After scanning the three girls' faces, Lanqin offered her comments: Xinyi was rather delicate and pretty, not particularly outstanding, but she was well-behaved and gentle, making her easy to get along with. Her cousin Chen Xiuzhu had a better complexion and seemed ambitious. Her distant cousin Shuhui looked as delicate as a spring flower, which suited Lanqin's eye.

"The three of you will all be going to the talent show after the New Year. Get to know each other so you can have company when you go in." Lanqin looked at the three girls and had some ideas in mind, but she also needed to assess their character. Those who were not capable of being of great use or not loyal enough could not be used.

"Yes, I heard that the matrons there are very strict. My mother has already hired a governess to teach her manners," Chen Xiuzhu said, her little face flushed.

“I don’t want to enter the palace. I’ll just learn from my sister’s Granny Cui. What about you, Shuhui?” Xinyi asked.

"I didn't want to enter the palace either. I came to the capital this year with my second brother to broaden my horizons," Shuhui said shyly.

Lanqin watched the girls chattering away and thought to herself: Chen Xiuzhu seems to want to enter the prince's harem, and Xinyi still hasn't expressed her opinion, so her thoughts may not be simple either. Shuhui, on the other hand, is indeed a simple girl.

"Actually, I don't have much to teach you. Everyone has their own destiny. It doesn't matter what you think now. Once you get to the palace, it's the empress dowager, the emperor, or the empresses who sit high up that decide your fate," Lanqin said truthfully.

The three girls responded thoughtfully, but who could truly understand what they heard depended on their comprehension.

“However, my mother-in-law, as you all know, is Consort De. If I want to say something to her, I can certainly do so. And any of you who want to become a princess in the imperial princes' residence can certainly do so.” Lanqin glanced at the three girls’ faces and said tentatively.

Sure enough, after these words were spoken, the three girls reacted in different ways. Lanqin took in the changes in their expressions and began to make a plan.

At this moment, Cuiping, a maid from Anjia's room, suddenly walked in and said to Anjia, "Madam, the Fourth Prince has arrived. Master invites you and the concubine to the front."

Upon hearing this, everyone present was astonished. For example, Lady Anjia looked at Lanqin with envy, thinking to herself: This niece is truly favored by the Fourth Prince. She has only been back for a day, and he has already come to pick her up?

The girls were slightly excited, after all, princes were mysterious and noble to them. However, since Xin Yi had already met the Fourth Prince, she was not as nervous as Chen Xiuzhu and Shu Hui.

Lanqin sat there blankly, as if she were a step behind everyone else. What? Fourth Master is here?

"My lady, shall I tidy up your appearance for you?" Nianxue immediately ran to Lanqin's side and whispered to her.

"What's there to tidy up? Let's go. He's a prince, let's go greet him." Lanqin recovered from her astonishment and immediately stood up, speaking calmly.

The girls were once again taken aback, all stunned by Lanqin's words.

Lanqin and Anjia went to greet the Fourth Prince, while the others were not yet qualified and had to wait here.

Chen Xiuzhu immediately went to find her mother and secretly whispered Lanqin's words to Xiao Anjia.

Meanwhile, Lanqin, Anjia, and Lingzhu arrived at the door, but the Fourth Prince's horse hadn't arrived yet. They must have sent someone to deliver a message first. Lanqin, wearing a red cotton cloak, stood in the slightly chilly wind.

Why did he come? The words he spoke when he left that day were so harsh, giving her a sense of impending loss and panic. But she's only been back for a day, and only Lanqin knows how many times she's missed Fourth Master. However, on the surface, Lanqin still refuses to show it.

A moment later, a grand yet understated carriage came galloping over the crowd, with Su Peisheng and the driver sitting in the front.

As soon as the horse stopped at the Ling residence, Ling Zhu immediately went to greet him. Su Peisheng quickly jumped down from the carriage, bowed to Ling Zhu, and then took the small stool given to him by the coachman. He quickly placed it under the carriage, the curtain was lifted, and the Fourth Prince stepped out, helping Su Peisheng down onto the stool.

"Your humble servant greets the Fourth Prince!" Lingzhu quickly bowed and said.

"Father-in-law, there's no need for such formalities. Let's just treat this as a visit between relatives." Fourth Master was wearing a dark brown cotton robe with a dark blue overcoat. The robe was embroidered with a four-clawed dragon pattern in gold thread, which looked magnificent. Black fox fur was inlaid around the collar and cuffs, which made Fourth Master look noble and elegant. In addition, his expression was always aloof, which added to his noble air.

Upon hearing this, Lanqin's heart stirred slightly; it seemed he had come to seek peace.

Lanqin glanced discreetly at Su Peisheng behind Fourth Master, and seeing that he was also smiling at her, she immediately understood what was going on.

"Master!" Lanqin had no choice but to step forward and greet the Fourth Master.

When Anjia and Lingzhu saw that the Fourth Prince had come to the mansion in person, they were naturally nervous about Lanqin. Seeing their reaction, they assumed that Lanqin was just shy and didn't know anything else. Nianxue had only told Anjia about the Fujin's methods, but hadn't mentioned what exactly had happened.

"Where are the children?" The Fourth Prince looked at the little woman and felt a strange sense of peace. Only Su Peisheng knew how the Fourth Prince had tormented him, his servant, during the day or two that the concubine was away from the mansion.

"They're all in Mother's room. It's cold outside, so we didn't bring them out," Lanqin said, still not looking at the Fourth Master.

"Consort, please invite the Fourth Prince inside. Why are you standing outside talking?" Lingzhu noticed that Lanqin's attitude was a bit strange, so he quickly tried to smooth things over.

Lanqin and the Fourth Prince walked ahead, with Lingzhu and Anjia following behind. Seeing Lanqin leading the Fourth Prince toward Anjia, Lingzhu became a little anxious, thinking to himself, "I still have a group of people waiting to see the Fourth Prince."

Lanqin didn't think too much about it. She figured that the Fourth Master probably wanted to see the children, so she went straight to Anjia's room.

When Lanqin and Fourth Master entered, all the women in the room bowed down in greeting.

"Rise, all of you. Today we are accompanying the concubine on her visit home, so there's no need for formalities." The Fourth Prince was unusually gentle, and even Lady Anjia felt that he was not like the cold-faced prince that the Master had described.

"Fourth Prince, I will go and inform them that the banquet will begin soon. I will then join the others to pay our respects to you." Lingzhu said this, seeing that the Fourth Prince had already decided to stay.

"No, Father, let Fourth Master go with you and meet the male guests over there. We are all women here, and Master is quite bored here," Lanqin said on behalf of Fourth Master.