Rumor Has It That I'm Pregnant with His Highness' Child

177 Serving a King Is Like Serving a Tiger

That night, Yu Niaoniao slept very peacefully.

However, Xiao Juan did not sleep well.

He dreamed that when he was young, he was dizzy with fever. No one in the princess’s residence cared about him. He could only cry and run to his mother, hoping to beg her to save him.

When he ran into Princess Ni Yang’s bedroom, he saw her doing something indecent with her male companion.

The two of them were openly having sex on the bedl. They were extremely arrogant.

That scene was deeply imprinted in Xiao Juan’s heart.

So much so that after so many years, he could still clearly remember every expression of Princess Ni Yang and her exaggerated cry.

She looked like she was enjoying herself, but he only felt sick.

Because he did not sleep well, he got up before dawn.

He changed into lighter clothes and went to the yard to practice his swordplay.

His techniques were not fancy. Every move was straightforward. The blade was wrapped in a biting cold air, and leaves flew everywhere.

When Yu Niaoniao woke up, the sky was already bright outside the window.

Xiao Juan took a shower and changed into a navy blue round-necked brocade robe. He wore a jade crown on his head and a leather belt around his waist. His figure was as tall as pine bamboo, and his eyes were as deep as the starry sky.

He handed a bowl of medicine to Yu Niaoniao.

“Drink it.”

Yu Niaoniao’s small face scrunched up. She clearly did not want to drink.

Xiao Juan stared at her and asked seriously, “Do you want me to open your mouth and force you to drink?”

Yu Niaoniao was speechless.

Shouldn’t a normal man gently coax his wife when he saw that she didn’t want to drink the medicine?

Why did the situation suddenly change when it came to Duke Lang?

No wonder he was still single despite being so handsome.

Xiao Juan urged, “Drink the medicine while it’s hot.”

Yu Niaoniao’s eyes darted around.

She couldn’t care less about how he was in the past, but they were going to live together in the future. She couldn’t let him continue being so insensitive.

Yu Niaoniao leaned back and put on a weak and helpless appearance.

“But I’m not feeling well and can’t use my strength. Baby, can you feed me?”

Xiao Juan sat by the bed, scooped up the medicine with a spoon, and brought it to her mouth.

“Open your mouth.”

Yu Niaoniao stuck out the tip of her tongue and licked the soup. It was so bitter that she almost cried.

“It’s so bitter. I don’t want it anymore.”

Xiao Juan said, “Good medicine is bitter. Just endure it.”

Yu Niaoniao looked at him resentfully. “Of course, I know that good medicine is bitter. I said that because I wanted you to coax me.”

Xiao Juan said frankly.

“I’m not good at coaxing.”

Yu Niaoniao snorted softly. “But didn’t you coax me when I was sick and spouting nonsense?”

Xiao Juan said solemnly, “I wasn’t not coaxing you. Those were my heartfelt words.”

Yu Niaoniao was speechless.

Damn it! He had managed to seduce her.

Xiao Juan continued to feed her medicine.

Since the medicine was too bitter for her to speak, she was forced to stop.

After breakfast, Xiao Juan brought Yu Niaoniao into the palace to meet the emperor.

The carriage was on its way to the palace.

Xiao Juan looked at Yu Niaoniao’s calm and silent face and thought that she was nervous.

He took the initiative to reassure her. “Don’t be afraid, Peppa. I’ll be by your side. Answer whatever His Majesty asks you later. If you really can’t answer, leave it to me. I’ll help you.”

Yu Niaoniao asked seriously, “If the emperor asks me when the child in my stomach will be born, how should I answer?”

Xiao Juan was stunned. “What child?”

Yu Niaoniao reminded him, “The emperor thought that I was pregnant with your child because he heard the rumors. That’s why he gave the decree to for you marry me.”

Therefore, as far as the emperor knew, she was probably pregnant at this moment.

Xiao Juan hesitated. “The emperor won’t ask about such a thing, right?”

Yu Niaoniao said, “What if he asks?”

Xiao Juan fell into deep thought.

The carriage went quiet.

When the carriage stopped in front of the palace gate, Xiao Juan spoke again.

“If the emperor does ask about the pregnancy, you tell him the truth. It’s all a rumor. You’re not pregnant at all.”

Yu Niaoniao blinked. “Won’t the emperor be angry?”

Xiao Juan said, “The emperor hates it when people lie to him. As long as you tell the truth, he won’t be angry. Even if he’s really angry, his anger would be directed at those who made up rumors. It has nothing to do with you.”

Yu Niaoniao was relieved. “That’s good.”

They got out of the carriage and entered the palace hand in hand.

The old emperor was not feeling well today and canceled the morning court session.

He was resting in his bedroom when he heard that Duke Lang had brought the Princess Consort over. He perked up and changed his clothes under the service of the palace servants.

Yu Niaoniao and Xiao Juan waited in the side hall for a long time before seeing the old emperor appear.

The old emperor was in his fifties. He was not considered old. However, the previous emperors of the Shen family were not old. They did not live past 30 years old. It was already rare for the person in front of him to live past 50 years old.

The old emperor was dressed in loose civilian clothes. His temples were gray, and his eyes were wrinkled. His face was thin, and he had a white beard under his chin.

The palace servants carefully helped him to the main seat.

After he sat down, Yu Niaoniao and Xiao Juan went forward to greet him.

“Greetings, Your Majesty”

The old emperor smiled at them. “There’s no need for formalities. Sit down, all of you.”

After Yu Niaoniao and Xiao Juan sat down, the palace servants served tea and snacks.

The old emperor first asked about their marriage, then changed the topic and asked about Yu Niaoniao’s pregnancy.

Yu Niaoniao was secretly glad. Fortunately, she was prepared.

She quickly stood up and explained solemnly.

“I only knew the duke just before I got married. We didn’t have any relationship before that. The fact that I’m pregnant is nonsense.”

The old emperor seemed to have known about this. Instead of being angry, he smiled.

“Don’t be nervous. I’ve already sent someone to investigate. I know that the pregnancy is a rumor. You and Duke Lang are innocent.”

Yu Niaoniao realized that the emperor knew it was a rumor but still came to ask her about her pregnancy. He was clearly testing her.

If she had said something wrong just now, her life would have been lost here, based on the emperor’s habit of hating being deceived,

Thinking of this, she was terrified. As the saying went, serving a ruler was like serving a tiger. The ancients did not lie.

The old emperor was obviously pleased with Yu Niaoniao’s honest reaction. He expressed his concern for her a little more before speaking.

“I still have something to discuss with Duke Lang. Go to the Empress Dowager’s place and sit for a while. The Empress Dowager has always wanted to see what the new Princess Consort of Duke Lang looks like.”

Yu Niaoniao stood up. “I’ll take my leave.”

She glanced at Xiao Juan imperceptibly.

Xiao Juan returned a comforting look.

Yu Niaoniao lowered her head and left respectfully.

The old emperor set down his teacup, his smile fading.

“I heard that you’re prepared to let Prince Min and his son go?”