He was reluctant to part with her; only by holding her in his arms could he muster the courage to face her.

He held her hand in his, and their fingers intertwined for a moment.

Nan frowned and pulled her hand out to rest on the pillow.

Yinzhen paused for a moment, then moved closer to her again, placing his arm around her waist. Seeing that she no longer refused, he asked, "Where are you hiding this time? I've been looking for you everywhere."

She was also curious about who had saved her and Xiao Xi.

Nan Yi knew he would ask, so he had prepared an answer beforehand. He told a little lie and said casually, "The chivalrous hero was originally a prisoner rescuer. He took pity on us and rescued us as well." Let him find the hero.

Yinzhen knew she wasn't telling the truth, but he didn't press her. He would find out the truth himself, and the great hero shouldn't miss anything.

"Xu'er is pregnant, Master..."

"Oh, congratulations, Master." Madam Nian is indeed capable; she got pregnant just two months after marrying into the family. No wonder she's so smug; she's got guts.

"Yi'er, I didn't mean to..."

"Nan Yi"

"What?"

"Call me Nan Yi. I just got married. Yi'er died a long time ago." She is Nan Yi. Tong Yilan is a thing of the past. She has been reincarnated for more than a year. Now she is Tong Nan Yi.

Nan Yi, what a strange name. Yinzhen thought she was just saying it out of anger, so he turned her pretty face to him and said, "Yi'er~" His tone was a little harsh, with a hint of warning. His patience was limited.

"Call me Nan Yi." She refused to compromise.

Yinzhen narrowed his eyes, suppressing his impatience, and spoke again: "What I wanted to talk about is Xu'er's pregnancy..."

Nan Yi was furious and shoved him away. "Pregnant, pregnant," she heard him, did he need to repeat it again and again? Was he afraid she would harm the Nian family? Did he think she was the kind of person who would stop at nothing? Heaven knows, she wouldn't even dare to step on an ant (only heaven knows this), let alone a human life.

She interrupted him, "I'm not deaf, do I need to repeat myself? What, you're asking for a red envelope before you've even given birth?"

Yinzhen was furious. He ground his back teeth, wishing he could chew her up and swallow her whole to vent his anger. His patience was also running out. This woman never let him finish speaking and repeatedly interrupted his explanations.

He just wanted to tell her that what happened the day before yesterday was not intentional on his part, and that the matter of her mother demoting her rank was only temporary, and that he would find a way to help her recover.

Misunderstanding Yinzhen, Nan Yi felt utterly exhausted. He pulled up a thin fur coat to cover himself and whispered, "I'm tired, I want to rest." Then he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Yinzhen's eyes were dark as he carefully examined her, noticing that she seemed to have lost some weight. He pulled her close to his chest and then drifted off to sleep as well.

Half an hour later, Nan Yi woke up from the heat, his forehead covered in sweat, still pressed against a warm wall, and unable to move. The slight movement caught Yinzhen's attention. He opened his eyes, clearly not fully awake yet, his eyes looking blank for a moment.

"You're awake," came a slightly husky voice, incredibly alluring, and Nan Yi was no exception. She paused, her cheeks flushed and hot, not so noticeable from just waking up, but more like they'd been sleeping. Before Yinzhen could react, she said, "I'm a little hungry."

Yinzhen nodded, got up from the bed, and called the servants to prepare the meal. Qingyun and Qingfeng, who had been paying attention to the movements in the bedroom, heard the order and quickly finished preparing the meal.

When Nan came out after washing up, the food outside was already laid out, all of which were her favorite dishes. Seeing the eager looks from the others, she gave some of the dishes to them as usual, and kept for herself a plate of lily bulbs and shrimp, stir-fried pork tenderloin, and a small bowl of rice.

She placed two more vegetarian dishes in front of Yinzhen, leaving only one main dish, and then ignored him. For the first time, he ate every last bite of the food, even though his stomach was bloated and aching.

He didn't think much of it, assuming she was just starving.

After the meal, Yiren peeked in from outside the door, her face clearly showing resentment. Her handkerchief was almost torn to shreds. After entering, she didn't say a word, as if she was sulking with someone. She ignored Yinzhen's cold face.

Nan Yi, fearing she might suffer a loss, quickly said, "You silly girl, tell me what it is." Yi Ren pouted, looking just like a frog, and Nan Yi glanced at her. Oh, she's quite well-prepared.

Then, Lady Nara walked gracefully in with a group of women. They were dressed in gorgeous dresses and brocade robes, with handkerchiefs twirling between their delicate fingers. They wore tall, flowerpot-shaped shoes and walked along an exquisite corridor. Just looking at them was an unparalleled pleasure, let alone having them.

She glanced at the man beside her, and indeed, she was quite fortunate. Yinzhen was clearly also amazed by her beauty. He stood up to greet her, and everyone bowed to Yinzhen. Nan Yi stepped aside, and Yinzhen escorted Nara to the main seat before she stepped forward to offer her greetings.

Perhaps due to a prolonged illness, compared to the glamorous and well-dressed crowd, she looked like a severely shrunken, dried-out vegetable. Her complexion was sallow and dull, her eye sockets were dark and swollen, and her lips were dry and lackluster. Dressed in a plain white robe, she looked like a ghost if seen at night.

Clearly, others thought the same way, and the news of her demotion quietly spread. Everyone knew what was going on, some laughed, some scorned, and some mocked.

Nan Yi was completely unaware of the situation, only curious about the unexpected harmony among the usually competitive group, who all seemed to be in a rather good mood.

Lady Nara took a light sniff of the tea in her cup, enjoying the subtle and overt sarcasm from the crowd, until Yinzhen's face darkened. She then leisurely put down her cup and said gently, "Sister Tong doesn't look too well. She must still be recovering. Quickly sit down and rest, don't tire yourself out."

Before Nan Yi could speak, a sweet voice interjected, "What the Lady Consort says is true. Sister Tong should rest quickly, otherwise, how can she bear it later?" It was Wu Shi who spoke, with her usual sour tone.

Wait a minute? What could be wrong? She looked up at Yinzhen in the main seat, trying to find something amiss. Yinzhen glared at Wu Shi, then looked at her with a hesitant expression, clearly indicating that something was indeed wrong.

This time, Lady Li did not appear. Lady Nara sat to Yinzhen's left, across a mahogany tea table, while Lady Nian sat to his right, very close to him, giving off a sense of mutual respect.

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