Chen Hexiang stood up with a jolt and anxiously asked her maid, "What? Ning Ziyan is pregnant?"
"Yes, I heard it loud and clear. Concubine Ning's maid went to the backdoor to retrieve prenatal medicine. When I followed her, I saw her preparing the medicinal soup and giving it to Concubine Ning. She came out to wash the bowl afterward, but I didn't see Concubine Ning coming out."
The maid replied in a quiet voice.
It was no wonder that Ning Ziyang was behaving strangely these days. When she first fell from her pedestal as the official wife, she would go to the main courtyard and wail loudly. She stopped making such a fuss afterward and didn't even visit her biological sister Ning Yuling anymore. She didn't even question anything when Ning Yuling inexplicably died in the Lord Protector's Manor, choosing to stay out of trouble.
Every time Chen Hexiang went to provoke her, she would give her the cold shoulder and recuperate in her room
The weather was gradually turning warm in Prince Yi's secondary manor outside the city. Ning Xueyan had left the manor with the excuse of recreation. When she reached the secondary manor, she entered a courtyard near the backdoor and settled down inside a unique room.The room was divided in half, with a special curtain separating the front and back of the room. The curtain allowed Ning Xueyan to see the people opposite her, but the people opposite her wouldn't be able to see the other side of the room."Master, can we begin?" Xinmei asked. Ning Xueyan nodded. This was why she had come out today. It so happened that there would be a banquet at the palace tomorrow to celebrate the two princes.That left just enough time for her plan.Seeing Ning Xueyan nod, Xinmei left the room. Lanning served Ning Xueyan tea and then stood behind her. Shortly after, Xinmei reentered the room and stood on the other side of Ning Xueyan.
Watching Chen Hexiang get blindfolded again and taken out of the room, Ning Xueyan led Xinmei and Lanning back to the main building and sat down.Xinmei made a cup of tea for Ning Xueyan and asked rather worriedly, "Master, will Chen Hexiang go back on her word when she gets to the Justice Department?" It was evident that Chen Hexiang wasn't a good woman; she looked like she had so many ideas when she was kneeling on the floor earlier."She won't." Ning Xueyan took a sip of tea and said leisurely, "She might even be worried that we won't let her go."Chen Hexiang had become a fugitive concubine after causing Ning Ziyan's miscarriage. If she didn't make herself useful, the mysterious Madam wouldn't keep her. Besides, her complaining about Ning Ziying's death was a much bigger problem than her causing a fellow concubine's miscarriage.When that time came, all eyes would be on Ning Ziying. No one would care if she had pushed Ning Ziya
It went without saying that the palace banquet, especially one held to congratulate the two princes, had invited many people.Not only did the officials come, but they brought their wives and daughters as well. The weather had been growing warm lately, but the air was fresh thanks to the rain last night.The imperial garden was particularly lively. The palace servants had prepared a variety of fruits and pastries as appetizers for the guests while they enjoyed the scenery. Even though it was the beginning of summer, there were still many flowers blooming in the garden. Coupled with the greenery that lined the paths of the yards, the entire place was brimming with vitality.Ning Xueyan and Ao Chenyi entered the palace together, though the latter was summoned by the Emperor the minute he got there. Ning Xueyan was left to stroll in the imperial garden with Xinmei. There were so many maids and eunuchs all over the palace today that the rules were
Xinmei stepped forward, placing herself in front of Yan Zhen, and said coldly, "What do you mean? Don't tell me, you're reprimanding our Princess?"A mere palace maid, even if she was the personal attendant of the most favored Honored Consort Xia, had no right to reprimand Princess Yi. Honored Consort Xia didn't have a high status. She wasn't one of the four main consorts, so she was much lower-ranked than Honored Consort Shu and Honored Consort Ya. At most, she was the Emperor's beloved consort.No matter how loved she was, she was still a consort. More importantly, her maid was going against Princess Yi. Prince Yi was the sort who wouldn't give in even out of respect for the Emperor, and the offender was just the Emperor's consort. Honored Consort Xia had no right to reprimand Princess Yi, never mind her maid.Facing Xinmei's stern expression, Yan Zhen's face turned red and white from anger and shame.She had been putting on airs
"Put her on the bed. Go and fetch the imperial physician, have him take a look." Hua Qiuying relaxed after hearing Ao Chenyi's voice next to her ears. Under such circumstances, one would have to fetch the physician while the other stayed behind; and naturally, the one fetching the physician couldn't be Ao Chenyi himself.Therefore, it was for certain that Ao Chenyi would stay here and take care of her while the eunuch looked for a physician. Everything was going according to her second sister's plan.Though she couldn't open her eyes, she could feel that everything was within her grasp. She perked up her ears and listened carefully to the movement around her. She wished she could see what he was doing. Was he just staring at her quietly? This thought turned her face even redder.She immediately shut her eyelids tightly. She mustn't let him know that she was just faking unconsciousness.She had no idea how much time passed—perhaps a
"Is that Honored Consort Xia? She's really beautiful." A young woman carefully peeped from behind the bushes. Though there was quite a distance between them, her good eyesight allowed her to see the mysterious Honored Consort Xia. It went without saying that she was overjoyed as she whispered to the people around her.The few of them had secretly gone after Ning Xueyan. They had been worried that the people in front would notice them, but it went surprisingly well. One time, one of the ladies accidentally stepped on a small branch and made some noise. The others became too afraid to even move.To their surprise, Princess Yi and her maid didn't hear it, as was the smart-looking palace maid. The palace maid appeared out of it, looking deep in thought. This allowed the ladies to follow them and discover such a secret place.These ladies were more curious than most. The commotion that Princess Yi caused was quite loud but by the time they reached,
The banquet celebrating Prince Xiang and Prince Fu ended without fanfare.The planned performances and stages were scrapped, and the guests excused themselves as soon as they were finished with their meals. It was obvious that the Emperor and Empresses weren't pleased; the former looked gloomy while the latter frowned. No matter how one looked at it, this was a bad situation. Despite not knowing what was going on, they were all smart people who were in tune with other people's expressions.It wasn't until the guests left the palace that they asked around and learned that something had happened.Someone had beat the drum in the hall of the Ministry of Justice and accused Xia Manor and the Lord Protector's Manor of stealing another person's marriage and murdering people. The two skeletons found in the Lord Protector's Manor were the murdered young women, and one of them had been betrothed to Xia Yuhang since they were children.Madam
If Chen Hexiang hadn't blown up the matter, Ning Xueyan would have overlooked some suspicious people.Fortunately, it wasn't too late...There were traces of crime that couldn't be removed immediately, but she had to prevent the perpetrators from taking excessive action out of desperation. Under such circumstances, there wasn't just one person being anxious for a butterfly that had just flapped its wings..."Get ready. We're going to the Ministry of Justice's prison." She must act quickly. Fortunately, her actions were considered quick enough.Prince Xiang's Manor."Xia Yudong? Ning Qingshan, you're really capable. You even hooked up with Xia Yudong. Is Ao Xian not enough for you that you need another Xia Yudong?" A hard slap landed on Ning Qingshan's face, making her stumble backward and crash into the back of a chair. She felt like she was suffocating."Cousin, I didn't. I have nothing to do with Xia Yud