It was the fifteenth day of the month again for paying respects to the emperor. Yi Hua had already learned from Guo Wei about Nian Shi's recent unusual behavior. No matter what she wanted to do, setting her sights on the little wolf was unforgivable!

As always, Li was the last to arrive. She sat in the first seat at the bottom, ignoring all her defeated opponents and turning her attention to Nian Sisi.

“Ms. Nian, we’ve heard you’ve been enjoying strolling through the garden lately. What’s so appealing about it? Tell us about it, or we’ll get a bit bored staying there all the time.”

Nian Sisi never expected that a little child would be so difficult to handle. So much time had passed, and she hadn't even eaten a single pastry, let alone spoken a few words. When she was in a bad mood, she lost her usual patience with Li Shi: "Replying to Consort Li, this concubine is merely taking a walk after dinner."

"Everyone knows that the Fourth Prince likes the swing and slide next to the artificial hill, and the other princesses know to keep their distance. Why do you insist on going forward? Who knows what you're up to?" Madam Li took a bite of pastry. "Don't say I didn't warn you. If you dare to lay a hand on the children, be careful that the Fujin chops off your hands!"

Hearing Li's indiscriminate accusations, Lady Nian's face showed displeasure, and her eyes were filled with tears, looking pitiful: "Why do you wrong me so much, sister? I only like the Fourth Prince, so I thought of him when I had fresh pastries. Such good intentions have been turned into a huge conspiracy in your mouth. I am young and do not know about these tricks in the inner quarters!"

"How dare you!" Upon hearing Madam Nian's sarcastic remarks about her being old and faded with wicked thoughts, Madam Li immediately glared at her.

This was the scene Yi Hua was faced when she entered. If she didn't know the cause and effect, she would definitely think that Li was bullying others by taking advantage of her power and that Nian was being bullied pitifully. Unfortunately, she had no pity for Nian at all. Just thinking about how her little wolf was in danger at all times made Yi Hua's heart burn with anger.

“What are you doing, Li Shi? You are now a concubine of Prince Yong’s mansion. You must maintain your dignity. Not everyone is worth your trouble.” Yi Hua said from the main seat. “Nian Shi, you entered the mansion the latest. You must listen humbly to your elder sisters’ teachings. This is all for your own good.”

Li Shi didn't even care about being angry anymore. Sure enough, the child was the Fujin's Achilles' heel, and even the child was speaking up for her. Didn't she see that Nian Shi's fake crying was about to turn into real crying?

The expression on Nian's face, where she really wanted to cry but had to hold it back, made Li recall that she could have had an extra half bowl of rice.

The other princesses all kept their heads down and acted like quails. They didn't care as long as the little devils weren't affected by the fighting between the gods.

After Yi-hua routinely called out the names of each of her "colleagues" and asked them questions, she announced the end of today's morning meeting, only leaving out Mr. Nian.

When Nian Sisi was alone with Yi Hua, she was both scared and looking forward to it.

If the princess makes things difficult for me, perhaps the prince will see me?

“Sister Nian, Consort Li has always had this temper. She never restrains herself in front of the master. The master is used to it. You are new here and need to get used to it.” Yi Hua said to Nian with a smile, “To be honest, I originally thought that you were a noble lady, but I did not expect you to have learned such good skills. The Fourth Prince said that a beautiful older sister makes very tempting pastries.”

"Why don't you teach me how to use my little kitchen, so that you won't have to worry about it every day?"

As Yi Hua spoke, she revealed a cold smile. She looked at Lady Nian as if to say that she should stay away from the Fourth Prince in the future.

Ms. Nian wanted to refuse, but she wasn't a cook!

But she dared not; the princess's gaze was too terrifying. After a moment's thought, it would be good to stay in the main courtyard, so that she could get close to her master when he came.

"This servant obeys." After saying that, Nian and her servant were led to the small kitchen by Yu Xue.

******

When Yinzhen returned, he saw a somewhat unfamiliar woman standing next to Yihua. Judging from her attire, she didn't seem to be a maidservant. After a moment's recollection, he realized that the woman was none other than Nian Gege.

Because of his prejudice against Nian Gengyao, Yinzhen didn't like Nian Sisi very much either. Now that he saw her following Yihua, he was a little confused about what she was up to.

Upon hearing the sound, Yi Hua turned around but did not get up. Over the years, she had been lacking in manners in front of Yin Zhen for quite some time, and the two of them had become accustomed to this way of getting along.

Nian's sweet, coquettish voice rang out: "This humble servant greets Your Highness!"

Yinzhen nodded: "Get up. What are you doing here with the Princess?"

Yi Hua suppressed a laugh; his question was far too direct.

"It is said that Sister Nian is extremely good at making pastries. That's why I invited her to the small kitchen today to give her some pointers, so that Little Wolf won't have to bother her if he wants some some someday."

Yinzhen frowned, understanding Yihua's unspoken meaning: "What good stuff is there that you have to brag about?"

"Go back. You don't need to serve me here. There are many children in the manor, so don't be rude." Yinzhen felt awkward with the extra person in the room and directly dismissed him.

Nian Shi had no choice but to try her best to show off her superior neck and make an expression that no man could refuse. Unfortunately, it was like throwing a flirtatious glance at a blind man; Yinzhen didn't even give her a second look.

With the two extra people gone from the room, Yinzhen breathed a sigh of relief. Yihua teased him, "This is my princess, why do you seem more uncomfortable than I am?"

"I have never seen you make things difficult for the princesses. What has Lady Nian done?" Yinzhen asked.

"It's nothing. She's been running into the wolf cub in the garden a lot lately. I'm just worried that I might regret it if something happens later, so I gave her a heads-up." Yi Hua spoke frankly. "Maybe she really likes children, but I still feel uneasy."

"I understand, you did the right thing." Yinzhen did not eat the exquisite pastries on the table. "The second son of the Nian family is a scheming man. He sent his sister to my residence, but he always runs to the eighth prince's place. He may even be colluding with some prince in private. We must be wary of such a person."

The second son of the Nian family, that is Nian Gengyao. I never expected that Yinzhen would have this kind of impression of the minister who would later help him expand his territory.

Perhaps many things had a cause long ago, but the people involved were simply unaware of it.

"The second son of the Nian family?" Yi Hua looked puzzled, wondering if Yinzhen would say more.

As expected, Yinzhen was still in the mood for conversation today: "Nian Gengyao is the second son of Nian Xialing, the governor of Hubei. His eldest son, Nian Xiyao, is an honest and hardworking man who works diligently in the Ministry of Works. As for Nian Gengyao, he has been making moves around recently, seemingly wanting to be sent out for a few years to gain more experience."

“What official doesn’t scheme and plot?” Yi Hua said with a smile.

"What you say is true, but for me, a disloyal servant is better off not having. Nian Gengyao first came to me for help, and I was just considering what position to send him to. But I couldn't wait these few days, so I went to ask the Eighth Prince for help. Hmph, since that's the case, let's see what lucrative position the Eighth Prince can give him."

Yi Hua understood: Yinzhen had completely despised Nian Gengyao, and no matter how hard Nian Sisi tried, it would be in vain.