knew better than anyone just how dangerous a multiple pregnancy was for both mother and child.
Back when Fang He was in Jiangnan, they had seen women who couldn’t survive giving birth to twins, and Fang He had once brought up the idea of a cesarean section with Liang Madam.
At first, Liang Madam was horrified and thought, ‘Could someone really survive having their abdomen cut open?’
But later, after carefully studying the Liang family’s medical books and receiving many ancient texts from several Imperial Physicians and Fule in Jingcheng over the years, as well as discussing the possibility of such procedures with many doctors in Jiangnan, her view shifted.
In fact, as far back as the Tang Dynasty, the ‘Chuxueji’ recorded: “The grand officer’s Wu Knife was used to deliver Yu”—the famed flood controller Yu was supposedly born by being cut from his mother’s abdomen.
Later, Liang Madam also found successful cases in ‘Records of the Historian’ and ‘Treatise on the Origin and Symptoms of Diseases’, especially the renowned physician Chao Yuanfang from the Sui period, who had successfully sutured internal organs and even performed cesarean deliveries. [Note]
For years now, Liang Madam had been living at the old Fan Family residence, employing several midwives and continuously researching abdominal surgery techniques.
Fang He had hinted to her in letters long ago that everyone from Jiangnan, herself included, was an escaped slave, and even Naren’s identity was questionable—a dangerous secret at heart.
They were all still safe for now, and so was Fang He, but as the saying goes, prosperity seldom lasts beyond three generations.
Once they were all gone, should anyone want to target the Fan Family or Naren’s descendants, this secret would be a glaring bullseye.
If she could break through with her medical skills—especially in techniques related to childbirth, which society valued most—if successful, Liang Madam and all their people could clear themselves of any blame, perhaps even receive noble titles.
Liang Madam understood Fang He’s goodwill, and took it very much to heart.
By coincidence, just before Zhao Chang delivered a secret imperial order, she had helped a mother with a difficult, malpositioned fetus give birth via cesarean section.
However, after so many dynasties, there were no traces left of Chao Yuanfang’s descendants; his methods to ward off “evil winds” and poisons had long been lost.
Liang Madam and several famous Jiangnan physicians debated this for a long time and still couldn’t find the perfect solution.
In the end, they could only use Fang He’s alcohol extraction method, as well as boiling and lime, to keep the environment as clean as possible.
The mother was still in confinement, using Chao Yuanfang’s Qianxie Powder for pain relief and being nourished with soft foods, not entirely out of danger yet.
Now that the secret order had arrived, Liang Madam felt a heavy pressure.
She couldn’t guarantee that she would be able to ensure Fang He’s safe delivery!
On the road to Jingcheng, Liang Madam was silently cursing this troublemaker for being even more reckless since becoming a mother.
‘Wasn’t she the one most afraid of dying?’
‘She took her medicine as if it were poison, but for the sake of survival, that troublemaker never missed a single dose.’
To restore her health, the laziest person ever even practiced exercises with Lin Chen and the others, returning each day to her room in pain and crying her eyes out.
Now with two children already, how could she be so careless of her own safety?
Didn’t she ever think, even if the triplets were safely born, if something happened to her and she didn’t wake up, would the inner palace not devour her children, skin and bones and all?
It wasn’t that Liang Madam didn’t understand—no one in the inner palace of any dynasty did.
News of Fang He’s multiple pregnancy even startled the Empress Dowager, who usually didn’t concern herself with affairs.
The Empress Dowager, accompanied by Wuyunzhu, hurried to Yanxi Palace.
Consort Hui, Consort Rong, Consort Yi, the Six Concubines, and quite a few Changzai and Daying all flocked to Yanxi Palace.
As soon as Fang He, supported by Cui Wei, entered from outside, she couldn’t help but exclaim with a laugh.
“Have you all joined forces to come watch a monkey show?”
Consort Hui and Consort Rong: “…..”
No need to say it—they kind of did.
Consort Hui wished Fang He dead with all three babies.
She had a grudge against Fang He, but as Fang He became ever more favored, her own slap in the face would never be forgotten.
Not to mention her daughter-in-law Irgen Jueluo, who had now bewitched Yinzhi into acting crazy, always chasing after Fang He.
Since everyone else had already arrived, Consort Hui dared not absent herself.
After all, the palace authority she held forced her hand.
She resolved to remain silent and simply watch how Fang He would dig her own grave.
Consort Rong was not so ill-intentioned.
Having recited Buddhist scriptures for so long, she had come to a vague enlightenment, and always felt Fang He might be what the Buddhists called a person with great destiny.
Whether for Yinxi or for the Second Princess still waiting to be granted marriage, Consort Rong dared not oppose Fang He, and could only put on a heartfelt expression to advise her not to have any more children.
“For Imperial Consort Zhen’s peace of mind, this concubine has been praying for you before Buddha all these days, but my heart remains uneasy. True, the palace values many children as much blessing, but some fates cannot be forced, or else it may harm your own fortune.”
Consort Yi also, unusually, agreed with Consort Rong and said, “Everyone knows your motherly heart, but you can’t just think of the children in your womb—can you really bear to let Jiujiu and Yin Hui live in constant fear?”
As for the Emperor, none of them dared say anything.
If not for the Emperor’s signal, none of them would have dared come like this.
The Emperor had even gone to Yikun Palace, telling Consort Yi to find any way to persuade Fang He.
He never brought up the topic of a cesarean; just hearing Fang He mention it made his face turn black as ink.
For once, he lost his temper, sent Fang He back to Qianqing Palace’s Nuan Pavilion, and ignored her for days.
Fang He was about to speak, when outside came the sound of greetings—Empress Dowager had arrived.
She quickly got up and, along with the other consorts, went to welcome the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager entered, saw her standing, and quickly stepped forward to stop her by saying, “Don’t move! You are with a child and yet still so restless—you’re really not letting anyone rest easy huh!”
Fang He: “…….”
She wasn’t made of paper, honestly.
In fact, other than being hungrier, and with her tailbone aching worse than her previous pregnancies due to her quickly growing belly, she barely had morning sickness at all.
Wearing embroidered shoes, she might not be fleet-footed, but she walked steadily, and could eat three large bowls of rice in one go.
Still, she accepted the Empress Dowager’s kindness, obediently letting her take her arm and lead her back to the soft couch.
The Empress Dowager asked, “What did the Imperial Physicians say? I sent people out to inquire specially, but haven’t heard of anyone giving birth to triplets safely. You mustn’t be reckless.”
“You already have everything: both a son and a daughter. The only thing that truly matters now is to live well in this moment. As for this child…” The Empress Dowager paused.
She had never given birth herself, but she knew telling a mother to give up her child was easier said than done.
She could only helplessly pat Fang He’s hand, and softly say, “You already call me Imperial Mother; if not for the Emperor’s concerns, all the children in the palace would be yours.”
In front of so many people, there was something the Empress Dowager couldn’t say.
There was still war; if anything really happened to Fang He, the court would surely use the excuse of inauspiciousness to urge the Emperor to neglect Jiujiu and Er Bao.
Motherless children always suffered more—just look at Yuqing Palace.
With a smile, Fang He took the tea from Cui Wei, placed it for the Empress Dowager and said, “Imperial Mother, don’t worry. I know everyone’s good intentions, but do you really think I’m someone who doesn’t know better?”
Everyone: “……”
‘Aren’t you?’
Even the Empress Dowager gave her a subtle look, leaving Fang He to reflect on herself.
Fang He: “…..”
‘Even if I don’t, I’d never risk my own neck. I make a fuss over a cut on my hand, let alone something like this.’
If anything happened… well, then it’d be too late.
The Empress Dowager was amused, “You’ve got some nerve, just like a child. Then why are you so insistent on giving birth? With how far along you are, the New Year’s almost here—the bigger the child, the less likely a miscarriage.”
“And if anything happens when the children are too big, it will be all the harder for you, and it’s not in accordance with heaven.”
Fang He replied with a smile, “The Imperial Physicians say I’m in good health, and I have the descendants of the Su Clan, imperial physicians of the previous dynasty, taking care of me. If I deliver early, I may well be able to give birth safely.”
“And also a famous doctor from Jiangnan has already rediscovered the ancient birthing methods from the Sui and Tang—she’s saved many women from difficult labor, and she’ll be here in the capital soon. With her help, it’s an extra layer of assurance.”
“Everyone says childbirth is crossing the gates of hell; even carrying one child is not without danger. Compared to that, my odds are already pretty good.”
Of course, these words were for the Empress Dowager and the others.
To say Fang He wasn’t afraid of death—she wouldn’t believe it herself.
Thinking of having to leave behind Jiujiu and Er Bao, as her belly grew, she too had her share of fear and hesitation.
But she glanced, without a word, at Concubine Jing, who had not spoken throughout—this lady of the court had given her peace of mind.
When Fang He left the palace for Gubeikou, Concubine Jing had spoken some clouded and enigmatic words which Fang He hadn’t understood at the time.
Concubine Jing had said, “Though fate cannot be forced, there are some things that must be. I refuse to surrender to fate, and since I met you, I hope the Imperial Noble Consort won’t, either. It’s only the thirty-second year—it isn’t…the end. There’s still much excitement to come.”
While being jolted around in the carriage, Fang He kept thinking: ‘what else could happen in the storybook Concubine Jing had glimpsed, to ensure enough drama for the tale ahead?’
She really couldn’t figure it out.
After all, she’d already run the country, even beaten up the Crown Prince, and been made Imperial Noble Consort against all precedent.
Could she even become Emperor?
She didn’t have that ambition or skill!
Only when she found out she was pregnant did Fang He faintly sense the depth of Concubine Jing’s meaning.
At first, she didn’t know she was carrying multiples—just that the child had survived all that traveling, so perhaps it was “meant to be” in her fate.
But even then, she felt that simply giving birth wouldn’t be all that dramatic; plenty of people in the palace had children.
Not until she was sure she was carrying triplets did she finally understand Concubine Jing’s meaning.
She and Concubine Jing couldn’t directly mention that storybook, but she did probe Concubine Jing about it.
“I still owe you two lives and a noble title. When do you want to leave the palace?”