FID – Chapter 897

Chapter 897: I Don’t Sleep With Just Any Woman

June in the capital is different from the south, especially at night. The pond water still felt chilling to the touch.

The little maid’s crying caused the expressions of the concubines behind her to change. None of them had expected that the emperor would actually see the scene where they made things difficult for Shan Lai.

Everyone’s hearts became anxious and uneasy.

Concubine Yi bit her lip and knelt down. “This concubine begs Your Majesty’s forgiveness. I did not intend to trouble Concubine Shan Lai. It’s just that the handkerchief Your Majesty bestowed upon me is something I have always treasured. When it suddenly fell into the water, I acted out of anger. Your Majesty…”

“That’s enough. It’s just a handkerchief. I’ll grant each of you another later. You may continue your play; I have official business to attend to.” With that, the young emperor turned away slowly with his hands behind his back, never once glancing at the woman in the pond.

Everyone was left staring at each other in silence.

Then their reactions varied.

The concubines relaxed and felt pleased. The emperor had personally seen them bullying Shan Lai, yet he didn’t say a word to help her or stand up for her. He simply ignored it.

That meant Shan Lai was of no concern; the emperor didn’t care about her at all.

The little maid’s eyes filled with panic and sadness, surprised that the emperor didn’t remember their night of intimacy and was indifferent to her mistress’s predicament.

Shan Lai stood in the pond, head bowed, soaking wet and utterly miserable. After the emperor left, she bent down and began searching through the water for the fallen handkerchief.

“That’s enough, stop searching. If anything happens later, don’t blame me. It’s just a handkerchief; His Majesty’s new gift will arrive soon, and the old one won’t be needed anymore,” Concubine Yi said with a smile, waving to the others nearby. “The flowers in the courtyard are blooming nicely; let’s go take a walk over there. Seeing someone you dislike here just dirties your eyes.”

“Tsk tsk, looking so miserable. Luckily, His Majesty didn’t glance her way, or he’d have been scared off.”

“Though she’s not favored by His Majesty, she still has a little maid who’s loyal and protective.”

The little maid immediately lowered her head, trembling and shrinking her shoulders, drawing a string of mocking laughter from the group.

After the concubines left, the woman in the lotus pond finally straightened up and slowly climbed out.

“My Lady, let me help you,” the little maid said, her eyes red as she steadied her. “I never expected His Majesty to be so heartless toward you, not even saying a word in your defense. He clearly knows you’re being bullied…”

“Quiet, don’t say that,” Shan Lai hissed. “There are eyes and ears everywhere in the palace. If those words get out, it will only bring trouble and risk your life.”

“I know, My Lady. I just felt sorry for you and got angry for a moment.”

The young maid lowered her voice to complain softly while supporting her mistress as they headed back to another courtyard. After just a few steps, her hand suddenly grew heavy as she watched Shan Lai faint.

Meanwhile, having left the lotus pond, Feng Mohan did not hurry back to the study to attend to state affairs. 

Instead, he strolled slowly along the white marble path in the garden, looking relaxed.

He didn’t dwell at all on the scene he had just witnessed.

The imperial harem was a place where the strong thrived and the weak perished — survival of the fittest.

If you had ability, you climbed up; if not, you were just someone else’s stepping stone.

There was no chance to gain his supreme favor among the many beauties of the palace.

He and these women were simply in a relationship of mutual use and cooperation.

They bore royal offspring for him, serving as a means to consolidate power in the court, and he granted them titles, honor, and family prestige.

Nothing more.

As he was about to return to the study, he saw Xiao Banzi pacing anxiously in front of the door.

The moment he saw Feng Mohan return, his eyes lit up and he hurried forward. “Your Majesty! Concubine Shan Lai has fainted!”

“She’s fainted? Just send for the imperial doctor; no need to report to me specifically.”

“The imperial doctor has been summoned. The doctor says she is already pregnant! She’s carrying the dragon heir!”

Feng Mohan stopped in his tracks, his mind blank for a moment.

Pregnant with the dragon heir?

He was only sixteen, and he was going to be a father?

What was his uncle’s mood when he found out he was going to be a dad?

He was probably very happy, otherwise, he wouldn’t cling to his aunt every chance he got.

He was different from his uncle — he felt nothing.

His only thought was, Oh, finally continuing the royal lineage, so he could justify himself to the ancestors.

“Enough, I know,” he said, brushing aside Xiao Banzi and walking into the study to continue handling the unfinished state affairs.

Xiao Banzi was stunned. “Your Majesty, you’re just… just like that?”

“What else do you want me to do? Since there’s a pregnancy, all matters of care and protection should be left to the imperial doctor. I know nothing about medicine.”

Did he have to be like his uncle, trailing after a pregnant concubine and treating her like a treasure? 

There would be plenty of women carrying his dragon heir in the future. With so many offspring, he probably wouldn’t even remember which son ranked where or what their names were.

Even in his aunt’s eyes, he was still just a child.

Feng Mohan scoffed, writing vigorously on the memorial before him. The handwriting was almost identical to his uncle’s, the only difference being a slight lack of polish.

Suddenly, his brush halted. He looked up, his black eyes cold and sharp. “Send someone immediately to summon the King to the palace to pay respects. Tell him I’m about to be a father. Happy news!”

Xiao Banzi was utterly confused.

The emperor said he was happy, but there wasn’t a hint of joy on his face—and summoning His Highness at this hour?

When His Highness actually arrived, the emperor would probably get beaten up.

Thinking this, he respectfully went off to carry out the order.

He was a servant and had to obey the emperor’s commands. Anyway, if His Highness came to fight, it would be the emperor who’d get hit.

About half an hour later, Feng Qingbai sat down in the imperial study, having dismissed everyone else.

“Imperial Uncle…”

“Are you suspecting Shan Lai?” Feng Qingbai asked directly before Feng Mohan could explain.

Feng Mohan immediately relaxed. “Talking with you is always easy. You know everything I’m thinking. It just came to me suddenly, like a flash of insight. When I remembered what you said that day, that’s when the doubt arose.”

He paused, then said, “If Baicao Valley intends to wreak havoc on Nanling, how would they try to seize the throne with the consensus of the people? Unless they could claim legitimacy! And the only one who can be called legitimate is my offspring!”

“If you die, your son inherits the throne naturally,” Feng Qingbai said calmly. “But why do you suspect her?”

“Because she slept with me, and it was completely inexplicable!” Feng Mohan took a sip of tea, his expression deeply troubled. “Uncle, you know I’m not a lustful or foolish man. I don’t sleep with just any woman who lies beside me. Even if I was drunk, people say there’s always some awareness left when intoxicated. I’m very sure when I found her lying next to me, I rejected her. I didn’t touch her!”

“And then?”

“Then it got very strange. I seemed to vaguely smell a fragrance, and my blood started boiling. It felt like a dream, yet also real. When I woke up the next day, it had already happened.”