If she dared to say bluntly that it tasted bad, the princess would make sure she never left this room.

The rumors were indeed true; the claim that the eldest princess was unpredictable was not an exaggeration.

"Speak, what brings you to me?" Having satisfied her wicked sense of humor, Yan Mingyi was clearly in a good mood.

Shen Tangning didn't know how to broach the subject. To say that she wanted the Eldest Princess to support the Crown Prince, openly forming factions and interfering in court affairs, would be suicidal.

She lowered her eyes quietly, an angle that best accentuated her gentle and harmless demeanor: "Tang Ning has heard His Highness the Crown Prince mention Your Highness before, and his words were full of admiration, so she thought it would be a pleasure to get to know Your Highness..."

Yan Mingyi suddenly stood up, her attitude changing in an instant. Just moments ago she had been all smiles, but now her face was icy: "My time is precious, and I have no interest in listening to your perfunctory excuses."

She turned and left as she spoke, and Shen Tangning looked up in surprise, her heart sinking.

If she cannot give the princess a satisfactory answer this time, she may not have the opportunity to see the princess again in the future.

She couldn't care less about anything else for a moment. She hurriedly got up and stood in front of Yan Mingyi. She hardened her heart and knelt down: "Tang Ning dares not deceive Your Highness. I have come here for my cousin, the Crown Prince!"

Yan Mingyi stopped in his tracks and looked down at the woman in front of him.

Her eyelashes trembled uncontrollably, but her voice remained calm, carrying a sense of desperation. "Your Highness is the Crown Prince's aunt. Tang Ning begs Your Highness, even if you don't stand on his side, please don't stand against him!"

She stared intently at the princess's skirt, her palms damp with cold sweat.

She knew she had acted too impulsively today. Her little schemes were no match for the Princess, and it was even highly likely that the Princess had seen through her intentions from the very beginning.

But Shen Tangning couldn't proceed slowly. She didn't know when the Third Prince had won over the Eldest Princess; she only knew that her cousin, the Crown Prince, would be returning to the capital in two months.

He returned to the capital in triumph, laden with honors and rewards, but instead was met with fabricated charges and six months of imprisonment.

Shen Tangning closed her eyes and heard a cold voice above her head: "Raise your head."

She looked up in that instant.

Yan Mingyi sized up the girl. Although she was already married, she was still quite young. She had long heard that the Shen family's daughter was both talented and beautiful, but she didn't think much of it.

However, upon closer inspection today, it seems there's some truth to it.

Her appearance was indeed outstanding, bright yet not frivolous, her clear black and white eyes revealed a hint of aloofness, clearly reflecting the emotions within.

Yan Mingyi suddenly smiled, bent down and lifted her chin: "I like your eyes."

A hint of confusion flashed across the latter's eyes, but he still readily agreed: "It's Tang Ning's honor."

Yan Mingyi straightened up and gave her a cryptic look.

She liked Shen Tangning's eyes, not because they were particularly beautiful, but because she saw something she herself possessed in them.

"Shen Tangning, I will remember you."

Yan Mingyi looked at her deeply, left a sentence, and turned to leave.

...

"I've never seen Your Highness speak so much to any of the younger generation. Does Your Highness really like Miss Shen?" Yin Fang was an old servant who had served the Princess, so how could she not see through Yan Mingyi's thoughts?

Yan Mingyi glanced at her lightly: "You certainly know how to read my mind."

Yin Fang knew she wasn't angry, and smiled, lowering her head: "This servant was being nosy."

"This girl is quite interesting." A hint of nostalgia flashed in Yan Mingyi's eyes, her voice barely audible, "She reminds me of my former self."

Yin Fang nodded: "The eldest daughter of the Shen family is young, but she is quite shrewd."

Yan Mingyi curled her lips: "I don't think it's a bad thing for a woman to have ambition."