Best friends dressed up in ancient times to become mistresses? You run, I run too!

She had only been married for six months; at such a young age, her body was not yet fully developed, let alone bearing children…

She was afraid her life was in danger.

puff--

"Sister, are you...are you serious?"

Liu Zhiyi was so frightened that she sat up in shock from her deathbed, and her speech became somewhat slurred.

"Plotting to harm a royal heir? Sister, I wouldn't dare. I advise you to be careful too. Don't you have any idea how despicable your husband is?"

Waaah, she was scared.

The other party already knew about the child's existence, so she dared not make a move.

"Why don't you reconsider? Men may be despicable, but children are innocent!"

Shen Ningzhu rolled her eyes speechlessly.

"What are you thinking? I don't want him, I'm just afraid my body can't handle it, what does that have to do with that dog of a man?"

Besides, the man may be a bit of a jerk, but that has nothing to do with the child. I can't hurt an innocent little life just because I hate jerk men.

Liu Zhiyi breathed a sigh of relief. "Sit down, let me take your pulse first."

He placed his fingers on her wrist, and after a while, he looked up and said...

"Huh? That's strange, your body..."

Shen Ningzhu's heart skipped a beat.

"What's wrong with me? You're reacting so strongly, could it be that I have some incurable disease?"

Liu Zhiyi frowned and shook her head.

"That's not it."

"On the contrary, you are quite robust now. Compared to when I took your pulse two months ago, you are much better. It's like..."

It's like you've taken a lot of potent tonics. Strange, when did you secretly start taking tonics? How come I didn't know?

Shen Ningzhu was speechless.

She's just been staying in the Crown Prince's residence where she eats well and is well-fed; it can't be that exaggerated, right?

"Oh, by the way, the baby is very healthy. You know, even though you're small, you're developing extremely well. Plus, you exercise a lot, so you're already top-notch."

She paused, then continued,

"So, now..."

With that, Shen Ningzhu felt relieved.

"Then let's keep it."

Jiang Xuan Yan is an unruly, arrogant, and conceited man. Just because this child can say no doesn't mean others can decide his life or death.

Thinking of how that scoundrel would act when he went berserk, Shen Ningzhu felt a chill run down her spine, and the hairs on her body stood on end.

It's best not to abort the child if possible.

Liu Zhiyi breathed a sigh of relief.

"That's good, that's good. Sister, don't worry, as long as I'm here, I'll make sure you and your child are safe and sound. In the future, I'll even help you grow up to be beautiful and fair-skinned."

Before leaving, Song Hanchuan gave Liu Zhiyi a box full of silver notes. The two best friends counted them and found that it totaled 50,000 taels.

They had their food, drink, and even their bathroom needs paid for by others, so it didn't cost them a single penny.

Song Hanchuan has already helped Shen Ningzhu use the more than one million taels of silver she swindled from Prince Chen's mansion to buy estates and shops, and has even assigned professional people to manage them.

In other words, as long as they don't squander their money, they will surely live a carefree life in the future, with no worries about food or drink.

"Let's rest today and continue our journey tomorrow."

Liu Zhiyi blinked.

"Didn't you say you'd rest for ten days or so? Have you recovered from your motion sickness? And you're not feeling unwell anymore?"

Shen Ningzhu shook her head.

"Xiaoyi, I'm scared. Even though Song Hanchuan is there to back us up, the whole world belongs to the emperor. Who can be sure we won't get caught by that dog prince?"

"The only thing I can do now is to get as far away as possible, and then I can feel at ease."

Liu Zhiyi agreed.

After comforting Shen Ningzhu, the servants prepared hot water.

Liu Zhiyi went back to her room to wash up and take a shower. But as soon as she entered the room, she saw Song Hanchuan sitting at the table and froze on the spot.

"you you you……"

Song Hanchuan smiled slightly, stood up and walked towards her, took her arm and led her into the house to sit at the table, and then sat down opposite her.

She pursed her lips and said,

“I did listen to you and didn’t come looking for you on my own initiative, but the situation has changed now, so I have no choice but to come to you in person.”

"What happened?"

Song Hanchuan frowned and told Liu Zhiyi the latest news one by one.

It turns out that three months ago, a sudden flood occurred in Jiangnan, inundating tens of thousands of acres of farmland and leaving people starving.

The imperial court had been dragging its feet and ignoring the situation until recently, when the disaster victims rioted and many cities were in chaos. Only then did the court have no choice but to send the crown prince to the south of the Yangtze River to open the granaries and provide disaster relief.

However, before the Crown Prince even reached the disaster area, he was ambushed and seriously injured, forcing him to return to the capital for treatment.

What's strange is that those rebellious cities suddenly became quiet as if they had received an order after the crown prince was injured.

Overnight, everything became orderly.

Merchants rushed to donate grain and supplies, and the disaster was resolved in no time.

"This...how is this possible?"

It is a natural instinct for businessmen to seek profit and avoid harm. Of course, there are also those with a noble spirit, but they are only a minority.

Only a minority would willingly offer their wealth without being called upon; how could everyone possibly rush to do so?

"Something is definitely not right."

Now, people in the court are speculating that Prince Chen orchestrated this turmoil himself, deliberately luring the Crown Prince out of the capital so that he could kill him.

There are even rumors circulating that all of this was a scheme devised by the Emperor in collusion with Prince Chen to install Prince Chen on the throne and to frame the Crown Prince.

After all, Jiangnan was the fiefdom of Prince Chen.

The famine occurred only after the Prince of Chen left.

"Xiao Yi, the Crown Prince is already on his way back to the capital. Once he returns, the truth will be out. And at your current speed, you won't get very far."

"So the reason I came here this time is to ask you to change your route and go south to hide."

Liu Zhiyi understood; Song Hanchuan meant what is known in modern terms as "the darkest place is under the lamp."

"I agree."

"Yes, according to reliable information I have received, the Crown Prince and his entourage are traveling by land. I have prepared boats for you, and tomorrow I will escort you to the ferry to board the boat."

Liu Zhiyi breathed a sigh of relief.

"That's great, thank you."

"Okay, after Zhuzhu finishes washing up, I'll take you to her, and we'll talk to her together."

Song Hanchuan, however, said it was getting late and he should avoid suspicion, so he wouldn't go along. He believed that Liu Zhiyi was smart enough to make his meaning clear.

Since that's the case, Liu Zhiyi went straight there.

Shen Ningzhu was taking a bath when she heard Liu Zhiyi's words and agreed without saying a word.

The two agreed to get a good night's sleep tonight and be well-rested so they could set off early tomorrow morning.

After hearing her reply, Song Hanchuan told Liu Zhiyi to take a bath and rest as soon as possible, while he got up and went outside.

Unexpectedly, just as he took a step, Liu Zhiyi raised her hand and tugged at his wide sleeve. A slight unease appeared on the woman's small face, and her voice was barely audible.

"Ahem, well, you must be tired from your long journey, right? Don't rush off yet. The servants have prepared water. Why don't you wash up before you go?"