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

The second prince was completely different from before; he obediently stepped forward and bowed to Gu Qingwan with clasped hands.

"Greetings to my Imperial Aunt. I was unaware of your arrival."

Seeing the Second Prince's dramatic change, Gu Qingwan simply smiled and said, "I just arrived too."

"Your subject pays respects to the Princess Consort of Chu." - Lu Yan, Heir Apparent of the Marquis of Yi'an.

Gu Qingwan then took a good look at the man in front of her. He had grown up in the military, so his features were more rugged and he was handsome. No wonder he had captivated countless girls.

"Your Highness, please get up. He is indeed as handsome as the rumors say. I heard the Prince say that Marquis Yi'an was a handsome man himself, but I did not expect that his son would surpass him even more."

"Your Highness is too kind."

As he spoke, Lu Yan boldly raised his head and stared at Gu Qingwan, making her frown.

Just as Baoqin was about to step forward to reprimand him, Lu Yan quickly lowered his head and retreated behind the Second Prince.

The second prince glanced at Lu Yan, also somewhat displeased with his earlier actions.

"Alright, you young people go and have some fun. Your royal uncle isn't here today, so don't be shy," Gu Qingwan said.

"Thank you for your consideration, Aunt. Since Uncle is not here, Yu Huai should stay with you."

“Yes, the princess looks even younger than my sister, and is definitely in the young age range…” Lu Yan was interrupted by Gu Qingwan before he could finish speaking.

"Go have fun. I'm going to check on the bride in the backyard. I'll leave after I've finished applying her makeup."

Hearing the impatient voice of the Princess Consort of Chu, Madam Chen stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, it's getting late. Yao'er, please take Your Highness to your sister's place."

“That makes sense, let’s go.” Gu Qingwan didn’t want to embarrass the host family on their special day.

The Second Prince only breathed a sigh of relief after Princess Chu left. Although Princess Chu wasn't scary, his Uncle Chu was. Fortunately, his Uncle Chu didn't come today. It wasn't that Princess Chu wouldn't come today; it was just a coincidence that they ran into each other.

Lu Yan gazed thoughtfully at the graceful figure of the Princess Consort of Chu. All of this was observed by Madam Chen, who nearly crushed the handkerchief in her hand.

She walked up to Lu Yan and pinched his arm when no one was looking.

Lu Yan snapped out of his daze in pain, and seeing Xiao Chen's icy face, he immediately lost interest.

"Mother, I'm going to keep the Second Prince company. If anything comes up, just send someone to fetch me."

Without waiting for Madam Chen to say anything, he turned and left. Madam Chen was extremely annoyed. Recently, the young master had not wanted to see her. If it weren't for Lu Ting's wedding, he wouldn't have wanted to come back from the military camp. No, she had to call him to her courtyard tonight no matter what.

"Sister, is it really alright if you don't go to accompany Princess Chu?" Madam Chen asked.

"What, if I don't go, do you expect me to go instead? If you think you have enough face, then go and serve in my place."

Madam Chen was already unhappy because her two children had received special treatment from the Princess of Chu, and now she had come to invite trouble. If she didn't say a few sarcastic remarks, she probably wouldn't get through the day.

“Aunt, that’s not what Mother meant,” Su Xi said.

However, Ms. Chen was not in a good mood today and had no time to pay attention to Su Xi.

Su Xi's face flushed red. She looked at her mother, tears welling up in her large eyes: "Mother..."

"It's alright, your aunt is too busy, we..." Madam Chen felt an indescribable bitterness in her heart. They had chosen to live under someone else's roof for the sake of their son's future, so they should have expected to suffer like this today.

Her younger sister, who loved to follow her around when they were still young, always calling her "sister" sweetly, now that her status was higher than hers, Madam Chen felt a mix of emotions.

Gu Qingwan followed Lu Yao to Lu Ting's boudoir, which was filled with young ladies who had come to see her off at her wedding, making it a lively place.

The arrival of the Princess Consort of Chu naturally caused a sensation. Everyone envied Lu Ting for winning the favor of the Princess Consort of Chu. Gu Qingwan did not disappoint everyone either, and presented a complete set of red gold headdresses as her dowry.

The bride had many things to attend to, so Gu Qingwan didn't stay with her for very long. As a member of the family serving the Princess of Chu, Lu Yao naturally stayed by her side at all times.

"I heard that the Princess Consort of the Prince's Mansion is not feeling well. How is she now?"

"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. My sister-in-law's health has improved slightly, but it's too cold to go out, so she couldn't come to visit Your Highness today."

"It's alright, your health is the most important thing. Have you invited the imperial physician to take a look?"

“My younger brother is very devoted to the Crown Princess. He has invited almost all the imperial physicians in the Imperial Hospital, but the results are still somewhat unsatisfactory.”

Gu Qingwan nodded thoughtfully and said, "Then she needs to be carefully cared for. Since there's nothing else to do right now, why don't you take me to see the Crown Princess?"

Lu Yao was somewhat shocked. She hadn't expected that the dignified Princess Consort of Chu would take the initiative to visit a seriously ill Crown Prince's wife. Wasn't this Crown Prince's wife incredibly influential?

“Your Highness, my sister-in-law takes medication regularly, and I'm afraid your visit might offend you.”

Gu Qingwan smiled and said, "What's the big deal? Speaking of which, the Crown Princess is actually related to me. I didn't know that before, but now that I'm here, I know she's not in good health, so I should go and see her. Let's go, Baoqin, let's go with Madam to see her."

"Yes." Baoqin and Siqi followed behind, leaving with the princess.

Lu Yao was fine with it. She already had a good relationship with her younger brother and sister-in-law, and now that the princess was willing to condescend to visit her, that was even better.

Previously, due to poor health, Xiao Chenshi had taken away her power to manage the household. If the Princess Consort is willing to take care of her, then her position in the household will be even more secure.

The maidservant who was serving nearby found out and, taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention, quietly ran to the front yard to report the news.

Gu Qingwan arrived in the courtyard and smelled a strong medicinal odor even before entering.

The maid guarding the gate saw someone coming. She didn't recognize Princess Chu, but she recognized Lu Man. However, looking at Princess Chu, she thought, how could someone be so beautiful? She used to think that her own princess was already very beautiful, but now that she saw Princess Chu, she was even more stunned.

"What are you all standing there for? Hurry up and go in and tell your Crown Princess that the Princess Consort of Chu has come to see her," Lu Man scolded.

Gu Qingwan walked past the screen and saw a maid helping a woman by placing a lumbar pillow behind her back. Only after the maid left did she get a clear look at the person lying on the bed.

To her shock, Zhu Xiaoyan was so thin that she was almost unrecognizable as a human, practically skin and bones, and her arms, visible under her long sleeves, made it even clearer that she was emaciated.

His complexion was even more emaciated, with dark eyes and pale lips; he seemed to be nearing the end of his life.

"Cough cough cough, help me down quickly." Zhu Xiaoyan gasped for breath as she struggled to get up and get out of bed.

"You're not feeling well, so why all the formalities? You should lie down in bed." Gu Qingwan took the opportunity to step forward and support her hand, subtly taking her pulse.

Her pulse was indeed as weak as she had seen it to be; she could only hold on for another month or two. It seemed that she was so weak because of the miscarriage.

But could a miscarriage really weaken someone to this extent? It's obvious that her blood and qi are not flowing smoothly, and her heart and lungs are blocked.