While Geng Youran was busy making pastries, Yinzhen and Yinxiang were engaged in a verbal battle with the henchmen of the Ninth Prince and the Eighth Prince in the imperial court.

At first, Emperor Kangxi only wanted to hear his sons' opinions on the current tax system. However, perhaps because it touched on the interests of the Ninth Prince, Yinzhen, the sons started arguing in public.

Actually, it was just that the Ninth Prince and the Tenth Prince were a little louder; Yinzhen and Yinxiang didn't say anything more.

Kangxi had a clear view of his sons' behavior from above, and Liang Jiugong didn't seem angry at all.

Yinxiang, being quick-witted, glanced up discreetly, then smiled, guessing that his father had deliberately arranged things this way today.

Seeing that the various groups of people had almost finished arguing, Kangxi finally spoke up.

"Alright, the fourth prince's memorial has already explained this matter very clearly. All those listed in it will be demoted one rank and have their allowance suspended for one year."

"in addition......"

Yinzhen and the others waited with bated breath for what was to come:

"I have already drafted an edict to reduce the tax burden on the people by using strategies such as 'no increase in taxes if the population grows.'"

Since the imperial decree has already been drafted, it means that Father Emperor already knew everything all along, and this time he was indeed testing them.

Yinzhen and Yinxiang broke out in a cold sweat. Luckily, they hadn't said anything out of turn, or the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Yinzhen wished he could slap himself a few times; how could he not have thought that this might be his father's scheme?

After the court session, Yinzhen and Yinxiang prepared to leave the palace to return to Prince Yong's residence to discuss the details, but were stopped by Yintang midway:

"Fourth Brother, tell me the truth: what Father said in court today, did you tell him?"

Before Yinzhen could speak, Yinxiang spoke first.

“Ninth Brother, that’s not fair of you. Fourth Brother was just following Father’s orders. By saying that, aren’t you questioning Father’s decision?”

"Thirteenth Brother, you two are truly 'good brothers'."

Yinzhen said this in a slightly sarcastic tone, and then left.

Yinzhen took the concubine, and then he and Yinxiang returned to the Yong Prince's Mansion.

On their way to Niu Hulu Wanru's courtyard, Geng Youran and Qianxue couldn't contain their curiosity and asked:

"Princess, why did you just have Xiao Anzi deliver the food box to the Princess Consort?"

"She is the primary wife, I can't just send gifts to the two secondary wives and ignore her, can I?"

"But……"

Qianxue wanted to say something more, but Geng Youran stopped her with a look.

Ulanara was also taken aback when she received the food box.

She never expected that the first person in the mansion to break the ice with her would be Geng Youran.

However, she quickly understood the meaning behind Geng Youran sending someone to deliver the food box to her.

Although Consort Li and Consort Nian still had some influence with the prince, it was really just the usual favor shown by a superior to a subordinate.

This kind of pampering will disappear with time and changes in events.

However, Geng Youran was different; everyone in the manor knew that the prince's attitude towards Geng Gege was completely different.

You could tell from their eyes that it was a kind of affection between a man and a woman.

What's even more surprising is that Geng Youran has never used this affection to scheme against anyone.

Therefore, by doing this, Geng Youran was actually expressing her attitude.

Her attitude, from another perspective, also reveals part of the prince's attitude.

This was the prince giving her face, and she couldn't refuse.

"Yunzhu, give the order that tomorrow morning, everyone from each courtyard should come over."

"yes."

However, when Geng Youran and Qianxue arrived at Wanru's courtyard, they found that neither Wanru nor Huangli were there.

Qianxue casually asked a maid, who said that Niohuru Wanru and Huangli, the mistress and servant, were admiring flowers in the back garden.

So Geng Youran had no choice but to take the food box to the back garden.

The reason for not putting down the food box was to prevent someone from sabotaging it.

Upon arriving at the back garden, Geng Youran and Qianxue saw Niohuru Wanru standing under the crabapple tree admiring the flowers, while Huangli was brewing tea in a pavilion not far away.

"Sister Wanru, you're in such high spirits!"

Geng Youran took the initiative to step forward, which startled Wanru under the tree.

"Sister? What a coincidence, are you here to admire the crabapple blossoms too?"

“I went to your place, but you weren’t there. A maid said you and Huangli came to the back garden, so Qianxue and I came to look for you.”

"My sister could have just sent someone to call me; there was no need for her to come all the way herself."

As Niohuru Wanru spoke with Geng Youran, she took Geng Youran's hand and walked towards the pavilion.

The two sat down, and Geng Youran asked Qianxue to place the food box on the stone table.

"It's alright, it's nice to take this opportunity to enjoy the early spring scenery."

"Sister, why did you prepare so much food today?"

Geng Youran accepted the tea offered by Huang Li and replied:

"Qingming Festival is just a few days away. I made some seasonal snacks and sent some to each courtyard. I had Xiao Anzi deliver some to the Fujin and the two concubines. Here, this is yours."

After speaking, Geng Youran pointed to the food box on the table.

"Sister, if you ask me, your cooking skills are comparable to those of the imperial chefs in the palace."

"It's not as exaggerated as you say. Qianxue, take Huangli to pick some crabapple blossoms. I'll stay here and talk to Wanru for a while."

"Yes, Princess."

Huang Li glanced at her princess, then followed Qianxue.

Only then did Geng Youran get to the point.

"Are you aware that Consort Li handed over several of her seals to the Prince?"

Wanru nodded; she had indeed heard some rumors about this matter.

"Sister, does Consort Li really intend to ignore everything?"

Geng Youran glanced at Wanru, then stood up and said:

"She did do this partly to protect herself. However, that wasn't the only reason."

"Any other reasons?"

Geng Youran shook her head, indicating that she didn't know either.

The other two concubines who received the food boxes, Consort Li and Consort Nian, also handled the food boxes on the table in completely different ways.

Li Jingshu had someone brew her a pot of tea, and then she tasted the four kinds of pastries in the food box one by one.

Nian Yunrong stared at the food box on the table for a while, then had Qingyan distribute it to the servants in the courtyard.

"Secondary Consort, someone from the First Consort's Courtyard just came and said that everyone from each courtyard should go there tomorrow morning."

After chatting for a while in the pavilion, Geng Youran and Niohuru Wanru parted ways and returned to their respective courtyards, and then they also learned of the news.

"Princess, what is the Princess Consort trying to do?"

Geng Youran wasn't as surprised as Qianxue; she answered Qianxue's questions while changing her clothes:

"It's just a matter of resuming the greetings, nothing serious, don't worry."

Qianxue was a little worried:

"Princess, why don't you just pretend to be sick?"

Geng Youran shook her head:

"Why would I pretend to be sick? Besides, if I miss out on something because of being sick, it would be a huge loss."