Who said the heir would die out? The concubine is pregnant again!

At Princess Rui's command, servants immediately came to pull her away, but Yingzhu struggled angrily.

"Let me go! I want to wait for the prince to return!"

Xu Fanglin took a few steps closer, his smile sinister.

"Yingzhu, you have committed such heinous crimes, plotting to harm the Crown Prince. Your mother has spared you. You should be burning incense in gratitude."

This child is your only lifeline right now. I advise you to behave yourself and not struggle, lest you lose the child. Your mother will not show you any mercy then, and today will be your death day!

"Go to the villa and rest peacefully during your pregnancy. Your mother will treat you well for the sake of the child in your womb."

Xu Fanglin was a malicious person, but she was right about one thing—the child was indeed Yingzhu's lifeline, and she couldn't let the child get hurt by pulling on the child.

With Liang Yunqian not in the manor, Princess Rui was determined to send Yingzhu away. Yingzhu's resistance and clarification were useless, so what she should do was protect herself first and then find a way to survive.

After careful consideration, Yingzhu stopped resisting and walked towards the gate of the mansion.

She hadn't gone far when hurried footsteps caught up with her.

"Yingzhu, wait!"

Xu Fanglin slipped some silver to Granny Chen, saying she had a few words to say.

Granny Chen quickly hid the silver in her sleeve. "Princess Consort, please hurry, lest we be late and something else goes wrong."

Xu Fanglin nodded in agreement, and then pulled Yingzhu aside.

"Yingzhu, I know you may be innocent, but now the evidence is conclusive, and it's no use denying it. Just now, in front of so many people, I couldn't defend you, otherwise even I would have doubts."

"I can't afford to get hurt. If something happens to me, who will continue to investigate for you? Go to the villa first. I will definitely help you find the real culprit who slandered you and clear your name. Once Mother has calmed down, I will immediately bring you back to the manor!"

Her voice was no longer as forceful as before; it became unusually gentle.

Seeing Xu Fanglin's hypocritical and righteous appearance, Yingzhu felt extremely disgusted.

The reason she softened her tone and spoke conciliatoryly was not because she truly believed Yingzhu, but simply because she was afraid that Yingzhu would expose the Xu family's conspiracy in a fit of anger, so she pretended to appease her.

In her past life, Yingzhu would probably have believed Xu Fanglin's nonsense. In this life, she wouldn't be so foolish, but she also wouldn't clash with Xu Fanglin at this time.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Your Highness. I'm so glad you trusted me. You must rescue me! I'll be waiting for you!"

Yingzhu's feigned gratitude and tears reassured Xu Fanglin for the time being.

Xu Fanglin figured she wouldn't cause any more trouble, so she let her go.

Liang Xingzhou stood by the artificial hill not far away.

A familiar voice seemed to drift through the winter north wind; he vaguely heard Yingzhu's voice, but it was too far away for him to hear clearly. So he asked the servant.

"What's all that noise over there?"

The servant Mingfeng whispered, "I heard that they found a talisman in Consort Shen's room, saying that she cursed the young master and that's how she managed to have a child. The princess was furious when she found out and kicked Consort Shen out of the palace."

"Aunt Shen?" Liang Xingzhou sighed inwardly, realizing he hadn't misheard; it was indeed that similar voice, hard to distinguish from the real one.

"Wasn't she pregnant? Why would the princess send her away?"

"They said they were sent to a separate villa, but no one knows which one. The Prince's residence has many villas, and the Princess Consort instructed that it be kept secret and that no one should know."

Upon hearing that she had an accident, Liang Xingzhou was filled with anxiety and instinctively tried to walk outside, but was stopped by Mingfeng.

"Fourth Master, where are you going? This is a matter concerning the women in the young master's household. You must not meddle, or you will be implicated."

After all, such despicable methods as using talismans are abhorrent to people, and the Prince's mansion deeply despises them. If it weren't for Consort Shen's pregnancy, she would probably have been sent to the authorities today!

This matter sounds very serious. Logically speaking, Liang Xingzhou shouldn't interfere, but what if this Aunt Shen is really his fiancée, Shen Yingzhu?

If she were murdered and driven away to the villa, who knows what kind of torture she would suffer...

Liang Xingzhou became increasingly uneasy, but with Mingfeng there, he couldn't openly chase after him, and besides, he couldn't see the road and couldn't track anyone.

He could only go back first and then think of a solution.

Yingzhu traveled a long distance by carriage to the Plum Garden.

The garden was planted with a large number of plum trees, with winter plum and red plum blossoms blooming in succession, creating a serene atmosphere. However, she had been slandered and driven to this place, which was a disgrace in itself, so she naturally had no mood to appreciate the beautiful scenery.

Only Qingfeng accompanied her, along with a few maids and nannies in the garden. Granny Chen was giving instructions to someone when the old nanny in the garden glanced at Yingzhu from afar, her lips curled up in disgust.

Without listening closely, Yingzhu knew that Granny Chen was recounting her evil deeds and sins to someone.

After giving her instructions, Granny Chen left, and Granny Gui led her to her bedroom with her head held high.

This house wasn't as exquisite and luxurious as Wenzhuxuan, but it was fairly tidy. There weren't many pieces of furniture or decorations, and the necessary daily necessities weren't complete.

Before leaving the Prince's mansion, Granny Chen only packed some clothes for Yingzhu haphazardly, without taking any jewelry or other items, so Yingzhu had to make do.

Qingfeng wiped the chair with a handkerchief, helped her sit down, and Granny Gui leaned against the doorway, arms crossed, chuckling.

"This is just a villa, not as well-equipped as a royal palace. We provide three meals a day, four dishes and a soup, enough to satisfy your hunger."

Don't even think about getting any fancy red charcoal; we only have regular charcoal here. Follow the rules; nobody spoils you like the Crown Prince does!

There's no underground heating in this house, only charcoal, and only ten catties a day, barely enough to keep it burning for twelve hours straight.

But Yingzhu had been sent here anyway, so she had no complaints and could only endure it for now.

Qingfeng was busy cleaning and tidying the house, and Yingzhu felt guilty seeing this.

"You've always stayed in the Prince's mansion, but now you've been sent here because of me. I'm sorry to have wronged you."

"My lord, you are too kind. The young master instructed me to serve you, and I will naturally share your joys and sorrows. As long as I can stay by your side and protect you, I will not fail in my mission."

Don't worry, with me here, I won't let them bully you!

This is why Yingzhu likes Qingfeng. Like her, Qingfeng always remains optimistic, even when facing difficulties.

Touched, Yingzhu forced a smile and said, "I hope we can get through this as soon as possible."

"He definitely will. As soon as the young master returns to the manor and learns of this, he will surely come to your rescue."

Would Liang Yunqian still believe her if he saw the so-called talisman and heard the accusations made against her by the Princess Consort and the Crown Prince's wife?

He already suspected her origins, and now that the "evidence" is there, he'll probably conclude that she really does use sorcery and that she had the child through a spell.

If Liang Yunqian also thought so, then he would not come to save her. He would only let her stay in the villa to rest during her pregnancy, and just like in his previous life, he would never see her again.

The thought of this possibility made her heart clench involuntarily, and her knuckles slowly tightened.

Despite all her efforts to change things, could she still not escape the fate of her past life?

Living in the villa, how much more suffering would she have to endure?

But it is unknown whether Liang Yunqian has returned to the manor, whether he has learned of this news, and what his attitude will be.

Unfortunately, Liang Yunqian was kept in the palace by the emperor to attend a palace banquet today. After the palace gates were closed in the evening, he could not leave the palace and stayed there.

He didn't return home until noon, after attending court the next day and spending half a day at the Ministry of Revenue.

He went back to Tingsong Garden to change his clothes, and then instructed his servants to invite Yingzhu over for a meal.

The servant stood there motionless, looking troubled as he sought help from Lian Chuan.

This matter was serious enough that ordinary servants dared not mention it for fear of being reprimanded, so Lian Chuan had no choice but to speak up.

"Young Master, Consort Shen... is not in the manor."

"Not home? She went back to her parents' house? The date wasn't even set, and she went back by herself? What happened at her parents' house?"

"Madam Shen didn't return to her parents' home. The Princess Consort discovered that she had placed a talisman in her room with your birth date and time on it..."

Lian Chuan gave a brief overview, and Liang Yunqian's expression darkened. "Why didn't you report yesterday's events?"

"This servant waited for you at the palace gate until the eunuch informed me that you were staying in the palace. Only then did I return to my residence and hear about it. By then, the palace gates were already closed, and I couldn't get in!"

Liang Yunqian, who had just taken off his official robes, quickly changed into casual clothes.

"Where was Yingzhu sent?"