The following day, Gu Nanjiao returned to the Lu residence.

Last night, Lu Yanzhao told her about selling Bai Lian'er, but she stopped him.

The two whispered among themselves for half the night and finally came up with a good plan.

Bai Lian'er stood to the side with her head bowed. When she saw Gu Nanjiao, she bit her lip in grievance and limped over to greet her.

Gu Nanjiao found it strange and asked, "What's wrong? You look like you can't stand up straight."

Bai Lian'er shook her head, looking both shy and panicked.

laugh--

Gu Nanjiao walked past her without giving her a second glance.

Bai Lian'er stomped her foot. She had intended to attract Gu Nanjiao's attention with this posture, deliberately limping and making it look like she was having difficulty walking. When Gu Nanjiao asked her a question, she pretended to be shy and panicked. However, Gu Nanjiao actually laughed at her with disdain.

After Lu Yanzhao returned, Gu Nanjiao asked him, "What happened to Bai Lian'er? Why is she limping? Did you do something bad to her?"

"I punished her?"

"Why punish her?" Gu Nanjiao poured a cup of tea and handed it to Lu Yanzhao.

"She's trying to take advantage of me!" Lu Yanzhao finished his tea in one gulp, indicating that he wanted another cup.

"Huh?" Gu Nanjiao turned around and looked at him, thinking she had misheard.

Lu Yanzhao recounted what happened yesterday, and seeing Gu Nanjiao's teasing expression, he asked, "Why the expression? Don't you feel jealous that I was taken advantage of?"

Gu Nanjiao turned around and poured him another cup of tea, handing it to him: "I thought that with such a beauty in your arms, you wouldn't want to push her away, so how could you bear to punish her?"

"You are my beauty!" Lu Yanzhao did not take the cup of tea. Instead, he stroked Gu Nanjiao's hand, grabbed it, and drank the tea in the cup in one gulp.

"Stop being so glib!" Gu Nanjiao withdrew her hand and straightened her expression: "Don't sell Bai Lian'er yet. I'll take her to the palace banquet tomorrow."

"What are you planning?" Lu Yanzhao raised an eyebrow and pulled Gu Nanjiao into his arms from behind. His thin lips kept brushing against her earlobe, causing the girl in his arms to tremble.

"Don't flirt with me, I can't get emotional now that I'm in my late pregnancy!" Gu Nanjiao said, a little annoyed, as she struggled to get up.

"Six months is not late. I asked the doctor, and he said that appropriate exercise is beneficial to the growth of the fetus."

"What are you doing? Aren't you ashamed in broad daylight? Besides, that Bai Lian'er is still waiting by the door!"

Ignoring her struggles, Lu Yanzhao bit Gu Nan's fair and white earlobe in a fit of rage: "I want her to hear it, so she won't have any more designs on me!"

Bai Lian'er's face turned deathly pale. The flirtatious banter in the inner room made her eardrums ache and her heart ached.

She couldn't stand it any longer and stumbled around the mansion. Strangely, no one was watching her that day.

Suddenly, she stopped in front of her. After hearing Cui'er say that this was Lu Yanzhao's study, she looked around and saw that no one was guarding it. Bai Lian'er then quietly stepped inside.

Lu Yanzhao's study was very large, with books neatly arranged and writing implements in perfect order.

With a thud, a book fell from the top shelf, with a yellowed page mixed in. Bai Lian'er picked it up and saw that it looked like a letter!

She glanced at it briefly, her eyes widening in shock. Bai Lian'er's heart pounded in her chest; she seemed to have discovered an incredible secret.

If it's true, then the Crown Prince...

Bai Lian'er put the letter back in its original place, stood on a stool to put the book away, and then put the stool back in its original place.

After carefully checking, she found that everything was the same as when she came in, so Bai Lian'er quietly retreated.

The following day, he attended a palace banquet.

Besides her personal guards, Cui'er and Guo'er, Gu Nanjiao specially brought Bai Lian'er along, claiming, "They are all maids of the Lu family, and she shouldn't show favoritism to one over the other."

Bai Lian'er was entering the palace for the first time. She was stunned by the tall and magnificent palace and quickly lowered her eyes.

Thinking of that secret, Bai Lian'er's heart pounded, filled with tension and fear, yet also a touch of excitement.

Zhou Wan looked down on her, but look at the man she married—a bastard born to a palace maid.

Zhou Wan also attended the palace banquet. She was heavily pregnant and surrounded by four or five people, looking as pampered as could be.

Gu Nanjiao was carrying twins, and her six-month-old belly looked almost like an eight-month pregnancy. She was only supported by Cui'er, and compared to her, Zhou Wan seemed much more pretentious.

This palace banquet was attended not only by noble ladies and young ladies, but also by sons of princes and nobles, and even by the Prince Cheng and the Crown Prince.

With Consort Yue demoted to a lower rank and the Empress confined to the Cold Palace, the vast harem was left without anyone to manage it. The Empress Dowager had no choice but to bring along her four consorts to find suitable candidates for the Crown Prince and Prince Cheng's principal wives.

The surrounding women annoyed Zhou Wan. After settling down, she secretly gave Bai Lian'er a wink.

Bai Lian'er understood, rolled her eyes, clutched her stomach, and said to Gu Nanjiao, "This servant's stomach hurts a little, I need to go to the toilet!"

"Go ahead!" Gu Nanjiao was eating pastries and waved her hand, signaling her to go over.

After Bai Lian'er left, Gu Nanjiao gave Cui'er a wink, and Cui'er quietly withdrew.

"Oh my, Your Highness's baby looks much bigger than usual?" A noblewoman couldn't help but ask, glancing at Zhou Wan's belly intentionally or unintentionally.

The months are about right, so why is her belly so small?

"The doctor said it's twins, so naturally the belly is bigger than other pregnant women's," Gu Nanjiao said with a smile, exchanging polite greetings.

"Oh my, Your Highness is so blessed! No wonder the Emperor and Empress Dowager dote on you. Your pregnancy is different from others; it might even be twins!"

"Boys and girls are the same. As long as they are my children, I'm happy that they are safe and healthy!" This is what Gu Nanjiao really thinks.

On Zhou Wan's side, only a few people came forward to greet her, which made Zhou Wan clench the handkerchief in her hand in anger.

She's carrying the rightful grandson of the emperor, and those clueless people are just blindly flattering her. Once the crown prince ascends the throne, she'll make them pay.

And Gu Nanjiao, let's see if she can still smile later?

Bai Lian'er cautiously approached a corner, letting out two meows. Just as she was looking around, Qing Ci suddenly appeared and patted her on the shoulder.

Bai Lian'er was startled. When she saw who it was, she bowed respectfully and said, "Sister Qingci, may I ask what business Her Majesty has with me?"

"This is a perfume that can arouse men and women. Sprinkle it on yourself secretly and try to lure Lu Yanzhao to the side hall, then the two of you can consummate your relationship."

"This..." Bai Lian'er took the face powder, a hint of hesitation flashing in her eyes: "What if someone finds out and beats me to death? And that Lu Yanzhao is so unmoved by a woman's lap, he's practically a saint! This is a bit difficult."

"Think about your parents..." Qingci threatened, her eyes full of impatience.

She had always looked down on Bai Lian'er, who clearly wanted to be a prostitute but also wanted to maintain a virtuous image.

If she weren't useful, I would have slapped her across the face long ago.

"Okay... alright!" Bai Lian'er pursed her lips and agreed.