I don't believe it
After dinner, Cui Shenzhi, upon learning that Ping An had started her period, held Ping An in his arms and gently massaged her lower abdomen, following the instructions Lu Fengping had given in the letter, in an attempt to alleviate her discomfort.
Ping An was slightly moved by Cui Shenzhi's thoughtful gesture, but she still subtly shifted her body, letting some of her menstrual fluid leak out and stain the hem of Cui Shenzhi's clothes.
Having achieved her goal, she immediately stood up, her face flushed.
"Shenzhi, you...you go to the bathroom and tidy up."
“Let’s go together.” Cui Shenzhi gently patted Ping An’s head and said softly, “Your clothes are dirty too.”
Ping An put on a shy expression, nudged Cui Shenzhi, and said in a barely audible voice, "I'm not feeling well, so let's use the bath tub. You go ahead."
Choi Shin-ji thought about it and agreed, so he didn't refuse and strode towards the bathroom.
Once Cui Shenzhi's figure disappeared from sight, Ping An's blush quickly faded.
She turned her head and stared at the two palace maids for a long while before whispering, "Yuan Shuang, go to the bathroom to serve him. Yu Qin, you wait here. I have only one thing to say: whoever serves His Majesty well will be richly rewarded."
"yes."
Ping An then turned around and went to the side hall of the Qianqing Palace, which had already been cleaned up, intending to spend the night there.
*****
Shortly after Cui Shenzhi entered the bathroom, he heard soft footsteps. He thought it was Ping An and looked over with a smile, only to find a strange palace maid wearing a light veil.
Judging from their appearance, it's obvious what they're here for.
Choi Shin-ji's face quickly darkened.
"go out."
Yuan Shuang hadn't expected that she would offend Cui Shenzhi so soon after she appeared, before she even got close to him. She quickly raised her head and looked in Cui Shenzhi's direction with seductive eyes: "Your Majesty, this servant is here to serve you on His Highness's orders."
Choi Shin-ji's face darkened.
He and Ping An were newlyweds, still deeply in love, yet this palace maid dared to impersonate Ping An and seduce him. This was not only an insult to him, but also an insult to his relationship with Ping An.
Ignoring Yuan Shuang's flattery, Cui Shenzhi loudly ordered towards the outside of the bathroom, "Siwei, take this audacious palace servant who is trying to commit illicit acts under the guise of peace away and teach her a lesson."
Siwei responded and then led his men into the bathroom, intending to drag Yuanshuang out.
Seeing this, Yuan Shuang immediately knelt down and said tremblingly, "Your Majesty, this servant is not lying. It really was His Highness who sent this servant to serve you."
"Nonsense! Ping An and I have a very close relationship. How could she do such a thing?"
"Your Majesty, what I'm saying is true. Her Highness said that she was menstruating and it was inconvenient for her, so she sent me to serve you. If you don't believe me, go back to your bedchamber and see for yourself. Her Highness not only arranged for me, but also arranged for Yuqin to wait in your bedchamber, all to serve you well."
Choi Shin-ji frowned.
No one would lie about something so easily verifiable. Could this really be a peace arrangement?
He could hardly believe it. He stood up from the bath, pursed his lips, changed his clothes, and strode towards the bedroom. There he saw Yuqin standing by the bed, dressed in thin clothes, looking at him with a shy expression.
Cui Shenzhi's face darkened even more, so dark it looked as if ink could drip from it.
He stared at Yuqin for a moment, suppressing his anger and sadness, and asked in a flat tone, "Where is Ping An?"
Yuqin sensed something was wrong, and the shyness on her face quickly faded. She pointed tremblingly in the direction of the side hall. Upon seeing this, Cui Shenzhi turned and left without hesitation.
*****
Ping An lay on the bed in the side hall, tossing and turning, unable to sleep, her mind filled with Fu Xiuzhu's words.
She appears to be a harmonious couple with Choi Shin-ji now, but that's only because she's young and has the status of a princess. However, all of that is meaningless. Once Choi Shin-ji secures his throne, she will be powerless to stop him from doing whatever he wants.
By then, as the emperor with great power, Cui Shenzhi would naturally have no shortage of beautiful women by his side. In addition, with Cui Sugong's blood flowing in her veins, Cui Shenzhi's feelings for her would naturally gradually fade, and sooner or later, they would fade to the point where only hatred remained. After all, she not only had Cui Sugong's dirty blood flowing in her veins, but she had also deceived Cui Shenzhi.
When that day comes, she will definitely not have a good ending.
What could she do? Cooperate with Fu Xiuzhu? But Fu Xiuzhu didn't seem like an easy person to deal with. What good would it do if she cooperated with him? She didn't know a single minister in the court. What else could she do?
Ping An lowered her eyes and slowly looked down at her lower abdomen.
She needed to get pregnant and give birth quickly, so that before Cui Shenzhi grew tired of her, she could use the child to gain enough power to save her life, or deal with Cui Shenzhi the way Shen Meiwu dealt with Cui Sugong. Then, Cui Shenzhi would never harm her...
No, that's not right. If she has Choi Shin-ji's child, then it's truly over.
What she could think of, Cui Shenzhi would certainly think of as well!
Although Choi Shin-ji declared in front of everyone that their child was the definite heir to the throne, a promise is a promise precisely because it may not come true.
As the emperor, Cui Shenzhi must be well aware that she would have the ability to influence the court after becoming pregnant. In addition, given the previous incident involving Shen Meiwu and Cui Sugong, Cui Shenzhi would definitely be wary of her. What will Cui Shenzhi do then?
—Of course, we should get rid of her.
—Just like how Cui Sugong treated Fu Yunjin.
Ping An reached out and pressed her hand to her lower abdomen, her unease welling up like a spring, unstoppable.
Just then, she saw a familiar figure appear beside the bed.
It is Choi Shin-ji.
After seeing the expression on Cui Shenzhi's face, Ping An became even more confused. She could tell at a glance that her plan had gone wrong. Yuan Shuang and Yu Qin were unlikely to get together, but Yuan Shuang and Yu Qin were the most beautiful women she had found in the palace. If they were not suitable, where else could she find someone suitable?
Ping An was in a state of turmoil, but she couldn't ignore Cui Shenzhi. She could only suppress her chaotic emotions and give Cui Shenzhi a charming smile.
"Shenzhi, what brings you here? Is there something wrong with Yuanshuang and Yuqin? Tell me what kind you like, and I'll go find some for you tomorrow, okay?"
Instead of answering "okay" or "no," Cui Shenzhi said, "Ping An, I've told you that having you is enough for me. I only want to spend my life with you. Why don't you believe me?"
“I do believe you, I do,” Ping An turned her head away, hiding the indifference in her eyes. “I just felt sorry for you because I couldn’t be intimate with you during my period. I was afraid you would feel uncomfortable, so I brought Yuan Shuang and Yu Qin here. If you don’t like what I did, that’s fine, but you can’t wrong me.”
"Ping An!" Cui Shenzhi stepped forward, looking down at Ping An sitting on the bed, and said with a hint of anger, "If you trusted me, you wouldn't have done this!"
"I really believe you. Otherwise, go ask Yuan Shuang and Yu Qin if I didn't say that they can only serve you when I'm not available, and that I won't let them bother us when I am available."
Hearing this, Cui Shenzhi was stunned. After a long while, he said incredulously, "Ping An, do you think that when I said I only wanted you, I meant only your body?"
“Of course not.” Ping An thought of her conversation with Cui Shenzhi when she was drunk on their wedding night, and her voice was a little shaky: “How could I have thought you were that kind of person? Of course I know you are sincere to me. I just like you so much that I would rather wrong myself than make you suffer.”
Upon hearing this, Cui Shenzhi noticed that Ping An was trying hard to hide it, but due to her uneasy state of mind, she inadvertently revealed a hint of unease and ingratiation.
He thought it was because he was busy with state affairs and didn't spend enough time with Ping An that Ping An had such thoughts, and he couldn't help but feel a little sorry and guilty.
He sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed, gently pulling Ping An into his arms: "Ping An, I have already proclaimed to the world that I am just a royal son-in-law, just your husband. Don't you understand my feelings? I only want to be with you for life."
"You said you didn't want me to be upset, so you brought Yuan Shuang and Yu Qin here, but do you know that it's your actions that are making me upset?"
“You are the girl I love, the girl I finally managed to marry, the girl I want to cherish for the rest of my life, but you don’t believe me. You don’t want to tell me your worries, and you even think I’m a scoundrel who’s greedy for beauty, pushing me into someone else’s arms.”
“Ping An, by doing this you are trampling on my sincerity towards you.”
Ping An lowered her eyes, snuggled against Cui Shenzhi, and said softly in a voice full of apology, "I know I was wrong, Shenzhi. I won't overthink things anymore, and I won't do such things again. I promise, please don't be angry anymore, okay?"
Cui Shenzhi kissed Ping An's head, and that was the end of it. Then, Cui Shenzhi carried Ping An back to the bedroom, and the two of them fell asleep in each other's arms, fully clothed.
Cui Shenzhi was asleep, but Ping An was not.
After Choi Shin-ji's breathing stabilized, she opened her eyes and began to ponder what would happen next.
She cannot get pregnant, so she cannot gain power through a child. But without power, she cannot protect herself and will sooner or later be at the mercy of others, or even be thrown into a nunnery outside the palace to keep Shen Meiwu company.
She doesn't want that.
But collaborating with Fu Xiuzhu doesn't seem like a good idea either...
Therefore, her most urgent task now is to find a way to win over Cui Shenzhi, so that Cui Shenzhi will lower his guard against her and allow her to participate in court affairs. Not to mention influencing government orders, she needs to let the ministers in the court know that she has cooperative value. Only in this way will she have other ministers to choose from.
Ping An became increasingly agitated, and she even felt a little unwilling to see Cui Shenzhi's face. So she angrily pulled away from Cui Shenzhi's arms that were wrapped around her, turned around and turned her back to Cui Shenzhi. But the next moment, Cui Shenzhi's hands reached out again and hugged her from behind.
Ping An was startled, thinking that Cui Shenzhi had woken up. She didn't dare to move and could only stiffly let Cui Shenzhi do as he pleased.
Fortunately, Cui Shenzhi didn't seem to wake up. After holding her in his arms, he just rubbed her head, mumbled something, and then fell into a deep sleep again.
Ping An dared not move around anymore and could only obediently nestle in Cui Shenzhi's arms and drift off to sleep.
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