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

“Birds of a feather flock together. The fact that he can get so close to someone like Lu Yan means that they both have secrets they can’t tell anyone,” Gu Qingwan said.

"By the way, have you arranged for someone to handle Su Xi's matter?"

Siqi and Ningyi looked at each other and shook their heads.

Siqi said, "Your Highness, we were originally supposed to visit Lady Yi'an Marquis when we went to the hot spring resort, but we didn't go because of the Second Young Master's matter. Now..."

"It's not advisable for us to take any action right now. Let's send our spies to find out what information they can get. Also, we need to check on the Crown Princess. If anything seems amiss, she will definitely let us know."

"Your Highness, someone has come to the door with a letter, saying they have come to pay their respects as instructed by the Prince," the steward reported, holding the letter.

"Uncle Hua, do you know the person who came?" Gu Qingwan took the invitation, looked at the name on it, and found it unfamiliar.

“I recognize him, I recognize him. This is General Lin. This old servant remembers that he was one of those who fought alongside the Prince back then. He also went through many life-and-death situations with the Prince for many years. However, I later heard that he was seriously injured and was placed in a minor official position in the capital's patrol camp by the Prince,” the steward explained.

"But over the years, I've never seen General Lin come to the Prince's residence to ask the Prince for anything. This time..."

Gu Qingwan nodded and said, "Since you have something to ask of me, let's go to the reception room in front."

When Gu Qingwan arrived at the flower hall, she saw General Lin from afar. However, the general was dressed in a rather simple manner, with dark skin, and looked very honest and simple.

"Greetings to the princess."

"General Lin is an old friend of the Prince. Please don't stand on ceremony and have a seat."

Lin Hu hadn't expected that the Princess Consort of Chu would be such an easy person to talk to. He had been prepared to be turned away from the palace, but to his surprise, not only was he allowed in, but hot tea and pastries were also prepared for him.

It was already hot in winter, and he was wearing many layers. The charcoal fire burning brightly in the flower hall, coupled with his nervousness, caused sweat to start to bead on his forehead.

The maids standing nearby couldn't help but cover their mouths with their handkerchiefs and giggle.

Lin Hu was also a little embarrassed, and a blush appeared on his dark face.

"Um, I'm sorry, Your Highness, I'm a rough man, please don't take offense."

Gu Qingwan's eyes were filled with tolerance, and she did not mistreat Lin Hu because he might have been impolite.

"General Lin, you are too kind. However, the Prince is not at home. If there is anything you need to convey, please feel free to speak."

Remembering his purpose, Lin Hu put aside his embarrassment and knelt directly in front of Gu Qingwan.

"I came here specifically for the Princess Consort of Chu."

"Targeting me?"

"Yes, Your Highness, you may not know this, but I have a wife at home. Everything was fine until recently, when I don't know why, she started acting strangely. Sometimes she would space out during the day, and sometimes she would cry for no reason. I've consulted all the doctors I could, but none of them could figure out what was wrong."

"Should I ask the Prince of Chu's residence to get two imperial physicians to examine you?"

"To be honest, I've consulted all the imperial physicians I could, but there's still no word from them. I've heard that there's a renowned physician named Xue in the Prince's residence. I wonder if the Princess could have him take a look at her?"

Just listening to his description, Gu Qingwan found it quite interesting. What kind of strange disease could turn a person into this?

"General Lin, I am truly unfilial. When the Prince went to war, he took Doctor Lin with him, so..."

Lin Hu couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

"It's nothing, it's nothing. I was just trying my luck, who would have thought..."

Looking at this honest and kind man, Gu Qingwan couldn't bear to refuse. She said, "I still have disciples left behind by Doctor Xue in my household. Why don't you bring your wife to visit another day?"

Lin Hu shook his head in distress and said, "Right now, my wife simply can't bring up the matter of visiting. It's more stable if she doesn't mention it; if she does, she'll have a stroke on the spot, like she's possessed, so..."

What kind of illness prevents one from going out and seeing people? Gu Qingwan became even more interested.

"It's alright. Let's choose a time another day and I'll bring that person to your house for a visit. What do you think?"

Lin Hu quickly kowtowed to express his gratitude.

"Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you, Your Highness!"

After the court session, Lu Yan followed Xiao Yuhuai. The two of them had been ostracized since childhood. To outsiders, they were just two motherless children who had gotten together, but now it seemed a bit interesting.

Lu Yan ignored the stares of passersby and quietly asked the Second Prince when no one was paying attention.

"Second Prince, are we... exposing ourselves a little too soon?"

"It's not too early, but we can no longer proceed slowly."

"How so? Didn't we plan to wait until the Crown Prince and the Third Prince were locked in a fierce battle before we took advantage of the situation?"

"At first, I also wanted to proceed slowly, but if I don't make the court officials notice soon that there is a second prince who is capable of taking on important responsibilities, then I'm afraid my position will be illegitimate. Moreover, people from my hometown have come, meaning that we should hurry up."

"People from our hometown have come?" Lu Yan frowned, then asked, "So what should we do next? It seems that the Third Prince is becoming somewhat estranged from you, and we don't have any high-ranking ministers to support us. The road ahead doesn't look easy."

At this point, Xiao Yuhuai couldn't help but sigh. "We've been forced into this situation, so we can only grit our teeth and move forward. Our main task now is to see if we can win over Uncle Chu to our side. The Crown Princess can no longer have children, and I've also made some moves on the Crown Prince's side. I think the Chu Prince's Mansion should be able to see the actual situation."

Lu Yan didn't respond, because he knew about these plans and had even contributed to them. The Crown Prince seemed fine now, but that was poison; it was only a matter of time before he fell.

"Keep your spirits up these next two days. That old fox, Duke Wen, is also watching. Since we're both supporting the prince, as long as I perform better than the third prince, Duke Wen should understand who the best choice is."

Lu Yan nodded and said, "Yes, no one is born a bastard. If others can do it, so can we."

"If there's nothing else going on, don't go out anymore. If something happens, it'll be difficult for me to reach you. Also, try to get your father, Marquis Yi'an, to make him state his position and stand on our side."

Speaking of his father, Marquis Yi'an, Lu Yan couldn't help but feel a tightness in his heart. The relationship between father and son had reached a very tense point. If he weren't the only heir... and if his affair with Madam Chen were exposed, it would be a matter of life and death.

"I see."

Speaking of Lady Yi'an, Lu Yan had become suspicious after hearing Gu Qingwan's words last time.

He hadn't returned to the manor for quite some time now. There was no other reason than that Madam Chen always blocked him away. Although he still had some genuine feelings for her, he couldn't help but feel annoyed after a while.

This time, he wanted to go back and see what kind of trouble this little Chen was up to, and how Su Xi suddenly became pregnant, something he knew nothing about.