Holland stayed at Lingzhu Mansion for two hours before returning. When she returned, Lanqin had just received a message from the Fourth Prince that Consort De was leaving.

"Second sister, if you don't go back soon, Consort De will be leaving." Lanqin glanced at Holland, only to see that her eyes were downcast and there was no light in them.

"Second sister, what's wrong?" Lanqin asked.

"Lanqin, in Mother's eyes, am I just a tool to help my younger brother?" Holland stared at Lanqin and asked.

Sigh, what's the use of understanding now? From the moment she entered the palace, women like Holland were merely tools for their families to consolidate their favor or advance their positions. Lanqin naturally knew this, not because she was particularly clever, but because, as a 21st-century woman, she knew Holland's fate from the very beginning.

"Second sister, what's the use of saying all this now? We should do more things and plan for our future," Lanqin said.

"You mean you'll give birth to the Emperor's child and live with the child from then on?" Holland smiled slightly, but Lanqin remembered Holland's sorrowful smile for a long time.

After seeing off Consort De's carriage, apart from the Fourteenth Prince who returned to the palace with Consort De, the others present all owned businesses and residences outside the palace. The Fourth Prince's residence was even more lively with their drinking. Since they all had carriages waiting outside and nothing else to do, they were in a good mood to drink to their hearts' content.

"Fourth brother, tell me, in the Jiangnan region, you received so much silver from officials, did they all obediently return it?" The third brother was already a bit drunk.

"Yes, Fourth Brother, tell us about those things. How did you and Thirteen manage to recover those silver coins?" Fifth Brother surprisingly spoke up. Ever since he was disfigured on the battlefield a few years ago, he had been despondent and depressed.

The seventh and eighth princes sat quietly, seemingly waiting for the fourth prince's answer. The ninth prince returned after finishing his hangover soup, but he refused to drink any more and instead sat down next to the eighth prince to listen.

That's right, the scene where he flirted with Zi Ran was also premeditated. His purpose was naturally to feign drunkenness so he could leave under some pretext. After sending Xiao Wu to call Fang Yun, and having explained everything, his mission was complete.

"Speaking of chasing silver, I actually want to tell you something even more amazing. Why don't you try to guess what's at the bottom of West Lake?" Fourth Master scanned the faces of everyone with great interest.

"The bottom of West Lake?" Even Seventh Master's appetite was piqued.

"Yes, Seventh Brother, I don't know, but Fourth Brother and I found several very thick ropes hanging from the bottom of the Broken Bridge in West Lake, Hangzhou. There must be some heavy objects hanging from the bottom of the ropes. Every time the tide comes in, the thing underwater makes a scraping sound, which sounds very scary. The locals all say that the White Snake Lady is causing trouble there." When Thirteen said these words, Fourth Master deliberately looked at the faces of Eighth Master and Ninth Master.

"Is that so? Tell me quickly, what happened next?" the third brother asked excitedly. He spent his days holed up in the Hanlin Academy compiling those ancient books, which was really tedious and boring. But his specialty was his mastery of classical Chinese literature, so Kangxi was making the most of him.

“Those heavy objects couldn’t be lifted by just a few people. As a result, after we evacuated the fishermen, those ropes were cut cleanly. Those things sank into West Lake forever, and I’m afraid no one will ever know their secret again,” Fourth Master added.

A barely perceptible glint flashed in Eighth Master's eyes, and then he said, "If such a strange thing really happened, Fourth Brother, did you not continue the investigation?"

Fourth Master glanced at Eighth Master and said, "We have no idea what those things are or who put them in. There's no way to investigate. Besides, we're only responsible for collecting debts, which has already offended many people. No one will be willing to help us with this."

The ninth brother said sarcastically, "Fourth brother, if you ask me, you've offended quite a few people this time. I'm afraid you've offended more than half of the civil and military officials in the court."

Thirteen couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Fourth Brother has never been afraid of offending people. If everyone is unwilling to offend anyone, wouldn't the imperial court become the domain of these greedy people?"

Thirteen's words were so blunt that no one responded for a moment, and the atmosphere became awkward.

"What exactly is at the bottom of that lake? Your Highness seems quite interested. Fourth Brother, didn't you ask the prefect of Hangzhou about it?" The third brother aptly changed the subject.

"Third Brother, I just went to him to ask for the money back, and then I turned around and told him something baseless. Will the prefect help us send people to investigate?" Fourth Master said. He subtly glanced around and noticed that when Ninth Brother mentioned the monster at the bottom of the lake, his face stiffened slightly. Although he quickly covered it up, it still did not escape Fourth Master's sharp eyes.

Eighth Master smiled gently and said, "It is only right to collect the debt. As the prefect of a prefecture, he naturally dares not be careless when Fourth Brother goes to seek his help."

Fourth Master waved his hand and said, "Eighth Brother, you don't know these people. They all look like law-abiding officials. When Thirteenth Brother and I were in Yangzhou, the local officials were so eager to invite us to banquets every day. But when we got to Hangzhou, they all seemed to change their tune all of a sudden."

Thirteenth Master quickly added, "Yes, Fourth Brother and I were even assassinated the day before we arrived in Hangzhou. Those people had their tongues cut out, and they refused to reveal a single word even as they died."

"Assassinated?" the third brother exclaimed in surprise.

The fifth brother frowned slightly, and the eighth brother quickly asked, "Did the fourth brother find out who wanted to do this?"

Thirteen shook his head and said, "Those people couldn't even utter a single word, let alone the fact that they had poison hidden in their mouths. They all committed suicide."

The third brother was stunned when he heard this, thinking to himself: It seems that it is safer to stay in the Hanlin Academy to compile books. This trip out was really dangerous.

The eighth brother suddenly said, "Come, let's drink to the safe return of the fourth and thirteenth brothers."

Fourth Master looked at Eighth Brother meaningfully and said, "Thank you for your kind words, Eighth Brother. Come, brothers, have a drink. I won't keep you any longer. If you drink too much, your wives and sisters-in-law won't be happy. They're still waiting for you."

The ninth brother said, "Fourth brother, are you trying to get rid of us? I really don't want to leave today. Can I borrow your room for the night? Let that sharp-faced maid come."

Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter and drank their wine. In fact, the wives and princesses of each household had already left.

Unable to find out when it was past 5 PM, these brothers, who usually lived on the same street, finally came out of the Fourth Master's mansion, got into their own carriages, and went home.