The Marquis's line has ended? The pregnant maid is pregnant again!

Qin's gaze fell on Ye Shu and Shen Qinghe. If she had only thought their profiles looked somewhat similar before, she now realized that something was definitely wrong.

Ye Shu was dressed in a plain white dress, while Shen Qinghe was wearing a peach-pink dress that was completely different from her usual attire.

Even though the two people were dressed very differently, their faces were right in front of Qin at the same time, and only a blind person could see the strangeness in them.

Judging by their faces alone, Shen Qinghe and Ye Shu are at least 60% similar. If Shen Qinghe were to wear her usual light green or other simple and fresh clothes, the resemblance would reach 70% or 80%!

Shen Qinghe and Ye Shu are so alike.

Why is it such a coincidence?

Qin suddenly remembered what Ye Shu and the old woman had said earlier. According to the old lady's teasing, Ye Shu and her husband must have had a very close relationship when they were young.

Is it...

Could it be that her husband's doting affection for Shen Qinghe and Ye Shu from the very beginning is related to this?

Upon realizing this, Qin was filled with shock and couldn't believe the bizarre thought that had suddenly popped into her mind.

She had no concrete evidence, but for some reason, she had such a strong feeling that it was telling her—

Shen Qinghe's favor with the emperor is very likely related to Ye Shu.

Qin felt as if she had discovered some incredible secret. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she was in a state of extreme excitement and tension.

She could hardly maintain the demeanor of a mistress that she had cultivated over many years in the Duke's mansion.

But in such a situation, it is the last thing you can do to show any impropriety.

Qin Shi struggled to suppress her excitement, and just as the atmosphere was becoming more harmonious, she suddenly spoke up: "Madam, husband, Sister Shu, Sister Shen, I am feeling a little unwell. I will take my leave without disturbing you and my husband's time together."

"What's wrong?" The old lady's thoughts were pulled back, and she quickly looked at Qin Shi with a hint of concern in her eyes: "Is there anything wrong with your body? Ji Han, your wife is not feeling well."

After the old lady said that, Lu Jihan looked up at Qin Shi and said, "Just invite Doctor Lin into Fuhua Hall to take a look. It might be inconvenient for her if we leave her here."

"That's right, that's right, let's go invite them!"

The old lady approved of it, nodded, and instructed her maid to go outside the mansion to invite someone.

Seeing this, Madam Qin did not hesitate at all and turned to leave Yuhe Hall.

Not far from the old lady's courtyard, Qin Shi could no longer contain her excitement and grabbed Hongxing's wrist tightly: "Hongxing, did you see that just now? Don't Ye Shu and Shen Qinghe look alike?"

After Qin Shi mentioned it, Hongxing thought about it carefully and nodded with certainty: "That's right! Madam, I remember now, Ye Shu and Qin Shi look very alike, and not just a little bit. If you only look at Shen Qinghe's eyebrows and eyes, they are almost identical to Ye Shu's. If the two of them were to wear similar clothes, they would look at least 80% alike. But why did you suddenly ask about this, Madam?"

"We all know our husband's temperament. He is not interested in women and is very abstinent. Before Shen Qinghe appeared, our husband was perfectly fine. He wouldn't even see a woman, let alone favor any of them. But then Shen Qinghe suddenly appeared, and she became so favored. In just two months, she was promoted to a concubine."

As Qin spoke, a flash of hatred crossed her eyes: "But aren't you curious? Why would your husband, who is so abstinent, cold, and uninterested in women, suddenly dote on a woman like this? In other words, what is so outstanding about Shen Qinghe that she could make your husband so obsessed with her in such a short time?"

Hongxing thought about it and agreed: "If we're talking about looks, what kind of beautiful woman is Your Excellency? You've never seen a woman of unparalleled beauty, let alone met any outsiders. Just consider the former Chen Xiaoniang; her looks were first-rate, completely no less than Shen Qinghe's. But if we're talking about talents like music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, then Shen Qinghe is in no way comparable to you, Madam. What is it that she has that makes her so special?"

"We all used to think that Shen Qinghe was favored because of her cooking skills, but now that I think about it, there's something fishy going on."

The more Qin Shi analyzed her own thoughts and questions, the more credible her inexplicable idea became: "When Shen Qinghe first served the emperor, she hadn't yet let her husband eat anything she made. That means that the reason Shen Qinghe was favored by her husband was definitely not just because of her cooking skills. It's very likely that it was indeed because of her face."

After Qin Shi made her point, Hongxing finally realized what was happening. Her eyes widened in disbelief: "Are you saying that Shen Qinghe is favored simply because she looks like Miss Cousin??"

Qin Shi did not answer, but simply gripped Hongxing's wrist tightly: "You, now go and investigate something for me. Find the oldest nanny or servant in the Marquis's mansion who has served the old lady or my husband. I must find out if the relationship between my husband and Ye Shu is what I suspect."

"yes!"

-

at the same time.

The conversation inside Yuhetang continued.

After Qin Shi's interruption, the old lady and Lu Jihan also noticed Ye Shu standing to the side.

Ye Shu smiled timidly at Shen Qinghe, then looked at the old lady and asked, "Grandmother, who is this young lady?"

"Oh dear, look at my memory, I forgot to introduce her to you for a moment."

The old lady smiled and took Ye Shu's hand in hers: "Her? She's Qinghe, whom I told you about. She used to be a maid in my courtyard, but now she's in your cousin's room, and she's pregnant with your cousin's first child! She's very precious now."

Hearing this, Ye Shu's heart skipped a beat, and she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave, but she still had to keep a smile on her face: "So it's Sister-in-law Qinghe? But I'm not good at recognizing you, and I didn't manage to greet you right away..."

At this point, Ye Shu seemed to realize she had said something wrong, and looked at Lu Jihan beside her for help, saying, "Cousin, did I say something wrong? After all, Qinghe is just a concubine. If I call her 'sister-in-law,' wouldn't that hurt Sister-in-law Qin's feelings?"

"It doesn't matter, since Madam Qin isn't here now, and she's no longer a concubine."

As Lu Jihan spoke, he glanced at Shen Qinghe. Their eyes met in mid-air, and he smiled slightly. "She's already a concubine, and she's pregnant. She can handle you calling her 'sister-in-law.'"

Can she afford it? A concubine! Ye Shu finally realized that Shen Qinghe was not just favored, but had actually climbed all the way to the position of concubine, which showed that her cousin truly doted on her!

Ye Shu's smile faded slightly, but she still stepped forward, speaking to Shen Qinghe with great intimacy: "Sister-in-law Qinghe, it's just that I haven't been back to the Marquis's residence for so long, so I don't recognize some of you. It's absolutely not because I have any ill will towards you, please don't misunderstand. By the way, how many months pregnant are you? Everyone says that pregnant women have a very hard time, you must be having a very hard time now!"

Looking at the face in front of her that resembled her by five or six points, Shen Qinghe felt a mix of emotions that were hard to describe.

She smiled and said, "Madam, there's no need to worry. I'm more than two months pregnant now, and it's not the most tiring time yet. It's all thanks to the Marquis and the Old Madam's concern."

The old lady couldn't help but nod in approval as she watched Shen Qinghe's affectionate and gentle manner towards Ye Shu.

Thinking to herself that Shen Qinghe was indeed a girl who could handle big occasions, it was rare to see a concubine with such poise and manners.

The old lady teased, "Shu'er, speaking of pregnancy, you've been married for over two months now. How is your husband treating you? Why isn't there any sign of pregnancy?"

At this point, Ye Shu smiled and said, "My husband treats me well, but matters like having children are mostly predestined, beyond human control. I guess our time just hasn't come yet."

When the old lady mentioned Ye Shu's husband's family, Shen Qinghe couldn't help but want to observe Lu Jihan's reaction.

Hearing his beloved, whom he could never have, asking someone else to have children with her and carry on the family line, the Marquis must have felt extremely distressed.

Shen Qinghe looked at Lu Jihan with his brows furrowed and said she could understand.

Little did Lu Jihan know that what he was thinking was, "We've already gone this far, why do we still need to keep talking?"

If the chrysanthemum pastries get cold like this, we won't be able to enjoy tea with Shen Qinghe when we get back.

Even Lu Jihan didn't notice that he had been looking at Ye Shu much less since he came in.

The old lady patted Ye Shu's hand tenderly, saying, "Good child, if you have any troubles, just tell your grandmother. If your grandmother can protect you once, she can protect you a second time."

"Don't worry about Grandmother, Shu'er is doing very well. Her husband loves her dearly, and they live in perfect harmony." As Ye Shu said this, her gaze, without making a sound, fell on Lu Jihan for a moment, trying to observe the change in Lu Jihan's expression.

Like Ye Shu, Shen Qinghe was also secretly observing Lu Jihan's reaction.

Lu Jihan kept his brows furrowed, his expression somewhat cold, and he didn't seem to be in a particularly good mood.

Ye Shu felt reassured, and a smile involuntarily appeared on her face. Sure enough... her cousin said he only had her in his heart, and sure enough, he got jealous and angry as soon as he heard her say the word "husband".

Shen Qinghe sighed inwardly, thinking that she would probably have to avoid Lu Jihan today, lest she cause an innocent bystander to suffer the consequences.

Shen Qinghe and Ye Shu were kept by the old lady for quite a while, so long that Lu Jihan was temporarily pulled away to handle official business.

Shen Qinghe and Ye Shu left the old lady's courtyard at the same time.

Along the way, Shen Qinghe had intended to take her leave first, but Ye Shu wanted to walk with her and even took the initiative to talk to her.

"Sister-in-law Qinghe, I left the Marquis's residence early. I don't know when you entered the Bamboo Garden?"

Ye Shu asked calmly, her gaze towards Shen Qinghe filled with a hint of inquiry.