Chapter 235 Does she deserve it?

When Shen Qingci woke up, it was already bright outside the window.

As soon as she sat up, she received a message: Huo Yunzhan had been successfully "rescued" from the prison last night.

Shen Qingci was silent for a moment, then turned her head to look at Chu Jichen, who was sitting in a wheelchair watching her leisurely, her voice filled with disbelief: "It...did it?"

She had only been tormented by this man, sleeping from the afternoon until the next morning, and he... had already managed to get Huo Yunzhan out?

I felt completely uninvolved! I didn't even get to see the play!

Looking at her frustrated expression, Chu Jichen couldn't help but chuckle softly: "Delay will only lead to complications."

“However,” a playful smile flashed in his eyes, “the show still has to go on. You still have to pretend to be suspicious and go to the prison.”

"In this way, we can buy some time. This will prevent Liu Wenyuan and Emperor Yongming from doing anything to Huo Yunzhan in the prison, thus giving us a chance to make progress."

Upon hearing this, Shen Qingci asked, somewhat puzzled, "What opportunity do you want to seize?"

“Naturally…” Chu Jichen’s eyes gleamed with a hunter’s light, “to gain the opportunity to arrange everything.”

“I have a feeling that this is an opportunity. An opportunity to lure Liu Wenyuan and Emperor Yongming into making a joint move. If we can seize it, we can break one of their hands and even track down Liu Wenyuan’s whereabouts.”

Shen Qingci frowned deeply: "Does Your Highness think that they will all try to save Huo Yunzhan?"

She didn't quite understand.

"To them, Huo Yunzhan is nothing more than a small fry. Even if he dies, it won't make much of a difference. Would they really save him?"

"Yes, it will." A mocking smile slowly curved Chu Jichen's lips.

"Qingqing, don't forget, Huo Yunzhan is a general after all. He has troops under his command, although not many. But... whether it's the newly enthroned Emperor Yongming or Liu Wenyuan who is plotting a rebellion, it's not a small number."

"Moreover, there must have been a reason why Huo Yunzhan was able to curry favor with both Emperor Yongming and Liu Wenyuan."

"Besides," his eyes were full of confidence, "whether they come to rescue us or not, I should prepare in advance."

“If they didn’t come, I didn’t lose out. If they did come,” his voice was full of calculation, “I… profited.”

Shen Qingci nodded, looked at Chu Jichen, and a faint smile appeared on her lips: "Your Highness is absolutely right."

Shen Qingci immediately cooperated and put on a good show in the prison.

Upon arriving at the prison, she flew into a rage, angrily demanding of the guards why the prison had suddenly caught fire!

The jailer immediately knelt down and explained, "Your Highness! It really...it was just an accident! It was...it was because the torch on the wall wasn't properly in place and fell down!"

"It was only on the outer wall, not in any of the cells. And... the fire went out very quickly!"

"All the prisoners in the cell were...unaffected in the slightest! The cell doors were never opened, and...not a single person was missing! There were no other unrelated people present at the time! All the cell keys were taken away immediately and kept safe!"

Shen Qingci pushed Chu Jichen's wheelchair and went to Huo Yunzhan's cell to take a look. She saw that the "Huo Yunzhan" inside was huddled in a corner, and everything seemed normal. Her expression softened slightly.

She then carefully instructed the jailers, "The prisoners in this cell are important criminals! You... must keep a close eye on them!"

Then, she lowered her head and said to Chu Jichen in a worried tone, "Your Highness, we should... arrange more guards to watch over Huo Yunzhan."

Chu Jichen agreed, and Shen Qingci followed him out of the prison.

Chu Jichen followed Shen Qingci into the carriage and began staring at her intently again.

Shen Qingci felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze and asked, "What are you looking at?"

Chu Jichen smiled, his voice full of amusement: "Huo Yunzhan is now in our hands. Qingqing...would you like to go see him?"

Shen Qingci slowly shook her head: "There must be quite a few people watching me now. If I rashly go to see him, it will be easier to give myself away."

"Since we're going to perform, then... we should perform it well."

“Besides,” a cold look of disgust flashed in her eyes, “there’s really nothing left for me to say to him now.”

Chu Jichen nodded and then said, "If nothing unexpected happens, Huo Yunzhan will be on the execution platform in about ten days."

"The Imperial Physician Li's master should arrive in the capital tomorrow."

"I heard from Physician Li that his master found a very powerful prescription that can cure my leg ailment."

"Now, I can feel my legs more and more often. I can now stand for a long time while holding onto things, and occasionally I can even take a step forward."

"As for Liu Wenyuan," a cold killing intent flashed in his eyes, "my men have also found some clues."

“Once all these things are settled, Qingqing,” he looked at her, his deep phoenix eyes filled with unprecedented hope and seriousness, “could we stop taking those contraceptives?”

Shen Qingci's heart was struck hard by Chu Jichen's sudden words.

She subconsciously looked up and met his eyes, which were filled with hope and a hint of vulnerability that was barely perceptible.

That gaze, like a warm flame, instantly burned a tiny crack in the already frozen city in her heart.

child……

She and his child...

A storm raged in Shen Qingci's heart!

She never imagined she would have another child.

In her past life, the child who turned into blood before he was even formed was an unhealable wound in her heart, the deepest pain and nightmare she experienced in the dead of night.

Reborn, she personally aborted the child she had with Huo Yunzhan. At that moment, besides the satisfaction of revenge, all that remained in her heart was endless sorrow and determination.

She thought that she would never have anything to do with the identity of "mother" again in her life.

Her marriage to Chu Jichen was originally a transaction based on mutual benefit.

She always thought that their relationship was nothing more than a matter of mutual benefit, and that she could leave at any time.

Can……

She thought of everything he had done for her all these days.

I remember his undisguised protection of her in the prison; I remember his favoritism and support at the palace banquet; I remember his bloodshot eyes, filled with lingering fear and heartache, after he learned that she had poisoned him…

He recalled the words he had whispered in her ear before, words filled with humility and hope: "I also hope for... a sliver of the princess's true feelings."

He said he had liked her for a long time.

He said that he would never take a concubine in his life.

He said he would do anything for her.

These words and these events, like a gentle stream, had already silently seeped into her long-parched and barren heart without her even realizing it.

She couldn't help but feel a slight longing.

She craved the warmth of his embrace, his unconditional trust, and... his burning and pure affection.

Can……

Can she really do it?

Does she really... deserve it?

She was a woman who had been married, pregnant, and even... killed the child in her womb with her own hands.

Her hands were already stained with blood and scheming.

Is it really possible for someone like her to have a child of her own?

Can I... still have a child with him?

Shen Qingci's heart was filled with endless struggle and contradictions.

Looking at her like that, Chu Jichen's hope gradually faded.