The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Chapter 254 The Queen Mother intervenes

While drinking tea, Xiao Jingchen concealed the triumphant smile in his eyes.

Before leaving yesterday, Wanwan specifically asked him to make a trip to the palace today to help Miss Li.

According to Wanwan, although Miss Li is a shrewd and calculating person, she is also a very affectionate one. The two met at the Treasure Pavilion last time, and Wanwan promised Miss Li that she would help her when the time was right. Obviously, this is a good time.

So when he learned that Li Xinhan had taken Gu Ziming to the palace to seek justice from the emperor, he arrived here before them, just to give Gu Ziming a piece of his mind.

As long as someone offends Wanwan, the King of Chu doesn't mind kicking them when they're down, as long as it makes Wanwan happy.

If the ministers heard this, they would be heartbroken and would only condemn the king for his folly to indulge in women. They would certainly advise the King of Chu to be a decisive and ruthless war god, which would be the proper course of action.

As expected, the Emperor did not grant the Third Prince's absurd request. Instead, he followed the previous imperial decree, making the eldest daughter of the Li family the primary consort and the second daughter of the Gu family a secondary consort.

Furthermore, the Emperor also promised Li Xinhan that no illegitimate children would be allowed to be born before her daughter gave birth to a legitimate child. However, this was subject to a time limit of one year. It was impossible for a prince to remain childless for an extended period.

Li Xinhan knew this was the Emperor's greatest concession to him, so he did not push his luck. Instead, he was even more grateful, especially towards the Prince of Chu, for he owed the favor not to the prince, but to the princess.

Because his daughter suddenly came to his study last night and told him about the Princess Consort's kindness, since the Princess Consort had set up the stage, it would seem a waste not to help his daughter sing a song.

At this moment, Gu Hanjiao collapsed onto the bed in tears, and no matter how Xiao Yuheng tried to comfort her, he couldn't soothe her.

"Jiao'er, don't cry anymore, be careful of the baby in your belly."

"Children, what more children do we need? The Emperor has already promised that if Li Qianyu doesn't have children, no one else can have children either, sob sob sob."

Gu Hanjiao suddenly collapsed onto the quilt, pounding her fists. Xiao Yuheng felt even more heartbroken seeing Gu Hanjiao crying her eyes out.

"Everyone outside is saying that I tried to steal a chicken but lost the rice instead. Now look what's going on with the child in my belly. Am I supposed to kill our child now that I'm going to become your queen?"

Xiao Yuheng's eyes widened in surprise, and he quickly stepped forward to promise, "Of course not. We must take good care of our child. Don't say such discouraging things. Besides, Mother is also looking forward to her first grandson."

Gu Hanjiao sobbed and fell into Xiao Yuheng's arms. Her slender fingers were red from gripping the Third Prince's clothes too tightly.

Xiao Yuheng lowered his head and his chin rested on Gu Hanjiao's hair. A strange fragrance wafted over, making Xiao Yuheng feel somewhat dazed, and he felt even more guilty towards the woman in his arms.

"Jiao'er, don't cry. I'll do anything as long as you don't cry."

A glint of triumph flashed in Gu Hanjiao's eyes.

"What can I do? Now our child can't even be born of a concubine, let alone a legitimate one. All we can do is... Waaah, Brother Heng, I had someone look at this child and it's a boy. Poor child."

"No, we'll think of a way. We'll definitely be able to keep it, won't we?" Xiao Yuheng was also tempted when he heard that it was a boy, after all, he was also someone who valued offspring very much.

"But what about Mother Consort and Father Emperor..." The Third Prince was somewhat troubled. If he pleaded for mercy again, his father would definitely be furious.

Gu Hanjiao grasped Xiao Yuheng's hand and said, "Jiao'er will certainly not make things difficult for Brother Heng. There is another person who can definitely help us."

"Who?"

"The Empress Dowager."

Xiao Yuheng's mind was in a daze. The closer he got to Gu Hanjiao, the more guilty he felt. The more guilty he felt, the more he wanted to get closer. Looking at her beautiful face, he didn't know how to comfort her. He knew she was pregnant, but he just couldn't control himself.

Xiao Yuheng pounced on Gu Hanjiao and threw her onto the bed. Regardless of where they were, they began making love.

Hearing the commotion, Chunlu and Qiushuang at the door looked at each other and blushed. They wisely moved a little further away to help their masters guard the door.

Finally, Xiao Yuheng agreed to Gu Hanjiao's request that the concubine and the princess enter the mansion at the same time.

After the Third Prince left, Chunlu helped Gu Hanjiao get dressed and do her makeup again.

"Miss, why not ask the Third Prince to enter the residence before the Princess Consort?"

"Entering the palace early is definitely not an option. It wouldn't just be a matter of losing face, but a direct act of defiance against imperial authority. The Third Prince has already done enough for me, and he's clearly not getting any favors from the Emperor. Moreover, the Third Prince said that the Emperor has started assigning him tasks, so it's best not to anger the Emperor any further."

"Miss is truly considerate of the bigger picture, but it's too unfair to her."

Upon hearing this, Gu Hanjiao let out a cold snort.

"Feeling wronged? A temporary grievance is nothing. Besides, we still have Consort Yu Xinqiu. With her there, what are we afraid of? I imagine the Noble Consort is quite satisfied that Consort Yu and the Princess entered the family together. Although she is very satisfied with her daughter-in-law Li Qianyu, she ultimately prefers her niece from her own family. With her leading the charge, we can just watch the show."

Chunlu nodded. Yes, Consort Yu is backed by Consort Yu, so it shouldn't be just her young lady who suffers misfortune as a fellow consort.

"But Miss, what should we do about the young master?" This was what Chunlu was worried about. After all, the Emperor had agreed to what Lord Li said, which put the young lady's unborn child in a very awkward position. Would they really have to abort the child with a bowl of medicine? Wouldn't that mean the young lady's plan would fall through?

Gu Hanjiao couldn't possibly have been unaware of this, nor did she know what Li Xinhan was thinking. The news of her pregnancy had already spread throughout the capital, and her family couldn't possibly be unaware of it, yet he still made such a request. It was truly outrageous.

It seems she was forced from being a wife to a concubine. What is a concubine? In modern terms, that's a mistress. But Gu Hanjiao doesn't consider herself a mistress because she and Heng-gege are true love and a couple. If we have to distinguish right from wrong, then Li Qianyu and Yu Xinqiu are the real mistresses.

"Hmph, it doesn't matter. Doesn't the Li family pride themselves on being a family of scholars and poets? Then they should be bound by poetry, literature, and etiquette. Let them know that our Gu family is not to be trifled with either."

"Good! This is my daughter, Gu Ziming!" Gu Ziming's voice came from the doorway. He had been worried that his daughter might come to see him, but when he heard her say this, he suddenly remembered that he had raised her himself, and she would naturally inherit his spirit.

The Gu family now only has three children. Gu Changqing is still studying at the academy and is said to be doing very well, with a good chance of passing the imperial examination. The younger child has not yet been born, so the family only has one child, Gu Hanjiao.

"Father." Gu Hanjiao quickly stood up to greet him. "I'm glad you don't blame me. It's all my fault for dragging you down."

"It's alright, even without you, Your Majesty..." Gu Ziming, having been immersed in the court, could guess some of the Emperor's thoughts.

His Majesty has wanted to reform the system for quite some time now. Although the position of Prime Minister cannot be abolished directly, his power can be gradually weakened until the position becomes dispensable. At that point, removing it will not be opposed by anyone.

After all, scholars across the land still aspire to become prime ministers as their lifelong goal. If this position were suddenly removed, it would inevitably affect the aspirations of some scholars who were striving for official rank.

"What are you going to do next?"

“Father, this concerns my future. I have my own plans. Li Xinhan cares about his reputation, so he has no choice but to accept the world’s judgment!”

Before long, a large crowd gathered at the gate of Li Xinhan's residence, the Minister of Revenue. The second young lady of the Gu family cried all the way to the gate of the Li family, sobbing uncontrollably, almost kneeling in front of their door.

"Sister Li, please see me, please save me."

Gu Hanjiao was dressed in white, her eyes were red, and she was thin and frail. A beauty is a beauty, even when she cried she was beautiful.

Those around her thought, so what if Miss Gu has a bad reputation? She's beautiful, after all. The Third Prince is a lucky man.

The servant at the door looked rather unpleasant. Seeing that more and more people were gathering around, he said with difficulty, "Miss Gu, my mistress is currently unable to receive guests. You should go back."

But Gu Hanjiao completely ignored what the servant said and continued to cry, "Sister Li, I dare not compete with you for anything, I only beg you to spare my child's life, even if..."

Gu Hanjiao seemed to be thinking of something sad, and large tears fell to the ground.

"Even if it means giving my child to my sister to raise, I would be willing to do it, just please give him a way to live."

Everyone then realized that Miss Gu had come to plead for mercy.

Everyone suddenly remembered that there had been rumors circulating for the past two days that Miss Gu was pregnant and had an ambiguous relationship with other men, making it seem like the Third Prince was being cuckolded. There were many different opinions.

Gu Hanjiao's shout confirmed that she was carrying the Third Prince's child.

This brings us to the matter of how Lord Li went to the palace to plead for a favor for his daughter, preventing other concubines from giving birth to children before the princess.

People couldn't help but start speculating: what would happen to the child in Miss Gu's belly? Would the palace send someone to abort the child? But the Gu family wasn't to be trifled with; Miss Gu's father was the Prime Minister, and her sister was the future Princess Consort of Chu.

Everyone was talking at the door. After a while, the Li family's gate opened, and at that moment, Gu Hanjiao seemed to be unable to bear it and knelt down.

Gu Hanjiao had her own plans. She knelt down at the perfect moment, and as soon as Li Qianyu came out, she accepted her bow. In that case, Gu Hanjiao would be in a difficult position.

But things didn't go as planned. It turned out that it was Madam Li and that scoundrel Gu Qingwan who went out, while Li Qianyu was behind them.

"Gu Qingwan, what are you doing here!" Gu Hanjiao stood up abruptly. She couldn't stand seeing Gu Qingwan. Whenever she saw Gu Qingwan, she forgot what the word "weak" meant.

"It seems my dear sister is still in good health, not as weak as I thought. Spring Dew and Autumn Frost, why don't you help Miss up? I'll take you back."

Gu Hanjiao then came to her senses and quickly picked up a handkerchief and placed it on her eyes. The handkerchief was covered with ginger juice, and it could make her eyes feel sore and dry even without being very close to it.

"Sister, I didn't expect to see you here. Are you here to help me? I know you love me the most. Sister Li, please, for my sake, give me and my child a way out."

Gu Qingwan couldn't help but find it a little funny; Gu Hanjiao really didn't let go of any suspicious opportunity.

Although Li Qianyu was composed, dignified, and very shrewd, she was completely shocked by Gu Hanjiao's shameless act.

However, Li Qianyu quickly realized what was going on. She glanced at Gu Qingwan, wondering what her attitude was now.

"Miss Gu, this..."

"I'm just here to help Miss Li with her makeup. As for the rest... I'm an outsider and can't really interfere. Although that person is my sister, it's only in name."

The group was reminded of what had happened to Miss Gu before. The second young lady and the eldest young lady had a blood feud over the murder of their mother. The fact that the two of them were jealous of each other even when they didn't meet was considered a testament to the magnanimity of a young lady from a prestigious family. What else could they expect?

Seeing Gu Qingwan's attitude, Li Qianyu made up her mind.

"Miss Gu, your wedding is just around the corner, you should go back and get some rest. As for what you're saying, I don't understand it at all."

“How could Sister Li not understand? I am already carrying His Highness’s child in my belly, but your father will not allow my child to be born. This… with just one word from Sister Li, this child can be saved.”

Gu Hanjiao's purpose in coming here was very clear: to get Li Qianyu and the Li family to acknowledge the child. Regardless of whether it was the eldest son of the legitimate wife or the eldest son of a concubine, as long as the Li family recognized him, the Emperor would not pursue the matter any further, since Gu Hanjiao was carrying the blood of the Xiao family.

Just then, someone from the palace arrived.

"The Queen Mother's order!"

Lord Li, along with his wife and daughter, knelt at the door. Gu Qingwan followed suit. Seeing that even important figures were kneeling, the surrounding commoners had no reason not to kneel as well, so they all knelt down in unison.

Meanwhile, the Third Prince was not idle either. This time, he did not go to the Emperor, but instead asked Consort Yu to plead with the Empress Dowager, his grandmother.

The old lady was overjoyed to hear that Gu Hanjiao was pregnant with her great-grandson. You see, although many of her grandsons were married, none of them had a son or daughter yet.

She prayed countless times before Buddha about this matter, and finally one came, but it was a boy. How could she just accept it and then reject it?

"No! This is my great-grandson; no one is allowed to touch him!"

Then she issued an imperial edict to the Li family, which clearly stated that the Empress Dowager knew about the conflict between the Li and Gu families, and that it was all caused by the good-for-nothing Third Prince, but the child was innocent.

Since the child was conceived before the Emperor's decree, it cannot be counted. After this child, the Third Prince's residence is not allowed to have any other illegitimate children until the Princess Consort gives birth to a legitimate son.

Gu Hanjiao wiped away her tears, knelt on the ground and exclaimed, "Thank you for your protection, Empress Dowager."

Li Qianyu clenched her fists tightly, never expecting that Gu Hanjiao was so capable that she could actually persuade the Empress Dowager.