Chapter 76 Difficult Childbirth and Faking Death "Azhi, what do you want to say?" ...
"Go in and search the place! Bring the princess to the hall."
Pei Lang, dressed in heavy armor, led the Imperial Guards to the Princess's residence, shedding his scholarly air and resembling a sharpened blade.
"No need to escort me! I can walk by myself!"
Looking at Pei Lang sitting in the main seat, so imposing and acting like the master, the princess sneered.
"I, Xiao Ruyan, have no idea when Chief Minister Pei cleared his name of all charges? How dare he lead troops into my Princess's residence!"
Pei Lang, however, paid no heed to her harsh accusations and calmly continued to direct his men to search. "Your Highness, as you yourself have said, Pei Lang is merely a subject. Without His Majesty's decree, how could I dare to disturb you?"
"However, Princess, you should think carefully about how to explain your plot to usurp the throne. His Majesty has long been aware of this matter, but he did not act rashly because you are family."
“But now that Prime Minister He and Marquis Lu have been escorted to the imperial prison, you can no longer keep it a secret.”
Pei Lang chuckled, resting his chin on his hand: "I have plenty of time to waste with you."
Xiao Ruyan was trembling with anger. She berated Pei Lang mercilessly, but still refused to admit to the conspiracy among them.
"Someone, bring a chair for the princess. As long as the princess doesn't give in, we'll all stay here with her."
Xiao Ruyan simply assumed that Pei Lang's methods were like this, and remained silent.
Unexpectedly, one by one, her trusted confidants in her household were dragged out. As if Pei Lang had expected this, he personally forced them to kneel in front of her and drew the long sword from his waist.
"Princess, please don't be offended. Since you wouldn't speak, I had no choice but to use some tricks to pass the time until you opened your mouth."
Glancing at her pale face, Pei Lang waved his hand: "Princess, you don't need to care about me. Just pretend that Pei Lang doesn't exist."
But then, Pei Lang's blade was aimed at the eye socket of another servant she was close to.
The torment continued until late at night, when Xiao Ruyan, her face ashen and covered in cold sweat, finally managed a trembling voice to stop them: "...Stop! I...I'll tell you..."
Upon hearing this, Pei Lang decisively sheathed his sword, threw the cloth he had used to wipe the bloodstains on the ground, and ordered in a deep voice to have someone go with the princess.
Only after the person left did Pei Lang belatedly realize that he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He raised his hand to cover his chest, but his face was very confused.
"Sir, what's wrong?"
Xingyun quickly stepped forward to support Pei Lang, but noticed that his thin lips were pale: "Are you feeling unwell? Or has your old injury flared up again?"
Pei Lang was helped to sit down, but his long, slender hand was tightly pressed against his aching chest. His brows were furrowed and showed no signs of easing. He said in a deep voice, "Leave as soon as you get what you need. I have to rush home."
"Push harder, madam! Push harder!"
Pei Mingli stood outside the door, listening to Lin Zhi's screams and the midwife's voice from inside. He couldn't help but reach out and grab the doctor's collar: "Didn't you prescribe the labor-inducing medicine? What's going on? It's been several hours since she gave birth!"
"What kind of quack doctor are you?!"
The hardships he had endured at the border had made Pei Mingli even more rugged, and he looked particularly imposing and intimidating. The doctor trembled and begged for mercy, fearing that Pei Mingli might take his head off in a fit of anger.
"My lord, spare my life! This lady was already frail, and with the added shock of palpitations and being caught in the rain and chill, and now her first pregnancy is premature, it's understandable that she'll have a difficult delivery..."
"And then there's..."
"Something terrible has happened! The lady is having a difficult labor!"
The midwife ran out, her hands covered in blood, and looked at Pei Mingli in a daze: "Sir, should we save the mother or the child? The lady is having a difficult labor and may suffer a postpartum hemorrhage."
Pei Mingli glared at the midwife with eyes wide open, drew his long sword and held it to her neck, scaring her so much that her legs went weak and she knelt on the ground.
"You're talking nonsense! You're the most famous midwife in the capital, I'll protect you from head to toe! If anything happens to my sister today, I'll make sure you never leave the Pei family again!"
The midwife was terrified, but she also cried out, "There's a saying that seven months is enough for a baby to survive, eight months is not. Now, it's even more difficult for you to give birth, madam. You can't make things difficult for an old woman like me!"
Pei Mingli stared intently at the midwife for a long while before finally gritting his teeth and speaking with difficulty: "...Save the mother..."
Having received a clear answer, the midwife quickly turned around and ran back into the room to call for hot water to be brought in.
Lin Zhi pressed down on her hand in unbearable pain, her voice barely audible yet still clear: "...Save the child!"
Chuntao, who was wiping her sweat, burst into tears and pleaded, "No, Miss! You can't risk your life!"
Xia Ying just cried after hearing this and ran out without saying anything.
Lin Zhi leaned against the pillows and shook her head weakly: "No... I never wanted to live. It was me, it was me who insisted on giving birth to this child. I can't abandon him..."
"Lin Zhi! You are not allowed to die!"
Pei Mingli's angry shout from outside the window startled everyone in the room. Lin Zhi bit her lower lip tightly, the pain of childbirth making her lips turn blue, but it did not relieve the pain in the slightest.
Pei Mingli could faintly smell the strong stench of blood emanating from the room through the window, which was no different from what he had smelled on the battlefield.
Knowing that Lin Zhi could hear him, he spoke clearly, word by word: "Lin Zhi, if you still consider me your brother, then you'd better live well!"
"Didn't you want to leave Pei Lang? I promise you, as long as you live, I will take you away."
"I know this child is also your flesh and blood, but don't blame me. I've never met him, but you are my own sister, Pei Mingli's sister!"
"Save the baby! If you insist on keeping the child alive, then I will kill the midwife and the doctor!"
Hearing Pei Mingli's voice, Lin Zhi closed her eyes and burst into tears, the tears at the corners of her eyes drowning out her desire to die.
The midwife was extremely anxious, but Lin Zhi held her wrist tightly: "Give birth! Use every means to make me give birth to this child, I want to live too."
"Give me a ginseng slice to suck on, I must give birth to this child!"
Lin Zhi, who was already weak, nearly fainted during the difficult childbirth. She was kept alive by ginseng slices until dawn broke. After she screamed "Pei Lang, you bastard!", the cry of a baby rang out.
Hearing the child's cries, Pei Mingli staggered and braced himself against a pillar, feeling a sudden wave of dizziness after the relaxation. The doctor beside him collapsed to the ground, his legs giving way, wiping the cold sweat from his brow with his sleeve.
"Congratulations, sir! It's a perfectly healthy young lady!"
The midwife came out with a smile, but Pei Mingli was only thinking about Lin Zhi: "How is my sister?"
"Madam wishes to see you. Please wait a moment."
Only after Chun Tao came out and invited him inside did Pei Mingli frown and hesitate before entering.
“A-Zhi…”
Looking at Lin Zhi, whose face was ashen and whose hair was soaked with sweat, Pei Mingli's eyes were full of heartache: "I'm sorry to have troubled you."
Lin Zhi leaned against Chun Tao, breathing heavily as she held the little child in her arms. She couldn't help but press her face against Chun Tao's soft cheek, her eyes filled with tears as she stared at her, brimming with reluctance.
"Cousin, I have something I want to say to you alone."
"You take the children and go downstairs first..."
After handing her infant daughter over to the midwife, Lin Zhi finally managed to suppress her reluctance and nudged Chun Tao behind her: "I... want to eat your osmanthus honey soup. Good Chun Tao, go make me a bowl."
Lin Zhi's voice was terribly hoarse. Chun Tao, with red eyes, fed her water while nodding in agreement, "Okay, Miss, wait for Chun Tao."
Once only the two of them were left in the room, Pei Mingli belatedly realized something was wrong. Staring at Lin Zhi lying flat on the couch, he hesitated before asking, "A-Zhi, what do you want to say?"
"Help me escape, leave the capital."
Lin Zhi's voice was extremely calm, and her usually bright almond-shaped eyes, which were usually sparkling with stars, were now dull and lifeless as she stared unblinkingly at the bed curtains.
Pei Mingli frowned slightly: "You have just given birth and your body is extremely weak. If you leave now, you may fall ill."
"Moreover, I have already inquired and found out that Pei Lang's marriage to the second young lady of the He family was a scheme with the Emperor. Now that Prime Minister He and Marquis Lu and their families have been imprisoned, I'm afraid they will never be able to turn their lives around."
"You have given birth to Pei Lang's only child, so you will never have to worry about not having a good life in the future."
"As for your aunt's matter... let's keep things separate. Your cousin won't hold a grudge against Pei Lang for what he did. If you're willing, I won't blame you for staying."
But Lin Zhi only said softly, "It doesn't matter. Whether he really wants to marry He Luochen or not is completely unimportant."
"The important thing is that he lied to me. In his heart, neither I nor my daughter mattered as much as the power he desired and the monarch he was loyal to."
"If he can abandon me once for these things, he will do it twice and three times."
"Cousin, I can't afford to gamble anymore. I've already given half my life for his sake, I dare not gamble anymore."
Hearing Lin Zhi's weak and disheartened tone, Pei Mingli felt a pang of sadness: "Then what do you want? Are you willing to give up the daughter you risked your life to give birth to?"
When her daughter was mentioned, Lin Zhi turned her head away and shed tears, trying to avoid the topic, but she remained firm: "Pei Lang will not mistreat her, and I have no ability to take her with me when I leave."
"I would rather she grow up healthy and well than keep her confined by my side."
Pei Mingli remained silent for a long time before suddenly standing up: "Fine, I promise you, I'll take you away."
“But Pei Lang isn’t stupid. If you don’t push things to the extreme, he will search for you to the ends of the earth.”
Lin Zhi nodded knowingly and handed everything over to Pei Mingli.
When Chun Tao returned with the still-hot osmanthus honey soup, the intense flames reflected in her eyes made her face red, and the bowl in her hand fell and shattered on the ground.
After Pei Lang returned from reporting to the palace, he immediately rode back to his residence. He dismounted and, without even bothering the servants who came to tie up the horse, strode into the house.
His heart felt like it was about to jump out of his chest. He was finally able to tell Lin Zhi the whole story without any reservations. He was finally able to stop pretending to ignore her. He had so much to say to Lin Zhi that he could talk for a whole day and night!
The closer he got to him, the more he could hear the chaotic noise of the servants. Pei Lang frowned, but quickened his pace, taking three steps at a time.
Looking at the bedroom that had been burned to ashes and was on the verge of collapse, cracks appeared on Pei Lang's calm and indifferent face.
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Author's Note: I've been waiting for so long, and today has finally come!!!
Next comes the desperate widower side story, where Pei Gou tries to win back his wife while raising the child!
We've seen too many girls running with the ball, but look at our little girl running without it! [Heart emoji]
Thank you to all my besties for subscribing, and thank you to my dear friend Ciling for your support!
(My girlfriends, please feed them lots of nutrient solutions if you have any, don't wait until they expire! [starry eyes][heart][please])
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