However, the Zhao family was not as united as the Zhou family.

Not long after the Crown Princess woke up, she received a secret letter from her family.

After reading the letter, her expression changed drastically. She immediately burned the letter, summoned Granny Ding, and whispered a few words of advice to her.

Ding Mama's expression also changed, and she couldn't help but ask in a low voice, "Your Highness, this is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of your family! Are you sure you want to do this?"

"This is Father's decision," the Crown Princess said quietly. "Besides, we're not really going to do it; we're just preparing in case."

"But, I'm afraid Consort Xi won't agree, will she?"

"You won't agree?" The Crown Princess sneered. "If the Crown Prince is really gone, it's fine if she gives birth to a son, but what use is a daughter? It's hard to say! What choice does she have? You just need to pass on the message."

Granny Ding's eyes shifted several times before finally settling into a calm expression.

"yes."

The turmoil and chaos in the capital did not affect the villages on the outskirts of Beijing.

After the incident involving the hidden needle, Granny Fangqi became even more cautious and careful, keeping a close eye on Song Xibai's food, clothing, and daily necessities. She would even check the washed clothes several times before she felt at ease.

There weren't many servants on the estate. Besides Granny Fangqi and Wei Hongfuliu, there were only seven or eight old women who did rough work.

Song Xibai's monthly allowance was quite generous, and there were also occasional subsidies of meat and vegetables. Last month, he even provided two sets of summer clothes, and the Dragon Boat Festival gifts were also plentiful. Therefore, no one complained, and some even volunteered to help with chores.

Because of the little clothes sent by the Crown Prince, Song Xibai also became interested in making clothes.

Her needlework skills were mediocre, and Wei Hong and the others wouldn't let her touch the needle and thread, so she could only watch from the side, at most choosing fabrics and giving pointers on color matching.

Granny Fangqi selected two old women who were good at needlework to come and help.

One of the old women looked at the table full of cotton cloth and couldn't help but mutter to her companion.

"I thought wealthy families used silk to make clothes for their children! Why are they using cotton?"

Her companion had a better eye and immediately noticed that the cloth was unusual.

"Feel it carefully, this isn't the kind of cotton cloth you usually see in fabric shops. It's fine and soft, even finer than your or my skin!"

The two old women touched the white cotton cloth in front of them in surprise, which made Fu Liu chuckle and whisper to Wei Hong, "These country women really haven't seen much of the world."

Wei Hong glared at her: "Shh! You'd better tone it down! If the master sees this, he'll just say you're arrogant and look down on people."

Fu Liu quickly sat up straight, no longer daring to laugh.