My stepsister tried to steal the prince's hand in marriage, but little did she know I had been

Chapter 121 Going Home

Wen Shuyao's return instantly enlivened the solemn Prince Jing's mansion.

Heaven knows what kind of life they were living. Ever since the princess disappeared, the prince has had a cold face every day and refuses to let go of any information related to the princess.

This has greatly increased their pressure.

Seeing Wen Shuyao return safely, without even a single hair damaged, they breathed a sigh of relief and couldn't help but feel excited.

Your Highness can finally rest assured!

Xie Jinghan picked Wen Shuyao up and carried her step by step into the bedroom in the main courtyard, under the watchful eyes of everyone.

Since his return, he has not shared a room with Wen Shuyao. Today, he has only stepped into the bedroom twice.

Si Qing and the others followed behind, keeping their eyes down and not daring to look where Xie Jinghan was.

Even though they were already incredibly shocked.

Seeing Xie Jinghan place Wen Shuyao on the bed, Si Qing was about to follow, but was stopped by Granny Qi.

"You clueless idiots!" Granny Qi hissed. "The Prince and Princess's bedroom is off-limits to anyone. How dare you or I set foot there without prior notice?"

Upon hearing this, Si Qing was startled and immediately stood up straight.

"I know I was wrong!" Si Qing said as she backed away, pleading, "Granny, please forgive me this time."

"Wake up!" Granny Qi glared at him impatiently. "Instead of standing here like an idiot, why don't you hurry outside and see if the imperial physician has arrived yet!"

Si Qing nodded repeatedly, and seeing that the magpie kept trying to steal a few glances, he quickly took the magpie away as well.

"What are you doing?" Magpie mumbled as she was being led away. "Miss hasn't woken up yet, I'm not going anywhere!"

"This is none of your business concerning the Princess!" Si Qing said seriously. "The Prince is still inside, what business is it of yours?"

Magpie and Siqing bickered back and forth as they walked further and further away.

Granny Qi saw all of this, shook her head helplessly, smiled, and then stood guard at the door.

She was considering whether to explain the rumors circulating in the capital these past few days to Xie Jinghan.

Inside the bedroom, Xie Jinghan placed Wen Shuyao on the bed, feeling somewhat at a loss. He stood there, unsure of what to do.

However, Granny Qi stood at the door, showing no intention of coming in to help, and Wen Shuyao's personal maid, Magpie, was also nowhere to be seen.

After a moment of silence, Xie Jinghan looked away and reached out to help Wen Shuyao take off her outer garment.

Then, he quickly covered Wen Shuyao with the blanket to prevent himself from seeing anything he shouldn't see.

Fortunately, the imperial physician arrived just then.

As soon as the people from Prince Jing's residence went to the Imperial Hospital, the Emperor found out and, with a single order, several imperial physicians came to the door.

Leading the group was the Director of the Imperial Medical Academy—Director Zhou.

Dean Zhou wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and bowed respectfully to Xie Jinghan.

"See you, Your Majesty."

"Come in and take a look at the Princess."

At Xie Jinghan's words, Zhou Yuanzheng immediately gave a signal to his subordinate imperial physicians, and the group quickly went inside.

Seeing them taking pulses and performing acupuncture, Xie Jinghan's gaze was fixed on them.

Zhou Yuanzheng felt Xie Jinghan's gaze was like a thorn in his back, and the cold sweat on his forehead increased. He often came to the Prince Jing's mansion because of Xie Jinghan's old injuries.

However, treating Xie Jinghan was actually easier than treating Wen Shuyao.

Especially for Xie Jinghan... it seemed that Wen Shuyao was more important to him than himself.

Xie Jinghan had never shown such a serious expression when he examined him.

Thinking this way, Dean Zhou's heart skipped a beat again.

Fortunately, Wen Shuyao's pulse was not too bad.

After a moment's thought, he came up with a solution.

"How is the situation?" Xie Jinghan frowned, meeting Zhou Yuanzheng's shifty gaze.

Upon seeing this, Chief Physician Zhou immediately straightened up and replied, "Your Highness, please rest assured, the Princess's pulse is stable and there is nothing to worry about."

"It must be because he had been worrying too much these past few days, and when he suddenly relaxed, he fell asleep."

When Zhou Yuanzheng uttered his last words, he was extremely uneasy, fearing that Xie Jinghan would be dissatisfied.

To everyone's surprise, Xie Jinghan frowned slightly, and after a moment of silence, asked, "Is that all there is to it?"

"Your Majesty, my skills are limited, and I have only been able to discover this reason," said the Imperial Physician Zhou, adding tactfully, "Your Highness is also a martial artist, and you should be able to distinguish that the breathing of someone who is asleep is different from that of someone who has fainted."

Upon hearing this, Xie Jinghan fell silent.

After Zhou Yuanzheng reminded him, he suddenly realized that Wen Shuyao's breathing was calm and regular, which meant she was indeed asleep.

After a moment, he waved his hand and said, "I'll trouble Dean Zhou to make the trip."

Granny Qi understood and handed over the purse that she had prepared beforehand.

"You've worked hard, Chief Physician Zhou." As she spoke, she stuffed the purse into the hands of Chief Physician Zhou and several imperial physicians.

The purse felt heavy as soon as I picked it up.

Zhou Yuanzheng was always greedy for money, and his eyes lit up as soon as he weighed the options.

But he was reluctant to return the purse.

He dared not take the money from Prince Jing's mansion.

Granny Qi smiled and pushed the purse back into Dean Zhou's hand, saying, "Dean Zhou, there is one more thing that I'm afraid I need your assistance with."

Upon hearing this, Dean Zhou perked up.

High-ranking families and grand mansions are full of shady dealings; it's just unknown what kind of favor Granny Qi wanted him to do.

Granny Qi smiled and said, "It's nothing serious, it's just... you must have heard the rumors circulating in the capital these past few days."

Upon hearing this, Dean Zhou's expression turned serious: "I have heard about it."

Inside the room, Xie Jinghan's gaze sharpened as he looked at Granny Qi.

Granny Qi sensed something but remained silent and continued, "The Princess Consort has been unjustly implicated and is already extremely wronged. However, the rumors circulating in the capital are truly despicable, as they are deliberately trying to slander the Princess Consort's innocence."

"I hope that when Chief Physician Zhou returns to the palace to report, he will mention the Princess's condition." Granny Qi smiled, but the smile did not reach her eyes, adding a touch of horror. "The Princess has returned unharmed."

Zhou Yuanzheng stroked his beard and agreed without much hesitation.

"The Princess Consort has no injuries whatsoever, and is in excellent spirits," said Zhou Yuanzheng in a low voice. "The reason why the Prince Jing's residence is in such a hurry to summon the imperial physician is because the Prince is so concerned that he has failed to distinguish between fainting and being asleep."

Granny Qi nodded: "Let's do as Chief Physician Zhou says."

“Then Your Highness…” Chief Physician Zhou cautiously reminded him, “This is ultimately related to Your Highness’s reputation.”

"My reputation is of utmost importance," Xie Jinghan's deep voice echoed from inside the room.

The Imperial Physician Zhou straightened his face and said, "Your Majesty, I know what to do!"

If that's the case, then he will tell the truth.

Granny Qi stuffed the purse into the hands of Chief Physician Zhou, and this time, Chief Physician Zhou did not refuse.