The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Gu Hanjiao covered the corners of her mouth with a handkerchief. She had long expected that the Empress Dowager would care about her great-grandson. Whether he was born of the legitimate wife or a concubine, he was still the eldest grandson of the royal family. However, she did not expect the Empress Dowager to be so understanding.

However, now is not the time to be happy. So many people have already gathered at the entrance of the Li residence, and she still needs to continue her act.

Gu Hanjiao secretly raised her eyes and saw Gu Qingwan standing there. She couldn't help but curse inwardly, "She's not even a princess yet, but she's already putting on airs. Doesn't she care about hurting her back?"

"Waaah, Heaven is so kind. My father may not have done anything great, but he certainly worked hard. My sister is the future Princess of Chu. You should never let my child suffer such a terrible disaster."

Li Xinhan's face was already dark, but now it was as black as coal. No matter how he debated with others in the court, he was now facing a woman. If he opened his mouth, others would definitely point fingers at him behind his back and say that he was bullying her.

Those around them also caught sight of Gu Qingwan, the future Princess Consort of Chu.

Yes, this Miss Gu is the daughter of Prime Minister Gu, and was once a very prestigious legitimate daughter. Her own elder sister was also the Princess Consort of Chu, bestowed by the emperor. With such a family background, anyone would have the confidence to stand tall.

That's right. Isn't the Princess Consort of Chu the Second Miss's biological sister? How come she's so close to the Li family's young lady? Doesn't the eldest Miss Gu know that the young lady Li stole her sister's marriage and that she has to make a living under her?

"Sister Li doesn't need to bear such a bad reputation anymore. Sister Li, please don't be angry. Originally, this child..." Gu Hanjiao stopped halfway through her sentence, and then seemed to resign herself to her fate, as if she had thought of something.

Li Qian gripped her handkerchief tightly, her voice filled with a barely suppressed urge to tear Gu Hanjiao's mouth apart. Those around her whispered amongst themselves.

"Have you heard? Not only did the eldest daughter of the Li family instigate her father to go to the palace to beg for favors, but she also secretly plotted to get rid of the man in front of her while this child was still alive."

"Oh dear, he looks like a bodhisattva, how can he be so cruel?"

"Where did you hear that from?"

"You'd better be careful, or you'll be arrested if those important people hear this."

"Yes, yes, keep your voice down, don't get yourself into trouble just to watch the show."

……

Gu Hanjiao was secretly pleased with herself, but her face still showed unbearable bitterness.

"Sigh, it's all fate. According to the timeline, this child should have been born rightfully. It's all my fault for dragging him down. But I don't hold any resentment. I just thought that he would have another caring sister to love him in the future, which is his good fortune. I never expected that my sister would do this after she found out about his existence..."

"Miss, Miss, don't cry. It's good that the young master is safe now. With the Empress Dowager here, no one will be able to harm us anymore," Chunlu comforted her from the side.

"Yes, yes, Miss, please don't cry. You have family to stand up for you and the Empress Dowager to back you up. Good days are ahead."

There was no shortage of onlookers, and there were also men who, without distinguishing right from wrong, were completely soft-hearted at the sight of the beautiful woman shedding tears.

The man had barely finished speaking when the old woman next to him twisted his ear.

"You still have the leisure to care about others? You've already finished all the housework, haven't you!"

"Ouch, ouch, ouch, you tigress! Do you even know what gentleness and tenderness are?"

"Ha, gentle and considerate? I'll show you what gentleness and consideration really mean. Now, get back home!" With that, she grabbed the man's ear and pulled him out of the crowd.

The people around her burst into laughter, which somewhat disrupted the good atmosphere that Gu Hanjiao had worked so hard to create.

She secretly pinched Qiu Shuang's arm under her clothes. Qiu Shuang winced in pain but didn't show it immediately. She knew what her young mistress meant and quickly spoke up.

"Don't be sad, Miss. With the eldest young lady here, she won't let you suffer."

Gu Hanjiao looked at Gu Qingwan with tearful eyes, "Yes, my sister has always been the one who loves me the most since I was little. She often takes me back to the Ningguo Duke's Mansion to visit my maternal grandmother. How can others compare to this affection in a day or two?"

As expected, Li Qianyu's eyes flickered when she heard this.

"Second sister, you're making it sound like we sisters have a really good relationship. When we were little... well, I did take you out to play for a few days when we were little, but we were just kids, it's nothing. As for your maternal grandmother, it seems you've forgotten your own mother and maternal grandmother. But it's alright, I heard that Madam Wang is coming to the capital soon to attend your wedding."

Gu Qingwan told Gu Hanjiao that Old Madam Wang was going to the capital, and Gu Hanjiao almost forgot to cry. Yes, how could she have forgotten about the Wang family?

After her mother and brother's accident, a series of changes occurred in the family, and even she neglected the Wang family.

At that time, because her cousin Wang Deng was imprisoned by her father, her troublesome uncle and aunt ran to the Gu family's door crying and shouting. Originally, her father was going to arrest the couple together, but someone informed them, and the crying people suddenly stopped crying, got up and left.

Gu Ziming was already embroiled in legal troubles, so he naturally felt that the couple was sensible enough to leave on their own, and therefore did not pursue the matter further.

Logically speaking, since the Gu family died and Gu Changfeng was expelled from the family tree, and the eldest grandson of the Wang family was schemed against and suffered so much in prison, how could the Wang family possibly come to her wedding so amiably if they went back?

Mentioning the wedding made Gu Hanjiao's eyes blaze with anger; she felt that Gu Qingwan was deliberately mocking her.

Gu Qingwan patted her forehead, then suddenly remembered something and said, "Oh dear, I forgot. Second Sister is a concubine, so it's not exactly a grand wedding, but it's perfectly fine for Old Madam Wang to come and add to the dowry because she loves her granddaughter."

"Miss, Master Gu no longer acknowledges the Wang family as his in-laws," Siqi whispered a reminder from the side.

Li Qianyu's lips twitched involuntarily. Siqi's whispered reminder could be heard from two miles away. Was that even a reminder?

Gu Hanjiao moved her lips, but did not say anything.

Gu Qingwan didn't want to get entangled with Gu Hanjiao in this crowded and gossipy place. It wasn't a pleasant feeling to be stared at like a monkey. Besides, she would be a princess in the future, so she still had to consider Xiao Jingchen's feelings.

"Lord Li and Madam Li, Qingwan will take her leave now."

Madam Li came to her senses. Although Gu Qingwan also had the surname Gu, she was still a member of the Ning family and had been so good to their daughter. The couple wasn't ungrateful.

"I'm so sorry, you've come all this way only to encounter such a disgusting thing. Your aunt will definitely host a banquet to treat you properly another day."

"Sister Gu, I'm so sorry," Li Qianyu said apologetically from the side.

"It's alright. You can stay at home and wait to get married. Your aunt doesn't need to worry about it. We'll have plenty of time in the capital."

Gu Qingwan led Siqi toward their carriage. Before the carriage left, Gu Qingwan lifted the curtain and asked, "Second sister, why are you still standing here? Do you want your elder sister to take you back? If the Empress Dowager knew that you were wandering around with the royal children without regard for their safety, she would definitely be angry."

Gu Hanjiao gritted her teeth, her eyes red, and glared at Gu Qingwan, saying, "No need for you to worry, sister. I have my own car and I'll go back by myself!"

Once the parties involved had left, the surrounding crowd dispersed, but the discussion quietly began.

Some say that Miss Li is jealous and intolerant, and wants to secretly nip Miss Gu's child in the bud. Otherwise, why would her father bring up the issue of offspring instead of other requirements?

The second young lady of the Gu family is pitiful. From what she said, it seems that the child in her belly was originally supposed to be a legitimate son, but now it has suddenly become a son born out of wedlock. No wonder she is so resentful.

Even though the marriage was arranged by imperial decree, the wedding still didn't take place. Pregnancy before marriage is unacceptable in any family. Fortunately, the eldest daughter of the Gu family had already left the Gu family, otherwise there would have been some twists and turns in her marriage.

Given all the troubles that come with family life, no one wants to push their children into a fire.

However, some observant people overheard Miss Gu saying that the Wang family had arrived. That was the family of the wife who had cuckolded the Prime Minister. There was bound to be some drama going on in the capital. Everyone was wondering whether the Wang family had come to seek justice or had other motives.

Gu Qingwan sat in the carriage, which moved very slowly. The small bells on the window jingled together, clear but not disturbing.

"Miss, has this second young lady really given up all hope? She actually went to the Li family's door to cry and even dared to drag our Duke Ningguo's mansion into it. I don't know what she's thinking."

"It's nothing more than wanting to keep the baby in her belly."

Siqi pouted, "She doesn't know perfectly well where that piece of meat came from. It would be shameless for anyone to say it out loud."

"Although it was shameless, at least it reached the ears of that person in the palace, and at least it was saved, otherwise they would have had to force-feed the child. At best, the child would have been lost, and at worst, the mother would have been killed. I'm just curious how the Empress Dowager, living deep in the palace, knew about what was happening outside, and how she arrived so promptly."

"Good news doesn't travel far, but bad news travels fast. Second Miss, this is called 'like father, like son.'" Siqi pouted.

"But if we don't do it this way, the royal family will definitely not tolerate someone with such a blemish entering the royal family. Wasn't Gu Hanjiao entangled with another man a while ago? Her move is called sacrificing the pawn to save the king."

Siqi opened her mouth, then pondered for a moment, "No wonder people always say that a mother's status rises with her son's; the Second Miss is truly lucky."

Gu Qingwan thought about it and felt that the palace staff had arrived too just in time, so she knocked on the carriage wall.

"Ning Er, go and find out who sent the message from the palace."

"I understand, ma'am."

When they returned to the gate of the Ning residence, they saw that Uncle Hua, the steward of the Chu Prince's residence, had arrived, and Shi Shu must have heard the announcement and just came out from inside the residence.

"Miss is back." Shishu greeted Gu Qingwan. The gatekeeper had come to report that the Prince's Mansion had sent something and asked them to send someone to collect it. Since Miss was not home, Baoqin asked Shishu to go. Unexpectedly, she brought back Miss who had gone out.

When Hua Shu and the others heard Shi Shu greet them, they turned around and saw that Gu Qingwan's carriage had just stopped. He quickly led his men forward.

"Your Highness has returned. This servant greets Your Highness."

"Why have you come here? Is something wrong with the Prince?" Gu Qingwan felt a pang of anxiety. Could it be that the poison removal attempt failed and left some hidden danger?

Seeing Gu Qingwan's nervous face, Uncle Hua was happy. The Princess Consort truly cared about the Prince, and from now on, the Prince would have a companion who understood his needs.

He quickly explained, "Your Highness has misunderstood. His Highness has already woken up. Doctor Xue examined him and said there was nothing wrong. It's just that His Highness heard that Your Highness was frightened on the way back, so he asked me to bring you some fun things to calm your nerves. His Highness said he would come to the manor to take Your Highness out for a stroll to relax once he's fully recovered."

After saying that, Uncle Hua glanced around to make sure no one was there, then lowered his voice and said to Gu Qingwan, "His Highness said that the assassin from that night has been identified, but we need to wait a little longer. His Highness will personally give you an explanation."

Gu Qingwan raised an eyebrow. The guards who chased after them that night must have tracked them down, but Xiao Jingchen hasn't acted yet because of something.

"It's alright. Go back and tell the prince that health is the most important thing. Anyway, I wasn't injured. Now that we know who it was, we can settle the score later."

"Your Highness will never allow the Princess to suffer any injustice. Just wait and see." Uncle Hua said meekly, "There are some trinkets in that box. Your Highness, take a look and see if you like them. If you don't, have Siqi send a message and I will find something else for you to play with."

Gu Qingwan was speechless. This housekeeper was treating her like a child. How old was she to still be playing with things like that? She glanced at the box of things and thought, well, Ning Chenghao should like them. It wouldn't hurt to let him play with them.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Uncle Hua greeted Gu Qingwan with a smile, "It's getting late, Your Highness, please go back and rest. This servant will take his leave now."

"Take care on the road. Siqi, give Uncle Hua a packet of loose silver."

Uncle Hua quickly waved his hand: "No need, no need. I'm just sending something to the Princess, why would I need to accept her reward?"

"Take this, it's a small token of my appreciation for Uncle Hua and his two young brothers to have some tea."

They couldn't refuse the master's gift, so when they saw the servants carrying the things inside, they watched their master return home before the two who had brought the gifts moved closer to Uncle Hua.

They were both guards like Xiao Yi. They always heard Xiao Yi talk about how kind and generous the princess was, and how Xiao Yi was always the first to rush to deliver things. So they were also very curious. This time, Xiao Yi had to go with the prince and couldn't go, so the two of them got a free ride. Before Uncle Hua could even say anything, the two of them carried the boxes and ran away. They were afraid that Uncle Hua wouldn't let them go.

"You little brat, what are you looking at with your neck stretched out like that?"

"Uncle Hua, open it and see how much the princess gave."

Uncle Hua chuckled, "You money-grubbers, has our prince ever mistreated you?"

One of them scratched the back of his head and grinned sheepishly, "No, we're just curious, aren't we?"

"You're not up to par. Go home and see for yourself. This is the gate of the Duke of Ningguo's mansion. Don't embarrass the Prince."

Upon hearing the prince's name, the two immediately became serious. "Yes, yes, we absolutely must not tarnish the prince's image when we go out, especially in front of the princess's family. We must help the prince establish a good image."

Upon returning to the palace, one of them took the money bag directly from the steward. When he emptied it, he found silver coins, gold nuggets, gold leaves, and loose silver coins scattered around – a fascinating and plentiful collection.

"The princess is indeed very generous."

"Uncle Hua, you must let me go next time you deliver something to the Princess!"