"Little sister, judging from your belly, it'll probably be a few days before you're due. Have you found a midwife yet?"

"Thank you for your concern, sister. It'll only be a couple of days anyway, and the midwife is ready."

Wang Xiangyu gently stroked her pregnant belly and smiled, "I hope to share in your good fortune and give birth to a son as well."

Hongxiu was pleased to hear Wang Xiangxiu's words, so she gently patted Wang Xiangyu's hand.

"You are still young. It doesn't matter whether you blossom first or bear fruit first."

"Madam is joking. You are only in your early twenties. Perhaps you can still give birth to a few more sons for the Prime Minister."

Wang Xiangyu's flattery was both clever and perfectly hit the nail on the head.

Through her tireless efforts, Wang Xiangyu finally managed to establish a relationship with the prime minister's mistress.

At the same time, Lu Chuan also became good friends with the two brothers of this mistress at the dinner table, and the three of them talked about everything.

In recent days, the prime minister's power has been greatly weakened, and most of his retainers have been eliminated. However, the reason why Lu Chuan, who is usually inconspicuous, was kept was precisely because of this relationship.

Lu Chuan initially viewed Wang Xiangyu as nothing more than a breeding machine and even resented her for scheming against him. But now, Lu Chuan feels that Wang Xiangyu does have some abilities.

After Wang Xiangyu boarded the carriage, she put away her smile and lay back on the soft bedding, talking to herself.

"She doesn't even have the status of a concubine, yet she really acts like a lady."

It turns out that Hongxiu used to be a maid in the Prime Minister's mansion, but she caught the Prime Minister's eye.

However, the prime minister had a different idea. He knew that his wife couldn't tolerate other women, so he found a pretext to send Hongxing away from the mansion.

They then secretly brought the person back and hid them in this courtyard.

Hongxiu's belly was also quite fertile; she soon became pregnant and gave birth to a son.

The prime minister was forty years old when he had a son, so he naturally cherished him dearly. Even Hongxiu's two good-for-nothing older brothers were given jobs.

“You Ran, it’s all because I accompanied you to the Second Prince’s residence yesterday. This morning, those young ladies practically wore out my doorstep.”

Li Youran wasn't supposed to be on duty this morning, but she had promised the Second Prince's wife that she would visit her again this afternoon, so she made an exchange for Yun Yingying.

"Tell me, if they knew you were the Second Prince's sister, how would they react?"

"What other reaction can there be? They'll just say I got lucky."

While checking the ledgers with Yun Yingying, Li Youran spoke without looking up.

"It's best not to tell anyone else about this yet, since we don't know what the Second Prince's wife thinks."

Yun Yingying nodded. She knew this, otherwise she wouldn't have risked offending people by not revealing any information.

"You Ran, when exactly will we start taking action on that matter you mentioned?"

Seeing that Li Youran had finished checking the accounts, Yun Yingying was in a hurry to leave, but she was also thinking about the grand plan that Li Youran had mentioned to her yesterday.

"Once we finish these tasks, we'll get started."

Li Youran felt a little apprehensive. She couldn't guarantee that her experiment would be successful and that she could produce what she wanted smoothly, but she had to try.

Compared to this matter, what troubled her more was not knowing how to tell Li's parents about her reunion with the Second Prince's wife.

Li Youran was worried that finding her biological sister would create a rift between her and her father and mother.

"Where are the waiters? The guests have arrived, why isn't anyone here to greet them?"

Two ladies entered, surrounded by a group of maids. Their presence was incredibly grand, even more so than that of the current empress.

Li Youran remembered that she had once hosted this lady, who had spent a fortune and bought the entire cabinet in one go.

Just as Li Youran was about to greet her, she saw that the woman next to her with a large belly was Wang Xiangyu.

Li Youran frowned, wondering how Wang Xiangyu, who had no relatives or friends in the capital, had suddenly become involved with such a wealthy woman.

"Madam, we regret that we cannot serve you, Dog and Wang Xiangyu."

Li Youran was determined to confront Wang Xiangyu head-on; she wouldn't engage in empty rhetoric, she would only resort to direct confrontation.

Wang Xiangyu was originally arrogant and planned to humiliate Li Youran, but after hearing Li Youran's words, her face turned ashen and she looked extremely ugly.

"Li Youran, don't go too far! Why should you refuse to receive guests just because you say so!"

Wang Xiangyu was much smarter this time, and sneered.

"Watch out, or I'll report you to the union for treating customers unfairly!"

Hongxiu Xiao looked at Li Youran with interest. Clearly, the conflict between her and Wang Xiangyu was not a minor one.

"Miss Wang, why don't you go out and take a look? This sign has been posted outside our store for a while now. It's not just targeting you! It's just that your name happens to be Wang Xiangyu."

As Li Youran spoke, she glanced towards the door, raised an eyebrow, and said in a provocative tone.

"Xiao Cui, go and take a look at the door."

"Madam, this servant is illiterate..."

Helpless, Wang Xiangyu went to the shop entrance despite her big belly. Sure enough, there was a sign outside that read, "Dogs and Wang Xiangyu are not allowed to enter."

Wang Xiangyu's ashen face turned black at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Li Youran, you've gone too far!"

Seeing Wang Xiangyu's outburst of anger, the maidservant hurriedly advised her not to be angry, lest she harm the fetus.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!