"Oh, Your Highness is so joking. Is there something wrong with my clothes?" Liu said shyly. Before Yinzhen could say anything more, Ulanara slammed her teacup on the table.

She raised her head coldly, frowning as she looked at Liu: "Respect should not yield to the lowly. It is wrong of you to wear the same dress as the concubine. What are you showing off for? Do you want me to strip you naked right now?"

Liu blushed as Ulanara scolded her, but she was still somewhat unconvinced: "It was just a coincidence, I didn't want it to happen either." She also muttered, "The Fujin is just biased towards the concubine."

"Hmm, so I'm biased towards you. Why are you talking so much at this family banquet? Why don't you perform a show to entertain everyone?" Ulanara said sarcastically.

Yinzhen frowned slightly, but did not stop her—after all, she was just a little princess.

Qian Shengyan glanced at Yinzhen, intending to say something, but unexpectedly Liu clapped her hands happily: "Then this servant will make a fool of herself! Caiyun, bring my zither up!"

Liu went off to prepare with great excitement, while the rest of the people at the table... fell silent.

Ulanara slowly put down her chopsticks, her calm expression slightly stiffening, while Qian Shengyan…

Qian Shengyan began to suspect that this was a scheme orchestrated by Ulanara and Liu, a pretense of disdain that inadvertently gave Liu a chance to shine.

Moreover, Qian Shengyan soon discovered that Liu had indeed made preparations in advance.

She not only brought her own zither, but also scouted the spot in advance, finding a perfect location to sit by the lake, playing the zither melodiously, leaving everyone with only a graceful profile.

The lake was covered with lanterns, creating a beautiful scene.

Qian Shengyan clicked her tongue inwardly, unable to resist wanting to see Yinzhen's expression.

Not only her, but all the women at the table were secretly watching Yinzhen, trying to discern his likes and dislikes from his expressionless face.

But Yinzhen remained expressionless, slowly finishing his meal amidst the melodious zither music, and then reached out to Qian Shengyan: "Go look at the lanterns?"

"Okay." Qian Shengyan smiled and took his hand. Yinzhen's gaze swept over everyone again, then turned to the children.

Hongshi couldn't wait any longer: "Father, I've finished eating and I want to go back and rest!"

"Hmm." Yinzhen nodded, and Hongshi's eyes lit up. He immediately bowed and withdrew, then ran wildly towards Ritian Linyu after leaving the pavilion.

So Geng couldn't stay still any longer and kept looking towards Hongzhou. Qian Shengyan saw that she was really in a dilemma, so she said, "Fifth Prince is still young. It's getting late and the wind is cold. You should go back early."

"Yes, yes, thank you, Consort!" Geng was overjoyed. She glanced at Yinzhen again and, seeing that he did not object, quickly hugged Hongzhou and bowed to take her leave.

Hongli and Foerguochun came to Qian Shengyan's side. Qian Shengyan smiled and took one of their hands. The Third Princess also bowed to Yinzhen, said goodbye, and went back.

Ulanara chuckled and said to Yinzhen, "I am tired from sitting here for so long. Please allow me to take my leave, Your Highness."

"Okay, you should get some rest." Yinzhen nodded.

Ulanara clenched her fists, then slowly released them. She closed her eyes, curtsied, and said, "Yes."

Lady Nian didn't want to leave; she even tried to squeeze past Qian Shengyan to stand next to Yinzhen. However, perhaps due to excessive excitement, she coughed incessantly after taking a deep breath. Wei Mama patted her back worriedly and decided to resign.

So, reluctantly, Lady Nian had no choice but to return. Only Lady Guo remained, a quick-witted and perceptive woman. She coughed twice, bowed, and took her leave.

Only Yinzhen remained, holding Qian Shengyan's hand, with two children behind them—oh, and Liu Shi was there too, accompanying them with background music.

Walking on the winding bridge, Qian Shengyan randomly picked up a riddle. Just by looking at the handwriting, she knew it was Yinzhen's—and she couldn't guess it.

She casually handed the instrument to Hongli, who was not yet three years old, and then changed the subject with Yinzhen, saying, "Princess Liu plays the zither quite well."

"If you like, let her play a little longer," Yinzhen said, glancing at Su Peisheng. Su Peisheng nodded knowingly and turned to give the order.

A moment later, the biological child seemed to break off for a moment, and when it was reconnected, it sounded somewhat... shaky?

Qian Shengyan didn't care and kept guessing as she walked. The riddles hanging on the lanterns were either written by Yinzhen or by her. After practicing calligraphy for two years, Qian Shengyan's handwriting was now barely presentable.

Since everyone had left, it wasn't lively enough, so Qian Shengyan simply let Qingxue and the others go and have fun on their own. They could pick some riddles to guess and even offered a prize: "If you guess ten correctly, you can go to the prince to claim your reward."

The crowd scattered in all directions. Even Su Peisheng glanced at Yinzhen and went out to guess. Yinzhen put his arm around Qian Shengyan's waist and chuckled as he pinched her nose: "You're doing a good deed, so I'll reward you, huh?"

"Oh my, Your Highness is so wealthy!" Qian Shengyan blinked and casually handed Hongli a riddle she couldn't guess.

Hongli was silent for a moment: "...Father, shouldn't we let Mother read more books? She can't even guess what the swan is like..."

"It's not that I didn't guess! I just... I just wanted to test you!" Qian Shengyan quickly said.

Noticing Yinzhen's ambiguous gaze fixed on her face, Qian Shengyan choked, then defiantly pulled out another riddle: "I can definitely guess this one... um..."

Still can't guess TT

Why is a riddle written in such an obscure and difficult-to-understand way?

Why can't we just use plain language like her?

Seeing Qian Shengyan's stiff expression, Yinzhen grabbed the note, glanced at it, and then sighed slightly.

He crumpled the paper into a ball with two fingers, then casually tossed it into the lake. After a moment, he said nonchalantly, "Or... how about I hire a female tutor for you? That should be enough for just your introductory lessons..."

Qian Shengyan: ...

Who does TAT ​​think she is?! She graduated from a top-tier university, for goodness' sake!

But she still responded with a humiliating "yes," for she feared that two years later even Folgochun would laugh at her for being uncultured...

That's terrible.

The family of four was boating on the lake. In the Moon and Cloud Residence, Ulanara, who had just let her hair down, sat by the window, staring blankly at the moon in the sky.

"Master... Master, are you going to sleep?" Yanruo asked carefully.

Ulanara did not answer, but after a moment she suddenly said, "According to palace rules, the Emperor must stay overnight in the Empress's palace on the first and fifteenth of each month."

Yanruo didn't understand why she suddenly brought this up, but she still replied, "Yes."

“I don’t even get to see the first and fifteenth of the month,” Ulanara murmured, then gave a sorrowful smile. “No, the prince only comes twice a year, and I’m actually hoping for him to come twice a month…”

"Master..." Yanruo was heartbroken, but there was nothing she could do—who could control where the prince rested?

The emperor doesn't go to the inner palace, and even if he stays with the empress, there are officials watching him. But who cares about the affairs of a prince's inner palace?

Ulanara reached out of the window, watching her five fingers disappear into the darkness. She slowly clenched her fist, and after a moment said, "Tomorrow... let Xinrui stay in the garden for a while."