Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved

Chapter 69: Chapter 69: The Prince is about to be cuckolded
 

Murong Jiu could only think of faking illness the moment the possibility arose.

But what could be delayed for a moment could not be postponed forever.

As she “fell ill,” the Empress found even more reason to send the Imperial Physician to check her pulse.

At this moment, Eunuch Shi whispered from outside the door, “Prince, Princess Consort, Eunuch Wang from the palace is waiting in the drawing room.”

The very person connecting them to the palace had been sent.

Jun Yuyan said to her, “Sooner or later, we must visit the palace. I will shoulder the issues, but before we go, you should eat something.”

“Prince, I am not hungry.”

She felt a bit of tightness in her chest and did not want to eat.

Jun Yuyan was right; they had to visit the palace sooner or later. Eunuch Wang was the Chief Eunuch beside the Emperor, but she remembered, this person ultimately belonged to the Second Prince and the Empress.

If the person had come, and they didn’t go to the palace, there would likely be other excuses to force their visit.

“Eat something anyway. I had the kitchen prepare some delicacies that pregnant women in the civilian population love. You eat what you wish—there must be something to your liking.”

With that, Jun Yuyan went out and said to Eunuch Shi, “First, have the kitchen send up the meal. As for Eunuch Wang, just say the Princess Consort is feeling unwell and ask him to wait half an hour.”

Chun Tao and Zhen Zhu came in to help Murong Jiu get washed and change her clothes.

Because they were going to the palace, the attire had to be more exquisite.

Jun Yuyan stood under the flower trees in the courtyard waiting, when suddenly Hidden Guard Zhou Chen appeared behind him and whispered:

“Prince, that Cui Hua in the Princess Consort’s courtyard pretended to change the cleaning tools in the outer courtyard and fell deliberately into the arms of Young Master Fu, leaving her handkerchief behind on purpose.”

Jun Yuyan asked coldly, “How did the Third Young Master react?”

“The Third Young Master appears to have never encountered a strange woman before. He blushed, thinking Cui Hua was a delicate and pitiable maid of the Prince Mansion, picked up the handkerchief, could not find Cui Hua, and since he had to leave the mansion, he just kept it.”

Jun Yuyan said nothing.

Zhou Chen asked, “Master, shall we give a warning to the Third Young Master?”

“As the son of a general, if he cannot discern whether a woman has ulterior motives, he will get deceived again in the future. Don’t intervene, just keep an eye on him when he visits again.”

People only learn their lesson after being deceived once.

Of the three sons in the Fu Family, this Third Young Master was the most naive and easily deceived, though capable in both letters and martial arts, he seemed more like a scholar.

No wonder Cui Hua targeted him.

Zhou Chen wanted to add more, but at this point, the servants from the kitchen arrived with the meal. Jun Yuyan said, “Go call Xiao Wen over, and also send for Divine Doctor Zhai.”

Ah Jiu liked the child Xiao Wen; usually, when he was around, Ah Jiu managed to eat more.

Zhou Chen thought to himself, what was Young Master Fu in comparison; you are truly the one bewitched by a woman.

However, the Princess Consort was indeed exceptional, seeming to have completely severed ties with the Second Prince, and most importantly, she was carrying the Young Heir in her womb.

Zhou Chen swiftly went to the outer courtyard and brought Xiao Wen over.

After changing, Divine Doctor Zhai also entered.

When Murong Jiu finished dressing up, she saw Jun Yuyan and Xiao Wen sitting together at the octagonal table waiting for her, the table laden with various types of food, while the master stood at the doorway looking out at the scenery in the courtyard.

“Princess Consort!”

Xiao Wen, jubilant, jumped off the chair and was about to rush into Murong Jiu’s arms but was stopped by a hand gripping the collar of his neck.

Jun Yuyan put him down and cautioned, “The Princess Consort is pregnant; be careful not to bump into her stomach.”

Xiao Wen’s eyes widened, excitedly saying, “That’s great, now I’ll have more brothers and sisters, and when I grow up I can protect them!”

He considered Murong Jiu as his only family and had said he’d protect her when he grew up. Now with more brothers and sisters, there were more people he could protect, and he was even happier.

This little fellow, young as he was, showed loyalty, a trait of his father, the Prince of Yundian.

Ah Jiu did well in bringing him back.

Murong Jiu couldn’t help but chuckle, tenderly stroking his head.

Jun Yuyan said to the doorway, “Divine Doctor Zhai, come and join us for the meal, with you here, I believe Ah Jiu’s appetite might improve.”

Murong Jiu looked at him, her eyelashes trembling slightly. The Prince was too kind to her, making it hard for her not to overthink.

But reason told her that the Prince was merely caring, and would do the same for anyone else.

“No need to call me Divine Doctor, just Old Man is fine. I’ve lived incognito for many years and am no longer a divine doctor. Moreover, I’ve given up practicing medicine to only collect herbs and teach my disciple.”

Murong Jiu laughed helplessly, “Master, that’s not how you use the phrase ‘to wash one’s hands of it.’

“Close enough,” he replied gruffly. “Alright, let’s eat, I’m starving to death.”

Old Man Zhai sat down first and promptly grabbed a crystal dumpling with his chopsticks.

He was always casual, indifferent whether he was at the Prince Mansion or elsewhere, and careless of the fact that the Prince was beside him.

Murong Jiu was already accustomed to her master, who acted so freely and unbound by worldly rules, but she worried the Prince might be displeased. To her surprise, the Prince unmasked and said to her:

“Ah Jiu, Uncle Zhai is enjoying it so much, you should try some too.”

Old Man Zhai nodded in approval, “The flavor is indeed good; the cooks at the Prince Mansion are quite skilled.”

The dishes on the table were served in small portions, yet there were many varieties that looked exquisite and appetizing, with sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, and salty flavors all available.

Murong Jiu was in good spirits, and she ate more this evening than at noon, and felt no discomfort after eating.

Jun Yuyan, on the other hand, didn’t eat much, keeping his attention on which dishes Murong Jiu preferred.

After observing, he noted that her taste leaned heavily towards sour, she could also handle spicy, but she hadn’t touched sweet dishes at all, probably finding them hard to swallow.

With this in mind, after dinner, he took Murong Jiu for a walk in the back garden to aid digestion before slowly taking her to the palace.

Eunuch Wang had already sent someone to urge them several times, each delayed by Eunuch Shi, citing the Princess Consort’s ill health.

Eunuch Wang felt annoyed but said nothing; after all, the pregnant one was Princess Consort Ling. Despite his suspicions about the legitimacy of her pregnancy, as Prince Ling protected her and considered the unborn child as an Imperial Grandson, Eunuch Wang dared not show disrespect.

Finally, when they arrived at the palace, Eunuch Wang quietly blew out a breath of relief.

Once inside, he had completed the Empress’s covert task. From then on, the matter would largely be out of his hands.

He scoffed internally, awaiting the Emperor’s command for the Imperial Physician to examine her, and then Prince Ling would become a cuckolded Prince!

The Emperor and the concubines had been waiting in the Imperial Garden.

Still, Noble Lady Hui was the most favored concubine. Although Jun Yuyan had discovered that she used Exotic Fragrance to enchant the Emperor, he hadn’t alarmed her and couldn’t expose her suddenly, as it required a gradual approach.

Given the concubines’ dedicated efforts to win the Emperor’s favor, the Emperor said nothing about Jun Yuyan and Murong Jiu’s tardiness.

“You’ve arrived. I’ve heard that Murong Jiu is pregnant; is this true?”

The Emperor asked Jun Yuyan with a slightly tipsy look.

Jun Yuyan bowed his head, “Answering Father Emperor, Ah Jiu is indeed pregnant.”

The Emperor narrowed his eyes, “But you and Murong Jiu have only been married for twenty-eight days; can she really have conceived so quickly?”