Chapter 17 My child is gone!
Everyone looked towards the entrance. Two guards entered first, followed closely by the abbot of Putuo Temple.
Huo Yunzhan was furious and was about to walk towards the abbot when Chu Jichen stopped him.
"Marquis Yongning".
Chu Jichen spoke only three words, but he successfully stopped Huo Yunzhan in his tracks.
Huo Yunzhan shivered; he had forgotten that this was the Regent's Palace.
The abbot was brought before the crowd, and looking at the scene before him, he felt a little uneasy.
The attendant beside Chu Jichen immediately spoke up: "Abbot Wuna, do you know that the Buddhist beads you gave today have caused a great disaster?"
The monk named Wuna quickly stepped forward, put his hands together in a Buddhist salute, and said, "This humble monk has heard of it."
"The child in the womb of the General of the West's wife is gone! It's all because of your Buddhist prayer beads, do you know your sin!"
When Liu Ruolan heard the servant ask this question, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that although the regent's attitude was frightening, he believed her words and directly questioned the abbot.
That's how it was originally. The abbot gave them the prayer beads, and it's a fact that the beads broke, so the abbot naturally can't escape responsibility.
At most, it was just an accident...
The thought had just crossed her mind when she heard the abbot hurriedly say, "Your Highness is very perceptive! Those prayer beads were not something I intended to give, nor were they from my temple. They were actually sent by... the Lady of the Marquis, who wanted me to take the opportunity to give them to the Lady of the Marquis and the General's wife!"
Liu Ruolan's expression immediately changed: "What nonsense are you spouting? When did I send anyone to give you Buddhist beads? Don't make false accusations!"
Wu Na frowned: "This humble monk is certain, because the person who came to give me the prayer beads was her."
Wu Na pointed to the peach tree next to Liu Ruolan.
"Furthermore, Your Highness can examine those two strings of prayer beads; they are definitely not from our Putuo Temple."
Wu Na took out two sandalwood boxes from his sleeve: "These were given to me by that girl back then, to hold those two strings of prayer beads."
Bitao's eyes widened, and she waved her hands repeatedly: "This servant has never been to Putuo Temple."
Unfortunately, no one paid any attention to her.
The attendant beside Chu Jichen immediately took the two boxes and examined them carefully: "These boxes bear the mark of the Sandalwood Pavilion in the city."
Chu Jichen nodded: "Investigate."
"Take the string of Buddhist prayer beads that the general's wife was carrying earlier with you."
After Chu Jichen finished speaking, he looked up at Huo Yunzhan and said, "Marquis Yongning, please send two of your men to go with you. After all, it concerns your Marquis's residence and your Marquis's wife."
Huo Yunzhan was also eager to know the truth, so he simply nodded in agreement.
Liu Ruolan felt uneasy, as if she had been tricked. She couldn't help but look at Huo Yunzhan, but Huo Yunzhan was looking at the house behind Chu Jichen and didn't notice her at all.
Liu Ruolan gritted her teeth secretly and hurriedly tugged at her father's sleeve.
After pondering for a moment, Prime Minister Liu sighed and said, "Since Your Highness has said that this is a family matter of the Marquis's residence, shouldn't we have the Marquis of Yongning take the wife of the General Who Conquers the West back and investigate this matter in detail?"
"It seems a bit... inappropriate for Your Highness to bring the wife of the General Who Conquers the West back to the Prince's residence and interfere in the affairs of the Marquis's family."
Chu Jichen knew exactly what he was thinking, and just scoffed, "If this happened in the Marquis's residence, then naturally it has nothing to do with me."
"But the incident happened at Putuo Temple, and so many people witnessed the whole process of Lady Hou pushing the General's wife! In broad daylight, Lady Hou was premeditated to murder the widow of a meritorious official of the court."
"This is no longer just a matter within the Marquis's household!"
Chu Jichen lifted his eyelids and rambled on: "Before the general's wife was completely unconscious, she kept crying and complaining that she had failed to protect the only bloodline of the General of the West, and said that she would go to the emperor to ask His Majesty for justice."
"Since Prime Minister Liu has objections, then I will not interfere. I will simply have someone carry her to the palace to file a complaint with the Emperor, according to the General's wife's wishes."
Upon hearing this, the others panicked even more. Just as Prime Minister Liu was about to speak, Shen Qingci's voice suddenly came from the doorway.
"Your Highness is right! I want to go to the palace! To lodge a complaint with the Emperor!"
Everyone looked over and saw Shen Qingci, supported by Wan Qing, walk out at some point. Her face was pale, and she was standing by the door frame, her face full of determination.
She was still wearing that plain white dress, which was soaked in blood from the waist down. The dark red was a glaring sight, and the contrast between white and red was particularly shocking and horrifying.
The old lady, who had been silent until now, couldn't help but cover her mouth: "My God, how much blood has been lost?"
Tears streamed down Shen Qingci's face: "Yun Zhan died in battle, so I wanted to go with him."
“But everyone advised me that I was pregnant and that it was Yun Zhan’s only child. I couldn’t be so selfish and I should give birth to Yun Zhan’s child.”
"I listened, and I regarded the child in my belly as my only hope and solace."
"I've always longed to give birth to this child and raise him well. But now..."
"The child is gone!"
Shen Qingci choked back a sob, her eyes filled with despair.
The despair burned Huo Yunzhan's eyes, and his hands, hidden in his sleeves, clenched tightly involuntarily.
Shen Qingci's lost child was his child! His only child under the identity of Huo Yunzhan!
Shen Qingci stared intently at Liu Ruolan, her eyes filled with hostility: "Others may only see that you bumped into me, causing me to tumble down those high steps!"
"But I was there, and I know the situation best!"
Shen Qingci gritted her teeth: "It was you, sister-in-law. You originally wanted me to step on the rolling beads and fall down by accident."
"But you didn't expect that I was following you quite closely, and I stopped when the incident happened."
"You turned around and saw that I hadn't fallen unexpectedly, so you pretended to bend down to pick up your prayer beads, which caused me to fall!"
Upon hearing Shen Qingci's words, Liu Ruolan immediately bared her teeth in fury: "You're lying!"
She immediately realized what was happening and was about to rush towards Shen Qingci: "It was you! You planned all of this, didn't you? You deliberately framed me!"
Shen Qingci seemed to find Liu Ruolan's words utterly ridiculous, and couldn't help but scoff, raising her hand to wipe away the tears from the corner of her eyes: "I framed you?"
"Would I use my unborn child to frame you?"
"Everyone knows how much I care about the child in my belly. This is my only child with Yun Zhan! Yun Zhan is dead, and this child is all I have left!"
"But now, my child... is gone! My child is gone!"
She screamed, barely able to hold onto the door frame.
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