The wicked imperial concubine is courting death again; the comments section teaches her how to win w

If force doesn't work, Shaoqian is going to try a softer approach.

She wiped away non-existent tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief. "Yun'an, you know that since your father passed away, my greatest wish has been for you to get married soon and have a happy marriage."

"If your marriage is still unsettled, I'm afraid I'll become ill from worry and go to find your father long ago, cough cough..."

Lu Linbai stared at Shaoqian for a long time with a complicated expression, then ruthlessly exposed her, "Stop acting."

"You are strong and healthy, with a booming voice. You can live for several more decades without any problem... If you really miss your father, when we return to Chezhou, I will ask Manager Zhao to make preparations in advance so that we won't have to act hastily."

The Manager Zhao he mentioned was the owner of the largest coffin shop in the city.

Shaoqian was so angry that her vision went black.

That bastard's mouth is like it's coated with poison. Just chatting with him for a few minutes can shorten your lifespan by three to five years.

Even if you didn't plan to go down, you still have to go down early and wait.

Shaoqian appeared calm, but in reality, she was at her wit's end.

"Ha," Shaoqian sneered, "Marriage is a matter of your parents' wishes, and you have no choice but to accept it."

She'll just ask for an imperial decree and marry him. Anyway, this guy is always looking for someone and never home, so she'll just consider the daughter-in-law as someone she's marrying for him.

Shaoqian knew that Lu Linbai had someone he cared about, but after so many years, there was still no news of her. That girl was probably already married and had a husband.

By then, everyone else will be showing signs of pregnancy, and he still won't be over it.

Serves him right! Who told him to be so incredibly stupid, not even asking his name or hometown? Now it's like finding a needle in a haystack, how easy is that?

Even if they unexpectedly meet again, and they're not married, given that bastard's sharp tongue, Shaoqian doesn't think he'd be interested in her.

May I grow old alone.

Lu Linbai remained noncommittal. So what if the imperial decree was issued? If he didn't like it, he didn't like it. Even if it were the Emperor himself, he couldn't take off his pants and tie him to someone else's bed for the wedding night.

Of course, Lu Linbai believed that the current emperor was not in such a good mood.

As he ran his fingers over a smooth, jade pendant, Lu Linbai turned his gaze to the window, slightly lost in thought.

Shaded by lush trees, with distant mountains like dark eyebrows, the official road winds its way forward, disappearing into the vast twilight.

……

Qin Lianyue fell ill after returning from Baohua Temple.

She personally sent Mengzhu, who had served her since childhood, away, which broke her heart. After returning home, she had several nightmares and couldn't sleep at night.

According to the imperial physician, the patient was frightened excessively, and the summer heat had caused liver fire to stagnate, requiring rest.

She can no longer even serve the emperor in bed.

Upon hearing this news, Xie Ling clicked his tongue lightly, "That's such a pity."

Turning his head, Li Degui removed Consort Li's green nameplate from the list of those to be summoned to the emperor's bedchamber.

At the same time, Qin Zhenxiong's army arrived in the northwest and engaged in fierce battle with the new king of the Northern Rong.

More than half a month later, good news came one after another as summer was coming to an end. The emperor was overjoyed. Thinking that Consort Li had been ill for a long time, he specially granted permission for her family to visit her in the palace.

Yang Lanru rushed into the palace, but was stunned when she saw Qin Lianyue.

Since the Dharma assembly at Baohua Temple, in just over half a month, Qin Lianyue has become extremely thin, with dark circles under her eyes, disheveled hair, and an overall haggard appearance.

It seemed to be possessed by something dirty; even a gust of wind could blow it over.

"Moon, what's wrong with you?" Yang Lanru asked in alarm.

She knew her daughter was sick, but thought it was just a cold, not expecting it to be so serious.

"Is it because these lackeys see you're sick that they don't bother to take care of you or even call for a doctor?"

"Mother—" Upon seeing her birth mother, Qin Lianyue felt no joy, but instead looked at the wide-open door behind her in terror. "Quickly close the door! She...she's coming to find me!"

"Who?"

Yang Lanru was puzzled. Seeing her daughter cowering, she closed the door. "Yue'er, don't be afraid, Mother is here. Who did you just say?"

"Mengzhu...she comes every night..."

During this period, Qin Lianyue was plagued by nightmares, dreaming every now and then of a female ghost with no tongue and a bloody hole in her chest.

At first, she thought it was a hallucination, but as time went on, she always felt a chill in the palace and could hear a mournful female voice every night.

"Your Majesty, I was doing this for you... Why won't you save me...?"

"My tongue hurts so much, Your Majesty! It's because you're useless that I died such a tragic death..."

"Your Highness, it's so cold down here. Would you please come down and keep me company?"

Qin Lianyue wanted to say that it had nothing to do with her; it was her own stupidity that she betrayed the person without even seeing them clearly, and she deserved to die.

She tried desperately to hypnotize herself, but fear clung to her like a shadow.

It wasn't until Yang Lanru arrived that she threw herself into her mother's arms and burst into tears, "Mother, I was so scared... I cut off her tongue with my own hands, and I stabbed her with the dagger... There was so much blood..."

Yang Lanru was startled.

During the Dharma assembly at Baohua Temple, she was busy preparing for her eldest son's wedding and did not attend in person.

I only heard that there was a fire in the temple that almost burned Consort Qi. Since she wasn't my daughter, I didn't pay much attention to it. I never expected there to be such a story behind it.

"Your Majesty, don't be afraid," Yang Lanru quickly comforted her. "Mengzhu is a servant born into the Qin family; her life belongs to us. Serving her master and dying for her master is her blessing. We haven't mistreated her family either. Even if she goes down in the world, she should know how to be grateful. How dare she deliberately frighten Your Majesty?"

"Your Majesty must be overthinking things. Think of your father, Your Majesty. You are the daughter of the General of Fuyuan. You cannot be weak-willed."

"If you get scared by something like this, what kind of talk will it make?"

Her mother's words calmed Qin Lianyue down considerably. She murmured, "That's right, I am Father's daughter..."

"That's more like it." Yang Lanru helped her tidy her hair. "Look at you, a noble consort, disheveled and unkempt. What will His Majesty think if he sees you like this?"

"His Majesty……"

As if remembering something, Qin Lianyue's voice trembled, "Why has my cousin only sent some tonics through eunuchs while I've been sick for so long? He's never come even once."

She knew he was busy, busy with national affairs and the war in the Northwest, but no matter how busy he was, wouldn't he have time to have a meal or visit her?

"Mother, does His Majesty truly love me?"

"You silly child, of course His Majesty likes you, but recently he has been preoccupied with state affairs and has no time to attend to the harem. He has not only not visited you, but he has also rarely gone to Consort Qi's place."

Yang Lanru patted her daughter's hand, "You are your father's only daughter, and you and the Empress Dowager are both members of the Qin family. If His Majesty doesn't love you, who will he love?"

Qin Lianyue then smiled slightly.

"Look how thin your little face is. Here, Mom brought your favorite food." Yang Lanru opened the food box and handed it to her daughter.

Qin Lianyue covered her mouth, as if she couldn't stand the greasy smell. "Mother, take it away. I haven't had much of an appetite lately, and the smell makes me nauseous..."

"Okay, let's not eat this, let's eat something else."

As Yang Lanru was speaking, she suddenly stopped, her eyes fixed intently on her daughter, as if she were overjoyed.

"Moon, have you... have you gotten your period this month?"