Dad, open the door. I'll bring your mistress back for you.

"What's the matter that has you called me here in such a hurry?"

As soon as Shen Huaizhong returned to the Shen Mansion after court, he was invited to Songhe Hall by the old woman guarding the gate.

Old Madam Shen was leaning against the bed with a thick headband on her head. When she saw him come in, she hurriedly asked someone to bring him a chair.

"Master, please sit down first." Mrs. Shen said with a smile.

Shen Huaizhong frowned, his tone somewhat dissatisfied: "Why did you call me here so urgently? What's the matter?"

Old Madam Shen smiled even more happily: "It's a happy event, the third son is going to have an heir."

Shen Huaizhong's originally impatient expression instantly relaxed, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes: "The third son's wife is pregnant? After so many years, she can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. The second son's wife is in charge of the household, so let her go to the third room in the next two days to see if there is anything missing."

Mrs. Shen's smile froze for a moment, then she laughed dryly twice: "It's not the third daughter-in-law, it's Xiangxue."

"Xiangxue? The concubine of the third brother? Didn't she feed her the contraceptive soup? How could she be pregnant?" Shen Huaizhong's face turned gloomy and his voice became stern.

Madam Shen quickly explained, "That's right, I watched him drink that bowl of medicine with my own eyes. Maybe this is what they call fate, which can't be stopped."

Shen Huaizhong suddenly cast a sharp glance at Madam Shen, his eyes revealing suspicion and dissatisfaction: "I asked Shen Zong to personally brew that bowl of medicine and told him to bring it over and watch Xiangxue drink it. How could you have watched her drink it with your own eyes?"

Old Madam Shen had already prepared an excuse. She calmly replied, "Xiangxue is a woman, and the third son's concubine. How could she allow a man from outside to enter her room? Although Shen Zong didn't enter the room, he stood in the yard and watched Xiangxue drink the bowl of medicine."

After hearing this, Shen Huaizhong frowned slightly and turned to look at Shen Zong who was standing beside him, hoping to get a more accurate answer from him.

Shen Zong carefully recalled the situation at that time, and then answered respectfully: "In reply to the master, when I was carrying the medicine to Concubine Xue's courtyard, I happened to meet the old lady. It was Nanny Gui who took the medicine and brought it in. Concubine Xue drank it and brought out the empty bowl."

When Shen Huaizhong heard this, his expression became even gloomier.

He asked, "Why didn't you tell me when this happened?"

Shen Zong nervously explained, "I did see Aunt Xue finish the medicine in the courtyard. I thought this was the completion of the task assigned by the master, so I didn't report it."

Beads of sweat rolled down Shen Zong's forehead, and only then did he realize that he had not been staring at the medicine bowl.

When Nanny Gui took the medicine bowl from him, she turned her back to him and walked into Xiangxue's room, which was only half open at that time.

If the old lady had made arrangements in advance, she would have someone stand behind the door holding a bowl exactly the same as the original one, and swap the two bowls the moment Nanny Gui entered the room.

In this way, although he saw Xiangxue pick up the bowl and drink the medicine, in fact, the bowl she picked up was not the one he gave to Nanny Gui.

At this moment, the old lady announced that Aunt Xue was pregnant, which seemed to further confirm his guess.

After all, the recipe for the infertility soup came from the palace, so it should not be wrong.

However, Shen Zong was unable to express his inner speculation at this moment, because Aunt Xue's pregnancy was an established fact.

If he admitted that it was his fault now, the master would definitely hold him accountable.

"Master, maybe there is a problem with the prescription itself. Now is not the time to dwell on it. How should we deal with it?" Shen Zong asked anxiously.

Shen Huaizhong tapped the tabletop lightly with his fingers as he spoke slowly, "A bastard is the root of family chaos. Get rid of him."

After he finished speaking, he paused for a moment, then continued, "Shen Zong, this time we're going to Furong Pavilion to ask for a contraceptive prescription. The prescriptions in the palace won't work, but the ones in the brothel will definitely work."

Shen Zong was about to agree when Old Madam Shen said hurriedly, "No, I don't agree!"

Shen Huaizhong turned the ring on his hand and said calmly: "This child shouldn't have appeared in the first place. Now we just need to get everything back on track."

However, Old Madam Shen suddenly wiped away her tears and choked up as she said, "The third son is already over thirty, but he doesn't even have an heir. I do, even if you don't feel bad for your son. The third son is so unmotivated now because he has no son to carry on the family line. If Xiangxue could give birth to a son, I'm sure the third son would be able to have a proper life."

After hearing what Old Madam Shen said, Shen Huaizhong fell into deep thought.

He thought carefully about what Old Lady Shen said. Could it be that the third brother is living like this all day long really because he has no son?

He wanted to compare himself with others, but there were four sons in his family. The eldest and the second son had many sons, while the fourth son had not yet married and had not been seen for several years.

In other families, even if the wife does not give birth to a son, there will be a few illegitimate sons.

However, the rule of the Shen family is that a man can only take a concubine when he is 40 and has no children.

When the third son's wife gave birth to Aning, she was injured in labor and was unable to get pregnant again.

So over the years, Shen Chuning was the only child in the third wife's family.

But if Shen Qingjiang really has to wait until he is forty years old to take a concubine and have children, and then start working hard to make progress, wouldn’t it be too late?

Shen Huaizhong sighed helplessly and said, "Let's let her give birth to the child first. After the birth, we can kill the mother and keep the child, and send the child to be raised by the third son's wife."

Upon hearing this, Old Lady Shen burst into laughter and said happily, "I knew you also cared about Qingjiang, Master! But there's something else that's a bit troublesome right now."

Shen Huaizhong asked impatiently, "What's the matter?"

Old Madam Shen replied worriedly, "Doctor Chen took Xiangxue's pulse. It was like a rolling bead, which is indeed a sign of pregnancy. However, the pulse is not strong enough. I'm afraid this pregnancy is not stable."

Shen Huaizhong frowned and said unhappily, "If the fetus is unstable, just drink the medicine to stabilize it. What's the point of telling me this? Don't even think about using my badge to invite the imperial physician this time. It's not worth it for a concubine. If you can save the baby, save it. If you can't, forget it."

Madam Shen: "Yes, I thought so too, but Xiangxue said that she missed Wan'er too much and was worried that she would suffer in the ancestral temple, so this pregnancy is not going well. Master, can you please take Wan'er back to live with you for a while, and then send Xiangxue back to the ancestral temple after her pregnancy is stable?"

Old Madam Shen had a good plan. She pretended to be sick and failed to bring Wan'er back, so she had to take a risky move and let Xiangxue pretend to be pregnant.

Otherwise, if Shen Jingwan stayed in the ancestral temple for too long, there would be no such person as Miss Shen Jiawan in the Beijing circle.

If we can really bring Wan'er back this time, we definitely can't send her back again.

However, after hearing what Old Lady Shen said, Shen Huaizhong said firmly: "No!"

At this moment, a figure flew into Madam Shen's arms.

"Grandma, Wan'er misses you so much."