Consort Zhuang doesn't want palace intrigue; she just wants to raise her child and live a caref

Chapter 382 A White Lotus

The next morning, before the princes and princess arrived, Li Desheng hurried over to give Su Nuannuan his reply.

"Your Highness, this old servant has already inquired and found out that the Prince does indeed have someone he likes," Li Desheng said, bowing respectfully as he entered.

Su Nuannuan was overjoyed and quickly asked, "Is it a girl?" Her eyes sparkled with anticipation.

Li Desheng replied with a smile, "Your Majesty, it is indeed a girl."

Su Nuannuan breathed a sigh of relief, a smile of satisfaction spreading across her face. However, Li Desheng's next words instantly wiped the smile off her face.

“However, this girl is somewhat special,” Li Desheng said with some difficulty.

"Special? What's so special about it?" Su Nuannuan frowned slightly and asked, puzzled.

Li Desheng hesitated for a moment, but still decided to tell Su Nuannuan the truth: "This girl is pregnant out of wedlock, and the child is not the prince's."

Su Nuannuan's face instantly darkened. Her eyes widened as she stared at Li Desheng in disbelief, and she said sharply, "What did you say? The child isn't Lao Wu's?"

Su Nuannuan can accept being pregnant out of wedlock, but she cannot accept someone cheating on her son and making him a cuckold.

Li Desheng lowered his head, not daring to look Su Nuannuan in the eye, and said softly, "Every word this old servant has said is true, without a single lie."

Su Nuannuan took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. Various thoughts raced through her mind, the first being whether her son knew about this.

"Does Fifth Brother know?" she asked nervously.

Li Desheng quickly shook his head and replied, "Your Highness is unaware of this matter."

Su Nuannuan's expression softened slightly, but it was still filled with worry and anger. She gritted her teeth and said, "Whose daughter dares to scheme against Fifth Brother like this?"

"She was a merchant's daughter, but the merchant's wife was a concubine who rose to power. The person the prince liked was born to this concubine."

After hearing this, Su Nuannuan's lips curled up slightly, revealing a cold smile.

"A merchant's daughter, yet she's so cunning, even plotting against the prince. She's certainly got some nerve," Su Nuannuan sneered, a hint of disdain flashing in her eyes.

"What else did you find out?" Su Nuannuan continued to press.

"The merchant's wife is carrying her cousin's child. However, because her cousin's family is poor, her mother looks down on him and strongly opposes the marriage. Nevertheless, the two secretly have an affair and the child is eventually conceived."

"Oh?" Su Nuannuan raised an eyebrow. "Then why did she go to find Lao Wu?"

"As far as this old servant knows, Your Highness is quite simple-minded in this regard," Li Desheng replied truthfully.

"Heh, you might as well just say your prince is stupid!" Su Nuannuan mocked mercilessly. "He's a master at fighting, but when it comes to judging people, he's like he's blind."

Upon hearing this, Li Desheng's expression changed slightly, but he did not respond.

"Go and find out for me when that merchant's daughter will meet with her cousin, and where they will meet," Su Nuannuan instructed.

"Yes." Li Desheng responded and turned to leave. He did not hesitate at all in fulfilling Su Nuannuan's request.

After Li Desheng left, Jinse watched his departing figure and whispered, "Your Majesty is trying to break them up."

"If I were to forcefully separate them, it would definitely not work. In fact, it might backfire and even cause him to harbor resentment towards me."

Since force won't work, we can't force him. It's better to let him know the truth. If, after learning the truth, he still loves that girl, then I have nothing to say and will have to accept it. However, in that case, his position as Prince Yong will probably be over.”

At this point, Su Nuannuan continued:

If a woman is pregnant with a child that is not Lao Wu's, yet she plots against Lao Wu, then the moment the child is born will be the moment Lao Wu dies.

"I truly do not wish to see him die young because of this."

After all, Prince Yong was her own son, and she naturally didn't want him to lose his life because of a woman.

Su Nuannuan couldn't help but sigh, "I just wonder, if he didn't have the title of Prince Yong, would that girl still like him as much as she does now?"

A year ago, Canglan Jingcheng returned to the capital. The military forces in Huiyang City were now on the right track, and all kinds of weapons and equipment were in place. After a clash with the other side, they were clearly intimidated by the strength of Canglan Kingdom and immediately became docile, sending envoys to the capital for peace talks.

Although the emperor accepted the peace talks, he firmly rejected the marriage proposal. Thus, the princess from the other side had to arrive disappointed and leave disappointed as well.

Nevertheless, the generals of Huiyang City dared not let their guard down. They knew the enemy's cunning and had to remain vigilant at all times to guard against any tricks the enemy might play in secret.

After returning to the capital, Canglan Jingcheng seemed to have completely abandoned his princely status and lived an extremely leisurely life. He spent his days either engrossed in researching various delicacies or frequenting brothels, listening to music and enjoying that carefree existence.

However, his behavior in the brothel was quite peculiar. Unlike other customers who were only fond of one girl, he would order one girl to sing today and then switch to another tomorrow. He seemed to treat every girl equally, without any particular favoritism or obvious neglect.

This approach of treating everyone equally won him the favor of the girls in the brothel, yet they couldn't quite figure out his intentions. Meanwhile, Canglan Jingcheng himself seemed to revel in this situation, as if it were the life he had always sought.

However, at this very moment, this seemingly carefree and unrestrained prince is spending time with his beloved.

"Your Highness, do you think the Imperial Concubine will like me?" The woman's soft voice revealed a hint of worry.

Cang Lan Jingcheng looked at her tenderly and comforted her, "Your mother will like you."

However, the woman's brow remained furrowed. "But what if the Imperial Concubine doesn't like me? After all, I'm just a merchant by birth, of lowly status. Perhaps, Your Highness, you shouldn't like me after all..."

Her words were filled with unease and inferiority, as if she had many doubts about the relationship.

"I really don't want to see any conflict or disagreement between the Prince and the Empress Dowager caused because of me."

"Don't worry, your mother won't care about your background."

Hearing the prince say this, the merchant's wife felt a little less uneasy, but she was still somewhat skeptical. After all, she hadn't personally experienced the Dowager Consort's attitude, so she was still not entirely at ease.

So she couldn't help but ask again, "Really?"

The prince seemed to see through her thoughts. He smiled and nodded, answering again with certainty, "Really."