Qiu Cha thought back carefully, "The basket wasn't small, but it wasn't particularly big either. As for the child, it definitely couldn't fit an ordinary child, unless it was a newborn baby."
Lan Rongyou's eyes darted around, and she said in a sinister voice, "The prince forbids anyone from visiting, and Li Yu is acting suspiciously. Why would he be carrying a basket out of nowhere? Don't you find that strange?"
Qiu Cha's heart skipped a beat, and she couldn't help but think of a certain possibility, "Master, do you mean... there's a child in that basket?"
"There must be something wrong with Su Yushan's child, so they found a normal child to replace her!" Lan Rong believed this was the most reasonable explanation. Qiu Cha was so shocked that she couldn't speak for a long time, finding it unbelievable.
"That's royal blood! How could the prince allow his bloodline to be switched?"
Most men would not agree to do this, but Hongli was different.
"He's definitely worried that Su Yushan will give birth to a monster and be kicked out of the manor. Our prince is so infatuated with Su Yushan that he's capable of anything to protect her!"
At this point, the flames of jealousy in Lan Rong's eyes burned even more intensely!
Qiu Cha exclaimed in surprise, "If that's really the case, then that's a terrible matter! Master, we must find a way to expose Su Yushan's conspiracy and make sure she can no longer stay in the Prince's Mansion!"
This was indeed a golden opportunity to bring down Su Yushan, but Lan Rong dared not act rashly.
“But you only saw the basket and have no other evidence. Raising questions rashly is not convincing. Besides, this matter cannot be brought up by our Yiyun Pavilion. If it fails, the Prince will definitely hold a grudge against me.”
After a moment of deep thought, Qiu Cha suggested, "Why don't we report this matter to Consort Xi? It concerns a major issue of offspring, and Consort Xi will surely investigate it thoroughly. If we start with Li Yu, we should be able to find some clues."
In fact, Lan Rong also thought of Consort Xi. Once Consort Xi spoke, Hongli had to cooperate with the investigation. If something was found, that would be fine. But if nothing was found, and Hongli investigated, and Consort Xi betrayed her, wouldn't she suffer a loss and become a thorn in Hongli's side?
The risk is too great; she can't try it lightly. She needs to find another way.
Lan Rong's principle is that he must not get involved himself under any circumstances, so he can only rely on others.
Chen Gege doesn't concern herself with matters of the household. Even if someone tells her something in person, she won't care. Right now, it seems that only the Fujin (principal wife) and Gao Xiuwen can be used. However, Gao Xiuwen is only a secondary Fujin and lacks power. Moreover, she is more shrewd, so it seems a bit difficult to trick her. Therefore, Lan Rong sets her sights on the Fujin.
But how to let the princess know about this without getting himself involved is the problem.
Qiu Cha would naturally help her fulfill her mistress's wish. After a moment's thought, Qiu Cha smiled confidently, "This servant has a way!"
She walked to her master's side and whispered in his ear. Lan Rong listened silently, considered it carefully, and thought the method was feasible. So he nodded and handed it over to Qiu Cha to do.
Qiu Cha accepted the order and began making arrangements.
Two days later, in the afternoon, Yu Ying was bored in Lan Zhao Courtyard. Her son was not by her side, and there was no one to distract her, so she could only ask Dong Ling to play chess with her.
Snowflakes were falling outside, and charcoal was burning inside. Yu Ying kept her hands warm with rabbit fur tucked inside.
She was concentrating on making her move when the nanny came in to report that Ning'er wanted to see her and had something important to report.
Ever since Ning'er insisted on marrying Yun Song but was rejected by Su Yushan, Yu Ying became wary of Ning'er, forbidding her from serving her, but not driving her away either.
It has been a long time since Yu Ying last saw Ning'er. Why is she suddenly asking to see her today?
Yu Ying had some doubts, but after hesitating for a moment, she still agreed.
Dong Ling put down the chess piece in her hand, stood up, and stood properly to one side.
Ning'er lifted the misty blue brocade curtain and entered the inner room, her expression visibly tense, her voice extremely low.
"Madam, I have something important to report!"
As she spoke, her gaze fell on Dongling. Yuying only told the nanny to leave, but did not let Dongling go down.
Knowing that the Fujin trusted Dongling, Ning'er spoke frankly, "On the night that Consort Su gave birth, I saw Li Yu carrying a large basket into Huatang Pavilion. Although the basket was covered by red silk, I still saw it, and a small hand was sticking out of it!"
Upon hearing this, Yu Ying immediately sat up straight. "What did you say? A little hand?"
Ning'er nodded solemnly, "It's such a small hand, like that of a newborn baby!"
Yu Ying knew that Su Yushan had given birth to a prince, but the prince was of noble status and could not be put in the basket!
Yu Ying was puzzled. "What exactly are you trying to say?"
Taking a deep breath, Ning'er mustered her courage and spoke her mind.
“I’ve heard people say that if someone takes a birth-changing pill, the child they give birth to may be born with defects. Su Gege was murdered by Fucha Gege and took a birth-changing pill. So I’m guessing, could it be that Su Gege gave birth to a freak, and since she didn’t want the child, she found a normal child and switched the baby?”
"Insolence! The matter of offspring is of utmost importance. How dare you spread such nonsense and spread rumors here!"
The Princess Consort slammed her hand on the table in anger, her voice sharp and rebuking Ning'er, who trembled with fear and quickly knelt down, saying timidly:
"Please calm down, Madam. I did indeed see that scene, and I am not making it up. If you have any doubts, you can call Li Yu here and ask him."
Li Yu is Hongli's man! How could he possibly confuse the royal bloodline?
Ke Ning'er insisted that she saw Li Yu carrying a basket containing a child. This matter sounded very strange, and Yu Ying, as the Fujin (principal wife), could not sit idly by. Regardless of whether it was true or false, she had to find out the truth.
Thinking of this, Yu Ying immediately ordered someone to summon Li Yu for questioning.
Today, Li Yu requested leave and was at home when his wife suddenly sent someone to invite him, disturbing him. He was very unhappy but could not refuse, so he changed his clothes and went to the Prince's Mansion.
Upon arrival, after Li Yucai finished his greetings, Yuying went straight to the point: "On the night of the sixteenth, when Su Gege was about to give birth, someone saw you carrying a basket into Huatang Pavilion with an infant inside. Is this true?"
Upon hearing this, Li Yu was stunned. He thought to himself that he had done this very discreetly; the child was wrapped up very tightly and covered with red silk, so no one could have seen him. How could the Fujin (wife of the Prince Consort) have known about it?
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