Shen Yingluo watched Shen Xihe's carriage depart without pause, lost in thought.
Helped into the carriage by Tan Shi, she lowered her head with a hint of sadness: "Nanny, if only I were the legal wife's daughter."
Would she then have the affection of a father and brothers, and the protection of such an formidable sister?
Tan Shi held Shen Yingluo and sighed softly.
She clearly saw Shen Yingluo's admiration for Shen Xihe. Such a peerless and invincible County Lord was indeed easy to admire and revere.
It was just a pity that not everyone could catch her eye. The County Lord's assistance was truly only for the sake of the Shen family's reputation, just as the Prince and the County Lord had promised that day—they would never allow the County Lord to be bullied, even if the other party was an imperial princess.
Shen Xihe, however, was unaware that because of her actions, many noble ladies witnessed it and later vividly recounted it to their siblings at home. Those who had originally thought Shen Xihe was arrogant and domineering now felt admiration for her and envy toward Shen Yingluo.
Some with restless minds began to consider that Shen Yingluo was nearly of age and reaching marriageable years.
Unfortunately, Shen Yueshan and his son were not in the capital, and Shen Xihe was someone who could not be easily approached. Those who wished to indirectly inquire about Shen Yingluo's marriage prospects found no means to do so.
Shen Xihe paid no attention to these matters. She had calculated the timing precisely. On the day before the polo match, Yangling Princess went to mock Anling Princess. Having previously suffered at Shen Xihe's hands without Anling Princess's help, Yangling Princess was now delighted to see Anling Princess finally experience Shen Xihe's torment.
The two sisters ended up in a dispute, and Anling Princess accidentally pushed Yangling Princess, causing her to fall unconscious.
The Imperial Harem was thrown into an uproar. Noble Consort Rong summoned imperial physicians to examine Yangling Princess, only to diagnose her with pregnancy!
"Your Majesty, Yangling she..." Noble Consort Rong bravely approached the Youning Emperor. Upon hearing that his two daughters had been pushing and quarreling, the Emperor had no desire to deal with their affairs and left it to Noble Consort Rong to handle.
"Did I not say that this matter is yours to decide?" the Youning Emperor said impatiently.
"The Princess is with child. This humble consort dare not make the decision," Noble Consort Rong replied cautiously.
"With child?" The Youning Emperor's face turned cold. He had been stalling the Turks and had not yet agreed to the marriage, and now Yangling was pregnant!
"She is with child, and two months along at that," Noble Consort Rong added the last part in a very soft voice.
The Youning Emperor stood up abruptly, unable to believe his ears: "How long did you say?"
Noble Consort Rong bowed her head: "Two months."
"Bang!" The Emperor angrily swept his sleeve, knocking over a nearby vase.
The sound of the shattering vase made everyone, including Noble Consort Rong, kneel in fear, not daring to make a sound.
Yangling Princess's affair with Munuha had only occurred a month ago, yet she was two months pregnant!
The Youning Emperor paced back and forth and asked Noble Consort Rong, "The imperial physicians confirmed it?"
"Three imperial physicians confirmed it—she is two months pregnant." Otherwise, she would not have dared to report it to His Majesty.
This was a grave matter. If the Turkish prince learned that Yangling Princess was two months pregnant, they would be at fault.
"Have the Imperial Hospital prepare medicine," the Youning Emperor instructed coldly. "Seal the news within the palace."
"Acknowledged," Noble Consort Rong responded and withdrew to handle the matter.
Shen Xihe waited for news at the Princess Manor. It was a rare day when Cui Jinbai was dispatched outside the city on official business, giving Bu Shulin a moment of respite. She immediately went to find Shen Xihe."Your Highness, Princess Yangling has had an abortion," Zhenzhu came to report.
"Abortion?" Bu Shulin, who had been lounging casually against the beauty rail, sat up straight. "How was this abortion performed?"
Princess Yangling wasn't even pregnant - what fetus could be aborted from drinking medicine?
"I gave her medicine two months ago that affected her menstrual cycle," Shen Xihe smiled faintly. "The abortion medicine just happened to make her suffer excruciating pain while bringing on her monthly bleeding.""
Bu Shulin suddenly shrank back against the corridor pillar, clutching it tightly. "Youyou, you..."
You're really terrifying!
She didn't dare say it out loud.
"What about me?" Shen Xihe raised an eyebrow with an amused smile.
"You... you're incredibly wise, graceful and elegant, well-educated and courteous, dignified in every way, pure and extraordinary..." Bu Shulin racked her brains to pour out every bit of literary talent she possessed, then blinked her eyes with utmost sincerity at Shen Xihe.
Zhenzhu and the others were all amused by Bu Shulin's antics.
Only when Shen Xihe put away that dangerous smile did Bu Shulin breathe a sigh of relief. "But since Princess Yangling has already 'had an abortion,' how will this provoke Munuha to kill her?"
"As long as His Majesty knows this happened, that's sufficient." Shen Xihe had long anticipated that the Emperor would immediately cover up Yangling's "abortion," which would also help conceal her evidence. The medicine would lose its effect in two days, but by then the "abortion" would be considered done and over with.
Even if the Imperial Hospital physicians later detected that Princess Yangling's pulse showed abnormalities inconsistent with post-abortion symptoms, they wouldn't dare speak up. Admitting they misdiagnosed would be delivering their own heads beneath the Emperor's executioner's blade.
This was destined to be a case of going along with the mistake. By the time Munuha learned about this and "killed" Princess Yangling in a fit of rage, they would be even less willing to speak up. Speaking out then wouldn't just mean losing their own heads, but their entire families would be executed alongside them.
She had calculated every step for Princess Yangling.
Once the Emperor concluded that Princess Yangling had been pregnant with another man's child, this provided sufficient reason for Munuha to kill the princess. Moreover, this wasn't the only issue - Munuha would also learn that Princess Yangling had made him as impotent as a eunuch, giving him even stronger motivation for murder.
"Now it's time for Munuha to learn about his impotence," Shen Xihe said with a smiling glance at Bu Shulin.
Bu Shulin immediately stood straight. "Leave it to me."
Wasn't it just about finding some dissolute friends to invite Munuha to visit brothels?
It was normal for men to be promiscuous, and Munuha had recently been angered by the Emperor's delay in approving his marriage to Princess Yangling.
Although this dynasty didn't value chastity more than life itself, a woman's virtue was still important. Given that Munuha and Princess Yangling had been discovered together by so many people, who would be willing to marry Princess Yangling if she didn't wed Munuha? This was different from marrying a widow.
So when someone repeatedly invited Munuha to visit brothels, Munuha found it hard to decline the enthusiastic invitations and went.
Little did he expect that he would prove impotent!
"Ah, I'd actually quite like to see what a man who can't get erect looks like?" Bu Shulin said while drinking in another room, speaking to Jinshan. "Do you think I should go take a look, as the heir?"
But when she turned around and saw Cui Jinbai standing behind Jinshan, the wine in her mouth sprayed out, making her cough uncontrollably.
Cui Jinbai's gaze was profound as he stepped forward to gently pat her back. Feeling his warm palm, Bu Shulin couldn't help but shudder.Sure enough, Cui Jinbai's gentle voice was heard asking, "What would you like to see? Shall I show you?"
OpenNovel