The document requesting Qiu Fu's return to the capital was finally approved. Not only him, but Du Zhiqian was also recalled by the Fourth Prince. Some positions in the capital began to become vacant. Some officials had retired and returned home, while others had been dismissed for committing offenses. In short, the Fourth Prince took the opportunity to recall these two men.

To Lanqin's surprise, Du Zhiqian had not only returned, but he was also now all alone. His wife had died in childbirth a few years earlier, leaving him with a newborn baby girl.

“Cui Niang, this matter shouldn’t be delayed any longer. I must go and speak to him personally,” Lan Qin said. She planned to personally tell Du Zhiqian that she wanted to marry Si Hua to him. Before, because of Si Hua’s lowly status, she seemed somewhat unworthy of him. But now that Lan Qin planned to recognize Si Hua as her sworn sister and then have him as her second wife, he would probably be overjoyed.

Lanqin conveyed this idea to Sihua, who was naturally grateful for Lanqin's consideration for her, but was also very willing.

While lamenting that daughters are too young to stay at home, Lanqin hurriedly started making plans for Sihua.

“My lord, just have someone summon Lord Du in. Why do you need to see him in person? He was only able to be transferred back thanks to our prince,” said Cui Niang.

“Very well, let him come to the manor to see me. The prince must summon him to the manor,” Lanqin said.

After hearing Lanqin's report that he wanted to take Sihua as his sworn sister and then marry her to Du Zhiqian, the Fourth Prince readily agreed and soon summoned Du Zhiqian to his residence. Lanqin wanted to personally consult him before she would feel comfortable marrying Sihua to him.

"This student greets the concubine!"

The Fourth Prince asked Du Zhiqian to come to the South Courtyard to pay his respects to the Consort, and told him that the Consort had something to ask him. Du Zhiqian was puzzled. When he paid his respects to Lanqin, he was still thinking about what it was.

"Mr. Du, I heard that your wife passed away a couple of days ago?" Lanqin gestured for Du Zhiqian to sit down.

"Reporting to Consort, my beloved wife died in childbirth two years ago due to complications. Thank you for your concern!" Du Zhiqian replied, but he was quite surprised. Why would she ask about his deceased wife?

"Mr. Du, you must be wondering why I'm asking about your deceased wife. I'll tell you now, it's because I want to marry my adopted sister, Si Hua, to you as your second wife. What do you say?" Lan Qin said directly, this was the first time she had acted so domineeringly as a matchmaker, without even asking if the man wanted to remarry.

Because Si Hua had been harboring feelings for Du Zhiqian for so long, Lan Qin was so eager to marry Si Hua off to him that her questions were somewhat stiff.

Du Zhiqian was dumbfounded. He had never expected that his concubine had summoned him to discuss this matter, and he had almost forgotten about the girl named Si Hua. He had only spent about half a month traveling with the Fourth Prince and the others. He remembered the name Si Hua, but he couldn't quite recall what she looked like, after all, seven or eight years had passed.

Hearing this from inside the room, Si Hua grew anxious when Du Zhiqian remained silent for a long time. Yu Xiao and Bao Qin, who were standing to the side, patted Si Hua on the shoulder, telling her not to be impatient.

"How is it?" Lanqin frowned when she saw that Du Zhiqian did not answer.

"I have a daughter who is just two years old and very mischievous. I'm afraid she might be too naughty for Miss Sihua. I..." Du Zhiqian was a little confused and worried about his daughter, so he declined.

Si Hua's heart plummeted from mid-air to the bottom of the valley, and Yu Xiao and Bao Qin beside her were also very disappointed.

Lanqin looked at Du Zhiqian, wondering why he had refused so easily. Logically, she had already proposed that Si Hua marry him as her sworn sister! Sworn sister! That would make Fourth Master his future brother-in-law! Such a good opportunity, and he actually refused!

Lanqin grew angrier the more she thought about it, and finally shouted, "You, Du Zhiqian, are you afraid of wronging your daughter? Or do you think my sworn sister is not good enough for you?"

Du Zhiqian quickly stood up from his chair, clasped his hands, and said, "You misunderstand, Consort. I was just afraid of wronging your adopted sister. I was born into poverty, so how could I feel unworthy of her? Besides, I am already a widower."

"You know that's good. My sworn sister is a perfectly good virgin. It would be hard to find someone like her to be your second wife. You, you..." Lanqin suddenly stood up, pointing at Du Zhiqian, almost speechless.

She glanced towards her inner room with a hint of heartache, knowing that Si Hua was definitely there and must have heard what this fool said. And how she felt now…

"Go back and think it over. Will you refuse or agree? If my sworn sister marries you, she will never mistreat your daughter. She's been with me for almost ten years. Don't I know her personality and temperament?" Lanqin said angrily, trying to shoo her away.

Upon hearing this, Du Zhiqian realized he had offended the concubine and felt a pang of remorse. However, he genuinely had no recollection of the court painter, and agreeing to the request seemed too difficult to bring himself to do so.