Chapter 63: From Fake to Real?
On the carriage back to the mansion, the atmosphere was both enchanting and suffocatingly tense.
Shen Jin's words, "very hard-working," echoed in Jiang Mianmian's mind like a spell with a hook, leaving her completely disoriented.
She huddled in the corner of the carriage, her hands protecting her belly, which had just been considered a "hero" but was now a "hot potato."
[This is insane! Absolutely insane!]
When did Shen Jin, that old-fashioned man, become so...so wild?
[Still "trying hard"? On a horse-drawn carriage? That's illegal driving! The traffic police will give you a ticket!]
Jiang Mianmian secretly glanced at Shen Jin.
The regent was sitting upright, his clothes neat and his expression calm, but his usually cold eyes were now like two burning flames, occasionally sweeping over her waist and abdomen with a kind of... predatory feeling like a hungry wolf staring at a bone.
"Your Highness..."
Jiang Mianmian swallowed hard, trying to break the dangerous silence. "Um... calm down, you must calm down. Impulsiveness is the devil."
"I am very calm."
Shen Jin reached out and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, his fingertips burning hot. "I'm thinking about a very serious question."
"Wha...what problem?"
"What is the punishment for the crime of deceiving the emperor?"
Jiang Mianmian's heart skipped a beat.
[Oh no, this is exactly what I was worried about!]
[Just now at the Cining Palace, in a moment of impulsiveness to confront that scheming woman, I pretended to be pregnant. Now that I've calmed down and thought about it... that's a capital offense!]
[Let's not even talk about that old, blind imperial physician. What if my belly doesn't grow bigger in a few months, or that old hag Empress Dowager realizes what's happening and gets another imperial physician to examine me... then I'd be doomed!]
Not only am I going to die, but Shen Jin, my "accomplice," will also be in trouble. Although he is the regent, deceiving the emperor is still a major weakness!
Thinking of this, Jiang Mianmian's face turned pale instantly.
She grabbed Shen Jin's sleeve, almost crying with anxiety:
"Your Highness! What should we do? Have we gone too far? Should we... or should I pretend to have a miscarriage right now? Say the carriage was bumpy and the baby... is gone?"
Shen Jin looked at her panicked appearance, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes.
Fake a miscarriage?
I can't believe she came up with that.
The Empress Dowager just sent so many precious items to help with pregnancy, and she miscarried right after leaving the palace. Anyone with a brain knows something's fishy. If the Empress Dowager uses this as an excuse to make trouble, it will only cause more problems.
"No."
Shen Jin's rejection was swift and decisive: "The Empress Dowager is inherently suspicious. If you 'miscarry' now, she will definitely use this opportunity to investigate thoroughly. And if she finds out that you had a false pregnancy..."
He paused, then made a throat-slitting gesture.
Jiang Mianmian was so frightened that she shrank into a ball.
[Waaaaah... I don't want to die! I haven't lived enough yet! I haven't spent all my money!]
I should never have eaten that braised pork hock! It's all my gluttony's fault!
"Then...what should we do?" Jiang Mianmian was completely at a loss, and could only look at Shen Jin with pleading eyes, seeing him as her lifeline. "Your Highness, you are so smart, you must have a way, right?"
As Shen Jin looked into her wet, dependent eyes, a certain unspeakable thought began to grow wildly in his heart.
"There are solutions... of course."
He slowly leaned in, trapping her between the car wall and his chest, his voice low and seductive, like the whisper of a devil:
"As long as the Empress Dowager finds out..."
"Let there really be another child in this belly."
"In that case, the crime of deceiving the emperor would naturally not stand. In fact... it could even be considered as creating a human being by imperial decree, a great achievement."
Jiang Mianmian: !!!
[Holy crap?!]
[Is this your solution? Get on the train first, buy the ticket later?]
[Logically, it seems fine... but... but this is just too... too... something else!]
Her face was so red it looked like it was about to bleed, and her heart was pounding like a drum.
[Besides... having a baby isn't something you can just do on a whim! What if... what if you can't get pregnant? After all, you've always been... cough cough, rather frigid in that area.]
Upon hearing the words "indifferent in that area," a vein throbbed on Chen Jin's forehead.
good.
very good.
It seems that if I don't let her experience my "passion" tonight, she won't know why the flowers are so red.
"How will you know you can't get pregnant if you don't try?"
His cautious fingertips gently caressed her red lips, his eyes deep and terrifying. "Starting tonight, I will... toil day and night, diligently cultivating. With the princess's constitution, she should... 'get pregnant' quite easily, right?"
"Working day and night?!"
Jiang Mianmian's eyes widened.
[Brother, are you the production team's donkey?]
This is going to kill me! I refuse to do it! I protest! This is exploitation of labor!
"Protest invalid."
As if hearing her thoughts, Shen Jin lowered his head and sealed her unspoken refusal with his lips.
The carriage stopped just then.
"Your Highness, Your Highness, we've arrived," came the butler's voice from outside the carriage.
Shen Jin released Jiang Mianmian, whose face was flushed and who was panting heavily, and a wicked smile appeared on his lips:
"Get out of the car. Go back to your room... to take care of business."
...
The Regent's Palace was decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, creating a festive atmosphere.
The news spread faster than a horse-drawn carriage.
Jiang Mianmian had just stepped off the carriage when she was startled by the scene before her.
The servants in the mansion stood in two rows, their faces beaming with the joy of the New Year, and they all knelt down and shouted:
"Congratulations, Your Highness! Congratulations, Your Highness! You have welcomed a son!"
The steward was so moved that tears streamed down his face. He grabbed a soft cushion and was about to lay it on the ground: "Your Highness, watch your step! Don't step on the pebbles! Quick! Where's the sedan chair? Bring the sedan chair over! Your Highness is very precious right now; you can't walk an inch!"
Jiang Mianmian: [...]
"Please don't... I really just ate too much..."
【You guys are putting so much pressure on me! What if I end up giving birth to a piece of braised pork?】
"No need."
Shen Jin waved his hand dismissively, refusing the sedan chair, "I will carry her inside."
After saying that, amidst the cheers of the crowd, he picked up Jiang Mianmian and strode towards the main courtyard.
Jiang Mianmian buried her face in his chest, not daring to look at the eyes of the people around her.
Society died.
Tai She died.
The entire household believes she is pregnant with the crown prince. If they find out the truth... will she still be able to live as a princess?
"Calm and cautious..."
Jiang Mianmian hummed softly in his arms, "Didn't we... lie to each other too much?"
That's why we need to hurry.
Shen Jin carried her into the main courtyard, kicked open the bedroom door, and then slammed it shut with a loud bang.
The red candles inside the room were already lit, clearly arranged by the butler beforehand.
Even the bedding on the bed was changed to a festive bright red quilt with a hundred sons and a thousand grandsons, and red dates, peanuts, longans and lotus seeds, symbolizing "early birth of a son", were placed on the table.
Jiang Mianmian panicked completely when she saw the scene, which resembled a wedding night.
Are you serious?
[It's starting already? I haven't even showered yet! I haven't mentally prepared myself!]
Shen Jin placed her on the bed, but did not rush to press himself down. Instead, he looked down at her and slowly unbuckled his belt.
"princess."
"Hmm?" Jiang Mianmian huddled in the corner of the bed, like a frightened rabbit.
"Didn't you always say that I'm your long-term meal ticket?"
Shen Jin tossed his outer robe aside, revealing his snow-white undergarment. His muscular chest was faintly visible, brimming with masculine hormones. "Since you intend to renege on your debt for the rest of your life, then you should at least... get a stamp on it, right?"
"Stamp...stamp?"
"Um."
Shen Jin leaned forward, placing his hands on either side of her, completely enveloping her in his shadow. "Having a child would be the best outcome."
"With a child, the Empress Dowager won't dare touch you, the Emperor won't dare touch you, and in this world... no one will dare touch you."
"This is a life-saving charm, and also... my personal reason."
Jiang Mianmian looked at him.
In the candlelight, his eyes were earnest and ardent, devoid of his usual scheming and maneuvering, leaving only the most primal and pure desire.
He wanted her.
Not just the body, but also the future.
Jiang Mianmian's heartbeat gradually calmed down, replaced by a kind of resigned...expectation?
【yes. 】
[Since I've already transmigrated, and since I'm already married to him, why not take advantage of such a perfect man?]
[And... if we really had a little dumpling that looked like him and me, it wouldn't be so bad, would it?]
At least, in this unfamiliar world, I truly have family connected by blood.
Thinking of this, Jiang Mianmian took a deep breath, as if she had made a major decision.
She reached out and hooked her arm around Shen Jin's neck, closed her eyes, and looked as if she were ready to die.
"Then... let's go!"
"To save my life! To avoid being beheaded! If I don't go to hell, who will?"
"Chen Jin, you...you be gentle! I'm afraid of pain!"
Shen Jin couldn't help but chuckle as he watched her face as she bravely faced her death.
"fool."
He lowered his head and kissed her forehead, then her eyes, the tip of her nose, and finally her chattering little mouth.
"How could I bear to let you suffer?"
"I will... make you comfortable."
As the curtains slowly fell, they concealed the enchanting spring light that filled the room.
This night was destined to be a sleepless one.
In the flickering red candlelight, the plan to "make the fake real" finally took its first, and most crucial, step—
That was a "cure" that was more effective than any medicine, unique to just the two of them...
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