Chapter 1254: Chapter 1254

Everyone craned their necks, but unfortunately, they couldn’t see anything.

Then they thought, Protector General, with your presbyopia, you can’t even clearly see the face of someone standing right in front of you. How can you claim this newborn child resembles King Jin?

The Emperor appeared calm, the most composed person in the room.

Of course, everyone was used to it. No matter what happened, the Emperor always remained calm, as if he was born with this one expression. No one found it surprising anymore.

The Emperor said, "Bring the child for me to take a look."

The maid, Long Liu, trembling like a leaf, stood pale as a sheet. Hearing the Emperor’s command, she took several deep breaths to gather her strength before stepping forward to present the month-old child before him.

The Emperor glanced at the child and suddenly let out a chuckle, "Heh."

Then he cast a meaningful look at King Jin and the Protector General.

The Emperor’s "heh" left everyone utterly baffled.

The greatest skill of the Emperor was making people unable to guess his thoughts. Naturally, no one understood what he meant by this.

Was it a resemblance, or was it not?

"Why don’t we try the blood-drip test to determine if this child is truly Xiaoran’s flesh and blood?"

The Protector General’s expression shifted slightly, but he nodded, saying, "Fine, then let’s do the blood-drip test. Only, this poor child, to have such a muddleheaded father, truly suffers."

The Protector General’s poise confused the onlookers even more.

But the Protector General’s confidence in proceeding with the blood-drip test stemmed from the fact that he had tested it at home. For children of distant familial relations, the blood would mix; King Jin’s blood and Jin Wei’s blood had already proven compatible. He believed that Jin Wei’s child’s blood would surely mix with King Jin’s as well.

He truly was not afraid of this blood-drip test.

Gu Youyou saw the unwavering confidence in the Protector General’s eyes and felt puzzled, but she wasn’t worried in the slightest. She had already prepared for this moment.

More than anyone, she understood that the blood-drip test was unreliable. But what if by sheer dumb luck, the blood types matched, and the child’s blood mingled with King Jin’s? If that were to happen, even King Jin himself might start doubting reality.

After all, he was entirely certain that he had never laid a finger on Madam Zuo.

That’s why Gu Youyou had made preparations long in advance, ensuring that the child’s blood would not mix with King Jin’s.

She gave Jin Zijin a quick wink, and Jin Zijin immediately set things in motion.

Before long, someone brought forward two bowls of Qingshui. The elderly eunuch Wan Gonggong by the Emperor’s side took out silver needles and pricked both King Jin’s finger and the baby’s finger for their blood.

The Emperor’s eyes were fixed on the two drops of blood, but he saw that they did not mix.

As for the child, the pain of having their hand pricked startled them awake from sleep, and they began to wail uncontrollably.

Suddenly, Long Liu also burst into tears, standing to the side sobbing while soothing the child.

After observing the results, the Emperor let out a cold snort and ordered Wan Gonggong to present the blood sample to the Protector General.

The Protector General stared at the two unmixed drops of blood in the bowl, his eyes widening in disbelief. He exclaimed, "No... Impossible! This child clearly... How... How can this be?"

The Emperor said coldly, "Protector General, do you have anything else to say?"

The Emperor barked loudly, "Guards, bring me Jin Wei!"

The Emperor’s face darkened as he fixed the Protector General with a piercing glare, his voice sharp as a blade. "I’ll make sure you’re utterly convinced. Soon enough, we’ll see whether this child’s blood mixes with Jin Wei’s."

The Protector General was completely dumbfounded. How could this be? Jin Yushu was legitimate, King Jin was Jin Yushu’s legitimate offspring, and their ancestors shared the same lineage with the Emperor’s ancestors. They came from the same bloodline—how could their blood not mix?