Chapter 132: The Foundation of the State

That same day, another major event spread throughout the city of Beijing.

Zheng Guifei also gave birth to a son; this was the second imperial prince.

The Wanli Emperor was so delighted that he immediately conferred upon Zheng Guifei the title of Imperial Noble Consort, with a rank second only to the Empress. Having gained a son, the Wanli Emperor was so excited that he could hardly wait to find someone to confide in.

He paced back and forth in the East Warm Pavilion, then suddenly stopped, looked at Wei Qing, and ordered: "Wei Qing, go and summon Zhang Yunxiu for Me; I have a great piece of good news to tell him."

"Your Majesty, I fear Zhang Sicheng also has some great good news." Wei Qing bent his old waist and chuckled.

"Can his good news be bigger than Mine?" The Wanli Emperor bit his cheek, pouting as he retorted.

Wei Qing, standing to the side, did not keep him in suspense and reported directly, "Early this morning, Zhang Sicheng was blessed with a daughter, and he is currently busy receiving guests."

"Ah, he had a daughter?" The Wanli Emperor was greatly surprised.

"Yes, just this morning." Wei Qing called out respectfully and stood with his hands hanging down.

Lowering his head to ponder for a moment, the Wanli Emperor suddenly raised his face and ordered: "In that case, you send someone to the Inner Treasury to pick out a few decent items and bestow them upon Zheng Xi'er. Remember, don't make them too expensive, but don't make them too cheap either, lest someone say I am stingy."

"Yes."

Wei Qing responded with a smile and left to carry out the order.

Five days later, Zheng Guifei had finally recovered somewhat, and the Wanli Emperor could not wait to bother this beloved consort. Looking at her weak appearance, a surge of heat rose in his heart, and he almost could not hold himself back.

Zheng Guifei lay on the bed and crooked her finger: "Come here."

The Wanli Emperor, as if under a spell, obediently moved his face over, and Zheng Guifei suddenly raised her beautiful head and gently bit the Wanli Emperor's ear.

With just this, the Wanli Emperor felt as if a caterpillar were crawling over his heart, both itchy and pleasant.

Playfully sticking out her tongue, Zheng Guifei suddenly hugged the Emperor's arm and said with seductive eyes: "Your Majesty, Empress Sister has no children, and I wish to have this son adopted by Empress Sister."

"Do you think that is good?"

"That is your son; why would you want to adopt him out to her?" The Wanli Emperor was somewhat puzzled.

In this world, there is no mother who, upon giving birth, immediately adopts the child out to someone else.

Yet Zheng Guifei had her own plans.

Since the Emperor already had an eldest son, if her child wanted to ascend to that supreme position, he had to establish the status of a legitimate son.

Otherwise, no matter how hard she tried, she would not be able to overcome those civil officials.

Thus, under the suggestion of Zhang Yunxiu, she hardened her heart and planned to send her newborn son to the Empress.

The Empress was the legitimate mother of all heirs in the Inner Palace, so she was naturally worthy of it.

"Your Majesty, Empress Sister and you are a devoted couple, and you have been married for seven years now. Since she has no children, I fear she will be lonely in her old age, so I thought of having this child adopted by her." Zheng Guifei responded according to the script prepared in advance.

"Good, as long as you are willing, I will go and speak with her about it right now." The Wanli Emperor stroked Zheng Guifei's cheek and replied softly.

"I thank Your Majesty on behalf of this child and on behalf of Empress Sister."

"Why thank Me? The most important thing for you now is to nurse your health for Me, do you understand?"

The Wanli Emperor chuckled, a flash of excitement and heat flickering in his eyes. Zheng Guifei nodded slightly, lowered her brow, and whispered, "I... I will definitely recover soon, and then serve Your Majesty well."

"That's right." The Wanli Emperor kissed Zheng Guifei on the forehead, then stood up and said with a smile, "Then I won't disturb your rest for now; I am going to find the Empress to discuss this matter."

Having said this, the Wanli Emperor waved his hand and left Zheng Guifei's palace.

Pacing his way to the inner chamber of Kunninggong, the Wanli Emperor saw Wang Huanghou sitting at her desk, carefully writing something.

Wang Huanghou was twenty-two years old this year.

The two of them were married in the sixth year of Wanli, and it had been seven years to this day.

Recalling the time of their newlywed bliss, the Wanli Emperor could not help but feel a bit intoxicated. Back then, he did not need to manage anything, unlike now, where every day was just sitting in the Western Warm Pavilion.

Once it was daytime, he would long for dusk, and then spend the time in clouds and rain with the beauty before him.

As spring and autumn passed, the countless days and nights left him with endless aftertastes.

Looking at her now, the beauty before him had not changed at all.

Her soft nose, warm and moist cheeks, fair and delicate neck, a pair of curved moth-eyebrows, and her cherry-like mouth slightly opening and closing, all invited infinite reverie.

Wearing a bright yellow long dress with a phoenix-among-hundred-birds pattern, she appeared even more graceful and noble under the reflection of the sunlight.

Heat surged in the Wanli Emperor's lower abdomen, and he walked quickly forward.

Wang Huanghou also discovered the visitor. Upon looking up and seeing it was the Emperor, she hurriedly rolled off her chair and bowed respectfully: "I greet Your Majesty."

"Empress, no need for formalities."

The Wanli Emperor pulled the Empress up and looked at her with burning intensity.

Wang Huanghou knew the meaning of this gaze, blushed instantly, and stammered in reply: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty, it is daytime now; if the Empress Dowager finds out, I will have no face to see anyone."

"The Empress Dowager will not know." As the Wanli Emperor spoke, he picked up Wang Huanghou and headed straight for her Inner Palace.

Wang Huanghou was also a woman; being stirred like this, the fire of desire in her heart was instantly ignited.

She took the initiative to climb onto the Emperor's neck, closing her eyes tightly, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, as if issuing an invitation to him.

Once they reached the bed, the Wanli Emperor quickly peeled Wang Huanghou like a lychee stripped of its shell.

Looking at her fair, tender, and supple body, the Wanli Emperor could no longer hold back and pounced on her like a starving wolf.

Two quarters of an hour later,

The Wanli Emperor was sweating, panting, and lying naked under the silk quilt.

Beside him, Wang Huanghou's face was slightly flushed, her hair disheveled, and she exhaled orchid-like fragrance, gently moving her jade-like hand to wipe the sweat from the Emperor's forehead. "Empress, I have something to discuss with you." After panting heavily for a few seconds, the Wanli Emperor turned his head to look at the Empress and said.

"Your Majesty... it is daytime now, once or twice should be enough..." Wang Huanghou replied timidly, thinking the Emperor wanted to be a "seven-times-a-night" man, and thus shook her head firmly.

The Wanli Emperor was stunned, then realized what she meant, and scolded with a straight face: "Do you think I am that kind of lecher? Can't I discuss other matters with you?"

"I am guilty." Wang Huanghou tightened her face and replied in a low voice.

The Wanli Emperor still did not let it go, but after Wang Huanghou acted coquettishly, the Wanli Emperor finally pardoned her.

"Your Majesty, please speak quickly." Staring straight into the Emperor's eyes, Wang Huanghou urged anxiously, "We should get up; otherwise, if the Empress Dowager finds out, I really will have no face to see anyone."

"Fine, seeing as you are so obedient today, I have decided to give you a reward." The Wanli Emperor wrapped his hands behind his head, looking quite pleased with himself.

"What reward?" Wang Huanghou became interested.

"I will give you a dragon son," the Wanli Emperor said without hesitation.

Wang Huanghou's pretty face flushed red; she spat in her heart and chided, "Your Majesty, the imperial physician said that when I gave birth to Xuanying, I damaged my body, and I am afraid it will be difficult for me to conceive a child in this lifetime. How can Your Majesty give me a dragon son?"

In this deep palace, a mother is honored by her son; without a son, even if she is the Empress, she still cannot avoid gossip.

"Look, you're angry again," the Wanli Emperor smiled, wrapped his arms around Wang Huanghou's soft shoulders, and explained, "I said I would give you a dragon son, so I will certainly be able to give you a dragon son."

"It only depends on whether you want one."

Who wouldn't want to have a son?

Wang Huanghou's heart was moved, so she asked eagerly, "How will Your Majesty give me one?"

"Zheng Fei has given birth to a prince; you know that, right?"

"Yes, but so what? He is not mine."

The Wanli Emperor laughed upon hearing this, then dropped a bombshell: "Zheng Fei said that since Empress Sister damaged her body, it will be difficult for her to give birth in the future. As the mistress of the six palaces, Empress Sister cannot be without a son, so she will adopt her son out to you."

"Really?" Wang Huanghou stood up from the bed at once, her large, watery eyes filled with disbelief.

She was a woman too, so she naturally knew the importance of a son to a woman.

Zheng Guifei actually had such courage, willing to give the son she had just birthed to her.

Although the two had a good relationship, it had not reached such a point.

"Your Majesty... did Zheng Guifei really say that?" Stunned for a few seconds, Wang Huanghou looked blankly at the Emperor and asked.

"It is genuine and authentic."

The Wanli Emperor grinned and added, "She also said that as the Empress, you should be regarded as the legal mother by all the sons born to the concubines in this inner palace; she was merely setting an example."

"This... how can I, your subject, bear this?" Although she was happy in her heart, Wang Huanghou still declined on the surface.

"You can bear it, because you are my Empress," the Wanli Emperor grabbed Wang Huanghou and said solemnly, "After this child is adopted by you, you must treat him as your own and must not slight him."

"I, your subject, will obey."

As Wang Huanghou spoke, she struggled to get up to put on her clothes.

"Where are you going?"

"I, your subject, am going to see my sister, and then see her son."

"Forget it, Zheng Guifei is still resting," the Wanli Emperor waved his hand and refused, "Also, that little brat is nothing much to look at right now; he's all wrinkled and quite ugly, don't let him scare you."

Wang Huanghou had also given birth to a daughter, so she naturally knew how things were.

However, the sudden joy of having a son instantly made him lose his head.

Once happy, she naturally agreed readily to the Wanli Emperor's unreasonable request.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, more than twenty days had passed since Zheng Guifei gave birth.

The Wanli Emperor named his second son Zhu Changxu.

At the same time, he adopted the second son out to the Empress.

In this way, according to the rules of the Ming Dynasty: "Establish the legal heir by seniority, not by virtue; establish the son by status, not by seniority."

If both are legal sons, then choose the eldest among them to inherit.

If it is a son by a concubine, no matter how much older he is, as long as there is a legal son, the position of inheritance still belongs to that legal son.

After Zhu Changxu was adopted by the Empress, although he was younger than the Huangchangzi, he occupied the status of a legal son.

He was the Empress's legal eldest son.

Even if others grumbled, they could not change his status as the legal eldest son.

On the day the son was adopted by the Empress, Li Taihou summoned the Wanli Emperor.

The mother and son sat down, and Li Taihou looked at her son and could not help but remind him: "Emperor, now that Changxu has been adopted by the Empress, do you know what this means?"

"I, your subject, know," the Wanli Emperor nodded and replied.

"Good, as long as you know. Then where does this put Zhu Changluo? These are all your sons," Li Taihou said earnestly, trying to persuade him, "Gongfei heard about this and cried her heart out. They are all sons, why treat them so differently?"

"Mother! This is what Zheng Guifei and the Empress insisted on; even though I am the Emperor, I cannot stop them," the Wanli Emperor widened his eyes and pushed the responsibility away entirely, "Besides, the Empress is the legal mother of all the concubines in the inner palace. The Empress has no offspring, and Zheng Fei adopting a son to her shows that she respects the Empress in her heart."

"Fine, but since you have made up your mind, I will say no more; I only ask that you do not treat Gongfei and her son too harshly."

"I, your subject, know."

(End of this chapter)