Springtime Affairs in a Noble Family

Princess Rongjia's ex-husband's family was a prominent and influential clan in Jinling.

Cui Lingrong liked to be well-informed; she needed to know the background of the person who wanted to take half of her husband.

The only things that could be heard about the Rong Prince's Mansion in Bianjing were that the Rong Prince and his wife doted on Princess Rongjia, and that Princess Rongjia had been quite talented at attending various banquets since she was a child.

To be more specific, Princess Rongjia was somewhat spoiled.

But what's wrong with a girl raised in a prince's mansion being a little spoiled?

This is normal.

Therefore, Cui Lingrong turned her attention to the family of Princess Rongjia's ex-husband. Princess Rongjia had been married off to a distant place for more than ten years and lived in Jinling for so many years. Whether the couple was harmonious or not, perhaps she could find some clues.

When Ershun came in, Caixia and Caiyue both retreated to the doorway, leaving only Qiu's mother behind.

"Have a cup of tea first. You've worked hard these past few days," Cui Lingrong said, gesturing for Ershun to sit down.

Er Shun drank the tea but did not sit down. With his master present, how could he dare to sit? "Thank you for the tea, Madam. I have been investigating in Jinling for quite some time. I thought I would come back first and tell you what I found. Madam can then decide whether to send more people to Jinling."

Cui Lingrong told Ershun to speak slowly.

"I'm a new face. As you said, I contacted Young Master Yu's friend in Jinling and asked him to investigate. The easiest thing to find out is that Princess Rongjia's husband, Du Dalangjun, is keeping a mistress. Many people saw Princess Rongjia dragging that mistress in a carriage down the street."

Er Shun said, "That happened five or six years ago."

Autumn's mother asked, "What happened to the mistress later?"

Er Shun shook his head. "We can't find any information. After that day, the mistress disappeared without a trace, and her family also moved away from Jinling. It seems like she's in grave danger."

Mrs. Qiu frowned. "Being dragged in the street is a huge loss of face. Even if the Du family lets her stay, she'll have a hard time surviving."

"What Qiu's mother said is true, but I also found out something else. It seems that the mistress was pregnant at the time." Er Shun said that passersby saw that the mistress's lower abdomen was slightly protruding, but they could not confirm it.

The Du family kept the news under wraps, and Er Shun spent a lot of time and money investigating these matters.

"Pregnant?" Madam Qiu looked at her mistress, then asked Er Shun, "Speaking of which, Princess Rongjia and Young Master Du have been married for many years, and they don't have a single child? The princess doesn't have one, and neither do the concubines?"

Er Shun shook his head and said no, "It is said that as soon as Princess Rongjia married into the family, she sent away all of Du Dalangjun's concubines. For the next few years, Du Dalangjun did not have any concubines. Before this mistress, the old lady of the Du family arranged two concubines, but neither of them had children."

Cui Lingrong said, "This is because Princess Rongjia herself has no children, and she won't allow others to have them either."

Thinking about how Princess Rongjia delivered medicine to Huadie, it certainly suited Princess Rongjia's personality. Then, thinking of her own three children, she wondered what would happen to Princess Rongjia after her child was born…

Realizing the danger, Cui Lingrong took a deep breath and then asked, "Hasn't Princess Rongjia ever been pregnant?"

Logically speaking, after many years of marriage and a loving relationship, Princess Rongjia and Prince Du should have had children.

If you haven't gotten pregnant in over ten years, there's bound to be something wrong with one of your fertility measures.

But someone noticed that the mistress's lower abdomen was slightly bulging, which...

"Reporting to Madam, Princess Rongjia was pregnant before. A doctor was consulted to examine her pulse, but we don't know why she didn't conceive. The doctor has also disappeared." Er Shun can only find out the surface of many things. He doesn't have the ability to delve deeper into the matter, and investigating too much would easily arouse suspicion.

Having an affair and getting pregnant are not secrets.

"Disappeared without a trace?" Cui Lingrong frowned slightly. "Not even a whisper of news?"

"The pharmacy clerk said that the doctor went to look for his relatives, and then there was no news of him." Er Shun said, glancing back. He had come back this time mainly because he had overheard another piece of news: "Didn't Old Madam Du give Du Dalangjun two concubines? These two women have now been sent to the Du family estate."

It's not surprising that many families treat concubines this way when they have no children and their husbands have passed away.

However, Choi Young-yong knew that Er-soon's words indicated that something else was more important.

"I thought I'd try my luck, so I went to wander around the Du family village. I happened to run into a crazy woman who kept saying that her child had been murdered and that the woman's pregnancy was fake and that she had deceived my husband." Er Shun's voice trailed off, afraid of being overheard. "Later, a few men came and took her away. That's when I found out that she was one of Du's husband's concubines."

Cui Lingrong raised one eyebrow. "Is that belly fake? Is it a false pregnancy?"

Er Shun said that's probably what she meant. "Anyway, that's what she shouted at the time. You can't take a madman's words seriously, but if a madman keeps repeating it, there must be some reason."

"She was given to her as a concubine by Old Madam Du so that the family line would continue. She got pregnant, and Princess Rongjia couldn't tolerate her child, so she harmed it. This logic makes sense," Cui Lingrong analyzed. "The other concubine was also given to her by Old Madam Du. Seeing that she was pregnant, she might have wanted to fake a pregnancy to gain favor. That's somewhat possible. But did she have that much guts?"

Anyone with a modicum of sense would know that Princess Rongjia wouldn't tolerate other people's children. Even with Old Madam Du's support, could she really give birth safely?

It's probably not possible.

Otherwise, Du Dalangjun wouldn't have died without an heir.

Who is faking a pregnancy?

Princess Rongjia?

Cui Lingrong's heart skipped a beat. This logic also made sense. Princess Rongjia had been married into the Du family for many years. Seeing that her aunt was pregnant, Princess Rongjia was panicked and might have wanted to fake a pregnancy to win favor or even steal the concubine's child.

She had previously heard Yuan Mingzhu gossip about a family where the mistress of the house couldn't have children. After the concubine became pregnant, the mistress claimed to be pregnant as well, and once the concubine's child was born, the mistress would take it. This way, outsiders would assume the child was the mistress's.

But why would Princess Rongjia, with such a ulterior motive, want to harm her concubine's child?

The concubine's child should be protected.

Cui Lingrong frowned, having received too much information at once and hadn't sorted it out yet.

"Anything can happen in the inner quarters," said Madam Qiu. "But secrets can't stay hidden forever. If a concubine claims to be pregnant, the mistress will definitely have someone take her pulse. A concubine can bribe one doctor and his entourage; can she bribe many more?"

Ordinary concubines don't have this ability.

Cui Lingrong seemed thoughtful. "In that case, it's more likely that Princess Rongjia is faking her pregnancy. As the mistress of the house, she has the ability to deceive everyone."

Autumn's mother nodded in agreement.

Er Shun said that's all the information he had found out.

"Thank you for your hard work. Go back and rest for a couple of days. If anything comes up, I'll have someone contact you again." As Cui Lingrong spoke, Qiu Mama gave Ershun a bag of loose silver. Ershun ran errands for her, so she had to give him a generous reward to ensure his loyalty.

After Ershun left, Qiu's mother remained frowning. "Madam, since Princess Rongjia married into the Marquis's mansion, she has always consulted doctors from the Rong Prince's mansion for medical treatment. What do you think of her this time..."

Autumn's mother didn't continue.

Cui Lingrong instantly understood, "The old lady is afraid that I will do something, so she lets Princess Rongjia make all the decisions about Wutong Garden. Even if I wanted to find a doctor to take Princess Rongjia's pulse, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to."

"It's all about human effort. If something is fake, there will always be flaws," said Qiu's mother.

"What I don't understand is, if this pregnancy is fake, what is her purpose? There are no pregnant concubines in the Marquis's mansion right now. Does she expect to conjure up a child in eight months?" Cui Lingrong said, her eyes widening.

That's not impossible.

The most urgent task is to confirm whether Princess Rongjia is truly pregnant or not.