No matter how Jing Huan looked at it, she couldn’t console herself that she had seen wrong. That string of things on Concubine Mei’s hand was merely superficial.

It wasn’t the magical artifact she had released at all!

So the question was, where had her magical artifact gone?!

Looking at Concubine Mei’s appearance, she had no idea what was on her wrist. Otherwise, she wouldn’t treasure it so much.

Who had switched it, making her completely unaware?

Could it be that Master Zhiliao had acted again?

Thinking of this, Jing Huan frowned. It seemed she couldn’t make any more moves against the Lin family. If any traces were caught, it would be troublesome.

At this thought, Jing Huan looked at Concubine Mei’s belly with some regret. It had just begun, only to be sabotaged by someone.

She had expended considerable effort to get that string of prayer beads smoothly into Concubine Mei’s hands, and now it was wasted like this.

Fortunately, she had other methods.

Thinking of this, she reluctantly abandoned the idea of continuing to stir up trouble in the Lin family and went to arrange other backup plans.

However, this episode with the Lin family wasn’t over yet. Not long after, when Doctor Zhou came to take Concubine Mei’s pulse, he discovered a problem.

The sweat on his forehead wouldn’t stop flowing, impossible to wipe clean. No matter how he checked her pulse, it was different from before. Instead, it resembled the pulse from when he first didn’t dare definitively say Concubine Mei was pregnant.

He never expected that despite being so cautious, he had still made a mistake—Concubine Mei truly wasn’t pregnant.

Doctor Zhou, deeply afraid he had erred again, checked for several consecutive days. The pulse became increasingly clear. He could only bitterly admit his insufficient medical skills and even wanted to resign in disgrace.

This was no small matter. Not only did Concubine Mei become dumbfounded upon hearing his words, but the Old Madam and Lin Ruhai were also stunned.

Concubine Mei’s belly was only just over three months along. Her stomach indeed wasn’t obvious, but how could it be a false pregnancy?!

At this moment, Concubine Mei couldn’t care about anything else. Her angry eyes seemed to shoot fire: “I haven’t had my monthly courses for these months. I vomit when I smell fish. How can I not be pregnant? Did you make a mistake?!”

Doctor Zhou carefully considered his words. “There are blood clots in your belly blocking the meridians, which caused the current result. Your temperament has become more irritable during this period, which is also related to this.”

Concubine Mei rebutted: “That’s not right. How could there suddenly be blood clots in my perfectly healthy body? It’s normal for my temper to be irritable after pregnancy.”

She had been happy after becoming pregnant, and she had noticed her temper was indeed getting worse—more and more impatient. Every time she asked someone to serve tea, if they were even slightly slow, she wanted to lose her temper.

The servants attending her could testify—Concubine Mei’s temper was indeed very irritable. However… these past few days, serving her hadn’t been so difficult. Things had improved somewhat.

Doctor Zhou smiled bitterly: “Concubine Mei, it is this humble one’s insufficient medical skills. You truly aren’t pregnant.”

Concubine Mei refused to believe it. She screamed: “You’re just a quack! You can’t read pulses properly anymore. Get out—get out! Old Madam, don’t believe him. I want to change doctors. I must be pregnant! He must have been bribed by Yun Shi. Old Madam, you must stand up for me!”

How could she not be pregnant? Impossible! Concubine Mei refused to continue thinking about it.

Hearing this, Ying Yu’s face flushed red with embarrassment.

Doctor Zhou felt somewhat ashamed. It was indeed because he hadn’t stood firmly by his initial judgment earlier, letting her have false joy. He smiled bitterly: “This is proper.”

Lin Ruhai watched this farce with a stern face. Soon, four famous physicians from Anlin Prefecture were invited to separately examine Concubine Mei’s pulse.

These doctors were initially cautious, then relaxed, almost ready to offer congratulations. But these were renowned physicians. Except for one who didn’t notice anything wrong and said it was a pregnancy pulse, the other three’s expressions gradually grew grave. After repeatedly asking questions, they finally said their medical skills were insufficient and suggested seeking another expert.

They weren’t as good as Doctor Zhou, who stated what her problem was.

Doctor Zhou was right—she wasn’t pregnant. She was ill.

Concubine Mei felt the sky was falling. She had been happy for how long, only for it to turn out like this?!

Angry and frightened, she drove all these people out, followed by the sound of shattering porcelain.

Ying Yu was naturally also saddened. Whether brother or sister, she would welcome them, but now she worried about her mother’s health. “Mother, don’t be angry. Mother—”

The Old Madam stopped her: “Let her vent.”

She knew how happy Concubine Mei had been before. Now, suddenly struck down, though it was unseemly, the Old Madam could overlook it given the special circumstances.

Ying Yu looked worriedly at the room and asked Doctor Zhou: “Can it be treated? It can be cured, right?”

Doctor Zhou slowly nodded. “Miss, please rest assured. Now that we know where the problem is, prescribing the right medicine will work. However, during this period, Concubine Mei must remember not to be too impatient or irritable. Try to maintain a calm temperament and avoid spicy, overly stimulating foods. Keep the diet as mild as possible…”

Ying Yu noted everything down one by one.

The Old Madam watched this scene and couldn’t help but sigh regretfully. It took quite a while for her to suppress her disappointment.

From this situation, it was clear Concubine Mei hadn’t deliberately pretended to be pregnant to achieve some goal. She truly believed she was pregnant. By logic, with such symptoms, she should indeed have been pregnant. One could only say it was utterly unexpected.

What a pity.

The Old Madam instructed everyone to take good care of Concubine Mei and not be negligent. Even if she hadn’t conceived a child, she still had the Lin family’s eldest granddaughter under her care—not someone they could neglect.

This news quickly spread, and the servants gossiped.

When the pregnancy was confirmed, everyone had shared in the joy and received extra monthly wages. Now, surely the Old Madam wouldn’t make them return the money?

She wouldn’t.

However, some people inevitably mocked her privately, especially in the kitchen.

They had been thoroughly tormented this time. Yet having to consider the young master in her belly, no matter how difficult the demands, they had to prepare everything properly.

Originally, they were all secretly suffering, planning to endure until the child was born. Now it was fine—the child was nonexistent, so naturally they wouldn’t need to suffer her temper anymore.

They all beamed with joy.

When Yun Shuyao heard about this matter, her brows immediately furrowed.

How long had it been since she swapped that bracelet? Her temperament improving somewhat was within her expectations—she thought that was caused by it. But she was also diagnosed as not being pregnant?!

From Doctor Zhou’s previous conduct, one could see he was a very cautious person.

He hadn’t dared confirm it before and held off for so long without giving a definite answer. Yet just days after she switched the bracelet, Doctor Zhou said Concubine Mei wasn’t pregnant, while when he diagnosed the pregnancy pulse before, he had been certain!

This was problematic. Could that string of beads not only affect people’s emotions but also be inseparable from Concubine Mei’s current illness?

Yun Shuyao’s expression grew grave.

Had she underestimated its harm?

She had inquired—the bracelet Concubine Mei bought was a relatively common child-seeking item. Child-Giving Guanyin, fertility sachets, and so on were all similar. Most people sought psychological comfort.

But hers wasn’t psychological comfort.

Yun Shuyao sensed a conspiracy. Was it coincidental or deliberate?

If someone had done it deliberately, too many problems were exposed. Had Concubine Mei offended someone, or had the Lin family offended someone?

For the former, thinking left and right, she felt the possibility was very low. Concubine Mei had few opportunities to go out. Whenever she did go out, she was with Yun Shuyao. What she did and said, Yun Shuyao was aware of. Even if she had offended someone, it was just verbal conflicts—not enough to warrant such great effort for revenge.

Then it was aimed at the Lin family. If she hadn’t switched it, with Concubine Mei developing like this, would there have been an even worse outcome?!

Yun Shuyao sought confirmation from Lin Ruhai: “Master, do you think extraordinary people and strange phenomena truly exist in this world?”

Lin Ruhai hadn’t believed before, but now was half-convinced. This was because of that Master Zhiliao his mother encountered. The birth dates he provided had changed the Lin family. Without that episode, there wouldn’t have been the two concubines, and his household would likely only have Daiyu as a daughter now.

This was a future Lin Ruhai didn’t want to see.

There were also that monk and Taoist. After they broke into the Lin residence, like Master Zhiliao, they had disappeared without a trace for so long. The wanted notices had been posted for ages—forget about bringing them to the authorities, no one had even seen their shadows.

So facing Yun Shuyao’s question, he was silent for a while before speaking: “Perhaps they do exist, but they don’t easily appear before ordinary people.”

Yun Shuyao agreed with this point.

She herself could be considered extraordinary. She had never publicized it. No one knew she was different.

Apart from those charlatan swindlers who deliberately flaunted their special abilities, she basically hadn’t heard of any masters who could fly through the air, burrow through earth, or were invulnerable to weapons.

Yun Shuyao couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.

From the heavenly treasures and that magical artifact, she knew such people existed in this world. But why were they all so low-key?

Even Lin Ruhai, a well-informed third-rank official, didn’t dare confirm their existence?

Yun Shuyao didn’t believe there were no flamboyant personalities among them. Or was there some reason forcing them to keep a low profile?

If it was the latter, then it made sense.

She recalled some restrictions she had seen in TV dramas and novels—for instance, cultivators couldn’t attack ordinary people or they’d incur karmic consequences, or it was detrimental to cultivation, affected merit, and so on. Various restrictions separated cultivators from mortals. Cultivators wouldn’t and couldn’t interfere with the development and operation of worldly dynasties.

Apart from taking disciples, they rarely interacted with mortals. Only occasionally would some people with “fateful encounters” meet them, leaving behind various legends.

The more Yun Shuyao thought about it, the more likely this possibility seemed.

Lin Ruhai didn’t know why she brought up this topic. Seeing Yun Shuyao stare at her teacup lost in thought, he smiled faintly, said nothing more, and slowly picked up his teacup to enjoy this leisure time.

However, he soon became busy because a new colleague arrived.

Not only did they have different political views, but the other party had also sided with the First Prince. Lin Ruhai didn’t want to be drawn into that succession struggle vortex, so he had to avoid confrontation.

Unfortunately, even though he retreated a step, some people wouldn’t accept what was good—they only became more aggressive.

Facing these matters, the Old Madam normally didn’t interfere but now grew tense. No matter how imposing the First Prince was before, now, or in the future, he would ultimately be confined and die.

Their family couldn’t be associated with him!

Without the Old Madam saying so, Lin Ruhai knew this. However, the other party came fiercely, casting a wide net to gather people for the First Prince. Originally, Lin Ruhai wasn’t fighting alone—there were quite a few in the emperor’s faction and neutral faction. But they fell one after another.

This speed made Lin Ruhai feel something was wrong, as if their weak points had been seized.

They even banded together to pressure Lin Ruhai to decide quickly. They didn’t allow neutrality to exist.

These people threatened and enticed him. The most common tactic was introducing him to a noble lady from their faction to bear another legitimate son. He consistently refused using the reason he had no heart for remarriage. Then there were those eyeing his younger generation.

All the children were excellent—this was Lin Ruhai’s pride. He couldn’t casually decide their lifelong matters.

He kept using the children’s mourning period and imperial selection to deflect.

Unfortunately, in some people’s eyes, this was proof of his refusal to cooperate.

Yun Shuyao also noticed. Now she rarely needed to go out. At those social occasions she did attend, someone would whisper praise of the First Prince in her ear, then invariably ask her to persuade Lin Ruhai to return to the “right path” soon.

She simply reduced her outings.

After going out, what she faced was monotonously similar. Moreover, her original purpose was to note suitable families and fine young men for the two children. In the current situation, staying home was better.

Concubine Mei knew nothing of these outside disturbances.

After learning the truth, she fell ill. This matter struck her hard, and knowing her body had problems requiring bed rest.

She lay in bed for nearly two months before recovering her vitality.

Yun Shuyao would go to the main kitchen according to her mood, bringing food to send to the children. Occasionally seeing this colleague in the garden, whether thinking of how she had specifically run to Yun Shuyao’s place to show off when she thought she was pregnant, several times seeing her from afar, her expression would change and she’d hurriedly choose another path to leave, avoiding meeting.

Yun Shuyao had no malicious pleasure in this. If this matter was as she thought, she was purely an innocent disaster.

The children were all busy—too much to learn. Yun Shuyao would visit them during their leisure time under the pretext of sending snacks. When sending things, she couldn’t only send to her birth children while ignoring others, so she always had the main kitchen staff send to everyone together.

In the Lin residence, apart from the three sisters, there were two daughters of Lin clan members also attending classes—their fathers were Lin Ruhai’s advisors.

On the boys’ side, there were three clan members, plus Chen Yu, making four total.

Now Daiyu had also started studying, though given their age difference, they were taught separately.

Daiyu was indeed very intelligent—understanding immediately and with excellent memory.

Luo Yu wasn’t lacking in this aspect either, but she had been more active as a child, unable to sit still. Daiyu was different—not only intelligent but also able to sit still and very interested. She recited poetry fluently, making Lin Ruhai happy about her aptitude, feeling that if she were a boy, she could take the imperial examinations.

Or rather, if all the children in his household were boys, except for the eldest Ying Yu, they could all participate in the imperial examinations.

Ying Yu had a weak foundation. Her health was poor as a child, and her natural talent was average, so Lin Ruhai hadn’t been too strict with her.

Seeing her bring snacks over, the matron teaching the girls needlework stopped her movements and smiled: “Let’s rest first. We’ll continue later.”

The four older girls immediately put down the needlework in their hands and gathered to eat snacks.

Yun Shuyao: “I brewed fruit tea and honey tea.”

Every time she came and saw several girls beautiful as flowers and jade, her mood unconsciously brightened.

Several people sat in a circle, Daiyu no exception.

Watching her take small bites of crystal cake, Yun Shuyao couldn’t help but think of the male protagonist.

Her younger brother Yun Heng served as an official in the capital. They corresponded frequently, so she could occasionally see news of the Jia family in letters.

So she knew that male protagonist was treasured by the Jia family’s matriarch, who said he resembled the old duke and would surely have great achievements in the future.

She knew Jia Zhu’s posthumous son had been born but unfortunately wasn’t valued.

She knew Jia Yuanchun in the palace was still a female historian with no change in status.

…

Yun Shuyao’s gaze couldn’t help but flicker. Regardless of the original story, looking now, the two would find it difficult to meet again and perform the scenes from the original.

This was better.

That was a tragedy novel after all.

Comedies were what she liked to watch.

Time thus came to the forty-second year of Kangxi’s reign. Lin Ruhai wasn’t reappointed this time. In this evaluation, because of those who dragged him down, he received an average rating. Moreover, he was returning to the capital to report on his work.

His official position was undecided. After returning to the capital, he might stay in the capital or be assigned elsewhere.

In fact, this was the result of Lin Ruhai’s own maneuvering.

Continuing to stay in Anlin Prefecture, he worried he’d be dragged into the water.

Moreover, he hadn’t returned to the capital for many years.

Upon learning this, the Old Madam immediately began packing, preparing for the whole family to go to the capital.

Her son’s life hadn’t been easy these two years, and her situation wasn’t much better either.

She refused to let her two granddaughters out to meet people. Too many people had designs on them—impossible to guard against, making her heart anxious.

Mourning and imperial selection were good excuses, and they were facts. However, the mourning period had now ended, and the selection… would be very difficult to avoid.

This trip to the capital would be perfect for working connections to request exemption. If not possible… the Old Madam sighed again.

Worrying when granddaughters weren’t outstanding enough, worrying when they were too outstanding.

If only they were legitimate-born—there would be more room to maneuver.

Amid the Old Madam’s melancholy and Yun Shuyao’s concerns, the family embarked on the journey to the capital.

The Jia family only learned of this after the Lin residence returned to the capital.

Grandmother Jia was originally holding Baoyu and chatting with her maternal relatives in a harmonious atmosphere, until she heard her nephew’s wife from the Shi family say: “Speaking of which, there’s another joyous matter to congratulate the ancestral lady on. The servants noticed a carriage procession and, upon inquiry, learned Minister Lin returned to the capital today to report on his work. Who knows what official position he’ll be assigned next? If he can remain in the capital, Daiyu can often be brought over for family bonding in the future.”

Only then did Grandmother Jia learn the Lin family had returned to the capital. The smile on her face nearly couldn’t hold. Numerous old and new grievances surged up.

He truly didn’t put the Jia family in his eyes at all. Such a major matter, and he never mentioned it to the Jia family. She learned of it from others’ mouths instead. This was truly her good son-in-law!

She forced a smile, then picked up her handkerchief to wipe the corners of her eyes and began crying: “My poor Min’er, why did you leave so early… If my Min’er were still here, how could this be!”