Just then, Ye Ying, who was standing outside, suddenly walked in. Seeing that Madam Yin and the Fourth Prince were both silent, she announced, "Master, Princess, the Fujin has arrived."
When Madam Yin heard those two words, she was like a drowning person seeing a lifeline. Her eyes, which had just been filled with fear and terror, immediately lit up with a bright light!
It really was her!
The anger that Fourth Master had been deliberately suppressing because of Honghui suddenly flared up again after seeing Yin's gaze.
"Your Highness is here too! This concubine greets Your Highness!" The Fujin (Prince's Consort) reached the door and saw Yin's expectant eyes. A bad feeling crept over her, and she glanced at the Fourth Prince sitting on the long bench by the window. Suppressing her alarm, she quickly bowed to him. Although the Fourth Prince had visited the main courtyard the previous evening, sharing dinner with her and asking a few questions about Yin, the Fujin had downplayed the events at the Third Prince's residence. Essentially, Niu had disagreed with the other concubines over a theatrical performance, and Yin had intended to mediate, but somehow Yin had miscarried. This was roughly what Yin had just said.
"Why is the Princess Consort here?" the Fourth Prince asked indifferently.
"I was worried about Sister Yin. I heard that she had miscarried and had been in low spirits and had a poor appetite. I came to see her and brought some nourishing medicinal herbs for her." The Princess Consort gestured to the old woman behind her, Li, to present the things she had brought to the Fourth Prince for his inspection.
"Thank you, Madam. I'm almost recovered." Madam Yin quickly bowed and took the basket from Granny Li, her hand inadvertently touching Granny Li's hand.
Because of the basket, the Fourth Prince did not see their little interaction, but the Princess Consort, who was standing on the other side, saw Niu Shi deliberately nudge Li Mama with her hand.
"Your Highness has arrived at the perfect time. I happen to have something to ask you." The Fourth Prince's original intention was to deal with Lady Yin, give His Highness a warning, and then end the matter. But he didn't expect His Highness to arrive at this time, and things were no longer under his control.
"Your Highness, please ask. I will answer truthfully," the Fujin said calmly, her face showing no sign of panic, far more composed than Madam Yin. In truth, after Honghui told her about the conversation between the Fourth Prince and him in the front courtyard, the Fujin already knew that this little scheme was likely to be a complete waste of time. When she heard Honghui apologize himself, she sighed inwardly: her carefully laid trap had been foiled by her own son.
However, the moment she saw Fourth Master at Madam Yin's place, she suddenly wondered if she had only managed to escape this time because of Honghui.
"Before going to the Third Prince's residence, did Lady Yin show signs of miscarriage due to the disturbance caused by Honghui and others?" the Fourth Prince asked directly. "Doctor Bai couldn't possibly not tell you; he has already confessed everything to me."
Madam Yin was horrified, her face turning deathly pale. The Fujin, however, didn't even glance at her. She turned and walked to the Fourth Prince, saying softly, "Doctor Bai did tell me, but he said that Madam Yin's fetal movement wasn't serious and that she would be fine after taking a few doses of medicine."
Fourth Master's lips curled into a faint smile that seemed ready to vanish at any moment as he said, "Is that really what Doctor Bai said?"
The princess said solemnly, "That's what Doctor Bai told me. As for whether there are any other things he's hiding from me, I have no idea."
Fourth Master snorted coldly and said, "Doctor Bai has already confessed the truth. Someone instructed him to say this. In fact, Madam Yin's fetus was already in danger at that time. Those few doses of medicine only prolonged the pregnancy for a few days."
Yin panicked and dropped the basket in her hand, spilling some blood bird's nest out.
The princess gave her a displeased look, then feigned surprise and said, "Such things happen! I wonder who this person Doctor Bai is talking about, and what her purpose is?"
The reason she dared to ask such a question was simply because she was certain that Bai Yifu hadn't implicated her yet; otherwise, the Fourth Master wouldn't be sitting here asking these questions.
Lady Yin was still young. She had just been frightened by the Fourth Prince, and now that the Princess Consort was pretending to be deaf and dumb, it was hard to know what she was really thinking. She was like a child who had done something wrong. As the adults gradually unraveled the mystery and got closer to the truth, her fear grew stronger.
"Madam Yin, Doctor Bai said that you gave him a lot of benefits, asking him to use medicine to keep the fetus in your womb for a few more days and to lie about the fact that you were about to miscarry. So, the whole thing at the San'ange Mansion garden was also something you orchestrated yourself, with the aim of framing Madam Niu." Fourth Master said coldly to Madam Yin, who was trembling all over.
With her back to the Fourth Prince, Lady Yin cast her pleading gaze towards the Fujin standing before her. However, the Fujin had already devised her own escape plan and had no time to spare for her. The Fujin's face darkened, and she said sternly to Lady Yin, "How dare you, Lady Yin! I meant well and wanted to help you seek justice, but you've even deceived me. You're so young; you should be staying here, learning the rules, and you'll naturally have your chance to serve the Fourth Prince in the future. But you're consumed by jealousy and have even framed Niu Gege for your own miscarriage. I'm utterly disappointed in you."
Hearing the words of the Fujin, Madam Yin understood her meaning. This was a case of sacrificing Zhu Baoshuai; if she admitted it, the Fujin would be safe; if she dragged her into the mess, she wouldn't be able to escape responsibility. Madam Yin's eyes flickered several times before she finally saw Li Mama secretly giving her a wink from behind the Fujin.
Yin felt a chill in her heart. Although she resented that everything the Fujin had instructed her to do had not only failed to harm Niu Shi but had also dragged her into a quagmire, she also thought that her future life depended on this Fujin. So she gritted her teeth, immediately turned around and knelt down: "Your Majesty, I was confused. I was jealous of Sister Niu Shi for a moment, and when I heard Doctor Bai say that the child in my womb could not be saved, I lost control of my emotions and committed such a terrible crime. Please punish me, Fourth Prince, and please punish me, Fujin!"
The princess secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and then said, "Fourth Prince, Lady Yin is muddle-headed. It is all because I have failed to manage the inner quarters properly that so many things have happened. But Lady Yin is still young. Although she framed Lady Niu this time, she did not cause any real serious harm. I beg Your Highness to consider that she has already lost a child and punish her leniently."
When Lady Yin heard the Fujin plead for her, she felt relieved. She had almost revealed that the Fujin was the mastermind, but she held back and took the blame for the whole thing. It seemed that she had made the right choice.
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