The Grand Secretary has no heir? His concubine gives birth to triplets.

Jiang Guo'er spoke clearly and forcefully, word by word.

"If I've been wronged, the Prime Minister will stand up for me! The Prime Minister will avenge the blood feud that has afflicted my family!"

Pei Yan lowered his eyes. The anger that he was about to lose was calmed down by these few words, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up slightly.

At least she still has some conscience, knowing to keep her distance from other men.

It was worth it for him to disguise himself as a guard and spend half a day in the sun.

I just don't know how much of what he said was truly from the heart.

Inside the room, Xie Qing seemed drained of all her strength, and after a long while, she managed to squeeze out a sentence: "...What if he betrays you?"

"He's almost thirty, so many years older than you, how could he possibly be truly considerate towards you?"

"Moreover, he has always been ruthless and vicious; which official in the court is not afraid of him! Following him is like seeking a tiger's skin."

"Now that he's married Miss Xue as his legal wife, his favoritism towards you won't last long; he won't truly love you!"

Jiang Guo'er smiled, but the smile didn't reach her eyes; only a coldness remained.

"Then what can Young Master Xie give me now?"

"Will you send me into the Xie family in a grand wedding procession with an eight-bearer sedan chair? Do you dare? Can you?"

Every word cuts to the bone, shattering Xie Qing's pathetic obsession into pieces.

He was completely speechless. He walked out of the quiet room with his head down, like a lost soul.

Lady Liu was waiting under the eaves. When she saw him come out, she hurried forward to greet him.

"My husband."

Xie Qing looked up at her, her lips moving slightly.

"I'll take you back to the guest house."

Liu had a lot of questions she wanted to ask, but in the end she simply responded with a meek "okay".

They walked away side by side, neither of them looking back.

Jiang Guo'er breathed a sigh of relief in the room, her body went limp, and just as she was about to call for Lüyi, the carved wooden window behind her was suddenly pushed open.

Her heart skipped a beat, and she turned around abruptly.

A figure in black nimbly flipped in and landed silently.

When Jiang Guo'er saw who it was, her mind went blank for a moment.

"Prime Minister?"

What is he doing here?

Oh no, how much of what he just said did he hear?

Pei Yan ignored her panic.

He approached step by step, his tall figure completely enveloping her in shadow. Jiang Guo'er was forced to retreat until her back pressed against the wall.

He didn't touch her, but the invisible pressure was even more unsettling.

"Your Excellency, I was just..."

He remained silent, but placed one hand on the wall beside her ear, and raised the other hand, his large palm gripping the back of her slender neck.

Jiang Guo'er tensed up all over.

His fingertips gently stroked a small strand of hair at the back of her neck.

Previously, when he was on the bed, pressing down on her body and gently rubbing against her, he always liked to pull a tuft of her hair.

Actually, Pei Yan didn't like pulling his hair; it was just that he had a small black mole there.

He discovered it, so it's his now.

"Born to be mine, dead to be mine?... Hmm?"

His voice was deep and resonant, like the most captivating melody played on a guqin.

Jiang Guo'er trembled involuntarily, her knees buckling uncontrollably.

Thankfully, he only heard the second half.

Pei Yan raised his voice slightly at the end, "I was outside the window just now, so I couldn't hear clearly."

His cool fingertips slowly moved up along the lines of her jaw, patiently tracing the shape of her lips.

Jiang Guo'er immediately felt a soreness in her lips and subconsciously stuck out the tip of her rosy tongue a little bit and licked it.

Pei Yan's pupils immediately contracted, and he tightened his gluteal muscles.

"Say it again, facing me." His voice was even hoarser.

Jiang Guo'er bit her lower lip, muttering in embarrassment and annoyance, "You clearly heard me... why did you make me repeat myself?"

Pei Yan chuckled softly as he listened to the childish accusation.

"What, are you feeling wronged? If you don't want to talk about it, then let's try another way."

Jiang Guo'er's heart pounded wildly.

"Change to what?"

"Serve me."

She really wanted to pry open Pei Yan's brain and see what was inside.

"Your Excellency, it's daytime...and this is a Taoist temple...the Three Pure Ones are watching."

"If you hurry, they won't find out."

Jiang Guo'er was both amused and exasperated that he could even spout such nonsense.

But when she thought about how Pei Yan had been taking cold showers ever since she became pregnant, and how the other concubines couldn't make him feel comfortable, she felt a pang of heartache.

Jiang Guo'er's right hand first touched the cool silk lining, and then... it was burned.

Her hands were shaking so badly that she wanted to pull them back, but then she stopped.

His breath hit her earlobe like a burst of fire.

"What... you're thinking about it too?"

He even asked her a question in return, and then lowered his head to rub his nose against her burning red earlobe.

"I've heard that a woman's body becomes more sensitive when she's pregnant... If you really want to, I can help you."

[You scoundrel! Shameless! I didn't do that!]

Jiang Guo'er's earlobes immediately turned pink.

Unfortunately, they were caught in a dilemma and couldn't back down.

She could only stubbornly stare into Pei Yan's eyes, watching his dark, bright pupils gradually become misty and filled with tears...

A full incense stick's time passed before Pei Yan suddenly loosened his grip on her right hand, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"Your skills... are not good enough. You need to practice diligently after you return home."

Jiang Guo'er was so angry that she clenched Xiuzhen's fist and punched him twice in the chest.

Just then, a petite figure flashed past the window.

After a cup of tea, Jiang Guo'er came out of the quiet room.

Her hair was combed back into a bun, and her clothes were neat, but her cheeks were more flushed than before, and there was a suspicious red tinge at the corners of her eyes.

She had just stepped into the corridor when the door to the alchemy room opposite suddenly opened.

A young woman dressed in palace attire, sitting in a wheelchair, was pushed out by a young eunuch.

Even if that face turned to ashes, Jiang Guo'er would still recognize it.

Red beads.

Now she has become a noblewoman.

The eunuch shouted in a shrill voice, "Who was making such a racket outside the door just now?"

Xue Lingyi reacted quickly, leading the women of the Pei family to step forward and pay their respects.

"Your humble servant, Lady Xue, greets Noble Lady Yu."

Everyone else knelt down to pay their respects.

Lady Yu stood on the steps, enjoying the bowing gesture for a while, before slowly raising her hand.

"No need for formalities."

Her gaze swept over everyone, finally settling on Jiang Guo'er.

Jiang Guo'er kept her head down and stood obediently behind Xue Lingyi.

Yu Guiren's eyes flashed with resentment as she swept across Jiang Guo'er's face, feeling a surge of satisfaction.

She gently adjusted her nail guards.

"Madam Pei, is my mother doing well at the Pei residence?"

Xue Lingyi's heart tightened.

"Granny Li has been unwell lately, and the Old Madam has arranged for someone to take good care of her."

Consort Yu raised her chin.

"Then I will trouble you to tell her that I will send someone to bring her to the palace in a few days to stay with me for a few days."

Just as Xue Lingyi was about to reply, Tan Yu suddenly raised her head from the crowd.

"Why wait a few days? My esteemed lady, Granny Li is right here."

After saying this, she helped out a hunched old woman from among the servants.

Granny Li had gray hair, wore rough old clothes, and her cheeks were sunken.

Upon seeing Hongzhu, she trembled all over, opened her mouth as if to shout, but only managed to utter a hoarse, breathy sound.

Consort Yu was stunned.

"mother?"

Granny Li knelt down abruptly, grabbed the hem of her skirt, made gurgling sounds in her throat, and tears streamed down her face.

Consort Yu bent down to help her up. At first, she maintained the airs of a noblewoman, but seeing her mother's miserable state, her hands began to tremble.

Her fingertips lightly touched her mother's chapped lips, her voice trembling, "Mother, why aren't you saying anything?"

Granny Li cried so hard that her whole body convulsed, but she couldn't utter a single word.

The color drained from Consort Yu's face. As if she had thought of something, she carefully pinched Granny Li's chin and made her open her mouth.

The next instant, all the smugness and pride on his face shattered, leaving only boundless horror.

Where is your tongue?

Her voice was harsh and shrill, no longer possessing the elegance of before.

"Who did this? Who did this?!"

"Xue Lingyi, what's going on?!"

Xue Lingyi sensed something was wrong and was about to explain when Tan Yu let out a soft "Ah!"

"Does Your Excellency not know? It was the Prime Minister who ordered that Granny Li's tongue be cut out."

As she spoke, she touched the corner of her eye with a handkerchief.

"Alas, the Prime Minister is truly ruthless. Even if Granny Li made a mistake, he shouldn't have been so cruel."

Consort Yu's face gradually flushed red, and the veins on the hand supporting Granny Li bulged.

Immediately afterwards, her gaze was fixed on Jiang Guo'er like a venomous snake.

"It's you!"

Consort Yu pointed at her, her voice sharp and piercing.

"It must be you! You were the one who persuaded the Prime Minister to cut out my mother's tongue, weren't you?"

Before Jiang Guo'er could even speak, Consort Yu's eyes were already bloodshot with rage.

"Someone come here!"

The eunuch behind her immediately responded.

Consort Yu's eyes were red, and she pointed her finger directly at Jiang Guo'er.

"Tie up this wretched maid! Pull out her tongue!"