Xiao Lanchuan never expected that he would be unable to stay awake and would fall asleep.
When he woke up, the first thing he did was check on Nanzhi. He was relieved to see that she was alright.
Xiao Jingyi did not die, but he was almost crippled. Xiao Lanchuan wanted to demote him to a commoner. When the Empress Dowager heard this, she came to Shangyang Palace to plead for him.
The Empress Dowager wept, saying, "My son, Jingyi is your younger brother. Although he is your half-brother, the bond between you two has never faded over the years."
He already knows he was wrong. He's crippled now. If you demote him to a commoner, he'll die.
The Empress Dowager ultimately couldn't bear to see Xiao Jingyi suffer such hardship.
Perhaps, between power and family ties, she did care a little about family ties, but none of it had anything to do with Xiao Lanchuan.
When Xiao Lanchuan saw the Empress Dowager's haggard and pleading appearance, he curled his lips in a sarcastic smile.
"Mother, if it were me, would you have pleaded for me?"
The Empress Dowager hurriedly replied, "Of course."
"If the person in Ruohean's prophecy is Xiao Jingyi, will you also poison him?"
The Empress Dowager remained silent.
For a moment, she didn't know how to answer.
Xiao Lanchuan laughed out loud, clapped his hands and stood up: "Good Empress Dowager, you have truly not disappointed me."
"No..." The Empress Dowager looked at him with teary eyes, calling him by his childhood name, trying to get him to forgive her for the past. "Chuan'er, your mother didn't mean it. Please forgive your mother, okay?"
Seeing that Xiao Lanchuan remained silent, she knelt down and choked out, "Chuan'er, if you don't forgive your mother, I will kneel here forever."
She tried to pull Xiao Lanchuan away.
But Xiao Lanchuan ruthlessly avoided it.
"If Mother likes to kneel, then let her kneel."
Xiao Lanchuan left with his hands behind his back, never looking at her again.
The Empress Dowager remained kneeling in Shangyang Palace, believing that if she knelt for a longer period of time, Xiao Lanchuan would surely forgive her.
However, Xiao Lanchuan did not return to Shangyang Palace for the next few days.
Xiao Jingyi was eventually demoted to a commoner, left with a limp, and became a cripple whom everyone hated.
The Empress Dowager had not eaten for several days and was on the verge of fainting when she suddenly heard the palace gates open.
She thought it was Xiao Lanchuan who had come, and went to look happily, only to find Jiang Fulai bringing a bowl of rice to her.
She asked happily, "Did His Majesty give this to me?"
"Yes, Your Majesty, please eat."
The Empress Dowager thought Xiao Lanchuan had softened his heart, so she quickly took the bowl and ate it ravenously.
Seeing that she had finished eating, Jiang Fulai said, "Your Majesty, if you want to kneel, then continue kneeling."
He turned to leave, but the Empress Dowager quickly stopped him: "Does Your Majesty have nothing to say to me?"
Jiang Fulai laughed: "The Emperor said, Your Majesty, you cannot die. You must live, and live a life of suffering."
Jiang Fulai has left.
The Empress Dowager's body went limp, and she collapsed to the ground.
She understood that Xiao Lanchuan would never forgive her.
The power and status she desired, as well as the blood ties with Xiao Jingyi, would never exist again.
No one dared to reveal the affair between the Empress Dowager and Xiao Jingyi to Nanzhi.
Nan Zhi simply pretended not to know. In the past few days, she had finished the medicine prescribed by Chen Huaizhi and appeared very energetic in front of Xiao Lanchuan.
But Xiao Lanchuan would often stare blankly at her belly.
One evening, as Nanzhi looked at the dark liquid in front of her, she heard 003's warning.
"Zhizhi, don't drink it. It's an abortion pill. Xiao Lanchuan thought there was something wrong with the baby in your belly and was afraid that a miscarriage later in the pregnancy would harm your body, so he had someone brew an abortion pill for you."
"Will there be a problem if I eat it?"
003 became proud: [The twin potion you redeemed is a top-grade potion. Even if you die, the babies in your belly won't die.]
Nanzhi didn't say anything, but just raised her hand, wanting to slap it across the face.
Having witnessed Nan Zhi beat up Xiao Lanchuan, 003 belatedly realized it had said the wrong thing. It covered its mouth, trying to escape, but then, remembering something, it left out another sentence.
[It didn't cause any major problems, just a bit of diarrhea.]
"Your Majesty, the medicine is too bitter. Could you please get me some candied fruit?"
There were no candied fruits in the room, so Xiao Lanchuan got up and asked someone to get some. In the meantime, Nanzhi took a small sip, just enough to moisten her lips, and then poured the remaining abortion pills into the potted plant.
When Xiao Lanchuan returned, she pretended that she had finished drinking.
She stuck out her tongue: "Ouch, it tastes so bitter."
Xiao Lanchuan didn't suspect anything, he just lowered his eyes and took her hand.
"The candied fruit is a little late, but a kiss from me will make it less bitter."
He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.
Nan Zhi was so weak from his kisses that she was held in his arms. Her dark hair fell down beside her ears, obscuring her trembling phoenix eyes.
In a daze, Nanzhi heard the young man's voice in her ear, over and over again, so hoarse that he could barely speak.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."
Nanzhi couldn't remember how many times he had said it, but she was so tired that she found a comfortable position in his arms and fell asleep.
After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Lanchuan released the girl from his arms, his phoenix eyes filled with apology and confusion.
Didn't Chen Huaizhi say that the medicine would have a reaction within an incense stick's time?
How come the person is still asleep?
Xiao Lanchuan stayed by Nanzhi's side all night, but he didn't see that she was in any discomfort.
The next day, he had someone prepare a double dose of abortion medicine.
Nan Zhi looked at the dark, murky liquid with a complicated expression.
How could she tell Xiao Lanchuan that the baby in her belly would be fine?
After eating it for several days in a row, Nan Zhi had no problems, and Xiao Lanchuan then realized that something was wrong.
One day, he deliberately stayed away and had Daixue bring the medicine to Nanzhi. He saw through the crack in the window that she had sent Daixue away and secretly poured out the medicine, and then he understood what had happened.
He went inside and glanced at the potted plants on the side. Nanzhi guiltily blocked his view.
"Your Majesty, it's so painful, please kiss Zhizhi."
She stood on tiptoe, her face full of sweet innocence.
Xiao Lanchuan hugged her, his face cold: "You didn't take your medicine."
Upon hearing this, Nan Zhi lowered her head and pursed her lips, remaining silent.
Xiao Lanchuan then asked Daixue to bring over a bowl of medicine.
This time, he was determined to watch her drink it himself.
But when he reached to lift her chin, he found his hands covered in tears.
Xiao Lanchuan's breath hitched.
He wanted to hug her, to see her, but her head was drooping, so he could only pick her up and put her on his lap.
Her body was trembling, her hands were clenched into fists, and tears kept sliding down her cheeks.
She refused to lift her head, burying it tightly against his chest.
He said, "Be obedient."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, do you really not want...don't you want Zhizhi's child?"
A helpless, hoarse sob came from her arms.
Xiao Lanchuan clearly felt a pain in his heart. He held her tightly, "No, I don't mean to not want to..."
The girl who had been buried in his arms raised her head, her fair face streaked with tears. She gazed at him, her eyelashes trembling slightly: "Then why did Your Majesty force me to drink the abortion pill?"
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