Volume 1, Chapter 37: As Long As It Is Not the Seed of the Ning Family, Anything Will Do

"Thank you, Madam Heir, for your help today."

Back at Ruyi Courtyard, Lin Wan'er bowed deeply to Xie Shu. Although she would have found a way to enter the Marquis of Chengen's estate sooner or later, without Xie Shu's maneuvering today, she certainly would not have been able to evade Lady Li's harassment so easily.

Furthermore, her pregnancy could not wait.

"This belly of yours? Is it truly with child?" Xie Shu, feeling bored, idly plucked a leaf and twirled it between her fingertips, a tiny beetle crawling along its surface.

Lin Wan'er hesitated for a moment. She glanced at Green Willow, who stood by Xie Shu's side, and dared not answer.

Noticing the shift in her expression, Xie Shu waved a hand and instructed Green Willow, "Go have someone clear out the south side room. Ask Auntie Li's daughter, Huan, to go over and help look after her. She has a child of her own, so she should know how to handle things with care."

"Yes, my lady," Green Willow replied and went off to attend to it.

Inside the room, only Xie Shu and Lin Wan'er remained.

Once the two wooden doors creaked shut, Lin Wan'er extended her wrist toward Xie Shu. "I have heard that you, Madam Heir, are quite well-versed in medical arts."

"How did you know that?" Few in the capital were aware that Xie Shu practiced medicine. Except for...

"When I was at the Yuechun Pavilion, I became acquainted with Mistress Wu from the Gui'an Hall. Mistress Wu... she is a good person." A gentle smile appeared in Lin Wan'er's eyes as she mentioned Mistress Wu. She continued, "Mistress Wu once said that if she hadn't met the Third Miss of the Xie family, she would have perished long ago."

At the mention of Mistress Wu, Xie Shu shook her head. "It was Mistress Wu herself whose fate was not yet sealed."

Mistress Wu, whose real name was Wu Chou, was born with a black birthmark on her face. Even her own parents loathed her and sold her early on to a lame man who sold straw sandals on South Street. The man was not only crippled but also cruel; he beat and scolded her constantly. When she rolled up her sleeves, her arms were covered in scars; she had often wished for death to come early.

That day, the man had been drinking and was beating her viciously in the street. In the struggle, she hit her head against a stone and bled profusely.

By chance, Xie Shu, who had snuck out of the estate to play, saved her. The next day, she even dragged Xie Yu to the man’s house and forced him to sign a divorce agreement. Mistress Wu lived in the General Zhenyuan's estate for five years. She said she wanted to become a physician—a physician who specialized in treating women.

"So many women in this world are beaten, but how can they let a male doctor examine the places where they are hurt?" Mistress Wu had said.

A woman's injuries, naturally, should be examined by a woman.

Xie Shu had not heard from Mistress Wu for a long time; she must have gone to the south. During her time at the General’s estate, Mistress Wu always said the north was too cold and she wanted to experience the boundless spring scenery of the south.

No wonder... In her previous life, when Xie Shu was bullied by Lady Li and her son at the Marquis's estate, this Concubine Lin, who had been brought into the house suddenly, had always treated her with kindness and occasionally offered help.

Xie Shu placed her fingertips on Lin Wan'er's pulse and was surprised to find that she was indeed pregnant, but... "This pulse..."

"It has been over three months." Lin Wan'er twisted her fingers and pulled a thin, thread-like silver needle from her sleeve. "Just a small trick."

Altering a pulse with a silver needle was not difficult; one only needed to endure the pain.

"Then why did you say it had only been a month?" Xie Shu asked, puzzled.

"Three months ago, the Marquis of Chengen was not in the capital." Lin Wan'er took a deep breath and tucked the needle back into her sleeve. Then, she knelt heavily before Xie Shu, pleading, "I implore you, Madam Heir, to save the life of the child in my womb!"

The sound of her kneeling was so loud it startled Xie Shu.

"Get up quickly! You are over three months along, how can you kneel so casually?" Xie Shu reached out to help her up, suddenly recalling that three months ago was the time the Empress Dowager went to the White Pagoda Temple to offer prayers. The Marquis of Chengen and Lady Li had accompanied her, along with several noblewomen from prominent families—it had been a grand procession.

Lin Wan'er refused to rise. She raised her hands high above her head, bowed until her forehead touched the floor, and begged, "Please, Madam Heir, save my child."

Xie Shu was stunned for a moment. This...

But a second later, she realized the implications and clapped her hands in delight. "That's not bad! That's wonderful!"

Looking at Lin Wan'er kneeling on the ground, Xie Shu thought her audacity was truly impressive. Not only had she placed a 'green hat' on the Marquis, but she had also managed to get herself brought into his estate.

"Huh?" The kneeling Lin Wan'er thought she had misheard.

Xie Shu chuckled twice, pulled her up, and took her hand.

"Don't worry, it's just a child; I can protect it." Seeing Lin Wan'er show such deference, Xie Shu felt a bit embarrassed—after all, she was the one who had invited her into the estate, and she intended to protect her. "Besides, I still need to use your hands to continue battling Lady Li!"

"As for... whose child this is, I don't care. As long as it is not of the Ning bloodline, that is enough!" Xie Shu smiled brilliantly, the calculation in her eyes leaving Lin Wan'er bewildered.

"What does Madam Heir mean?" Lin Wan'er asked, even more confused by Xie Shu's eager demeanor.

"Concubine Lin—no, my future Dowager Marchioness!" Xie Shu gripped her hand, truly overjoyed. "From today on, you are my most precious treasure!"

That title, "Dowager Marchioness," made Lin Wan'er’s head spin.

Xie Shu felt her luck was simply too good—it was like finding a child for free! She hurriedly opened the door and called out to Green Willow, "Quick, assign two more guards to protect Concubine Lin's quarters. And have Auntie Li go over to help take care of her! Nothing must go wrong with this child!"

Lin Wan'er’s mind raced. After she managed to grasp the situation slightly, she touched her belly and asked with some concern, "Madam Heir, what if this child is a girl?"

"My eldest sister is also a woman, yet she became the first female general of the Great Yan, didn't she?" Xie Shu patted Lin Wan'er’s shoulder to put her at ease. "Don't overthink it. When we reach the mountain, there will be a way around. We shall make our plans after the child is born."

Lin Wan'er nodded. Although she did not know if Xie Shu could truly pull this off, the sight of her confident expression ignited a spark of hope in her heart. She was not born into servitude; she was merely cursed with beauty and poor fate, forced into that pit of fire.

"Madam Heir, are you not curious about who the father of the child is?" Lin Wan'er touched her belly. Though she could not yet feel the fetus move, she could feel the tiny seed of life sprouting.

Xie Shu glanced down at her stomach and asked, "Does this person matter to you?"

Lin Wan'er thought of the man who had disappeared after that one night of passion—she hadn't even seen his face—and shook her head. "He does not."

"Then that settles it." Xie Shu shrugged indifferently. "It is your child regardless, and in the future, it will be our child."

Inside the Chenxiang Garden, shards of porcelain littered the floor.

After Xie Shu and Lin Wan'er left, Lady Li was so enraged she smashed everything in the room. If Nanny Liu hadn't returned at that exact moment, the entire room would have been reduced to ruins.

Later that evening, when Ning Rongsheng returned from the Imperial Academy and heard that his father had taken a concubine, he was so furious he kicked two chairs to pieces. "This Xie Shu is clearly trying to sabotage us! First, she caused a scene at the ancestral hall, and now she has convinced Father to take a concubine. She is trying to force me to my death!"

Because of the incident with Xie Shu, the Marquis of Chengen had already begun to show displeasure toward Ning Rongsheng. If the Marquis were to have another son in his old age, he would surely favor this illegitimate child even more!

"A low-born spawn—it remains to be seen whether it can even be born," Lady Li spat viciously. "Don't worry, Sheng'er. Mother will certainly not let them have their way."

"But what about the First Prince?" After the recent chaos, Ning Rongsheng had only just managed to climb aboard the First Prince's boat; Lady Li feared he would lose his support.