Chapter 20: Is Second Sister Not Changing?
Chi Ying and Madam Yin had been waiting for news inside the house. Unexpectedly, when Madam Zheng returned and whispered a few words in her ear, Chi Ying's pupils suddenly contracted and all the color drained from her face.
Madam Yin even disregarded her dignity and grabbed Zheng's mother's clothes, her lips trembling: "Has she returned?"
Madam Zheng said in a low voice, "She's back. She's in the front room. I was afraid of disturbing the guards of Prince Zhao's mansion, so I didn't dare to take her to the backyard. Madam, you should go and ask her yourself."
Seeing that the master and servant looked furtive and as if facing a formidable enemy, Chi Ying was about to ask them what was going on when she saw Madam Yin suddenly get up and hurriedly walk out of the courtyard.
He took two steps, then remembered something, turned back and glared at her, and said in a low voice, "I'm going to take care of some things. You stay here quietly and don't wander around. You're not allowed to go to Chunliu Garden on your own. There are guards from the Prince's Mansion outside. If anything goes wrong, no one will be able to escape!"
Turning around, he almost stumbled, but luckily he grabbed Zheng's mother's arm in time to barely steady himself. The two left quickly without delay.
Chi Ying had no choice but to ask Xiang Qin, "You went with Mother Zheng, do you know what happened to Second Sister?"
The matter was of great importance, so Xiangqin dared not speak carelessly to others. However, the Third Miss would find out about this sooner or later, so she could only say with difficulty, "Perhaps... let Madam come back and tell you herself."
When Cheng Huai saw the master and servant come out looking flustered, he couldn't help but go up and ask what was going on. Zheng Mama made up an excuse, saying that the steward had made a mistake and that the madam had to go and deal with it personally.
Madam Yin's face turned deathly pale, and she managed to force a smile.
Cheng Huai respectfully let them pass, but secretly gestured to a guard under the outer courtyard corridor, ordering him to keep an eye on them.
The man immediately obeyed and followed.
Madam Yin hurried to the back room, practically breaking down the door.
However, Madam Zheng was quite cautious. This back room had been used as a private school and Chi Xingwu's study. It had a front hall and a back bedroom structure. Since there were people in the mansion today, Madam Zheng directly led Chi Yingyue into the back bedroom to hide.
Madam Yin hurriedly entered and, upon seeing her daughter wearing a veil, immediately asked, "What exactly happened?"
Chi Yingyue lifted the veil in front of her and saw the look of shock and anger on Madam Yin's face. She was also quite frightened. She lowered her eyes to her lower abdomen and whispered, "Mother, I..."
Madam Yin stepped forward and grabbed her arm, her eyes wide: "Tell your mother who it was, which scoundrel! Your innocent body, how could someone have..."
Madam Zheng coughed lightly, signaling Madam Yin to lower her voice so that the guards of the Prince's mansion wouldn't overhear and cause a disaster.
Madam Yin was trembling with anger, but she could only suppress her burning rage.
"It's not what Mother thinks."
Chi Yingyue pursed her lips and said softly, "He is of noble status and deeply in love with my daughter, but due to my current situation, he cannot welcome me into the family for the time being, however..."
"Mutual affection?" Madam Yin almost laughed in anger. "Do you know what you're saying? You are the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Changyuan's family. You give up being the dignified Princess Consort of Zhao and secretly have an affair with someone outside, and you're even pregnant. Where do you think you are of the Marquis's family's reputation? Where do you think you are of yourself? Are you trying to make me angry to death?!"
Upon hearing the name "Prince Zhao," a hint of disdain flashed in Chi Yingyue's eyes. In the end, she couldn't help but tell Madam Yin the truth: "It's Prince Xuan, Mother. The wild man you're talking about is His Highness Prince Xuan."
Lady Yin was startled, thinking she had misheard, but the anger in her heart had already subsided. "What did you say? It's...it's His Highness Prince Xuan?"
Chi Yingyue nodded, a slight smile playing on her tightly pursed lips.
Lady Yin did not know much about these imperial relatives, but she did know that several princes who were originally at the height of their power had either died in battle, been imprisoned, or gone blind. Now, Prince Xuan was the prince whom Emperor Yongcheng valued most!
She couldn't help but look at Chi Yingyue's lower abdomen. She was only a month and a half pregnant, and it was still flat, but inside was the child of Prince Xuan! The grandson of Emperor Yongcheng!
Seeing the shock in Madam Yin's eyes, Chi Yingyue's expression also became smug.
But Lady Yin didn't lose her head. She calmly asked, "So, Prince Xuan already knows your identity? He knows you were supposed to be the Princess Consort of Zhao, and he also knows that our family replaced a concubine's daughter in marriage?"
Chi Yingyue twisted her handkerchief in her hands and nodded in acknowledgment.
Madam Yin was furious: "You've revealed everything? That's the crime of deceiving the emperor!"
The more people who know, the greater the danger!
Moreover, King Xuan knew that Yingyue should have been his brother's wife, yet he disregarded morality and ethics, not only having an affair with Yingyue but also having a child with her... How will he explain this in the future?
Chi Yingyue, however, didn't care: "So what if he knows? Is His Highness Prince Xuan afraid of Prince Zhao?"
Remembering something, Lady Yin asked again, "Weren't you doing just fine at the villa? How did you catch Prince Xuan's eye?"
Chi Yingyue muttered, "I'm so bored staying in the house all day. Once, I went out to buy rouge, wearing a veil, of course. I never expected to run into Prince Xuan..."
Seeing her daughter's lovestruck expression, Madam Yin frowned: "But Prince Xuan has already married a princess, who is also the granddaughter of the Grand Secretary. If people find out that he is secretly pregnant outside the marriage and that it is a scandal of a brother stealing his brother's wife, do you think the royal family and Prince Xuan's wife's family will let you off the hook?"
Chi Yingyue retorted, "Mother, what you're saying is too harsh! I didn't marry Prince Zhao, so how did it become a shameful thing? Besides, his marriage to Princess Xuan was just a political alliance, while he and I are truly in love."
Madam Yin rolled her eyes at her: "What promises did he make you?"
Chi Yingyue said, "He said that once he has secured his position as crown prince, he will take care of everything and give me a title. As for that Prince Zhao, he dealt with him with just a word. Now I am carrying his child, but Princess Xuan is not. Who knows who will have the last laugh in the future?"
Lady Yin was so captivated by her words that she thought, if things really went so smoothly, her daughter would at least be a noble consort in the future, so why would she bother serving that blind Prince Zhao!
Madam Yin came to her senses and looked at her daughter again. She was wearing a bright red embroidered butterfly dress, and her skin was as smooth as cream and her beauty as lovely as peach blossoms. With such looks, how could she not be an empress?
What's more, there's a gold nugget inside her!
Madam Yin truly never expected that her daughter would have such good fortune.
The most important thing right now is to let her take good care of this pregnancy. As long as Prince Xuan can become the crown prince, her daughter's future will be bright. Any crime of deceiving the emperor can be wiped clean in the future! After thinking for a moment, Madam Yin instructed Zheng Mama: "You personally take the girl back. Make sure she doesn't get hurt. After the people from Prince Zhao's residence leave, send two more meticulous and thoughtful maids over to serve her."
Then he turned to Chi Yingyue and said, "I'll go and send Chi Ying away. I'll visit you another day to avoid attracting attention."
She watched as her daughter put on the veil and followed Zheng's mother out through the side gate.
Upon seeing the person emerge, the guards hidden behind the pillars immediately leaped away.
As Madam Yin walked back to the backyard, she had already thought of what she would say to Chi Ying.
Chi Ying didn't know what Chi Yingyue had said. From the shock and anger when she left, Madam Yin's expression remained normal, but her phoenix eyes were slightly upturned, revealing a hint of arrogance, as if she had received great news but had to suppress it.
Madam Yin said, "You continue to handle things at Prince Zhao's residence. I will have someone take good care of Aunt Xue, so you can rest assured."
Chi Ying was taken aback: "What does Mother mean? Second Sister isn't going to change it? Does she not want to change it now, or does she not plan to change it at all in the future?"
Lady Yin hesitated.
Upon first hearing this earth-shattering news, I was surprised and secretly pleased. However, after careful consideration, I realized that although this matter seemed to be only one step away from glory, everything involved needed to be carefully weighed.
Yingyue will be pregnant for ten months and will give birth by the end of the year. After that, what will happen? When will Prince Xuan recognize the child? In what capacity will Yingyue enter Prince Xuan's residence? His Majesty is in the prime of his life, when will he be able to establish an heir apparent...? These are all uncertain and will require careful planning in the future.
Therefore, she couldn't give Chi Ying a definite time.
However, Madam Yin was clear about the current situation. Her daughter was to become the principal wife of a gloomy and suspicious blind prince, or the favored concubine of the prince who was most likely to become the crown prince. Naturally, the latter had a bright future. Not to mention that she was already pregnant with Prince Xuan's child, so it was impossible for her to consider Prince Zhao.
Thinking of this, Lady Yin said, "Since you say that Prince Zhao and Consort Zhuang have treated you well, then you should settle down and continue to be Prince Zhao's consort."
Chi Ying asked, puzzled, "Are Mother and Second Sister planning to keep this a secret forever? What if I refuse?"
Madam Yin smiled and said, "As long as you don't tell anyone, you will be the glorious Princess Consort of Zhao. Either way, you will benefit from this. It's a windfall that others would beg for."
“But if you are unwilling,” Madam Yin’s eyes suddenly sharpened, “then I will have no choice but to cut off Aunt Xue’s medicine and let her fend for herself in the backyard. In such a large Changyuan Marquis’s mansion, the death of a little concubine is not a big deal.”
Chi Ying's face grew increasingly pale, and her tone was filled with anger: "I owe my mother nothing, so why does she treat me like this? She did it then, and she does it now."
Madam Yin said coldly, "It's all your fault for being born into the womb of Concubine Xue. I am Concubine Xue's mistress, and you are her daughter. You should have been a servant of the Chi family. What's wrong with a servant doing things for his master and following his orders?"
Moreover, she was born with a beautiful face. Madam Yin remembered that when her nephew from her maternal family came to visit, his eyes lit up when he saw her. He disliked Yingyue's temper as the eldest daughter and instead spent all his time teasing and playing with this illegitimate daughter.
Her mother had climbed into the master's bed, and now she was trying to seduce her own nephew. How could Madam Yin tolerate this? She simply devised a plan to drive the mother and daughter out of the Changyuan Marquis's mansion, out of sight, out of mind.
Chi Ying pursed her lips tightly, her nails digging deep into her palms. After a long silence, she finally said, "I will stay at the manor tonight to keep Mother company. We'll talk about everything after I see Mother."
Madam Yin coldly retorted, "Are you crazy? There are so many experts from the Prince's Mansion outside, are you afraid they won't find out?"
"I will not leave until I see my mother safe and sound."
Chi Ying raised her eyes, her gaze reddening, and her aura turned sorrowful and sharp, as if she might explode at any moment. "If Mother tries to stop me, I'm not afraid. I'm just a worthless life anyway. I might as well fight to the death. Mother wants me to return to Prince Zhao's mansion. Fine, I'll go back today and confess everything to Prince Zhao..."
Madam Yin trembled with rage: "You..."
The two maids under the corridor listened intently to the sounds inside the room. At first, the princess and Lady Yin were talking in hushed tones, even deliberately lowering their voices. Even with their exceptional hearing, they could not hear everything. But for some reason, the two started arguing, and some fragmented words drifted into their ears.
What was Lady Yin afraid they would discover?
What is Your Highness going to confess this time, Princess Consort?
A note from the author:
----------------------
30 more small red envelopes!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
