Who said the heir would die out? The concubine is pregnant again!

Only by relying on Liang Yunqian can Yingzhu better fight back when Xu Fanglin bullies her!

This was a lesson she learned from her past life, and she didn't want to repeat it in this life. Therefore, she couldn't be a pushover; she had to be tough!

"The Crown Prince said that if I want to read the scriptures, I must travel by carriage, otherwise I should stay and rest in Tingsong Garden. I dare not disobey the Princess Consort's instructions, so I have no choice but to travel by carriage to read the scriptures. I hope the Crown Princess Consort will understand."

Shen Yingzhu is using Liang Yunqian to intimidate her again! She's so fond of showing off; she's clearly doing it on purpose to annoy her!

Xu Fanglin's red lips curled into a cold smile. "The fact that the young master carried you back has already caused gossip. You should have toned it down. Why are you still so ostentatious?"

Since Xu Fanglin likes to talk about rules, Yingzhu will discuss the rules of the manor with her.

"Tsk! How dare they gossip about the Crown Prince? Your Highness should severely punish those gossipy people to prevent them from tarnishing the Crown Prince's reputation."

"You come here to recite scriptures, putting on such an air. What will the Princess think if she sees this? Yesterday, the Princess declared that you cannot ride in a carriage. You are clearly taking advantage of her favor and going against her!"

"Granny Chen said that Her Highness the Princess Consort has no objections, but she is afraid that Your Highness the Crown Princess will be unhappy."

At this point, Yingzhu smiled slightly.

"However, I think the Crown Princess wouldn't be so petty as to fuss over such a small matter. After all, you also hope that I am healthy and can conceive the Crown Prince's child as soon as possible!"

She's not even pregnant yet! And she's already learned to use a child to intimidate people!

Seeing that the Crown Princess's expression was not good, Xia Guo immediately started to find fault.

"Shen Yingzhu, you're becoming increasingly presumptuous! The Crown Princess is speaking to you, and you haven't even dismounted to greet her. You've remained seated. What kind of decorum is this?"

In her past life, Yingzhu treated Xu Fanglin with utmost respect and courtesy, but what was the result?

He was still brutally murdered by Xu Fanglin!

This shows that whether or not one follows proper etiquette is completely unimportant; if Xu Fanglin can't tolerate her, he has countless reasons to kill her!

In that case, Yingzhu will only put on an act in front of others in this life. Once there are no outsiders around, she no longer needs to adhere to any etiquette, especially when she is injured.

"My knee is injured. The Crown Prince instructed me not to move it unnecessarily, lest I aggravate the injury. Please forgive me for not being able to bow to the Crown Princess."

Xu Fanglin's pride wouldn't allow her to be outdone; she raised her chin slightly, exuding arrogance.

"The Crown Prince cares about having offspring, which is why he made an exception to take care of you. He simply hopes that your injuries will heal as soon as possible so that you can better serve him, and that he can have children without any worries."

In order to save face for the Crown Princess, Xu Fanglin could only pretend not to care.

Yingzhu didn't care what Xu Fanglin thought; she just needed to firmly follow her own path.

Since Liang Yunqian had given permission for her to make an exception, she wouldn't make things difficult for herself anymore.

Yingzhu continued to travel in her palanquin, while Xu Fanglin followed on foot. Along the way, servants glanced at her from afar and whispered amongst themselves.

"Look how majestic Shen Yingzhu looks sitting on the palanquin! She's so beautiful and dignified, she looks more like the Crown Prince's consort!"

Xu Fanglin was far away, so she couldn't hear them, but judging from their expressions, she could tell that what they were saying was definitely not nice!

Yingzhu didn't care at all, because she had been gossiped about a lot, and she could only ignore what those people said.

After the two arrived at Deshantang, Xu Fanglin washed his hands, burned incense, and began copying Buddhist scriptures, while the old woman taught Yingzhu to recite them.

Yingzhu had to pretend she couldn't read and obediently stand by, reading along with the nanny. Every now and then, she had to pretend she couldn't remember and made a mistake.

Xu Fanglin hated copying scriptures, especially under the watchful eye of the Princess Consort Rui. However, since the Crown Prince had already spoken, she could only pretend to do it.

Princess Rui was still troubled by Ning Xuelu's matter and ordered someone to invite Zhou Zisu over. Zhou Zisu bowed gracefully upon entering.

"Greetings to Her Highness the Princess. May I ask what brings Her Highness to see me?"

"It's all because of that bottle of Snow Dew," Princess Rui sighed wistfully.

"The item has been found, but the seal has been replaced and cannot be restored. Without the seal, how can it be delivered to the Empress Dowager?"

Xu Fanglin's phoenix eyes flickered slightly, and a plan came to mind.

"Aunt Zhou is Doctor Wu's apprentice, so she can definitely imitate her master's handwriting. Just have her make a fake seal."

Upon hearing this, Yingzhu secretly sighed in alarm, wondering what terrible idea Xu Fanglin had come up with!

"Huh? Forgery?" Zhou Zisu felt troubled. "Isn't that inappropriate? I can imitate, but Master strictly forbids us from imitating his handwriting. If we are discovered, we will be severely punished."

"I had no choice but to do this. After all, it was an item presented to the Empress Dowager, and it had to be sealed to prove its authenticity. You are Dr. Wu's apprentice, and only you can imitate it so well that it is indistinguishable from the real thing."

If I hadn't agreed, I could simply not offer tribute, but I've already promised the Empress Dowager, and I can't go back on my word! Zisu, please do me a favor!

Despite Princess Rui's repeated attempts to persuade her, Zhou Zisu's crescent-shaped eyebrows remained tightly furrowed.

After hesitating for a long time, she finally nodded with difficulty.

"Then I'll give it a try!"

With her consent, Princess Rui breathed a sigh of relief and ordered someone to prepare pen and ink.

"Wait a minute---"

After a long silence, Yingzhu suddenly spoke up, "Your Highness, although Ningxue Dew has been found, its seal is missing and it has been out of sight for about half an hour."

"If someone tampered with the Snow Condensation Dew and then presented it to the Empress Dowager, the consequences would be unimaginable!"

Zhou Zisu silently recalled, "After Ningxue Dew was switched by Baolan and locked in the box, she shouldn't have had time to tamper with it in such a short time, right?"

"That's right! Baolan was going to resell them, so she couldn't possibly have tampered with them."

Xu Fanglin disagreed, but Yingzhu reminded her again.

"That's just speculation; Baolan hasn't admitted it. Besides, without the seal, there's an opportunity to tamper with it. Since it's an item presented to the Empress Dowager, we can't take the risk. I urge Your Highness to reconsider!"

If nothing goes wrong, all is well; but if something does happen, no one can afford the responsibility!

Seeing Shen Yingzhu's solemn expression, Princess Rui fell into deep thought.

She had never considered this issue before, but after Shen Yingzhu brought it up, she suddenly realized that this bottle of Ningxue Dew had safety risks.

Giving it to the Empress Dowager is risky, but if she doesn't give it, she won't have fulfilled her promise to the Empress Dowager. What should she do then?

"If the Empress Dowager asks, how should I answer? I can't just reveal all these messy things happening in the mansion; wouldn't that make people laugh and think that the Prince Rui's household has poor discipline?"

This matter is indeed tricky. All Yingzhu can do is remind Princess Rui of the potential risks. Whether Princess Rui listens or not is not Yingzhu's concern.

"This is merely my guess, and it is not accurate. The decision should be made by Your Highness."

Princess Rui originally thought that she could simply imitate the seal, but Shen Yingzhu's words made her hesitate. She began to think about whether doing so was too risky and how to break the deadlock.

"Actually... there's another way..."

Zhou Zisu hesitated before speaking, and upon hearing this, Princess Rui's worried brows immediately relaxed.

"What method? Tell me quickly!"

Zhou Zisu clenched her teeth, seemingly a little embarrassed.

After Princess Rui repeatedly asked, she finally blushed and said:

"My master said he also left me a bottle of Ningxue Dew, but he said I don't need it now, so he didn't give it to me. He said he would give me the bottle of Ningxue Dew after I consummate my marriage with Yunqian and have a child. Applying it to my abdomen can prevent pregnancy spots."

Upon hearing this, Yingzhu understood Zhou Zisu's implied meaning.

She was using this to pressure Liang Yunqian into consummating their marriage before she would hand over the other bottle of Ningxue Dew!