Chapter 7: Aphrodisiac Wine
“But what?” Yun Xie stood tall and well-built, draped in a thin outer robe. The front of his robe was slightly open at the chest, and the lingering heat and desire had yet to completely fade from his dark eyes.
“It’s just... for today and tomorrow, the consummation must be postponed!” The imperial physician did not dare to look Yun Xie in the eye.
The moment he entered the room, he could feel the lingering atmosphere of intimacy and passion. So saying something like this was truly inappropriate!
“Why?” Yun Xie asked coldly.
“Because the medicine I prescribed contains a xative. Once Her Highness takes it, she will need to visit the outhouse repeatedly. She likely won’t get any rest tonight, and her body will not be able to handle it by tomorrow. She needs proper rest,” the physician said, unable to continue further.
If the prince insisted on tormenting her, there was nothing he could do about it!
Yun Xie gnced at Wei Yuanwei, who was still tossing and turning in bed from the pain, then turned and said in a deep voice, “Xuan Li, go with the physician to prepare the medicine.”
The physician let out a huge sigh of relief and immediately grabbed his medicine chest, eager to leave as quickly as possible.
Yun Xie sat beside the bed. Wei Yuanwei was wrapped tightly in the quilt, drenched in cold sweat from the pain. Beneath the bnket, she was completely unclothed. Yun Xie rubbed his temples and calmed his breath. For today, he would let her off the hook.
He then got up, took a towel from the water basin, and gently wiped the sweat from her face.
The next morning, just as the sky began to lighten, news spread throughout the capital that the woman who had married into the Prince Xie’s manor was in fact the illegitimate child born from the former Lady Wei Xiyu and some unknown man.
Rumors that had been buried for over a decade once again surged through every street and alley!
In the Golden Throne Hall, the emperor was furious. He had issued the decree for the prime minister’s legitimate daughter to marry, yet Prime Minister Wei—the old fox—had sent a bastard child in her pce.
But the emperor was left with no way to act. After all, Wei Yuanwei did carry the blood of the Prime Minister’s family. She was the daughter of a legitimate wife and, by all appearances, still counted as the prime minister’s daughter.
This left the emperor without a justifiable reason to punish the prime minister.
“Your Majesty, although Wei Yuanwei is the child born from Wei Xiyu’s misconduct, and her origins are indeed questionable, she is still my granddaughter. Over the past decade, I have treated her as my legitimate granddaughter without any neglect. Whatever other noble daughters had, she had as well. Even what others didn’t have, she did. I’ve even hired tutors to teach her the arts of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. In terms of upbringing, she is no different from any other noble dy,” the prime minister said steadily under the emperor’s furious gaze. His face was calm, his heartbeat undisturbed—he didn’t even blink.
The emperor, finding no further ground for bme, shifted his gaze to Yun Xie, who stood in the hall wearing a purple cloud-patterned dragon robe.
Yun Xie, whose face was said to be disfigured, blind in one eye, and infamous for his bloodthirsty cruelty, was feared by all.
Yet he held an unshakable position within the court, deeply valued by the emperor. It was well-known that half of the Eastern Chu Kingdom owed its survival to Prince Xie. If Yun Xie hadn’t led the soldiers in a fierce defense when the enemy armies invaded, and strengthened the kingdom over the years, Eastern Chu might have already fallen.
Thus, Prince Xie was the first among the princes to be granted the title of “Prince of the Blood” and awarded a fief.
As long as Yun Xie was satisfied with this marriage, the emperor wouldn’t utter another word. But if Yun Xie was displeased—he’d issue another marriage decree immediately.
Yun Xie, cd in a purple cloud-patterned python robe, stood silently at the side of the hall, not saying a word.
His silence signified that he had no objection to the marriage.
The emperor, too, let out a breath of relief.
And just like that, the matter was settled.
The discussion in the hall naturally shifted to the te General Li.
Since General Li had died in the Prime Minister’s residence, the Prime Minister’s household was expected to give an expnation.
At that moment, Yun Xie, who had remained silent until now, stepped forward and said, “That night, this son went to pursue the assassin who had attempted to kill the fourth consort. The assassin fled into the Prime Minister’s estate. At the time, General Li was engaged in intimacy with a woman in the residence. Due to intoxication and his advanced age, he was unable to resist and was killed by the assassin. By the time this son arrived, General Li was already lying on the ground. I then killed the assassin myself, which can be considered avenging General Li.”
Yun Xie’s words fell like a crashing wave, stirring up a storm of discussion in the great hall.
That General Li was engaged in intercourse with a woman inside the Prime Minister’s residence was an act that gravely insulted the household’s reputation. If the woman had been a maid, General Li could have simply taken her to his own manor—why do it at the Prime Minister’s estate?
Immediately, ministers in the court began heated debates about the identity of the woman involved.
Even someone as thick-skinned as the Prime Minister found it hard to maintain composure. Embarrassed, he stepped forward to expin:
“Your Majesty, my youngest daughter was already betrothed to General Li. The woman Prince Xie saw that night was my seventh daughter, Wei Linglong. General Li’s death devastated her. She insisted on going through with the marriage and entering the General’s estate to live as a widow in his honor.”
With this expnation, the heated discussion in the hall quieted somewhat.
Though it was certainly disgraceful for an unmarried woman to be so intimate with her fiancé, Wei Linglong’s deep affection and willingness to live as a widow earned some sympathy.
Still, everyone present knew the truth. “Affection” was just a facade. Now that her body had already been defiled by General Li, becoming a widow was the only option left. Otherwise, she would have no pce in either the General’s estate or her family home.
The Prime Minister was not one to keep a useless chess piece by his side.
Yun Xie turned his head, his dark eyes locking onto the ever-composed Prime Minister. As expected of a seasoned statesman—he dared to twist the truth before the emperor with a calm face and steady voice.
After court was dismissed, the Prime Minister declined his colleagues’ invitations to gather at Guangling Pavilion. He hurried back to his manor instead, determined to suppress the spreading rumors.
He also intended to unleash his anger at home—how dare someone within his household bring such disgrace upon the family name?
Just then, Yun Xie, dressed in his cloud-patterned purple python robe, suddenly appeared at the gates of the Prime Minister’s residence.
“Prime Minister…” he called out.
The Prime Minister immediately bowed, “This humble servant greets Prince Xie.”
“Prime Minister, you are truly broad-minded—to have raised a granddaughter spurned by everyone else with such care and devotion. I must say, I’m impressed,” Yun Xie said slowly, his tone calm but heavy with unspoken weight.
The Prime Minister lowered his gaze, hearing the sharp edge beneath Yun Xie’s words. But he could only reply respectfully, “Your Highness ftters me. The Princess does carry the bloodline of the Prime Minister’s household. This old servant could not, in good conscience, neglect her.”
“Then allow me to ask about your earlier statement: ‘What others have, the Princess also has. What others don’t have, she also has.’ What exactly did you mean by that?” Yun Xie’s voice turned colder. “Do the scars covering the Princess’s body also exist on your other daughters? Or are they hers alone?”
His tone, though calm, carried a chilling edge. His eyes were dark and cold, bearing the pressure of one who had long lived on the battlefield.
The Prime Minister was rendered speechless.
His expression darkened in an instant—extremely unpleasant to behold.
He knew very well that Wei Yuanwei had been abused by the concubines, female retives, and even servants in the residence. But he hadn’t expected her to be covered in wounds.
