Chapter 446: She Nearly Died

Chapter 446: She Nearly Died

Thankfully it's summer now; otherwise, she might have died last night.

The clothes on her body were given to her by an old woman who couldn't bear to see her suffer, offering her some old, tattered garments.

For a teenage girl with such a slender frame, the clothes hung loosely on her body.

Erya had cried herself hoarse last night, her tears all dried up. Now, she could no longer cry and only spoke sorrowfully to Sanbao, "Sanbao, you and I are the only siblings born to the same parents. Fang Jinxiu is not human."

She recounted everything that happened yesterday to Sanbao, who was shocked and took a while to react.

"Second Sister, are you saying that Eldest Sister tricked Lady Lu into causing your child to be lost?"

Erya nodded and reached into her chest, pulling out a bloody, mangled mass.

"This is my child. The old woman said it was a son. Can you help me look and confirm?"

Her eyes were blurred from crying too much, making it impossible for her to see clearly.

But when Sanbao saw what was in her hand, he recoiled in horror, his face pale.

"Second Sister, since it's dead, why don't you just discard it? Why did you bring it back?"

"What? Discard it? This is my son, the young master of the Lu family. How can I just throw him away?"

"But he's already dead," Sanbao stammered, trembling with fear.

Erya gripped the sheets tightly and said sternly, "So what if he's dead? I won't discard him. I will stay with him and wait for Lu Shen to return. This is our child, and I want to give him to Lu Shen."

Sanbao was terrified, muttering about her being crazy before scrambling out of the room.

...

Zheng Jinyu had been sending people to keep an eye on Fang Jinxiu. Whenever she or her people left the Lu residence, they would be followed.

Today, however, brought an unexpected piece of news unrelated to Fang Jinxiu.

Sitting at the table, Zheng Jinyu frowned deeply.

The person reporting said that they saw the Lu family carrying someone out at the third watch of the night. Following them, they discovered that the person was Erya.

Knowing the relationship between Erya and Zheng Jinyu, they came to inform her.

Hearing this news, Zheng Jinyu remained silent for a long time.

Chunmei, standing nearby, suggested, "Shall I go and check on her?"

Zheng Jinyu shook her head, "They secretly sent her out. If you go to see her right away, how will they feel?"

"But... according to what they said, Erya might die."

Zheng Jinyu sighed, "If she truly wants to seek my help, she'll find a way. For now, just tell the gatekeeper to be on alert."

"Yes."

The princess's residence has also been in chaos recently. It's been six days, and the emperor is becoming increasingly distraught, causing everyone around him to suffer.

Zheng Jinyu and the county princess are fine; even if the emperor is angry, he won't blame them.

Xie Peiyu is also doing well. With the princess so ill, the emperor wouldn't embarrass him at this time.

When the emperor is upset, he vents his anger on Consort Shu and Consort Li, who both regret their actions deeply but dare not mention returning to the palace.

The most unfortunate are the imperial physicians.

These elderly men, if placed in modern times, would be top medical professors whose appointments would be hard to secure.

Yet here they are, lying on the ground, being scolded and occasionally kicked, threatened with execution every day.

As a modern person, Zheng Jinyu finds this particularly distressing.

Unable to offer much help, she tries to ensure their bedding and meals are as comfortable as possible.

Fortunately, it's been six days, and after four more days, it will be over.

That day passed without any news from Erya.

The next day, which was the day the Lu family patriarch went to the mountains.

Just as Zheng Jinyu returned from visiting the princess, Chunmei rushed in to report, "Your Highness, Sanbao is here."

He finally came.

"Bring him in."

"Yes."

This was Sanbao's first visit to the princess's residence. Due to the emperor's orders, the place was heavily guarded these days, which frightened Sanbao, turning his face pale. Yet, he still dared to sneak glances around.

The residence looked like a fairyland, far more beautiful than the Zheng family's home.

Inside the house, he stared at Zheng Jinyu, feeling a sense of unreality.

She was no longer the girl he used to bully. She had transformed completely, becoming the unattainable Miss Zheng and the Princess Consort.

"The commoner has met Lady Chen, and wishes her well." Fang Sanbao knelt down and kowtowed to Zheng Jinyu.

With both his parents dead, he dared not harbor any resentment towards them, but he remembered their last wish for him to seek revenge. As he grew older, however, he realized that avenging Zheng Jinyu was like hitting a rock with an egg—utterly impossible.

His elder sister said that their parents were selfish for asking him to take revenge, disregarding his safety. He believed these words.

Thus, facing this insurmountable mountain, he hesitated and resigned himself to fate.

Zheng Jinyu looked at the kneeling Fang Sanbao for a long time without speaking, leaving him there on his knees.

This boy owed her much more than mere kneeling could repay.

After a while, she finally spoke, "Rise."

Fang Sanbao kowtowed again and respectfully said, "Thank you, Lady Chen."

Seeing that he was behaving, Zheng Jinyu's expression softened slightly.

"Speak, what is it?"

Fang Sanbao then said, "It's about my elder sister. Fang Jinxiu slandered her child as not being from the Lu family. They forced her to drink an abortifacient, and after the child was lost, they threw it in front of my house early yesterday morning. My elder sister has gone mad, holding onto the stillborn child, insisting on keeping it for Young Master Lu."

Fang Sanbao told Zheng Jinyu everything he knew, explaining how Fang Jinxiu had falsely accused Erya, and Lady Lu had believed it, leading to the abortion.

Zheng Jinyu knew that Erya had been cast out but never imagined it would be in such a manner.

She had already guessed it had something to do with the child.

Erya had returned to the Lu family visibly pregnant, clearly valued by the family. What else could have led to her being cast out if not for the child?

She thought that Erya had lost the child due to Fang Jinxiu's machinations and thus lost her usefulness, leading to her expulsion. She never expected that Lady Lu had directly ordered the abortion before casting her out.

One was ruthless; the other was foolish.

"Hmm, I see. What do you want me to do?"

Fang Sanbao, with a sobbing voice, said, "She hasn't eaten anything for two days. I fear she won't make it if this continues. I hope... I hope you can help us out of past kindness and persuade her."

Zheng Jinyu sneered, "Past kindness?"

Fang Sanbao was taken aback.

Zheng Jinyu smiled faintly, "What past kindness do we share?"

Fang Sanbao lowered his head guiltily.

Just when he thought Zheng Jinyu wouldn't agree to help, she suddenly said, "Come, let's go see her."

Fang Sanbao looked up, disbelieving.

Zheng Jinyu had already risen and started walking ahead.

Fang Sanbao hurried to catch up.