That night, Hongli was tireless, and Su Yushan was exhausted and weak from his torment. She begged for mercy in a soft voice before he reluctantly let her go.

At this moment, she was too weak to think; her eyelashes were half-closed, and she was extremely drowsy. He tried to pull her into his arms, allowing her to rest her head on his arm, but she was reluctant. However, she didn't want to refuse openly, so she pretended to be considerate and kindly reminded him:

"Isn't that a bad idea? Your arm will get sore and numb."

Hongli said it was alright, and gently flicked her nose with his finger, chuckling, "You think I'm too fragile. Just use this as a pillow."

He was willing to let her snuggle up to him, even if it was tiring, but Su Yushan didn't like this feeling of being close together.

"But I still feel more comfortable with the pillow. I always feel awkward using my arm as a pillow. You must be tired after all that fussing. Get some rest. I'm going to sleep now."

After saying this, she turned over and went to sleep. When Hongli spoke to her, she could only hum incoherently and could not answer a complete sentence.

What Hongli saw was a pair of slightly messy, soft, shiny black hair and narrow, slender shoulders.

Most people would fall asleep in each other's arms after being intimate, snuggling together. However, after the pleasure, she turned away and ignored him, not even offering a tender moment. Such a cold attitude inevitably made him feel neglected.

He couldn't help but wonder what she was thinking. This girl seemed obedient and docile, but she didn't seem to really care about him.

Although the current situation is frustrating for him, he believes that as long as he is patient, he will eventually win her heart.

Since Fourth Master didn't come last night, Xin'er had been inquiring about where he was staying since early this morning. She eventually learned from the servant that he had gone to Tingfeng Pavilion, which surprised her greatly.

"Why is it Su Gege again? What should we do?"

She could easily reply to anyone else, but if it were Consort Su, her mistress would likely be angry again. Xin'er didn't want to hear her mistress complain, so she lowered her voice and instructed the servant.

"Don't tell our princess about this. If she asks, just say that the Fourth Master was in the study last night and didn't go anywhere else."

"What can't you tell me?"

Hongli did not stay with her because she was sick. Jin Minjing felt wronged and stopped pretending to be sick. She got up early in the morning and heard this sentence as soon as she stepped out the door. She became even more angry and questioned Xin'er about what she was hiding.

When her master pressed her for an answer, Xin'er had no choice but to tell the truth.

Upon hearing this, Princess Jin's jealousy flared instantly. "I'm bedridden, alone in my empty room, and he doesn't even come to keep me company. He says he's busy with official duties. How could he have time to be with other women? Humph! This Su Yushan, she's really something! She's managed to keep Fourth Master all this time. What does Fourth Master like about her?"

To appease her master, Xin'er guessed wildly, "Perhaps Fourth Master saw that you were ill and didn't want to disturb your rest, which is why he didn't come."

When the topic came up, Kim Min-jung became even more aggrieved. "He should have been there for me when I was sick, but he turned around and went to find other women. Did he ever think about how I felt?"

Xin'er thought to herself: Men, of course they only care about themselves. How could they care about the feelings of every woman? There are too many women for him to attend to!

This is a principle that all maids should understand, but Princess Jin does not. In fact, it's not that she doesn't understand, but because she has developed feelings for Hongli, she allows Hongli to have other women, but she cannot accept that there is someone more favored than her.

She hadn't paid any attention to the previous ones, because she believed herself to be the most beautiful and from the best family among the maids, and Hongli also took a special liking to her. She thought this kindness would continue, but little did she know that everything would change in no time.

From the moment Su Yushan arrived, Hongli's gaze was drawn to this woman from Jiangnan, and Su Yushan became known among the servants as the most beautiful woman.

Feeling ignored, Jin Minjing couldn't swallow her anger. She really wanted to go to Tingfeng Pavilion to meet Su Yushan, but Xin'er said that this was not a good idea.

"Princess, please calm down. The Fourth Prince is currently favoring her. If you go, and you say something wrong, she might falsely accuse you to the Fourth Prince. Wouldn't that just cause you trouble?"

Hearing what the maid said, Jin Minjing had some reservations, but she was still unwilling to give up. "But I just can't swallow this anger and can't stand seeing her so smug."

"It's easy to upset her. You don't need to go yourself; just send someone else." Xin'er meant that Lan Gege was straightforward, and if she were told that the Fourth Prince had stayed overnight at Tingfeng Pavilion, Lan Gege would probably get restless and go to Su Yushan to say a few words.

After careful consideration, Jin Minjing concluded that the method was feasible and ordered Xin'er to carry it out immediately.

Xin'er deliberately spread the word, and the maid Mo'er also heard about it, so she told her mistress, Princess Lan, about it.

Upon hearing this, Xi Lan took a sip of her flower tea before asking her where she had heard it from.

Mo'er replied truthfully, "It was Sister Xin'er who told someone, and I happened to be passing by and overheard a few words."

"Oh? What a coincidence?" Xi Lan became suspicious. "The servants are forbidden to inquire about Fourth Master's whereabouts. What is Xin'er's intention in deliberately spreading these rumors?"

Princess Fucha, who was enjoying tea there, could see through Princess Jin's trick at a glance. "Xin'er probably told Mo'er on purpose, hoping you would know, become jealous, and then cause trouble at Tingfeng Pavilion, right? This Jin Minjing is playing a good game, trying to use you as a pawn!"

Xi Lan scoffed, "I'm overjoyed that someone's stealing my thunder, why would I be jealous?"

After a moment of contemplation, Princess Fucha turned her moon-like eyes slightly and softly suggested, "Since you don't dislike Princess Su, why don't you go and visit her and get to know her personality?"

Meeting Fucha Gege's meaningful gaze, Xilan thought for a moment and understood, nodding in agreement: "Alright, then I'll go and meet her."

Tingfeng Pavilion was usually quiet and deserted, so Su Yushan was quite unaccustomed to the sudden visit. However, since the person had already arrived at the door, she could not refuse them entry, so she ordered Changyue to invite Princess Lan in.

As soon as Xi Lan entered, she said with a smile, "I heard that my sister was not feeling well, so I came to visit her. I hope I haven't disturbed your rest?"

As they spoke, Xi Lan gestured for the maid to bring in the tonics, which Chang Yue accepted one by one and placed on the table to the side. Su Yushan invited her to sit down and exchanged pleasantries:

"Thank you for your concern, sister. I'm so bored at home. I would be happy if you could come and keep me company."

After taking her seat, Xi Lan held a handkerchief embroidered with peonies in her hand, her crescent-shaped eyes curving into a sweet smile. "I heard that you are from Suzhou, and you must be having a hard time adjusting to the capital. Do you often miss your hometown? I asked someone to buy some osmanthus cakes for you to try, to ease your homesickness."

The original owner was from Suzhou, but Su Yushan was not. She had no particular attachment to osmanthus, but since Lan Gege said so, she accepted it without hesitation. "Thank you, sister. You are so kind."

“Hey---we’re family from now on, no need to be so polite.” After chatting for a while, Xi Lan suddenly changed the subject, “You’ve been quite favored by the Fourth Master lately, which is a blessing for you. But some people are jealous and are spreading rumors about you everywhere. It makes me furious.”

Upon hearing this, Su Yushan asked curiously, "What do you mean by that, sister? Did you hear something from someone?"