Chapter 970: Chapter 820, Luo Qiong is Pregnant Chapter 970: Chapter 820, Luo Qiong is Pregnant That evening, when Xiao Yeyang returned, Daohua pondered for a moment and decided to share her suspicions with him.

“Luo Qiong is cheating outside?!”

Xiao Yeyang’s face was filled with shock.

Daohua quickly covered his mouth, “Keep your voice down, this is just my suspicion.”

Xiao Yeyang caught Daohua’s hand, his face still showing intense shock and disbelief.

Indeed, he and Xiao Yechen were like water and fire, and he was happy to see him in trouble, but not at the cost of involving the Prince Residence. If Luo Qiong really cheated, it would not only shame Xiao Yechen but the entire Prince Residence.

Daohua patted Xiao Yeyang on the chest, signaling him to calm down, “Has the Duke Residence found anything yet?”

Mentioning this, Xiao Yeyang looked even more upset. If it weren’t for Dong Yuanyao and Sun Changze providing the information, he would have almost thought he was being fooled.

Daohua: “… Didn’t they say that many wealthy families have secret passages? Could the Duke Residence have such passages that deceived the people you sent to watch?”

Xiao Yeyang frowned, “If that’s the case, it would be even harder to catch the Duke Residence red-handed. Also, I suspect that those Hu people Sun Changze mentioned might have already left Beijing.”

Daohua pondered, “What would those Hu people come to Beijing for? They must have had a purpose?”

Xiao Yeyang narrowed his eyes, “Indeed, that is also something I really want to know.”

Daohua looked at Xiao Yeyang, “Do you remember? When Yuanyao tried to assassinate Luo Hongyuan, Luo Hongyuan had said that the Luo Family would soon be raided and exiled. Do you think the Duke Residence might really be conspiring with people from Xiliao in a treasonous plot?”

Xiao Yeyang: “… We need evidence. Otherwise, the imperial uncle wouldn’t accuse the Duke Residence based solely on a few words from Sun Changze and Miss Dong.”

Daohua: “It would be great if we could catch those Hu people.”

Afterward, Daohua became even more concerned about the news from the Chen Courtyard, but Luo Qiong was very careful in her actions. Apart from visiting the Duke Residence every few days, there were no abnormalities.

Ping Ji followed carefully a few times but didn’t discover anything.

…

“Ugh~”
Chen Courtyard, Luo Qiong had a bowl of seafood porridge in the morning and had been vomiting incessantly. The maids were terrified and hurriedly wanted to call the doctor.

Luo Qiong thought of something, quickly stopped the maids, and said with a pale face, “I forgot, I’m allergic to shrimp. There’s medicine at home, I’ll just take two pills later, no need for a doctor.”

After sending the excess maids out of the room, leaving only the senior maids Xue Qiao and Xue Ling, Luo Qiong continued to dry-heave with a pale face.

Xue Qiao and Xue Ling, who were specially trained by the Duke Residence to accompany her, began to suspect something upon seeing their lady’s condition.

“Miss, could it be… are you pregnant?”

Both maids turned pale. Since the beginning of the year, the mistress and her husband had not been intimate. How could she be pregnant?

The panic was evident in Luo Qiong’s eyes as she tightly clutched her stomach, but she soon calmed down, “Prepare to go back to the residence.”

Xue Qiao and Xue Ling exchanged hesitant glances.

“Miss, the Princess Consort… the Princess Consort has been unhappy with your frequent returns home recently, last time…”

Luo Qiong let out a cold laugh, “So what if she’s unhappy? Could she make Xiao Yechen divorce me? Go prepare the carriage.”

At the entrance of the Prince Residence, Daohua had just returned from the tea party hosted by Kang Naixin and happened to encounter Luo Qiong, who was returning to her maternal home.

Seeing Daohua, Luo Qiong looked somewhat uneasy, hurriedly greeted her, and then rode off in the carriage.

“How come you’re heading back to the Duke Residence again? Didn’t you just go there a few days ago?”

Daohua watched the departing carriage in puzzlement, remained silent for a bit, and then turned back into the residence.

“Miss, the wedding day for the second young mistress is approaching. Shouldn’t we start preparing the gifts to add to her dowry?” Wang Manman reminded.

After a moment of silence, Daohua responded, considering that Yan Yihuan from the second branch of the family was still quite sensible and polite, “You go to the storeroom and pick a set of ruby jewelry, a few more festive pieces of jewelry, and several bolts of red silk.”

Wang Manman nodded in agreement, then after thinking, shook her head, “Speaking of which, both the second young mistress and the fourth young mistress have been under the care of the lord and madam without issues over the years. The second young mistress is still alright, understands discretion and doesn’t cause trouble, but the fourth young mistress really disappoints, showing no gratitude whatsoever.”

Daohua looked over, “What’s the matter, has Yan Yile caused some other trouble now?”

Wang Manman pursed her lips, “Didn’t you instruct Guyu the other day to go back and deliver things to the old madam and the madam? When Guyu came back, she mentioned to me that the fourth young mistress seemed dissatisfied with the dowry prepared by the madam.”

Upon hearing this, Daohua immediately scoffed, “Such ungratefulness!”

Wang Manman nodded, “Exactly. The madam prepared a total of sixty-four trousseaus for the second young mistress, each one fully stocked. Which family could match that?”

Daohua sneered, “Aren’t her uncle and aunt coming to Beijing to deliver the wedding gifts? Since Yan Yile is dissatisfied with the dowry prepared by her mother, let her biological parents prepare her dowry then.”

Saying this, she looked towards Wang Manman.

“Yan Yile’s wedding is set for September, remember to remind me. By then, I’ll have the grandmother and mother move to the estate to stay for a while, and let her figure it out on her own.”

Wang Manman smiled and took note.

Later, Daohua took care of some matters at Pingxi Hall, and in the evening, when going to deliver the simmered chicken soup to the Prince, she saw Luo Qiong returning to the residence once again.

Contrary to her earlier flurry, Luo Qiong was now calm, and upon closer inspection, one could discern a faint joy between her brows.

Seeing this, Daohua grew more certain that something was up with Luo Qiong.

March 25 was Yan Yihuan’s wedding day.

Daohua sent the gifts to add to the dowry a day in advance, and only then did she return to the Yan Residence with Xiao Yeyang.

After dinner, they both returned to the Prince Residence.

In the carriage, Xiao Yeyang, with his arm around Daohua, said, “Your uncle and aunt have changed a lot. I remember your uncle used to be not very likable, but he was still smooth and tactful. But now, he’s too much…” saying so, he shook his head.

Daohua replied, “Circumstances shape a person. Have you ever thought about who my uncle and aunt have to deal with back home? Even if it’s the local gentry, how could they compare to these nobles and officials in Beijing?”

Xiao Yeyang said, “It’s a good thing your elder brother can now hold his own.”

Daohua sighed, “Thankfully, grandmother is sensible and split up the family early on.”

Xiao Yeyang then asked, “By the way, do you think your mother-in-law is intentionally neglecting your sister-in-law?”

Daohua huffed, “The marriage between Yan Yile and the Feng Family, on the surface, looks like the Yan Family is marrying up, but in reality, there’s some scheming by the Feng Family involved, especially with my sister-in-law’s sister. Yile was seen meeting with the second son of the Earl Residence in secret; there must be some trickery involved.”

Xiao Yeyang, smiling, pinched Daohua’s nose, “There, there, don’t get upset. Do you want me to teach the Earl Residence a lesson?”

Daohua shook her head, “This minor matter doesn’t require your intervention. I know how to handle it.”