The Double

Princess Yongning shook her head, "No, he covered his face, I couldn’t see anything."

Li Xian’s heart relaxed, but Princess Yongning looked at him again and said with hatred, "It was he who killed my child. The guards at the Li Mansion are so negligent, causing me to fall into danger. This is your fault. I must explain this to the Imperial Consort and tell my elder brother. If this person is not found and skinned alive, I swear I won’t rest!" By the end, she was gritting her teeth, obviously filled with venomous hate.

Li Xian was startled by Princess Yongning’s vehemence and had not expected the Princess to care so much about the child in her womb. Even at this moment, she was still thinking of avenging her unborn child. He pondered how to console Princess Yongning when suddenly a cry of "Your Highness" came from outside. Mei Xiang stumbled into the room.

This servant was always by Princess Yongning’s side, and it seemed that the Princess trusted her very much, treating her as a confidante. Mei Xiang threw herself in front of Princess Yongning’s couch, crying, "It’s all my fault, I failed to protect the little His Highness..."

Princess Yongning closed her eyes, then suddenly slapped Mei Xiang hard, angrily saying, "It’s all your fault! If only you had been more alert and noticed him earlier, if only you hadn’t been knocked out, my child might not have died! Wench!"

Mei Xiang received the slap bewilderedly, not uttering a word, just covering her face and sobbing. As Princess Yongning watched, her own tears started to fall, as she lamented in sorrow, "My child..."

She had married into the Li family to secure a status for this child, rushing into the marriage for the sake of the child in her belly. Now that the child was gone, all her previous actions had lost their meaning. What was the point of staying in the Li Mansion? Besides, she had been hastily wed to Li Xian. If she had known this would happen, she would have been better off heeding Empress Dowager Liu’s advice, or as Shen Yurong had said, she should have taken the medicine to end the pregnancy instead of marrying into the Li family. Then she would still be free and, given the opportunity, might still have been able to marry Mr. Shen.

Now she was at a loss, having lost more than she bargained for, and Princess Yongning did not know what lay in her future, feeling utterly adrift.