"Stand up."
Xuan Ling stepped down from the throne and walked in front of Qi Yan, examining him with deep eyes: "Qi Aiqing, has the imperial concubine come to see you?"
Qi Yan said frankly, "Your Majesty, I went out on an errand the day before yesterday and only discovered that Jiangjiang was missing when I returned yesterday. I have never seen the imperial concubine, and the servants in the palace can all testify to this."
Xue Qiong sneered, "I'm afraid the Marquis of Wu'an isn't telling the truth. How could the young master be taken out of the Marquis's mansion by the imperial concubine? Could it be that no one saw it? You must have hidden the mother and son, wanting to wait until this matter was settled before running away together, right?"
Upon hearing this, Qi Yan knelt down immediately and said, "Your Majesty, heaven and earth are my witnesses. I swear that this is absolutely not the case."
Xuan Ling said solemnly, "Xue Qiong, please step back first."
"Your Majesty!" Xue Qiong twisted her body and acted coquettishly.
"Back off." Xuan Ling looked annoyed.
Sheng Jingheng bowed and said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. Xiyan has always been cautious in her work. She and Jiang will be fine. Perhaps she is in a bad mood and feels uncomfortable hiding away. Qi Yanyan and I will go to the outskirts of the capital to look for her. We will report back to Your Majesty as soon as we have any news."
This 'hiding in an uncomfortable place' is the key point.
When Xuan Ling heard this, he felt guilty and regretted that he should not have given Yongshou Palace to Xue Qiong.
"The Imperial Concubine is over six months pregnant, how can we not be worried? Hurry and find her. Once you find her, tell her that I will forgive her for leaving the palace without permission."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Qi Yan and Sheng Jingheng responded in unison.
Xueqiong overheard this at the door, and her nails dug into her flesh.
Although Emperor Xuanwu fell in love with her, he was not a foolish emperor. He was quite tolerant of her because the imperial concubine had an imperial heir. Wouldn't their old love be rekindled over time?
We must find a way to make the love Gu play a greater role.
Xuan Ling walked to the red window and admired the tuberose.
This is the first time I know that you don’t want to stay in the palace. You would rather leave the palace with a pregnant belly?
She was a noble concubine with the title of Chen, second only to the empress. The emperor couldn't understand why Sheng Xiyan was so determined to give up wealth and glory when others could hardly reach such a position.
Don't you like me? Don't you have any attachment to me?
For the first time, Xuan Ling began to doubt himself, even though his past with Sheng Xiyan had been 90% covered up by the love poison.
Eunuch Fu observed her expression and said soothingly, "Your Majesty, the Imperial Concubine may be bored in the palace and wants to go out for some fresh air. She will be back soon."
A look of relief appeared on Xuan Ling's gloomy face. Yes, she must have left the palace for freedom.
Freedom, is freedom so important?
He took out the scroll from the drawer of the gold-threaded rosewood cabinet, opened it and looked at it carefully.
The more he looked at it, the gentler his expression became, and he couldn't help but hang the painting on a carved wall.
"Don't mention it, my painting of the imperial concubine is extremely lifelike."
"Yes, Your Majesty, when you painted this picture, the Imperial Concubine was still a low-ranking concubine. I remember that after you finished the painting, you gave her six pieces of precious Gesha at once!"
Really? Xuan Ling touched the back of his neck. Why didn't he remember?
I couldn't help myself, I reached out and gently touched the beauty's face,
"In fact, the imperial concubine herself is even more radiant and majestic than in the painting, and she also has a rare aura. Especially when she smiles, her eyes are extremely bright, and there is a small dimple on her right cheek."
Eunuch Fu saw that the emperor was regretting his decision. He thought that his liking for Princess Xueqiong was just temporary and he had a special affection for the imperial concubine.
He has been serving Emperor Xuanwu since he was sixteen years old. This is the first time in all these years that he has seen the emperor so moved by a woman. If this isn't true love, what else could it be?
The next day, in Jingren Palace.
Queen Duan took the seat, and below her sat the four great concubines and Princess Xueqiong.
"I also want to congratulate the princess, who will be canonized as a consort in eight days."
"Yes, the emperor directly listed you as a concubine, which shows that he really likes you. No wonder Concubine Chen ran away in anger."
Xue Qiong, wearing a veil, smiled and said, "I will need the care of all the sisters in the future."
Concubine Jia taunted her, "Princess, you're so disfigured! How long can the Emperor look at you? Aren't you afraid the Emperor will be disgusted by your face?"
Xue Qiong didn't get angry, and retorted, "Since Concubine Jia isn't disfigured, why isn't she favored by the Emperor? As far as I know, you've been in the palace for over three years, right?"
"You, don't be too proud! The Emperor has been searching for the Imperial Concubine these days. If he finds her, you'll be finished in no time! Just wait!"
Queen Duan smiled and enjoyed watching the people below quarreling.
No matter how favored the foreign princess was, Emperor Xuanwu would not let her child inherit the throne for the sake of the country and the people.
Therefore, Empress Duan did not take Xue Qiong seriously and forced Sheng Xiyan away, which eliminated the biggest worry in her heart.
"The imperial concubine is almost seven months pregnant. I don't know where she went. It's really worrying."
The following people were shocked by her hypocrisy and started to act hypocritical as well.
"Yeah, pregnant with three children, and it's freezing cold, I'm not sure if she'll freeze to death somewhere."
"Oh, what a pity."
"Wait for the bad news and burn some paper money for her."
Suddenly, a palace servant came in and reported, "Your Majesty, the Imperial Concubine has been found!"
"What?"
Queen Duan stood up from the soft chair with a look of astonishment, and the other concubines also stared with their eyes wide open.
Xue Qiong's eyes were vicious as she asked, "Does the Emperor know?"
The palace attendant said, "The Emperor has left the palace to look for her! He said that the prefect, Lord Zhang, found out that the imperial concubine had gone to Chunxi Town."
Queen Duan fell into the soft chair and the coral Buddhist beads in her hand fell to the ground.
Xue Qiong stood up and left Jingren Palace in a rage.
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