Having served the Grand Princess for a long time, Wu Mei had long since mastered the skill of concealing her emotions. However, when Gan Qiongying displayed such shamelessness, even she couldn't help but feel taken aback, and her expression froze slightly.

Wu Mei had a good memory; her brows furrowed slightly, the movement barely perceptible, and she recalled that many years ago, Gan Qiongying had asked her for plum juice in the same way.

With her sharp mind and quick wit, Wu Mei soon realized that Princess Duanrong had come to sue for peace.

She bowed slowly, said nothing, and took a few steps back to return to the hall.

The air in the bedroom was filled with the faint scent of sandalwood, and wisps of bluish-gray smoke rose from the auspicious beast incense burner.

Princess Hui'an remained composed as she sipped her new tea. Even as she casually leaned back in her chair, her every move exuded an innate elegance and grace.

Her face was like a silver plate, fair and round, with relaxed and natural eyebrows and long, bright eyes. She was very well-maintained, and even though she is now over fifty, you can still tell that she must have been a stunning beauty in her youth.

“Grand Princess,” Aunt Wumei approached and spoke only when she reached Grand Princess Huian’s side, “This servant has already conveyed your message, but Princess Duanrong still wishes to see you.”

Upon hearing this, Princess Hui'an paused, put down her cup, and said nothing. She simply raised her hand, making it clear that she did not want to see Duanrong.

"They're still standing outside. The sun is very strong today," Aunt Wumei said in a low voice. She was very cautious, afraid of offending the Grand Princess.

Princess Hui'an sighed imperceptibly, but still did not agree.

Wu Mei understood his master's meaning and went out to send someone away again.

Princess Hui'an then looked up at the door. How could she not miss that child? The past was still vivid in her mind.

Duanrong has done countless outrageous things, each time causing great trouble. Over the years, she has always protected her, but Duanrong still does things her own way, ruining her reputation. She acts arrogantly and domineeringly, which is extremely absurd. How much more should she, as an elder, do?

When the eyebrowless aunt came out again, she repeated to Gan Qiongying with a blank expression: "The Grand Princess has been in poor health and lacks energy in recent years. She has finally fallen asleep, and this servant dares not disturb her. Princess, please go back."

Standing in the courtyard, Gan Qiongying had already anticipated this outcome.

She smiled at her eyebrowless aunt and said, "Let Auntie sleep. I don't have anything important to do anyway, so it won't hurt to wait a bit."

She was neither surprised nor discouraged that Princess Hui'an did not see her. From time to time, she would tiptoe and look towards the entrance of the bedchamber, making a gesture of eager anticipation.

An hour passed, but the entrance remained a ghostly gate, seemingly a place from which no one could leave, and not a single person could be seen.

Gan Qiongying looked down at her shadow. There were many big trees in the courtyard, and plenty of shady spots, but since Gan Qiongying was going to perform a self-inflicted injury scheme, she naturally couldn't indulge in the coolness.

Seeing that she was determined to wait, Wu Mei said nothing more, not even a word of advice to let Gan Qiongying go to the shade of the tree to wait, and then turned around and went back into the hall.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but Gan Qiongying's head was throbbing from the blazing sun.

She doesn't have a habit of self-harm; with such a strong sun, her delicate skin, which she has carefully nurtured, definitely couldn't withstand it.

However, while the plot concerning the male and female leads can be made up however one pleases, the plot concerning the Grand Princess Huian absolutely cannot be made up.

Because Princess Hui'an was, besides Emperor Ganlin, the only other relative Princess Duanrong might be able to win back.

When Gan Qiongying burned paper money on the fifteenth of the seventh lunar month, she promised Duanrong that she would take care of her relatives. She promised Ganlin, but according to part of Duanrong's memory, Gan Qiongying knew that every year for the birthday banquet of the Grand Princess of Hui'an, she would search for suitable gifts far in advance, going to great lengths and racking her brains.

She never personally visited the Grand Princess to celebrate her birthday, but that didn't mean she still held a grudge against her; she simply didn't dare to.

Princess Duanrong is tainted with infamy. She can't even protect herself or the people she loves. How can she dare to have any more relatives?

Her actions cannot be stopped. If she stops, as long as Jinchuan and Jingxi unite, Nanzhao will fall, and Ganlin will surely die.

Even if Jingxi and Jinchuan do not unite, if the Regent and the King of Jingxi collude, then Gan Lin, the puppet emperor, will quickly lose his usefulness.

When Gan Qiongying read this book, she felt that Princess Duanrong was insane and completely obsessed with the female protagonist, Wen Xueling. She couldn't bear to see her doing well at all and wished she could destroy all of Wen Xueling's marriage prospects.

However, Duanrong was unaware that this world was a book, and she was the hateful and laughable villainous supporting character in the book.

The female lead happens to be Wen Xueling.

Wen Xueling is destined to have so many men, so many that even a meat grinder couldn't grind them all in one pot.

Duanrong's reckless behavior turned into a pot of meat filling with cilantro, scallions, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar. In the end, Wen Xueling and her men happily made dumplings together, and the whole family was together.

Duanrong couldn't even save the life of the person she loved most.

Only after she truly became Duanrong did Gan Qiongying realize that Wen Xueling represented the King of Jingxi.

From the novel's perspective, this world seems absurd, but once you immerse yourself in it, you discover that everything makes perfect sense.

Wen Xueling came to the capital not to choose a suitable husband to entrust her life to, but to represent the wolfish ambitions of the King of Jingxi, seeking cooperation through marriage and stirring up the royal clans of Nanzhao into a mess.

Once the waters get muddy, everyone wants to touch the biggest fish on the throne.

What will happen to Duanrong's beloved child and her sweet rain?

He didn't even have the ability to protect himself.

Therefore, Princess Duanrong could only go mad and resort to any means necessary to destroy the alliance between Jingxi and everyone else.

But she dared not actually kill Wen Xueling, lest she anger the King of Jingxi.

Therefore, she could only destroy herself and her own life to ignite this mess.

Under such circumstances, how could she possibly find her aunt who had once doted on her and pull her into the "ship" she was desperately gambling on, a ship destined to be shattered to pieces?

She could only watch from afar and think about it.

Staying away from the Grand Princess is the only way to at least prevent her from being implicated and tarnishing her reputation in her later years.

Under the blazing sun, Gan Qiongying touched her chest.

It didn't hurt.

After July 15th, Gan Qiongying's heart stopped hurting.

But she felt a pang of sadness at that moment.

This is called a dignified appearance.

For a soul whose body was possessed by her, who felt love and hate as a whole, yet who had never met her.

Gan Qiongying pressed her hand to her chest, and under the blazing sun, she said in her heart, "Princess, don't be afraid."

Watch how I can make you completely charmed.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but Gan Qiongying felt that she had been sun-dried into a crunchy dried salted fish.

She heard footsteps coming out of the house again.

Aunt Wu Mei and a maid carrying a tray walked over. Gan Qiongying looked up and forced a weak smile.

The eyebrowless aunt leaned slightly forward, picked up the jade bowl from the plate, and handed it to Gan Qiongying, saying, "It's been many years since I've made this. I wonder if it still suits the princess's taste."

Gan Qiongying's eyes widened. It wasn't that she, like Zhen Duanrong, loved drinking sour plum juice; it was just that the weather was too hot and she was almost dehydrated. This was a lifesaver!

"Thank you, Auntie," Gan Qiongying said with gratitude in her eyes, thanking the bowl of soup for being served so promptly. She accepted it with both hands and said with a smile, "You still made it for me."

The Grand Princess wasn't that cold-hearted.

The cunning in her eyes was just as it had been back then; it was hard for Wu Mei not to be moved. Once upon a time, she too had cherished Duan Rong.

The eyebrowless aunt softened her voice and said, "The sun is strong, Princess, please go back. It will be evening soon, and the Grand Princess will definitely be there for the banquet."

This was the Grand Princess's way of telling her not to be persistent in her refusal to see her.

Gan Qiongying just smiled and gulped down the bowl of plum juice, a few drops still clinging to the corner of her mouth. When she looked up, her eyes were filled with the innocence of a young girl.

“I’ll wait a little longer,” Gan Qiongying said, straightening up slightly. “It’s been a long time since we last met. The banquet was noisy, and I want to apologize to my aunt…”

The eyebrowless aunt didn't expect Gan Qiongying to be so direct. Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but she didn't say anything more in the end. She turned around and went back into the hall once again.

The July sun was scorching, and there was no wind in the courtyard. Gan Qiongying was exhausted and sweating profusely; her undergarments were so damp they could be wrung out.

Gan Qiongying's legs ached, her neck hurt, and she felt dizzy. Her face was flushed, and her temples were soaked with sweat.

However, Gan Qiongying looked up at the blazing sun and even thought that the sun was not scorching enough and the weather was not bad enough.

If it's a rainy day, it would be best if it were a downpour, as heavy as the day Guarjia was killed.

When she's soaked to the bone and her hair is disheveled, she can put on a tragic performance as a prodigal son returning home.

Gan Qiongying smiled as she thought about it, finding joy amidst hardship.

But the eldest princess inside the room couldn't sit still.