After a heavy rain at noon, the flowers and trees in the garden had drunk their fill of rainwater, and the leaves were washed clean and bright.

Some delicate flowers had been knocked off by the rain and scattered along the roadside, looking quite lovely.

Jing Rong walked very slowly, clutching her stomach.

Even though the rain had left the air refreshingly cool, her nose was still dripping with fine sweat.

“Miss, please sit down and rest,” Jadeite said as she helped Jing Rong to the Crane Pavilion, using a handkerchief to wipe her sweat.

Outside the pavilion, a few cranes leisurely paced about, their demeanor noble and ethereal.

The court physician had advised her to move around more, but her body felt heavy and she grew tired quickly.

A maid brought a warm cup of osmanthus plum juice, and Jing Rong drank most of it, feeling a bit refreshed.

Jing Rong sighed and unconsciously placed her hands on her swollen belly.

If she calculated the days, the child would be born in three months.

That would also be the day of the Crown Prince’s wedding to Miss Chen Yanru of the Duke’s family.

Chen Yanru was the Queen’s niece and also the Crown Prince’s cousin; they were a match made in heaven.

Her fingers tightened unconsciously.

“Miss, are you feeling unwell?” Jadeite noticed her pale complexion and quickly asked.

“It’s nothing,” Jing Rong shook her head.

“This isn’t the time to be stubborn. I’ll call the court physician immediately.”

Jing Rong still shook her head.

“Miss is worrying too much,” Jadeite, seeing her condition, guessed what might be troubling her and said comforting words: “Miss is carrying the dragon’s offspring. The Crown Prince hasn’t married yet and cannot give a title now, but don’t worry about your health. Everything will fall into place when the time comes.”

A title?

Is that something she could hope for? Jing Rong’s gaze darkened slightly. What she was thinking about was merely surviving.

Jadeite continued to persuade her, “If you worry too much, it could harm the child.”

The child inside her… how did he come to be?

“Young lady, please sit up for a moment. I’ll add another cushion for you to rest more comfortably.”

Jing Rong came back to her senses at the words, remembering who she was supposed to meet.

She got up and walked towards the pavilion’s exit. “No need to rest. I shouldn’t keep Aunt Anlan waiting.”

Feicui smiled indifferently. “Your status with Aunt Anlan is different now. Let her wait a bit.”

Jing Rong said nothing and just continued walking.

Along the way, she encountered many palace servants of the Eastern Palace, all of whom greeted her respectfully with, “Good health, young lady.”

These repeated greetings of “young lady” only reminded her of her now unique and elevated status, making her even more anxious.

Jing Rong had come to the Eastern Palace nine months ago.

According to palace rules, a year before the princes’ weddings, maidservants would be sent by the Office of Internal Affairs to educate them on bedroom matters. For the Crown Prince’s wedding, the Office of Internal Affairs naturally treated this as a top priority.

The instructing maids from the Office of Internal Affairs were not just any common maids.

They were known as Chamber Maids, and their selection followed three principles: first, they had to be of dignified appearance and graceful figure; second, they had to be knowledgeable about bedroom matters; and third, they had to be virgins.

Each criterion alone wasn’t hard to meet, but fulfilling all three was challenging.

Therefore, these Chamber Maids were not chosen randomly but were meticulously trained by the Office of Internal Affairs.

Jing Rong entered the palace at the age of twelve.

She had been learning under the Chamber Maids in the Imperial Kitchen, consistently ranking first in every assessment.

She thought she was surely on her way to the Imperial Kitchen, but she caught the eye of Aunt Anlan from the Office of Internal Affairs.

At first, she felt lost, but as time went by, she began to see the benefits.

The art of the kitchen and the art of the bedchamber were both forms of service to their masters.

The Imperial Kitchen was busy from morning till night, where a single mistake could be costly, and success was hard to come by.

The Office of Internal Affairs was different. It was leisurely, and the masters of the harem treated its members with utmost courtesy.

Nine times out of ten, they would receive rewards for their service.

After all, the Department of Reverence handles the green cards for the various masters, and while the Emperor is the one who flips the cards, it is the servants who set them up.

There are many twists and turns involved, and many opportunities to manipulate things.

Who wouldn’t want to learn some tricks from the Department of Reverence to better win the Emperor’s favor?

Jing Rong had smoothly served in the Department of Reverence for six years until this year, when the Emperor bestowed a marriage for the Crown Prince.

The Empress attached great importance to this matter and instructed the Department of Reverence to present the selected candidates for her inspection.

Jing Rong was present during the first selection, but the Empress chose a palace maid who was gentle and graceful.

That night, the maid returned in tears, reportedly having been reprimanded by the Crown Prince.

The Department of Reverence immediately selected two more candidates, but despite not being reprimanded, they remained unspoiled after spending over ten days in the Eastern Palace.

Aunt Anlan had no choice but to bring them back.

The Crown Prince, being the Emperor’s eldest legitimate son, meant that there were not many suitable palace maids in the Department of Reverence.

The previous three candidates were all top-notch in appearance and skills, yet they all failed.

Ultimately, the task fell to Jing Rong.

The head eunuch was very straightforward: if the task was not handled well, Jing Rong would be sent to the laundry bureau, just like the other three.

Aunt Anlan explained the situation to Jing Rong in detail.

All four of them were being prepared for the Crown Prince, and if Jing Rong failed where the previous three had not succeeded, the Department of Reverence would not be able to deliver and would face severe punishment from the Empress.

Jing Rong felt somewhat dejected.

The three previous candidates had been better prepared than she was, and they all failed.

How could she succeed?

Despite her dejection, the task had been assigned to her, so Jing Rong had to proceed with utmost caution.

Jing Rong had never met the Crown Prince, but she had heard many rumors about him in the palace.

The Crown Prince, being the eldest legitimate son, was originally highly valued.

However, he was gravely ill at birth and, following the advice of a high monk, was sent to Daxiangguo Temple for foster care.

He stayed there until the age of fifteen, having survived his calamities before returning to the palace.

Others thought he had been wasted during his time away, but the Crown Prince accomplished several major tasks upon his return, leading the Emperor to firmly establish him as the heir.

Having been isolated from worldly affairs for so long in the temple, the Crown Prince was exceptionally aloof and disciplined, and after his enthronement, he had never engaged with women.

The wedding was approaching, and the Empress was eager to have grandchildren.

She instructed the Office of Internal Affairs to ensure the Crown Prince understood his duties.

However, the Office of Internal Affairs repeatedly failed.

If they couldn’t handle this task, her fate might be worse than the three sisters sent to the laundry.

The Crown Prince refused to touch those three maidservants.

Was there something wrong with him? If it was a psychological issue, maybe it could be resolved.

But if it was a physical ailment, she wasn’t a doctor—how could she cure him?

Jing Rong waited anxiously for a day before Aunt Anlan brought her to the Eastern Palace.

After a bath and freshening up, she was taken to the Crown Prince’s bedchamber.

The Crown Prince was as aloof as the rumors said.

Just a glance from him made her too scared to move. While serving dinner, Jing Rong accidentally knocked over a dish.

The Crown Prince turned to look at her, and for a moment, she thought she was doomed.

But then he softly said, “Come here.”

And she stayed for three whole months.

When the palace staff came to take Jing Rong back, the imperial doctor surprisingly found she was pregnant.

The Chamber Maids of the Office of Internal Affairs, including Jing Rong, were all supposed to be infertile.

Yet, this incredible event happened.

The Crown Prince didn’t let the Office of Internal Affairs take her back but kept her in the Eastern Palace, where her belly grew day by day.

Jing Rong entered the side hall with a heavy heart.

“Greetings, young lady,” Aunt Anlan said respectfully as Jing Rong arrived.

Jing Rong hurriedly helped her up.

Feicui smiled from the side, “Our young lady has been eagerly waiting for you, Aunt Anlan. You two have a good talk; I’ll go check if the young lady’s medicinal soup is ready.” With that, she left.

Once she was gone, Jing Rong let her anxiety show. “Aunt, what should I do?”

Chamber Maids were not concubines, and due to their infertility, they couldn’t be titled consorts.

According to the rules, they were supposed to return to the palace after their duties.

Not only did Jing Rong stay in the Eastern Palace, but she was also pregnant with a royal child.

Aunt Anlan sighed.

Even with her decades of experience in the palace, she didn’t know what to do. “This is all fate. Heaven has given you a child. With the Crown Prince’s support, just stay peacefully in the Eastern Palace.”

“No, Aunt, the Crown Prince… he doesn’t really care about me,” Jing Rong hesitated and lowered her voice, “The Crown Prince was just curious because he hadn’t experienced it before.”

During the day, it was not worth mentioning, but the Crown Prince was always indifferent to her.

At night, when the feelings ran deep, Jing Rong often lost herself in her affection for him, but he never reciprocated.

He enjoyed the physical pleasures but remained cold and unfeeling inside.

To him, she was merely a plaything, destined to be discarded sooner or later.

The future Crown Princess, Chen Yanru, was from the Duke’s family and was the Crown Prince’s cousin.

Jing Rong had seen Chen Yanru in the palace; she was a proud and noble lady as bright as the stars and the moon.

How could Jing Rong ever compete with her or bear a child before her?

The final outcome was likely to be sending the mother away and keeping the child.

Aunt Anlan, who had been in the palace for so many years, was well aware of such things as well.

Jing Rong lowered her head. “Aunt, please find a way to save me.”

Aunt Anlan, who had been a maid from the Duke’s family when she accompanied the Empress to the palace, had done many things for the Empress over the years and was someone who could be relied upon.

Seeing Jing Rong in such a state, she pondered for a moment. “It might be difficult. Anyway, I’ll bring it up when I greet the Empress tomorrow. If the Empress allows you to return to the palace, the Eastern Palace will naturally have to let you go. If the Empress allows you to stay here… at least you’ll have a legitimate status.”

“Aunt…” Jing Rong, who had always been under Aunt Anlan’s guidance and care since entering the palace, did not expect her to consider so much for her.

If she could obtain a legitimate status, others would not be able to dispose of her so easily.

Jing Rong quickly knelt down. “I will never forget Aunt’s great kindness.”

“Get up. It might not work out,” Aunt Anlan said.

She spent a while talking with Jing Rong and then left for the palace.

Jing Rong took a gold-inlaid jade bracelet from her wrist as a token of gratitude, but Aunt Anlan declined, only accepting it after Jing Rong insisted it was to repay her years of teaching.

Aunt Anlan, knowing Jing Rong’s current status, eventually accepted it.

After sending Aunt Anlan off, Jing Rong’s unsettled mood over the past few days finally calmed a little.

Although the Crown Prince was cold and domineering, he had always been filial to the Empress.

If the Empress commanded her to return to the palace, the Crown Prince would have no say in the matter.

Would he be angry?

Jing Rong sat anxiously, fearing that the Crown Prince might notice something when he returned.

The day felt exceptionally long, and by the time the moon was high in the sky, the Crown Prince had not yet arrived.

Jing Rong had no separate quarters in the Eastern Palace and had always stayed in his sleeping quarters.

Without the Crown Prince’s return, she dared not sleep.

“Miss, have some bird’s nest soup. His Highness has sent word that he will return later.”

It was not Jadeite.

But bird’s nest was something she needed daily, so Jing Rong accepted it without suspicion.

After a few spoonfuls, she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her abdomen.

As the moment of reckoning approached, Jing Rong smiled wryly.

She had thought it would be a case of sending the mother away to keep the child, but what others wanted was a death that claimed two lives.