After giving her contraceptives, she went mad, criticizing the prince for turning white-haired overn

"In your younger days, Your Majesty was able to father children with the concubines in the palace, but look at the harem now, who among you has ever been pregnant?"

The Prime Minister's wife was deeply worried.

"But all the concubines in the palace have children, except you. What will you do in the future?"

The Empress said, "Father and Mother need not worry about this matter; I have my own plans."

"I will find a way to address the issue of having offspring."

The Prime Minister and his wife exchanged a glance, their faces turning extremely grim.

Because of the issue of having an heir, the Empress Dowager already harbored much dissatisfaction with Empress Jiang.

She is young and entered the palace late. Now that she has not been able to conceive, it is likely that she will not be able to hold her position as empress in the future.

"No matter what, your position as empress must not fall into the hands of any other concubine."

The Prime Minister's wife sighed, stood up from her chair, and coldly swept her gaze over Empress Jiang.

"You are the only hope for our Jiang family."

After the Prime Minister and his wife left, only the Empress and her nanny remained in the hall.

The empress sat in the chair, her body trembling slightly, her face pale.

The personal maidservant approached and asked in a low voice, "Your Highness, what should we do now?"

The Empress bit her lower lip tightly: "I will find a way, and not a single word of this matter shall be leaked."

"If this is leaked, I and the entire Jiang family will be destroyed."

The old nanny nodded: "This old servant understands. This old servant has watched Your Highness grow up since she was a child, and will not betray Your Highness."

The Empress sighed and said, "I will handle this matter very discreetly and will absolutely not let anyone know."

"Have you found out the Regent's whereabouts?"

The old woman shook her head: "The Regent's whereabouts are unpredictable, and this old servant cannot find out anything about him."

"Does Your Majesty truly intend to get involved with the Regent?"

"But he seems somewhat disgusted now."

Empress Jiang closed her eyes briefly: "No matter what, even if I am to conceive, it must be a child of the royal family."

"The Regent and I have known each other for many years, and he is handsome. He is the most suitable candidate."

As she spoke, she beckoned to the old woman.

The nanny leaned closer, and the Empress whispered a few words in her ear.

Upon hearing this, the old woman's expression changed drastically:

"Your Majesty, will this... will this work?"

"Given the Regent's temperament, he might kill the Empress on the spot."

The Empress sneered, "Don't worry, he won't kill me."

"A man who has never tasted meat will become uncontrollable once he does."

-

On the other side, Shen Ning and her sister Shen Wan arrived at the south side of Zhengde Hall.

Over there is an elegant pavilion reserved for noble ladies and gentlemen to enjoy tea, play chess, and compose poetry.

Shen Ning looked at her younger sister beside her and said softly, "Wan'er, you've always loved calligraphy and painting the most."

"Here are some genuine works by famous artists. Please take your time to appreciate them."

"I'm going to find my older brother and see where he went. I'll be right back."

Shen Wan nodded obediently: "Sister, go ahead, Wan'er will wait for you here."

Shen Ning: "Okay, remember not to go anywhere, just stay here and wait for me to come back."

"kindness,"

After giving Shen Wan her instructions, Shen Ning turned and headed west towards Zhengde Hall.

He had already instructed Shen Yan before leaving home today that if His Majesty summoned him, he should deny everything.

After all, on the day of the spring hunt, he was taken to Princess Zhaoyuan's resting room.

Even though he didn't get in, he was afraid that someone with ulterior motives might deliberately harm him.

As Shen Ning was walking along a winding, secluded path, a gentle voice suddenly came from behind her.

"Ning'er".

The voice was so familiar that Shen Ning's heart tightened and she stopped in her tracks.

She stood frozen in place, her fingertips secretly clenching her sleeves.

"Ning'er, why have you been avoiding me?"

Shen Ning held her breath and slowly turned around.

Then they saw Prince Chen, dressed in magnificent robes and with a handsome appearance, standing in front of them.

That appearance left Shen Ning somewhat dazed.

In her past life, she was deceived by his gentle appearance, and her heart was completely tied to him.

"This humble woman greets Your Highness, Prince Chen."

Prince Chen's gaze darkened slightly as he approached her step by step, reaching out to help her up.

Shen Ning stepped aside, her tone distant: "Your Highness, please have some self-respect."

"If this were seen by others and gossip spread, it would be of no benefit to Your Highness or my daughter."

Prince Chen chuckled softly, his voice even lower:

"Ning'er, why must we be so distant?"

"That day at Putuo Temple, you were drugged with aphrodisiacs, barged into a meditation room, and had physical intimacy with a man..."

"That man is me."

"You have long been mine..."

Before she could finish speaking, a figure in black walked slowly and deliberately from behind Shen Ning.

The newcomer was tall and imposing, with deep, dark eyes that hinted at a murderous intent.

Prince Chen's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly cupped his hands in greeting: "Royal Uncle."

As a familiar aura enveloped her, Shen Ning glanced sideways and saw Xie Linyuan standing beside her.

She immediately bowed and said, "This humble woman greets the Regent."

Xie Linyuan raised an eyebrow slightly, his gaze falling on Shen Ning and Prince Chen before shifting away.

"What, my nephew, you've stopped talking the moment I arrived?"

Prince Chen's face flushed red. He glanced at Shen Ning and whispered, "Why is my royal uncle here?"

Xie Linyuan sneered: "If my imperial nephew can come, why can't I?"

"No... I wouldn't dare."

Although Prince Chen was a prince, he always held a certain degree of awe for the regent.

Of course, the main reason was to get rid of him.

Xie Linyuan slowly walked to Shen Ning's side and said calmly, "Get up."

"Thank you, Regent."

After Shen Ning got up, she heard his deliberately lowered voice.

"Shen Ning, in this life, I want to see whether you choose him or me."

The sound was very soft; it was almost audible only to the two of them.

Shen Ning slightly raised her eyes and met the man's unfathomable gaze.

She didn't reply to him, but instead focused her gaze on Prince Chen.

"Your Highness, please be careful with your words."

"This humble woman was not drugged with any aphrodisiacs at Putuo Temple, and does not know what Your Highness means."

"Now that Your Highness has had intimate relations with Cousin Yu, it would be best to bring her into the manor as soon as possible."

"This humble woman will take her leave now."

After saying that, she turned and left without looking back.

At this moment, only Xie Linyuan and Prince Chen remained.

Xie Linyuan walked to Prince Chen's side and sneered:

"Nephew, I advise you to abandon those thoughts."

"The witness you found on Mount Putuo is dead."

Prince Chen's pupils contracted slightly as he looked at him incredulously: "How did you know, Uncle?"

Xie Linyuan coldly replied, "I have no need to explain myself to you."

After speaking coldly, the man turned and disappeared.

Watching the man's departing figure, Prince Chen stood frozen in place, trembling with rage.

After visiting Putuo Temple that day, Shen Rou went to Prince Chen's residence and told him about Shen Ning being drugged.

The aphrodisiac that Shen Rou gave Shen Ning was extremely potent, and there was no antidote.

It can also cause women to lose their senses.

If a woman takes the poison, a man must detoxify her.

Moreover, one sexual encounter is not enough to neutralize the poison; it must be done two or three times for the poison to be completely eliminated.

He made inquiries from various sources and learned that Xie Linyuan was also at Putuo Temple that day.

Shen Ning barged into his meditation room that day.

I heard that the two of them spent a full hour inside before leaving.

The woman who took the medicine was delirious and had no idea who had given her the antidote.

He then found the monks from Putuo Temple who had been there that day to act as witnesses, intending to propose marriage to the Shen family.

did not expect……

That person died.

"Xie Linyuan." Prince Chen practically gritted his teeth.

-

On the other side, Shen Wan was admiring the paintings of famous artists in the elegant pavilion when she heard the voices of two women behind her.

"Who do we have here? It turns out to be Miss Shen, the one who climbed into the Ming King's bed."

Shen Wan turned around and saw Yun Xi, the eldest daughter of the Vice Minister of the Chancellery, walking slowly towards her arm in arm with Lin Anning, the daughter of the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat.

Shen Wan bit her lip and said in a low voice, "Miss Yun, please be careful what you say."

"The rumors in Yanjing City are not true, and I have never had any connection with the Ming Prince's Mansion."

Yunxi covered her mouth and chuckled: "Third Miss Shen, the Princess Consort of Huainan personally came to annul the engagement, how could it be fake?"

"However, Your Highness is quite discerning. How could a woman of your reputation be worthy of the Prince of Huainan?"

She turned to Lin Anning, her tone becoming increasingly unrestrained:

"Sister Anning, you say the young master is truly infatuated, still unable to forget Miss Shen."

"It's enough that we're engaged; now I want to take Miss Shen as my concubine."

"Who knows, some people's bodies might have already been defiled..."

"When Miss Yun first climbed into her brother-in-law's bed, she was charming and gentle, unlike how mean she is now."

A lazy yet arrogant voice interrupted her.

The group looked in the direction of the sound and saw Su Mingfeng, dressed in a black outfit with a smile in his eyes, slowly entering from outside the door.