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

Even the secret door in the dungeon was designed by her personally. The original purpose was for her and the prince to hide in the dungeon if they were ever in dire straits. The dungeon was easy to defend and difficult to attack. It would take time for people outside to find them and even longer to open the door, thus giving her and the prince time to escape.

This hidden door was meant for escape, but now it's become her only way in.

In fact, Ah Ning didn't know that Gu Qingwan and her men had already found her secret door. So, the secret prison was no longer safe and hidden the moment Ah Ning defected, and the King of Chu also had people find a new place to design a secret prison.

Zheng Yang, who was sitting inside, heard the noise and excitedly ran to the railing to see what was going on.

No one has come to interrogate him these days. He has confessed almost everything he knows. The poison given to him by the Princess of Chu was so potent that he was in a life-or-death situation. Now he felt that he had no further use to him and was preparing to die when the Chu Prince's mansion became completely silent.

Not only did they not make a sound, but they simply abandoned him in this dark and sunless place and left him to his fate. He only received one meal a day, and apart from the person who brought him the food, he never saw anyone else. He lived a life of confusion and oblivion.

Finally, someone arrived. Zheng Yang recognized him easily just by looking at his figure, even though the person was dressed in black and had his face completely covered.

"Hehe, Aning, you must be feeling bad."

Angered, Ah Ning ripped off her mask and asked fiercely, "What did you feed me?!"

"What is that? Something to restore your martial arts skills? Why haven't your skills been restored?"

Ah Ning was caught off guard. Her martial arts skills had not only recovered, but were even better than before. However, in the past two days, there had been a backlash, and she could feel her internal energy being gradually eroded.

“I know what you’re thinking. Why did your internal strength and martial arts improve every day before, but lately they’ve been getting worse day by day?”

"You know!" Ah Ning said excitedly, "Then tell me quickly what exactly happened?"

"Hmph. Then let me ask you, did you go and kill Gu Ziming?"

Ah Ning's expression was somewhat evasive. After she went out, she forgot about her agreement with Zheng Yang. She was only thinking about how to kill Gu Qingwan. When she finally encountered Gu Qingwan being ambushed by assassins, she rushed to add to the attack, but was instead injured by Gu Qingwan.

At that moment, she still thought that her martial arts skills had not recovered. Otherwise, given Gu Qingwan's abilities, even if she knew a little martial arts, she wouldn't have been able to hurt her.

"I……"

“You forgot!” Zheng Yang answered for her with certainty, his eyes narrowed.

Ah Ning bit her lip and said, "I'm sorry, I really forgot. But I remembered it a couple of days ago. It's just that Gu Ziming has already gone to the north with Marquis Yongyi to escort the grain, so..."

"Escorting grain? What kind of grain?" Zheng Yang was very sensitive to such matters.

"I don't know the specifics, but I do know that Marquis Yongyi and Gu Ziming went. However, I can tell you that the second prince of the Northern Border has arrived and is going to marry the second princess."

Ah Ning told him as much as she knew, not without purpose, but in the hope that Zheng Yang could cure her strange problem.

Zheng Yang thought to himself, he can't waste his time here. He knows nothing about what's happening outside. He needs to get out now. Only by getting out can he continue to gather information for the Holy Maiden and protect his daughter.

"What I'm giving you isn't some peerless elixir, but a Gu poison."

"Gu!" Having followed Xiao Jingchen for so long and dealt with the people of the southern border at Yuhan Pass so many times, how could A Ning not know what Gu was?

"You actually dared to plant a Gu poison on me!" Ah Ning's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

"Hehe, why wouldn't I dare? It's just that you're too greedy. But why are you angry? If it weren't for my Gu worms, how could you have recovered your martial arts skills and done what you wanted? So you have absolutely no need to be angry."

"You make it sound so easy, but what's going on now?"

"What happened? Of course I wanted you to come find me again. If something hadn't gone wrong, would you have even remembered someone as insignificant as me?"

Ah Ning moved her lips but didn't speak. Indeed, if it weren't for the recent problems with her health and martial arts, she would never have come to see Zheng Yang again.

"Then what do you think I should do?"

"You still have to help me kill Gu Ziming, but there's no rush. Right now, you need to rescue me."

Ah Ning stared at Zheng Yang. This request was outrageous. Zheng Yang was someone the prince wanted to kill. If she rescued him, it would be a complete betrayal of the prince.

She wanted to kill Gu Qingwan for the sake of the prince. She never intended to betray the prince because she hoped that one day the prince would see the woman's true colors and realize that she was the best woman for him. At that time, she would return to the prince's side.

"Hehe, no rush, no rush. You can think about it some more. It's only three days. If you don't come to me for the antidote to soothe the Gu worms in your body after three days, then after it finishes eating your insides, it will start eating your internal organs, and then..."

"Hmph, you people from Southern Xinjiang are so treacherous." After saying that, Aning turned around and left.

"Hahahaha, you'll come back, you'll come back sooner or later, hahahaha." Only Zheng Yang's almost manic laughter remained in the dark dungeon.

Upon hearing Commander Chen's reply, Gu Qingwan and Xiao Jingchen both fell silent for a moment.

Clearly, Gu Qingwan was right. The fact that A Ning was able to suddenly regain her martial arts skills and return to her previous state in such a short time was obviously suspicious.

I never expected that they used Zheng Yang's Gu worms.

Xiao Jingchen, however, did not think so. His men had captured Zheng Yang and searched him thoroughly, but they still managed to slip through the net. What methods did Zheng Yang use to smuggle the items in?

He gave Aning this Gu worm pill, so does he have something else on him?

Gu Qingwan seemed to have seen through Xiao Jingchen's concerns, and she said softly, "Your Highness, there is no need to be angry. This pill should be Zheng Yang's last possession. If you are still worried, just have Commander Chen take some men to strip him naked, wash him, and then give him a new set of prison clothes."

These words suddenly enlightened Xiao Jingchen. Yes, this method is good, much better than them searching him over and over again.

“Xiao Jia…” Xiao Jingchen paused, then remembered that he had already given Xiao Jia the name Chen Zizheng, so the name Xiao Jia still couldn’t be used.

"Zizheng."

"My subordinate is here."

"Give the order to have a batch of prison uniforms made. They don't need to be too nice, just enough to cover the body. They shouldn't have any pockets so you can't put anything in them. From now on, whenever a prisoner is arrested, they should be washed clean with cold water, put in the prison uniforms, and then locked up, just like the princess said."

"Yes, sir! As for Zheng Yang and Aning..." Chen Zizheng wanted to ask if he needed to lead men to capture Aning, since Aning was planning to assassinate the princess's father.

If Xiao Yi heard this, he would definitely slap Xiao Jia across the face. What kind of relationship does the princess have with her cheap father? They are estranged father and daughter. The princess would love for her cheap father to die, okay? And you're just worrying about it for no reason.

If Xiao Jia hadn't joined the secret guards earlier and wasn't more skilled in martial arts, then the name Xiao Jia would probably have been his.

Gu Qingwan continued, "Don't touch Aning yet. Have you found Aning's hiding place?"

"Your Highness, it has been found... at..."

“Where she is doesn’t matter. Aning grew up with you all. I believe it won’t be long before she realizes that someone has found her. So let’s not worry about her for now. Didn’t Zheng Yang say that Aning would definitely come back to find him in three days? Then let’s wait for three days.”

Chen Zizheng glanced at the prince, and seeing the prince nod in agreement, he clasped his hands and said, "I will obey the princess's orders."

"Oh, right, there's one more thing. How's it going with the investigation I asked you to do about whether A-Ning has any contact with the Wen family?"

Chen Zizheng thought for a moment and said, "Your Highness, we haven't found anything yet. When we were monitoring Aning, we didn't see her contacting anyone. She never went out except to practice her skills in her room."

"So how does she eat?"

"The meal was delivered by a woman who was a neighbor who lived next door to her."

"Go investigate that woman." Gu Qingwan thought that since A Ning was able to secretly contact Wen Rou to send people to intercept and kill her on her way back, she might still cooperate with Wen Rou. After all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend, and the two of them are now a thorn in my side, so they will definitely find a way to cooperate.

Although Wenrou is still in the palace, that doesn't mean the Wen family won't leave someone to pass messages to her.

Wenrou isn't stupid. She can't just run to the palace empty-handed and leave without knowing what happened in the Wen family. That would be extremely dangerous for her.

"I will make the arrangements immediately."

After Chen Zizheng left, Xiao Jingchen pulled Gu Qingwan up, stroked her long hair, and said, "It's getting late, let's hurry to the Yongyi Marquis's residence."

"Yes, yes, let's hurry up and go. Yesterday, my aunt sent someone to say that they would also be going to the baby shower banquet of the two young masters of the Marquis of Yongyi's mansion. It's been a long time since I've seen my aunt and grandmother. Let's go quickly."

Xiao Jingchen looked at Gu Qingwan with doting eyes, feeling that everything she said was good.

It must be said that the Ningguo Duke's mansion is indeed quite different from before.

In the past, the men of the Ningguo Duke's Mansion were not at home, and the women also stayed in the inner courtyard and rarely went out. Even if there were invitations, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law would try their best to decline them and avoid going out if possible, for fear of accidentally causing trouble for the Ningguo Duke's Mansion.

They were also worried that getting too close to any particular family might arouse the Emperor's suspicion towards the Ningguo Duke's Mansion.

But things are different now. Gu Qingwan, the only girl in the Ningguo Duke's Mansion, married the Prince of Chu, who is also the Emperor's confidant. This means that the Ningguo Duke's Mansion is now a legitimate member of the Emperor's inner circle, and with such a status, no one would dare to provoke them no matter where they go.

Madam Ning arrived early and had already gone to talk with Madam Meng. When Gu Qingwan and the others arrived, only Shen Xiaoru, the woman she had scolded in the backyard that day, was at the door.

There were quite a few people who came to the Yongyi Marquis's residence to attend the baby's third-day celebration, especially since the Yongyi Marquis had gained the Emperor's favor, and there were even more people willing to curry favor with him.

When everyone saw the carriage bearing the insignia of the Chu Prince's residence arrive, they all felt that the trip had been worthwhile. Since they had been recognized by the Chu Prince, the Emperor would continue to give them important positions. So everyone stopped to pay their respects to the Chu Prince and the Chu Princess.

The Third Prince, who had been fawned over at the entrance, couldn't help but look a little displeased when he saw that everyone had suddenly left. However, when he saw that it was Uncle Chu who had arrived, he didn't dare to do so, even though he was in a bad mood.

"Royal Uncle." Xiao Yuheng greeted the Prince of Chu, then, feeling that Gu Qingwan had deliberately taken a small step forward, he reluctantly called out, "Royal Aunt."

The Third Prince's Consort, Li Qianyu, who was beside him, obediently greeted the servants.

Gu Qingwan smiled and said that she was in a really good mood today, but she decided not to make things difficult for Xiao Yuheng today because of Li Qianyu.

Today, male and female guests are seated separately. Naturally, the King of Chu is the most distinguished among the male guests. Meng Jiyue had received the news of the King of Chu's arrival early and hurriedly went to the door to greet him. In this way, the male guests crowded around the King of Chu as he entered.

Among the female guests, Gu Qingwan has the most distinguished status. Although she is young, her husband's high status makes it impossible for anyone to take advantage of her age.

"Qingwan! You're here too!"

Hearing the familiar voice, Gu Qingwan turned around and saw Princess Qinghe riding her tall horse towards her. She dismounted, tossed the reins to the servant, and walked directly to Gu Qingwan's side.

“Princess, your arrival is just in time. Let’s go in together.” Gu Qingwan suggested happily. As the two walked together, she whispered, “It’s good that you came to keep me company. I can’t handle the enthusiasm of these ladies. With you here, I can finally catch my breath.”

"You are the Princess Consort of Chu, what are you afraid of? Just like the prince, put on a stern face and act like you're not to be approached."

The Third Prince's Consort, who was not far away, also heard it and couldn't help but laugh. Gu Qingwan looked over and smiled back as a sign of politeness.

The Third Prince's wife was a sensible person. She knew that Gu Qingwan didn't like the Third Prince very much, and therefore she didn't want to get close to her as well. Coincidentally, the Second Prince and his wife also came over at this time. After they said goodnight to the Princess of Chu, the Third Prince's wife followed the Second Prince's wife and went inside surrounded by everyone.

When Gu Qingwan arrived at the door, she saw Shen Xiaoru acting like the matriarch of the household, which made her very unhappy.

"Oh, isn't this Your Highness the Princess? Your Highness's presence is a great honor to our humble abode. Your Highness, please come in."

Shen Xiaoru dressed very formally, as if she wanted to wear all her jewelry to show how noble she was.

But when she saw Gu Qingwan, she realized that true noblewomen don't need to dress up. Just like the Princess Consort of Chu, she was simple and elegant, even her clothes were plain and dignified.

She had just seen Prince Chu. He was so handsome! If she were with him, wouldn't her life be even more dazzling?

Gu Qingwan was naturally unaware of this person's cunning and scheming nature. Standing at the door, she asked coldly, "And who are you?"

Shen Xiaoru then came to her senses. She saw that Princess Chu knew the other party was asking questions but didn't know what they meant. However, with so many people around and at the main gate, she couldn't embarrass the princess.

"Your Highness, I am Shen from the Marquis of Yongyi's household."

"The Shen family?" Gu Qingwan's lips curled into a sarcastic smile. "What, does the Marquis of Yongyi's mansion look down on the Prince of Chu's mansion? They actually sent a concubine to receive me!"

Shen Xiaoru's expression changed, and she quickly waved her hands, saying, "No, no, Your Highness has misunderstood. I am not a concubine, I..."