Phoenix Palace
The Empress reclined lazily on her phoenix chair, cradling a white cat and appearing to be in good spirits.
"Lin Feng, why have you returned to Phoenix Palace?"
"Your Majesty, your subordinate has an important matter to report."
Lin Feng knelt respectfully before the Empress.
"What is it? Speak."
"Your Majesty, your subordinate left the palace today and visited Lady Liu and her daughter. I learned that Leng Ruoshuang is carrying Prince Qing's child," Lin Feng said unhurriedly.
"What? Is what you're saying true? Leng Ruoshuang is truly carrying Prince Qing's child?"
The Empress shot up from her phoenix chair, tossing the white cat aside. The cat immediately let out a mournful meow, as if crying out to its owner for pity. However, the Empress paid it no mind.
"Your Majesty, your subordinate speaks the truth. Leng Ruoshuang is indeed pregnant. However, she has been confined by Leng Jinyu to a dilapidated courtyard with extremely poor living conditions."
Lin Feng embellished the truth. In reality, while Lady Liu and her daughter's living conditions were no longer luxurious, Leng Jinyu still had servants deliver three meals daily, which was far better than how Lady Liu and her daughter had treated Leng Ruoli.
He guessed that Leng Jinyu had not driven Lady Liu to desperation out of gratitude for her having saved the lives of Xia Wan'er and her son back then, which was why she hadn't dealt them a fatal blow.
Hearing Lin Feng's words, the Empress became agitated. Leng Ruoshuang was carrying her eldest grandson, how could she endure such terrible conditions?
"I will personally go to General Leng's manor today to bring her out and arrange for someone to attend to her properly. You go back and inform Leng Ruoshuang of my words, telling her to take good care of herself, especially to take care of my eldest grandson," the Empress said, her face beaming with joy.
"Yes, your subordinate obeys!"
Lin Feng immediately rose from the ground and turned to leave the palace.
"Your Majesty, whether the child in Leng Ruoshuang's womb is truly Prince Qing's child still needs verification. After all, her mother, Liu Ruyi, is that kind of woman..." Madam Lu, the Empress's attendant, said with suspicion.
"Don't worry, I am not that foolish. Let's go, we'll visit Prince Qing's manor first to ask Yao'er."
The Empress sneered and immediately instructed Madam Lu to prepare the carriage to leave the palace.
An hour later, the Empress arrived at the grand entrance of Prince Qing's manor. Several Imperial Guards recognized the Empress and immediately opened the manor gates to allow her entry.
Meanwhile, in the garden of Prince Qing's manor, Jun Moliang, ever since being confined by the Emperor, had been indulging in debauchery day and night. Every day, he summoned his concubines to the garden and had them undress and frolic. He found immense pleasure in watching them.
Sometimes, when he grew bored of this game, he would have the women, adorned in seductive attire, engage in passionate encounters with his guards, while he leisurely sat in a pavilion, offering them guidance.
At that moment, the Empress burst in, catching sight of such a scene.
She and Madam Lu immediately turned away, erupting in fury and shouting at the Prince, "Quickly, have them put on their clothes and get out!"
The Empress was almost overcome with anger.
However, Prince Qing calmly approached the Empress and offered a perfunctory bow.
"Your humble servant greets Mother Empress!"
Before the Empress could tell him to rise, he stood up on his own.
Enraged, the Empress, disregarding the presence of palace maids and eunuchs, slapped Prince Qing across the face.
Prince Qing immediately raised his hand, rubbing the side of his face that stung from the Empress's slap. He showed no anger, instead appearing even more insolent.
He casually asked, "May I know why Mother Empress has come to find your humble servant?"
Seeing Prince Qing's demeanor, the Empress felt a headache coming on, unsure how to scold him.
"Have you secretly been intimate with the second daughter of the Leng family recently?" the Empress asked directly.
"What? Did she come to Mother Empress to complain and demand I take responsibility? If that's the case, Mother Empress, you can arrange for her to be brought in anytime. I haven't had any new women join my household lately, and my concubines are becoming fewer. It's time to find some new ones for me to play games with."
As soon as Prince Qing finished speaking, the Empress slapped him again.
"You, you... look at yourself! Your face is full of decadence and indolence. How can you achieve great ambitions in the future?"
The Empress pointed at Prince Qing's nose and scolded him fiercely.
Upon hearing the Empress's words, Prince Qing burst into laughter.
"Haha—"
"Achieve great ambitions? My lineage has been ruined by someone. I am no different from an eunuch now."
The Empress's chest heaved with anger.
After a long moment, the Empress regained her composure and spoke to Prince Qing in a gentle tone, "Leng Ruoshuang sent word to me, saying she is carrying your child. I have come to confirm with you whether the child in Leng Ruoshuang's womb is truly my eldest grandson."
Hearing this, Prince Qing froze.
After a moment, he reacted and said, "Mother Empress, the child in Leng Ruoshuang's womb should be mine. Because when I was intimate with Leng Ruoshuang, she was still a virgin. Therefore, I can confidently say that the child in her womb is definitely mine."
"That's good. She has been driven by Leng Jinyu to live in a dilapidated courtyard. I will now go to General Leng's manor to bring her out and ensure she is well attended to."
Upon hearing this, Prince Qing frowned. He also wanted to find a way to sneak out of Prince Qing's manor and visit Leng Ruoshuang at General Leng's manor.
At this moment, the Empress glanced at Prince Qing's expression and knew what he was thinking. She immediately warned him, "Don't act rashly. Your father's spies are everywhere outside Prince Qing's manor. If you don't want to be confined for another three months, then go ahead and cause trouble."
Heeding the Empress's advice, Prince Qing quickly abandoned his thought of sneaking out to see Leng Ruoshuang.
"Alright, I will now go to General Leng's manor. You must not be as decadent and debauched as you were just now, or I will not be able to protect you anymore," the Empress said earnestly to Prince Qing.
Prince Qing nodded repeatedly.
After seeing the Empress off from Prince Qing's manor, Prince Qing was so overjoyed that he almost jumped.
"Haha—"
"Heaven has not abandoned me! I have descendants."
He then ordered his servants to summon the concubines and guards back to the garden and resumed the earlier lewd games. After the concubines and guards tired themselves out, they chased each other playfully throughout the garden, clearly having a great time and completely disregarding the Empress's earlier warning.
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