"Oh, my sister is Consort Yu. If it weren't for you proving her innocence back then, she would have been framed by those women in the palace. You know, the Empress Dowager couldn't tolerate my sister at all. She almost killed her because of this. Fortunately, you stepped in and proved her innocence, which prevented the Empress Dowager from killing her. That's what my sister told me. I never thought that after so many years, I would finally see your true face. I want to say thank you on behalf of my sister, which is more than ten years late."
With that, Xu Jiaolong cupped her hands in thanks to the Imperial Advisor.
Chapter 442 Transgression
The Imperial Advisor paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Miss, you don't need to be so polite."
It turns out that this woman is Qin Yu's younger sister. Qin Yu was exceptionally beautiful back then, possessing a free and easy spirit that many women lacked. Just like the woman before her, she was not as delicate as ordinary women, but had a captivating fierceness.
Back then, the emperor was probably captivated by Qin Yu, who had met him twice, each time leaving a deep impression on him.
The first time I saw Qin Yu, she was dressed in red, which made her fair face look radiant. She had a confident and charming smile on her face and made no attempt to hide her affection for the emperor. In front of everyone, she threw herself into the emperor's arms.
The second time she saw Qin Yu, she was dressed in light green brocade, and her demeanor was more gentle than before. The only thing that remained unchanged was her affection for the Emperor. She hugged the Emperor without any hesitation and asked him if he missed her.
Because Qin Yu is a woman of the martial arts world, she possesses this free and unrestrained nature.
The woman in front of him, though completely different from Qin Yu, shared the same free-spirited and unrestrained nature.
Xu Jiaolong glanced at the Imperial Advisor, who was staring intently at her, and said, "Isn't it inappropriate for the Imperial Advisor to stare at me like that?"
The Imperial Advisor paused, then came to his senses: "I didn't expect that Consort Yu had a younger sister. As Consort Yu's sister, it's no wonder she can come and go freely in this palace. Everyone knows how much the Emperor favors Consort Yu. It's just a pity that she died young."
Xu Jiaolong frowned slightly, feeling saddened as she thought of Qin Yu, who had passed away. But the sadness slowly turned into guilt.
If Qin Yu hadn't left, she wouldn't be involved at all now.
Over the years, she had been afraid of having this kind of psychological burden, which is why she had never dared to take this step, afraid that she would always think that she was taking away Qin Yu's happiness.
Even now, she still feels guilty.
Of course, she was also afraid that the Emperor only saw her as a substitute for Qin Yu, even though the Emperor had told her countless times that he did not see her as a substitute for anyone.
Now that she has opened her heart, she shouldn't dwell on these things anymore.
Life is short, only a few decades. When Qin Yu was alive, the emperor loved her wholeheartedly. Even after she passed away, he remained by her side alone for more than ten years.
Whether Qin Yu was alive or after he passed away, she always kept to her place and never overstepped her bounds, simply because he was the man her best friend loved.
She thought she would take this love to her grave, but unexpectedly she had the chance to love bravely again.
However, if Shi'er hadn't agreed, or even facilitated the match, she would never have dared to take this step.
Xu Jiaolong is not usually a fragile person, but she couldn't help but burst into tears when she thought about these things.
When the Imperial Advisor saw her suddenly burst into tears, he reached out and touched her face without thinking, wanting to wipe away her tears.
Xu Jiaolong was taken aback, immediately took two steps back, casually raised her hand to wipe her tears with her sleeve, and then said, "The Imperial Preceptor has overstepped his bounds."
"Overstepping boundaries? The young lady already has a husband?"
"Uh." Xu Jiaolong was stumped by this question. She and the emperor were together, but they were not married, even though the emperor had mentioned many times that he wanted to make her empress.
But she didn't want to be empress, because being empress was not a good job, and it was not comfortable at all. She just wanted to be with the emperor comfortably.
Every time the Emperor brings it up, she refuses, so the palace servants still call her Master Xu.
So much so that now that the Imperial Advisor has asked her this, she still doesn't know whether the Emperor can be considered her husband? Although she feels that way in her heart, she can't be considered him in name, can she?
Chapter 443 Bad Luck
When the Imperial Advisor saw that Xu Jiaolong did not answer and looked conflicted, he assumed that she felt embarrassed that she was not married at her age.
So he immediately said, "I'm sorry, my question was a bit abrupt, but please don't feel embarrassed, young lady. Even at your age, you are still stunningly beautiful and captivating at first glance."
Xu Jiaolong was taken aback, then glanced at him: "I don't feel embarrassed, I just..."
“Miss, there’s no need to explain. I don’t mean to look down on you. On the contrary, I think we are a good match. My wife has been gone for many years and I’ve been alone ever since. I haven’t met a woman who makes my heart race in all these years. It’s only when I met you today that I feel like I’ve been reborn.”
Xu Jiaolong was dumbfounded. She looked at the somewhat excited Imperial Advisor in front of her, and her lips twitched: "No, we... we've only met once, right? Is it appropriate for you to confess your feelings so boldly?"
Although she had never met this Imperial Preceptor Mo back then, she had heard some things about him from Qin Yu. Qin Yu said that this Imperial Preceptor Mo was gentle and refined, with an extraordinary temperament, and although he and the Emperor were ruler and subject, they were also confidants.
Later, she also learned that this Imperial Preceptor Mo was renowned in the Feng Kingdom and was respected by all.
Upon seeing him now, she felt that he was somewhat frivolous and could not reconcile with the image of the Imperial Preceptor Mo in her mind.
"There's no such thing as suitable or unsuitable. If you want something, you should go for it. There are many cases of love at first sight in this world. You should believe that I feel the same way about you."
The Imperial Advisor never imagined that Xu Jiaolong would appear in the palace because she was with the Emperor.
After all, even if she wasn't the empress, she would still be a concubine if she were with the emperor, and she would have to have a title. But after he returned, he didn't hear that the emperor had taken any new concubines.
He didn't even know that Xu Jiaolong lived in the palace. If she were with the Emperor, how could she be so low-key?
Therefore, he only believed that Xu Jiaolong had just happened to enter the palace.
Upon hearing this, Xu Jiaolong immediately spat and said, "Master Mo is so knowledgeable, would he really believe such nonsense to deceive young girls? What love at first sight? It's nothing but lust at first sight. I'm not a young girl, so Master Mo, you should stop with this nonsense."
"I am the Imperial Advisor. Given my status, if I were to offer you as my wife, would you not be willing?" the Imperial Advisor retorted.
"So what if he's the Imperial Advisor? I don't even care about someone like the Emperor. I like people, not status," Xu Jiaolong replied.
The Imperial Advisor was not annoyed. On the contrary, he thought that Xu Jiaolong was particularly unique. He thought that a woman from the martial arts world like Xu Jiaolong would definitely not like that kind of refined and scholarly approach. Only a bold and assertive approach would please her.
So, in a moment of impulsiveness, he boldly walked over and hugged Xu Jiaolong.
Before he could even speak, he received a solid slap to the chest from Xu Jiaolong.
He was knocked back several steps and almost lost his footing.
Xu Jiaolong glared at him angrily: "I never imagined that the Imperial Preceptor Mo, whom my sister praised so highly, would be such a lecher! You may be shameless, but I still have my pride!"
Just then, the Emperor, who had come looking for Xu Jiaolong, arrived. Seeing the furious Xu Jiaolong, he quickly stepped forward and asked, "Jiao'er, what's wrong? What happened?"
When Xu Jiaolong saw the Emperor arrive, she said irritably, "Ask your good Imperial Advisor, how dare he be so disrespectful to me, what bad luck!"
Upon hearing this, the emperor frowned and looked at the Imperial Advisor.
The Imperial Advisor clutched his chest, utterly shocked. Had he heard correctly? The Emperor had just called her "my darling" so affectionately… Could it be…
It’s over!
He immediately knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me!"
Chapter 444 Fear
The Emperor frowned and looked at the Imperial Advisor with displeasure. Just as he was about to speak, he heard Xu Jiaolong beside him gasp.
His heart clenched, and he immediately looked at Xu Jiaolong, reaching out to support her and asking, "What's wrong, Jiao'er?"
Xu Jiaolong's brows were almost furrowed together. She couldn't help but raise her hand to press her lower abdomen and replied, "Perhaps it's because this bastard made my stomach hurt."
"I'll take you back to see the imperial physician." After saying this, the emperor picked Xu Jiaolong up in his arms, ignoring the imperial advisor who was still kneeling there, and quickly led Xu Jiaolong back.
"I can walk by myself," Xu Jiaolong said, a little embarrassed.
"Your face is all pale, you must be in a lot of pain, how can you walk by yourself?" the Emperor said.
Xu Jiaolong was indeed in pain, experiencing sharp, throbbing pains in her lower abdomen, so she didn't say anything more.
On the way back, they ran into Feng Muting and Lu Chimo, who were looking for the Emperor.
"Father, what's wrong with Aunt Xu?" Feng Muting asked hurriedly when he saw that Xu Jiaolong's face looked very bad.
The Emperor shook his head: "He said he was so angry that his stomach hurt. If he could be so angry that his stomach hurts like this, it shows how outrageous the Imperial Preceptor Mo is. Once Jiao'er is better, I will definitely give him a good talking-to!"
Feng Muting frowned slightly, wondering what excessive thing this fake Imperial Advisor Mo had done to Aunt Xu to make her so angry.
Lu Chimo glanced at Xu Jiaolong, whose lips were pale and whose forehead was covered in cold sweat. This did not seem like a simple stomachache.
He glanced again at the spot Xu Jiaolong was covering, his gaze involuntarily sweeping downwards. He paused, then quickly said, "Your Majesty, please wait!"
The Emperor was startled by his sudden voice. Before he could ask who it was, Lu Chimo said, "Your Majesty, quickly put the Madam down!"
Seeing the Emperor's stunned expression, Feng Muting quickly explained, "Father, this is the renowned Physician Lu. Please listen to him and put Aunt Xu down immediately!"
The Emperor hesitated for a moment, then put Xu Jiaolong down on the spot.
When he withdrew his hand, he noticed blood on his left hand and was shocked: "Jiao'er?!"
Although Xu Jiaolong was pale, she still managed to comfort him, saying, "I'm fine, it's just that my stomach hurts a little..."
Lu Chimo didn't dare to delay for a moment. He immediately knelt down, took Xu Jiaolong's pulse, and then quickly took out silver needles to treat her.
Feng Muting hurriedly ordered someone to prepare a stretcher, while the Emperor stood by, anxiously holding Xu Jiaolong's hand tightly.
When he saw the blood, he already knew what had happened.
Qin Yu died from a miscarriage back then; he lost his child and he lost her.
He was terrified, his body trembling. He thought God wouldn't be so cruel as to let him lose his beloved in the same way again.
It's unclear how much time passed before Lu Chimo finally stopped and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Jiao'er, Jiao'er?!" The Emperor looked at Xu Jiaolong, who had already fainted, and his emotions were about to break down.
Lu Chimo quickly said, "Your Majesty need not worry, the lady is already fine."
The Emperor looked at him: "Are you really alright?"
"Yes, Madam and child are both fine," Lu Chimo replied.
The Emperor couldn't help but blame himself: "It is my dereliction of duty that I didn't even know my beloved daughter was pregnant."
"Judging from what Madam just said, she only felt abdominal pain but did not know that she had miscarried. It is clear that Madam herself did not know, so it is normal that His Majesty did not know either. Fortunately, everything was treated in time, which saved Madam and the child. Madam should rest in bed for the next few days and take medicine to prevent miscarriage," Lu Chimo said.
The Emperor nodded slightly, finally able to relax. Feng Muting came over and helped the Emperor up, then had someone carefully lift Xu Jiaolong onto a stretcher and send her back to her bedchamber.
The three then followed him to the bedchamber. After washing his hands, the Emperor sat down on the edge of the bed and said, "Ting'er, you and Physician Lu go out first. I need to change Jiao'er's clothes."
"Yes." Feng Muting glanced at it, then went outside with Lu Chimo to wait.
The Emperor personally changed Xu Jiaolong's clothes, moving very carefully. Only after he finished did he call Feng Muting and Lu Chimo in.
He looked at Lu Chimo standing next to Feng Muting, intending to say something to express his gratitude, but because he was so focused on Xu Jiaolong, he hadn't really looked at Lu Chimo properly.
Only now did he see Lu Chimo's appearance clearly, and he was stunned. His words of gratitude turned into: "Dr. Lu looks exactly like the young Imperial Preceptor Mo."
Chapter 445 The Truth