The mistress who remarried has returned.

***

Su Yunxi felt increasingly uneasy, so she quickly put the scissors in the drawer and hurried out. She saw her mother sitting down on the small stool again, picking vegetables, and called out softly, "Mother."

When Su's mother turned around, she saw Xixi. Her daughter's eyes were red, but she didn't expose her daughter's feelings. She knew all too well her daughter's feelings for the eldest son. It was a pity that the eldest son had only kept Xixi as a concubine for so many years and had no intention of making it clear. Xixi already understood, so she smiled gently and said, "Xixi, your mother has prepared the food box for the Crown Prince. Please take it and give it to him quickly."

Su Yunxi didn't look at the food box, but went straight to the point and asked, "Today is the sixth day. I've been so busy attending to the Crown Prince these past two days that I've lost track of the date. I believed you when you said Yunze went to school. But Yunze doesn't actually have to go to school today. Where did Yunze go?"

Su's mother stammered and couldn't give a clear answer. She kept her head down picking vegetables and finally said after a long while, "Yunze went to play with his friends. I must have remembered wrong, Xixi. He's only eleven years old, still a child. Studying all day long makes him lose his innocence and it's very boring. It's good for him to go out and play occasionally to relax. It's not good for him to study so much that he becomes stupid or obsessed."

Su Yunxi pressed on, "Which friend did you go to play with? Tell me."

Seeing that she couldn't keep it a secret any longer, and fearing that if she casually told Xixi a name, Xixi would go to the child's house to find out if Yunze had gone to visit, Su's mother sighed, "Xixi, don't worry. Nothing happened, Yunze will be home later."

"Oh dear, Mother, please tell me quickly, where did Yunze go?" Su Yunxi was extremely anxious.

Seeing that she could no longer hide it, Su's mother decided to give up and not try to fool Xixi.

"Su Miao beat Xue Cheng's son, Xue Ping, at school, leaving him with a black eye. Wang Guirong is afraid the Xue family will pursue the matter, and Xue Cheng's sister has close ties with the Protector General's Mansion, so she can't be offended." Su's mother sighed. "Wang Guirong came to find your brother to take the blame for Su Miao. Your brother agreed to take the blame for Su Miao and went with Wang Guirong."

Su Yunxi was immediately enraged. "Yunze isn't the type to take the blame for others, but Wang Guirong made things difficult for you and threatened your safety, so he had no choice but to go?"

Mother Su shook her head. "That's not how it is, Xixi. Your brother went willingly. If he didn't want to, even if Wang Guirong forced him to go, he wouldn't confess. He admires you in every way, and he's also very stubborn."

"He did it willingly? That's impossible!" Su Yunxi immediately retorted to her mother. "Why would Yunze take the blame for Su Miao out of the blue? There must be something going on. If it's not because of you, then... I'm afraid it's because of me?"

Su's mother remained silent and turned to pick vegetables.

Su Yunxi anxiously pressed down on her mother's hand as she picked vegetables, pressing her for an answer: "Mother, please tell me! This hesitation is driving me crazy. Taking the blame for someone else is no small matter. A stain on your record will ruin your child's future, which is a lifelong issue. Mother, we've been enduring this hardship for the sake of Yunze's future."

Seeing that she couldn't hide it any longer, Su's mother said in a deep voice, "Xixi, your brother asked Wang Guirong to clean your incense-making tools and return them before he would agree to take the blame for Su Miao and apologize to the Xue family. Wang Guirong agreed, and now she's taking your incense-making tools with your brother to the Xue family. That means after your brother apologizes, he can let the Xue family deal with him, and after it's all over, they'll give the incense-making tools back to him."

It turned out to be for her incense-making tools.

Surprisingly, it was all for her incense-making tools.

Su's mother said softly, "Your younger brother knows that you enjoy tinkering with incense making in your spare time."

Su Yunxi's eyes suddenly welled up with tears, and her heart ached terribly. The image of her brother's arrogant demeanor flashed through her mind. To get back her incense-making tools, this child was willing to sacrifice his reputation and innocence, completely disregarding his pride.

"You two are simply being ridiculous."

Seeing her daughter angry, Su's mother lowered her head. "I can't persuade him. He only cares about his sister and wants to make her happy."

After picking up the food box, Su Yunxi decided to first go to the Xue residence to clarify the facts, bring back her younger brother, and then go to the Eastern Palace to attend to the Crown Prince's illness.

She could give up her hobby of incense making, leaving herself feeling empty and like a walking corpse, but she could not wrong her brothers. Her brothers could not lose their integrity, much less become scapegoats for others.

***

Steward Wang from the Xue family arrived at the gate of the military camp in the capital and bowed to the guard at the gate. "Master, I am sent by Miss Xue from the outer residence of the Qin family in the east corridor to report to the general."

Upon hearing the identity of the visitor, the guard said, "Since it was the young lady from the east corridor who summoned you, please wait a moment while I go and fetch the doorman from the general's study to hear what you have to say."

Butler Wang straightened his back a bit and said, "You're really something, being sent by the young lady. Thank you for your trouble."

***

Qin Huai arrived at his post at the military camp early in the morning. As he walked from the corridor toward his study inside the camp, a subordinate handed him a document to look at. After glancing at it, he held it in his hand.

When Kang Yin saw that the general had arrived at his post, he came over to report on his duties. "You have been busy these past two days and have not had the opportunity to report to you on the situation of the Crown Prince."

"I was just about to ask you that," Qin Huai said. "What a coincidence."

"His life was saved. I personally fed the prince the medicine that day and left him five days' worth of internal and external medicine. Because his symptoms were quite severe, he should have to go for a follow-up visit in five days."

Qin Huai didn't stop walking, and only said in a low voice, "I guess you were the one who fed me the medicine mouth-to-mouth later."

Kang Yin's forehead was covered in fine sweat. He chewed on the words "mouth to mouth" and broke out in a cold sweat. Having witnessed the scene of the general and the concubine being intimate that day, he did not have the courage to let the concubine feed the crown prince medicine mouth to mouth. "I was inconsiderate that day. I hope you will forgive me."

"Is Zhou Yu awake?" Qin Huai asked.

"I waited near the East Palace yesterday and inquired with the concubine, but she hasn't woken up yet," Kang Yin said, bowing. "She's only vaguely conscious, saying some nonsense about telling the concubine to find another place to run away to."

Qin Huai remained silent.

Liu Shun snorted. Even in his unconscious state, the Crown Prince was making plans for Consort Liang. They were truly a loving couple. "Kang Yin, why are you bringing this up? Consort Liang wouldn't bear to find someone else. She treasures the Crown Prince like the plague. She's even willing to risk everything to beg the General to arrange a doctor for her. Nobody wants to hear their lovey-dovey talk!"

Kang Yin observed Qin Huai's expression and found that he did not show the same outward resentment as Liu Shun, as he was known for his ability to manage his emotions.

"Look, your Uncle Liu Shun is jealous again. Well then, you'd better not mention that couple anymore, or your Uncle Liu Shun will cry in front of you." Qin Huai pondered for a moment.

Liu Shun also felt pathetic, unlike his master who had been used for seven years and decisively cut his losses by no longer having any feelings for Consort Su. He, on the other hand, was still emotionally affected by Consort Su. But he hadn't reached the point of crying...

Qin Huai walked towards the study. "She took six arrows to claim credit, and I am in the wrong. It should be five days later, when I take a troop of soldiers to the East Palace to investigate the spies. You can go with her for a follow-up examination."

Kang Yin bowed and awaited orders.

Qin Huai continued slowly, "However, it's not your fault for bringing this up. Someone else wants to wake Zhou Yu up as soon as possible. She's not in a hurry, so why are you? Don't you want to stay with me anymore? Do you want to switch allegiance to the Crown Prince?"