Chapter 262: Chapter 260: Pregnant
The Imperial Palace, Yongning Palace.
Feng Shu had been imprisoned in Yongning Palace for two days. She refused to eat or drink, her expression vacant, and within these mere two days, she had rapidly lost weight. Emperor Yuan Hui was preoccupied with consolidating power and ascending the throne, leaving no time to concern himself with Feng Shu. The Jinyi Guard stationed at Yongning Palace ensured Feng Shu couldn’t take a single step outside. The four palace maids attending to her were chosen by Empress Lin Yushu, tending to her daily needs.
After two consecutive days of torrential rain, the downpour eased slightly. Feng Shu sat dazed by the window, watching the rain, when she heard a gentle, familiar voice call out.
Shu’er...
Feng Shu saw Xie Zhang standing there, clad in fine clothing, smiling at her. Her brows curved gently, and she began to laugh foolishly as well. "Brother, come sit with me—I’ve embroidered a sachet for you."
She grasped at the illusion of Xie Zhang and led him to sit down. On the warm couch lay a sachet, one she had embroidered before her wedding. Xie Zhang’s sachets always contained herbs for stopping bleeding and healing wounds, making them larger than ordinary decorative ones. Feng Shu was exceptionally skilled in needlework and would craft one for him each year. Last year, as natural disasters ravaged their land, Feng Shu had been too occupied to embroider one, and Xie Zhang had jokingly grumbled about it.
Before her wedding, she diligently embroidered a sachet adorned with roses—green leaves and red blossoms—the stitches dense and lifelike. It was the finest sachet Feng Shu had ever crafted.
"Shu’er’s needlework is marvelous—brother is very fond of it."
"I knew you would like it. I’ll make another for you next year, brother. I promise, I won’t let you down—I’ll give you one every year."
She dare not break her promise again!
"Good, brother will wait!"
The palace maids whispered among themselves, all convinced that Feng Shu had gone mad. At times, she sat listlessly on the warm couch, gazing at the wind and rain. Other times, she smiled brightly, speaking to whom no one could tell. Her laughter echoed in the room, and when they heard her calling out to her brother, chills ran down their spines. The hall was clearly empty.
She neither ate nor drank, neither slept nor rested, swinging between utter despair and radiant smiles.
To the maids, this Marquis Mansion Young Madam had surely descended into madness.
No!
Why had the Emperor locked her up in Yongning Palace? They dared not think, dared not ask. With the Jinyi Guard standing watch day and night at the doors, the maids believed the Young Madam truly pitiful, wasting away day by day. Any further, and she might silently slip away into death. The maids knelt and begged her, pleading for her to sleep, to eat—if anything untoward happened to her, they would all be buried alongside her. Feng Shu remained unmoved, until, suddenly, she saw beyond them. Her face lit up as she ran over gleefully in small steps and called out, "Brother, you’ve come!"
The maids turned pale with fear and looked in the direction she spoke of, but Feng Shu was merely speaking softly to empty air, her eyes gentle, affectionate, and sweetly tender. The maids broke into cold sweats.
"She’s mad!"
"She must be mad!"
When Lin Yushu entered Yongning Palace, the maids were filing out in a line. Seeing the Empress, they dropped to their knees to greet her. Lin Yushu, drenched from the rain, had brought a food box with her. Her palace maid, Qiushui, followed closely by her side, while sixteen maids stayed outside the hall to guard it.
Feng Shu sat quietly on the warm couch as if playing chess with someone. Her head propped on her hand, she smiled at the empty space across from her. Though there was clearly no one there, her smile was enchanting, as if her eyes only held one person within them.
Lin Yushu had seen this kind of gaze before—back at Xiyanshan, she had watched how Xie Zhang and Feng Shu interacted, and understood why Xie Zhang was captivated by Feng Shu.
When Feng Shu looked at Xie Zhang, it was as if he were the only person in the entire world.
"Miss Feng," Lin Yushu called gently as she approached, carrying the food box. She waved for Qiushui to leave, and the smile on Feng Shu’s face vanished completely.
Her gaze darted anxiously toward the opposite side—of course, her brother wasn’t there any longer.
Feng Shu’s expression darkened immediately. She hated when others disturbed her moments with her brother. Once they came, he would disappear. It was all their fault!
Lin Yushu felt the sharp sting of her gaze and sighed softly. Setting the food box on the table, she said, "I heard you haven’t eaten for two days. I’ve brought some soup I made myself. If Miss Feng has any appetite, please try some."
"I’m not hungry!"
Though Feng Shu and Lin Yushu had only met briefly a few times, her impression of Lin Yushu had always been good. The Lin Family’s upbringing was impeccable, producing children who were cultured, virtuous, and composed. Xie Zhang had often mentioned how close he had been with Lin Yushu in childhood, and how adorable Lin Yushu’s son, Abao, was.
He had even said that someday, if they had children, they would surely be as lovely and beautiful as Abao.
Feng Shu’s mood instantly sank to its lowest depths. Lin Yushu saw the redness in her eyes and felt a twinge of pain in her heart. This was the woman Xie Zhang had loved most in the world, the woman he couldn’t bear to let go of even in his dying moments.
"Miss Feng, he has ascended the throne."
They both knew who Lin Yushu referred to. Feng Shu had long heard of the Crown Prince’s great affection for the Crown Princess Consort. They were said to be a divine couple, blessed by heaven. They had a son together, and their loving marriage was the envy of all.