"You damned servant, you almost caused the Fifth Princess's life to be in danger! Drag her away!" the Fujin said sternly.

Several servants grabbed Zhou Mama's arms, intending to drag her away, but Lanqin said, "Let her go. She's Wuxiha's wet nurse, which means she's my person. Let's talk about what to do with her back in the South Courtyard first. I can't punish my servants here with the Fujin!"

Lanqin spoke up, saying that she had just been extremely angry with Granny Zhou for letting such a young child like Wuxiha eat such meatballs, which were very easy for them to slip down his throat and cause him to choke. However, as soon as the Fujin spoke, Lanqin subconsciously defended Granny Zhou. She always felt that such a thing might be an accident elsewhere, but when it happened in the Fujin's room, it always had a hint of conspiracy.

"Alright, this servant belongs to the concubine, so he should be handed over to her for disposal. Qin'er, let me accompany you back to the South Courtyard." The Fourth Prince walked to Lanqin's side and pulled Wuxiha from Lanqin's arms into his own.

As Yehe watched the Fourth Prince carrying Wuxiha and walking out of the main room with Lanqin, she felt very uncomfortable, but at this moment she dared not compete with Lanqin for favor.

Seeing that the Fourth Prince had left and the banquet was almost over, the others took their leave from their wives. In no time, the once lively main courtyard was deserted except for Yehe Shi.

The children had already been led away by their respective wet nurses, leaving only the banquet dishes that had not yet been cleared away and a group of maids in the room.

"This concubine takes her leave!" Yeheshi saw that the Fujin was displeased. Originally, she and the Fujin had secretly agreed that she would receive the Fourth Prince's favor in front of everyone tonight. However, she did not expect that Wuxiha would choke on his food and cause an incident. Otherwise, the Fourth Prince might not have gone to the South Courtyard today.

"You've succeeded halfway today, that's good. Go back and rest well. No matter what method you use, I, the Princess Consort, will make sure the Fourth Prince never forgets you," the Princess Consort said.

"I will remember your teachings, Madam. I take my leave!" Yeheshi bowed and took her leave.

Lingxiu directed the maids to clear away the remaining dishes before approaching the Fujin (principal wife) and saying, "Your Highness, it can only be said that the South Courtyard was incredibly lucky to have escaped such a predicament. I had already instructed Chef Huang to add more starch to the five-colored meatballs to increase their viscosity, and just as Your Highness had hoped, it actually managed to choke the Fifth Princess. I never expected that the Consort could..."

The Fujin said sternly, "I painstakingly devised this plan, but she still managed to turn the tide. Fujin anticipated that her nearly one-year-old child would be teething and would love to try new things, so she specially ordered the kitchen to make this dish, which the children indeed loved. I thought that Ushiha would choke on the meatballs, and it just so happened. But unexpectedly, Niohuru knew how to handle this situation and pulled her daughter back from the brink of death. She was truly lucky."

Seeing that the anger on the Fujin's face was growing stronger, Lingxiu quickly said, "Fortunately, Yehe is now able to share the favor of the South Courtyard. Today, the master was captivated by Princess Yehe. I saw that the master was very fond of Princess Yehe. When he had her sit next to him, he kept holding her hand."

Upon hearing this, the Princess Consort's expression softened slightly, and she said, "Yehe Clan has indeed lived up to my expectations of nurturing her. If she continues, she might just be able to rival Niohuru Clan."

Meanwhile, Lanqin, supported by Cui Niang, headed towards the south courtyard, with Fourth Master carrying Wuxiha beside them, and the offending Granny Zhou following behind with her head down. Lanqin was also feeling uneasy, wondering if she could get away with it when they got back.

Back in the south courtyard, the Fourth Prince carried Wuxiha to her room to wash up and lull her to sleep. Lanqin, meanwhile, sat in the main hall interrogating Granny Zhou. Granny Zhou was kneeling on the ground, pleading incessantly; she truly didn't want to die, because she had three children. She had come to the Fourth Prince's residence as a wet nurse because of the generous monthly pay and the pleasant nature of her mistress. Lanqin was indeed not harsh on these servants, understanding that the wet nurses had their own children, and thus allowed them to bring their own to nurse together. Granny Zhou's one-and-a-half-year-old child was currently living next door to Wuxiha. Therefore, Lanqin did not go to the Prince's wife to have her punish Granny Zhou.

“Granny Zhou, your grandmother Wuxiha has been here for almost a year, and I’ve always thought she was very steady. How could something like this happen today? Don’t you know that Wuxiha’s teeth haven’t fully grown in yet? She shouldn’t eat such slippery things. Those kinds of things can easily choke a child.” Lanqin was still very frightened. If she had hesitated for even a moment today, Wuxiha might not have been saved.

"Please calm down, Consort. I deserve to die. I didn't want Fifth Princess to eat those things. But Second Princess and Third Prince kept saying that Fifth Princess has grown teeth and should try them. Plus, Fifth Princess seemed to really like them and kept poking at the table, so I couldn't resist letting her eat a little," said Granny Zhou, her face contorted with grief.

Upon hearing this, Cui Niang said sternly, "You're so confused, Granny! Those children are ignorant, and so are you!"

Nianxue and the others, seeing Zhou Mama's foolishness, did not plead for her; they all stood aside, watching Lanqin.

"You mean the Second Princess and the Third Prince asked you to feed Wuxiha?" Lanqin asked.

“Yes, it was them. I only fed Fifth Princess some egg custard at first. But Second Princess and Third Prince kept insisting that Fifth Princess try it. Seeing how much she wanted it, I gave it to her. I never expected this to happen. I shouldn’t have let Fifth Princess eat it. Please forgive me, Consort. I have several children who need to be raised. If Consort can forgive me, I will serve you like a slave for the rest of my life,” said Granny Zhou.

"Alright, don't panic. Since I saved you over there, I naturally won't kill you. Very well, you know what mistake you made. I absolutely refuse to let you serve Wuxiha anymore. Pack your things and leave the manor quickly. Wuxiha is almost a year old, just the right time to wean her." Hearing this, Lanqin understood the whole story. Although this Granny Zhou was unintentional, she had served Wuxiha for a year, and it wasn't intentional, so Lanqin didn't really want to take her life.

"Thank you, Master! Thank you, Master!" Granny Zhou kowtowed repeatedly, as if pounding garlic. Lanqin had only chased her out, not killed her, which was already a great act of mercy.