"The lady is at Snow Residence. Would you like to go there, young master?" The clever boy helped the young master up carefully, as if afraid that the frail young master would be blown away by the wind.

The young man covered his lips with his wide sleeve and coughed lightly. It was clear that he was trying his best to endure the pain, but the more he tried to endure it, the more violently he coughed. Finally, with a series of coughs, he coughed until he bent over.

The young boy skillfully patted his back, his movements practiced and gentle, showing that he was used to sitting.

"You're out here causing trouble again." At this moment, a woman walked up from behind the man, holding a porcelain bottle in her hand. As she spoke, she poured out a pill and fed it into the man's mouth.

When Zhao Shu saw the woman, she vaguely felt that she looked familiar, but she couldn't remember who she was.

After taking the medicine, the man stopped coughing, whether he had coughed enough or not. He stood up straight and said softly, "I heard that someone from the Prince Yong's mansion has come. As you know, my mother does not want to see people from the capital."

"Who's here?" the woman asked in surprise.

“Yes, Miss, she is a princess from the Yongwang Mansion,” the quick-witted boy replied.

Upon hearing this, the woman's beautiful features immediately lit up with a smile. "Really?" she asked, appearing extremely surprised.

The boy was startled. "Yes, he's dressed in men's clothing and is very handsome." He wanted to say that he was more handsome than the young master, but he didn't say it.

The woman was too lazy to listen to him anymore. She went straight to the door, opened it quickly, and asked, "Little Guo?"

From Zhao Shu's perspective, she couldn't see the door, but could hear the woman's voice. Upon hearing "Little Guozi," she was immediately surprised. It was truly strange and unfathomable that the woman knew Little Guozi.

Xiao Guozi was standing guard outside with his arms crossed. When he suddenly heard someone calling him, but it wasn't Zhao Shu, he was a little disoriented. He looked in the direction of the voice and was stunned. "Su Qiu?" he rubbed his eyes and said in disbelief.

Su Qiu? Zhao Shu thought for a long time, but still couldn't remember such a person.

"Where is the princess?" Su Qiu walked out the door, looked around and didn't see Zhao Shu, so she asked.

Xiao Guozi was in a bit of an awkward situation. He had run into an old acquaintance, but the princess had already climbed over the wall...

He stammered, "Princess..."

"I'm here." Zhao Shu, who had been led away by Wei Tingsi, interrupted Xiao Guozi in time. "Who are you?"

She walked up to the woman, her delicate brows furrowed slightly, her gaze scrutinizing her. She didn't remember knowing this woman.

When Su Qiu saw Zhao Shu, she only paused for a moment before recognizing her. She knelt down and kowtowed three times, saying, "This servant Su Qiu greets the Princess."

Zhao Shu: ...

From the conversation, it was clear that this woman was the adopted daughter of the hermit Jiecao, but now she was kowtowing to her and calling herself a servant. Zhao Shu instinctively took a step back to avoid her grand gesture.

"Get up, there's no need for that."

Su Qiu thanked him again before standing up, her face full of surprise, her eyes welling up with tears of emotion.

“Your Highness may not remember me, but I will always remember your kindness to me. Do you remember five years ago when you let a maid go?” she said excitedly.

Xiao Guozi still remembered her, and hurriedly explained, "Princess, Su Qiu came to the Prince's Mansion from the palace with this servant. Later, you bestowed silver upon her and allowed her to return to her hometown."

With this explanation, Zhao Shu remembered. However, she never expected to meet her again in Jiangnan, and by a twist of fate, she became the adopted daughter of the Hermit of the Grass-Knotting Hermit.

"You've changed so much over the years, I almost didn't recognize you." Zhao Shu thought for a moment and could only say a plain opening line.

Su Qiu was very excited and choked up a little. "I will always remember the great kindness of the princess. It is only natural that the princess does not remember me because I have not been by her side for long."

"Now that you have left the Prince Yong's residence, you are no longer my maidservant, and you do not need to refer to yourself as a slave."

"No, your kindness to me is immeasurable. In my heart, you will always be my mistress." She insisted on her stance, but clearly did not want to dwell on the matter, so she changed the subject, saying, "Is the princess here to see the madam?"

"Madam?" Zhao Shu was confused again. Not an adopted daughter?

Su Qiu smiled and explained, "My home is not far away. Madam took pity on me because I am all alone, so she allowed me to come and serve her often."

"I see. I have indeed come to see you, layman. May I ask if you could help me pass on your message?"

Su Qiu seemed somewhat embarrassed, but still nodded, "This servant will speak with Qi Chong first."

The man she was referring to, Qi Chong, was already standing at the door, smiling as he looked at Zhao Shu. From the side, he seemed merely handsome, but now, looking at him from the front, she realized he was an extremely dashing man, though too frail, as if he might collapse at any moment.

His smile was gentle, like a spring breeze. Though frail, it gave off an air of humility, revealing no trace of his dissatisfaction or indignation with the current situation.

"Why did you come out? It's windy outside, you should go back inside." Su Qiu instinctively advised, but regretted it as soon as the words left her mouth. She quickly introduced, "Princess, this is the Seventh Palace, and this is the Princess."

Unlike Su Qiu, Qi Chong smiled and nodded to Zhao Shu, then looked at Wei Tingsi, who exuded a cold aura. This man had an overwhelming presence.

"Uncle-Master." After thinking for a moment, Zhao Shu gritted her teeth and acknowledged her kinship.

Qi Chong chuckled lightly and withdrew his gaze. "Uncle-Master didn't give you a gift." His words, clearly teasing, eased the awkwardness and unfamiliarity among the people outside the door.

"No need for a gift, my martial uncle can just tell me to go see my grandmaster," Zhao Shu said respectfully, not joking.

Qi Chong glanced at Wei Tingsi again, and Wei Tingsi cupped his hands and said, "Wei Chang'an." He solemnly gave his courtesy name to show his respect for Qi Chong, and said nothing more after those four words.

"Zhen Qizhong." He introduced himself concisely, exchanging names with Wei Tingsi before replying to Zhao Shu, "Your grandmaster probably won't see you."

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