The Marquis's line has ended? The pregnant maid is pregnant again!

The two maids, the thinner one wearing green was called Green Sleeves, and the slightly plumper one wearing pink was called Peach Blossom.

Both names are very fitting, both are fifteen years old, and the servant calls him Fang Yu.

Shen Qinghe asked Qing'er to settle the three people in before heading to the kitchen to prepare food.

The young marquis said that if there was no Manchu Han Imperial Feast, it would be her fault.

At this moment, Tao Yao greeted her with a smile, two shallow dimples on her cheeks. "Young lady, please take me with you. I'd like to do something for you."

Shen Qinghe was about to refuse, but then a thought struck her, "Alright, Qing'er, you don't need to go."

Qing'er was worried, but seeing Shen Qinghe's determined look, she nodded.

She always felt that her sister wouldn't be so careless, and probably wouldn't trust these three newcomers.

Qing'er straightened her back: "Lvxiu, Fangyu, you two come with me to sweep the yard."

On the way to the kitchen, Tao Yao followed her, chattering all the way: "I heard that you used to be in the old lady's courtyard, no wonder I've never seen you before."

"However, I've heard that your cooking skills are excellent, and that's why you've won the young marquis's favor..."

At this point, Shen Qinghe's gaze drifted over indifferently.

Tao Yao immediately realized she had misspoke and pursed her lips: "This servant misspoke, please forgive me, young lady."

"Never mind, you're too young. When did you enter the manor?" Shen Qinghe looked her up and down.

"Reporting to you, Madam, I entered the manor two years ago. I used to serve in the eldest young mistress's courtyard," Tao Yao replied.

So they were Madam's people. Shen Qinghe listened, made a mental note, and then asked, "Do you know Green Sleeve and Fang Yu?"

"Reporting to Madam, Green Sleeve was originally from Madam Chen's courtyard; she's Green Ivy's biological younger sister!" Tao Yao said, then hesitated slightly.

"As for Fang Yu, I heard that he used to serve in the Marquis's wife's courtyard. Since the Marquis's wife is still in seclusion at Mount Wutai and hasn't returned yet, the servants in the courtyard are temporarily idle, so the lady of the house assigned him here. But he doesn't talk much. When I talk to him, he doesn't even respond!"

Shen Qinghe listened, feeling both headache and amusement.

She rose from a maidservant to a concubine, her rank increased, her treatment improved, and she did indeed receive more respect.

As a result, there were more people serving in the courtyard, but Qing'er didn't have to do everything by herself.

However, Tao Yao is Qin Shi's person, Lü Xiu is Chen Xiao Niang's person, and Fang Yu is the Marquis's wife's person. It's as if they've openly planted three spies in her courtyard!

In the future, I'm afraid that if anything happens in her courtyard, it will be known to everyone in the entire Zhenguo Marquis's mansion by the next day.

It's really uncomfortable.

Fang Yu is alright, since the Marquis's wife isn't in the manor either, and Tao Yao can be put on hold for now.

We must be very careful around that green-sleeved woman.

As Shen Qinghe thought to herself, she soon arrived at the kitchen door.

Shen Qinghe had become a regular in the kitchen, and Li Mama was happy to make things convenient for her. Moreover, with Shen Qinghe becoming a concubine, it was as if Li Mama had successfully placed her bet.

Now that Li's mother was determined to befriend Shen Qinghe, she naturally gave her all the best ingredients.

Shen Qinghe composed herself and began cooking seriously.

Tao Yao may seem clumsy, but she is diligent. If anything happens to her, it will be easy to trace it back to Qin Shi.

Presumably, Madam Qin wasn't so foolish as to send someone directly to cause her trouble.

Just as she was halfway through, Shen Qinghe heard a commotion outside the kitchen—

She ran out and saw that it was Wu Xiaoniang's personal maid, Zisu.

Zisu demanded aggressively, "Mama Li, why does she get to use ice, while our mistress can't even get some?! Is it because her mistress is now a mistress?!"

-

Wu Xiaoniang was also very puzzled. She said she came to visit Shen Qinghe, but she really did nothing. She just chatted with Shen Qinghe from east to west, and it seemed that they were talking about some trivial matter.

Even the maids that Wu Xiaoniang brought didn't move.

Wu Xiaoniang would talk to Shen Qinghe until it was late at night and she would go home because she was sleepy. Every time she went out, she would bump into Lu Jihan, who was working in his study.

This continued for three days in a row.

Shen Qinghe sneered. Her courtyard had become a perfect spot for Wu Xiaoniang to run into Lu Jihan.

The Thousand Buddhas Festival has begun, and the parade in Chang'an has started.

The banquet for the Thousand Buddhas Festival takes place in the evening, and invited family members and officials from prominent families are required to attend.

Just as they were about to hand over the Buddha statue, Qing'er noticed something was wrong. "Sister... Sister, look! What happened to this Buddha statue?!"

Shen Qinghe glanced up, her expression remaining calm, and asked Granny Kang, "Granny, besides me, who else in the bamboo garden submitted Buddha statues for the Thousand Buddhas Festival today?"

Granny Kang nodded: "Young Lady Wu."

Shen Qinghe snorted coldly. So that's where they were waiting. She followed Granny Kang to Wu Xiaoniang's courtyard.

Granny Kang said, "Please hand over the Buddha statue, young lady."

Wu Xiaoniang's maid immediately brought out a large wooden box to hand over to Granny Kang.

But Shen Qinghe grabbed her wrist, staring at Wu Xiaoniang: "Are you sure, Xiaoniang, that the Buddha statue in this box was really embroidered by you yourself?"

"Qinghe, what are you saying? Of course I embroidered my own Buddha statue! Do you mean to slander me?!" Wu Xiaoniang questioned sharply.

Shen Qinghe sneered, in front of Granny Kang and the maids: "Fine, since you say you embroidered it yourself, then it's yours. I'll admit it!"

After saying that, Granny Kang left with her things, and Shen Qinghe didn't linger.

-

Half a day later.

Wu Xiaoniang was talking to Wu Xiaoniang.

"Sister Chen, you've really come up with a brilliant plan this time! You replaced Shen Qinghe's portrait while she was out of favor. Even if she has suspicions, no one in this courtyard can stand up for her! After all, she's fallen out of favor!"

Just as Wu Xiaoniang was about to speak, she was suddenly rushed in by Kang Mama and others and taken directly to Yuhe Hall!

-

In Yuhe Hall.

"Chen, what is your crime?!" the old lady demanded angrily. "Originally, offering a Buddha statue was enough, just to be respectful. Given Ji Han's status, our Zhenguo Marquis's mansion is perfectly suited to be in the limelight. Who knew that you, you lowly servant, would leave an embroidery needle on the Buddha statue, pricking the Empress's hand! Fortunately, the Empress is understanding and righteous; otherwise, the Marquis's mansion would have been implicated, and you would deserve to die!"

"No...no, I didn't!" Wu Xiaoniang never expected that her smugness and thought she was about to show off would turn into a disaster, and she immediately panicked.

Forced to kneel on the ground, Wu Xiaoniang, in her panic, looked at Shen Qinghe beside her and pointed at her, shouting, "Yes, it wasn't me who did it! She embroidered that Buddha statue! That lowly maidservant tried to harm me!"