When the cub's body was placed before the black bear, Lanqin could clearly see a deep sorrow and an overwhelming maternal love emanating from those dark, hollow bear eyes. The mother bear lay beside her cub, no longer panting heavily, nor making any further moves to attack.

"Huh, Princess Niu was right after all," the Fourteenth Prince said in an incredulous tone.

Fourth Master silently watched the mother and cub of black bears, the determination in his eyes gradually transforming into an expression that Lanqin could not understand.

"Let's go." At the Fourth Master's command, everyone turned their horses around and left.

The Tenth Prince and the Fourteenth Prince exchanged a glance, and then led their men to turn around and leave with the Fourth Prince's entourage.

Lanqin followed behind Fourth Master, and she could sense the change in his emotions as he looked at the mother and cub. Even someone as hardened as Fourth Master had a hint of emotion welling up in his eyes when he saw the mother bear licking the cub's corpse.

Touched!? Touched by the mother bear's deep love for her cub? But given Fourth Master's personality, even if he was deeply moved, he wouldn't tear up on the spot! Lanqin wondered to herself.

Damn it, I've always hated trying to read people's minds, but now, to keep my lifelong meal ticket, I have to start playing the scheming woman too. Not only that, what worries Lanqin even more is that she's clearly starting to feel unhappy along with Fourth Master. Is this what they call "your happiness is my happiness, your sadness is my sadness"?!

"Consort Niu!" The Fourteenth Prince rode up to Lanqin's side and rode alongside her. Ever since he saw the Fourth Prince holding the sleeping Lanqin motionless in the woods that day, the Fourteenth Prince had been curious about this little princess; then, her generous and proper behavior in the First Prince's courtyard; and today, her extraordinary insights and words in the woods, truly impressed the Fourteenth Prince.

"What is it, Fourteenth Prince?" Hearing him call out "Consort," Lanqin immediately sensed that this brat was up to something. For some reason, in Lanqin's eyes, although the Fourteenth Prince was a few years older than her, Lin Mengyao still considered him a mere child. Moreover, the Fourteenth Prince was Consort De's youngest son, undoubtedly favored by her. As the saying goes, the youngest child is the most pampered, and the Fourteenth Prince, spoiled by his mother, was bound to have a certain personality.

"In another month, it will be Mother's birthday. I have been thinking about it for a long time, but I can't think of a suitable solution. I wonder if Consort De has any good ideas?" It turned out that the Fourteenth Prince had come for Consort De.

Wait a minute! Why is he suddenly bringing this up now? Is it because he saw that mother and baby bear just now, and it immediately stirred up his feelings of gratitude for his mother? Then, so it is the Fourth Prince too! But even a brat like the Fourteenth Prince wasn't moved to tears, so how could the resolute Fourth Prince shed tears at that scene?

"Consort Niu!" The Fourteenth Prince couldn't help but call out again when he saw Lanqin's blank expression, as if she was lost in thought.

"Fourteenth Prince, Mother won't mind what gift you give. Whatever you give, Her Majesty will cherish it like a precious jewel." Lanqin couldn't think of anything for the moment, and besides, she couldn't even figure out her own husband's thoughts, so she had no time to care about other people's thoughts.

Seeing that Lanqin remained silent, the Fourteenth Prince slowly said, "Only the primary consort and secondary consorts are allowed to enter the palace to celebrate Mother's birthday; no one else is permitted. If Consort Niu can help me come up with a good idea, I will reciprocate and ask for the privilege of entering the palace to celebrate with her." The Fourteenth Prince thought that addressing Lanqin as "Consort Niu" was already a great honor, but she seemed completely oblivious. Fine, the Fourteenth Prince would offer her an even greater reward. Which woman in the princes' quarters didn't dream of gaining the princes' favor and the attention of their father and mother? Being able to enter the palace to meet their in-laws was a great honor and a sign of favor for these women. Ordinary princesses had no chance to enter the palace. If their husbands remained just princes for life, princesses who couldn't be promoted might never be able to enter the Forbidden City again. The prince was only doing this because he saw that you were favored by the Fourth Prince.

Upon hearing this, Lanqin not only felt no gratitude for his kindness, but also wanted to pinch the Fourteenth Prince's ear. She thought to herself, "I don't care whether I go to the palace or not, or whether I can celebrate your mother's birthday. If I were to go in, I would have to prepare a gift, which would be another troublesome matter."

So Lanqin said, "Thank you for your kindness, Fourteenth Prince, but I am of lowly status and am not qualified to offer my birthday wishes to Your Majesty. I can only pray for Your Majesty in my heart, wishing you both happiness and longevity, and boundless blessings."

After a perfectly polite remark, the Fourteenth Prince was completely speechless.

Seeing his arrogant and rebellious attitude, Lanqin, mindful that he was the Fourth Prince's brother and her mother-in-law's most beloved son, could only offer words of comfort: "The Fourteenth Prince is now married. For Your Majesty, the best birthday gift would be to see you and the Fourteenth Prince's wife have a son soon, so that Your Majesty can enjoy the joy of having children and grandchildren."

Lanqin originally wanted to say: The best gift would be if you became a father soon and got rid of this immature behavior, so that your mother would have less to worry about.

Upon hearing this, the Fourteenth Prince's expression softened considerably; perhaps Lanqin had truly grasped his thoughts. Two years ago, his father, the Emperor, had bestowed Wanyan Luocha's eldest daughter upon him as his primary consort, and since then, he had rarely experienced genuine happiness. Although she was the direct descendant of Wanyan Yongji, the Prince of Weishao of the Later Jin Dynasty, what did it matter? What was the point of marrying a woman he didn't love? As a prince, he enjoyed immense prestige in public, yet he couldn't even decide the woman beside him. What was the meaning of such prestige? Therefore, the Fourteenth Prince frequently left the palace for excursions, often for ten days to half a month at a time, rarely leaving his residence. Wanyan was a willful and arrogant woman who often took her anger out on the palace maids and eunuchs serving her; therefore, the Fourteenth Prince disliked seeing her even more. Moreover, during the imperial concubine selection in March, Consort De had chosen another princess for the Fourteenth Prince, born into the Han Banner Army, the daughter of a military officer from Quzhou, Jiangxi, surnamed Chen. Since Chen arrived, Wanyan has been constantly on edge, always finding ways to make things difficult for Chen and getting the Fourteenth Prince to deal with her. The Fourteenth Prince, being only a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy, disdained the infighting among the women in the inner quarters, so he simply hid away, refusing to see his wife and concubine.