"Who is it?" the old woman asked gruffly as she put on her clothes.

"Open the door quickly! It's me, Peach Blossom. I have important news to report to Princess Nian!" Peach Blossom hurriedly replied from outside the door.

"The princess has already gone to sleep. If you have something to say, why don't you say it tomorrow? Why do you have to come and bother people at this hour?" The old woman was still impatient, but she still opened the door.

Ignoring the old woman's impatience, Peach Blossom rushed into the room and headed straight for the inner room.

The Nian family had already retired for the night, and Zi Ning and Bai Zhi were on night watch. Tao Hua knew which room they were keeping watch in, so she went straight in.

"Peach Blossom, what are you doing in the middle of the night?" Zi Ning asked, rubbing her eyes as she pulled up her clothes. She was taking the opportunity to sleep for a while, and she would keep watch until Bai Zhi took over to sleep later in the night.

"I know the secret that Princess wants to know. Go in and inform her quickly." Tao Hua didn't barge directly into Nian Shi's room.

Zi Ning knew that this peach blossom was a spy that the princess had planted on Yehe's side. Hearing her say this, she also knew that it concerned something that Nian had been concerned about recently, so she didn't complain and got out of bed.

After Zi Ning finished dressing, she led Tao Hua through the middle gate and headed towards Nian Shi's house. It turned out that although Nian Shi's small courtyard was not as self-contained as Lan Qin's, and the interior was clearly divided into east, west, front, and back, this house was a two-entrance courtyard. The front was where the servants lived, and Nian Shi lived in the second entrance. Inside the second entrance was a courtyard with a main room and two side rooms on the left and right, all of which were used by Nian Shi.

Bai Zhi, who was on night watch, was dozing off in the main room, while Nian's bedroom was in the left side room of the main room.

Zi Ning led Tao Hua to the entrance of the main house. She went in first and called Bai Zhi, explaining Tao Hua's purpose. Bai Zhi pondered for a moment, then got up and followed Zi Ning out.

"Tell me first. Gege has already rested. If we rush in and disturb her, she might get angry and we'll all be punished!" Bai Zhi said calmly and clearly.

Peach Blossom, too lazy to put on airs, said, "I discovered that Yuhen, the personal maid of Yehe, was secretly throwing a package outside. Judging from her serious manner, I think that the package is likely related to Yehe's favor with the emperor."

Seeing that Tao Hua spoke with such certainty, Bai Zhi glanced at her a few times and asked, "Did you get that thing?"

Peach Blossom nodded, then slid a paper package out of her sleeve and presented it to Bai Zhi, saying, "This is it."

Bai Zhi took the black paper package from Tao Hua and slowly opened it. All three of them watched intently as Bai Zhi's fingers slowly unfolded the package.

It really is just a clump of brown powder, with a faint fragrance!

"I'll go report to the princess now. You all wait here." Bai Zhi also felt that things were not simple. She immediately folded the paper package, held it in her hand, and turned to walk towards Madam Nian's bedroom.

She reached out and unlatched the door, then pushed it open with a soft creak. Inside, a faint, warm light shone from Nian's room.

Bai Zhi walked to Nian Shi's bedside and softly called her name a few times, but Nian Shi remained unconscious. Not daring to delay, Bai Zhi called her name several more times, and only then did Nian Shi barely open her eyes, saying impatiently, "What is it?"

"Your Highness, Peach Blossom received a package from Princess Yehe, saying it's related to her gaining favor with the emperor," Baizhi said. "After hearing what she said, I also think it makes some sense."

After pondering for a few minutes on the bed, Madam Nian said, "Take her to rest. It's so late. If we want to find out what that powder is, we'll have to wait until tomorrow. I don't want to go to the South Courtyard to ask Doctor Liang for help."

Bai Zhi understood what Nian Shi meant; she didn't want her credit to be shared with others. So Tao Hua followed Zi Ning to rest, feeling much more at ease, finally relieved that she didn't have to go back.

The next day, Peach Blossom did not return home all night, and Jade Trace and Jade Dew were unaware of this until the following day when she went into her room to retrieve the night-scented tub, only to find that Peach Blossom was missing.

"You wretched maid, what are you up to now? If I catch her again, I'll break her legs!" Yehe Shi sat upright at her dressing table, letting Yuhen style her hair, when Yulu came in to report.

“Yes, this Peach Blossom has always been disloyal to the Princess, and now she’s probably trying to curry favor with Lady Tian or the Fujin,” Yu Lu said.

"Ignore her, Yulu, go and fetch the meal." Yehe Shi said dismissively, unaware that Taohua already knew her secret.

After sending Yu Lu away, Yehe asked, "Why did Peach Blossom suddenly run away again? Did you clean up that thing from yesterday?"

Yuhen's heart skipped a beat. She wanted to tell the truth, but she was afraid that Yehe would get angry, so she stammered, "This servant has already dealt with it last night, so please don't worry, Your Highness. As for that wretched maid Taohua, Your Highness should just kick her out this time."

After Yuhen finished helping Yehe Shi comb her hair, she made an excuse to go out. She had been thinking about the paper package she had left in the white wax bushes last night, so she went to look for it early in the morning.

Yuhen arrived at the place from last night, looked around, and finding no one there, immediately began searching.

"How can I not find it! It was definitely left here!" Yuhen muttered to herself, her heart beginning to pound with anxiety. She searched almost the entire area of ​​waxwood, but couldn't find even a trace of the package of paper.

Could it have been carried away by an animal? Yuhen thought to herself, then she thought of the cat from last night, and then how it had carried the paper package away?

Just as Yuhen was wondering about the mysterious disappearance of that thing, Baizhi had already left the mansion with Nian Shi's paperwork and the packet of powder in her arms. As soon as Nian Shi got up, she instructed her to take the thing to a doctor outside immediately and not to go to Nan Xiaoyuan.

Peach Blossom stood with her head bowed in Nian's room, while Cui Ling and Bi Rou were styling Nian's hair.

"Princess, this servant really can't go back anymore. If I go back, who knows what the Yehe clan will do to me?" Peach Blossom never expected that the Nian clan would tell her to go back and see what was going on. It was not appropriate to stay here rashly, and besides, she didn't even know what was inside.

"Don't worry, the Yehe clan wouldn't dare punish a servant so easily. You only stayed out one night. At most, you'll be punished by kneeling for two hours or going hungry for a day. Nothing else will happen to you. Besides, I'm secretly supporting you here. What are you afraid of?" Lady Nian said happily.

Peach Blossom cursed inwardly and said, "Your Highness promised that as long as I found out the reason why Yehe was favored, I would be fined. Now that I have, why have you gone back on your word?"

“Peach Blossom, we haven’t even confirmed what it is yet, how can you say I’ve broken my promise?” Seeing that Peach Blossom was unwilling to go back, Madam Nian said patiently, “If you go back now, you’ll just be keeping an eye on that place. But this is only a matter for the next couple of days. If there’s really a problem with that thing, I’ll immediately inform the Master.”