RPAGF Chapter 107 The Substitute Bride 23
Chapter 107 The Substitute Bride 23
In order to help Ji Xiaosong conceive as soon as possible, the emperor granted Chu Qingyun a month's leave.
During this month, Chu Qingyun used various methods to flirt with Ji Xiaosong.
The emperor dealt with the remnants of the King of Wu's faction with swift and decisive action, including Ji Yan, who was the King of Wu's concubine and was also on the execution list.
No matter how much she pleaded with the Ji family, she received no response.
If she still hasn't realized she's a discarded pawn by now, she'd be incredibly foolish.
Women in a family have never been the most important members.
The dark, damp cell was filled with a nauseating stench of decay.
Ji Yan was disheveled, her hair sticking messily to her tear-streaked face. Her clothes were tattered and torn in many places, revealing streaks of bloody skin.
Her once clean skirt was now stained with sewage and filth from the cell floor. Her knees slammed heavily against the cold, uneven stone slabs. She leaned forward, her hands gripping the bars of the cell door tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force.
"Please, please! My sister is the Crown Princess! Please let me see her, just once!"
Ji Yan cried out hoarsely, her voice echoing in the cramped cell.
Her eyes were filled with terror and helplessness as she desperately looked at the jailer outside the cell, as if he were her last lifeline.
The jailer stood there with his arms crossed, a mocking sneer on his face.
He curled his lip, his eyes full of disdain, spat on the ground, then glanced at Ji Yan and said in a drawn-out, sarcastic tone, "The Crown Princess? What a noble person she is, how could we lowly minions just want to see her? You should take a good look at yourself. With your pathetic appearance, you think you can see the Crown Princess?"
As he spoke, he took two steps forward, approached the cell door, and banged on the bars with his baton, making a "bang bang" sound, which startled Ji Yan and made her instinctively shrink back.
"Do you know that the King of Wu committed treason, and the person who killed him was none other than our dignified Crown Princess. She is busy assisting the Crown Prince and governing the country; how could she have time to see someone like you who is involved with a traitor? Stop dreaming and just obediently wait for your execution!"
The jailer's voice was sharp and piercing, each word like a sharp blade, stabbing fiercely into Ji Yan's heart.
Ji Yan's memory returned to the time when Ji Xiaosong was first brought back. She couldn't understand how Ji Xiaosong, the eldest daughter of the high-ranking prime minister, had ended up like this.
Did she have a choice?
If she had another chance, would she still beg her parents not to marry her off to the crown prince?
If this step hadn't been taken, would Ji Xiaosong have never been found?
Ji Yan's tears welled up uncontrollably, falling in large drops onto the filthy ground, leaving dark stains.
Her mind raced through a series of past events, each image like a sharp knife, cutting into her heart again and again.
The next day, the sky was overcast, and heavy, leaden-gray clouds pressed down on the capital.
Ji Yan was dragged out of the dark and damp cell by the jailers. She staggered and almost collapsed, each step feeling like she was walking on thorns.
Her hands were tightly bound with heavy ropes, the rough hemp ropes digging into her flesh and leaving bloody marks.
Her tattered prison uniform rustled in the wind, highlighting her disheveled state and helplessness.
The prison van stopped outside the cell, and Ji Yan was roughly shoved into the van by the jailers.
She sat in the prison van, staring blankly ahead, her mind filled with the despair and fear of the past few days.
She had fantasized countless times that the Ji family would consider their kinship and come to her rescue no matter what, but reality was like a series of heavy blows, shattering her hopes completely.
The prison van started moving slowly, its wheels rolling laboriously on the stone road, making a dull and grating sound.
Ji Yan's hair flew wildly in the wind, her eyes were empty, but she still subconsciously looked at the crowd on the street, hoping to see a familiar figure.
However, among the people lining the streets, some looked terrified, others full of curiosity, but none of them were the relatives she longed for.
As the prison cart slowly drove towards the Ji residence, Ji Yan's eyes lit up instantly. She struggled to get up, gripped the railings of the prison cart tightly with both hands, and stared intently at the tightly closed gate.
Her lips trembled slightly, as if she were silently calling out to her parents.
At this moment, inside the Ji residence, Ji's father and mother were hiding in their room, not daring to utter a sound.
They had already learned of the King of Wu's plot to rebel, and they knew that Ji Yan, as the King of Wu's concubine, was doomed.
Ji's mother leaned against Ji's father's chest, sobbing softly, her tears soaking his clothes.
"Master, Yan'er, she..."
Ji's mother choked up and couldn't speak.
Father Ji frowned, his face full of pain and helplessness. He gently patted Mother Ji's back, his voice low and trembling: "Don't make a sound. We can't go. Even if we go, we can't save her. We'll only bring trouble to the entire Ji family."
The prison cart paused briefly in front of the Ji residence. Ji Yan stared at the tightly closed gate, and the last glimmer of hope in his heart was completely extinguished.
Her eyes became empty and desperate. She slowly sat back in the prison van, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably.
The prison van drove further and further away, eventually heading towards the execution ground.
On the execution ground, the supervising official sat high on the platform and gave the order: "Execute!"
The executioner raised his gleaming blade, and Ji Yan closed her eyes, tears streaming down her face once more.
The last thing that came to her mind was the carefree scene of playing in the Ji family mansion when she was a child, but now, everything had changed.
As the broadsword fell, blood splattered, and Ji Yan's life came to an abrupt end.
Ji Xiaosong did not go to watch the execution; she was counting down the days, planning to get pregnant.
This time, she couldn't have multiple pregnancies; she had to ensure the stable position of the eldest son of the future emperor.
On a sunny day, Ji Xiaosong pulled Chu Qingyun into the bedroom.
The good news came again a month later.
All the imperial physicians from the Imperial Medical Academy were invited to the Eastern Palace. They filed in, their expressions more solemn and cautious than ever before.
The head physician, Li, was over seventy years old and highly respected in the Imperial Medical Academy, possessing the most extensive experience.
He stepped forward first, bowed slightly, and respectfully placed the silk handkerchief on Ji Xiaosong's wrist with both hands before carefully placing his fingers on it.
He closed his eyes slightly, his brows furrowed, and focused intently on the subtle changes in his pulse.
The other imperial physicians stood around, not daring to breathe, their eyes fixed on Physician Li's every move.
After a long while, Physician Li slowly opened his eyes, a hint of undisguised joy appearing on his face.
His hands trembled slightly with excitement, and his voice also trembled with excitement: "Congratulations, Your Highness the Crown Prince! Congratulations, Your Highness the Crown Princess! The pregnancy is confirmed! Your Highness is indeed pregnant!"
Upon hearing this, the previously quiet and somewhat oppressive bedroom instantly came to a commotion.