"Sister Xianfei, oh no, I should say Concubine Cen, have you encountered any problems that require my help?"

"You haven't moved to another palace, and you're still living here. It's still comfortable, right?"

"Ah, the Emperor really dotes on you. You can still stay here. Unlike us, if we were demoted, how could we enjoy such a life?"

…

Concubine Cen once thought that her interpersonal relationships were very good, that those people were very satisfied with her, and that she was doing a great job.

Before, few people came up to Concubine Cen and said these things. But after a while, some concubines came up to Concubine Cen and said these things in a sarcastic tone.

They just thought that the emperor was not as fond of Concubine Cen as before, so they could say a few words.

Now that Prince Su has become the crown prince, the third prince is really useless.

Concubine Cen was virtuous and kind in her time, and she liked to ask the concubines to follow the three obediences and four virtues. Those concubines might not have been without complaints in their hearts.

"You..." Concubine Cen was angry.

"Don't say unpleasant things. You are a dignified and virtuous girl from the Cen family." Someone said this.

Concubine Cen felt even more uncomfortable after being blocked by others. However, she couldn't say anything casually, as she couldn't let others think that her previous behavior was all fake.

When the emperor learned about Concubine Cen's situation, he did not let anyone tell the other concubines.

Back then, Concubine Cen had said those things to the Empress many times. She also thought the Empress was not doing well and said all sorts of things.

Concubine Cen is living a pretty good life now. At least she is still a concubine, and her food, clothing and other expenses are not too bad.

After all, the Cen family hadn't completely fallen, and those people were still afraid of the Cen family. The palace maids in the harem were quite nice to Concubine Cen, but the Queen didn't treat her so well back then.

The Empress's family background was not as prominent as Concubine Cen's, and the palace maids treated Concubine Cen better than the Empress. When many people entered the palace, they would first see Concubine Cen and then the Empress.

The emperor remembered that he had no way out at the beginning, but now is not the same as before, he can't let Concubine Cen do that again.

At the Cen family, Old Master Cen felt very uncomfortable when he learned that the emperor had not seen Concubine Cen for some time and the third prince had been staying indoors.

The Third Prince was a hopeless case. They had done so much for him, but he himself was not that capable. If he had been a bit more capable, their situation wouldn't have been like this.

Old Madam Cen gave the letter from her daughter-in-law to Old Master Cen. After reading the letter, Old Master Cen frowned.

"What's going on?" Old Master Cen knew that this letter was written more than a month ago. His daughter-in-law had originally planned to let his daughter marry Liu Yanjing. She also wrote in the letter that Princess Rongning was unruly.

"It's just as written in the letter." Old Madam Cen knew her daughter-in-law wouldn't just sit there and do nothing. She was afraid that she had offended the Marquis of Jingning's mansion. "The relationship won't improve."

Over the years, the Cen family has not offended anyone. They like to talk about rules and various things with others. Others may not think that the Cen family is good, but the Cen family still thinks they are good, making some people think they are good.

"Not capable of accomplishing anything, but more capable of causing trouble." Old Master Cen really didn't know that things would turn out like this.

"Actually, there's nothing wrong with what she said." Old Madam Cen sighed, "Princess Rongning doesn't understand any rules. What kind of books does she read when other women read them?"

"Forget it, things have come to this." Old Master Cen was unable to save the situation and could only wait for the emperor to approve his petition to retire and return home.

He used to think that he had to step down so that his son could take over.

All he wanted now was to retreat safely. His son probably wouldn't be able to get in. What mattered most was the lives of his family. He hoped everyone would be safe.

Mr. Cen didn't want to be exiled, nor did he want to lose his life.

"These people don't know at all... Even if I tell you, you won't understand." Old Master Cen felt helpless. He had always thought that the Cen family's daughters-in-law and daughters were very good.

Now, Mr. Cen doesn’t dare to think so. He even wonders if the women in the Cen family are a little too rule-bound.

At the Ouyang family, Mrs. Huo is not feeling well and the doctor is here.

"I'm afraid she might give birth before the due date," said the doctor.

"Is the fetus okay?" Old Madam Ouyang asked. She glanced at Mrs. Huo and then asked, "How is the master?"

"Giving birth is always dangerous," the doctor said, "just prepare some things, maybe it will be better."

When Mrs. Huo heard the doctor's words, she couldn't help but think about the time when she gave birth and whether she should ask whether to save the adult or the child.

"If there is any problem, don't keep this child." Mrs. Huo said directly to the doctor.

"We have to see the midwife." The doctor had no idea what Mrs. Huo would be like. Some women looked weak, but they gave birth smoothly; some women looked strong, but they encountered problems when giving birth.

No one can say for sure about this kind of thing.

The doctor did not say those words directly, firstly because he did not want to take responsibility, and secondly because it was really difficult to say them.

Mrs. Huo just thought the doctor was boring, and wondered if Lord Ouyang was just thinking about the children.

"Oh, if anything happens to me, my mother... my family will definitely not let you go." Da Huo said coldly, "If it weren't for you, my health wouldn't have become so bad."

Mrs. Huo said this directly, not afraid at all that Old Madam Ouyang would be dissatisfied.

It would be best if Madam Ouyang was always dissatisfied, but Mrs. Huo was not afraid. Mrs. Huo even thought that Madam Ouyang should not stay at home, and should take her grandchildren to the countryside.

As long as Old Madam Ouyang goes back to the countryside, no one can say anything, and the two children must go back as well.

The two children went to fulfill their filial duties to the old lady on behalf of Lord Ouyang. Mrs. Huo thought that the old lady was just coveting the rich life in the capital.

"It will definitely be fine, it will be fine." Old Madam Ouyang said quickly, "Don't worry, I will find the best midwife for you. It's not like you don't have children at home. Whether you have children or not..."

"Are you thinking that I don't have children, and your precious grandson can inherit this family? Are you still thinking about my dowry?" Mrs. Huo mocked.

Old Madam Ouyang's face looked very unhappy, but since Mrs. Huo was a girl from the Bo's Mansion, she didn't dare to show her any displeasure at all. She had to be nice to her.

Old Madam Ouyang felt very aggrieved, but so what. It was all her own fault. She wanted her son to marry Da Huo because she was from the Bo family.

"No, just take good care of it." said Mrs. Ouyang.

Old Madam Ouyang didn't say much. She had been here for a long time and felt that she was being bullied. She had never been so bullied by her daughter-in-law before. It was only after Da Huo came into the house that Da Huo started to make trouble.

When the second Miss Ouyang learned about what happened to old Madam Ouyang, she did not sympathize with the old lady at all. She thought it was all she deserved.

"Your good daughter-in-law." Miss Ouyang said, "You should be very satisfied."

"Okay, let's not talk about this." Old Madam Ouyang already regretted it. If she had known that Da Huo was such a person, she would never have let Da Huo in.

"The one before was so nice, and she even treated you with respect." The second Miss Ouyang said, "When I went back to my parents' home, she didn't say much. But now, if I go back to my parents' home, it won't be nice."

"Stop talking." Old Madam Ouyang didn't want to say any more. If she continued, she would be criticized again.

In a northwestern county town, Su Qiuya vomited. She thought she was pregnant, so she went to see a doctor, but the doctor shook his head.

"Your health...I'm afraid..." The doctor shook his head.

"What do you mean? Is it difficult to get pregnant?" Su Qiuya thought of this as soon as she heard the doctor's words.

"Yes," the doctor nodded. "Before you got married, you must have eaten a lot of cold foods, as well as other foods that are not good for fertility. These foods are easy to eat, but it's not so easy to recover from them."

The doctor told Su Qiuya this directly. He was not lying, nor was he trying to deceive Su Qiuya for anyone.

Su Qiuya immediately thought of her stepmother. She had often given her stepmother a hard time at home. Just because her stepmother didn't pay much attention to her didn't mean that she didn't do evil things behind her back.

Originally, the stepmother wanted to let her biological daughter marry Liu Yanbo. After the Jingning Marquis Mansion was not doing well, the stepmother let Su Qiuya get married.

Every time Su Qiuya thought about this, she was very unhappy. Even though Liu Yanbo treated her well, he had to work hard to get ahead, and she had to open a shop and do business.

If she hadn't opened a shop to do business, she would have had no chance of making a living.

In order to live a good life, Su Qiuya has to work harder. If Su Qiuya had not been forced to marry Liu Yanbo, she could have married a richer man and would not have to work so hard.

"First, prescribe some medicine. Take it well when you get home," the doctor said. "Will you take it?"

"Take it!" Su Qiuya was still thinking about having children in the future, so how could she not take medicine? She had to take medicine. Not only did she have to take medicine, but she also had to take more conditioning and take it for a period of time.

Su Qiuya was not worried that the people in the first house were plotting against her, as they did not know that she had come to see a doctor.

She thought of her vicious stepmother and was filled with resentment. She planned to make her stepmother suffer when she returned to the capital.

"Prescribe a few more medicines." Su Qiuya said.

"Let's see first, take it for ten days, and then we'll have to see if we need to change the prescription." The doctor said that we can't always take the same medicine.

"Okay, you..." Su Qiuya gave more medicine, "Don't tell anyone."

Su Qiuya didn't intend to let Qing Yi Niang and Liu Yanbo know that she was having trouble having children. If they knew, who knows what they would think.

What if Aunt Qing wants to find a woman for Liu Yanbo? Then Su Qiuya will be very sad. Su Qiuya thinks that she has worked hard to make money. Most of the money of the second house is earned by her, and some is given by her grandfather.

Why should she support another woman for Liu Yanbo, nor should she support the child Liu Yanbo had with another woman?

"No," the doctor nodded. He had seen many patients like this, and none of them wanted others to know about their situation. "Actually, it's not just women who might be unable to get pregnant; men might have problems too."

"Yeah." Su Qiuya understood what the doctor meant. The doctor wanted to say that there was something wrong with the man and asked her to say that there was something wrong with her husband.

"Come back if you have any questions," the doctor said. "Running around and seeing multiple doctors is sometimes just as bad as seeing just one."

Doctors believe that if they see one doctor, that doctor will be able to monitor the patient's condition. If a patient sees multiple doctors, it will be difficult to prescribe medicine, unless the disease is difficult to treat.

"Let's see." Su Qiuya didn't want others to know her situation, so she had to hide it.

In Shiyuan Village, Liu Yanqing was forced to work in the fields. Fortunately, the strawberries tasted good, so he would steal a few from time to time.

Lin Xiaowan couldn't help but wonder whether Liu Yanqing was here to work or to eat. She saw what Liu Yanqing was doing but didn't say anything.

"Let him eat." Aunt Zhao also saw it. She stood beside Lin Xiaowan, "He just can't concentrate on doing these things."

Aunt Zhao wanted her son to not work so hard. After all, the family had so much land and they could find people to work. So it wouldn't hurt if Liu Yanqing took it easy. Aunt Zhao thought that if she hadn't said she wanted to divide the family, her son would have had a better life.

"Eat." Lin Xiaowan did not stop him. As long as Liu Yanqing was willing to get out of bed, it would be fine.

Otherwise, if she kept staring at him, it would only make Liu Yanqing unhappy.

Lin Xiaowan thought Liu Yanqing must be very proud, as he quietly ate a few more strawberries. Liu Yanqing stuffed the strawberries into his mouth and looked around.

Look at him, he acts as if no one has noticed, so silly.

Lin Xiaowan didn't know why her stepmother saw in Liu Yanqing. Did she want her to have a bad marriage, or did she think she could suppress Liu Yanqing?

"You eat too." Aunt Zhao said.

"You eat." Lin Xiaowan didn't think about eating more strawberries, she just wanted to harvest them as soon as possible.

This year, many people are growing strawberries, so the price is a bit lower, but it's still okay. Not everyone can grow good strawberries using culture medium. Planting strawberries also depends on factors like temperature, seeds, and so on.

Lin Xiaowan doesn't care whether other families make money or not, she only thinks about her own family.

When Liu Yanqing looked up, he saw Lin Xiaowan standing in front of him.

"It gave me a big shock." Liu Yanqing said.

"Did you do anything wrong?" Lin Xiaowan raised her eyebrows.

"No, I just wanted to eat some strawberries. I'm a little hungry, so I ate some." Liu Yanqing said, "Do you want to eat? You can go back first. I'll go wash the strawberries."

"You just want to go back first, right?" How could Lin Xiaowan not know what Liu Yanqing was thinking? This man didn't want to stay in the field. He wanted to go back home. He just wanted to sit there and eat strawberries.

"Yes." Liu Yanqing nodded. "I want to go back and rest. This is human nature. How could I do something that goes against human nature? I just feel tired and don't want to work."

"..." Lin Xiaowan was convinced by Liu Yanqing. Liu Yanqing had such excuses every day.

How did Liu Yanqing come up with these reasons?

Lin Xiaowan thought that she could not think of these reasons, and it was impossible for her to come up with different reasons every time, but Liu Yanqing could.

"I'll go wash the strawberries. If you're in a hurry to eat them, just pick them and put them directly in your mouth." Liu Yanqing emphasized, "Washing strawberries is a delicate job. I might come over a little later."

The next moment, Lin Xiaowan grabbed Liu Yanqing's arm and said, "Just stay here."

Lin Xiaowan didn't plan to let Liu Yanqing wash the strawberries. She didn't know how long she would have to wait for him to come back.

"Okay, then I won't go back. It's not clean, but you won't get sick if you eat it." Liu Yanqing said again.

"Whatever." Lin Xiaowan said.

These things in ancient times were quite clean, much better than those made with pesticides and chemical fertilizers in later generations.

He Xiyuan, the eldest wife of the Liu family, didn't want to go back to the military camp so soon, but since it wasn't his wedding, he still had to go back early.

"The flower tea and cakes are all ready." Liu Yulian told He Xiyuan about the bundles. "Take them out and eat them when you want to. Don't keep them for too long. Ten days or half a month is already a long time."

If the weather wasn't so cold now, those pastries wouldn't be able to be kept for that long.

"If you can't finish it or don't like it, let others eat it." Liu Yulian didn't ask He Xiyuan to share the food with others. She felt that He Xiyuan had to have enough food for himself before sharing it with others.

This time, Liu Yanjing did not run over and did not tell He Xiyuan to go back quickly.

He Xiyuan subconsciously looked behind Liu Yulian, probably because Liu Yanjing always came out before.

Liu Yanjing was sitting in front of Princess Zhaoyang drinking tea, he did not run to the door. Of course he knew that Liu Yulian was at the door to see He Xiyuan off, only young people like them would be so annoying.

"Don't you want to go and see him off?" asked Princess Zhaoyang.

"I'm not going." Liu Yanjing said, "If I go, I'll be an eyesore. They don't want to see me at all."

"That's right." Princess Zhaoyang chuckled. "No matter what you did in the past, you will have to go to the military camp in the future."

"Yes." Liu Yanjing said, "I'll have to trouble you when the time comes."

"It's not a problem. This is my home too." Princess Zhaoyang thought that it didn't matter whether Liu Yanjing was at home or not. The people in the family were all good and there should be no conflicts.

As long as she can live comfortably at home, it doesn't make much difference whether Liu Yanjing is there or not.

Princess Zhaoyang did not have deep feelings for Liu Yanjing, and the two of them seemed to be living together.

"Yeah." Liu Yanjing said.

At the door, Liu Yulian said goodbye to He Xiyuan and watched him leave.

Liu Yulian walked back only after He Xiyuan's back disappeared.

"Miss." The maid beside her adjusted the hem of Liu Yulian's skirt and asked, "Do you want to go back to the courtyard?"

"Go back and have a nap." Liu Yulian had no plans to go to the farm, nor did she plan to look for other people. She just planned to go back and have a nap.

It’s better not to work too hard at such a young age. She has been doing a lot in recent days and even went to Zhuangzi with He Xiyuan.

Liu Yulian felt a little tired and she had to go back to rest.

"Yes." The maid responded.

In the capital, at the Mei family, the second young master Mei’s wife had a quarrel with the second young master Mei.

"What are you making a fuss about?" The second young master Mei felt that the second young master's wife was too noisy. Such a wife was not a good wife at all, and was a big trouble.

"Don't you know what I'm making a fuss about?" Mrs. Mei Ershao was furious. "Are you trying to favor your concubine over your wife? You always go to that little bitch. Do you think I'm stupid?"

Mrs. Mei Ershao was in a bad mood because she saw that her husband always went to Jiang's place and she was left alone in the empty room.

The Second Young Master Mei also said that Jiang had a miscarriage and that it was the fault of Mrs. Mei. Mrs. Mei believed that she was framed, but no one believed her.

"I go to her place every day. Is she the principal wife or am I?" asked Mrs. Mei Ershao.

"You are, you are, okay?" said the Second Young Master Mei. "Originally, she and I were engaged."

"Did I force you to marry me?" Mrs. Mei Ershao became angry when she thought of this. It was obvious that the Mei family was attracted by her status. Without the second young master Mei, she could still marry someone else.