Looking up again, she saw the handsome man tearing at her in the center of the courtyard, and instantly lost interest. She waved her hand and said, "That's enough for today, you can leave."

The handsome man quickly stopped, tidied his clothes and hair, then knelt before the princess and respectfully retreated from the courtyard gate.

Chen Mianmian clicked her tongue inwardly—even though she had seen these scenes many times, she still felt uncomfortable every time she saw them.

This is the cruelty of feudal society, something that modern people find hard to accept.

At the same time, she should be glad that she didn't transmigrate into a novel about a slave society... That's right! If she really did transmigrate, she should remember this: she can't read novels with a slave society background, otherwise transmigrating into one would be worse than death.

Princess Ryan said with great interest, "Someone, go and get some candied fruit."

Seeing that the princess was in a good mood, Ying Gu chimed in, "Your Highness, why don't we go to the garden? We can enjoy some fragrant tea and candied fruit while listening to Aunt Chen tell jokes?"

"Great idea!" Princess Ryan had finally found something to amuse herself and immediately made preparations.

Sleepyhead—very good, her "plaything" has been put to good use.

Afterwards, the group moved to the garden.

The table in the garden pavilion was already laden with tea, snacks, and fruits.

Chen Mianmian cleared her mouth and then repeated the joke she had told in the carriage, making everyone burst into laughter.

And so, they talked for almost half an hour.

Chen Mianmian thought to herself, "This can't go on. Who can remember so many jokes? My brain cells are about to burn out."

Suddenly I remembered that Fengchu had asked her to tell me the story of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" before. A brilliant idea struck me—wouldn't it be perfect to just tell the princess a long story?

Thinking of this, Chen Mianmian took a sip of tea, pondering what she wanted to say as she drank.

Ding felt very sorry for her and said softly, "Mianmian, if you're tired of talking, take a rest."

"It's alright, not too tiring." Shen Mianmian knew that Princess Ruian was still in high spirits and didn't want to spoil her mood. After all, Jiang Yinjin had learned mahjong to please the princess.

Although she did everything she could, she feared that the devil was always one step ahead, and Jiang Yinjin had other methods, so she had to be on guard.

If the Marquis of Anning's mansion were to fall victim to this, she hoped that Princess Ruian would protect the Marquis of Anning's mansion, as well as Fengchu, out of consideration for her efforts to please her.

Chen Mianmian put down her teacup and asked, "Does the princess like the storybook?"

Princess Ryan frowned slightly. "So-so. I have read a few storybooks, but they are all about scholars and young ladies, pedantic and boring."

"How about trying this storybook of mine? Although it's also about love, it's full of laughs."

The group didn't know if the princess was looking forward to it, but they were all very excited—love stories, humor, and such a delightful tale?

Ding looked at her aunt with a puzzled expression—Mianmian knew how to play mahjong, tell jokes, and recite beautiful storybooks? How much had she missed out on before?

Princess Ryan said excitedly, "Speak! If you speak well, I will reward you handsomely! Whatever you want, I will reward you with it."

Chen Mianmian naturally spoke sweet words, "This humble woman wants nothing else, only the princess's sweet smile, that is the greatest reward for this humble woman."

Everyone—it still has to be a skinny girl! She really knows how to serve people!

So, what storybook will Chen Mianmian tell the princess?

Of course not, would ancient people be interested in ancient stories?

"The Legend of Zhen Huan" is definitely not an option. The princess was born in the harem and is an expert in palace intrigue. She might find "The Legend of Zhen Huan" childish.

Therefore, she chose "My Fair Princess," which has both humor and romance. She didn't even need to change the way the princesses and princes were addressed; she simply referred to it as a fictional, distant country.

And so it went, for a whole day.

Princess Ruian, along with Ying Gu, Ding Shi, Li Mama, and all the servants of the princess's residence, listened with rapt attention.

...

Princess Ryan was still humane enough that, seeing that Chen Mianmian had been telling stories all day, she didn't need her to play with her and let her rest directly.

Ding Shi, Jiang Yinjin, and Ying Gu were asked to play mahjong with them.

Shen Mianmian actually wanted to go and accompany them, but she couldn't—she was afraid that Jiang Yinjin would use her protagonist aura to win over the princess and the lady.

Unfortunately, she was willing but unable to do so; she simply didn't have the energy, and the moment her head hit the pillow, she fell into a deep sleep.

What Chen Mianmian didn't know was that the princess hadn't played many rounds either.

After playing for a while, the princess said she was tired and asked everyone to leave.

That night.

The princess prepared a late-night snack and sent her maid to ask if Lady Ding would be coming to eat.

Although both were invited by the princess, Jiang Yinjin and Shen Mianmian were not allowed to stay overnight in the princess's courtyard; only Ding Shi was qualified to stay.

Ding didn't go to sleep either. Hearing that the princess was having a midnight snack, she changed into a comfortable dress and came out to keep her company.

The late-night snack was set up in the courtyard.

Two middle-aged women were enjoying sweet wine and light snacks under the moonlight, feeling the evening breeze – a truly delightful scene.

Lady Ding laughed and said, "I never thought that Your Highness would ever get tired of playing. I thought Your Highness would never get tired of playing. It seems that Mianmian's story is very good. It has made Your Highness laugh until he is tired."

Princess Ryan chuckled, "You, a frail woman, aren't tired, so how could I, a martial arts practitioner, be tired? I'm just too lazy to play with your daughter-in-law."

Madam Ding was startled and hurriedly put down her wine cup, anxiously asking, "What happened? Did Yin Jin do something wrong to displease His Highness?"

Princess Ryan took a sip of sweet wine, looked at Ding's panicked expression, and sneered, "Can't you see that she's been feeding me tiles the whole time? Although she hasn't been playing mahjong for long, she plays better than any of you. She can tell what tiles we have in our hands and what tiles we need just by looking at the tiles we play. Plus, she's sitting to my left and has been feeding me tiles the whole time."

Ding's mouth dropped open in surprise, "There...there was such a thing?" She hadn't even realized it.

Princess Rui'an was already used to the simple-minded Ding Shi. Thinking of the scheming Jiang Yinjin, her eyes showed weariness and disgust. "If I wanted to find someone to flatter me, there are plenty in the palace, and any one of them would do it better than her. I came to you all hoping to relax and have some fun, but she's scheming right beside me. It's disgusting."

Fearing the princess would take her anger out on the Marquis of Anning's household, Lady Ding turned pale and pondered how to appease the princess.

She even wanted to rush straight to Mianmian's room, drag Mianmian out of bed, and go to coax the princess.

Princess Ryan chuckled, "Did you think I would hold a grudge against you? In your eyes, am I really that incompetent? Eat up, I know right from wrong."

...

The following morning, Chen Mianmian was dragged by the princess again to talk about "Princess Pearl".

During a break, Hanrong anxiously approached Chen Mianmian and whispered, "Auntie, Guanshui just delivered a letter saying there's something urgent!"

Chen Mianmian's heart skipped a beat—Guan Shui said something urgent? Could it be that something had happened to Fengchu?!