Liang Luo couldn't help but sigh. She hadn't expected her fate to be so good. If she had known Consort Wei believed in such things, she should have gone to the Imperial Observatory beforehand to tamper with things, adding a blessing of many descendants to her husband-favoring fate. That way, she might have even secured the position of Crown Princess.
Alas, it was all just her wishful thinking.
Now, she faced two paths: either agree to become the Ninth Prince's concubine, or completely forget about it and consider other options.
After witnessing his valiant appearance on the battlefield, how could Liang Luo bear to let go?
A concubine was a concubine; it wasn't as if there was no chance of becoming the principal wife.
Once she entered the Prince's mansion and got pregnant first, who knew who would emerge victorious then!
A wave of relief washed over her at the thought!
For now, the most important thing was to discuss this with her father.
She needed to think carefully about how to broach the subject so that he would readily agree.
The Liang family's carriage clattered away from Prime Minister Bai's mansion, narrowly missing the Feng family's carriage.
Feng Jinyao had been recuperating at home since that day. Even with the medicine from Divine Physician Zhang, she had been bedridden for several days.
The cold wind that night had blown for hours; even an ordinary man would not have endured it, let alone her.
Moreover, the Bai family was currently making efforts to drag the Wei family down. If the Feng family were to get involved at this juncture, it would have the opposite effect. Therefore, they waited until the momentum had shifted before paying a visit.
The Bai family's servant, upon seeing her arrive, happily ushered her inside.
Feng Jinyao wasted no time, walking briskly towards Bai Siruo's courtyard.
As soon as she entered the courtyard gate, she saw Haitang, who was lifting the curtain. She was holding a bowl of medicine and her eyes lit up with surprise when she saw Feng Jinyao.
"Third Miss, you're here."
Inside, Bai Siruo's wound was scabbing over, making her itchy and unable to sleep. Suddenly hearing the voice outside, she became excited, her voice rising by an octave. "Is that you, A'Yao?"
"It's me, cousin."
"Come in, come in quickly!"
Bai Siruo tried to get out of bed to greet her, but her wound pulled, causing her to cry out in pain. As Feng Jinyao entered, she quickly held her down, frowning. "What's the rush? I'm here now, aren't I?"
"Hmph, you have the nerve to say that. I've been back for several days, and you haven't visited me. Have you grown tired of me too?"
Yun Xu, worried that her cousin might have a rift with her young lady, quickly explained, "No, Cousin Miss has misunderstood. My young lady has been ill these past few days and was afraid of passing her illness to you, which is why she didn't come. She's better these two days and the first thing she did was rush over to see you."
Hearing Yun Xu's words, Bai Siruo suddenly recalled the incident of her rescue that day. She knew it must have been because of her that Feng Jinyao had fallen ill. Her heart was filled with both gratitude and self-reproach, and tears began to stream down her face. She no longer had her usual cheerful demeanor, but rather a look of worry and sadness.
Feng Jinyao comforted her, "Don't worry, cousin. I've fully recovered before coming, so it's fine."
Bai Siruo tightly gripped Feng Jinyao's increasingly bony hand, her heart filled with pain. "What do you mean fully recovered? Look at you. You were never plump to begin with, and now you've lost even more weight after this illness. It's all my fault for being so foolish and thoughtless that I've implicated my family to this extent. It's all my fault."
"Cousin..."
Bai Siruo was filled with remorse, and Feng Jinyao didn't know how to comfort her, so she could only accompany her as she vented her emotions.
After holding back for so many days, Bai Siruo finally had a good cry. Otherwise, even if her external wounds healed, her heart might still bear a hidden ailment.
When Bai Siruo stopped crying, she noticed that the handkerchiefs Feng Jinyao had brought were all wet from her tears.
"Are you feeling better?"
"Mm," Bai Siruo's voice, tinged with tears, was very sweet and tender. For some reason, Feng Jinyao, though younger than her, always felt compelled to treat her as an equal to Feng Yunhe and coaxed her.
"Here's some milk tea, freshly brewed. Have a few sips to moisten your throat."
Bai Siruo took it and held the warm cup in her hands. The gloom in her heart gradually dissipated. Seeing her expression return to normal, Feng Jinyao finally spoke.
"After this incident, cousin, don't trust others so easily in the future. Your status is significant; a single move affects the whole situation. If it weren't for Eldest Uncle and Fourth Uncle risking everything to protect you, the harsh gossip outside would have crushed you. Now that you have the title of Princess Anping, no one will dare to say much more."
"What princess or not, I never cared for these empty titles. It's rather that I've implicated you in falling ill, and Uncle Lin was punished. I feel very guilty."
"Alright, we are family, so let's not stand on ceremony. I've come today for two reasons: to comfort you, and to discuss something with you."
Seeing Feng Jinyao's serious expression, Bai Siruo also put away her recent sadness and stared at her.
"Lu Yuanfeng, who harmed you, has been sentenced to death by beheading, and the entire Lu family has suffered. But it's also because they were not upright and gave people a handle. However, the Wei family has suffered no major harm. Do you know why they targeted you?"
"Hmph, in the end, isn't it because they bully our Bai family for having no heirs? Now, there are only my sister Bai Sihan and I, two daughters in the family. Once we are both married, the Bai family will be empty. Even if we adopt a child from the clan now, they probably won't be able to uphold the family's prestige. Isn't it precisely because the Wei family grasped this point that they tried to eliminate me?"
Bai Siruo was not foolish. After lying in bed for so many days, if she couldn't figure out this much, then she had lived in vain.
Feng Jinyao nodded. "That's right, but the Bai family having no heirs is not entirely true. You have a brother who is living outside."
"What? A brother?"
Bai Siruo's voice dropped significantly in surprise. Since her birth, she had never seen a brother at home. How could a brother suddenly appear now?
But seeing that Feng Jinyao didn't seem to be joking, she took a few deep breaths, calmed her emotions, and then said.
"Who is that woman outside? Does my mother know about this?"
Feng Jinyao was stunned by her words, and then realized. She said, "You've misunderstood. It's not Fourth Uncle's."
Bai Siruo raised an eyebrow at Feng Jinyao, her expression flustered. "It's over, it's over! My Bai family is going to let down Eldest Aunt. What's going on with Eldest Aunt? How could she have an outside mistress!"
Feng Jinyao pressed down her head that was filled with wild thoughts and said calmly, "Listen to me first. The child is neither Eldest Uncle's nor Fourth Uncle's. It was born to Third Uncle and Qiao Xiuniang before he was married. He is now around fourteen years old and has been raised by the Qiao family in Shuanggui Lane. Now that Madam Qiao has passed away, there are only a pair of old servants taking care of him."
Hearing her words, Bai Siruo's eyes widened. After a long while, she said, "It must be Third Aunt's doing. Otherwise, why would we not know for over ten years that there was a child of the Bai family living outside!"
Feng Jinyao nodded. "This matter is also inseparable from Third Uncle. Otherwise, given his temperament, how could he have allowed Third Aunt to go and bully Qiao Shanwei?"