Quick Transmigration: What to Do When the Male Supporting Character You Saved Becomes Obsessed with

Chapter 187 The Ruthless and Disabled Crown Prince (91)

He held Lu Liruan in his arms, gritting his teeth to resist the pain in his legs, but he couldn't use too much force with his hands, so as not to pass his pain on to the person in his arms.

Ji Shumin has rarely talked to Lu Liruan about himself lately. When love is deep, one will analyze oneself and want to lay oneself bare for the other person to see, hoping that every unknown secret of the past will receive the other person's attention and pity.

But Lu Liruan is too sensitive.

Sometimes, Ji Shumin wouldn't even realize he was talking about anything pitiful before the other person was already looking at him with teary eyes.

Ji Shumin loved watching her cry. Her flawless eyes were like being soaked in a clear, deep spring, and each of her tears seemed to extinguish the burning resentment in his heart.

But when she cries, Ji Shumin feels guilty and heartbroken.

"Why do you cry so much? Don't you feel ashamed?" Ji Shumin teased her before, saying it casually, but Lu Liruan gave him a serious answer.

“It’s not shameful. I never thought that laughing or crying because of love is something that needs to be hidden or is shameful.”

Ji Shumin was silent for a moment, then patted her head: "Yes, you're right."

More than just being attracted to each other, they seemed to have their lives intertwined, entwined and drawing nourishment from one another.

Talking about romantic love is too superficial; we should talk about affection.

He was both her benefactor and her lover. Ji Shumin could never betray Lu Liruan, nor could he accept that she didn't love him. This will continue until his death.

"Is it still very painful?"

The candle by the bedside flickered and burned, casting shadows of two people embracing on the wall.

“…” Ji Shumin snorted softly.

Lu Liruan slipped her hand inside his collar and touched his thin back, which was covered in sweat and taut, like a fully drawn bowstring.

"How about we call the imperial physician over? Is there any medicine that can alleviate this?" Lu Liruan felt anxious and uncertain.

After she had gotten used to one of Ji Shumin's symptoms, a new one appeared, and Lu Liruan, who had never seen him before, was afraid of serious consequences.

“Li Ruan knows... because I took less of those pills, my legs regained feeling.” Ji Shumin’s voice was breathless, suppressing the pain, but his tone remained steady.

“If we eat it all back now, won’t all our previous efforts be wasted?” Ji Shumin pressed his head against Lu Liruan’s soft belly, the pain stinging him. He tried to deceive himself, thinking that hiding in Lu Liruan’s arms would help him escape the pain.

He couldn't bring himself to tell Lu Liruan about these childish and unspoken thoughts, so he could only pray in his heart that she wouldn't be too perceptive, since Ji Shumin still had some pride after all.

Lu Liruan was desperate and grasped at straws, saying whatever came to mind in a jumbled mess.

Unable to do anything for him, Lu Liruan wished she could bear it for him, not simply because she felt sorry for him, but because it was too agonizing.

Watching others suffer in front of you feels worse than suffering yourself; it's so unbearable and makes you feel so helpless.

"What should we do then..." Lu Liruan frowned and hugged him, murmuring that she also wanted to draw some strength from Ji Shumin.

No matter when, Lu Liruan always felt that Ji Shumin had a solid sense of trust and reliance that transcended his fragile body and originated from his spirit.

He is both fragile and resilient.

It is both sinister and insane, yet also stable and wise.

All the contradictions and conflicts within him made Ji Shumin unique in the world; there would never be anyone like him throughout history!

“You’re too soft-hearted…” Ji Shumin suddenly laughed, his shoulders trembling, his voice muffled by Lu Liruan’s clothes.

“When I give up the pills, why don’t you go back to the Marquis of An’s residence for a while?” Ji Shumin turned over and looked up at her.

"I'm not going back." Lu Liruan sniffed.

"It's such a hassle to have to coax you while you're here," Ji Shumin said, biting the fingertip that was touching her face, feigning indifference.

“Li Ruan, do you know that I’m the kind of person who takes an inch and then a mile? If someone gives me an inch, I’ll take an inch back in retaliation.” He narrowed his eyes slightly.

"If you treat me well, I'll start planning how to repay you tenfold. If you feel sorry for me even a little, I'll go out of my way to lie to you that I'm feeling sorry for you because I can't eat or can't eat... Only then will I feel happy."

“But Li Ruan is too soft-hearted, which made my conscience prick me. But I can’t change it, so I can only tell you frankly, so that you know what kind of person I am and be wary of me…” he said slowly.

“I can tell,” Lu Liruan continued his sentence.

The swift and decisive action startled Ji Shumin.

"It's okay, I'm willing. You can lie to me, but don't even think about sending me away again." Lu Liruan crossed her arms and looked down at him.

"You think I'm soft-hearted now, but if you dare to lie to me again, you'll know how hard-hearted I really am." Lu Liruan reassured him in advance.

"Don't get any ideas you shouldn't have, understand?" Lu Liruan said, pulling his ear.

Ji Shumin sighed helplessly, "I understand."

The two chatted idly, their words disjointed and incoherent, until the sharp pain gradually subsided.

Lu Liruan's hand remained on his calf, gently rubbing it, though she didn't know if it was helpful.

When the pain was intense, Ji Shumin felt nothing at all.

Now that it doesn't hurt as much, other sensations have become more pronounced. The skin that Lu Liruan's warm palms had been repeatedly rubbing against brought back a long-lost tactile sensation.

I actually started to feel it!

The next day, Lu Liruan wanted to have the imperial physician examine her, but Ji Shumin stopped her.

"Nobody in the palace wants my leg to get better right now. Let's have a few days of peace and quiet!" he said sarcastically.

Lu Liruan pondered it for a moment and realized that he had a point, so she had no choice but to give up.

"We can't just keep ignoring it, can we? It's no good to avoid seeking medical help, Your Highness!" Lu Liruan said earnestly.

"Someone will come and see it for me in a few days," Ji Shumin said calmly, as if he had planned it all along.

Their lives outside the palace were relatively peaceful, but life inside the palace was anything but peaceful.

The news spread out one after another.

Consort Rong was punished by the Empress for violating palace rules!

Not only did the Empress order her to stay confined to her own palace, she also wanted to demote her rank!

Lu Liruan didn't know the specifics, but from Xiao Xizi's halting retelling, she felt that Consort Rong must be at odds with the Empress.

But the Empress actually gained the upper hand!

Consort Rong had held a dominant position in the palace for many years and had never had any rivals. She could command everyone in the palace.

She never expected that the Empress would make her suffer.

Most importantly, the Emperor did not show favoritism towards Consort Rong.

What appears to be a power struggle between the concubines in the palace is ultimately what the emperor wants to see. Whatever the emperor desires, that is what will happen.

The Emperor used to favor Consort Rong, but now...

The news of Consort Rong falling out of favor surprised everyone. After all, she had served the Emperor for so many years, enjoying a long and prosperous reign; how could she suddenly lose favor?

"Why is that?" Lu Liruan also found it strange.

While in the palace, Lu Liruan could deeply feel that everyone had to avoid Consort Rong's sharp edge.

“It has little to do with her personally.” Ji Shumin, with a thick blanket wrapped around his legs, sipped the tea that Lu Liruan had personally brewed.

"What's that for?"

"Because of the seventh brother." Ji Shumin tossed a letter to Lu Li.

Lu Liruan opened it, and it recorded the Seventh Prince's actions over the past few days.

Since his attempt to harm Ji Shumin at Songjing Garden failed, the Seventh Prince's mindset has changed.

The crown prince was deposed and requested to leave the palace.

The second prince also lost his father's favor by forcing the crown prince to abdicate.

Just when the Seventh Prince thought he had the victory in his grasp, the First Prince suddenly appeared!

Seeing Ji Shuqin being favored by the Emperor, just like Ji Shumin back then, the Seventh Prince's resentment and anger caused him to lose his mind.

His mother was the emperor's most favored woman, and he was his favorite son!

The seventh prince began to win over important officials and build momentum for himself.

He was young and flamboyant, just like Consort Rong, so his actions would surely not escape the Emperor's notice.

However, the emperor did not punish him.

The incident involving Consort Rong was a warning from the Emperor, a reminder not to test his tolerance.

Upon learning of this, the seventh prince rushed back from outside the palace.

However, they did not see Consort Rong.

The Empress's men were impartial and guarded the gates of Consort Rong's palace, which had once been bustling with visitors, preventing him from entering to pay his respects.

It was raining heavily that day. The Seventh Prince did not see Consort Rong, so he went to the Imperial Study to request an audience with the Emperor. However, even though he was soaked to the bone, the door to the Imperial Study remained closed. The Emperor did not see him or send anyone to deliver a message to him.

The seventh prince returned dejectedly and fell seriously ill.

It is said that he almost suffered convulsions from the fever.

"Why is it that... all of you princes are in poor health?" Lu Liruan asked in confusion.

It wasn't her imagination; although the emperor's children had all survived, upon closer inspection, none of them were particularly robust or strong. When Ji Shumin's leg was still in good condition, he was probably the most skilled in martial arts among them.

"Didn't the Empress Dowager tell you?" Ji Shumin raised an eyebrow.

"No."

The Empress Dowager was kind, but she was very tight-lipped. She rarely spoke and kept her mouth shut, never revealing anything without permission.

Ji Shumin brought up a past event.

The reason why the Empress Dowager was always respected by the Emperor was not only because she helped him a lot during the struggle for the throne and always stood firmly on the side of legitimacy, but also because of reasons that were not known to outsiders.

The emperor lost his mother when he was young, and danger lurked around him. How could a young man like him protect his people without any leaks?

That's when someone took advantage of the situation.

Someone used witchcraft to poison him, putting something dirty in his food and drink in an attempt to harm him.

This matter was discovered by the Empress Dowager through careful observation.

The Dowager felt sorry for him because he lost his father at a young age. Although she didn't treat him as her own son, she still cared about him a lot and noticed from the slightest clues that someone wanted to harm him.

Without making a sound, he cleverly used a scheme to expose the perpetrator's true colors, leading to severe punishment by the late emperor.

From then on, the Emperor and the Empress Dowager became even closer, and the Emperor grew increasingly disgusted with and resistant to witchcraft.

Shortly after ascending the throne, the emperor launched a large-scale purge of evil objects in the palace and issued palace rules that such objects should never appear in the palace again, with severe punishment for violators!

Fortunately, the Empress Dowager discovered that the filth had not damaged her lungs or internal organs.

However, because that kind of thing was so insidious, the imperial physicians did their best, but it still left some lingering effects. However, it was not on the emperor, but rather that his future offspring might be weak and prone to premature death.

This proved true; no matter which concubine he had children with, none of them were very healthy. The first child born to him, his eldest son Ji Shuqin, was the most severely affected and almost died young.

"So that's how it is," Lu Liruan finally understood.

No wonder the emperor was so shocked and disgusted when he heard the words "witchcraft" that day; it turned out that he had been harmed by it himself.

However, sometimes, having suffered losses and learned of its power, one may become distorted and rebellious.

The younger princes are also in poor health, and the Emperor will surely worry about this for the rest of his life.

"Between the Empress and the Emperor..."

"It's just that we're mutually disgusted yet unable to shake each other off," Ji Shumin said with a hint of schadenfreude.

Lu Liruan patted him, thinking to herself, "Your 'watching the show' look is way too obvious!"

The Emperor didn't want Consort Rong to become too arrogant, nor did he want the Seventh Prince to form cliques, so he used the Empress to issue a warning. Coincidentally, the Empress also needed to use Consort Rong to establish her authority.

Just as one crisis subsided, another arose. While Consort Rong was still under house arrest, another major incident occurred in the palace!

The Emperor was furious for some unknown reason and imprisoned the Second Prince, ordering him to reflect on his actions. It was unclear when he would be released.

The emperor's decision to imprison the prince was the first time since his ascension to the throne, and everyone understood its meaning: the emperor was truly disgusted with him!

The second prince's mother knelt before the emperor's bedchamber, kneeling until she fainted, but to no avail.

She turned to the palace of the Dowager Consort for help, but the Dowager Consort refused to see her. So she shouted loudly in front of the palace gate, but there was still no response from the Dowager Consort's palace.

In the end, the emperor ordered her to be taken back.

"I didn't want to involve her, but she's acting so recklessly. Let her be demoted to a Noble Lady and reflect on her actions!" In a fit of anger, the Emperor demoted her rank by two levels.

Others may not know, but Lu Liruan does.

The robbery of government silver has come to light.

When Ji Shuqin came to inquire about Ji Shumin that day, Lu Liruan had a vague premonition.

When they searched the Second Prince's residence, they actually found real account books.

"Father, you are wise! It must be Ji Shumin! Ji Shumin is avenging his wrongful conviction against me!" The Second Prince's voice trembled as he stared at the object.

There could be no one else but Ji Shumin!

"Min'er is no longer in the palace, yet you still drag him into this!" the Emperor roared, not believing a single word of the Second Prince's explanation.

The second prince was filled with despair; he didn't know how Ji Shumin had managed it! But ever since his attempt to crush Ji Shumin into the abyss failed, his heart had been in turmoil…

Ji Shumin won't let this go easily! He's extremely vengeful! The Second Prince has experienced this more than once over the years.

But this time he was truly afraid. He had a vague premonition that in this tense and precarious moment, Ji Shumin would not allow himself any chance to turn things around! He was going to be ruined by this!

After fighting over this for so long, he's going to lose!

Sure enough!

The second prince felt despair.

Ji Shumin didn't take action himself; it was the eldest prince who had just returned to the palace. He and the Dali Temple jointly discovered that it was his doing, which implicated his actions in the bureaucratic family in the south.

Because he could not keep his promise, many of them were no longer loyal to him. At the time, the second prince felt that he had done everything perfectly and was only one step away from the highest position.

But now it seems that it is riddled with holes, and there is not a single hole that can be plugged... It was all Ji Shumin's scheme!

Has he already joined forces with the eldest prince who has returned to the palace?

How can it be……