Chapter Summaries

Hua Meng returned to the palace after accompanying Emperor Jing'an to visit her sick mother, where they arranged treatment and discussed concealing the emperor’s medical condition. When palace rumors criticized the emperor for favoring Hua Meng, she feigned distress and defended her filial visit, leaving the conflict over the rumors unresolved.

• Hua Meng learned how to prepare the Grass-Insect Decoction, and the elderly physicians received houses, estates, and money for their medical help.
• Emperor Jing'an had Imperial Physician Jiang review the prescription and asked Hua Meng to continue helping conceal his condition; Lin Ming warned him to treat her carefully.
• Emperor Jing'an arranged for a small kitchen in Sparrow Plume Palace, then took Hua Meng to visit the Hua Family after Madam Hua fell ill.
• Consort Qi said she resented Emperor Jing'an breaking palace rules for Hua Meng, while palace rumors spread about his affection for her.
• Hua Meng returned to Sparrow Plume Palace and acted too tired to speak with Consort Wan, but Qiu Die told her about the rumors.
• Hua Meng burst into tears and defended her visit to her sick mother, challenging anyone who begrudged her chance to fulfill her filial duty.

Hua Meng received Emperor Jing'an’s rewards after rumors spread about her visit home, then used a prescription and the Grass-Insect Decoction to get medicine to him. Emperor Jing'an took it successfully, while Elder Princess Yue Shu and Cen Yongning began plotting to tamper with Hua Meng’s medicine.

• Hua Meng told Consort Wan that she was angry because rumors had kept her from visiting her gravely ill mother, and Consort Wan reassured her that Emperor Jing'an would address the matter.
• Emperor Jing'an ordered Wei Fugui to investigate the rumors and sent Hua Meng gifts, including ruby jewelry, while the Empress Dowager sent medicinal herbs to the Hua Family.
• Hua Meng found grass insects and honey among the gifts, arranged for Imperial Physician Jiang Xin to prescribe medicine, and had Qiu Die deliver her prepared Grass-Insect Decoction to Phoenix Approaches Palace.
• Hua Meng learned that Emperor Jing'an had taken the medicine and spent the night at Phoenix Approaches Palace, then ate dinner and fell asleep in her bath.
• Elder Princess Yue Shu asked Cen Yongning whether he had arranged for someone to drug Hua Meng’s prescription, and Cen Yongning suggested using her newly granted small kitchen instead.

Hua Meng arranged to learn medicine from Jiang Chan so she could prepare pills and discreetly use her Spirit Spring, while Emperor Jing'an continued taking her medicine and secretly had Jiang Chan check his pulse. The chapter ended with Emperor Jing'an warmly teasing Hua Meng about resting when she felt sleepy, leaving her flustered.

• The Princess Royal told Cen Yongning to try to win Jiang Xin over and eliminate him if he refused, while Emperor Jing'an quietly took precautions against her.
• Hua Meng asked Emperor Jing'an to appoint a female physician to teach her medicine-making, and he agreed.
• Jiang Chan entered the palace to teach Hua Meng, who began by studying medicinal ingredients and memorizing prescriptions.
• After seven days of treatment, Emperor Jing'an's complexion and pulse had improved, and he secretly asked Jiang Chan to check his health.
• Jiang Chan praised Hua Meng's memory, and Emperor Jing'an told the sleepy Hua Meng to rest, making her blush.

Hua Meng comforted Emperor Jing'an as physicians confirmed his health was improving but warned him that frequent intercourse worsened his chances of having children. After returning to the palace, Jiang Chan recognized Hua Meng’s weakness and sleepiness as possible signs of pregnancy.

• Hua Meng rejected giving Emperor Jing'an the Detoxifying Spirit Spring directly and planned to put a drop into medicine pills instead.
• The physicians examined Emperor Jing'an at the Hua Family and said his health was recovering, but he needed to limit intercourse and eat nourishing dishes.
• Hua Meng comforted Emperor Jing'an, and the two shared a new closeness before returning to the palace.
• Jiang Chan asked Hua Meng about her symptoms and monthly courses, then explained that the timing of Emperor Jing'an’s visit fell during her most fertile days.

Hua Meng suspected she was pregnant and quietly began taking precautions while planning to nourish Emperor Jing'an with food infused with the Seven-Colored Spirit Spring. At the Empress Dowager’s palace, the Elder Princess announced that Wei Ningyan was pregnant and claimed the child would be a son.

• Jiang Chan told Hua Meng to take precautions because her possible pregnancy could not be confirmed for another half month, and Hua Meng instructed her attendants not to reveal it to Emperor Jing'an yet.
• Hua Meng considered the Seven-Colored Spirit Spring and decided not to detoxify Emperor Jing'an for now, instead planning to nourish him through food.
• Hua Meng began memorizing prescriptions and learning appetizing dishes, while Emperor Jing'an assumed she was cooking for him as dietary therapy.
• Consort Wan warned Hua Meng that the Elder Princess had brought Wei Ningyan to the palace, and Hua Meng said she had no reason to resent Wei Ningyan unless she sought trouble.
• At Chaohuang Palace, the Elder Princess announced that Wei Ningyan had become pregnant soon after her marriage and that the imperial physician expected her to bear a son.

Hua Meng exposed the circumstances surrounding Wei Ningyan’s pregnancy, prompting the empress dowager to assign her attendants before the elder princess provoked the empress dowager into collapsing. Emperor Jing'an rushed from court to Chaohuang Palace and signaled his anger toward the Wei Family.

• Hua Meng mocked the elder princess and Wei Ningyan by suggesting both had conceived before marriage and given birth prematurely.
• The empress dowager assigned four senior maids to accompany Wei Ningyan, and the elder princess and Wei Ningyan reluctantly accepted.
• The elder princess taunted the empress dowager about not having a grandson, and the empress dowager clutched her chest and fell silent.
• Hua Meng called for an imperial physician, while Consort Qi sent word to Emperor Jing'an that the elder princess had angered the empress dowager into collapsing.
• Xiao Jiangzi informed Emperor Jing'an during court, and Emperor Jing'an ordered the imperial physicians to Chaohuang Palace before rebuking the elder princess's husband and departing.

Emperor Jing'an ordered the Elder Princess and Wei Ningyan to kneel, but the Elder Princess objected because Wei Ningyan was pregnant. When Consort Hua was examined, Imperial Physician Jiang and the other physicians confirmed her pregnancy, and the news brought joy through the palace and court.

• Emperor Jing'an ordered the Elder Princess and Wei Ningyan to kneel until the Empress Dowager woke, but the Elder Princess said Wei Ningyan could not kneel because she was pregnant.
• Hua Meng came out of the inner hall feeling unwell, and Wei Ningyan wondered if she was pregnant too.
• Emperor Jing'an summoned Imperial Physician Jiang, who detected a pregnancy pulse in Hua Meng and congratulated the emperor.
• Emperor Jing'an ordered the other imperial physicians to examine Hua Meng, and they all confirmed her pregnancy.
• The imperial consorts, palace attendants, and officials in the Diligent Governance Hall congratulated Emperor Jing'an and declared that Heaven blessed Great Yue.

After Hua Meng was confirmed pregnant, Emperor Jing'an granted her the title Consort Jing and the empress dowager welcomed and protected her. The emperor warned the other consorts that Hua Meng’s child would provide for them as secondary mothers, and they gathered around her after he left.

• Emperor Jing'an learned Hua Meng was pregnant and bestowed the title Consort Jing upon her, entrusting her health to Jiang Xin.
• Nanny Ming announced that the empress dowager had awakened and wanted to see Consort Jing, while Emperor Jing'an decided to handle the Elder Princess without bloodshed.
• The empress dowager welcomed Hua Meng, urged her to care for the child, and ordered Nanny Ming to warn the consorts against harming the pregnancy.
• The empress dowager sent Hua Meng away to rest and instructed Nanny Ming to deliver her warning to the other consorts.
• Emperor Jing'an told the consorts that Consort Jing’s child would provide for them as secondary mothers and warned them not to disappoint him.
• After Emperor Jing'an left, Consort Wan congratulated Hua Meng, and other consorts approached her to ask how they could become pregnant.

Hua Meng’s pregnancy drew the attention of the palace consorts, prompting Consort Qi to consider bringing her young cousin into the palace to compete for favor. Outside the palace, Hua Teng learned of Hua Meng’s pregnancy and hurried home as her maternal cousin came to meet him.

• Hua Meng told the consorts that children were common in her family, and Nanny Ming escorted her back to Sparrow Plume Palace to rest.
• Consort Ying visited Hua Meng and Consort Wan, and the three discussed clothes, family gifts, and the palace’s permission to stay in touch with their birth families.
• The other consorts considered trying to conceive, while Consort Qi recalled her family’s mention of her thirteen-year-old fifth cousin and suspected her uncle planned to send the girl into the palace.
• Consort Qi told Chunlan to send a letter asking her mother to request a visit to the palace.
• Lin Ming told Hua Teng that Hua Meng was pregnant and advised him to prepare for a chance to visit her; Hua Teng returned home and met Hua Meng’s eldest maternal cousin.

After revealing her pregnancy, Hua Meng refused to avoid the eldest princess and went to rest while Emperor Jing'an and Lin Ming discussed how to protect her and deal with the eldest princess’s powerful family. Once awake, Hua Meng set out for the Phoenix Approaches Palace to request an audience with Emperor Jing'an.

• Lu Shi mobilized the Hua household and contacted her maternal family after learning Hua Meng was pregnant.
• Hua Meng told Qiu Die and Ling Cui she had no intention of avoiding the eldest princess and then went to sleep.
• Emperor Jing'an wanted to accelerate his plan against the eldest princess’s family, but Lin Ming urged him to prioritize protecting Hua Meng and the unborn child.
• Emperor Jing'an worried that the eldest princess could use her Phoenix Tail Token to summon the secret guards, then vowed to keep his child safe.
• After waking, Hua Meng dressed simply, ate porridge, and went to the Phoenix Approaches Palace to request an audience with Emperor Jing'an.

Hua Meng visited Emperor Jing'an to request that Commandery Lady Ningyan be taught proper etiquette, and he agreed while rewarding the Hua Family with a residence. The empress dowager sent nannies to the Wei Residence and the Zhang family, and the humiliated Grand Princess vowed revenge against the imperial family.

• Hua Meng visited Emperor Jing'an and asked him to arrange etiquette instruction for Commandery Lady Ningyan, citing her behavior and rumored pregnancy before marriage.
• Emperor Jing'an agreed to the request and offered the Hua Family a residence as a reward for Hua Meng’s pregnancy and service to Great Yue.
• After sharing the evening meal with Hua Meng, Emperor Jing'an went to Chaohuang Palace.
• The next morning, eight nannies left Chaohuang Palace, and word spread that the empress dowager had sent them to instruct the Grand Princess and Commandery Lady Ningyan.
• The Grand Princess learned that the nannies had arrived at the Wei Residence and vowed to retaliate against the empress dowager and Emperor Jing'an.

Hua Meng worried that the Grand Princess and Zhang Jinghong might target her family after Emperor Jing'an promoted her father, but Consort Wan explained the promotion’s political purpose and reassured her. After sharing pastries and medicinal wine plans with Consort Wan and Consort Ying, Hua Meng returned to learn that her mother and sisters had been allowed to visit her the next day.

• Hua Meng worried that the Grand Princess and Zhang Jinghong might make trouble for her family despite Emperor Jing'an’s promotion of her father.
• Consort Wan explained that Emperor Jing'an was gradually raising Hua Langzhong’s rank ahead of a future dukedom and to support his son’s maternal relatives.
• Hua Meng accompanied Consort Wan to the Three Green Palace, where Consort Ying offered her Chengying’s pastries and Hua Meng offered the women medicinal wine.
• Ling Cui and Qiu Die told Hua Meng that Emperor Jing'an had permitted Madam to bring the young madams into the palace to visit her the next day.

Hua Meng welcomed her mother and sisters-in-law to Sparrow Plume Palace and learned they had brought silver from her maternal granduncle. She proposed selling her dowry to fund Hua Peng’s trading venture in the South with the Lin and Lu families, with help from Consort Wan’s connections.

• Hua Meng learned Emperor Jing'an had allowed her family to visit and left Qiu Die to arrange their palace entry while she rested.
• Lu Shi and Hua Meng’s sisters-in-law arrived at Sparrow Plume Palace after visiting the empress dowager, who sent gifts for the Hua Family.
• Yi Yue conveyed Consort Wan’s welcome, and Lu Shi greeted Ling Cui and gave her the shoe soles her mother had made.
• Hua Meng and Lu Shi exchanged formal greetings before Hua Meng welcomed her family into her room.
• Lu Shi gave Hua Meng silver notes from her maternal granduncle’s family, and Hua Meng suggested selling her dowry to finance Hua Peng’s South China trading venture with Consort Wan’s assistance.

Hua Meng discussed business plans and the Hua Family’s future with her mother and sisters-in-law, while preparing to give birth in the palace. After Consort Wan agreed to invest and provide useful family connections, Hua Meng tearfully watched her relatives leave, with Lu Shi promising to return near the birth.

• Hua Meng encouraged Lin Shi to pursue honest business with Hua Peng in Jiangnan and warned the family against ill-gotten gains.
• Hua Meng told her sisters-in-law that the family’s rising status would bring greater scrutiny, and Lu Shi vowed to prevent the Hua men from becoming dandies.
• Lu Shi gave Hua Meng children’s clothes for her pregnancy and explained that Hua Lian could not visit because her mother-in-law was gravely ill.
• Hua Meng asked Lu Shi to have Hua Lian’s mother-in-law examined by a physician from Huichun Hall.
• Consort Wan agreed to invest in the business and write to her brothers, including officials with connections in Jiangnan and the Imperial Household Department.
• Hua Meng wept as Lu Shi and her sisters-in-law departed, and Lu Shi promised to send someone to keep her company near the birth.

Hua Meng heard how Lu Shi arranged protections for the Hua Family and ordered house rules, while Emperor Jing'an approved of Lu Shi and planned to make further arrangements for his child. The next day, Hua Meng learned that Emperor Jing'an would dine with her and received Consort Qi's invitation to an orchid-viewing banquet.

• Ling Cui told Hua Meng that Lu Shi had adopted new family titles and assigned her own family to serve Hua Meng and manage her estate and shops.
• Lu Shi warned the Hua Family not to abuse Hua Meng's status, charged Hua Mao with drafting house rules, and asked Hua Peng to find a physician for Hua Lian's mother-in-law.
• Emperor Jing'an learned of Lu Shi's instructions, praised her judgment, and said he could make more arrangements for his imperial child.
• Emperor Jing'an sent word that he would dine at Sparrow Plume Palace that evening.
• Consort Qi sent Chunlan to invite Hua Meng and the other harem women to a banquet to view the blooming orchids at Fragrant Iris Court.

Hua Meng attended Consort Qi’s orchid banquet despite warnings, while confronting Qiu Die about her loyalty and making plans to protect Ling Cui. The gathering descended into chaos when an assassin appeared and a pastry-carrying maid attacked Hua Meng.

• Hua Meng accepted Consort Qi’s invitation and made Qiu Die acknowledge her mistakes, revealing that she suspected Qiu Die served Emperor Jing'an.
• Hua Meng explained her plans for Ling Cui to leave the palace and marry, then told Qiu Die to rest instead of attending to her.
• Hua Meng invited Jiang Chan to visit her daughters and set out for the Imperial Garden with Ling Cui, Consort Wan, and Yi Yue.
• At the banquet, Hua Meng spoke with the consorts about pregnancy, and Consort Qi arrived as they admired the orchids.
• A palace maid reported an assassin, and amid the ensuing panic, another maid hurled pastries at Hua Meng and rammed into her.

A palace maid attacked Hua Meng during the Flower-Viewing Banquet, but Ling Cui and Consort Ying protected her, and Jiang Chan confirmed that Hua Meng and her fetus were unharmed. Emperor Jing'an reached the Imperial Garden after discovering a diversion, rewarded those who protected Hua Meng, and then learned that the Empress Dowager had been attacked.

• A palace maid hurled pastries and a porcelain plate at Hua Meng, but Ling Cui shielded her and Consort Ying kicked the attacker down and dislocated her jaw.
• Consort Qi organized the consorts to protect Consort Jing and went to investigate, while Jiang Chan checked Hua Meng and confirmed that her fetus was unharmed.
• Emperor Jing'an found elderly eunuchs acting as a diversion and ordered Wei Fugui and Si Yi to investigate the attack.
• Emperor Jing'an arrived at the Imperial Garden, praised the consorts, promised Consort Ying time at her estate, and promised Ling Cui a reward.
• Xiao Jiangzi rushed to Emperor Jing'an and reported that the Empress Dowager had been attacked by an assassin.

After an assassination attempt, Emperor Jing'an and Hua Meng learned that the Empress Dowager had been wounded while rushing to check on them. They confirmed Hua Meng and her unborn child were well, and Hua Meng stayed nearby as the Empress Dowager recovered, leaving Nanny Ming to congratulate the emperor for reasons no one else understood.

• Emperor Jing'an hurried toward Chaohuang Palace with Hua Meng, then learned that the Empress Dowager had instead been taken to White Egret Palace after an old eunuch wounded her.
• Consort Ru welcomed Emperor Jing'an and the consorts at White Egret Palace, where imperial physicians treated the Empress Dowager and Nanny Ming and Nanny Qing attended her.
• Emperor Jing'an brought Hua Meng to see the Empress Dowager, and the physicians confirmed that Hua Meng and her unborn child were healthy.
• Hua Meng refused to leave before seeing that the Empress Dowager was safe, then agreed to rest in a side hall and asked Nanny Ming to tell her when the Empress Dowager woke.
• After Hua Meng left, Nanny Ming congratulated Emperor Jing'an, whose smile broadened at her words.

Emperor Jing'an and Hua Meng tended the injured Empress Dowager while Wei Fugui investigated the palace assassination attempt and traced the suspects to descendants of eunuchs killed by the Grand Ancestor. The inquiry remained open, and news that Commandery Lady Ningyin had miscarried after being offended at a country estate cast suspicion on the Elder Princess and Wei Heng.

• Hua Meng secretly added a drop of Spirit Spring to the Empress Dowager's medicine and persuaded Emperor Jing'an to help her administer it.
• Emperor Jing'an returned to Phoenix Approaches Palace, where Wei Fugui reported that the suspicious old eunuchs descended from eunuchs killed by the Grand Ancestor.
• Wei Fugui told Emperor Jing'an that the suspects claimed they targeted Hua Meng because she was pregnant, but he and Si Yi doubted they had acted alone.
• Emperor Jing'an ordered Wei Fugui to continue investigating the assassination and search for traces of anyone else involved.
• Xiao Jiangzi reported that Commandery Lady Ningyin had miscarried at a suburban estate and that the Elder Princess had taken Vice Minister Wei to seek justice.

Emperor Jing'an suspected Yue Shu of orchestrating the rumors about Wei Ningyan and arranged for Yi Yun to secretly guard Hua Meng. After learning Wei Ningyan had miscarried, Hua Meng realized Yue Shu would blame her for the tragedy.

• Emperor Jing'an ordered Wei Fugui to investigate the rumors about Wei Ningyan and concluded that Yue Shu had arranged for them to spread.
• Yue Shu comforted Wei Ningyan after her miscarriage, steering her anger toward Hua Meng while Wei Ningyan privately revealed that the baby had been moving two days earlier.
• Yue Shu apologized to Zhang Jinghong and promised to secure him an official post if he passed the Provincial Examination; Zhang Jinghong concealed his feelings after she left.
• Emperor Jing'an introduced Yi Yun as Hua Meng's new guard and instructed her to have Ling Cui secretly provide for him.
• Emperor Jing'an told Hua Meng about Wei Ningyan's miscarriage, and Hua Meng concluded that she would now be blamed and hated.