Ruan Lanruo revealed a sorrowful smile.

"If she didn't seem so innocent, how could I have believed her so much?"

Having been in the palace for seven years, Ruan Lanruo had seen a lot of people and things, and thought she had become invulnerable.

However, she was still defeated by Wang Liangdi's charm and innocence.

She still remembered the night Wang Liangdi entered the palace. She went to bed very late. She always suffered from insomnia whenever a new concubine entered the Eastern Palace, and this time was no exception.

She lay there for a while, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep, so she simply asked someone to light a lamp and started reading.

Suddenly a commotion broke out outside. Just as she was about to order the palace servants to investigate, a graceful figure suddenly climbed in through the open window.

Upon seeing her, the other person clasped their hands together and pleaded softly, "Sister, please let me hide for a while, I'll leave right away."

Ruan Lanruo recognized her as a newly arrived concubine and was surprised. She asked her what was going on here.

A look of fear flashed across Consort Wang's eyes: "His Highness the Crown Prince wanted to sleep with me, and I was a little scared, so I... I ran away."

Ruan Lanruo was immediately at a loss for words, neither laughing nor crying.

How could anyone run away just because they were afraid of being served in bed?

She's just like a child.

Upon closer inspection, Wang Liangdi did indeed look like a child, with clear yet innocent eyes, as if she were completely unaware of the ways of the world.

Ruan Lanruo calmed her down and had a palace servant inform the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince came over as soon as he received the news.

As she expected, he was quite annoyed.

He looked like he wanted to explode but didn't know what to say.

But whenever Consort Wang saw her, she would hide behind Ruan Lanruo, as if the Crown Prince were going to eat her.

The crown prince was so angry that he turned and left.

Ruan Lanruo had her nanny give Wang Liangdi some pointers, and Wang Liangdi listened very attentively, but refused to return to her own courtyard no matter what.

"Sister, I'm so afraid His Highness will come again. Can I stay here tonight? I can sleep on the floor."

This is neither in accordance with etiquette nor appropriate.

Ruan Lanruo naturally did not agree.

She sent someone to escort Consort Wang back to the hospital. Consort Wang looked back every step of the way, her eyes filled with tears, as if she were going to her death.

It made her laugh.

"I never thought Your Highness would be disliked one day."

When Ruan Lanruo met the Crown Prince the next day, she teased him in this way.

The Crown Prince rubbed his forehead, looking utterly helpless against Consort Wang.

"I don't know what Grand Secretary Wang was thinking, sending such a granddaughter into the palace. Isn't this just asking me to help raise the child?"

The people have already been brought in, and we can't send them back.

Wang Liangdi feared him like a tiger, so he naturally couldn't be bothered to go to her place.

Wang Liangdi, however, often went to Ruan Lanruo's place to share her delicious food, fun activities, happy or unhappy moments with her.

After a while, Ruan Lanruo naturally lowered her guard and truly treated her as a younger sister.

The two were so close that even the Crown Prince sometimes got jealous, saying that the backyard of the Eastern Palace didn't belong to him, but to Ruan Lanruo.

From the time Consort Wang entered the palace to the time Ruan Lanruo suffered a difficult childbirth, a full year had passed.

Even though Ruan Lanruo wished she could skin Wang Liangdi alive, she had to admire the other party's patience.

Not everyone can act like this 365 days a year, and act so well that they fooled both her and the Crown Prince.

“Your Highness,” Ruan Lanruo continued, “Wang Liangdi’s scheme against me may not be for the sake of winning your favor, after all, she has not yet consummated her marriage with you.”

What else could it be if not to compete for favor?

The only answer Situ Sheng could think of was to seize the throne.

Wang Liangdi, or Wang Gelao, may have been someone else's person.

Thinking of this, Situ Sheng's face suddenly darkened, and he wished he could interrogate Consort Wang immediately.

However, he still retained a sliver of reason, and this deduction was based on the premise that the Crown Princess's guess about Consort Wang was correct.

What if this is just her delusion?

The imperial physician had warned him that women who have miscarried are prone to getting stuck in a rut and thinking about all sorts of trivial things all day long.

"I will investigate thoroughly," Situ Sheng said, holding her hand. "You should rest well and not think too much."

"Yes, thank you for your concern, Your Highness."

Ruan Lanruo smiled slightly.

After Situ Sheng left, her smile vanished without a trace.

Xiao Qingyin watched in awe.

If these women from the Xi Kingdom's harem could travel to the future, they'd all be guaranteed to be top-tier actresses.

"I'm sorry," Ruan Lanruo said wearily as a palace maid served her water, "I've made Doctor Xiao laugh at me."

“Not at all,” Xiao Qingyin shook her head. “Every family has its own troubles, it’s just that there are a few more in the palace.”

Ruan Lanruo was rarely amused.

"Dr. Xiao is truly a remarkable person."

After laughing, she sighed: "Actually, I'm quite envious of you. The Marquis of Yong'an only has one son, the heir, so there's no such thing as brothers fighting each other. The heir's room is also very clean, so you don't have to worry about anything when you marry into the family."

"That's hard to say," Xiao Qingyin smiled. "What if the young master is useless? Wouldn't I be living the life of a widow?"

Ruan Lanruo: "..."

She smiled again.

"Aren't you afraid that the Crown Prince will find out you're talking about him like that behind his back?"

"Will you tell him?"

Xiao Qingyin asked in return.

Ruan Lanruo chuckled silently.

Even if you gave her ten faces, she wouldn't dare to gossip about this with the heir of the Marquis of Yong'an.

"I just can't argue with you."

"That's for sure, after all, I'm shameless, all I'm good at is talking."

Ruan Lanruo burst into laughter.

After laughing a few times, she felt much more relaxed.

"Thank you, Dr. Xiao, you are the best doctor I have ever met."

"My pleasure."

...

Under Xiao Qingyin's care, Ruan Lanruo recovered quickly and was able to walk again in just a few days, and her complexion improved significantly.

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