The spear guards could block the woman, but not her mouth.
Clutching her child, she cried incessantly, "Your Highness, I am Wan'er! Look at me, and our child..."
As the woman's shrill, urgent voice rang out, the ministers couldn't help but look at Si Fengwu and Lu Qingwan beside him.
With the coronation ceremony imminent, Si Fengwu had a child appear out of nowhere?
This was utterly explosive news for the court and the public.
Si Fengwu ignored the curious gazes of the ministers and directly said to Lu Qingwan, "I would never do such a foolish thing."
He then turned to the guards, saying, "Drag her away and hand her over to the Capital Prefecture. Order the three judicial organs to investigate thoroughly.
The entire process will be made public. If this woman and child suffer any harm before the truth is revealed, and my reputation is damaged, then you three will be banished to the Western Liang Desert to plant trees!"
The Minister of Justice, the Minister of Dali Temple, and the Censor all quickly responded. The guards stepped forward to apprehend the woman.
The woman, with surprisingly agile movements, dodged the guards' hands and slipped under their spears, shrieking, "Your Highness, you can't treat me like this!
I know my humble status and cannot help you achieve great deeds like the Princess Consort! But I personally took care of you for months when you were injured, and I bore you a child. Even if I have no merit, I have toiled for you, Your Highness..."
The guards' faces turned pale, and they repeatedly pleaded, "Your Highness, please calm your anger!"
They hurriedly arrested the woman and were about to drag her away when Lu Qingwan, whom everyone was closely watching, spoke.
"Wait a moment!"
The guards froze. Seeing this, the woman quickly shifted her target.
"Princess Consort, please save me! I never intended to compete with you for the Prince, but I cannot survive alone with my child, vulnerable and alone! If the Princess Consort can grant me a place, I can even register the child under your name. I will teach the child well, and in the future, he will filial to you like his own mother..."
"Tsk, I don't need your child to be filial to me. You took care of the severely injured Prince and bore him a child – such great service! How could I possibly snatch your child?"
As she spoke, she smiled slightly. "However, as the child's legitimate mother, and with my impending ascension, the Emperor's eldest son's horoscope cannot be vague! You should tell me and the elders of the Ministry of Rites how old this child is. Also, tell me when you took care of the Prince, so I can determine your status based on your merits!"
This seemingly magnanimous statement stunned not only the woman but also the ministers behind her.
Everyone knew that the reason Lu Qingwan was becoming Empress was to prevent anyone from trying to place women around Si Fengwu. Now, with her status reversed, and Si Fengwu as the Emperor's consort, he was not in a position to demand a harem. Yet, Lu Qingwan was actually considering taking in a woman who had suddenly appeared.
They all thought Lu Qingwan must be driven mad by anger.
Only Si Fengwu, looking at Lu Qingwan's radiant smile, felt a chill run down his spine.
The woman, feigning shyness, cast a glance at him and demurely said, "It was the year before the plague, when Your Highness was ambushed in Da Qin. For some reason, there was no one around him. I happened to be gathering herbs in the forest when I discovered the severely injured Prince. My heart softened, and I saved him. I originally intended to send him away after he recovered, but I didn't expect Your Highness..."
At this point, she shyly glanced at Si Fengwu, blushing. "Since then, Your Highness disappeared. I know that with Your Highness's demeanor, he is by no means a match for someone as humble as myself. But I didn't expect to be pregnant... Princess Consort, I truly did not deliberately seduce Your Highness. Please, for the child's sake, grant us mother and son a place to live."
Before she could finish, the woman started crying again, wailing as if she was determined not to back down until the matter was resolved.
Lu Qingwan's expression turned cold. "That's a very moving story. Then do you know that the year before the plague, the Prince never went to Da Qin? He was always in Tianfeng?"
"Indeed. At that time, the scoundrels in Hanxiao Hall created a diversion, making the Prince believe that the Emperor of Da Qin had been assassinated, thus luring the tiger away from its den. When the Prince and Princess Consort learned of this, they turned it to their advantage. Apart from the Prince and Princess Consort, myself, Elder Chi, and Prime Minister Nan, and Prince Consort Shao are all aware of this. Woman, you appear to be a new mother. How could you bring your child to do such a disgraceful thing?"
The ministers, who had been stirred by the woman's words, immediately quieted down upon hearing Elder Wen's statement. They then turned their attention to the woman. "Reporting to the Princess Consort, although this woman is a mere village woman, since she knows of the Prince's trip to Da Qin, she is by no means an ordinary citizen. Furthermore, she is holding a child and shouting loudly. She has an illegitimate child, yet shows no shame. This indicates that her intention is not for the Prince to acknowledge her and the child, but to create a disturbance. I fear they will use this matter to their advantage. With the coronation ceremony approaching, if public opinion erupts, and the Prince and Princess Consort have indeed been childless for many years, it would be detrimental not only to the Princess Consort but also to the young prince, and even to the relationship between Tianfeng and Da Qin!"
After the Minister of Dali Temple spoke, Cheng Nanliu and the Censor almost tore his sleeves off. Lu Qingwan and Si Fengwu's years of childlessness was, in everyone's eyes, a painful topic that the new Emperor and Empress dared not touch. In the ministers' view, the Minister of Dali Temple's direct mention of this matter was suicidal.
Lu Qingwan, however, suddenly smiled.
"So that's it, coming to frame me with a child, yet not even preparing the script properly. So, someone has found my weakness!"
Lu Qingwan let out a cold laugh.
The Censor quickly said, "Princess Consort, please calm your anger. Minister Gu was merely concerned that this cunning woman has someone behind her exploiting the situation. He absolutely did not mean to insinuate the Princess Consort..."
"I haven't said anything. Why are you so nervous, Minister Wei? Coincidentally, with all of you esteemed officials present today, I have something to announce."
She turned back and smiled at the assembled ministers. "I, Lu Qingwan, have been married to the Prince for eight years. The reason for our lack of children is simply because the Prince, taking pity on my youth and my lack of parents, did not wish for me to become a mother at such a young age. Therefore, the Prince voluntarily took contraceptives. Now, I am carrying the Prince's flesh and blood. If anyone dares to speak of my and the Prince's long-standing lack of offspring again, I will not hesitate to take matters into my own hands. I believe that the child of Lu Qingwan and Si Fengwu will not be afraid of drawing blood."
Having said this, she snatched a spear from a nearby guard and pierced the woman's bun. The pungent odor immediately wafted out. "To bring a child and a drug designed to provoke emotions to see me, I must commend you for thinking of such a foolish method. But do you and your master know me, Lu Qingwan, for the first time? How could you believe that I, who have cured countless women of infertility, would be unable to conceive myself, and would fail to discover your petty trick?"