Meanwhile, Huanbi had already gone to the tailor shop to check on their winter coats. To be honest, Lanqin treated her maids very well, taking out most of the good fabrics and cotton from her own storeroom to make winter clothes for them, including for Master Niu. Although the manor had issued winter coats, Lanqin felt that they all looked and styled too similar, making it difficult for her to distinguish one from another.
While everyone was distracted, Nianxue quietly went to Huanbi's room. She and Ziran had been assigned to the same room, so they shared a room.
Nianxue went to Huanbi's bed and began to examine it little by little, even searching under the bed, the floor tiles, and the clothes in the closet, but she found nothing unusual.
Fearing that Huanbi would find out when she returned, Nianxue tidied up everything that had been turned over, keeping it basically the same as before.
Lanqin was currently curled up on her warm couch reading a book, but she was so bored that she had to pass the time with a printed book.
Seeing Nianxue enter the room with a somber face, Lanqin knew she had come up empty-handed, which was exactly what she had predicted. If Huanbi truly harbored ulterior motives, she probably wouldn't have left any evidence.
"Xi Cha, go and brew a pot of tea for me. I want to drink dahlia tea, with my creamer."
Lanqin dismissed Xicha, giving Nianxue a chance to speak.
Sure enough, as soon as Xicha left, Nianxue walked to Lanqin's side and whispered, "I just checked all her belongings, and apart from a few taels of silver, there was nothing else."
Lanqin's eyes flashed, and she said, "You should keep an eye on her for now and observe how things develop. If she's a fox, she'll eventually show herself."
Meanwhile, Que'er was summoned to the main courtyard. When she entered, she found Mingyan and the head steward of the kitchen, Huang, kneeling on the ground, while Li Shi sat in the first seat to the right of the Fujin (Prince's wife). Li Shi had been summoned by the Fourth Prince, since there was no evidence to prove her direct involvement in the matter, so it was not appropriate to keep her kneeling on the ground for long.
"Que'er, the gatekeeper has something about you coming and going from the mansion many times. Can you tell me why you come and go from the mansion so often?" The Fujin stared at the maid and was surprised to see that the latter's charming face was comparable to that of Li Shi. She thought to herself that it was really a waste for her to be a maid.
"Your Highness, my home is just outside the city. I only go out to visit my ailing mother, nothing more. Please forgive me!"
"So you really do visit your mother every time you go back? Very well, tell me your address, and I'll immediately send someone to deliver herbs and a doctor to your mother. How about that?" The princess wasn't so easily fooled. If Li really bought things from outside, they must have gone through this maid.
Que'er clearly hadn't expected the Fujin to say that, but she really hadn't bought any safflower. Every time she went out, she was either delivering a letter to Li's cousin or buying things for Li that weren't included in her allowance.
"This servant thanks Your Highness, but my mother is just an ordinary farmer and truly does not deserve Your Highness's concern. Please do not trouble yourself. If Your Highness is curious about my mother, I can bring her to the manor to see Your Highness." Que'er had spent most of the night chatting with Li Shi and knew that who had placed the red flower and when it had been placed were now the key to the whole matter.
Fourth Master interrupted, "Search for them! Canlian, where are your two maids staying? I want to thoroughly search for their recent whereabouts."
Although Li was wronged, she couldn't blame anyone else. Besides, according to her plan, Yan Yu might have already miscarried, and she could have remained perfectly uninvolved. Unexpectedly, safflower was found in the pot of jujube tea, and so far, no one can say who added it.
"I have nothing to hide, so if you want to search their rooms, go ahead. But I truly have no intention of harming Sister Yan Yu, or may I be struck by lightning!" Madam Li had taken a rather high gamble, but at this moment, she was willing to say anything to prove her innocence.
The head maid agreed to the Fourth Master's order and led her men to the South Courtyard.
The waiting time always seemed to drag on forever, and everyone was lost in their own thoughts.
The Fujin carefully glanced at the Fourth Prince's expression before getting up and walking to Yan Yu's side. She said gently, "Yu'er, if you are tired, go back and rest first. Your elder sister will support you in seeking justice, and the Prince will also find the person who wanted to harm you and your child."
Yan Yu had just experienced fetal movement yesterday and was indeed a bit tired at the moment, so she followed the words of the Fujin and said, "Then you should go back first, and drink the medicine that Doctor Zhou prescribed."
"Go back and rest, Yun Yuan. Take good care of your princess and make sure there are no more mishaps!" The Fourth Prince then said to his wife, "The roads outside are slippery, Xia Yu, have someone carry Yu'er back in a sedan chair."
"I understand." The Fujin took Yan Yu's hand and slowly walked towards the door. The two women were like close sisters, giving each other advice. But when they turned the door and walked into the corridor, the Fujin said in a voice so low that only Yan Yu could hear, "Don't touch the master's sore spot. Deal with Li Shi first, and your elder sister will not treat you badly."
Yan Yu smiled and took the Fujin's hand, saying, "But it seems that my elder sister has planned everything, but she overlooked the fact that Li Shi was able to prove that someone else was behind it."
The princess slightly curled her lips and said, "She won't be able to prove it soon enough. Now that I've taken action, I won't give her another chance to turn things around."
Meanwhile, the head nanny led several people to Mingyan and Que'er's room and began a thorough search, turning over every tangible place, but they found nothing of interest.
Seeing their behavior, the servants in the Li family's courtyard all began to panic. They were naturally afraid that something might happen to the Li family, and that they, the monkeys under the big tree, would suffer.
"You lot, search here carefully. You lot, come with me to check on Consort Li's room!" the head nanny said without any restraint. She had received a secret order from the Fourth Prince to search Mingyan and Que'er's rooms under the guise of searching, while secretly searching Consort Li's room.
When Xiangqiao saw the head nanny leading people toward Consort Li's room, she quickly followed her with a smile and asked, "Nanny, our mistress isn't here right now, you can't go into her room like this."
"Consort Li is currently in the main courtyard. I was ordered by the Fourth Prince to search the place. What, are you going to disobey the Fourth Prince's orders?" The head nanny was too lazy to make up lies for Xiangqiao.
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