Three days passed without incident in the palace. On this day, when they were leaving the palace, Sheng Shu and Yu Jiaxing were walking together on their way out. When they reached a secluded place, a young palace maid suddenly rushed out, and they both retreated.

The little maid seemed to have missed her target. She turned her head and revealed her beautiful face. She pleaded for help: "My two lords, our princess has fallen into the pond. Please come and rescue her as soon as possible."

Yu Jiaxing was about to step forward when Sheng Shu held him back tightly. She then asked the young maid, "Which palace are you from? Which princess are you talking about? Why don't you call out loudly or ask for a maidservant?"

The little palace maid who continued to lie down replied with tears in her eyes: "I am Lancao from Yijing Palace, and the Eighth Princess is my master." After she said that, seeing that the two were still staying there, Lancao stood up and was about to go forward and hold Yu Jiaxing's hand.

Sheng Shu dragged Yu Jiaxing away from the orchid grass and said seriously, "Why don't you go and get the maids? The princess fell into the water and they'll definitely bring her clothes. Tell us where the pond is and we'll go right away."

Seeing that Sheng Shu was serious, Lancao rolled her eyes and pointed them in a direction. Then she quickly dived back into the flowers and trees and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Seeing that Lancao had disappeared, Yu Jiaxing hurriedly broke free from Sheng Shu's hand and headed towards the pond. Sheng Shu sighed and followed him, saying, "This is the imperial palace's backyard. How can you and I trespass without permission? I remember there's a patrol post on the way out of the palace. Wouldn't it be more proper for us to report there than just going there?"

Yu Jiaxing thought about it and realized it made sense, so he turned around and followed Sheng Shu back along the same path. A head popped out from behind a large tree behind them. It was Lancao, who had just disappeared. As the two of them headed back down the main road out of the palace, Lancao emerged from behind the tree, stamped her feet, and left.

The two hurried to the sentry post, and Yu Jiaxing bowed to the guard and announced, "Brother Guard, we passed by a palace maid named Lancao up ahead. She said the Eighth Princess had fallen into the pond. We dared not intrude without being summoned, so we hurried here to inform you of this matter."

Today's events were truly bizarre. The Eighth Prince's personal eunuch, who had been escorting them to and from the palace for the past few days, was summoned mid-route and subsequently encountered Lancao, the Eighth Princess's maid. Sheng Shu felt that today's events echoed his mother's advice to him before entering the palace: he must be cautious no matter what while in the palace.

When Guard Huang heard the two men's report, he immediately made a gesture, and four people emerged from the sentry post. "Immediately head to the east pond. If the princess is in danger, rescue her as soon as possible."

After the four left, Guard Huang turned to the other two and said, "Sirs, please wait here."

The two men stood in front of the sentry post without saying anything, until a quarter of an hour later, when the eunuch who picked them up came over and they were let go by Guard Huang.

Before leaving the palace, the eunuch said to the two men, "Don't worry, my two lords. Everything is fine."

It seemed that the Eighth Prince already knew about this. The two of them said goodbye to the eunuch and then left the palace and returned home.

Inside the palace, the four guards sent by Guard Huang searched around the pond but couldn't find anyone. As they were about to leave, they heard a splash. Rushing in the direction of the sound, they saw only a disheveled palace maid.

"Ah!" The maid, awakened by the cold water, opened her eyes, wiped her face, and looked up to see four guards surrounding her. She sat on the ground and asked, "What can I do for you, my dear guards?"

The leading guard asked, "Which palace are you from, and why are you here?"

The maid's eyes twinkled as she spoke, "I am a second-class maid in Yijing Palace, my name is Lancao. I am passing by here, what happened?"

The guard asked again, "Why are you so disheveled and fainted on the road?"

Hearing this, Lancao looked down and hurriedly turned around to adjust her coat. With her back to the guards, Lancao felt a little flustered, but she pretended to be calm and said, "I don't know either. I have to go back and obey my master's orders. I'll take my leave now."