Chapter 352: Sacrificing the Pawn to Save the Chariot (1)

A month later, Yan Hongtian's eyes were still deep, neither amazed nor burning, bottomless. Qingfeng's heart, which had been relatively calm, didn't know why it lost its rhythm.

"Qing... Qingfeng? How is it possible..." Xin Yuening had just entered the room, and her gaze immediately stuck to Qingfeng's face, her eyes full of jealousy and hatred. Just a plain face, without any makeup, was already as beautiful as a flower, her skin glowing and moist.

Shui Xin couldn't help but exclaim. The Ghost Doctor was indeed worthy of his reputation. Such a Qingfeng was truly beautiful enough to stun the harem. Such a beauty, let alone men, even she, a woman, couldn't bear to look away.

Xin Yuening's low gasp brought Qingfeng back to her senses, allowing her to break free from those deep black eyes. Lowering her eyelids, Qingfeng bowed and saluted: "Qingfeng greets the Emperor, long live the Emperor, may the Empress Dowager be blessed with peace, may the Empress be blessed with peace."

When Lou Suxin first saw Qingfeng, she was also stunned, but she was quickly attracted by the chaos in the room. Beauty Yu was hiding timidly by the door, Zhen Zhen was kneeling on the ground, looking lost. A palace maid was holding a child in her arms, and several guards were still protecting her. The atmosphere in the whole room was heavy, sad, and filled with a strange feeling. Lou Suxin was full of questions and looked at the person who had invited them here, asking: "Qingfeng, what on earth is going on here?!"

Qingfeng was still saluting, and no one told her to rise, so she simply bent her knees and knelt halfway on the ground, replying: "For this matter, the fault is entirely mine." Although she said it was her fault, there was no sign of guilt on her face.

"Get up and speak."

This was the first sentence Yan Hongtian said after entering. It was as low as usual, not particularly severe, but Qingfeng could feel that he was angry.

Qingfeng stood up, didn't raise her head, and continued: "Since I entered the palace, I have been very compatible with Zhen Zhen. Later, because Zhen Zhen plotted against the Empress, I stopped associating with her. Even so, the bond between us remained. I was worried that her life in the Cold Palace was too bitter, so I came to visit her, only to find out that she was pregnant with the Emperor's child. At that time, she begged bitterly to give birth to the child herself and raise him well. I was also pregnant at the time, and out of a moment of soft-heartedness, I didn't tell the Emperor about this. On the day of the celebration, Zhen Zhen gave birth to the prince. Since then, I have come here many times and saw that this place is really not suitable for a child to live. After thinking about it for a long time, I finally dared to ask the Emperor and the Empress Dowager to come here today to make the decision."

"You... what did you say?!" Hearing so much, Lou Suxin only cared about one point: was that child really the Emperor's flesh and blood? Lou Suxin looked at the child in Ruyi's arms and said anxiously: "This, is this my precious grandson?! Quickly, bring him over for me to see!"

Because of Qingfeng's face, Xin Yuening was already full of jealousy, and now a prince had appeared out of nowhere. She was almost driven crazy, no longer maintaining her usual dignity, and shouted angrily: "This is simply absurd! Empress Dowager, you must not believe her nonsense. When a prince is born, how could no one in the palace know? Who knows where this wild child came from to impersonate the prince. Qingfeng, you want to fabricate a fake prince out of thin air to confuse the royal bloodline, you... you deserve to die!"

Lou Suxin was actually suspicious of the child's origin, but her eyes couldn't help but look at the little baby in Ruyi's arms.

Xin Yuening almost pointed at Qingfeng's nose to scold her. Qingfeng raised her head slightly, her clear eyes calm, and replied unhurriedly: "Why does the Empress need to be so furious? When Zhen Zhen gave birth, besides me, there were also Imperial Physician Lin, a midwife, and several palace maids present. It is not difficult to calculate the day she conceived. The Jingshi Hall should have records; it can be checked whether Zhen Zhen served the Emperor during that period."

Every time Qingfeng said a word, Xin Yuening's face worsened by a point. Qingfeng seemed to feel it wasn't enough and added at the end, "If the Empress still doesn't believe it, you can invite all the imperial physicians in the palace to perform a blood test to recognize relatives."

Hearing the words "blood test to recognize relatives," a flash of panic crossed the eyes of Xin Yuening, who had always been aggressive, and she couldn't respond.

Qingfeng had said this much, and even without verification, Lou Suxin already believed it for the most part. Looking at Zhen Zhen, who was kneeling on the ground and ignoring their arrival, silently shedding tears, Lou Suxin asked: "Zhen Zhen, I ask you, is this truly the Emperor's flesh and blood?"

Zhen Zhen slowly raised her head. At this moment, she no longer had the aloofness of a year ago when she was fearless of framing others and walked into the Cold Palace calmly. Her eyes, soaked with tears, searched the crowd for the figure deeply hidden in her heart. That person was standing right in front of her, and Zhen Zhen knew he was looking at her. When she met Yan Hongtian's deep black eyes, her tears instantly blurred her vision, and she could no longer see the person in front of her clearly. Zhen Zhen lowered her head dejectedly and replied in a low voice, "Yes."

"Heaven bless us! Quickly, let me hold him." Getting Zhen Zhen's affirmative answer, Lou Suxin couldn't hold back anymore and hugged the baby tightly. The child was already half a year old, and there was a faint shadow of Yan Hongtian between his brows. Lou Suxin's heart softened into a puddle.

A child had suddenly appeared. Although Xin Yuening was angry, she didn't take it to heart. It was Qingfeng—the Emperor had already been obsessed with her when she was an ugly monster, and now with this enchanting appearance, wouldn't the Emperor...

The more she thought, the more panicked she became. Xin Yuening no longer hid her jealousy and hatred for Qingfeng and changed the subject, saying: "Even if this child is truly royal blood, Qingfeng helped Zhen Zhen give birth in the Cold Palace and deceived the Emperor, she is equally guilty."

"Qingfeng knows she is guilty and leaves it to the Emperor to deal with."

Did she want to use the Emperor to suppress her? She was so fearless! Xin Yuening had already been holding her breath, and now she was even more furious, shouting: "I am the mistress of the harem, I can punish you right now! Someone—"

Hearing the Empress's shout, the guards guarding outside the door looked at each other, but no one dared to move. The Emperor was still standing there; who dared to be presumptuous? The Empress could pretend not to see the Emperor's livid face, but they only had one head, and they could see it clearly.

"Gao Jin."

The low voice rang out in the room. The volume was not high, but the imperial dominance contained within it instantly silenced everyone in the room. Even Xin Yuening, who had been burned by anger, felt this aura and closed her mouth.

Gao Jin stepped forward and replied in a low voice: "This servant is here."

"Leave this matter to you to verify. The child will be taken back to Dongsheng Palace by the Empress Dowager first. The crimes of Qingfeng and Zhen Zhen will be punished together after the investigation is clear."

After speaking, Yan Hongtian didn't look at any of them again, left the room full of women who were either annoyed or sad, and strode out of the Cold Palace. Qingfeng frowned and thought for a while, then quickened her pace to chase after him.

"Emperor!" The Emperor handed this matter to Gao Jin to investigate, and the result was self-evident. He was indeed favoring Qingfeng. Why? She was his wife! Seeing Qingfeng following him out, Xin Yuening was unwilling and wanted to chase after him, but her wrist was grabbed by a clever force. Shui Xin's soft voice rang in her ear: "Prince Jing will come to pay his respects in a while, Mistress, let's go back." Shui Xin didn't use much force, but Xin Yuening couldn't break free and watched Yan Hongtian disappear before her eyes.

Lou Suxin looked at this chaotic scene, sighed in her heart, hugged the child in her arms tighter, and hurried away from this foul place.

"Han'er! Han'er..."

In an instant, the group of people left cleanly. Fuling had followed the Empress Dowager earlier and had been standing outside the door watching. In the empty room, Zhen Zhen lay on the ground as if all her strength had been drained. Fuling couldn't bear it, walked to Zhen Zhen's side, and wanted to help her up, but was pushed away by Wu'er.

"You don't need to worry too much, Mistress... Mistress will take good care of Prince Han. You must take care of yourself." Fuling didn't know what to say, comforted her hurriedly, and then ran out of the Cold Palace, not daring to stay long, feeling stifled and uncomfortable in her heart.

Yan Hongtian walked very fast. Qingfeng chased after him without thinking. It wasn't until she reached out to stop Yan Hongtian and met his somewhat surprised black eyes that Qingfeng realized she was too eager. But no matter what, that child must be raised by her. Lowering her eyelids to avoid Yan Hongtian's gaze, Qingfeng said in a low voice: "Would the Emperor like to have dinner with me tonight?"

Qingfeng knew Yan Hongtian was looking at her. Even without raising her head, she could feel his gaze was more burning than it had been in the Cold Palace earlier. After waiting for a long time, Yan Hongtian didn't speak. Qingfeng hesitated whether to raise her head, when her hand suddenly felt warm. Yan Hongtian was holding her hand, and there was a faint sigh in her ear. Qingfeng didn't know if she had misheard.

"Let's go."

Her hand was suddenly held by Yan Hongtian, and Qingfeng trembled. Yan Hongtian held it tighter. Qingfeng wanted to break free, but after seeing the clear tooth marks on Yan Hongtian's thumb web, her heart felt a bit sour and swollen.

The two returned to the Qingfeng Palace, neither saying anything. Tonight's dinner was very rich, but unfortunately, neither Yan Hongtian nor Qingfeng had an appetite, so they ate a little and had it cleared away.

"Yue Sheng has left?" Yan Hongtian asked while drinking tea.

"Yes." Qingfeng just nodded. Her heart was actually very conflicted. This was the first time they had sat down so calmly to talk since Zhi'er left. She knew that Yan Hongtian was not indifferent to Zhi'er's death, but she still couldn't control herself from blaming him, especially after knowing that the child didn't die of illness and that he had sent someone to take away the medicine dregs from the beginning. This blame seemed to have turned into a kind of resentment. She even felt that Yan Hongtian might know there was another reason for Zhi'er's death, but he was unwilling to investigate the cause. Such speculation made her very painful.

"Come here."

This seemed to be Yan Hongtian's habit of calling her. Compared to the violence during their first confrontation, the faint warmth in this "come here" made Qingfeng unable to take a step.

Yan Hongtian was never a patient person. Qingfeng didn't move, so Yan Hongtian reached out directly and pulled her into his arms.

"You want that child?"

Qingfeng's body was a bit stiff. Leaning in Yan Hongtian's arms, it was a long time before she replied: "Yes, I want him." Worried that Yan Hongtian wouldn't agree, Qingfeng immediately added: "I need a child now."

Need? Yan Hongtian's black eyes turned cold. When his gaze swept over Qingfeng's fingers, it darkened suddenly. He pulled up her hand to examine it carefully. The cuts from the porcelain shards on her palm still had several faint, crisscrossing scars, and her slender fingertips were covered with small, broken wounds. They weren't serious, but they looked very uncomfortable. Yan Hongtian's voice turned cold: "How did you get these?"

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 353 =====