Shen Si: "!!!"
"You didn't tell me this before!"
Meng Hanqing had dodged away when Shen Si spat out his tea to avoid getting spat on.
Shen Si wiped his mouth messily with his sleeve. He didn't know what to say. He had thought his younger sister would be a pushover in such a family, but it turned out she had secretly hooked up with the Emperor of the Jing Kingdom!
The Emperor of the Jing Kingdom, Ji Junye, was well - known not only to him but also throughout Shengjing.
Sure enough, she was his sister. She was amazing!
Seeing his reaction, Meng Hanqing knew that his focus must have wandered off somewhere. He reminded him, "She's in love with the Emperor of the Jing Kingdom. She probably won't go back to Shengjing with you."
Hearing this, Shen Si felt a bit stressed. "What should I do?"
Meng Hanqing didn't say a word. He was just informing him, not coming up with solutions for him.
If Shen Si knew what kind of person the Emperor of the Jing Kingdom was, he would be even more stressed.
The Xiao Family.
Mrs. Xiao was pacing around anxiously. "Since that incident, our daughter has cut off contact with us. You should find someone to inquire about her."
During this period, only Wei Chun had sent some news. Yin'er's plan had failed, and she had been placed under house arrest in the Ganquan Palace by the Emperor. There was nothing else.
Moreover, it was obvious that the Emperor was about to take action against the Xiao Family. In the past month, the in - law families and business partners of the Xiao Family had suffered a lot. Yin'er had no news, and they didn't even have a countermeasure!
Grand Tutor Xiao was sitting on the chair, feeling extremely irritated. "Can you stop pacing in front of me?"
Mrs. Xiao was furious. "I'm trying to come up with a solution!"
"Then what solution have you come up with?"
Mrs. Xiao was speechless.
Grand Tutor Xiao's gaze was heavy. "By now, it seems that the path through Yin'er won't work."
Saying this, Grand Tutor Xiao looked at Mrs. Xiao with a bit of blame and dissatisfaction. "In the end, if you hadn't been so eager for quick success and forced Yin'er to drug the Emperor, things wouldn't have turned out like this!"
"You're blaming me?!" Mrs. Xiao said in disbelief. "You acquiesced when I did it. Now you're blaming me!"
"Stop it! Is this the time to quarrel?"
"If the path through Yin'er won't work, we'll find another way."
"You're going to abandon Yin'er?" Mrs. Xiao was almost spitting blood. She stared fixedly at Grand Tutor Xiao. "Yin'er is your only legitimate daughter! If you abandon her, are you planning to pave the way for some little bitch?"
Grand Tutor Xiao's face darkened. "How can you talk like that? She's also my daughter!"
"I'm the head of the Xiao Family. Yin'er is just not up to the task. What can I do?"
Mrs. Xiao couldn't listen at all. She turned around and was about to scratch Grand Tutor Xiao's face. "I know you just want to promote Concubine Xiang and her daughter. Let me tell you, if you think they can replace me and Yin'er, don't even dream about it!"
"You're just a shrew!"
Grand Tutor Xiao pushed Mrs. Xiao away and left for Concubine Xiang's courtyard with a flick of his sleeve.
He had endured her for a long time. Didn't she say he was promoting Concubine Xiang and her daughter?
Well, he'd show her that he would!
When Shen Qing heard the news that the Xiao Family was going to send another concubine - born daughter into the palace, she was eating chestnuts that had been roasted on a small charcoal brazier and peeled clean. The person peeling the chestnuts beside her seemed not to hear the news at all and was concentrating on peeling chestnuts for her.
Shen Qing leaned over curiously. "The Xiao Family is sending a concubine - born daughter into the palace. Doesn't A Ye have any thoughts about it?"
Ji Junye stuffed a peeled chestnut into her mouth to shut her up. He said helplessly, "Qingqing, you're just looking for trouble, aren't you?"
Shen Qing swallowed the chestnut. "I'm just curious. The younger sister who can be selected by the Xiao Family to enter the palace must have some outstanding qualities. Aren't you curious, A Ye?"
Ji Junye casually threw the chestnut shells into the charcoal brazier and pinched the tip of her nose. "What's there to be curious about? Speaking of curiosity, I'm more curious about when Qingqing will give me a title."
Shen Qing's eyes drifted. "… Let's not be curious about that."
Ji Junye knew when to stop. "If the Xiao Family is willing to send their daughter, why shouldn't I accept her? The harem isn't a place for them to raise their daughters."
"However, I think the Noble Consort should know about the 'care' from her family."
Shen Qing shook her head and clicked her tongue. "You're so cruel."
The Noble Consort had almost committed suicide after her failure. Now, if she knew that her family was going to abandon her, she might not be able to bear it.
"It's not enough," Ji Junye hugged her into his arms. His eyes were deep. "She dared to hurt you. No matter what I do, it's not enough."
The Ganquan Palace.
Since her suicide attempt had been foiled, Noble Consort Xiao had been in a daze. Her eyes were dull, and she no longer had her former glamorous appearance.
The Emperor had killed all her confidants in the Ganquan Palace. Even the lowest - ranking palace servants had been sent to the laundry bureau, but he didn't remove her title or reduce her stipend.
She was still a noble consort, but what was the use?
All these were just for show, for outsiders and even for her family.
In fact, she was trapped in this small place. She didn't even have anyone to talk to, and even death was a luxury.
With a "creak", the door of the main hall was opened from the outside. The light shone in through the crack of the door, and she couldn't help but raise her hand to block it.
"Your Ladyship, it's time for dinner."
A young eunuch carried a food box in. There was a simple dish, a bowl of soup, and a bowl of rice.
This was already the result of Wei Chun's care. The palace always bullied the weak and flattered the strong. For an out - of - favor concubine, it was normal to be served with spoiled and cold food.
If it weren't for Wei Chun's care, her life would have been even more difficult.
Noble Consort Xiao sat down numbly at the table and picked up the chopsticks to eat. But as soon as the food entered her mouth, she felt nauseous.
"Ugh…"
The bowl fell to the ground and shattered.
"What is this? It makes this consort want to vomit. Take it away quickly!"
She finally couldn't hold it back and vomited into the spittoon. But there was hardly anything in her stomach. In the end, she vomited until her face was ashen and even vomited out the acid water.
"Your Ladyship, what's wrong with you?"
The young eunuch quickly went to inform the imperial guards outside. As soon as the imperial guards heard that the noble consort was ill, they didn't dare to delay and immediately reported it upwards.
After all, the Emperor had given the order that the noble consort must live well and there should be no accidents.
An hour later.
"Congratulations, Your Ladyship. You're pregnant. Although it's only been a little over a month and the pulse is still weak, there's no doubt that you're pregnant!" The imperial physician bowed to congratulate her.
"What?!"
Noble Consort Xiao's face turned as white as paper. Her hand couldn't help but fall on her stomach. She couldn't control herself from recalling that day's situation and couldn't help but vomit again.
How could she be pregnant?
How could she be allowed to be pregnant!
These days, she had tried to forget that night, but the existence of this child constantly reminded her of what had happened to her...
She didn't even know who the child's father was!
The imperial physician was confused. Wasn't this a happy thing? Why didn't the noble consort look happy at all? He was still waiting to receive a reward.
Seeing this, the young eunuch quickly invited the imperial physician out. "Your Ladyship is not feeling well. This servant will see you out, Your Excellency. Moreover, Your Ladyship is still in the early stage of pregnancy. Please don't spread the news."
The imperial physician quickly agreed. "Yes, yes, yes. This low - ranking official understands."
However, at this moment, in the main hall.
"Your Ladyship, don't be sad. This servant just heard that your father, Grand Tutor Xiao, is planning to send the second young lady into the palace. I'm sure that with your family by your side, Your Ladyship will be able to take good care of your pregnancy."