The young general and the prince, who was to be married off, fell in love at first sight!

Lin Shiming: ?

Lin Shih-ming: "They're not my child, so what does it have to do with me?"

That's outrageous!

"Your Highness, please let me finish!" Yu Sheng was unusually excited. "I heard from the concubine and her maid that the baby is not in the right stage of pregnancy and cannot be kept."

Lin Shiming's pupils dilated in shock: !!!

Lin Shiming couldn't help but smile: "Explain in detail!"

The two immediately found a corner and crouched down, whispering among themselves as they started gossiping.

"Judging from their conversation, it seems that the concubine was only sent to Prince Ping's residence a few months ago, and she must be quite favored."

Lin Shiming: That's normal. Last month, people were still sending "adopted daughters" and "adopted sisters" into the Prince An's mansion. Wouldn't there be even more at the Prince Ping's mansion?

"She seemed to have a lover before she entered the manor, and that child should be from that lover. It's been more than a month, but the dates don't match up."

Lin Shih-ming: Ha! So you've been a womanizer and kept sleeping with women, now you've been cuckolded!

"Then they said that this spring hunt is a good opportunity to get rid of the child and blame it on you or His Highness the Crown Prince. This way, not only will the hidden danger be eliminated, but His Majesty will also give Prince Ping and her a lot of compensation in order to protect you."

"..."

Am I getting caught up in the drama myself?

"No, why are you bringing up something so important last?"

"I thought you preferred the first part."

Ah, that's true.

Lin Shiming awkwardly touched his nose, "...Let's talk about how they planned it first."

He and Lu Yuxi were inseparable, and they were surrounded by guards. That woman was just a prince's concubine. No matter what, she couldn't possibly be close to him and Lu Yuxi!

"They've been thinking about it for a long time but haven't come up with a plan. So they've decided to use Prince Ping's status to get closer to you and His Highness these next few days, and then act as they see fit."

Lin Shih-ming had a hard time explaining, "It's difficult to judge. I wish them failure."

"Do I still need to keep an eye on things?"

"No need." Lin Shiming mustered the last bit of kindness in his heart. "I'd better deal with this matter as soon as possible."

While he could enjoy the show, Lin Shiming, as the one in charge of the Phoenix Seal, still had to manage matters concerning the inner quarters of the imperial family, especially those of the princes. Whether out of his own responsibility or for the sake of the Lu imperial bloodline, he could not ignore them.

Yu Sheng nodded solemnly.

"So, are you still going to inquire about this gossip?"

"...Am I the kind of person who just watches the show all day?"

“You’re not.” The young master said you prefer to stir up trouble.

"Good to know. You can go back now." Lin Shiming nodded in satisfaction, then seemed to remember something, "Remember not to keep going to the women's quarters. Although you are Li Yi's... wife, you are really not a woman."

"...Understood."

*

Half an hour later, the news that the Crown Princess had shown compassion for everyone and had specially dispatched the accompanying imperial physician to examine the pulses of all the women in the palace spread throughout the entire palace.

Half an hour later, Emperor Longyun, Lin Shiming, Lu Yuxi, Prince Ping, Prince Ping's concubine Shen Liuxu, and the concubine's maid Hongmei quietly gathered in Emperor Longyun's study.

The only sound in the room for a moment was the sobbing of two women.

Emperor Longyun deeply loathed it.

"You are truly wicked, woman! You actually spent my son's money to support you and your lover! And now you even have a child!" Do you know where Prince Ping's money came from? It was his salary from the national treasury!

King Ping was filled with shame and indignation and was about to kick her, but Shen Liuxu, with her head down and sobbing, cleverly dodged the kick, causing King Ping to almost fall to the ground.

Shen Liuxu quickly took the opportunity to crawl forward a few steps.

"Your Majesty! I know I am wrong, but you can't blame me entirely! It was Prince Ping who knew I had someone I loved, but he still forced my father to send me into the manor in order to win over and control my father."

Emperor Longyun's expression changed upon hearing this. "You deserve to seize by force!"

Seeing the change in Emperor Longyun's expression, Prince Ping Li's heart sank. He immediately knelt down, "Father! How can you listen to her side of the story? I have no shortage of women, so why must I take a fancy to her? In the few months since she entered the palace, I have only visited her two or three times! Besides, her father is just a small merchant, not worth me using such methods to control and win him over!"

That's true. Emperor Longyun's scales tipped in favor of Prince Ping again. This woman was indeed cunning; not only did she swindle money, but she also tried to evade punishment!

Lu Yuxi, standing to the side, also frowned as she looked at the woman kneeling on the ground, her eyes filled with disgust.

Lin Shiming, engrossed in the performance, subconsciously interjected, "If you don't pamper her, why did you bring her along for the spring hunt?"

Prince Ping was terrified of Lin Shiming these past few days, so he answered without thinking.

"The other day she suddenly came to bring me some snacks. My second sister's husband happened to be there too. He tried a piece and thought it was quite good, so I thought bringing her along would be a good idea, since she has some cooking skills and can take good care of me. It's quite a coincidence, really, her father was introduced to me by my second sister's husband..."

King Ping's words came to an abrupt halt, and the room fell silent once more. This time, the two women stopped crying.

With a crash, Emperor Longyun smashed the teacup in his hand in front of Shen Liuxu.

"Speak! Who is that adulterer?!"

"He He..."

Emperor Longyun's expression was somber. He raised his hand and pointed to the maid Hongmei in the corner, "You speak."

Hongmei wept bitterly, "Your Majesty, this servant did not know that Consort Shen often went out alone and did not take this servant with her!"

Emperor Longyun lost his patience.

"Li An, go and call a few old women and bring them over with the instruments of torture."

Shen Liuxu immediately trembled with fear, "Your Majesty! Your Majesty, this concubine knows her mistake..."

"If you admit you're wrong, then admit it."

"It's the Second Prince Consort! It's the Second Prince Consort, Your Majesty... Please, Your Majesty, spare my life..."

Emperor Longyun closed his eyes briefly, then reached out and overturned the table in front of him. With a loud crash, everyone present immediately knelt down.

"Father, please calm your anger! Father, please calm your anger!"

"Calm down! How can I calm down!" Emperor Longyun pointed a trembling finger at Prince Ping. "This is the good consort you and your mother chose for He Ran, even against my will. How dare he treat my daughter like this!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Emperor Longyun grabbed a teacup from the side and smashed it on Prince Ping's head.

Several streaks of blood instantly flowed from King Ping's forehead, but he dared not raise his hand to wipe them away. Instead, he kowtowed deeply and begged for mercy.

"Father, I know I was wrong. I have wronged my second sister..."

"You have wronged her! In order to undermine the Crown Prince and win over his people, you disregarded her character and married your own sister, who shared the same mother, to this disloyal and unjust man, simply because he is the grandson of the Crown Prince's tutor."

Emperor Longyun was so angry that his vision blurred. "In your eyes, is my own daughter, your own sister, Princess Heran of the Changping Dynasty, just a tool that I have to use for you for the rest of my life?"

“Father!” Prince Ping immediately raised his head and crawled to Emperor Longyun’s side. “Father, I am by no means such a heartless and ungrateful person. I just misjudged Zhuang Jingyi and did not know that he was such a despicable person. Otherwise, I would never have wanted my younger sister to marry such a person! Father!”

Emperor Longyun took a few steps back, leaned on a small table on a soft couch, and lowered his head to take a few deep breaths.

"It's the spring hunt right now. We just dealt with a mess at the New Year's banquet, so this spring hunt must not go wrong. Your Highness, Your Highness, Your Highness, you two need to work hard these next few days and keep a close eye on these ministers and their female relatives. If anything happens, don't hesitate to deal with it immediately. Do not disrupt this spring hunt."

Lu Yuxi and Lin Shiming cupped their hands in greeting, saying, "Your subjects obey the decree."

"Detain this wretched woman for now, don't let her die. As for Zhuang Jingyi, I'll settle things with him properly when we return to the capital!" Emperor Longyun slowly straightened up, his eyes filled with gloom as he looked back at Prince Ping. "As for you, stay in the temporary palace and recuperate before returning to the capital."

Prince Ping shuddered and kowtowed again, "Your subject will stay obediently in the courtyard and dare not send a message to anyone!"