Forcing me to become a concubine? Remarrying the Ninth Prince, she'll be pregnant all over the

"How dare you! Who's on the bridge ahead?"

The guards shouted, and in the firelight, they caught a glimpse of Shen Huai'an hurriedly pushing Xiao Yupin aside.

The guards turned pale with surprise and dared not hide anything, so they all kowtowed and bowed, shouting "Greetings to the Crown Prince!" which also disturbed the entourage behind them.

"What's all the noise outside? It costs 23!"

The emperor was still in the imperial carriage, feeling cold and afraid of the wind, and even Consort Ning, who was attending to him, did not dare to lift the golden brocade curtain.

Because of the war in the western border, although the emperor had made up his mind, he could not resist the old ministers who advocated peace and kept making irresponsible remarks, which made the emperor feel upset and his condition fluctuated. This made him even more distressed. So he listened to Hua Ershisan's advice and went to Huguo Temple to burn incense and listen to sutras today. Unexpectedly, he missed the appointed time and returned to the palace a little late.

Hua Ershisan, standing outside the imperial carriage, hurriedly responded, tiptoeing over the layers of guards. She then feigned surprise, exclaiming in astonishment, "Oh my, it's His Highness the Crown Prince! So late, why is Your Highness still here... Ah!"

Hua Ershisan's acting was so convincing that he was stunned when he caught sight of Consort Yu, and then hurriedly bowed and said, "This old servant greets Consort Yu, may Your Highness be blessed with ten thousand years of happiness and peace."

The words were spoken without any restraint or subtlety; their shouts echoed throughout the deserted street, making them known to almost everyone.

Consort Yu's face was pale with nervousness and confusion. Her body trembled uncontrollably with panic. Disregarding all decorum, she collapsed to her knees when she heard the emperor coughing behind her.

Shen Huai'an closed his eyes helplessly, took a deep breath, said nothing, and strode towards the imperial carriage.

The Emperor also heard the name "Consort Yu," and coughed angrily. Despite Consort Ning's attempts to soothe him by patting his back, he still abruptly lifted the sedan curtain: "Hua Twenty-Three! Who do you think is on the bridge? Consort Yu?!"

The Emperor traveled today with only Consort Ning accompanying him; he did not bring any of the other concubines. It is a serious taboo and a grave crime for concubines to leave the palace without permission, yet Consort Yu dared to leave the palace late at night to secretly meet with the Crown Prince?!

Even if nothing happened between the two, under the melon patch, to put it bluntly, the emperor felt as if he had been caught in adultery, and he felt so angry that he was practically fuming!

"How dare you! How dare you! Cough cough..."

The emperor was furious, coughing up blood as his face turned ashen: "Hua Twenty-Three! Issue my decree: Consort Yu has committed adultery in the harem, a crime deserving of death! Strip her of her title and demote her to commoner status! Immediately imprison her in the Cold Palace!"

Hua Ershisan also moved back from a distance, and upon hearing the order, he hurriedly obeyed.

Consort Xiaoyu heard this too, and in a panic, tears streamed down her face as she repeatedly kowtowed, "Your Majesty, I am innocent! I truly did not do anything with His Highness the Crown Prince. I was tricked into coming here, Your Majesty..."

The emperor wouldn't listen to a single word, finding it utterly annoying. Suppressing his violent coughs, he whispered through the palanquin to Hua Twenty-Three, "Tell her to shut up! Shut up for me forever!"

Forever, that is... to give the white silk ribbon after the child is born.

Just as Hua Niansan was about to accept the order, Consort Ning comforted the emperor, saying, "Your Majesty, your health is paramount. Please calm down. Perhaps Consort Yu has her own reasons. For the sake of Consort Yu, she is carrying the emperor's child."

Why say that now of all times, adding fuel to the fire!

The emperor cast a vicious glance at Shen Huai'an, who was kneeling outside the imperial carriage, his head throbbing with rage: "Imperial heir? Ha! Who knows whose wicked child he might be! Hua Twenty-Three, show no mercy!"

This means neither mother nor child will be spared.

Unable to say anything, Hua Niansan glanced at Consort Ning in the imperial carriage out of the corner of her eye and quickly responded.

Consort Xiaoyu was also gagged by her attendants. At Hua Ershisan's signal, she was dragged away, away from the imperial procession, and thrown directly into the icy river until she died. The guards then retrieved her body and hastily buried her.

"You unfilial son! You wretched child..." The emperor stared down at Shen Huai'an, trembling with rage. His chest heaved violently, and a mouthful of blood gushed out, splattering onto Consort Ning in a horrifying sight.

Consort Ning was terrified and quickly supported the Emperor, wiping away the blood and feeding him medicine. The Emperor, after taking a ginseng slice, managed to calm down a bit. "You scoundrel, what else do you have to say?!"

Shen Huai'an, resigned to his fate, continued to kowtow and plead: "Father, I know my crime, but I did not do anything disrespectful to Consort Yu. I beg you to investigate thoroughly. This matter must have been instigated by someone to frame me. I had absolutely no selfish motives to disrespect Your Majesty's concubines. I cannot bear the crime of treason!"

"Lies! You're still lying!"

"Shen Huai'an! You wretched creature! Do you really think you can hide your good deeds from everyone?"

The Emperor was already suspicious of what the Empress had said to make things difficult for Lin Wantang on New Year's Eve. However, he thought that Shen Huai'an was, after all, his legitimate son. His health was already like this; how many more years could he hold on? At most, ten years or so. In the end, wouldn't the empire still be handed over to Shen Huai'an? Otherwise, would those princes really be able to scheme and fight for the throne, causing brothers to turn against each other?

The emperor tolerated it again and again, but what was the result? It turned out that Lin Wantang was right, and his suspicions were correct. This wicked child, Shen Huai'an, really dared to be so rebellious!

If you fight him for his woman now, what about later?

It's estimated that before the emperor even has a chance to abdicate, Shen Huai'an is already eager to snatch the throne from him!

From the secluded sedan chair at a distant street corner, Lin Wantang, with her keen eyes and ears, took in everything through the lifted curtain.

She smiled smugly, waiting to see how the emperor would deal with Shen Huai'an.

If they don't remove the crown prince from his position this time, when will they ever do it again?

Chunhen slowly stepped forward from behind and said in a low voice, "Madam, everything has been arranged. Consort Yu only held her breath after falling into the water; she did not die. Eunuch Hua will secretly make arrangements for Consort Yu without anyone noticing."

Lin Wantang nodded slightly. She had previously informed Hua Twenty-Three to show some mercy to Consort Yu. After all, she was carrying two children and had two lives. Besides, her crime did not warrant death. She could simply go into hiding and leave for distant lands.

"Madam, I may have said too much... I just feel that this might be like raising a tiger that will cause trouble later." For some reason, Chunhen felt uneasy.

Lin Wantang didn't mind and smiled, "Just consider it as saving a life being more meritorious than building a seven-story pagoda. This time, she really helped me a lot."

Chunhen dared not say anything more, while on the bridge, several old ministers who had served the emperor saw that the emperor had already decided to depose him, and they couldn't help but step forward.

These people were all members of the Crown Prince's faction and had received great favors from him in the past. They would never tolerate the Crown Prince being in such a predicament. One of them said, "Your Majesty, please allow me to speak."

"His Highness the Crown Prince has always been kind and wise, and he especially respects the Emperor. Today's events cannot be judged solely on appearances. If I may be so bold, His Highness is both talented and handsome, the heir apparent, and a pillar of the court. There are countless women who admire him. Even if the Crown Prince were truly debauched and dissolute in private, he has plenty of women to choose from and play with. Why must he meddle with the concubines?"