"Only my sister's two maids were there at the time; Liu's maid went back to get the lanterns," said Nian.
Her implication was clear: Lanqin found such framing extremely annoying. She wanted to say, "No matter how much you scheme, you're just trying to frame yourselves in front of the Fourth Prince. As long as he doesn't believe you, all your tricks are useless!"
"So what if that's the case? Can you prove that my maid pushed her just based on Liu's one-sided story? Can't she just fall down herself and then frame my maid?" Lanqin said firmly.
Madam Nian hadn't expected Lanqin to have such a strong side; she'd never seen her speak like this before. She was momentarily speechless, but still managed to say, "That doesn't mean your maid didn't push her!"
“We’ll talk about everything once Liu Gege is better. Si Hua is at most a suspect right now, not the person Consort Nian believes pushed Liu Shi. So, can your maid be released?” Lan Qin said.
Lady Nian had no choice but to have Cuiling and the others release Sihua, because Lanqin was now the steward's concubine.
Shui Ling and Bao Qin quickly pulled Si Hua aside to look at the wound on her face. The slap that Nian Shi had given her was quite severe; the nail guard had pierced deep into the skin of her cheek.
Lanqin had already noticed that appearance is very important for an unmarried woman, especially in ancient times, when women regarded their appearance as important as their lives.
“If Si Hua is ultimately proven innocent, shouldn’t Consort Nian also be held responsible for the injuries on her face?” Lan Qin asked.
Lady Nian had never taken any responsibility for beating a servant girl before, and she sneered, "It's just a servant girl. Can't I, as a concubine, even beat a servant girl?"
“Si Hua is my person. If you hit her, you're hitting me. Do you think I'll let this go?” Lan Qin stared aggressively at Nian Shi.
Having never been threatened like this before, Nian Shi was momentarily at a loss for words, as if she didn't recognize Lan Qin at all, because the Lan Qin at this moment was completely different from the gentle Lan Qin of the past.
"Well, at worst you can hit my servant girl," Lady Nian had no choice but to say. Immediately, Cui Ling and the others felt a wave of discomfort, as if their faces were about to be scratched.
Lanqin glanced at the group and smiled slightly, "Alright, but Consort Nian, don't try to deny it later!"
At this moment, Doctor Lin came out from the inner room. Lanqin pushed Nian Shi aside and went straight to him, asking, "Doctor Lin, how is Princess Liu's pregnancy?"
Doctor Lin looked at Lanqin and shook his head, saying, "Consort, I have no one to help you. I'm afraid Liu Gege's baby has already died in the womb."
Everyone standing in the room was immediately shocked, because although Liu was lying on the ground, she was not bleeding and was still conscious. How could the baby have died in the womb?
"Dr. Lin, is it really impossible to save it? It's been more than seven months, it's not that easy to miscarry, is it?" Lanqin felt that the baby in her womb was really pitiful. Ever since Liu became pregnant with her, there had been no peace and quiet. Similar situations had happened several times, but she never expected that it would still not be saved.
"Doctor, do you know how the fetus died?" Mrs. Nian also came up and asked.
"It must be a severe injury to her abdomen that caused her water to break, and the baby is probably suffocating inside. Consort, Lady Liu's life is hanging by a thread. We must immediately prepare medicine to induce labor and deliver the stillborn fetus, otherwise Lady Liu will also be in danger," said Doctor Lin.
Lanqin suddenly felt nauseous. She knew Sihua would never push Liu Shi, yet Liu Shi had this accident precisely when she was with Sihua and Baoqin. They must have orchestrated this whole thing, willing to kill their own child to drag her down with them? Lanqin knew Liu Shi was ruthless, but she had gone so far as to kill her own child to frame her. Such ugly humanity disgusted Lanqin.
"Then what are we waiting for? Immediately save Consort Liu." At this moment, Lady Nian transformed into a fair and caring concubine, immediately ordering the preparation of the tools and servants for Doctor Lin to perform abdominal surgery.
Lanqin watched as Nian was busy shouting, but she couldn't say anything for the time being. She could only wait until Liu recovered before she could find out the truth.
"Baoqin, take Sihua back to the South Courtyard first, and apply some of my Jade Dew Ointment to her face to relieve the pain," Lanqin said.
“Consort Niu, Liu Gege’s fate is currently unknown. She is a suspect. How can she leave?” Fucha suddenly said.
Lanqin looked at Lady Fucha and said, "Sihua went back to treat her injuries. She's in the South Courtyard and can be summoned at any time. What? Does Princess Fucha have any objections?"
"I dare not!" Lady Fucha said, bowing her head.
Lanqin gestured for Baoqin to take Sihua away, while she and Shuiling stayed behind. Lanqin never imagined that this New Year's Eve would be spent like this.
After waiting outside for almost two hours, past midnight, Liu finally gave birth to a stillborn baby girl under the influence of medication. She survived, but Doctor Lin said her body was severely damaged and she might never be able to have children again.
Everyone dispersed, deciding to wait until tomorrow. Liu's maidservants stayed with her, while the others returned home. As soon as Lanqin returned to the south courtyard, her eyelids became so heavy she could barely keep them open. Sihua and the others were still awake; seeing Lanqin finally return, they immediately helped her wash up. Lanqin washed with her eyes almost closed. The maidservants finally undressed Lanqin and put her to bed before they themselves went to rest.
Liu woke up in the middle of the night, and Cuizhu told her exactly what Doctor Lin had said. Liu wept bitterly, for her sacrifice and for the fact that she would never be able to have children again.
“Master, please don’t cry. You can’t cry now,” Cuizhu said.
“If it weren’t to get out of this predicament, why would I have taken this risky step? She must make it up to me in the future!” Liu said.
“Yes, Princess risked her life to carry out their plan. Consort Nian promised that as long as Princess harbored suspicion in the Prince’s heart, she would ensure that Princess would not be disliked by the Prince,” Cuizhu said.
"Although Lady Fucha has always looked down on me, her words this time actually saved me. If I give birth to the child, I'm afraid the child will be taken away immediately, and then I will be sent to Zhanghua Terrace to be confined forever!" Lady Liu said.
“I didn’t expect Your Highness to have such thoughts. This time, Your Highness won’t send the princess to that place?” Cuizhu said.
“I just lost my beloved daughter. Even if his heart is made of iron, he might still feel some longing. Besides, this time it was the Niohuru clan who caused this,” Liu said.
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