Zhang Lushi held the cup tightly, her thumb gripping the rim. She knew this matter couldn't be spoken of; if it were, Zhang Ying might lose his official position.

If he falls from grace, her future will be bleak. However, she knows this is wrong, and she wants to speak out, but it's her home now, and she can't destroy it.

“Your Highness, Lord Cui did come to my house, but... I don’t know what he wanted to see my husband for.”

Song Yaozhu looked at her and said, "If you ever encounter any difficulties in the future, you can seek help from the Princess."

Zhang Lu was puzzled. She had never interacted with the Princess, and because of her cousin's matter, the Princess might even harbor resentment towards the Lu family.

The eldest princess doted on that male favorite, but he died because of her cousin.

The meeting ended there. After returning home, Zhang Ying asked her what Song Yaozhu wanted to see her about. She subconsciously replied, "Last time when I was buying clothes on the street, the princess saw the sachet I was wearing and wanted to ask me where I bought it. I said I embroidered it myself, and the princess liked it, so she asked me to make one for her too."

She hung her head, looking timid and weak. Zhang Ying disliked this kind of woman and found her utterly boring.

Knowing she was timid and afraid of trouble, I didn't think she would lie.

"Is that really so? You should know that if something happens to me, you won't fare any better. We are husband and wife, you can't hide things from me."

Zhang Lu's body swayed, and she nodded vigorously.

After finishing her tea outside, Song Yaozhu went to browse the jewelry store.

Unfortunately, they ran into the Crown Princess and the other concubines in the Crown Prince's residence.

It was almost New Year's, and the concubines of the Eastern Palace were begging the Crown Princess to take them out for a stroll, since they were no longer allowed to leave the palace freely after becoming the Crown Prince's concubines. For some of them, this was probably the first time they had been out all year.

Upon seeing Song Yaozhu, the Crown Princess greeted her with a smile.

“Auntie, you look great lately. Look at this red agate hairpin, I think it suits you very well.”

Song Yaozhu took the hairpin from her hand and looked at it. "This is too brightly colored. It's not suitable for someone my age."

The Crown Princess was taken aback, somewhat confused as to whether Song Yaozhu's words were meant to be sarcastic or if she genuinely felt that way.

In Song Yaozhu's mind, she was over thirty years old and was indeed not suited to such vibrant colors, as they made her appear gaudy and disrespectful to her age.

But to outsiders, she's only twenty, in the prime of her life. And because she's so well-preserved, she's at the peak of her beauty.

Song Yaozhu looked at her and said, "Why don't you give it a try? You're still young."

The Crown Princess's expression froze for a moment; she was much older than Song Yaozhu. Because she had aged and lost her beauty after giving birth, the Crown Prince no longer visited her room except on the first and fifteenth of each month.

Hearing Song Yaozhu's words, she couldn't help but feel that Song Yaozhu was subtly mocking her.

"I'll pass. There are too many new ladies in the Eastern Palace these days. No matter how I dress up, I can't compare to my sisters' beauty."

Song Yaozhu looked at the women selecting jewelry inside the building. These were not all the women in the Eastern Palace's harem. Only women of the rank of Liangyuan or higher were allowed to leave the palace, but even so, she could sense the Crown Princess's feelings.

After all, she had been through the same thing.

She had no way to comfort the Crown Princess; all her words were empty and useless. Women care about men, but men don't care about them at all. And women keep making excuses for them.

What? He's the crown prince, with the responsibility of producing heirs; what? It's normal for men to have multiple wives and concubines...

To put it bluntly, women know that men don't love them, but they are unwilling to accept it, so they use such words to save face.

To put it bluntly, men look down on women who depend on them for survival.

If women could enter politics, would they still act this way?

No, they will become fearful, terrified, and then lose their conscience. Isn't she a living example?

Faced with power and status, men will always choose status first and then conscience.

Song Yaozhu paused for a moment, then said, "This set of gold hairpins is nice. Consider it my New Year's gift to you."

The Crown Princess noticed the set of gold hairpins in her finger. The six hairpins were carved with lifelike openwork butterflies, each butterfly's wings adorned with tiny pink gemstones. They were both glamorous and playful.

But now that her beauty has faded and her love has waned, using this set of gold hairpins is nothing more than an attempt to cover up her disheveled state.

Thinking of this, the Crown Princess couldn't help but say, "No need for your aunt to spend money. If I want it, I can afford it."

Even though she had been humiliated, Song Yaozhu wasn't angry.

“In that case, Aunt doesn’t have anything else to give, since the Crown Princess lacks nothing.” Song Yaozhu smiled at her, then went downstairs to pick out some earrings to give to the young girls who were about to come of age at the Tzu Chi Foundation.

Once inside the carriage, Caijin couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, why did you deliberately provoke the Crown Princess today?"

Song Yaozhu leaned back in her chair and smiled, "I just wanted to give the Crown Prince something to do."

The Crown Princess's mindset was so strong that it would have stirred jealousy in anyone else. She had only hinted twice that youth was fading, and she was already so emotional. She'd probably cause the Crown Prince a lot of trouble when they got back.

One of the Crown Prince's ceremonial weapons is the Tao family's military power. If he has a falling out with the Tao family, wouldn't it be easy for me to poach him?

I need to find an opportunity to have tea with Madam Tao.

Song Yaozhu and this Madam Tao had met several times at palace banquets. They weren't exactly close, but they had exchanged a few words.

Madam Tao was a woman of few words, but she managed the household very well, which showed that she was a serious person at heart.

It seems that to establish a relationship with this Madam Tao, we need to send Shen Qingyu.

They were only halfway back home when a guard told Song Yaozhu that someone was following them.

Song Yaozhu didn't believe the other party would commit murder in broad daylight. "This road is closer to the Prince Xuan's residence. Let's go to the Prince Xuan's residence first."

Then send someone to capture the person who was tracking them.

She was also a little curious: who was following her at this time?

Zhang Ying? Or perhaps the Dowager Consort? Or maybe the Noble Consort?

Distracted by Song Yaozhu, the Crown Princess led her concubines from the Eastern Palace back home. She was furious, thinking that a country bumpkin dared to give her attitude just because she was lucky enough to marry Xie Liwei!

Who is Xie Liwei to her husband's uncle? His sister has been dead for who knows how long! Now he's using his seniority to treat her badly, what kind of person is he!

The more he thought about it, the angrier he got, so he could only take it out on the people below him.

For a time, she caused unrest in the Crown Prince's harem, and many concubines went to the Crown Prince to complain.

The Crown Prince was so annoyed that he had no choice but to confront the Crown Princess.

"Are you being unreasonable? As the Crown Princess of the Eastern Palace, can't you act like one?"