Whoever caused the trouble should deal with it.

Song Xibai clapped his hands with a clear conscience and had Fuliu find an honest and dutiful little palace maid to follow Fangqi's nanny around.

Granny Fangqi wanted to refuse, but Song Xibai stopped her.

"From now on, Granny will be the head nanny in my room. How can I manage without someone by my side? It'll be more convenient to have someone deliver messages and fetch things, won't it?"

After thinking for a moment, Granny Fangqi stopped being so polite.

Song Xibai glanced outside and then said, "It must have been a long time since you and Du Chenghui have seen each other, right? I'll have someone invite Du Chenghui over so you two can catch up."

"No, no!"

Granny Fangqi waved her hands repeatedly.

"This old servant knows that Your Highness means well, but our statuses are different and there is a distinction between the noble and the lowly. We must not overstep our bounds, otherwise it will only cause trouble for everyone."

She paused, softened her tone, and said another sentence.

"She is weak-willed. It is already a blessing for her to be able to stay in the Eastern Palace. It is better than being a lowly palace maid and being bullied."

Seeing this, Song Xibai did not insist any further and let Granny Fangqi go and rest first.

Fuliu helped Granny Fangqi and enthusiastically introduced her to the palace maids' living quarters.

As Wei Hong watched the two figures disappear, she couldn't help but ask, "Granny Fangqi is very particular about rules."

“People like that are the ones you can trust to get things done.” Song Xibai stretched and yawned.

"However, we've already arrived at the Eastern Palace, yet we haven't even seen Du Chenghui. If Du Chenghui finds out, I wonder what he might think."

Song Xibai suddenly smiled and said, "You need to learn to think outside the box! Granny Fangqi doesn't want to see Du Chenghui because she's afraid of trouble. After all, Du Chenghui has no favor or status in the Eastern Palace and is also soft-hearted. As for me, although I am favored, there is still the Crown Princess above me, so it's not good to give anyone a handle to use against me."

“She is considerate of me, and I will naturally be considerate of her. Go to the back hall later and tell her that I have a question about needlework and would like to ask her for advice. Ask her to come over.”

Wei Hong's eyes lit up, and she smiled too.

"Your Majesty is so wise; how could I not have thought of that?"

"Stop being so cheeky, hurry up and go!"

Song Xibai waved his hand, leaned back on the soft couch, and pondered the personnel arrangements.

Sunlight streamed in through the window, falling on her. The room was warm and cozy, and Song Xibai leaned against it, accidentally falling asleep.

Song Xibai was only awakened by the voices outside after Wei Hong invited Du Chenghui over.

Du Chenghui greeted her upon entering and immediately asked, "What would you like to embroider, sister?"

"This!" Song Xibai covered her mouth with the back of her hand and casually made up an excuse, "I wanted to embroider a sachet for Your Highness, do you have any good suggestions?"

Du Chenghui considered it carefully for a while and then shared his thoughts.

Meanwhile, Wei Hong had already sent someone to invite Fang Qi over.

When Granny Fangqi entered the room, the aunt and niece were both stunned to see each other.

"aunt!"

Du Chenghui took two steps forward with delight, but was stopped by Fangqi's gaze.

Granny Fangqi bowed to Song Xibai, then stood up and looked at Du Chenghui reproachfully.

"How can one be so casual in front of His Majesty?"

Du Chenghui shrank back, not daring to speak.

Song Xibai quickly smoothed things over: "Alright, alright, I quite like Sister Du. There's no need for so many formalities when we're alone. Wei Hong, I need to find something. Come with me."

As they were talking, Song Xibai got up and took Wei Hong to the other side, leaving the aunt and niece alone.

Although Granny Fangqi didn't say anything, her eyes were filled with gratitude.

After Song Xibai left, she pulled Du Chenghui aside and asked him questions in detail.

"You were sick before the New Year and I couldn't come to visit. Are you feeling better now?"

Du Chenghui trusted this aunt the most, and told her everything that had happened before the New Year.

Granny Fangqi's expression went from serious to solemn, and finally her brows furrowed.

"I told you long ago to live your own life quietly and not meddle in other people's business. Why can't you remember?"

Granny Fangqi was both angry and distressed, and reached out to tap Du Chenghui's forehead.

Du Chenghui pouted, feeling wronged: "I didn't want to either, but I was scared! Now that you're here, Aunt, I'm not scared anymore. Sister Xi is so kind; she never asks me to do anything. When I come over, she keeps me company, doing needlework and chatting with me."

Granny Fangqi sighed.

This silly niece...

Xi Liangdi would naturally not ask her silly niece to do anything. Given her current level of favor, why would she need to order people around?

He's being personally protected by His Highness the Crown Prince!

Currently, in the Eastern Palace, only the Crown Princess and Consort Xi still require the slightest respect. However, judging from His Highness the Crown Prince's attitude, Consort Xi clearly holds a higher position in his heart than the Crown Princess.

Since October of last year, she has been his sole favorite. Even so, this Consort Xi has never been arrogant or conceited, and has always been polite and courteous to him.

To remain so calm despite such favor shows that this Consort Xi is no ordinary woman.

As long as she doesn't do anything foolish in the future, she won't fall out of favor.

In an instant, countless thoughts flashed through Granny Fangqi's mind.

She quickly came to her senses, and instead of speaking to Du Chenghui, she comforted her with a few words, simply telling her to be a good girl and listen to her.

By afternoon, the Crown Prince had arrived at the East Hall early.

Upon entering, one could see Granny Fangqi leading the young palace maids to wipe the crevices of the tables and chairs.

The room wasn't as warm and cozy as usual; the windows were open, letting in a cold breeze that swept away the stuffiness.

Upon hearing the commotion, Granny Fangqi immediately turned around and bowed.

"This old servant greets Your Highness."

The Crown Prince offered a gesture of support: "No need for such formalities, Granny. What do you think of this place?"

He turned to ask the little palace maid beside him.

"Where is your master?"

The young palace maid lowered her head, not daring to speak, so Granny Fangqi took the opportunity to speak.

"Her Highness has gone out to admire the flowers; she should be back in no more than a quarter of an hour." Granny Fangqi spoke methodically, reporting her mistress's whereabouts before changing the subject, "Your Highness deliberately deceived this old servant earlier; such actions are hardly befitting of a true gentleman..."

The prince felt a chill run down his spine as he inexplicably recalled the scenes of being disciplined by the nannies when he was a child.

He took a step back, and while Granny Fangqi paused to rest halfway through her speech, he turned and ran outside.

"I have other matters to attend to, I'll come back later!"

After saying that, he didn't give anyone time to react and slipped away.

Standing at the door, Eunuch Feng was stunned for a full ten seconds before he came to his senses and hurriedly followed.

"Your Highness, please wait for me!"

The Crown Prince ran straight to the gate of the East Palace and bumped right into Song Xibai, who was returning from admiring the flowers.

Song Xibai wore a snow-white cloak over a crimson begonia dress, and carried several sprigs of red plum blossoms in her arms. The fragrance surrounded her, making her look like a fairy from a painting.

The crown prince was stunned.

Song Xibai didn't seem to notice anything. He handed the plum blossom to Wei Hong and curtsied to the Crown Prince.

"Where is Your Highness going in such a hurry?"