Why explain all this to her in Chapter 23? ...

The streetlights flickered on and off, and the entire Yunzhong County fell into silence.

Apart from the soldiers on routine patrols, everyone else in the Swift Feather Camp had gone to sleep.

The Crown Prince's bedroom was also shrouded in darkness.

Suddenly, the person lying in bed abruptly opened their eyes and sat up, frowning as they blurted out, "Could it be that time?!"

Ever since Feng Mian said during the day, "I don't want to learn about my future husband's whereabouts from other women," Baili Xunzhou had been racking his brains trying to figure out when, where, and who it was. It wasn't until he was tossing and turning in bed and smelled the faint bitter fragrance emanating from the medicine packet hanging at the foot of his bed that he suddenly had a flash of inspiration.

On the day he learned that the grain supplies had been burned, he went out to look for Chu Jingqi and happened to run into Yuan Jixue returning from outside. He casually asked her if she had seen the young marquis on the street.

The princess must be referring to that time!

Baili Xunzhou threw off the covers and was about to get out of bed, wanting to find Feng Mian to explain things. But just as his foot touched his shoe, he suddenly stopped.

Why bother explaining all this to her?

Since I have no intention of actually marrying her, what's the big deal about a misunderstanding?

He thought to himself, then lay back down on the bed and went to sleep!

Baili Xunzhou wasn't the only one who didn't sleep well that night due to the sleep deprivation.

As dawn broke, a small door to the servants' quarters of the Prince of Dingbei's mansion was gently pushed open, and Huaihua, with dark circles under her eyes, stepped out of the room, looking quite spirited.

Yesterday, she spent more than half an hour memorizing the recipe for soup dumplings given to her by the princess, and tried frying them twice, but they didn't hold their shape. She only managed to dehydrate a few vegetables. Today, she needs to start drying the vegetables, then continue frying the soup dumplings and preparing the sauce.

The princess assigned the small kitchen to Feng Mian, who then assigned it to Huaihua, saying that until she made the soup dumplings, the small kitchen would belong entirely to Huaihua.

Huaihua was excited and full of fighting spirit, busy in the small kitchen by herself until the sun was high in the sky, when someone barged in, cursing and swearing.

"You hairless brat, is this how you ruin the things I painstakingly bought?"

Before Huaihua could react, the long-handled bamboo chopsticks in her hand were snatched away and smashed into the boiling, bubbling oil, causing hot oil to splatter everywhere.

Huaihua instinctively stepped back to avoid it, and the hot oil only splashed onto her dress.

The man, reeking of alcohol, then swung his arm at the kitchen counter. Huaihua, who had just come to her senses, bumped into him, her small body causing him to stagger backward and fall against the wall.

"What's wrong with you! This is what Her Highness the Princess wanted!" Huaihua protected the cutting board, glaring angrily at the man.

"Princess? What does a noblewoman like a princess have to do with you!" The man's face flushed red with anger at being disobeyed. His eyes searched around, and suddenly he grabbed a wooden stick from behind the door. "You dare push your father? I'll beat you to death!"

"Husband!" Aunt Wu screamed as she rushed in from outside, shielding Huaihua behind her and bracing herself against the stick with her back. She covered Huaihua's mouth with her hand, completely hiding Huaihua's red-rimmed eyes behind her back, and smiled ingratiatingly at the man, who was also her husband's family's purchasing agent, Wu, "Husband, what Huaihua said is true, this is indeed a job given by the princess."

Aunt Wu quickly recounted the events to Comprador Wu, who then believed her. He couldn't afford to offend the princess, so he glared at Huaihua resentfully, "Then you'd better do your job properly. If you mess things up and implicate me, I'll divorce your mother! You two can both get out and fend for yourselves!"

He threw the stick aside with a bang and walked away cursing.

Aunt Wu's legs went weak and she leaned against Huaihua. Huaihua's tears rolled down her cheeks as she helped her up. "Mother, how are you? Come on, I'll take you to see a doctor."

"I'm fine, it was just a blow, I can take it. As long as you're alright." Aunt Wu smoothed Huaihua's hair, her eyes full of heartache. "I told you not to do this job, but you insisted. Now that it's come to this, just do your job well. If you mess it up, I'll go with you to apologize to the princess."

Huaihua wiped away her tears and said firmly, "I can do it!"

It's all because of her that Mother has had to endure so much hardship. She must do this job well, make a name for herself in front of the Princess, and have more influence so that she can protect Mother!

"Is he alright?"

At noon, Feng Mian went to the main courtyard to have lunch with the princess. On the way, he heard Liu Ying tell him about the farce that happened in the small kitchen that morning. Feng Mian frowned so much that a small flying insect could be crushed between his brows.

Liu Ying quickly shook her head and replied, "It's nothing. I heard from the cleaning lady that Aunt Wu has already applied the medicine."

She had been running around the Prince's mansion these past few days, and had become familiar with almost all the servants. Feng Mian was no longer a closed-minded person in the mansion.

"What kind of father is this, so cruel to his own wife and daughters?"

"I've learned that Huaihua isn't Wu's biological child, but rather Wu's posthumous child with her ex-husband. Wu had no other choice but to marry Wu through an introduction in order to get a job at the Prince's mansion. By the time she discovered that Wu was a gambling and drinking scoundrel, she was already stuck with him to support the child."

Liu Ying was also fuming. "This Wu the Comprador has an uncle who used to be an old servant of the old princess. He has a lot of prestige in the mansion and usually covers for Wu the Comprador. Wu the Comprador has only been arguing with Aunt Wu at home before, so his matter has never become too big."

Feng Mian pondered for a moment and said, "Arrange for a few people to keep an eye on things nearby. If that Wu comprador causes trouble again, we'll bring him here."

Firefly nodded vigorously in agreement: "Great!"

The princess also heard about Feng Mian tinkering with food in the small kitchen and asked her curiously what she was doing going to such lengths.

Seeing that the princess was unaware of Wu the purchasing agent's affair, Feng Mian didn't bring it up. Instead, he kept her in suspense, saying, "You'll know once it's made. It's definitely a good product. I'll send it to you to try."

The princess shook her head with amusement and patted her hand, "Then don't make it too quickly, or someone will occupy your small kitchen, and you'll have to come and dine with me every day."

Her first two children were rarely home, and she had regretted for many years not having another daughter. Now that a daughter-in-law had come to live with them, she was actually quite happy, disregarding her son's feelings.

The thought of that stubborn son made her feel terrible. The princess was such a good girl, and neither of them had anyone else they admired. If they could have spent more time together, perhaps they would have developed feelings for each other and wouldn't have become such a miserable couple. But he wouldn't even spend more time with her, hiding outside all day and not coming home.

"If you're happy, I can dine with you every day," Feng Mian said with a smile, leaning against the princess's shoulder in a spoiled, girlish manner. The princess had a warm, motherly scent that she liked very much.

The princess gently patted her head and beckoned her maid, Zhenshu, to her side.

A stack of exquisite calligraphy cards was presented to the pillow.

"The Princess's residence isn't finished yet, but invitations to banquets for you have already been sent to the Prince's residence these past few days. If you want to go, reply to the invitation; if you don't want to go, you don't need to bother with them." After saying this, the Princess Consort thought of something and asked, "I remember that Xiaoman is your birthday, and it's almost here. Would you like to host a banquet at the residence then?"

For a moment, Fengmian lowered her eyelashes, concealing a hint of melancholy in her eyes.

She was born on the day of Xiaoman (the 8th solar term), but her mother also died on that day. As far back as she could remember, her birthday was spent in a somber atmosphere, until the next day when she would receive a bowl of longevity noodles.

For Emperor Jiayu, her birthday was not a day to celebrate. On that day, she could only think of her mother's death and felt a heavy sense of guilt.

There's no need to tell others about this; it would only make them feel heavy-hearted as well.

She smiled slightly and made an excuse: "The wedding is approaching, and I don't want to see any guests before then."

Upon hearing this, the princess did not ask any further questions, but simply replied with an "okay".

Lu Mingzhu only reported that she was making nameplates. The person who was keeping an eye on Huaihua said that she had practically taken up residence in the small kitchen. Feng Mian then quietly stayed in Xueyue Residence for two days.

Until one day, the locust tree that Fengmian had been thinking about for so long suddenly blossomed.

Before Feng Mian even opened the window early in the morning, she smelled a sweet and light fragrance. As she looked out the window, the fragrance became even stronger.

Under the bright, clear sky, the towering locust tree in the courtyard was adorned with tiny, bluish-white blossoms.

A gentle breeze blows, and the bright sunlight makes the whole tree shimmer with a snowy, jade-like luster.

It's colder in northern Xinjiang this year than in previous years, and Feng Mian thought he wouldn't see the locust trees bloom until June.

She hurriedly left the room, stood under the tree, and looked up at the half-open locust flowers, her eyes fixed on them, her mind preoccupied with the thought of eating locust flower rice. She didn't notice that Wu Liu had walked up to her side.

Wu Liu: "Princess, the locust flowers have arrived."

Feng Mian nodded: "I see. The locust flowers are blooming."

Wuliu: ...

Wu Liu suppressed a laugh: "Princess, it's not this flower, it's the locust flower from the small kitchen."

Feng Mian then came to her senses and smiled.

"I forgot for a moment, please ask her to wait in the main hall."

"Yes," Wu Liu replied and left.

After Fengmian finished washing up and came to the main hall, Huaihua had already fallen asleep in a chair.

Just as Liu Ying was about to go forward and wake her up, Feng Mian stopped her.

Feng Mian gestured for her to let Huaihua fall asleep first. The dark circles under the little girl's eyes were getting worse, clearly indicating that she hadn't been sleeping well for the past few days.

Feng Mian walked to the table and opened the tightly wrapped food box. The slight noise immediately startled Huaihua.

Huaihua stood up, still dazed, and said, "This servant greets the Princess!"

When she bowed, her legs felt weak and she almost knelt down, but Wu Liu helped her up.

"No need for formalities. You've really worked hard this time. Whether it succeeds or not, you'll still get your share of the money."

Feng Mian had only intended to comfort her and tell her not to be so nervous, but her words startled Huaihua awake. She jumped to the table and exclaimed, "It can work! It can work! Please take a look, Princess!"

Huaihua deftly unwrapped the cloth covering the food box, opened it, and took out the contents one by one and arranged them neatly.

Five coiled dry soup dumplings were stacked on oil paper, with three small porcelain jars lined up next to them, and a package of dehydrated vegetables wrapped in oil paper.

"As Your Highness instructed, I made three kinds of meat sauce: one spicy with dogwood, one with pickled cabbage, and one with a light chicken broth flavor. I've tasted them all. The soup dumplings are chewy, have a wheat aroma, and are served hot—almost the same as freshly made soup dumplings!"

"Hmm. Brew it now and let me see," Feng Mian instructed.

"Alright!" Huaihua replied with a strong voice, took out the prepared porcelain bowl, and brewed a bowl of each of the three flavors. As soon as the boiling water was poured in, the aroma wafted out.

The firefly immediately swallowed hard, its mouth watering. "It smells so good!"

After counting to 180, she was the first to eagerly grab a bowl. Her eyes lit up after one bite. "This bowl of soup noodles has meat, eggs, and vegetables. It's so fragrant, and you can eat it just by rinsing it with boiling water. It's so convenient!"

Feng Mian tried every flavor and was very satisfied. Huaihua, who had been waiting anxiously, breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the smile on Feng Mian's face.

"How much did it cost you to make this bowl of soup noodles?" Feng Mian asked, looking at Huaihua.

Huaihua scratched her head, secretly delighted, for she had gotten the answer she had prepared!

"The pickles are alright, but these dry soup dumplings are quite oily to make. The leftover oil is very prone to rancidity after one use. Although it can be used to make other things, it can't be used to fry the dumplings a second time. If you calculate it, one soup dumpling will cost about thirteen coins."

Feng Mian immediately frowned. Thirteen coins were enough to buy several coarse grain cakes for the army camps. If they were to replace them with these dry soup cakes, it would be quite expensive.