Gan Qiongying fell to the ground, her vision spinning. Before she completely lost consciousness, she saw a yellow light drifting out of the palace gate.

Princess Hui'an had been watching from inside the palace. When she saw Duanrong stagger a few steps and sway precariously, she had already stepped out of the palace.

She was old and dragging her heavy clothes, making it difficult for her to run. Wu Mei tried to help her, but was pushed forward. Her expression was flustered as she urged, "Go and see what's wrong with the child! Hurry!"

Princess Hui'an then instructed her other maids to quickly fetch Physician Wu, who was always with her.

When Gan Qiongying regained consciousness, she felt pain on her face, like being pricked with needles.

Unexpectedly, when she groggily opened her eyes, she saw a man with an orange peel-like face, holding a silver needle and sticking it towards her.

Gan Qiongying instinctively wanted to shout: I'll confess, I'll confess everything!

Her gaze swept around back to the bed, and seeing the familiar layout, she knew she was back in her own courtyard.

There were people talking nearby, but she couldn't hear them. However, when she saw Aunt Wu Mei, she felt at ease.

The self-inflicted injury ploy worked; the "male nanny" who stabbed her must be one of Princess Hui'an's people.

Wu Mei is talking to Li Hua.

"The princess suffered a lot when she was young, and her stomach is very fragile," Aunt Wumei said gently, avoiding the topic of Gan Qiongying fainting from the sun when she went to apologize to the Grand Princess of Huian. She only said, "At noon, she drank a bowl of chilled plum juice. Perhaps it was because the weather was too hot and she was tempted by the coolness."

"Thank you for your guidance, Aunt." Li Hua listened attentively and remembered everything her eyebrowless aunt said.

“The princess’s parents died young,” said Aunt Wu Mei. “The prince consort is a gentle man. He will be more tolerant of the princess so that she can feel at ease.”

"Auntie is right." Li Hua lowered her head, looking like she was humbly accepting instruction.

Seeing that he was obedient, the eyebrowless aunt did not scold him anymore. She took a step back, bowed, and left with the imperial physician.

After seeing the person off, Li Hua immediately went to the bedside and looked at Gan Qiongying's originally fair face, which was now sunburned red. She felt very uncomfortable.

Manyue kept wiping the red mark with a handkerchief wrapped in ice, but the redness still wouldn't fade. Manyue's fingertips trembled with anxiety, and tears welled up in her eyes.

Everyone in the room was surrounding Gan Qiongying, feeling sorry for her and worried, while she herself was secretly laughing to herself.

Princess Hui'an has softened her heart. With such a good start, there's not much to worry about now.

Although Gan Qiongying was weak and might have suffered from heatstroke, she was young and there was nothing seriously wrong with her.

Playing the victim requires knowing when to stop; as long as it moves Princess Hui'an, that's enough.

Therefore, Li Hua helped her up, and she endured the bitterness by drinking several bowls of soup and eating some snacks. After resting for a while, she returned to her energetic state.

Gan Qiongying thought she was fine, but Li Hua stayed by her side the whole time, serving her tea and water and doing everything he asked, his face full of worry. He knew that Gan Qiongying's fainting was not so simple.

However, he had just been reprimanded by Aunt Wumei, and apart from Sanjiu, who secretly patrolled and saw Gan Qiongying standing in front of the Grand Princess's gate as punishment under the scorching sun, he was unaware of the rest of the details and did not know whether he should ask.

After all, he was just a businessman.

Even with his status as a prince consort, he could never hold his head high in front of true royalty. Every word the eyebrowless aunt said just now, seemingly flattering, was actually a stern warning to him, telling him to behave himself and obediently serve Gan Qiongying.

Li Hua felt a little sad.

“Husband, don’t worry,” Gan Qiongying smiled when she saw his concern and took Li Hua’s hand. “I just had heatstroke, it’s nothing serious.”

Li Hua grasped Gan Qiongying's hand in return, her lips pressed tightly together, her brows furrowed as she listened to her words. "Why suffer like this? Didn't we meet at the banquet?"

“When I was young, I was ignorant and annoyed my aunt,” Gan Qiongying said, not intending to hide anything, and told her everything. “I want to ask my aunt for forgiveness. If I miss today, I’m afraid I’ll never have another chance.”

“There should be a better way,” Li Hua said, her hand tightening and her face taut. “There’s no need to stand in the sun for two hours.”

Gan Qiongying said nothing more, listening to Li Hua's caring words of advice, she smiled sweetly, looking quite beautiful.

She took his slightly cold hand and pressed it against her feverish face, sighing, "You don't understand... you can't catch a wolf without risking your cub..."

Li Hua sighed, but ultimately said nothing more, and turned to fetch the ointment.

Full Moon wanted to take her place, but was refused. Seeing this, she stuck out her tongue at Sweetie, who was standing not far away and couldn't help at all. The two little girls then went out, showing their good sense.

Li Hua personally applied the medicine to Gan Qiongying.

He carefully applied the ointment, bit by bit, to Gan Qiongying's face, feeling increasingly guilty and uneasy.

The princess was so frank, yet he was about to hand over her power network to someone else. The thought of meeting Zhongli Zheng properly tonight tonight tore his heart apart.

The sun quickly began to set in the west.

In the evening, before the birthday banquet even began, servants came to invite Gan Qiongying and Li Hua to take their seats.

The banquet was set up on a stone platform halfway up the mountain. The men and women sat on opposite sides of the platform. Gan Qiongying glanced at her and Li Hua's seats, which were considered quite good, as they could clearly see the singing and dancing below the stage.

Nanzhao has always been known for its open-minded people, so the birthday banquet for the Grand Princess of Huian was naturally not too formal. Men and women were not shy at all, and their eyes were openly looking at each other.

Many people had already taken their seats, with the men's and women's tables forming a circle, and the place was already packed. It was clear that most of the nobles of Yindu had attended tonight's birthday banquet.

“Husband,” Gan Qiongying said, holding Li Hua’s hand with one hand and pointing to a seat diagonally opposite with the other, “your seat is over there.”

Gan Qiongying tiptoed and whispered in his ear, "You're weak. I had Manyue check that the wine at the banquet is all good wine, tribute wine from various places. It's quite potent, so don't overindulge."

The warmth and words of advice seeped into Li Hua's ear canal, and his back tightened involuntarily.

Because they were behaving a little too intimately, some people have already noticed.

Li Hua noticed everyone's gaze, but this time he was not at a loss. He straightened his back and looked in the direction Gan Qiongying pointed. He even squeezed Gan Qiongying's hand back under the cover of his wide robe sleeves.

Before he could even find a seat, his ears suddenly turned red because Gan Qiongying pinched his fingers and hooked his palm. She then whispered in his ear, "Don't stare at the female guests."

Li Hua wanted to say "I didn't," but quickly realized that what she meant was not that he was looking, but that he should not look later.

He took a small breath, pursed his lips, and nodded, suppressing his shame.