This was the day the eldest princess was to be married. The Fourth Prince's residence was bustling with activity from early morning. Because Emperor Kangxi was away on a military campaign, most of the adult princes were also absent. The Fourth Prince hadn't originally planned a grand celebration, but the invitations for the congratulatory gifts piled up like a mountain at the gatehouse. Furthermore, although the princes from various residences were not present, their wives were all there, and they brought along some princesses and princes, making quite a large gathering.

The Fourth Prince set up a banquet in the large open space of the training ground. Since the Thirteenth Prince, Da Chun, and Li Wei were all absent, the Fourth Prince, besides Dai Xian and a few advisors, couldn't find anyone to help take care of the guests. Although the Fourteenth Prince was present, he himself needed care, and the Fourth Prince didn't expect anything from him. The Consort De only sent the dowry for Mo Yaqi: a jade ruyi and four sets of relatively precious headdresses.

The Fourth Prince instructed his wife and several princesses to entertain the visiting female relatives, while he had to ask his wife's brothers to come and help. The eldest princess had been raised by the Fourth Prince since childhood and was considered his daughter, so her family members were also considered her family. Song Shi, however, was only the eldest princess's birth mother; aside from that title, she was nothing to the princess. The eldest princess's real uncles, aunts, and maternal grandparents only received a letter, nothing more. Lanqin, being pregnant, wasn't assigned any tasks by the Fourth Prince and was left to her own devices. However, the Fourth Prince hadn't announced Lanqin's pregnancy, so the wife was unaware of it. Seeing that the Fourth Prince wasn't assigning Lanqin any tasks, she assumed it was favoritism and felt even more uncomfortable, but naturally, she wouldn't show it.

Madam Song and Lanqin accompanied the eldest princess as she began to do her makeup. The Fujin (principal wife) did not try to compete with Madam Song for this task. She did not really treat Moyaqi as her own daughter; she only cared about outward appearances. As for such matters, she was quite happy to leave them to Madam Song.

The old woman beside her looked at Song's comb and chanted: "One comb to the end, no worries about wealth; two combs to the end, no illness or worries; three combs to the end, many children and long life; three combs to the end, a harmonious and loving marriage; two combs to the end, flying wing to wing; three combs to the end, a lifelong bond of love, with a beginning and an end, sharing wealth and honor in this life!"

Song's face was filled with a satisfied happiness, and Lanqin and Geng were watching this scene from the side, also happy for Song.

"Alright, the hair-combing ceremony is complete. Please proceed with the makeup for the eldest princess," said the wedding attendant.

With the help of the two maids who served the eldest princess, Madam Song personally applied makeup to the eldest princess.

"Which maids went with you to serve?" Lanqin asked.

"These are the people that the Fujin (principal wife) personally chose for the eldest princess. Look, these are the ones!" the nanny said, gesturing towards them.

"You lot, come here!" Lanqin said to the four maids and one nanny standing in the corner of the room.

When they saw that it was the concubine calling, they obediently walked up to Lanqin one by one.

"Have you served the eldest princess on a regular basis?" Lanqin asked.

"We did not serve you," several maids said.

“This old servant has only recently left the Fourth Prince’s residence. I have never served the First Princess before,” the old nanny said.

"Why are the maids and nannies that the eldest princess is given like this? Where are the people who used to serve the eldest nanny?" Geng Shi said.

“Aunt Chunliu used to take care of me here,” Mo Yaqi suddenly said.

"Where is she? I haven't seen her." Madam Song asked hurriedly.

"I don't know. I was summoned away by my stepmother a few days ago and haven't come back since. Mother, all the maids who usually serve me have been replaced. They've replaced them now!" The eldest princess was puzzled, but she didn't dare to ask. It was only because Lanqin brought it up that she couldn't help but speak up.

"Silly girl, why didn't you say so sooner? If the concubine hadn't asked, you would have suffered in silence if you had married out!" Madam Song said hurriedly.

"I never expected her to pull this stunt at the end. After all, Mo Yaqi has been raised by her side for so long! She's only giving the eldest princess strangers. She won't even have a single confidante in the Xu family from now on. It'll be difficult from the start," said Madam Geng.

“You know our wife’s temperament, there’s nothing strange about it! Sister Song, would you like to arrange for someone to go out with Mo Yaqi?” Lanqin asked.

"Qingping is the only one I brought in; why not let Moyaqi take her away?" After all, Madam Song was her own mother, and she was willing to sacrifice anything at this time. In truth, Qingping was Madam Song's most trusted maid. She had been her constant companion through countless days, even more important than anyone else. At this moment, tears welled in Qingping's eyes! Leaving Madam Song was, for her, a choice she had no other option.

“No, Qingping has been with Mother the longest, and Moyaqi can’t bear to see Mother without her,” said the eldest princess.

Song was moved, as were Lanqin and Geng. The eldest princess still recognized her as her biological mother.

"In my opinion, we should let Chunliu go with the eldest princess," Lanqin said.

“Yes, Aunt Chunliu is very good to me and Erlinzhu. I also want her to come out with me!” said the eldest princess.

“But she was the Fujin’s dowry maid, and she was extremely loyal to the Fujin. Now she should have gone back to the Fujin. Should we go to the Fujin to ask her for her back?” said Madam Song.

“Looking for her will definitely be met with various excuses. Let’s go directly to the Fourth Prince and ask him to ask the Princess Consort for her,” Geng Shi suggested.

Lanqin pondered for a moment, then shook her head and said, "I'll go ask her for the person. I'm afraid that even if Fourth Master gives the order, she will still find all sorts of excuses to avoid it. It's better to let her send Chunliu out willingly."

"Qin'er, do you have any ideas?" Madam Song asked.

“We’ll use what the Princess Consort cares about most to coerce her. She won’t dare to do anything out of line to the First Princess openly, but she’ll trip her up in places like this. The Fourth Prince won’t pay attention to such things. As long as we go and tell her the truth, she will naturally consider my opinion and tell the Fourth Prince. After all, I am the Fourth Prince’s favorite concubine,” Lanqin said with a smile.

Madam Song looked at Lanqin gratefully and said, "Thank you so much, sister."

Lanqin laughed and said, "Anyway, she can't tolerate me even if I do nothing, so one more thing won't make a difference. But this is very important to Mo Yaqi."

After leaving the eldest princess's room, Lanqin, supported by Cui Niang, headed towards the main room of the Fujin (principal wife).

“My lady, the people sitting in the Fujin’s room right now are all Fujin from various households. If you go and bring this up now, I’m afraid it will cause dissatisfaction among the other Fujin, especially the Third Fujin. She will definitely make things difficult for you!” Cui Niang said.

“If your master is that stupid, of course I wouldn’t say that to her in front of so many people!” Lanqin said.