Chapter 37: Miscarriage
Seeing Chu Yi collapse, Lord Liu leaned in close to the side of his neck and sniffed. “It’s a medicinal scent? How rare…”
Chu Yi didn’t understand what this person was smelling and only tried to avoid contact with him.
He struggled to lift his leg and stomped on Lord Liu’s shoe.
Lord Liu had already drunk a lot of wine and was overweight. Now, his figure swayed, looking as if he couldn’t stand steadily.
Despite the pain in his foot, he was still unwilling to let go of the hand gripping Chu Yi’s wrist.
Chu Yi tried to pry away the fingers holding his wrist but couldn’t break free at all. Just as he was about to be pulled backward along with Lord Liu, Suifeng crashed in through the window.
Suifeng immediately rushed forward, grabbed Lord Liu’s wrist, and twisted it upward. The man cried out in pain.
Only then was Chu Yi able to retract his hand. He shot a look at Suifeng.
Before the others could call for help, Suifeng immediately raised his hand and sprinkled a sleeping powder. After smelling it, Lord Liu fainted.
Chu Yi clutched his chest, feeling a wave of heat surge… He slowly moved to the window and breathed in the fresh air to alleviate the discomfort.
Suifeng, on the other hand, picked up Lord Liu with one hand, threw him onto the bed, and then walked to Chu Yi’s side to check on his condition. “Your Ladyship, are you alright? Suifeng was late…”
Chu Yi shook his head. Suifeng had arrived in time, and he hadn’t been violated by that man.
Seeing that Chu Yi seemed to be in a bad state, Suifeng immediately raised a hand to take his pulse.
Chu Yi must have been affected by that man’s xìnxiāng. Was he nearing his Rain and Dew Period?
“Your Ladyship, shall I inform His Majesty?”
“Don’t!” Chu Yi immediately stopped him. “There’s no need to inform him of such trivial matters.”
Suifeng had no choice but to comply. He saw that Chu Yi didn’t know martial arts, so the two of them couldn’t leave through the window. And since Chu Yi was His Majesty’s person, he couldn’t just casually wrap an arm around him and jump out the window like he would with a companion.
The only way to escape now was to walk out of the main door of this private room, which was extremely difficult.
Only after feeling his body temperature gradually drop did Chu Yi’s thoughts gradually return.
The most important thing now was to leave first. “Can you take me out with you? Through the window?”
Suifeng’s eyes widened unconsciously. Was Consort Wan not afraid of ruining his reputation?
“If Your Ladyship doesn’t mind, of course it’s possible.”
Chu Yi was puzzled. What was there to mind?
“Then I’ll hold your arm?”
Suifeng hesitated for a moment before extending his hand. Chu Yi took it, and the two of them quickly left the teahouse.
The three of them returned to the teahouse in the east of the city. Chu Yi booked a private room and lay down on the bed.
Lianfang immediately squatted by the bed, carefully examining Chu Yi. “Your Ladyship! Are you uncomfortable? You shouldn’t have put yourself in danger…”
Chu Yi waved his hand. Only now did he begin to ponder the words he had heard in that teahouse.
—We’ll sign the contract later. Only after everything in the contract is fulfilled can I let you go.
A contract? Could it be that kind of indenture contract? To be taken as a slave? But they would let him go…?
He asked Lianfang and Suifeng, “Besides indenture contracts, what other kinds of contracts are there?”
Lianfang was puzzled but replied, “This servant only knows of indenture contracts for slaves like me…”
Suifeng: “Hidden guards like us all have contracts. They can be understood as life-and-death contracts… If we can live to the age of thirty, we can leave. If not, we swear to keep the secrets to our graves.”
Chu Yi nodded. It seemed there were many types of contracts, and he didn’t know where to start.
Suifeng was standing by the window and happened to see Moshu returning. He must have already asked the imperial physician about Lady Lu’s matter.
Chu Yi hoped that Moshu could bring him some information.
Suifeng went downstairs and brought Moshu into the private room. Moshu was panting heavily. He quickly poured a cup of water and drank it all in one go.
Then he reported, “Miss, the imperial physician said that Lady Lu seems to have had several miscarriages, and all of them were when she was already six or seven months pregnant. It should be caused by external forces, not Lady Lu’s own body. Yesterday, the imperial physician also vaguely saw the bruises on Lady Lu’s arms and said that the old and new marks overlapped. He didn’t know the reason. In the imperial physician’s opinion, the old wounds seemed to be years old, about one or two years; the new wounds were recent, only a few days old.”
Chu Yi’s brows were tightly furrowed. How cruel must one be to abort a fully formed fetus several times?
Lu Wenhan was not human!
He raised a hand to his forehead, trying his best to suppress his anger. No matter how difficult this case was, he had to investigate it.
He thought of Lady Lu’s condition, and only now did he understand why. No wonder Lady Lu was so mentally unstable that day. It would be strange if she didn’t go mad after being abused like this…
For now, he had to find out what that teahouse was up to.
He looked up at Suifeng. “Suifeng, go to that teahouse and check again. Find out what’s going on on that fourth floor… And send someone to follow Lu Wenhan’s movements and see when he goes in and out of that teahouse.”
Suifeng: “Yes!”
Moshu and Lianfang stayed in the teahouse with Chu Yi.
Chu Yi leaned against the bed. Perhaps he had exhausted his energy after experiencing so much during the day, for he fell into a deep sleep without realizing it.
When he woke up, he found it extremely difficult to sit up. He had to support himself with one hand on the edge of the bed and use a little force to barely get up. He looked down and was shocked to see that his abdomen was already slightly swollen. He was so stunned that he froze on the spot, not knowing what to do.
He hadn’t even had time to touch his abdomen when “Sheng Qianheng” was already standing in front of him, saying, “Don’t fool around! This is an imperial prince! Even if you’re unwilling, you must give birth to him!”
Hearing this, Chu Yi’s face instantly turned pale. Only then did he realize that he was already pregnant.
Seeing his silence, “Sheng Qianheng” raised a hand to pinch Chu Yi’s chin, his tone becoming even more severe. “Are you thinking of going on a hunger strike to starve Zhen’s child to death? Don’t even think about it!”
Chu Yi couldn’t process the scene before him for a moment and could only shake his head.
“Do you think you can soften Zhen’s heart by crying like this? In your dreams!” After saying that, “Sheng Qianheng” once again squeezed Chu Yi’s neck fiercely and said viciously, “You are already my consort. Even if you don’t want to give birth, you have to!”
Chu Yi tremblingly raised a hand to his belly. He wished that this was all an illusion, that he couldn’t be pregnant.
But the real curve of his palm shattered his hopes…
The cold words of “Sheng Qianheng” by his ear were like sharp blades piercing his heart, making him collapse onto the bed with nothing to say.
It wasn’t until waves of pain came from his abdomen that Chu Yi’s face turned pale. His gaze was drawn to the bright red blood spreading between his legs.
The scene before him had changed at some point. He was tied to the bed by several people, unable to move.
Chu Yi only felt the pain become more and more intense, almost exhausting his strength to speak.
The midwife rushed out of the hall and reported to “Sheng Qianheng,” “Her Ladyship can’t give birth. If we delay any longer, neither the adult nor the child will be saved…”
In his daze, Chu Yi only heard “Sheng Qianheng’s” words from outside and felt his heart turn cold.
“Save the child!”
Chu Yi sat up abruptly, his hands tightly gripping the brocade quilt on the bed, his knuckles white from the force.
He only felt that his back was drenched in sweat, as if it had soaked through his clothes. Fine beads of sweat were on his forehead, sliding down his hairline.
He clutched his heart, gasping for air. He immediately looked around and only felt relieved when he saw that he was still in the teahouse. It had just been a nightmare.
The night wind blew through the cracks in the window, bringing a hint of coldness that swept across Chu Yi’s back. He couldn’t help but shiver.
He subconsciously curled up into a ball, hugged his knees, and began to sob softly.
Lianfang, who had been guarding by his side, heard Chu Yi’s soft sobs, raised a hand to rub her sleepy eyes, and walked to the bed. “Your Ladyship, did you have a nightmare?”
Chu Yi unconsciously shifted to the inner side of the bed. Realizing it was Lianfang, he immediately reached out and grabbed her hand, saying anxiously, “Lianfang, quickly check if I’m pregnant!”
Lianfang looked at Chu Yi’s panicked expression and found it strange. What was wrong with her master?
She took Chu Yi’s pulse and carefully felt it. “Your Ladyship, you do not have a pregnancy pulse. You can rest assured.”
Only then did Chu Yi feel at ease. He covered his belly; it was all flat…
Lianfang: “Your Ladyship, are you unwilling to get pregnant?”
Even though he knew that Lianfang was his person, he still kept a guard up. “I’m still investigating the case right now. It’s inconvenient to be pregnant at this time…”
Lianfang had followed Chu Yi for many years and could naturally read his expression. She continued, “Your Ladyship, in this world, regardless of gender, as long as they are a Kunze, they are all willing to enter the palace as a consort. If they can give birth to an imperial heir, they can soar to success. Your Ladyship, why are you unwilling…?”
Chu Yi couldn’t explain the reason to the characters in the book. Moreover, the Sheng Qianheng in his dream was exactly as described in the book… How could he know that the currently kind Sheng Qianheng wouldn’t become like the one in his dream?
“I just had a nightmare, and today I found out about Lady Lu’s tragic experience. I’m very worried about getting pregnant…”
Lianfang poured a cup of tea for Chu Yi and comforted him, “Your Ladyship, dreams are the opposite of reality. Besides, His Majesty treats Your Ladyship extremely well. He is not comparable to that Lord Lu… His Majesty can’t wait to dote on Your Ladyship.”
Chu Yi smiled faintly. “I’m tired. You should rest too…”
Sheng Qianheng was flipping through memorials in Yangxin Hall, but his gaze was dazed by the sudden rapid twitching of his right eye.
Just at this moment, Suifeng’s message happened to arrive at the palace. He hurriedly unfolded the note.
Her Ladyship was in danger today. Fortunately, this subordinate arrived in time. There is something strange about the teahouse one li from the Lu residence.
Sheng Qianheng’s heart tightened. No wonder he had been feeling uneasy all day. Chu Yi was almost in danger? Perhaps he shouldn’t have let Chu Yi investigate the case…
Thinking of this, Sheng Qianheng immediately stood up, intending to go out of the palace, but was stopped by Head Eunuch Liu. “Your Majesty, the matter with Qianlin has not yet been resolved…”
Sheng Qianheng sat down again helplessly. He supported his forehead with his hand, no longer in the mood to review the memorials. He could only turn his attention back to discussing the matter of Qianlin.
After being startled awake, Chu Yi lay on the bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.
The moment he closed his eyes, his mind was filled with images of himself lying in a pool of blood, his belly swollen, at the mercy of others.
Since it was already midsummer, Chu Yi had piled the brocade quilt on the inner side of the bed. The faint sweat on his body made him uncomfortable.
The desire that had accumulated in his body made him curl up on the bed.
Chu Yi bit his lower lip, feeling that the heat on the back of his neck was unbearable…
