The clingy concubine ran away, and the sickly prince lost control.

In the dimly lit room of the Duke of Xun's mansion in the prosperous era, the old lady stood by the window, her prayer beads dangling from her fingers. A beam of light shone on her dignified profile.

"Have they found him?"

"Reporting to Madam, we have found her. The woman you saw that day was none other than the eldest daughter of Luo, the head of the Ministry of Revenue," the nanny replied, bowing.

The old lady lowered her eyelids and nodded slightly: "Go and do it!"

Los House.

"Mother, I don't want to marry that sickly man. Let Ayan marry him instead. She's got a great figure and is more suitable to carry on the Duke's lineage. I don't want to be a widow. Mother, do you hear me?"

Seeing her eldest daughter shaking her sleeves and crying with tears streaming down her face, Madam Sun became even more annoyed. The old lady of the Duke of Xun's mansion was looking for someone to produce an heir for her terminally ill son, and she just happened to have chosen her daughter.

If she gets pregnant, with the wealth of the Duke's mansion, the daughter can be guaranteed a life of plenty, though the days of widowhood will be difficult.

But if she doesn't get pregnant, it will be terrible. Once the heir dies, the daughter will be discarded by the Duke's mansion like a worn-out rag. Who will want her then? Her life will be ruined.

The Duke of Xun's mansion is not something that people from small families like them can afford to offend, so they definitely have to send people over there.

"Don't cry, wipe your tears. I've called Ah-Yan over."

"Greetings, Mother." A moment later, Luo Qingyan lifted the curtain and entered, dressed in a plain coarse cloth dress with a blue headscarf tied around her head. Even so, it could not hide her beautiful face, with skin as smooth as cream, almond-shaped eyes, and peach-pink lips.

Luo Haitang glanced at Luo Qingyan's clothes, rubbed her nose in disgust, and thought, "Who told you to be born unloved by your mother? You're dressed worse than a maid."

"Ayan is here. You and Haitang, stand side by side."

Madam Sun gave the order and then gestured towards Granny Zhou beside her.

Upon receiving the order, Granny Zhou took the tailoring ruler and went around to the back of Luo Qingyan and Luo Haitang.

Luo Qingyan stood expressionless. She knew what her mother was going to do. Just like in her previous life, her mother would symbolically measure her and her sister Luo Haitang's hips and use that as a basis to send her to the Duke of Xun's mansion to leave an heir for the Duke of Xun's son.

"Madam, the second young lady's hips are larger," came Zhou Mama's voice. Sun Shi immediately smiled with delight. "As expected of the Duchess, you have excellent taste. Qingyan, you're so lucky! The Duchess of Xun has taken a liking to you and hopes you'll marry into the family and give the young master a son or daughter. Then our whole family will be proud of you!"

Sun's smile remained unchanged. She hadn't expected Qingyan's hips to be even bigger, which saved her from having to use any tricks to deceive them. She turned around and told the Lady of the Duke of Xun's Mansion that Luo Qingyan's physical condition was more suitable for childbearing and that Haitang should be replaced.

My mother's words were exactly the same as in my previous life.

It's clear that the Duchess of Xunguo has her eye on my elder sister, Luo Haitang. My mother is reluctant to let her go, so she lets her marry in place of her sister, saying that she'll be blessed. If it were a good thing, Luo Haitang would have snatched it away long ago.

In her past life, she listened to everything her mother said. Even though she was already engaged, she only dared to muster her courage and whisper, "Mother, I am already engaged to Ye Hui and cannot be betrothed to anyone else."

The mother seemed to have come to her senses as well. On the surface, she agreed that Qingyan was right and that she had forgotten about it in her old age. But behind her back, she drugged Qingyan and forced her into a sedan chair to be carried into the Duke's mansion.

Unable to bear the humiliation, Luo Qingyan committed suicide that very night.

The Duchess was furious and used the power of the Duke's mansion to have the entire Luo family imprisoned, thus ending the Luo family's existence.

Luo Qingyan wandered around the Sheng Dynasty as a ghost, but unexpectedly discovered the whereabouts of the divine doctor and even learned some of his skills herself.

The heir of the Duke of Xun had been searching for a divine physician all his life, but there was no news of him.

Thinking of this, Luo Qingyan, as obedient as ever, curtsied and said, "I will follow Mother's arrangements, but what about Ye Hui?"

In this life, she will instead cling to the Duke's mansion and deal with her family members who treat her like dirt. Unlike in her previous life, she won't foolishly commit suicide. Even if she dies this time, she will take a few people down with her.

"Don't worry about Ye Hui, I'll take care of things."

Madam Sun smiled and nodded in satisfaction. So easy to control. She really hoped that Qingyan could give birth to an heir for the young master. Then, the Duke's mansion would definitely send over all the benefits obediently.

No one noticed the icy coldness in Luo Qingyan's eyes beneath her obedient demeanor. If she could choose, she would rather marry an ordinary man; the path to the Duke's mansion was too risky. But if she disagreed now, her mother would only push her to her death.

Seeing that Luo Qingyan agreed, Luo Haitang raised her chin, her domineering aura slamming down on Luo Qingyan's head, daring her to disobey, she would beat her until she obeyed.

The pressure from her relatives made Luo Qingyan feel suffocated. She pinched her palms to stay awake. At present, she could only try to get pregnant as soon as possible to protect herself, and find a divine doctor to cure the prince's illness as soon as possible.

With the warm glow of red candles and cozy curtains, Luo Qingyan was carried into the Duke of Xun's mansion that very night in a small sedan chair. The room was decorated according to the rules for a wedding chamber, with lifelike mandarin ducks embroidered on the bright red wedding quilt.

Luo Qingyan was not surprised, because she had heard the servants of the Duke's mansion talking about how a woman who had borne a child for the heir had received the same treatment. It was just that the Duchess was hoping for good luck, not that she thought highly of her.

Thinking of how the previous woman had failed to produce an heir for the prince, Luo Qingyan nervously clutched the hem of her clothes. Could it be that the prince was too ill to have sex? But if that were the case, the Duchess would probably not seek another woman to produce an heir, which meant that the woman was not favored by the prince.

Actually, she didn't want to fawn over people, but the miracle doctor's whereabouts were uncertain, and she only knew his location a month from now, so she could only endure this month first.

Luo Qingyan was only wearing a pink bodice with a thin layer of gauze over it. She sat on the edge of the bed, her mind racing. No matter what the reason was for not being able to conceive before, she was determined to win the prince's favor tonight. Before coming here, she had looked at many aphrodisiac diagrams. The prince was not in good health, so he only needed to lie down. She would take care of the rest herself. As long as she could conceive, that would be enough.

The red candlelight illuminated Luo Qingyan's graceful figure, partially obscured by the thin veil, creating an allure that drew the eye and piqued the curiosity of those around her. Her lips were red and tender, her black hair cascaded down her back, held together only by a white jade hairpin, and her thoughtful face was captivating.

A soft cough outside the door broke Luo Qingyan's thoughts. She got out of bed, stood to one side, straightened the thin veil that had slipped off her shoulder, and waited solemnly.

The door creaked open, revealing white boots embroidered with gold cloud patterns on a wheelchair.

He still needs to use a wheelchair, Luo Qingyan thought, it really is serious.

The wheelchair stopped just as it crossed the threshold. Pei Shiyuan, dressed in white, looked at the woman before him with his cold eyes. This was the second woman his mother had sent, with the intention of ensuring he would have an heir.

A child without a mother is pitiful, and so is a child without a father. He didn't want his child to be born without a father, so he rejected his mother's "kindness."

But his mother wouldn't listen and insisted on finding a woman who was likely to conceive and sending her to his room.

Seeing that Pei Shiyuan didn't move, Luo Qingyan wondered to herself, "What does that mean?"

After a moment's thought, Luo Qingyan put aside her shyness, her face flushed, and approached Pei Shiyuan: "Young Master, the Old Madam sent me."

"Whose daughter are you? Go back!" Pei Shiyuan's voice was cold, his eyes distant, and he didn't even look at Luo Qingyan.

Not looking at her? Luo Qingyan took two steps to face Pei Shiyuan directly.

"How dare you!" Pei Shiyuan sat in his wheelchair, his gaze meeting Luo Qingyan's alluring chest. His fair face immediately flushed slightly, and he quickly turned his face away.

"My daughter is Luo Qingyan, the second daughter of Luo Daocheng, the head of the Ministry of Revenue. I am honored to be chosen as a concubine by the Duchess of the State." Luo Qingyan's voice was soft and gentle, which was very touching. She had spent an afternoon learning how to serve others.

"Your Highness, let me help you change your clothes."

"Get lost." Instantly, the cold tip of the dagger pressed against Luo Qingyan's chin.