Chapter 58: Miscarriage.

When the warm hand was finally lifted from her eyes, Yan Luan noticed that the enemies from the ambush were almost all dead, as their bodies littered the ground near her feet. They were all killed with one single stroke, and even in death, their eyes were wide-open, filled with fear and disbelief.

She turned her gaze upon Yan Jing, who looked like a handsome and calm young noble, if not for the few specks of blood on his face and the blood-filled sword held within his hand.

The thick scent of iron filled her senses entirely, causing her to hurriedly clamp her palms around her nose as it was making her nauseous.

Fortunately, perhaps noticing the imminent failure of their mission, the remaining assassins began to retreat.

Yan Dao had returned shortly after, but his pale green coat, which Yan Luan had personally picked for him during her shopping spree, was soaked in red and ruined.

“They were sent by House Wang.” He said impatiently while waving a tag at his elder brother.

“To think that they would do something so obvious, it’s unlike his style… I believe something happened back in the city.” Yan Jing nodded as he tossed the blood-stained handkerchief onto the ground.

A letter arrived from HuaiYin HouFu in the evening, as expected. Apparently, there was an assassination attempt on Yan Rong’s life while he was returning from the House Yan’s army camp, and his narrow escape was all because Princess YongKang had arrived with backup.

“Mother wants us home, I believe the power struggle is already at its peak.”

The burning clouds stained the evening sky, while the churning sunset emitted an extremely ominous sensation.

The returning trip wasn’t as calm and lively as before, and though the siblings took merely five days to reach the city, the power struggle within was already in a mess.

Yan Rong was still in a comatose state when the siblings arrived. He had been caught by surprise by the assassination, as no one had expected House Wang to do things in such a manner, and the assassin managed to stab a knife through his stomach.

“Mother, Father will be fine.” Yan Luan said softly at the grieving woman, this was her first time seeing Princess YongKang in such a manner.

In their past life, her parents were not on good terms, and when Yan Jing ascended to the throne, Yan Rong had even tried to have his own son assassinated in an attempt to steal the throne. But his plans had failed and he had been executed in secret by his own wife, as recorded in the history books she knew, but still, Yan Jing had given him the title of the Emperor’s Father regardless.

“I have been married to your Father for many many years, and though I am disappointed in him, seeing him like this hurts my heart……”

Years ago, when he was still a mere noble and she, a gorgeous and striking sister of the late emperor, their marriage had envied every single person in the world.

Yan Rong had given her the most beautiful love she had ever felt, unfortunately, he, too, had given her the most heart-wrenching despair. Still, no matter how much she hated him, there was no way to erase this man from her heart, as his presence was already a part of her.

And now, the previous proud and confident Princess YongKang was no more, replaced by a worried wife who was clenching Yan Luan’s hands with shaky fingers.

“His heart was much stronger than mine, to think that he had stayed silent all these years after I ordered for Bian Shi’s death. If not for this jade, something that belonged to her, I would’ve thought all my life that he had forgiven me for my recklessness.”

Princess YongKang’s chilly words sent a shiver through her, but knowing that there was nothing she could say to comfort her mother, she had merely tightened her fingers over her mother’s chilly ones.

“Your grandfather had told me that I would regret my decisions one day, but I would not listen. I was madly in love, and I had married him in a hurry. And after knowing that he was in love with Bian Shi, I had allowed him to take her as a mistress.” She spoke softly, as if finally confiding in the heaviness she held within her heart for her entire life, “Everyone in the city thought I had went mad, and they had called me a fool since then.”

Truly, being the favorite daughter of the late-late-emperor, Princess YongKang had chosen to share her husband with another woman. She had lost her dignity as a princess, causing her to be a laughing stock in the higher circles, and finally, when she had killed Bian Shi in a heat of jealousy, they had called her the ‘Princess wife who was unwanted’.

Love is cruel.

A urgent letter arrived from the queen’s palace, requesting for Yan Luan’s presence. Yan Dao had personally sent her towards the palace before leaving in a hurry.

Yan Luan stared at her brother’s disappearing figure as a curious loneliness crawled through her, causing her to almost call out for him, though fortunately, she had managed to control herself.

Her brothers had been working without stop for days, but though the plan was successful and everything was already prepared and in place, they could not let their guard down.

Hopefully, in this life, we will all have a happy ending……

“WengZhu, please follow this one, the Queen is awaiting your arrival.”

“En.”

Jiang FuYuan did not look good, as her face was pale and her smile was tired, and upon noticing Yan Luan’s arrival, she dismissed the servants nearby instantly.

“You’re finally here, come here quickly.”

Yan Luan rushed over to her pale and sickly friend, gripping onto her hands tightly before realizing that her fingers were as cold as ice, “What happened to you!?”

It was still early autumn, and the weather was still somewhat warm, so there was no reason why her best friend would be so sickly.

“I……I lost my child.” Jiang FuYuan forced the words out of her shaky lips, before ending it in a choke.

“What did you say!?” Yan Luan gasped out in shock, it had only been twenty days since her ascension as Queen, so how……?

For a second, she thought that perhaps something went wrong with her ears.

But it was obvious that Jiang FuYuan was not joking, as a toddler’s shirt was clenched tightly within her shaky right hand as she pressed it against her too-flat stomach.

“What exactly happened??”

“Ten days ago, someone tampered with my daily herbal medications, and my child was gone during the night.”

Due to the fact that her pregnancy was still in the early months, Emperor QiLing had not announced the news at court, but this had not stopped the enemy from learning her pregnancy. The person who planned this was obviously trying to prevent Emperor QiLing from having an heir, and as for Jiang FuYuan, she could only endure the forced-abortion in despair as no one knew about it.

“Did you catch the person who did it?”

Jiang FuYuan nodded her head slightly, “It was KeYing, but she had already committed suicide.”

KeYing. It was someone they knew, and had in fact, gossiped about before. She was the third miss from House HaiYun, and when Jiang FuYuan became Queen, KeYing was sent into the palace as a royal concubine.

“ShaSha, be strong. And I believe that this is not the end, KeYing was obviously a mere chess piece, I’m sure there are people behind her.” Yan Luan was, in fact, very upset at the news of her friend’s miscarriage, as they had both been looking forward to the child.

A child, who was gone in a blink of an eye.

“I know! It must’ve been that horrible Wang Yong! They even found poison in His Majesty’s food today, they plan to overthrow the crown! Xiao Wan, please help me avenge my child!” Jiang FuYuan could no longer bear the insufferable sadness within her heart as she bawled her eyes out while they hugged.

Yan Luan’s eyes reddened as she tried her best to comfort her friend. She had never seen her like this, as Jiang FuYuan had never been one to break down.

“I will, ShaSha, do not worry. You need to rest, your body is unwell……”

She blinked back the tears within her eyes as she coo-ed softly, in fact, she had known from her brothers’ conversation that things are bad right now, but she had not expected them to start with Jiang FuYuan.

To think that they would murder an unformed child in cold blood, their hearts must be as black as soot.