Chapter 182: Chapter 181: The Traitorous Concubine and the Worthy Empress 16
Prince Jin burst into hearty laughter.
He felt Anning’s proposal deeply resonated with his own thoughts.
However, he still tested the waters and asked, "If my Noble Consort likes it, it could be arranged."
Anning pondered for a moment: "Cousin is the Crown Prince of a nation. If, if he became a eunuch, wouldn’t that be a loss of face for Lu Country, and might Lu Country become enraged and wage war against Jin Country?"
"Do not fear, as long as it’s what you wish, I shall make it happen for you."
Prince Jin smiled and patted Anning on the head, his eyes filled with tenderness and indulgence.
Anning, propping up her chin, thought again and again: "Then, we would have to bring the Xie Family over first before doing that. Otherwise, I’m afraid King Lu might kill my family."
Seeing that Anning did not object, Prince Jin’s mood improved substantially.
Afterward, Prince Jin indeed sent envoys to various countries to expedite grain shipments.
The first country they visited was Lu Country.
In addition to expediting grain, the envoy carried another mission, which was to bring the Xie Family to Jin Country.
The envoy sent by Prince Jin was known for his aggressive and unreasonable character.
Upon meeting King Lu, he bluntly stated that Noble Princess Consort Xie longed for her family and that Prince Jin had specially sent him to bring the Xie Family to Jin Country, and then he mentioned the severe drought in Jin Country, hoping that Lu Country could provide some grain to help alleviate the disaster in Jin Country.
King Lu was truly vexed.
Jin Country was famously aggressive and powerful. With unmatched iron cavalry that had trampled many smaller nations, although Lu Country was wealthy, its military preparations were inadequate, and King Lu certainly did not dare to provoke Prince Jin.
Left with no other choice, he summoned the Xie Family to discuss the matter while also levying grain from every region.
Anning, staying in Prince Jin Palace, was well-fed and lived a particularly comfortable life.
It was Feng Chengxi in the Hostage Mansion who was brooding every day, pondering how to escape.
Of course, both he and Madam Xie knew Anning hadn’t died; they guessed that Prince Jin, out of anger, had punished Anning and deceived Madam Xie into thinking Anning was dead.
After learning the truth, Madam Xie had also requested to see Anning, but Prince Jin guarded her closely, forbidding Xie Family members from entering the palace and preventing Feng Chengxi from seeing Anning.
Time passed particularly quickly, and after a little more than a month, the envoy brought back a large shipment of grain from Lu Country, as well as the people from the Xie Family.
The Xie Family members were actually very reluctant to come to Jin Country.
They had been Lu people for generations and had no desire to leave their homeland for an unfamiliar place.
But since Prince Jin insisted they go, and King Lu dared not keep them, the Xie Family had no choice but to relocate their entire household.
When they left, many Lu Country ministers and commoners harshly condemned them, accusing them of betraying their country for glory and saying that the Xie Family had sold a girl in exchange for the whole family’s prosperity.
In any case, the Xie Family’s reputation was entirely tarnished.
When they were leaving Lu Country, upon passing a village, many villagers showed contempt for the Xie Family and threw stones at them; if not for the protection of Jin Country’s soldiers, many of the Xie Family might have been injured.
The Xie Family arrived in Jin Country with their spirits low, and upon settling into the residence Anning had prepared for them, they sighed and moaned, clearly very unhappy.
Anning did not meet the Xie Family at the first opportunity.
She sent word to the Xie Family, saying they should rest for a few days before meeting after they were well situated.
Mr. Xie harbored dissatisfaction with Anning and was unwilling to see her, so he postponed the meeting.
Meanwhile, Anning was preparing a significant gift for the Xie Family.
That day, as Prince Jin and Anning were watching Palace Attendants picking lotus seeds and digging lotus roots from the lake outside Qifang Palace, an Attendant hurried over and whispered a few words in Prince Jin’s ear.
Anning no longer cared to watch the Palace Attendants boating and picking lotus seeds and turned to look at Prince Jin.
Prince Jin took Anning’s hand and entered the house. Once inside, Prince Jin announced, "Someone from the Hostage Mansion reported back: the maid arranged for Feng Chengxi is pregnant."
"It seems cousin’s days have not been too bad."
Anning sneered coldly, "Presumably, he must be extremely pleased."
The smile on Prince Jin’s face diminished slightly, "The maid is from Jin Country. Feng Chengxi does not want the child and arranged for someone to drug the maid’s food — the child is no more."
Anning thought of Feng Chengxi always boasting of chastity while he was in Lu Country, not getting involved in any male-female relationships. He had yet to marry or have any children, so she said to Prince Jin with a smile, "It seems cousin does not wish to have a child with Jin Country blood. Your Majesty, he might be looking down on the people of Jin Country."
Prince Jin pondered for a moment: "You have a point. Since he doesn’t want a child born from a person of Jin Country, then he shouldn’t have to ever again."
Anning had someone bring over the lotus seeds she had picked, washed her hands, and began to peel the seeds one by one, feeding them to Prince Jin: "Your Majesty, don’t be angry, have some lotus seeds to cool down."
Feng Chengxi had been in a bad mood for the past few days.
He was left in Jin Country, confined to a small area, and even if he had the intention to do something, he could not accomplish anything.
Moreover, the Palace Attendant serving him secretly stopped taking birth control soup and actually became pregnant.
In Feng Chengxi’s current situation, he did not want a child, no matter who the mother was. Having a child now would only be a burden and would give Prince Jin even more leverage over him.
Therefore, Feng Chengxi directly had someone administer a drug to the maid, causing her to miscarry.
Because of this, he was in a very bad mood, and the arrival of people from the Xie Family to Jin Country only added to his panic.
He knew in his heart that Anning probably did not like him anymore. He could no longer move Anning with his feelings, and with the Xie Family people in Jin Country, he could no longer threaten Anning.
Anning had already slipped from his control.
Because of this, Feng Chengxi had difficulty eating and sleeping for several days.
The weather was nice that day; the sunshine wasn’t too intense, and it wasn’t hot outside—there was a refreshing feeling of autumn in the air.
Feng Chengxi then took his people out for a stroll on the streets.
That stroll led to trouble.
He was walking just fine when a not-so-pretty girl passed by him. He didn’t know if she tripped or something, but she fell directly onto Feng Chengxi.
Out of politeness, Feng Chengxi helped her, only for the girl to wrongfully accuse him.
The girl turned around and slapped him across the face, turning Feng Chengxi’s cheeks red: "Playboy."
After scolding Feng Chengxi, the girl fiercely yelled out: "Harassing a decent woman, shameless rogue, daring to touch me... Brother, hurry over, your sister’s being harassed!"
Soon, a tall and burly man walked over.
He sized up Feng Chengxi: "You touched my sister?"
Feng Chengxi, with a face as red as a cloth in anger, said: "No, you’ve misunderstood, this girl..."
The girl and the man wouldn’t hear his explanation.
The man knocked down Feng Chengxi’s Attendants with a few punches, and the girl went over to hold Feng Chengxi down and hit him. After a few hits, she dragged him into an alley.
Everything happened so suddenly. The surrounding crowd hadn’t had enough time to enjoy the spectacle when the three involved disappeared.
By the time Feng Chengxi’s Attendants got up and searched for him, there was no trace of Feng Chengxi to be found.
The man and the girl dragged Feng Chengxi into a small house.
The girl looked Feng Chengxi over with a smile: "Not bad looking at all. Quite the pretty-boy, indeed a good match for me."
The man laughed: "Then I’ll let him marry my sister on the cheap."
The girl waved her hand: "Brother, hurry and buy red candles and such, I’m going to get married to him right away, we will consummate the marriage soon, and in a few months, you’ll have a nephew to hold."
The man rubbed his hands eagerly: "Alright, I’ll prepare everything quickly."
Feng Chengxi, listening to the two discussing how to force him, felt both ashamed and angry. In his anger, he cursed at the girl: "You have no shame, woman. I was minding my own business when you leaned on me and accused me of harassing you. With your looks, even if I hadn’t seen a woman in several lifetimes, I wouldn’t harass you."
This cursing made the girl angry.
Then the girl started punching and kicking Feng Chengxi.
The man also came over to help hold him down, letting the girl beat him.
Feng Chengxi cried out in pain, and later his piteous cries almost spread throughout the whole Yang City.
When Feng Chengxi’s Attendants managed to get the government from Yang City to help find him, they found only Feng Chengxi passed out in the small house.
The government officials of Jin Country then carried Feng Chengxi to the largest doctor’s office in Yang City. After the doctor took Feng Chengxi’s pulse and examined his injuries, he shook his head and sighed deeply: "The Crown Prince of your country... his manhood has been damaged, and he will no longer be able to perform as a man."