When the Fourth Prince and Lanqin entered the main courtyard, the Princess Consort was standing under the eaves looking at the ice sculptures. It turned out that a young eunuch in the main courtyard, named Sanfu, was very skilled at ice sculpting. During the few days the Princess Consort and the Fourth Prince had been in the palace, he had devoted himself to making ice sculptures in his room. He had made a batch at first, but those that were not well-shaped or did not survive were broken and remade. Until yesterday, he had created the four ice sculptures that were now displayed before the Princess Consort: a peony, a chrysanthemum, a cat, and a parrot, all of them lifelike and exquisitely crafted.

When the Fujin saw the Fourth Prince and Lanqin walking into the courtyard one after the other, her face was initially filled with peace. However, when she caught sight of Lanqin, a shadow fell over her for a moment, but it vanished without a trace, like a spring breeze and rain.

"This humble servant greets Your Highness!" the Fujin said, bowing to the Fourth Prince.

"This humble servant greets the Fujin!" Lanqin quickly bowed to the Fujin.

"Princess Consort, send someone to summon Madam Song, Madam Wu, and Madam Geng. Everyone needs to understand the affairs of the inner quarters." The Fourth Prince glanced at the ice sculptures under the eaves; the three princesses were already standing respectfully to the side, heads bowed, not daring to look up. The Fourth Prince walked past his wife into the main room, and Lanqin quickly followed beside her, saying, "Your Highness has already sent someone to summon Madam Yin."

Having said that, seeing the Fujin standing there stunned, Lanqin gave a slight curtsy and walked past her into the house.

Seeing the two people walk in, the Fujin was momentarily dazed, but immediately ordered Lingxiu to send a few maids to call for help.

As usual, the Fourth Prince went directly to his wife's main couch and sat down, while Lanqin naturally sat in her usual place for paying her respects. She actually disliked coming here; every time she came, it was a constant reminder that she was merely the Fourth Prince's concubine. Clearly, the Fourth Prince favored her so much; clearly, she held a more important place in his heart than any other woman in the harem, yet she could only ever be his concubine, forever relegated to a position behind his wife.

Seeing that Lanqin seemed somewhat dazed after she sat down, Fourth Master couldn't help but call out, "Qin'er, Qin'er."

At this moment, the Fujin stepped in and happened to hear the Fourth Prince's call. Her heart ached slightly, but she maintained a dignified and proper smile on her face and slowly walked towards the seat next to the Fourth Prince.

Lanqin heard the Fourth Master's call and couldn't help but glance at him, a gentle smile appearing on her face.

Fourth Master was relieved to see a smile on Lanqin's face. Her somewhat absent-minded appearance had really worried him.

Although the Fujin kept her eyes on the Fourth Prince, she had already taken in their intimate laughter and chatter out of the corner of her eye.

Why does even her slightest moment of distraction attract the master's attention? Why does even her faint smile bring such a reassured look to his face? Why am I, his primary wife, like a mere decoration in this house, utterly lifeless in his eyes?!

Unalana Xiayu had never felt so humiliated, nor had she ever felt that her existence was a joke.

"Does my sister like those ice sculptures?" The Fujin sat down next to the Fourth Prince and asked Lanqin with a normal expression. She had noticed that Lanqin had stared at the ice sculptures for several moments when she first entered the courtyard.

“I like it. Making ice sculptures in the snow in winter is a kind of fun.” Lanqin stared blankly at the Fujin, her eyes devoid of any emotion. Now, Lanqin’s heart was as still as water when facing this woman.

"If you like them, sister, have Sanfu make a few in your courtyard," the Fujin said with a smile.

"Thank you for your kindness, Madam," Lanqin said with a smile and a nod.

"Should we pretend to be a harmonious couple? I'll play along!" Lanqin thought to herself.

"Madam, was it orchestrated by someone to cause the Third Prince's poisoning and persistent cold? Do you know about this?" the Fourth Prince suddenly asked, his question quite cryptic, which startled the Madam.

"I've only heard some things from the servants, but Consort Yin is the most suspicious," the Fujin said quickly.

"At this moment, what Madam Yin has done is truly disgusting to you, sir. Such a vicious woman is really not fit to stay here any longer. She actually added red ginseng slices to Hongjun's medicine, which have the opposite effect of the medicine, so that Hongjun has not been able to recover. Her heart is too wicked." Fourth Master spoke slowly, but every word was like a needle pricking his skin, which was not pleasant to behold.

For a moment, the Fujin felt a sense of realization, as if the Fourth Prince was talking about her.

"She has already admitted it? But is there any evidence?" the Fujin asked mechanically.

"Her maid, Ye Ying, has already been hired. Duan will not slander her." A cold glint flashed in the Fourth Master's eyes.

Just then, Madam Yin arrived with her head nanny, accompanied by Yuhen and Yulu. As soon as she stepped into the main room of the Fujin (the wife of the deceased), she saw the Fujin looking at her with a warm expression.

Madam Yin was still dressed in purple, with the same hairstyle. She stood alone in the middle of the room, looking so timid and pitiful. If the Fourth Prince hadn't known that she had used such a vicious method to harm the Third Prince, he might have felt a little pity for her.

Soon after, Madam Song, Madam Wu, and Madam Geng arrived. They greeted the Fourth Prince's wife and Lanqin, and then took their seats according to their respective positions.

"Yin, do you know your crime?" The Fourth Master stared at Yin with eyes devoid of warmth, looking down at her as if she were a deity on a table.

"I was unaware. Please enlighten me, Your Highness." Madam Yin still refused to admit her guilt.

"Ye Ying has already confessed, and you still dare not admit your guilt? Now I want to ask you, why is the Third Prince poisoned by lily of the valley?" The Fourth Prince's patience seemed to have reached its limit, and he roared impatiently.

A dull ache lingered in his heart. The woman beside him, though not to his liking, had always been dignified and virtuous, worthy of the position of Fourth Prince's consort. But why did he have this vague feeling that the Third Prince's affairs were inextricably linked to her? Lady Song had always been unassuming, Lady Geng was always invisible, and Lady Wu, though shrewish, wasn't the kind of person who was malicious and treacherous. They had no reason to harm the Third Prince. So why would she want to harm him? Lady Li was already gone; why would someone still refuse to let go of their own offspring?

"Ye Ying confessed under torture. I don't know anything about that pottery jar; I've never seen it before. Clearly, someone is trying to frame me with this." Madam Yin suddenly said excitedly, knowing that only by stirring things up could she give the Fujin a chance to help her.

"Nonsense, you vile woman! You dare to slander others for what you've done. The Third Prince was raised by you, and everyone who came into contact with him was your person. How dare you say it was someone else who did it?" the Fourth Prince roared in anger.