Because of the Empress Dowager's arrival, a lot of ice blocks were placed in the palace, so it wasn't as hot as before. However, because she had been kneeling for too long, Xiao Yunying's legs were numb, itchy, and painful to the bone, making her face turn pale with discomfort.
But for the sake of his life, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and keep kneeling.
Sensing someone passing in front of her, Xiao Yunying thought, if all else fails, she'll just pretend to faint.
He was also afraid of being exposed and committing the crime of deceiving the emperor.
Fortunately, the emperor had no intention of tormenting them. He stepped forward, bowed to the Empress Dowager, and then told them to rise.
Xiao Yunying had been keeping her head down obediently, but when she heard a familiar male voice bowing to the Empress Dowager, she suddenly raised her head.
She watched as Luo Sheng, who was not far from her, performed the military salute to the Empress Dowager, and thought to herself: You dog of a man, I've finally met you!
The Empress Dowager looked at Luo Sheng below, and after a few breaths, she said, "Get up."
"Thank you, Empress Dowager."
Ignoring everyone's gaze, Luo Song walked directly towards Xiao Yunying: "Why are you still kneeling? His Majesty has already told you to rise."
When he saw Xiao Yunying's pale face and her clothes soaked with sweat, he narrowed his eyes, concealing the fleeting anger in them.
Xiao Yunying then realized that she was the only one kneeling in the hall. When she heard Luo Sheng ask her so gently, she suddenly felt a little wronged.
"My legs went numb from kneeling."
Luo Sheng knew she must have suffered: "Let me help you up, slowly."
The Empress Dowager, seated high above, watched this scene and said, "General Luo certainly dotes on your wife."
Luo Sheng supported Xiao Yunying's arm and put his arm around her waist, almost lifting her up from the ground so that she could slowly get used to standing on her own two legs.
At the same time, he replied to the Empress Dowager: "Your Majesty, my wife waited for me in the countryside for two years and did not disappoint me. Of course, I will treat her well."
Xiao Yunying couldn't hear a word of their conversation. The numbness, itching, and stinging in her legs became even more severe after she stood up. If Luo Sheng hadn't been supporting her, she definitely wouldn't have been able to stand up.
Luo Sheng twitched his nose and looked back at Xiao Yunying's lower body, noticing that the hem of her turquoise dress was stained red with blood.
Luo Sheng's expression hardened: "Yun Ying, are you pregnant?"
"ah?"
Xiao Yunying didn't understand why he would suddenly ask this question, but her maidservant reacted first, glancing behind her and exclaiming, "Miss, you're bleeding!"
The Empress Dowager's voice then became more animated: "How could that be? I only made her kneel for the time it takes to burn half an incense stick."
Xiao Yunying looked behind her in confusion and shock, but before she could see anything, Luo Sheng took off his outer garment, covered her lower body, and picked her up horizontally.
Luo Sheng looked anxious and said to the emperor, "Your Majesty, my wife is unwell, so I have taken her back to the palace first."
Xiao Yunying then had a chance to quickly glance at the Emperor and Empress Dowager's faces, and then secretly touched her own buttocks.
When she saw the bright red stain on her hands, she realized what had happened and buried her face in Luo Sheng's arms.
How embarrassing! My period has started.
However, she did not explain, only wanting to take this opportunity to leave as soon as possible. At worst, she could say it was a misunderstanding afterward, which would not be considered deceiving the emperor.
Anyway, I've already lost all face.
But to others, Xiao Yunying appeared to be unwell and on the verge of fainting.
The emperor coughed twice: "Don't rush off. Quickly summon the imperial physician to examine your wife."
Xiao Yunying stopped pretending to be unconscious, grabbed Luo Sheng's collar, and said firmly, "I don't want to see the imperial physician, I want to leave here."
She was afraid that if she saw the imperial physician, it would be discovered that it wasn't a miscarriage, and that the old witch would use an excuse to keep her.
But when she said those words while looking pale and weak, those around her thought she was terrified of being tormented by the Empress Dowager.
Luo Sheng's eyes were almost overflowing with worry, but no matter how worried he was, he did not refute Xiao Yunying's words. He said to the emperor, "My wife is timid and shy, and she is not used to staying in the palace. I will take her back to the mansion first."
Seeing that they were determined to leave, the emperor did not try to stop them: "Go then."
Ignoring the Empress Dowager's unpleasant expression, Luo Song picked up Xiao Yunying and turned to leave.
As they stepped out of the gate, they faintly heard the Empress Dowager questioning the Emperor about why he brought a man from outside the palace into the inner palace.
Luo Sheng walked very fast, and Xiao Yunying only dared to whisper when they were far enough away: "Luo Sheng, you don't need to be in such a hurry."
Luo Yong lowered his head to comfort her: "Don't panic, I'll take you to see a doctor right away."
Xiao Yunying was speechless. Who was panicking now?
She stated frankly, "I didn't miscarry, I just had my period. My legs went numb from kneeling, that's why I didn't feel anything."
She was busy traveling recently and was probably a bit tired, so her period was a few days late.
What a coincidence, they actually came today.
Luo Sheng paused in his steps: "Menstruation?"
Xiao Yunying nodded, and said awkwardly, "Put me down, my leg is much better, I can walk by myself."
Luo Yong relaxed considerably, though a slight sense of loss lingered in his heart. He didn't show it on his face, but tightened his grip on her arm, saying, "It's alright. You walk slowly, so it's better if we leave the palace as soon as possible."
Even so, my steps were not as hurried as before.
After leaving the palace gates, Luo Sheng carried Xiao Yunying to the waiting carriage, gently put her down, and helped her into the carriage.
After getting on the bus, Xiao Yunying hesitated and looked at the seat. She was already soaked, and sitting directly on it would definitely leave marks, which would be embarrassing if others saw it.
Luo Sheng folded his coat and laid it on top: "Sit here."
Xiao Yunying blushed and said, "Thank you."
His clothes were already dirty, so he might as well use them as a mat.
When Xiao Yunying saw the bloodstains on Luo Sheng's collar, she really wanted to crawl into a hole in the ground. She said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I got your clothes dirty."
Luo Sheng glanced down at his collar: "It's alright, I can just change when I get back."
Xiao Yunying felt his expression was too indifferent and asked curiously, "Don't you think menstrual blood is unlucky?"
Luo Sheng said, "If it's yours, then it's not bad luck."
Xiao Yunying's cheeks flushed. Why did she think he was such a straight man back then?
Luo Sheng continued, "Besides, isn't this something every woman goes through? It's just bloodshed, what's so unlucky about it? If that's the case, I've killed countless enemies on the battlefield, and I don't know how much blood I've been splattered on by enemy soldiers. Wouldn't I be the unluckiest one?"
Xiao Yunying hadn't expected him to say that, and stammered, "It's different..."
Luo Sheng retorted seriously, "It's all about bloodshed, what's the difference?"
Xiao Yunying had only asked the question out of curiosity about his thoughts. Seeing his serious rebuttal, she suddenly felt strange about herself for discussing this with him.
She found her own behavior boring and laughed speechlessly: "You're right, there's no difference."
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