Chapter 93 The Child Is Gone

The Third Prince roared at him, "If it's there, it's there; if it's not, it's not. What do you mean by 'it's there but not there'?"

The imperial physician knelt down and begged for mercy, "Your Highness, spare my life! It is my lack of skill. There is no time to lose. Quickly send the Third Imperial Consort to the main hall for treatment by the Imperial Physician. Only then will she have a chance to live."

It was his unfortunate fate that meant only the imperial physician who was buried with him could survive.

"You just wait and see," he said to the imperial physician.

The Third Prince carried Lin Ruoxue onto the sedan chair, and the group hurriedly headed to the main hall.

Xie Mianmian and the Seventh Prince were about to follow when she noticed a fiery red bird shadow also following. "Little Orange, you should go back quickly, they are very worried about you."

Even though it was on land, the flamingo lowered its head to the ground and pretended to be busy. It didn't want to go back; it wanted to see what was going on.

Remembering the flamingo leader's instructions, Xie Mianmian wanted to send Xiaoju back safely, but she was also very worried about the safety of the child in her belly.

The child paced back and forth in a dilemma, until finally, Grandpa Li and the others arrived.

"My lord, you frightened me to death! Are you all alright?"

Something terrible has happened.

But Xie Mianmian didn't say anything. Instead, she pressed Xiaoju down and said to Eunuch Li, "Eunuch Li, you are more familiar with this place. Could you help Mianmian take Xiaoju back?"

Grandpa Li struggled to catch the flamingo, which was struggling incessantly, even harder to hold down than a pig during the Lunar New Year, and kept squawking like a goose.

"No, I want to watch the two-legged creatures have a good time!"

"Please, Eunuch Li, make sure to deliver Little Orange to the leader of the Red Birds."

"Please rest assured, Miss." Eunuch Li kept looking up to dodge the flamingos' attacks. "This servant will definitely take care of things."

Xie Mianmian was relieved, and the group followed the Seventh Prince to the main hall.

Outside a side room of the main hall, a large crowd stood, but it was completely silent; no one dared to speak.

Xie Mianmian's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that she lost the baby?

The two children entered the room. At first glance, the most eye-catching figure was a man in bright yellow, and Xie's father standing to the side.

Xie Mianmian jogged over quietly and bowed obediently, "Greetings, Uncle Huang."

The emperor nodded.

Lin Ruoxue was in the innermost room, separated from Xie Mianmian by a screen. Xie Mianmian could not see the specific situation, but her voice was somewhat uneasy, "Uncle Huang, is the Third Princess Consort alright? This was not something Mianmian did."

Before the emperor could speak, Xie's father interjected, "I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly. My daughter would never do such a despicable thing."

Minister Lin was also present. "Governor Xie, do you mean that my daughter harmed her own child? Your Majesty, you must do justice for this old minister!"

The emperor slightly raised his hand to stop the two from arguing. "I believe in Mianmian. She is a good child. I also believe that a mother would not harm her own child. There must be some misunderstanding."

Seeing that Minister Lin still wanted to speak, the emperor continued, "Let's talk after the Imperial Physician finishes his consultations."

Suddenly, an exclamation came from the inner room: "So that's how it is!"

Minister Lin rushed in, and the emperor followed.

Xie Mianmian followed her father and saw that the Third Prince was also sitting on the bed, half-embracing Lin Ruoxue, while the head physician was taking her pulse.

The abbot was very old, with white eyebrows and beard, and had the air of a divine healer.

The academy director asked Lin Ruoxue a few questions, and he nodded as he listened to her answers.

He said, "Then that's it. Third Princess Consort, you are not pregnant at all, but have a cyst in your belly."

"What!?" The Third Prince, Lin Ruoxue, and Minister Lin exclaimed in unison.

His dearest child!

Her Lin family's good fortune!

His immense wealth and power!

Lin Ruoxue cried out in despair, "No way! Headmaster, please look again carefully! I can clearly feel the baby moving in my belly! There's no way I'm not pregnant!"

How could this happen? It failed again this time!?

The abbot explained, "The symptoms and pulse of this abdominal cyst are very similar to those of a pregnant woman. I have only seen one case many years ago. It is normal for ordinary imperial physicians to misdiagnose it."

Seeing that they still looked unwell, the academy head comforted them, "Don't worry, they only need to drink the herbal medicine for seven days to recover. The Third Princess Consort is in good health, and it's only a matter of time before she gets pregnant."

Upon hearing this, the Third Prince gradually came to his senses. He suddenly stood up, leaving Lin Ruoxue, who had been leaning on him, with nothing behind her and she almost fell over.

The two looked at each other, their eyes filled with disgust.

Lin Ruoxue lay back on the bed, and with a look of utter despair, pulled the silk quilt over her face.

The emperor said, "Since there is nothing else, let's disperse."

At this moment, Xie's father stepped forward and said, "How do you explain the Lin family's slander of my youngest daughter? Could it be that the Third Princess Consort already knew she was not pregnant, and took advantage of the fact that the imperial physician failed to detect the truth, she used this as a pretext to blame my daughter for the loss of the imperial grandson?"

He bowed to the emperor and said, "The Lin family is treacherous; Your Majesty, please investigate thoroughly!"

Minister Lin was alarmed, "Nonsense! Even the imperial physicians don't know, how could the Third Princess Consort know? She is also a victim in this matter, Your Majesty!"

The emperor raised his hand to signal them to shut up. "Alright, this is all a misunderstanding. Lin Ruoxue fell by accident. It has nothing to do with Mianmian. Let's not talk about it anymore."

Xie Mianmian breathed a sigh of relief and said sweetly, "Thank you, Uncle Huang, for believing in Mianmian."

As for that wicked woman who risked her life to frame me, sorry, Mianmian is going to be a bad kid and teach that wicked woman a lesson, hmph.

It was getting late, and everyone returned to the banquet table to prepare for the meal.

Seeing that everyone else had left, the Third Prince yanked the blanket off Lin Ruoxue's head and said, "Stop pretending and get up."

The blanket was pulled back, revealing Lin Ruoxue's tear-streaked face. "Your Highness, our child is gone..."

The Third Prince was always one to respond to gentle persuasion but not force. Seeing the beauty shed tears, he couldn't help but think that she was also looking forward to their child, but fate had other plans.

He hugged Lin Ruoxue tightly, saying, "It's okay, we'll have children in the future."

He couldn't see Lin Ruoxue's cold smile. This fool was really easy to manipulate. Once he ascended to that position, he would be perfect as a puppet of the Lin family.

Xie Mianmian was led back to her seat by her father. The child immediately spotted the fiery red bird – it was Xiao Ju.

Li Gonggong was seen holding the flamingo with a wry smile, looking at Xie Mianmian as if she were his lifeline.

"Miss, I searched the entire lotus pond but couldn't find the flock of red birds, so I had no choice but to bring them back."

After all, if he lost this bird, he would have truly failed in his duty, failing to handle even such a small matter properly.

As soon as Xiao Ju saw Xie Mianmian, it frantically flapped its wings, crying, "Mianmian, save me! Save me!"