An early summer breeze, laden with the fragrance of lotus flowers from the back pond, blew past the winding waterside pavilion of the Taifu Mansion. All thirty-six carved latticed windows stood open, illuminating the pond's vibrant greenery and red flowers. A table filled with distinguished ladies sat around a long, mother-of-pearl inlaid table, stirring their bowls of almond tea with gilded silver spoons. Suddenly, a sharp gasp echoed from the pavilion's entrance, startling the swallows resting under the eaves.
Shen Ruorou stumbled in, holding onto her waist, her maid Xiaolian practically holding her arm. Her plain white satin skirt had faded from washing, yet her abdomen still bulged dramatically beneath the hem, like a small pot. Her usually white face was now bloodless, her eyes darkened, and the pearl flower in her hair tilted to one side, making her look like a ghost who had just crawled out of a mass grave.
"What's wrong, little sister?" Madam Taifu paused, gripping the teacup. In the emerald-green glaze, a few buds of freshly brewed Mengding Ganlu tea floated. Her gaze swept over Shen Ruoruo's belly, and the fine lines at the corners of her eyes furrowed imperceptibly. Ever since the farce at the ancestral hall half a month ago, this second young lady had become a stinking piece of shit that everyone in the capital's noble ladies avoided.
Shen Ruorou squeezed out two tears, and her fingertips trembled as she touched her "pregnant belly". Her voice was as thin as a mosquito: "Thank you for your concern, Madam. I have been having severe morning sickness these past few days. The imperial physician said I need to rest..." Before she finished speaking, she suddenly caught a glimpse of Shen Weiwan, who was leisurely sipping tea in the main seat. A trace of resentment suddenly flashed in her eyes hidden behind her tears. Then she fell to her knees with a plop, and the pearl flowers on her bun fell to the ground.
"Cousin! Please have mercy on me and the child!" She knocked her forehead against the cold blue bricks, her voice suddenly rising. "Since His Royal Highness the Seventh Prince refuses to admit his guilt, I do! I only ask that you please stop sending me safflower soup to force me to abort the child..."
With a clang, the tea spoon in Madam Taifu's hand fell into the tea bowl, and the splashing water wet the lotus pattern on the tablecloth. The noble ladies in the room were suddenly in an uproar, and dozens of eyes shot towards Shen Weiwan in the main seat. The eyes were full of panic, confusion, and gloating, intertwined like countless fine needles.
Shen Weiwan was gently stirring the almond crumbs in the bowl with a silver spoon. When she heard this, she looked up, her dark eyes rolling around, and an innocent smile appeared on the corner of her mouth: "What nonsense are you talking about, cousin?" She put down the tea bowl and touched the edge of the celadon teacup with her white fingertips. "Look at you, you're still so excited even though you're pregnant. Be careful not to disturb the fetus."
In the blink of an eye, she suddenly stood up, her foot seemed to be tripped by the hem of her skirt, and a cup of freshly brewed Mengding Ganlu came out of her hand. The amber tea soup was steaming hot, and with a "splash" it all poured onto Shen Ruorou's bulging belly!
"Ah!" Shen Ruorou screamed and took three steps back. Her soaked white skirt clung to her body, outlining a distorted outline. Even more terrifying, several balls of snow-white cotton tumbled out from under her skirt, making a "plop" sound when they fell on the blue bricks. There were even a few tea leaves stained on the wet cotton.
In the pavilion, the sound of a pin drop was palpable, the only sound being the dripping of tea down Shen Ruorou's skirt, like the beat of a death drum. Minister Li's daughter, the closest to her, pointed at the cotton ball on the ground, her pearl earrings trembling against her hair. "What, what is this?!"
Shen Ruorou looked down at her soaked belly, then at the cotton wool on the ground. The color on her face instantly drained away, turning pale, then blue. She instinctively reached for her belly, but pulled out a handful of wet cotton wool from under her skirt. With trembling fingers, she held it up to her face. "My baby... How did my baby fall out?"
"Puff——" Chuntao couldn't help but spit a mouthful of tea on her handkerchief. She quickly turned around and covered her mouth with her sleeves, but her shoulders were shaking like fallen leaves in the autumn wind.
Chen Weiwan took two steps back in a state of shock, her lower back bumping against the back of Xiao Yu's rosewood chair, but her eyes shone cunningly: "Cousin! How come there is cotton in your belly? Could it be..." She deliberately dragged out her words, looking around at the noble ladies in the room, with just the right amount of shock in her voice, "Cousin, could it be that... you are pregnant with a child made of cotton?"
"Hahahaha——" I don't know which noble lady laughed first, and the whole room burst into laughter at once.
"I was wondering why she was having morning sickness every day, and it turns out she was just stuffing herself with cotton to cover up!"
"Before, he was crying and shouting that he was the Seventh Prince's child. Now he's embarrassed himself and even embarrassed himself on Chang'an Street!"
"Look at the cotton wool in her hand, it's dripping with tea!"
Laughter surged towards Shen Ruoruo like a tide. She trembled all over, her nails digging deep into her palms, almost drawing blood. She suddenly looked up at Shen Weiwan, her eyes burning with resentment: "It was you! You deliberately splashed the water! You plotted against me!"
"I didn't mean it, cousin," Chen Weiwan blinked her big watery eyes and raised the empty teacup to shake it. "I saw that you looked bad, so I wanted to wake you up. Who knew that in your belly..." She paused and tilted her head in an innocent manner, "Could it be that it's popular for pregnant women nowadays to stuff cotton into their stomachs?"
Xiao Yu, seated at the head of the table, finally couldn't help himself. He swung his folding fan open, covering half his face, his shoulders trembling violently. He put it down, cleared his throat, and cast his dark jade eyes at Shen Ruoruo, who lay sprawled on the ground. His tone was tinged with a subtle hint of sarcasm: "Second Miss Shen, I remember last month at the ancestral hall, you also used cotton to pretend you were pregnant. Why are you up to your old tricks again?"
These words were like a thunderclap, sending Shen Ruoruo trembling all over. She stumbled backward, her lower back bumping into the rose stand behind her. Several thorny branches were knocked off, hitting her head and face, leaving several red marks. She looked at Xiao Yu's cold eyes, then scanned the contemptuous and mocking glances of the surrounding noble ladies, and suddenly let out a sharp cry: "I didn't do it! It was Shen Weiwan who framed me! She was jealous of me... jealous that I could have the prince's child..."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
