In the Wuhu County Yamen, the Wuhu County Magistrate was busy going in and out. He ordered a group of servants and yamen runners to pour tea, bring wine, and serve food. He was busy greeting the three important guests from the capital. No, it should be said that there were four of them. Because three of them were the emperor's elder brothers, and the other one might become the emperor's elder brother's Fujin in the future, he had to serve them well. Whether he could soar in the future depended on today!
However, the three brothers, Yuhe, Yuqi and Yureng, all had solemn expressions on their faces. None of them paid any attention to the Wuhu magistrate's bent waist. They didn't even touch the delicacies on the table. They just sat quietly and looked at the dazed Shen Xi Xi sitting on the chair beside them.
Yuqi was the first to break the silence." Fourth Brother, can you tell me why you're hiding a mistress outside?" With your status as a prince, it's not a problem for you to marry as many women as you want. Why do you have to do this?”
Yu He smiled and picked up a bowl of bird's nest porridge from the table. As he fed her gently, he said,""Because I love Little Light, I want her to be my woman and my wife happily, so I placed her in Shihu Garden and let her stay away from the prince's residence and stay away from trouble.”
Yuqi nodded." I know you love her. Otherwise, you wouldn't have abandoned your position as a prince and chased after her like a dog. You even plucked the flower feathers of the county magistrate of Gu'an, Chen Shan, for her." But are you really doing this to protect her? You knew that this matter would spread throughout the capital in less than three days, and even the Emperor would know about it, but you still insisted on doing this. Ling, what are you planning?”
Yu Lin continued to feed Shen Xi Xi and lowered his head to kiss the bird's nest by her mouth." Fifth Brother, you are a smart person. No tricks can escape your eyes, so why are you asking me?" You should have seen through it long ago, right?”
Yuqi let out a long sigh." I can tell, but I really don't want to believe that my gentlest Fourth Brother would use such a method to force his wife to leave home. Fourth Brother, this move of yours is really ruthless!”
Yu Chi's body stiffened slightly. He put down the bowl and kissed Shen Xi Chi's forehead. Then he straightened his body and stared at Yu Qi with a pair of deep eyes." I have to do this. Otherwise, Lan Xin and I will die together one day. I don't want to see that day come, so I have to make the first move."”
Yureng, who was beside him, spoke up," It sounds like Fourth Brother must have known about Lan Xin and Zhao Ying a long time ago. The question is, when did you find out?"”
Yu He sat down beside Shen Xi Xi and reached out to hold her hand tightly. His gaze followed his memories and fell into the distant past." I discovered it on the first day Lan Xin and I got married.”
Yuqi and Yureng were equally surprised." What?!"？You found out on the first day of marriage? How is this possible?"
"It's impossible indeed. Lan Xin is Surukhan's only daughter. Logically speaking, it's impossible for such a thing to happen. But in reality, Lan Xin was already not a perfect couple when she married me.”
His sharp eyebrows furrowed." The princess lost her virginity before she got married. This is a great humiliation for anyone. They could have sued the Imperial Clan Court to cancel the engagement, but why did you…"
"Fourteenth Brother, do you remember what the Emperor said to us when he summoned us into the palace the day before my wedding?”
"Remember, the Emperor said that the Imperial Court is currently using troops against the outside world, so we have to grasp and rope in all the forces that we can. We absolutely can't fall into the state of being surrounded by wolves and tigers like when we were in the Sacred Great-grandfather's time.”
Yu Chen nodded." That's right! The reason why Surukhan married his daughter to the capital was to rope in the Qing Dynasty's power to resist the enemies of the West. Because the Imperial Court was about to use troops against the outside world, the Emperor also wanted to rope in Surukhan, so he agreed to this marriage and appointed Lan Xin to me. However, the Emperor and Surukhan never expected that Lan Xin had already had an affair with someone before she married. This person... Guess who it is?”
Yuqi and Yureng looked at each other and said in unison,""Zhaoying?"
"It's Zhao Ying. He's the number one warrior of Surukhan, a general under Lan Xin's father.”
Yureng was shocked by what he heard." Fourth Brother, how do you know about Zhaoying?”
Yu Mao smiled faintly," Lan Xin said it when she was chatting with the servant girl. The servant girl accidentally told Arentai. You know that Arentai is a person who can't hide his thoughts, so he told me immediately."”
Yureng shook his head repeatedly." Ling, you're really calm. If it were me, I would have beaten Zhaoying to a pulp. You actually…"
"I actually endured it for four years. I actually wore this green hat for four years, right?”
Yureng was puzzled." Ling, why didn't you say it? Why did they wait until now?”
Yu He sighed,"There are several reasons but the most important ones are two. One is that I still do not understand Zhao Ying's motive for sneaking into Prince Ding residence. The other one was me waiting for Light to grow up.”
Yureng pointed at Shen Xixi, his face full of disbelief." Her?”
"Yes." Yu Chi looked at Shen Xi Xi lovingly and reached out to tidy her messy hair." Five years ago, when I passed by Fengyang, I happened to see her shopping with Shen Fang. At that time, she was only thirteen years old, but she was already so beautiful that I couldn't believe it and couldn't control myself. So from then on, I decided that I would have her for the rest of my life. No matter how much I had to pay, I would have her.”
"She is very beautiful, but this is not enough to justify you hiding her in the Ten Wat Garden to provoke Lan Xin." Because she was only thirteen years old at that time, and you didn't put it into action until last year, so don't tell me that you had already made this plan when you first met her five years ago.”
Yu He's handsome face flashed with a touch of surprise, and then he frowned," Fifth brother, it's best that the emperor doesn't pass the throne to you. Otherwise, I'm afraid that as officials, we won't have any fun at all, because everything will be seen through by you!”
Yuqi couldn't help but smile when he heard this." If you don't do anything wrong, why are you afraid that I, the King of Hell, will come knocking on your door in the middle of the night?"”
Yu He couldn't help but laugh." You know you're the Yama? Then stop talking and give me more ideas on how to deal with Lan Xin and Zhao Ying!”
"If you don't tell us, how can Fourteenth Brother and I help you?”
Yu He stopped smiling and said slowly,""In fact, I still don't know Zhao Ying's purpose. He abandoned his identity as Surukhan's number one warrior and entered the Prince's residence to be a small guard. On the surface, it seemed like he was protecting Lan Xin, but in fact, it wasn't the case. I had found more than once that someone had touched my study and searched my room. At first, I thought it was Lan Xin, but later I realized it wasn't her, but Zhao Ying.
Logically speaking, Lan Xin was once his lover. It was too late for him to be jealous. How could he watch his lover marry another man and even enter the Imperial Residence as a guard? How could he watch his lover be intimate with another man every day? What was even more unbelievable was his reaction when he found out that Lan Xin was infertile…"
"What reaction?" Yuqi couldn't help asking.”
Yu Hui looked at him." He was even more anxious than me. He went around looking for doctors, herbs, and even folk prescriptions for Lan Xin to try, as if he was her husband. What puzzled me even more was his expression when he found out that Light was pregnant. It was simply…"
Yureng heard this and was interested." What is it?”
"I'm as happy as if I've picked up a treasure.”
Yureng almost spat out a mouthful of wine." Picked up a treasure? What does your woman having a child have to do with him?”
"This is exactly where my doubts lie. He listened to Lan Xin's words and went to capture Xiao Guang, but he didn't kill her. He only imprisoned her. If he really loved Lan Xin, he would have helped her remove all obstacles, but he didn't. As far as I know, he even gave Xiao Guang a tocolopy medicine. Isn't that strange?”
Yuqi stood up and paced back and forth." It's very strange. If Lan Xin had to use her child to fight for favor because she was infertile, then she didn't have to imprison Miss Chen. If she wanted to silence her and get rid of her love rival, it would be wrong because she had let Miss Chen off. There was also something strange. Why would Zhao Ying, a man, get involved in the competition between two women? Could it be that child…"
Yuqi's eyes narrowed." Fourth Brother, what did you give the child? Or did you promise Miss Shen that you would give her anything after the child is born? Otherwise, why would Lan Xin snatch the child away when Miss Shen was unconscious?”
Yu He frowned again." No! When the child was born, I wasn't by her side at all. How could I give the child anything? As for Xiao Guang, I didn't give her anything other than the mandarin duck ring. I didn't give her any promises because I didn't need to. She's mine. Everything I have belongs to her.”
Yuqi raised his eyebrows when he heard that." A mandarin duck ring? Fourth Brother, you gave her the mandarin duck ring?”
"That's right! That is the token of love that the Emperor gave to Mother. Mother gave it to me, so what's wrong with me giving it to Light?”
"There's nothing wrong with it, but I heard that there's a legend of testing jade with a drop of blood. You don't know about this, do you?”
Speaking of the legend of the mandarin ducks, Yu He's face darkened," Fifth brother, why are you like other foolish people, believing in this legend?"”
"I have to believe it because Fourth Brother's actions are too strange and illogical!”
Yu He didn't say anything, but his silence confirmed the suspicion in Yu Qi's heart.
Yuqi was extremely surprised. He didn't expect his easy-going fourth brother to use his beloved woman and even his child to confirm a legend. "Fourth Brother, are you really…"
Yu He let out a long sigh," I had no choice. If I could, I would never do that. But Mother told me again and again before she died that I must find the treasure hidden in the Yuanyang Ring, so I had no choice but to do it."”
Yureng stood up curiously." Treasure? There are treasures in the mandarin duck ring?"
"I'm not too sure about this, but Mother said that the mandarin duck ring is an item of the gods and contains a rich amount of treasures. If it can be opened, it will be of help to the diminishing national treasury. On the contrary, if someone with ill intentions took it away, the consequences would be unimaginable.”
"I don't understand. What does the treasure hidden in the mandarin duck ring have to do with Lan Xin and Miss Shen?"”
Yu He said in a low voice: " Of course there is. Because the mandarin duck ring is a piece of blood jade. When it comes into contact with blood, the color will be more green and the luster will be more green. It is best if it is the blood of a newborn baby. This way, the original appearance of the mandarin duck ring can be restored and the secrets hidden inside can be seen."
Hearing this, Yureng suddenly thought of something, and that was Lan Xin's infertility. He said,"Fourth Brother, the reason why you looked for Miss Shen was because Lan Xin couldn't have children?”
"This is only one of the reasons. The real reason is that the time when Little Light was born is exactly what Mother said. Mother said that in order to verify this legend, one had to find a virgin who was born during the Yin period and give birth to a child with this virgin. Then, they would use this child to test the jade with blood. Only then would they know whether the legend was true or false. It just so happened that Light fit the criteria, so I went to look for her.”
Yureng stared at Yuchen in disbelief. Was this his fourth brother? Was such a scheming person his fourth brother, who rarely got angry and was known as the Bodhisattva Elder Brother?
"Fourth Brother, you…I really can't believe that you would do such a thing. You would hurt an innocent woman like this. You…you're too cruel!”
Facing his brother's blame, Yu He's face was full of pain." I had no choice. Think about it, when the people around you are all eyeing you covetously, what would you do? What would you do if you knew that this piece of mandarin duck ring could bring disaster to the imperial court and the country? Do you know why Mother gave me the Mandarin Duck Ring? She wanted me to verify this legend because this legend had killed too many people. She didn't want anyone to be harmed because of this legend, so after much consideration, I had no choice but to do it.”
Yureng still couldn't accept it, he looked at Shen Xi Xin and said,"But she's a young lady, and she gave her body and everything to you. You actually hurt her like this. No wonder she chose to run away. After all, which woman can face such a cruel truth? Which mother would be willing to give you the child she gave birth to after ten months of hard labor for you to experiment on?”
"I know, but what's the use of saying this now? "It's too late, the child has been taken away, and Little Light…" He couldn't say that Shen Xi Xi had gone crazy, because deep down, he didn't want to believe that she had gone crazy.
Yuqi, who had been silent for a long time, finally opened his mouth,""It's not too late. If it's already too late, why would I come all the way from the capital with Fourteenth Brother? He would have already personally captured them!"
"Fifth, you mean you know where Lan Xin and Zhao Ying are?”
"Yes, E Min found a man and a woman with a child who was just one month old in Tongzhou. Their behavior is very suspicious, so I guess it should be them.”
The three brothers gathered together and discussed in low voices how to catch Lan Xin and Zhao Ying and how to save the child.
However, they had never expected that Shen Xi Xi, who they had thought was already mentally retarded, would actually shoot out a ray of light from her eyes. That light was a mixture of sadness, despair, and pain.
Late at night, when everyone was asleep, Shen Xi Xi left the room alone and went to the stable. She wanted to find a horse, a horse that could take her away from Wuhu to Tongzhou.
In fact, she was not crazy. Her mind and feelings were normal. It was just that she was too shocked and in pain that she did not want to face Yu He, a man who hurt her again and again. That was why she closed herself in a world of her own. She did not speak, did not think, and did not cry.
Some people said that excessive pain would make a person lose their mind, but on the contrary, excessive pain could make a person stronger, and Shen Xi Xi was the latter.
She knew that Yu He's motive for wanting her to bear his child wasn't simple. She also knew that as a prince, there must be a reason why Yu He hid her in Shihu Garden. However, because she loved him, she was willing to endure the humiliation and discrimination of outsiders. She believed in him, guarded him, followed him, and handed over her pure body and everything without any regrets.
She didn't expect that her waiting for him would turn into a dream. All she got in return was heartbreak and pain.
Therefore, she let it go. When she found out that Yu Meng wanted Arentai and Zhao Ying to kill her, she left Yu Meng. She would rather beg all the way back to Fengyang with her child.
However, the test of heaven did not stop. Just as she gave up on Yu He and wanted to raise her child alone, her child, her precious baby, was taken away.
Why was the heavens so cruel to her? Was it because she, Chen Xi, shouldn't have overestimated herself and loved Yu Xi, the emperor's elder brother? Or should she not have accepted Yu He's conditions from the beginning? Or perhaps she should not have followed her father to the capital at all. Then, would all of this not have happened?
But what was the use of thinking about this now? The most important thing now was to use the mandarin duck ring to exchange for the child.
Thinking of the mandarin duck ring, Shen Xi Xin thought of the situation when Yu Xin gave her the mandarin duck ring. What did he say at that time, how he loved her and possessed her. Now the mandarin duck ring was still the same, but things were different.
If she knew that he wanted her to carry the child so that he could test her with his blood, she would not agree even if she had to die. If she knew that accepting this mandarin duck ring would cause her to lose her only child, she would never accept it no matter what!
She used to cherish this piece of jade because it was the only thing Yu He had given her other than the child. However, compared to the child, she would rather not have the jade ring. Even if it was given to her by the Emperor, she would not want it. She only wanted her child!
Thinking about it, Shen Xi Xi pulled out a horse and came under the moonlight. Just as she was thinking about how to get on the horse and get to Tong State, a figure silently came to Shen Xi Xi's side.
"I've been waiting for you here for a long time!"
Shen Xi was shocked and quickly turned around. A handkerchief stained with knockout powder covered her mouth and nose. Shen Xi Xi didn't have the chance to struggle, her body went limp and she fell down.
When Shen Xi Xi opened her eyes again, she was greeted by a handsome but gloomy face. She recognized him as Zhao Ying.
"You're awake."
Shen Xi Xi sat up and looked around in panic, as if she was looking for something.
Zhao Ying knew what she was thinking and said coldly,""Are you looking for the child?"
"Where is the child? Return my child to me."
"Sure, but you have to give me the mandarin duck pendant first!”
Shen Xi Xi only wanted to find the child now, so she couldn't care so much. She immediately took off the mandarin duck ring and threw it to Zhao Ying." Can you return the child to me now?"”
Zhao Ying took over the mandarin duck ring and looked at it carefully. He didn't seem very satisfied. "I heard that there was a pair of mandarin duck rings. Why do you only have one?”
"It doesn't matter if you believe it or not. I only have this piece on me. Please return the child to me!”
Zhao Ying looked at her quietly, wondering if he should return the child to her.
At this moment, Lan Xin walked in with the child in her arms." Give it back to her! This little thing is crying all day long. If you continue to teach me to take care of it, I'll definitely go crazy!”
Then, regardless of Zhao Ying's opinion, she returned the child to Shen Xi Xi.
Shen Xi Xi's hands trembled as she carried the child. She looked at him while crying and laughing. Then, she couldn't help but lower her head and kiss him again and again." Child, my child, mother finally sees you!”
Lan Xin glared at them in disgust." Quickly think of a way to make this child stop crying, alright? She had been crying since the evening and couldn't even sleep well. How annoying!”
Shen Xi Xi ignored Lan Xin. She placed the child on the table and checked his body first. After making sure that the child was fine, she turned around and unbuttoned her clothes to let her crying son suck the milk.
As expected, the child stopped crying as soon as he started sucking. His small hands were close to his mother's, and his small mouth was sucking hard. He looked very satisfied.
Seeing this, Shen Xi Xi couldn't help but tear up. Son, her son! She had finally found her son!
However, before Shen Xi could finish feeding, Zhao Ying took the child away and shocked Shen Xi." What are you doing?" Give me back my child, give me back my child!”
Zhao Ying stared at her expressionlessly." I'll return the child to you when I'm sure that this piece of jade is the mandarin duck piece." Lan Xin, tie her up!"
Lan Xin came forward with a rope in her hand and instantly tied Shen Xi Xi up until she couldn't move.
"What…what are you doing? Give me back my child, give me back my child!”
Zhao Ying said coldly," Don't be so long-winded. I said I would return it to you, but I have to test whether this mandarin duck ring is real or not."”
"How do you want to try? What do you want to do to my child?"
Zhao Ying squatted down and looked at her beautiful but panicked face." Remember what I said? You'll understand the use of the mandarin duck ring when the child is born, right? I'll let you understand now. Lan Xin, bring me the knife!"
Lan Xin smiled and handed Zhao Ying an extremely sharp dagger. "Younger Sister, don't blame Elder Sister for being cruel, wanting to use your child to test the jade. It's really Elder Sister's belly that doesn't live up to expectations and can't give birth to a son. Otherwise, I would have done it myself, why would I use your child to test it?”
Seeing Zhao Ying approaching her son inch by inch with a dagger, Shen Xi's heart almost stopped." No! Don't kill my child. I'll agree to anything you want. Please, don't kill my child!”
However, Zhao Ying was still unmoved. He grabbed the child and pressed him on the table. He stabbed the child's hand with a dagger in one hand, and the child cried in pain.
Shen Xi Xi almost fainted when she saw this." Don't, don't do this, don't kill my child, don't!”
Facing Shen Xi Xi's pleading and the child's crying, Zhao Ying was still expressionless. He took the piece of jade without even frowning and pressed down on the child's bleeding little finger, dripping the bright red blood onto the piece of jade.
One drop, two drops, three drops, the blood dripped onto the jade piece, covering it completely. Zhao Ying and Lan Xin waited quietly, waiting for the jade piece to change.
15 minutes, 25 minutes, 35 minutes had passed, but the mandarin duck ring was still the same as before. There were no changes, and even the original green color seemed to have lost its color because of the blood.
Lan Xin was extremely surprised." No! Did we try the wrong method?"
Zhao Ying shook his head." Impossible! I once eavesdropped on the conversation between Yu He and Arentai. That should be it.”
"Then why didn't it work?"
Zhao Ying fiercely turned around and glared at Shen Xi Xi," Let me ask you, is what you gave me really a mandarin duck ring?”
Shen Xi Xi was reluctant and sad. She looked at her son with tears in her eyes as he cried endlessly because of the pain." I have this piece on me. If you don't believe me, I can't do anything about it."”
Zhao Ying came to Shen Xi Xi step by step and squatted down. He suddenly grabbed her hair and pulled it back." Really? At this time, you still refuse to hand over the real mandarin duck ring. Don't you want your son's life?”
Shen Xi Xi's face was already covered in tears." I don't know. I've already given you what Fourth Master gave me. Can you please return the child to me?" He's bleeding. If we don't treat him quickly, I'm afraid of him!!”
Lan Xin, who was at the side, could no longer control her temper. She walked over and slapped Shen Xi Xi's face." Bleeding? If you still don't hand over the real mandarin duck ring, I'm afraid that not only will your son bleed, but he will also lose his life!”
"I didn't. I really gave you the mandarin duck ring!”
Lan Xin snorted." Oh? I thought that Yu He would find a great woman to have a child with. I didn't expect him to find someone who still values money more than his son. However, it was no wonder. After all, you were born poor and had never seen a pile of white silver. You also had never met a man like Yu Hui who was full of flowery words. It was understandable that you were deceived. But Yu He lied to you, but I won't lie to you. Let me tell you, if you don't hand over the real mandarin duck ring, don't blame me for being ruthless! Quickly, hand over the Mandarin Duck Ring!"
Shen Xi Xi wanted to cry but had no tears." I didn't. I already gave it to you. Why don't you believe me? If I did, would I not take it out?"
Zhao Ying's face turned cold." Since there's no such thing, then I'll use the child's life to pay for it. Anyway, this is what Yu Chi owes me. Who taught him to take away the woman and my son that originally belonged to me?!"”
After saying that, he raised the dagger and was about to stab the child.
Suddenly, a voice so cold that it made one tremble rang out!!
"Stop, the mandarin duck pendant is with me, take it!”#
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。