Qin Jieyu nodded first, then thought about her current situation and felt sad again: “If I don’t stay quiet and obedient, what else can I do?”

“I may seem to be living a good life, but in fact, your father has never taken me to heart over the years. If it weren’t for your grandmother’s protection, I don’t know what kind of life we ​​would have lived.”

The Fourth Prince’s nose was full of sourness, and he whispered to comfort her: “When a person is successful, he will inevitably suffer setbacks. A moment of success may not mean that you will have the last laugh. A moment of failure may not necessarily be a bad thing.”

Qin Jieyu said with red eyes: “Don’t worry, I can still hold on. Even for you, I can’t give up easily.”

After a pause, she continued, “Today’s incident has come to this point. The Queen Mother hates both Empress Qiao and Lu Mingyu to the core. There is no possibility of reconciliation. There is still a long time to go, and it is still unknown who will win.”

The Fourth Prince had to give a few more instructions: “We’ll talk about the future later. Anyway, the most important thing right now is to admit your mistakes and bide your time. Don’t make Royal Father unhappy again.”

“My Royal Father asked my mother to stay in the palace and reflect on herself. She cannot leave the palace. From now on, I will come to talk to you every day.”

Qin Jieyu’s eyes were wet as she hugged the Fourth Prince in her arms.
Men were not reliable at all. The only person you could rely on was your son.

The Fourth Prince was so uncomfortable being held that he struggled to get free. Then he ordered the palace servants to prepare lunch and ate some while watching Qin Jieyu.

Qin Jieyu had no appetite. No matter how delicious the food was, it tasted like chewing wax in her mouth.

As she was eating, tears started falling again.

She was not Xianfei now, not even Qinfei, but only Jieyu. It was Emperor Yongjia who personally issued an imperial decree to demote her. How could she have the face to show up in front of people in the future?

…

Yanxi Palace.

“Is your father really so angry that he didn’t even have lunch?” Meng Guifei raised her eyebrows and asked the Eldest Prince.

The Eldest Prince sighed, “Yes. I wanted to comfort my father, but he was angry and refused to see anyone. I had no choice but to leave Wenhua Palace.”

Meng Guifei’s eyes flashed with mockery, and a cold smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. “That wretch from the Qin family, relying on the Empress Dowager being her yímǔ^[1]maternal aunt or mother’s sister and blindly trusting her, has no idea how much she has whispered into her ear. Asking for some food, clothes, or a bit of private spending would be fine. The Emperor is not a stingy person and would not treat her poorly.”

“But she has gone too far and now dares to use the Empress Dowager as a pawn. The Emperor has been unhappy for a long time. Last year, he severely punished her for this matter.”

“She doesn’t repent and is using the same old tricks again. This time she has hit a wall! Not to mention the Empress, even that fierce woman Lu Mingyu is not something she can handle.”

“You deserve it! You deserve it!”

Meng Guifei laughed heartily.

Seeing Qin Jieyu in such bad luck, she couldn’t help but feel happy.

The Eldest Prince sighed again, “One gains while the other loses. Everyone knows that Qin Jieyu’s misfortune is due to Lu Shi. She is pregnant. I’m afraid she will be able to walk sideways in the palace from now on.”

Lu Mingyu was in high spirits and Li Jing’s popularity was rising, which was not good for him at all.

Meng Guifei smiled coldly again: “What are you afraid of? If she is pregnant, it may not be a boy. Even if it is a boy, it may not be born safely. It is not uncommon for women to have miscarriages after getting pregnant.”

The last sentence was full of viciousness and cruelty.

The Eldest Prince subconsciously raised his head and took a look. He was startled by the coldness in Meng Guifei’s eyes: “Mother! Don’t do anything rash! This concerns the heir. If my Royal Father knew about it, I’m afraid…”

Meng Guifei was a little impatient and rolled her eyes at the Eldest Prince: “I just said it casually, and I don’t intend to do anything. Why are you so nervous!”

The Eldest Prince then stopped talking.

…

In Yihua Palace.

Su Fei covered her mouth with a handkerchief and giggled for a while. She managed to hold it back, but after a while, she giggled again.

Li Hao and Li Chang looked at each other, both feeling helpless.

“Mother, please laugh a little quieter.” Li Hao reminded in a low voice: “Don’t let it spread out. It won’t be good if someone hears it.”

Li Chang nodded in agreement: “Yes, mother, you’d better stop laughing.”

Su Fei was beaming with joy, laughing so happily: “How can I not laugh at such a happy event? Qin Fei, haha haha… You schemed so hard and finally got promoted to Xianfei, but now you’re just a Jieyu. You’re not even as good as my previous Zhaorong. Hahaha…”

Su Fei laughed for more than half an hour and didn’t even eat a few bites of lunch.

Li Hao first sent Li Chang back to his bedroom for a nap, then said to Su Fei, “Mother, I don’t know what happened in Shouning Palace today. Why did the Emperor suddenly issue such an imperial decree?”

Su Fei had limited manpower in the harem, so she did not dare to inquire about what was happening in Shouning Palace at will. Hence she only knew the result but not the process.

Su Fei didn’t care about these things and smiled casually: “Who cares? Anyway, I’m happy as long as I know that Qin Fei is in trouble.”

Li Hao: “…”

Sometimes, Li Hao also felt helpless.

His mother was such a weak and shallow woman. He wanted to discuss deep and complicated things with her, but she didn’t understand anything at all.

Li Hao calmed himself down and whispered, “Lu Mingyu was summoned to the palace today. Later, the Empress sent someone to deliver a letter to the Golden Palace. Royal Father stopped the morning court and went to Shouning Palace. If we think about it from beginning to end, there must be something we don’t know.”

Su Fei snapped out of her delight over Qin Jieyu’s misfortune and thought for a moment. Suddenly, her expression changed. “Oh no! Lu Mingyu must be pregnant!”

It was not difficult to draw this conclusion. If one thought about it carefully, Qin Jieyu would not be unlucky for no reason. It must be Lu Mingyu’s fault.

What could have made Qin Jieyu unable to hold back and take action?

Li Hao had obviously already thought of it, and a hint of bitterness flashed in his handsome eyes: “It should be like this.”

Su Fei could no longer laugh. A trace of gloomy and twisted hatred flashed across her gentle and beautiful face.

This Lu Mingyu actually got pregnant so quickly! Much earlier than in the previous life!

If Lu Mingyu gave birth to a legitimate grandson… Li Jing already had the advantage of being a legitimate grandson. If he had a legitimate son, he would be even more important in the heart of Emperor Yongjia.

Li Hao was in a gloomy mood. The mother and son were silent for a moment, and then they both suppressed their chaotic emotions.

“Ah Hao, in two days, it will be your wedding day.” Su Fei calmed down and forced a smile: “Don’t worry about things you shouldn’t worry about.”

Li Hao replied calmly: “There is no need to say anything, mother. I know what to do in the future. When Meng Yunluo gets married, I will treat her well.”

Su Fei cheered up and said with a smile: “It’s good that you think so.” She gave another earnest instruction.

Li Hao listened silently, the scene of Lu Mingyu and Li Jing smiling at each other flashed through his mind, and the bitterness in his heart almost overwhelmed him.

…

(End of this chapter)