Chapter 44 Chapter 44 Your Highness, you don't know, I'm pregnant...

"Three days ago, the Prince of Xilan set out with the Princess. Even if they galloped, it would take over half a month to reach the capital. When the court officials heard that Xilan was planning a marriage alliance with our dynasty, they were abuzz with discussion, all agreeing that it was absolutely unfeasible."

A faint sandalwood incense burned in the vast palace, a refreshing breeze blowing across the ice mirror. The seven cabinet ministers, led by the Prime Minister, glanced at the calm man at the young emperor's side, unable to guess what he was thinking. Even the slightly distracted young emperor glanced sideways at the news.

The late emperor had few children; only four sons and two daughters grew up safely. Fu Huaiqing was the second oldest, and the young emperor was the fourth. After the young emperor's birth, his relatives, seeking to eliminate dissidents, pushed him to the throne, causing undercurrents within and outside the court.

After a fierce battle, the eldest and third princes died under mysterious circumstances, and the eldest princess, who had worked tirelessly for the third prince, was also persecuted.

Aside from the young emperor, only Prince Su, who had been sent by the late emperor to the frontier to comfort the soldiers, and his sister, Princess Duanhui, escaped persecution from the imperial relatives.

The young emperor was only ten years old. If the Xilan Kingdom's mission was intended for a marriage alliance, the only eligible male within the royal family was Prince Su. And since Prince Su held great power and had yet to marry, the court officials naturally did not want to see this happen.

If a Xilan princess were to take over the royal palace, wouldn't that cause chaos?

Fu Zhunqing lowered his eyes, scanning the stern-faced courtiers below him before landing on the Chief Minister, Lin Yiqing, who had remained silent throughout. He casually asked, "Teacher, what do you think of this matter?" "

Of course it's inappropriate." Lin Yiqing, whose name was called, stepped out of the group, his gaze slightly downcast at the clean floor. In his early years at the Hanlin Academy, he had been appointed by the late emperor to be Prince Su's first tutor. Later, Prince Su ascended to power and was promoted to Chief Minister of the Cabinet. Over twenty years had passed since then, and he understood what he was trying to say. He spoke calmly, "Not to mention that our dynasty has no tradition of marriage alliances, but considering that it's only been two years since the two sides reconciled, it's still inappropriate to conclude whether they have ulterior motives."

"This old minister also agrees with Lord Lin," the minister standing quietly to Lin Yiqing's right echoed.

Seeing this, the other cabinet ministers stepped out and echoed him in unison.

Fu Huaiqing, silent, tapped his fingertips on the imperial desk, and with a push, the closed memorial flew open. He scanned its contents, then brushed

his sleeves and wrote his comments in red ink. The courtiers, waiting in the hall, glanced at each other for a moment, then stole a glance back at Su Ci, who lowered his gaze and remained silent, increasingly puzzled by Prince Su's intentions.

While the common people didn't know the truth about Prince Su and Qin Wan's affair, they knew it all, and their hearts fluttered, wondering if they had just agreed incorrectly.

Fu Huaiqing put down his pen and casually handed the memorial to Jiang Yue.

He looked at the slightly uneasy crowd and said, "We'll discuss this later."

They nodded, stepped back, and left, leaving only Su Ci and Lin Yiqing.

The palace door opened, and everyone glanced at Qin Xiao, who was waiting at the gate. After a moment's pause, they nodded in acknowledgement and slowly left. As the man entered, the door closed again.

Fu Huaiqing's gaze fell on the white handkerchief that jutted slightly from beneath his sleeve. His eyes darkened, and he couldn't help but think, if only he had been even half a step later that day…

His larynx rolled with difficulty. "How's the investigation going?"

"I've got a rough idea." Qin Xiao pulled out the memorial in his hand and handed it to Jiang Yue, who had already descended the stairs and was waiting. "The coroner just brought in the results. Two of the deceased soldiers' skeletons showed old injuries. One had a noticeable scar on his skull. The scars on both didn't look like ordinary sword wounds, but rather like those of soldiers who had fought on the battlefield."

Fu Huaiqing paused for a moment

as he flipped through the memorial, then closed it. A muffled sound echoed through the palace. Fu Mingzhan, quietly toying with his clean brushstrokes, shuddered in fear. He glanced sideways at his brother, and seeing the deathly expression on his face, he swallowed and silently put the brush away.

"They appear to be commoners of our dynasty, but their skeletons are different." Qin Xiao frowned. "The coroner's initial guess is that they might not be commoners of our dynasty."

The moment these words were spoken, the vast palace felt like an ice cellar.

Silently, Su Ci glanced at the man in the hall, whose expression was indecipherable, and asked, "If they are not commoners of our dynasty, then where are they from?"

Qin Xiao shook his head. "The coroner is investigating."

"If they are not commoners of our dynasty, the person behind this must have other plans. The second young lady of the Qin family—" Lin Yiqing paused, unable to help but think of his daughter, who was about the same age, and frowned. "The second young lady of the Qin family might just be the beginning, not the end."

The Dali Temple couldn't find any clues that the other party was targeting their family. All signs confirmed that they were not coming for the Qin family, but their decisive actions clearly showed a clear target, not just randomly picking out a noble lady to kill.

This suggests that other noble ladies might be persecuted in the future. Thinking of this, Lin Yiqing thought of his daughter, who had been recuperating with Princess Duanhui for three years, and a flicker of worry crossed his eyes.

Fu Huaiqing fixed his gaze on Jiang Yue.

While the other uninformed courtiers might have said the assassins were targeting the noble ladies of the capital, he knew they were targeting Biezhi, not the second daughter of the Qin family, but Biezhi herself.

She had been guarding the Xu family's backyard when the assassins attacked. Anyone with a discerning eye would have noticed something was amiss, let alone a group of carefully trained assassins. If they hadn't been targeting Biezhi, they would have hesitated, but they didn't.

As the shadow guard had said, the assassins attacked as soon as they approached the Xu family's house, without a moment's hesitation, clearly having found their target and was determined to eliminate them at all costs.

"Knock, knock, knock."

A gentle knock echoed through the vast, silent palace. A moment later, the door swung open. Su Ci glanced back, only to see Cheng Jin, dusty and exhausted, approach. He swiftly strode over to Fu Huaiqing's side, leaning over to whisper something. It was unclear what he said, but the man's eyes suddenly lifted slightly, a flicker of surprise, but more of amusement, in his cold gaze.

As soon as Cheng Jin finished speaking, Fu Huaiqing stood up.

"Continue the investigation,"

he said, leaving a single word behind, and hurried away.

The few people standing inside watched him leave, their expressions filled with surprise.

Su Ci felt a growing sense of unease.

Just an hour ago, the guard had said something, and he had dismissed them all, promising to return shortly. And now, it seemed, something more important awaited him.

Both Cheng Jin and the guard who had just arrived wore a hint of joy.

With him gone, they had no reason to stay.

Besides, Qin Xiao had other things to do. He retracted his gaze and said to the two of them, "The family has asked someone to choose an auspicious time. My sister's funeral will be held in half an hour. I'll go first."

Lin Yiqing nodded and said, "My condolences."

Qin Xiao bowed and thanked him. He glanced at Su Ci before leaving.

Fu Huaiqing thought that Biezhi would go to find Ji Ran after waking up, or go to the crime scene to review the case, or even take the risk to go to the Qin family to investigate. He never thought that she would come to the palace.

When he returned to the palace gate, Biezhi had been waiting for a long time.

There was a faint sound of footsteps behind him. Biezhi, who was waiting in the pavilion, turned around and looked at the person who came. The moment their eyes met, she clearly saw the smile in the man's eyes.

Biezhi's heart suddenly trembled. The man's elegance and grace did not need any words from others. Just a glance could make people indulge in him. His handsomeness was very objective.

"Biezhi greets the prince." She said.

Fu Huaiqing walked past her: "Sit down and talk."

For some reason, Biezhi suddenly felt that his voice did not seem so unpleasant, although it was still no different from that of a buffalo.

After thinking about it, she felt that maybe she had heard it too much and it had become pleasing to the ear.

However, Biezhi would naturally not say such words to Prince Su, not to mention that he was her savior. Even if it was unpleasant to the ear, she had to force herself to listen to it.

She did not sit down, but followed him and stood by his side.

Their eyes met, and Biezhi bowed again. "Thank you, Your Highness, for your assistance. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be lying dead in the wilderness by now."

As she finished speaking, she caught a glimpse of the man's eyes, their smile suddenly cold. She froze, unsure of what she had said wrong. She hesitated for a moment, "If Your Highness needs me in the future, I will do it, even at the cost of my life."

"I saved you, not to get you to die for me."

A moment's silence followed, and the man's calm, unwavering voice emanated. Biezhi could clearly feel his slightly raised gaze scanning her. She pursed her lips, vaguely understanding the underlying meaning.

Had it been earlier, she would have fled.

But now, she couldn't.

Biezhi breathed a sigh of relief, lowering her gaze. "Your Highness, you don't know, but I have someone I'm responsible for."

A mouthful of warm tea suddenly lodged in her mouth, unable to move. Fu Huaiqing looked at the righteous girl with an unspeakable expression, as if he was going to do it regardless of the consequences. His Adam's apple rolled up and down, and he swallowed the tea in his mouth, "Do you need to be responsible?"

"Well, I have already discussed it with my master. After my injury is healed, I will find an auspicious day to get married." Biezhi nodded solemnly, and added, afraid that he would not believe it, "The master also knows about this."

Fu Huaiqing: "..."

He did know, but it seemed that he did not agree?

"Does your master agree?" Fu Huaiqing asked.

Biezhi was asked this question suddenly. She thought about it. She didn't see her master say that the master was unwilling. Prince Su would not go to verify with the master for such a small matter.

What's more, according to the thinking of ordinary people, this is a great joy in life. There is no reason for the master to disagree. After all, he is alone and can't bear to see others in pairs!

Although Biezhi scolded her master from time to time, she still felt in her heart that the master was not stingy enough to be so contemptible.

His temperament may change drastically in the future, but that doesn't prevent him from being a profiteer who can sit down and communicate properly. And even if he doesn't want to, what can he do? It's not his turn to agree whether he can get married or not.

The more he thought about it, the clearer his mind became. Biezhi nodded heavily: "Yeah."

Fu Huaiqing: "..."

He said seriously: "Are you sure?"

Biezhi saw that he was a little confused, as if he was very sure that the master would not agree to her marriage with Ji Ran and would definitely stop it.

She muttered: "Even if he doesn't agree, what can I do."

Fu Huaiqing didn't hear what Biezhi said clearly, but he could still see from her expression that she was a little unhappy. He persuaded her: "Marriage is a major event in life, so you still have to be cautious."

Biezhi frowned.

She was serious and cautious about her marriage with Ji Ran.

He was her savior, and what she said just now was true. If Prince Su had any request, she would do it even if she died.

Biezhi thought that their relationship was not that close yet, and it sounded too much like the advice of an elder to a younger one. He had never met Jiran, so why should he deny Jiran.

Jiran was not born into a noble family like them, and he was indeed born with defects, but it was not something he could choose.

Bad guy.

Bad guy who judges people by their appearance!

She wanted to take back all the compliments she had said about him!

An unpleasant voice is unpleasant, no matter how many times you listen to it.

That face -

well, it is undeniable that Prince Su's face is still handsome.

Biezhi was silent for a while.

So what if he is good-looking, he is just born with a good-looking appearance.

Fu Huaiqing looked at Biezhi quietly for a moment, and when he saw her, she was like an annoyed civet cat, and she would pounce on him and give him a claw in the next moment. Even the dimples that appeared from time to time on weekdays were hidden deep inside, and her round almond eyes rolled around, and she muttered something in her heart.

In short, it didn't look like a good thing.

He was silent for a moment, then changed his words: "I think it's not difficult for you to marry him if you want."

Biezhi, who was indignant, was stunned when she heard this, and didn't react for a moment: "Huh?"

Fu Huaiqing stared fixedly at the girl's slightly dazed expression, and said slowly with a twitch of his lips: "As long as he nods in agreement, it will be a happy event."

After a pause, he added: "I think he should be willing."