Lanqin raised her hand to stop her from continuing to speak. She walked up to Song Shi, looked at her slightly haggard face, and touched her forehead. Fortunately, the fever had subsided.

Alas, the woman lying here was Fourth Master's first woman, the woman who bore him his first child, yet she has fallen to this state! She only has one personal maid, and the only one who can help is an eleven or twelve-year-old girl. The two who are supposed to serve Madam Song are nowhere to be seen.

Lanqin suddenly remembered Cui Niang from the prince's quarters, the woman who had warned her to be careful of the Fujin!

Who was speaking to Huanbi today? Could it be someone from the Fujin's faction? She's currently in the palace exchanging New Year's greetings with the Fourth Prince, so why isn't she trying to set a trap for herself?

Lanqin's mind began to wander, but her eyes were fixed on Song's beautiful but obviously haggard and weathered face, and she suddenly felt a little uneasy.

From the first moment I saw the woman before me, I felt she was a very reserved and kind woman. Like most women born into the imperial harem or the inner quarters, she quietly blossomed in her youth, quietly aged, quietly endured the storms of life, and then quietly turned to dust.

"Princess, you're awake?" Qingping suddenly exclaimed in surprise, pulling Lanqin out of her somewhat uneasy reverie.

She looked up and saw that Mrs. Song had opened her eyes and was smiling at her.

"Sister, what brings you here?" Song's lips were dry, and she struggled to open them, her voice hoarse as she uttered these words.

"Qingping, go and fetch some honey water, and then get a clean handkerchief to wipe your mistress's mouth," Lanqin said to Qingping. Then, turning to her with a smile, she added, "Sister Song, your illness has really frightened me. I ate too much at Consort Li's place, so I came out for a walk to digest and stopped by to see you."

Qingping had already sent Qing'er out to fetch water, but she herself refused to leave Song Shi. Having relied on Song Shi for ten years, she had no intention of marrying anyone else. For girls like them, who were either sold into wealthy families from a young age or were bondservants, accustomed to a life of luxury with their masters since childhood, the psychological gap of marrying a commoner would be enormous. Therefore, many maids preferred to stay with their masters for life, either to be chosen by the master or to remain spinsters for life, as long as their livelihood was secure.

"Sister, look at my body, I'm such a spoilsport during the New Year!" With Qingping's help, Song felt much better after her lips were moistened with honey water.

"Sister, what are you saying? Everyone gets sick sometimes, and you can't choose when to get sick. Don't overthink it. Sister Li and the others haven't said anything," Lanqin comforted her. In fact, Li and the others didn't even remember her.

“I don’t care what they think. This time, I’m so grateful to my sister for coming to my rescue. As the saying goes, it’s easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow. I will remember your kindness to me.” Madam Song is the kind of person who sticks to her principles. Once she decides that someone is good to her, she will truly cherish that person and treat them with all her heart.

"Sister, stop talking and close your eyes to rest. Also, Qingping, why is it so cold in this room? Where's the brazier? Why isn't it lit? In this freezing cold, we'll freeze to death if we don't light a brazier!" Lanqin felt cold as soon as she entered the room, and then looked around and found that there was no charcoal burning at all.

Qingping glanced at Song Shi and, seeing that the latter did not intend to stop her from speaking, boldly said, "The charcoal allocated to us princesses is scarce and damp. We usually burn a little during the day, but at night, since we can stay in bed, we don't burn any."

Lanqin asked incredulously, "Why was the one given to my sister so little and so wet?"

Qingping glanced at Song Shi again, and seeing that the latter blinked, she could only make up an excuse: "They said there wasn't enough silver charcoal, and they would make up for it when they had more charcoal."

Lanqin had already seen that Qingping was speaking according to Song's mood, so she took Song's hand and said, "Sister Song, how can we not have enough silver charcoal in the dead of winter? We should talk to the Fujin. In this mansion, we shouldn't be short of silver charcoal for Sister Song."

When Lanqin first arrived at Li's room, it was warm and cozy, making it feel like the dead of winter. After moving around a bit, they started to feel slightly parched. The charcoal there burned so easily, but at Song's place, there was no charcoal to burn at night. Lanqin, a strong-willed woman, was immediately struck by this stark contrast in treatment. Even if there was a difference in status, it shouldn't be this drastic!

"Qingping, go and light a brazier. My sister will get cold staying here." Madam Song felt that Lanqin's hands were already ice-cold.

Lanqin felt a warmth in her heart. Even at this time, Madam Song still cared about her. She couldn't help but say emotionally, "Sister, you should rest well. I still have to go to Consort Li's place to report for duty. I'll come to see you again tomorrow."

Madam Song nodded and then told Lanqin to be careful. She also asked Qingping to hold a lantern for Lanqin.

Lanqin did not want Qingping to see her off, but Song insisted, and she did not want to go against her good intentions, so she went out with Qingping.

"Qingping, tell me honestly, what's going on with the silver charcoal here, Sister Song?" Lanqin didn't dare to press her for answers in front of Song Shi earlier.

Seeing that Lanqin was genuinely trying to help her mistress, Qingping had long wanted to tell her the truth. After all, Lanqin was favored by her master, and if she could help the mistress a little, they, mistress and servant, wouldn't have to live such a difficult life.

Thinking of this, Qingping boldly said, "Princess Niu, the one who's making things difficult for us princesses is the Fujin you just mentioned! Although the expenses in the inner quarters are managed by the head nanny, the Fujin has her own people on her side. If she wants to make things difficult for someone, it's easy for her."

Lanqin felt a chill in her heart after hearing this, thinking: Was she too naive? She was thinking of going with the Fujin to support justice, but what did Sister Song do to offend her? Why would she withhold her silver charcoal?

"Why is the Princess Consort making things difficult for Song Gege?" Nianxue couldn't help but ask when Lanqin remained silent.

"It's because Master has had more contact with the First Princess. I can't think of any other reason." Qingping told everything she knew.

"This is a special order from the Fourth Prince. Sister Song is the birth mother of the eldest princess. How can we not allow them to meet?" Lanqin said suddenly, somewhat agitated.

What kind of ridiculous rules are these in feudal society? Aren't princesses human beings? They give birth to children and can't even raise them themselves! It's truly inhumane!