Ding noticed and asked, "Mianmian, what's wrong? Why is your face so pale?"

"Huh?" Shen Mianmian was startled—was her face really that pale?

Only then did she realize that her palms were also sweaty, and she felt annoyed—she was just worried about Fengchu, so why were her palms sweaty? When did her mental fortitude become so poor?

Ding asked with concern, "Are you too tired? You talked all day yesterday and all morning today. I'll talk to the princess and suggest you rest this afternoon."

Shen Mianmian was about to refuse, but then she thought that it would be good if the madam could really help her "take leave". Right now, she was worried about Fengchu, so how could she have the mind to talk about "Princess Pearl" or "Prince Pearl"?

Thinking of this, Chen Mianmian gently touched her forehead with her slender fingers, "I am indeed dizzy, thank you, Madam."

Madam Ding sighed with heartache and said in a low voice, "You've really suffered in the Princess's residence. Just bear with it a little longer, and you can rest properly for a few days when we get back to the Marquis's residence."

Shen Mianmian was taken aback, and suddenly a bold guess came to her mind—could it be that the lady was not on good terms with Princess Ruian, but was deliberately coaxing the princess and trying to curry favor with her?

The lady also gets tired, so empathize with her and worry about her all the time.

None of these details are mentioned in the novel. It only describes the friendship between the Lady of Anning Marquis and Princess Ruian, but it doesn't reveal the Lady's ulterior motives.

Suddenly, I felt a sense of surprise, as if I had uncovered some details behind the plot.

Fearing that Mianmian would continue to compromise, Ding turned to the princess's side before Mianmian could answer and whispered that Mianmian was not feeling well.

Princess Rui'an raised her eyes, her proud gaze revealing a hint of worry, and then said a few words to Madam Ding.

When Ding returned, she said, "I've finished speaking with the princess. She wants you to go back and rest until you feel better."

“Yes, Madam.” Shen Mianmian was moved.

He then led Hanrong to the princess's side, bowed to her, and took his leave.

Back in the guest room,

Chen Mianmian hurriedly asked, "Where is the letter?"

Hanrong took the letter out of her bosom. "Here it is."

Chen Mianmian checked the letter and saw that there were no signs of it being opened, so she said with relief, "Go back and rest. I'll contact you if I need anything."

"Yes, Aunt."

Hanrong turned and left, thoughtfully closing the door behind her, though she was actually quite uncomfortable inside.

Logically, when the master is reading a letter, the personal servant can be nearby, since the servant cannot see the letter unless the master shows it to the servant.

With servants by one's side, there's someone to talk to if the master needs to discuss something.

But Aunt Shen was wary of her and didn't even let her stay by her side.

Hanrong felt increasingly distressed as she thought about it—she used to complain that Aunt Shen was naive and didn't guard against her, the traitor; but now that Aunt Shen had become cunning and truly wary of her, she knew the pain that came with it.

She's a beast!

He enjoys the benefits of being the young mistress, yet he also craves the affection of Concubine Shen.

She regretted it...

But her thoughts stopped when she thought of her younger brother, who had a terminal illness. She knew that without the young mistress's help, her brother would not have survived, and she knew clearly that she had no right to regret it.

Hanrong felt increasingly frustrated and didn't go back to her room. Instead, she decided to take a walk around the courtyard.

Just as Hanrong raised her head, hoping to hold back the tears in her eyes, someone quickly walked up behind her, "Sister Hanrong."

It was the voice of Chu Yu, the maidservant beside the young mistress.

Hanrong was startled and quickly looked away, but tears inadvertently slid down her cheeks.

Chu Yu asked, "Why are you crying? Did Aunt Shen scold you?"

Hanrong awkwardly took out a handkerchief to wipe her tears, stammered a few times, and did not give a direct answer.

Of course, Chu Yu was just asking casually and wasn't genuinely concerned about Han Rong. She quickly got to the point, "I heard that Aunt Chen isn't feeling well?"

"Ah, this..." Hanrong didn't know how to answer.

Chu Yu lowered her voice, "If it feels good, it feels good; if it doesn't feel good, it doesn't feel good. Is it that hard to answer? What, do you think our young mistress gave you too little money? Why don't you go find the madam, or your concubine, and let them judge how much money our young mistress gave you?"

Hanrong's face turned deathly pale—how could that be? If the madam found out that she had betrayed her family, she would definitely suffer a terrible fate, and might never have a place to live again.

Hanrong quickly forced a smile, "Sister Chuyu, what are you saying? This servant is loyal to the young mistress, how could I not answer? It's just that this servant doesn't know the situation of the aunt."

Chu Yu was taken aback. "What do you mean? Just say whatever you know."

Hanrong had no choice. After all, when Guanshui delivered the letter to the princess's residence, the gatekeeper knew about it, and when the gatekeeper sent a maid to inform her, the maid also knew about it.

In other words, this letter passed through too many hands from Guan Shui to her aunt, making it impossible for her to keep it a secret even if she wanted to.

"It's like this, a maid from the princess's residence just told me to go to the front gatehouse. When I got there, I saw Guanshui, and she gave me a letter, telling me to give it to my aunt immediately, saying it was extremely urgent and couldn't be delayed."

After I gave the letter to my aunt, the madam asked if she was feeling unwell, and my aunt said yes. The madam then asked the princess for leave, and my aunt brought me back, only to immediately kick me out. Therefore, I don't know whether my aunt was actually feeling unwell or what.”

Chu Yu understood. "I see. I misunderstood you. Don't take it to heart, sister. We who work for our masters are afraid of making mistakes, so we overthink things."

Hanrong forced herself to remain calm, "Sister Chuyu, there's no need to explain like that. I know everything. I really don't understand what happened and I'm thinking about how to report to the young mistress."

Chu Yu's eyes flickered. "Do you know what's in the letter?"

"I don't know."

"Aunt Shen won't let you see it?"

"As soon as I got to the room, my aunt told me to come out."

“Alright,” Chu Yu glanced at the direction of the guest room, then said, “Han Rong, listen carefully. Go and bring some tea and fruit to Aunt Shen later. Make sure to stay close to her and try to read the letter or get the contents out of Aunt Shen. Once you get the contents out, come find me immediately.”

"Yes, Sister Chuyu, don't worry." Hanrong nodded vigorously, appearing sincere.

Seeing Hanrong's loyal demeanor, Chu Yu felt relieved.

A short while later, Chu Yu left, and Han Rong returned to the courtyard where the guest room was located, leaning against the corner of the courtyard gate, shivering.

Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably.

what to do?

Is she really going to betray her aunt? She doesn't want to betray her aunt, but the young mistress won't let her off the hook.

In an instant, Hanrong felt all her strength drain away, so she squatted down in the corner, covered her face, and began to sob.

After crying for a while, Hanrong suddenly felt a change in the atmosphere in front of her. She looked up and saw that Aunt Chen was standing in front of her.

Aunt Shen lowered her head and looked at her with her misty, watery eyes, which held a complex and thoughtful expression.

Hanrong was startled—Oh no! Had her aunt found out?