“Mm, as long as it doesn’t implicate Tai Qing.” Wei Linxia was relieved and began planning another matter.
Within two days, Xi Linxuan issued an imperial decree to take the North Army Marquis’s daughter Zhao Qing as a noble concubine. Wei Linxia thought about how angry Tai Qing might be when she arrives in the palace.
Sure enough, when Tai Qing arrived at the inner palace, she seemed soft as dough, but her eyebrows were raised, and her eyes burned with intensity. Wei Linxia sarcastically welcomed Zhao Guifei in front of the palace servants, criticized her for not showing respect, held her hand, and continued with insincere praise before departing.
That night, the newly entered Zhao Guifei was neglected as the empress prioritized the prince’s health.
In the bed curtains, Wei Linxia smiled at her son sleeping peacefully. “Starting tomorrow, let the wet nurses take care of him.”
The new father, already lying down, replied, “Let them take him.”
“How can that be? He’s so small.” Wei Linxia quickly objected, not trusting others with him.
“Then put him outside to sleep alone.”
Wei Linxia turned in confusion: “What’s wrong?”
“In the way!” the father, who had cherished his son just days before, said through gritted teeth.
He didn’t cry or fuss, so what was the problem? Wei Linxia gently touched her son’s face, lying sideways and lightly holding his small hand to know if anything happened.
The father sat up, moving the child, who had been sleeping in the middle of the bed, closer. He took out a handkerchief, folded it, and tied it over the child’s eyes: “Father does this for your own good, to prevent you from getting a stye.”
Wei Linxia’s face turned slightly red. “Xi Qiushui, you…”
Xi Linxuan lay down in the space the child had vacated and embraced Wei Linxia, saying, “Don’t you know that I can’t sleep well without being in this embrace?”
In a daze, Wei Linxia felt like she was raising two children.
