In the afternoon, Shen Yunjiao wanted Shen Qinghuai to take Ye Zhixuan out for a stroll.

But then the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies sent word that Shen Qinghuai should prepare to escort the Northern Hu delegation back to their country the next day.

According to the original plan, the Northern Hu delegation was supposed to stay in Dayong for ten days before returning.

The messenger said that the original plan was to depart on the 10th, but because the crown prince openly refused the marriage, which offended the Northern Hu delegation, the envoys were so angry that they decided to leave for the Northern Hu tomorrow.

The contract that was originally to be signed with Hu Yong was also cancelled due to Hu Yong's sudden departure.

Emperor Zhaowu was so angry that he smashed several cups in the Chongwu Hall, and then fainted.

The messenger also mentioned that the Prime Minister would not be returning today.

As the chief minister of Dayong, Shen Zhizhang had to help Emperor Zhaowu handle various court affairs, so he stayed in the side hall.

Just as he was sitting inside reviewing official documents, the door was suddenly pushed open gently.

Several well-dressed maids escorted a lady dressed in bright colors and with her hair in a high bun into the room.

With her graceful willow-leaf shape, her eyes sparkling like autumn water, and her entire being as magnificent as a peony blooming in the wind, only one person in the entire harem could be so radiant and captivating.

That was Consort Shu.

"Prime Minister Shen, you've worked hard."

Consort Shu walked gracefully over, bypassing the gilded and kingfisher-patterned floor-to-ceiling screen to the wooden table. Holding a bowl of chilled iced drink, she smiled and approached Shen Zhizhang, saying, "Prime Minister Shen, please try my cooking."

"Your Majesty, I wish you good health."

When Shen Zhizhang looked up unintentionally, he was clearly startled.

He first looked around to make sure no one else was there, then put down his brush and got up to greet them.

Consort Shu placed her slender fingers on his shoulder, preventing him from getting up. "No need for formalities. Right now, everyone, including the Empress Dowager, is with the Emperor."

As Shen Zhizhang smelled the faint, cool fragrance emanating from Consort Shu, his mind immediately cleared.

He glanced at her and saw that she was still holding a bowl, so he reached out, took the bowl, and drank it all in one gulp.

Consort Shu found it somewhat intriguing. She leaned forward slightly on the table, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Shen Zhizhang, why do you seem a little different today?"

They've become more obedient.

"Your Highness, the Imperial Concubine," Shen Zhizhang said with a complicated expression, rising from his chair and bowing his head, "Your Highness is pregnant, please remain seated."

Consort Shu smiled and did not refuse Shen Zhizhang. Her jade-like eyebrows curved as she slowly sat down on the pear wood chair. "It is rare for the Prime Minister to be so considerate."

"You may all leave now."

Consort Shu originally addressed these words to the palace maids, but when Shen Zhizhang heard them, he silently turned to leave. However, the next moment, Consort Shu's jade-like hand suddenly grasped his palm.

"Shen Zhizhang, where are you running off to?" Consort Shu looked at him with a smile, her skin as white as porcelain, her red lips vibrant, and her beautiful eyes sparkling.

Her warm, soft hand deftly climbed up his rough palm, lingering around his waist.

Shen Zhizhang's forehead twitched. He grabbed Consort Shu's hand, his expression tense, and whispered, "Zheng Yuanyuan, how long do you intend to keep this up?"

Consort Shu pursed her lips, deliberately showing a hint of grievance on her face. She blinked lightly, biting her tender pink lips, and asked, "What's wrong with me now?"

Shen Zhizhang turned his head away from her and said coldly, "You are pregnant now, so you should forget everything that happened in the past. Between us, let's pretend that nothing ever happened."

Consort Shu chuckled lightly, "That won't do."

Upon hearing this answer, Shen Zhizhang was momentarily stunned, but then he saw Consort Shu slowly rise and wrap her fair, white arms around his neck.

"Zheng Yuanyuan! Have you gone mad?"

Shen Zhizhang was both angry and flustered, and even called out the name of Consort Shu.

He wanted to push the woman away, but he was mindful of her pregnancy, so he had to be much gentler.

Therefore, he was unable to push her away.

Meanwhile, the body pressed against hers kept moving about unruly, and soon the concubine's clothes were loose, revealing most of her snow-white shoulders.

At this moment, her soft, rounded breasts, half-hidden and half-revealed, were pressed tightly against Shen Zhizhang's chest.

Shen Zhizhang's mind practically exploded.

He knew that Zheng Yuanyuan was deliberately seducing him.

"Does Your Excellency not know whether I'm insane or not?"

Zheng Yuanyuan breathed warmly into his ear and said softly, word by word, "I must have been crazy to openly get pregnant with your child."

Shen Zhizhang's pupils contracted sharply, his heart pounded violently, and an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.

"What did you say?" he asked, his voice trembling.

Consort Shu did not answer him. Instead, she tiptoed and gently kissed his lips before taking her arm off Shen Zhizhang.

She sat back down in her chair, listlessly flipping through the official documents that Shen Zhizhang had just reviewed.

Shen Zhizhang's anxiety intensified, and he couldn't help but ask again urgently, "What did you just say?"

Zheng Yuanyuan gave him a long, meaningful look. "I'm telling you, the child I'm carrying is yours."

"Why are you so sure?" Shen Zhizhang clearly did not believe him.

He had witnessed Zheng Yuanyuan's affair with Emperor Zhaowu; she had been involved with both the emperor and himself.

What makes Zheng Yuanyuan so certain that the child is his?

But for some reason, a strange sense of anticipation arose deep within Shen Zhizhang's heart.

Zheng Yuanyuan was both amused and exasperated. "Doesn't Lord Shen know that women are most fertile during certain days each month? You and I have been intimate so many times, surely you can't have failed every single time?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Zhizhang's jawline tightened immediately, and his expression became deep, making it impossible to discern his thoughts at the moment.

Little did he know, Zheng Yuanyuan adored his coy, inviting expression.

"My lord, let me tell you another secret: every time I have sex with the emperor, I drink a bowl of contraceptive soup."

Even the most composed man's expression changed slightly upon hearing her words. "Why? If you hate him so much, why do you still want to enter the palace?" Shen Zhizhang asked in a low voice.

"Don't you know yet?" Consort Shu looked at Shen Zhizhang, smiled, her voice lazy and tinged with coldness, "Isn't it all because of you?"

“I grew up in Nanyue, where I lived a life of luxury and ease. But you, who clearly provoked me, abandoned me because of my identity.”

Upon hearing this, a look of guilt appeared in Shen Zhizhang's eyes. His Adam's apple bobbed as he explained in a low voice, "When you came to Dayong for sightseeing, I thought you were an ordinary woman from an ordinary family. I fell in love with you at first sight, and I was sincere at the time."

"Of course I know you were sincere, but it's also a fact that you abandoned me later, isn't it?" Zheng Yuanyuan gave him a sarcastic look, and then slowly said, "Fortunately, Emperor Zhaowu took a liking to me, and I thought, if I can control the emperor, why should I be afraid of not being able to control you who are making a living under the emperor?"

"I originally wanted to get revenge on you. But I don't want to anymore."

Zheng Yuanyuan stared at the benevolent-looking jade Guanyin statue on the wooden shelf in the hall for a long time before slowly saying, "Having tasted the feeling of having power so great that I can summon wind and rain, now I only want to hold the entire Dayong in my palm and become the most noble woman in Dayong City."

She turned her head, her thick eyelashes fluttering, and looked at Shen Zhizhang with shimmering eyes. "You said you would help me."

Even if you don't want to help me, don't you want to help your child?

Her slender hand grasped Shen Zhizhang's large hand and placed it on his soft belly.

Even through the smooth fabric, Shen Zhizhang could feel a warmth.

He closed his eyes tightly and exhaled a heavy breath. "I will help you today."