Hongyu got up in a panic, hurriedly put on a long dress, and was about to get out of bed when Yan Wang grabbed her.
Prince Yan gently pulled her into his arms and whispered in her ear, "Yu'er and I have consummated our marriage, so you are mine now. I will protect you and our child."
"Pfft!" She couldn't help but laugh out loud, then tears welled up in her eyes. She had served the Prince of Yan wholeheartedly and finally won his favor.
Looking up, she saw Yan Wang with a tender expression, his eyes smiling. He held her with one arm and braced himself on the bed with the other, shielding her beneath him, yet unwilling to exert any pressure on her. Such a gentle and soft-spoken man was worlds apart from the rough and reckless Bai Yehua.
"Did they just consummate their marriage?" she wondered, still somewhat doubtful. In her past life, after consummating her marriage with Bai Yehua, she felt sore all over and dared not move for three days. Now, apart from being completely naked, she felt no abnormality.
Just as she was wondering, Prince Yan got up from the bed, put on his long robe and walked out of the bedroom. Then there was a heavy thud as he knelt down. "Mother, Hongyu already belongs to Yan'er. Yan'er begs Mother to allow Hongyu to bear children for Yan'er."
The Empress's expression changed drastically, her eyes sharpened, and she slammed her hand on the table, ordering, "Summon Imperial Physician Wen immediately to check if Yan'er has been drugged."
Upon hearing this, Hongyu felt uneasy in her room, secretly cursing Lianxiang for being despicable and shameless, and only hoping that Prince Yan would protect her.
At this moment, the old nanny pushed open the door and entered, went straight to the bed, lifted the quilt, picked up a white cloth, and hurriedly went out to report: "Your Majesty, Consort Yu has not bleeded."
The Empress was not shocked; instead, she looked at Prince Yan with heartache.
As for Yan Wang, the scene of Hongyu and the Emperor together kept flashing through his mind, and he was convinced that Hongyu was not a virtuous woman.
The same applies to the empress.
The Empress, jealous of Hongyu's seduction of the Emperor and her resulting discord between him and Prince Yan, received a report from her informant this morning that Hongyu had entered Prince Yan's bedchamber. The Empress rushed over, determined to find evidence against Hongyu.
Since Hongyu has not yet shed her blood, she can be punished with a cane to extinguish any thoughts the official might have.
"Guards! Consort Yu has behaved improperly; execute her immediately with a flogging!"
Hongyu was utterly despondent. She had hoped that Yan Wang would protect her, but since she had not yet lost her virginity, Yan Wang would certainly not plead for her!
Prince Yan kowtowed repeatedly, pleading, "I beg Your Majesty to spare Hongyu's life, to banish her from the Prince Yan's residence, and not to harm her..."
Overwhelmed with emotion, Hongyu rushed out of the bedroom, knelt beside Prince Yan, and wept uncontrollably. "Empress, Hongyu swears to Heaven that she has never betrayed Prince Yan..."
At this moment, Imperial Physician Wen rushed over. Seeing the situation, he understood the general idea: the Empress must suspect that Hongyu had drugged Prince Yan. He originally wanted to pledge allegiance to Prince Yan, but Prince Yan was indifferent to politics and spent his days in a drunken stupor. He could only secretly communicate with Liu Yu, hoping that one day he could join Liu Yu in pledging allegiance to Prince Yan.
Previously, Liu Yu had told him that Hongyu was a pawn planted by the Duke's mansion next to Prince Yan, and that he must not harm Hongyu.
He carefully bowed to the Empress, but before he could speak, Hongyu looked at him with teary eyes and asked directly, "Imperial Physician Wen, Hongyu would like to ask you why a virgin doesn't bleed during her first sexual intercourse?"
Imperial Physician Wen first widened his squinty eyes, then lowered his eyelids and stammered, "Reporting to... Consort Yu, there are reasons why some women do not bleed. One is physical injury, such as from practicing martial arts or falling and getting hurt. The other is... perhaps they will bleed again when they have sex again."
Upon hearing this, Hongyu suddenly realized that although she had been violated by Bai Yehua, she had not lost her virginity. Perhaps... the Prince Yan and she had not consummated their marriage?
She kowtowed deeply to the Empress and, mustering her courage, said loudly, "Your Majesty, Hongyu will surely prove her innocence. Please wait a moment."
After saying that, she helped Yan Wang up and left.
Fearing that Hongyu might be faking it by injuring herself to appear to have lost her virginity, the Empress sent an old nanny to attend to her.
Hongyu pulled Yan Wang into the bedroom of Yu Runxuan. Just as she was about to close the door, the old nanny pushed the door open and entered. "The Empress has decreed that this old servant must serve Yan Wang at all times."
Hongyu blushed deeply. She was eager to enter the palace to meet the emperor, and if she could not prove her innocence, she feared she would not be able to leave the Prince Yan's residence.
So she pushed Yan Wang onto the bed, without lowering the curtains, and under the watchful eye of the old nanny, she braced herself and took off her long skirt, then undressed Yan Wang.
"Pfft!"
When Hongyu saw that Yan Wang had a black, shiny mole on his abdomen, which was even larger than the mole on the matchmaker's face, she couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Yan Wang blushed and nodded slightly. To save Hong Yu's face, he had no choice but to take the initiative.
First, she carefully put Hongyu down, then tried to cover her with the quilt. But the old nanny yanked the quilt away.
He had no choice but to bite the bullet and stop after a small taste, not daring to apply any pressure. Hongyu's delicate body was like a tender lotus root, and he feared that it would break if he applied even the slightest pressure.
Hongyu, completely unaware, raised her arms and wrapped them around Yan Wang's waist, gently scolding, "Yan Wang, can you show your prowess? Don't be so gentle, otherwise you won't be able to prove Hongyu's innocence."
The old nanny blushed, but dared not stop them. She approached the bed and watched helplessly as the two tossed and turned on it.
One hour later.
The old nanny, holding a cloth with blood on it, hurried to the Empress to congratulate her, "Your Majesty, Consort Yu has menstruated."
Is this a scam?
"This old servant saw with his own eyes that Consort Yu is indeed innocent."
The Empress was displeased. How could she, the mother of the nation, be "slapped in the face" by Hongyu? Not only did Hongyu seduce the Emperor, but she even dared to have sex with Prince Yan in front of the nanny? Such a promiscuous and shameless woman must be eliminated. Turning her head, she saw that Imperial Physician Wen was still standing by, waiting.
A short while later.
The Empress sat regally in the hall, while Prince Yan and Hongyu sat side by side, their eyes occasionally meeting with tender affection.
Imperial Physician Wen entered the hall carrying a bowl of medicine, presented it to Prince Yan, slowly put down the small bowl, and stretched out his palm for Prince Yan to see.
Prince Yan's expression changed drastically. He took a step forward and knelt down in front of the Empress. "Mother, you just praised Hongyu for being obedient, clever, pure, and virtuous. Why then did you bestow upon her the infertility-inducing soup?"
Although the Empress was furious, she still looked at Prince Yan with a gentle smile and softly advised, "Yan'er, Hongyu is of lowly status and should not be a concubine. I only broke the rules because I saw that she was clever. Hongyu must drink this infertility soup. How can we let a woman of lowly status taint the royal bloodline? If Yan'er wants to be a father, he can favor Lianxiang."
Prince Yan bit his lip tightly, his eyes welling up with tears. This was no infertility potion! He had just seen the word "poison" written on the palm of Imperial Physician Wen's hand. The Empress was trying to take Hongyu's life!
Hongyu is pure and flawless, and she has devoted herself to him wholeheartedly. He cannot lose such a capable and virtuous wife.
He didn't want to see the Empress's hypocritical face anymore, so he lowered his eyes and pleaded coldly, "Mother, Hongyu is the woman Yan'er loves. If anything happens to Hongyu, Yan'er will never live alone."
The Empress did not take these resolute words to heart and waved to the old nanny at the door.
The old nanny led two strong maids toward Hongyu. The two maids grabbed Hongyu together, while the old nanny went to fetch the medicine.
Upon seeing this, Yan Wang quickly stepped forward, picked up the medicine, and drank it.
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