Chapter Twenty-Nine: Where Did This Child Come From?

“?!!”
Qin Zhiyi leapt up from his stool in an instant, fixing Chang Fu with a suspicious glare. He was already troubled, and now this man had come bearing such explosive news? The key point was—when had he ever even touched Shen Fuyu?
Where on earth had this child come from?
Sometimes, Qin Zhiyi suspected he was his own worst enemy. At this moment, his mind conjured the memory of his first visit to Crescent Moon Palace, when Shen Fuyu had sung that song about the vast grasslands in his ear…
His mood soured as though he’d swallowed a fly!
But Qin Zhiyi was no fool. Even in anger, he could think clearly, and it dawned on him at once just where this child had come from.
“Chang Fu, prepare the palanquin! We’re going to Crescent Moon Palace!”
Chang Fu responded at once, but inwardly, he was baffled. Was this truly the reaction of a man learning he was to be a father for the first time? Disbelief, then contemplation—yet not a trace of joy. Was it because the one carrying his child was the Virtuous Consort?
Of course, as someone without deep roots, he couldn’t comprehend the love of ordinary people.
Shaking his head, Chang Fu hurried after the soft palanquin, jogging to keep pace with Qin Zhiyi as they made for Crescent Moon Palace!
Meanwhile, at the very same moment, Shen Fuyu had returned to her own chambers after a heated quarrel with the Emperor at noon, only to faint dead away. The imperial physician who came to examine her delivered news like a tidal wave that crashed through the harem—she was with child. Since Qin Zhiyi’s ascension, this was the first time a consort had conceived; it was a matter of immense celebration. An imperial heir was of paramount importance; an emperor without offspring would always be subject to doubt. Yet the arrival of Qin Zhiyi’s first child was, in truth, strange and inexplicable.
After all, no one had expected Shen Fuyu to be the first to conceive.
She was a month pregnant, yet had only entered the palace just over a month ago.
What sort of ridiculous luck was this?

“What did you say? The Virtuous Consort is pregnant? How is that possible?”
White smoke curled from the incense burner in Shou’an Palace, but the sound of a teacup shattering on the floor rang out sharply. The Empress Dowager, as though she had misheard, even sat up from her couch. “Impossible! She drank the infertility draught I gave her; how could she possibly be pregnant?”
Beside her, the Graceful Consort knelt on the floor, her face pale and her expression dazed, unsure what to do.
Ruowei, dropping to one knee, said, “This humble servant is equally bewildered, Your Majesty. I personally oversaw the preparation of that medicine and watched the Virtuous Consort drink it. The potion takes effect as soon as it enters the stomach—there should be no possibility of pregnancy!”
The impossible had happened, and the Empress Dowager’s face darkened. Something that should have been foolproof—a bowl of infertility draught—yet Shen Fuyu had conceived. Worse, she hadn’t even managed to push the Emperor into favoring other consorts; Shen Fuyu already had a child!
“Your Majesty, I find the matter highly suspicious,” the Graceful Consort ventured, still kneeling. “Ruowei is your trusted confidante, and with her handling things, nothing should have gone awry. Think: if the draught truly worked, the Virtuous Consort could not be pregnant. How could she be, unless she’s feigning pregnancy to win favor?”
“There is some truth in your words,” the Empress Dowager said, her expression growing colder. To muddle the imperial bloodline was a grave crime. The Shen family had already begun to show signs of restlessness—she could never allow Shen Fuyu to give birth to the Emperor’s firstborn! The crown prince must come from a more suitable consort. “She’s bold indeed, to risk the extermination of her entire clan for such a crime!”
“Hasn’t she always been this way?” The Graceful Consort pressed her lips together, unable to hide her jealousy—especially after the torment Shen Fuyu’s voice had put her through lately. The mere mention of Shen Fuyu soured her mood, and her tone sharpened. “In my opinion, the Virtuous Consort knows she can’t win the Emperor’s heart with her temperament, so she’s resorted to this desperate measure. She’ll act first and report later, forcing her family to help her conceal the truth. Then, she’ll swap the child for another—who knows where it came from!—and claim it as the royal heir. Outrageous!”
The more she spoke, the more the Empress Dowager found sense in her words. Yes, if not to secure her position, why else would Shen Fuyu conjure up a child? The Emperor had visited her less and less of late, surely prompting such a scheme from a woman of no standing!
“Ruowei, fetch Physician Zhang. We’re going to Crescent Moon Palace.”
Her mind made up, the Empress Dowager was determined not to let Shen Fuyu gain favor. Shen Fuyu might bribe one physician, but could she bribe her own trusted imperial doctor?
She would expose Shen Fuyu’s deception on the spot!
“So, this is your so-called foolproof plan?”
During her ‘pregnancy,’ Shen Fuyu deliberately stroked her belly, grinning slyly. “Isn’t it wonderful, Your Majesty?”
“Ah, even if the child isn’t yours, he’ll still call you uncle, won’t he?”

Qin Zhiyi: “……”
Well, thank you very much. As if he needed a child foisted on him out of thin air!
“What’s with that face? If the baby in my belly sees his father looking so gloomy every day, he’ll surely be born ugly! Why don’t you show a bit more of a father’s bearing? If I’m unhappy, it means the baby is unhappy too. You’d best think carefully about how to be a good father!” Shen Fuyu caressed her belly with delight. She truly admired herself—she’d conjured up a son from nothing, and could keep harvesting his anger for months! The thought that for the entire ‘ten months of pregnancy,’ Qin Zhiyi would be at her mercy was simply too delicious!
What a heavenly life!
“That isn’t the point!” Qin Zhiyi pulled her to sit beside him, gritting his teeth. “I don’t know how much you paid to bribe the physician, but have you considered how you’ll get past the Empress Dowager with this fake belly? You think she won’t call her own physician to examine you?”
“Is there something wrong with Your Majesty’s ears?” Shen Fuyu retorted. “I said from the start that I’d only boast if I could carry it off. Why must you make everyone repeat things so many times? That’s truly annoying!”
And wasn’t Shen Fuyu the truly annoying one?
Qin Zhiyi felt his head throb. What madness was this? He hadn’t even planned how to handle the situation, and now Shen Fuyu had pinned the child on him. She knew full well the Empress Dowager disliked her, yet dared such a risk. Her sharp tongue was one thing, but this recklessness—did she have any sense at all?
“It’s nothing, just a minor issue.” Shen Fuyu saw his silence and knew what troubled him, but she, Shen Fuyu, never cared for the concerns of others. “But about this matter, I do have a small question. Might Your Majesty answer it?”
“Go ahead.” Qin Zhiyi felt he scarcely had the energy to keep up with her.