As Yanshu had just become pregnant, and Yuwen Lan still had government affairs to attend to, after placating the Empress Dowager, the two bid farewell and left the Palace of Benevolent Peace.

With the Emperor present, Yanshu dispensed with the sedan chair and rode directly in the imperial carriage on the way back.

At this time, with no outsiders in the spacious carriage, Yuwen Lan asked Yanshu, "It was just a matter of a lake brush. I could have easily explained it for you. Why did you feel the need to hurriedly reveal your identity to the Empress Dowager?"

Yanshu replied, "Although Your Majesty covered for me this time, what about next time? Moreover, when I saw how Zhu Shu spoke just now, the Empress Dowager had already become suspicious of me. Even if we manage to explain it away, I suspect the Empress Dowager will not feel the same about me as before. Besides, the Empress Dowager greatly enjoys my novels. If one day she insists on meeting the 'Carefree Young Master', am I supposed to find someone else to impersonate me? If the Empress Dowager learns the truth then, I'm afraid she'll be even angrier."

Initially, she had felt the Empress Dowager was a dangerous figure. If she knew those novels were written by her, she might use it as an excuse to punish her. After spending more time together, she realized the Empress Dowager was actually quite nice, and since she enjoyed her novels so much, she probably wouldn't use it against her.

So it was better to take this opportunity to come clean, rather than having to hide and make excuses in the future.

Between people, it's actually better to be a bit more honest.

Yuwen Lan listened and felt it made sense, so he nodded, "Very well. In the future, if the Empress Dowager bestows more gifts, I won't need to pass them on anymore."

She was right - it was better to be honest sooner rather than later. Most importantly, the Empress Dowager had accepted it, which wasn't a bad outcome.

Yanshu nodded, but suddenly frowned and said, "Come to think of it, does Zhu Shu have some issue with me? Why did she immediately assume I was concealing the Empress Dowager's gift when she saw me use the lake brush? Does she think I'm a bad person?"

Before Yuwen Lan could respond, the system chimed in, [It's simple. Zhu Shu actually likes the Emperor and has always seen you as a love rival.]

Yanshu let out a sound of surprise, [Zhu Shu likes the Emperor???]

The system replied, [Why so many question marks? Is it that unbelievable? After all, the Emperor is quite handsome. Zhu Shu came to serve the Empress Dowager when she was only thirteen, and at that time the Emperor was just ten. They basically grew up together.]

Yanshu stammered, [But, but, but... the Emperor couldn't perform before.]

Yuwen Lan, who had been secretly listening, felt a twitch between his brows.

Why suddenly bring this up again?

That was all in the past, okay!

The system continued, [She didn't know the Emperor couldn't perform before! Just like Consort Zhou, Consort Ning, and Consort An, they all thought the Emperor was a normal man. With such a handsome, powerful, young and vigorous man, it's hard not to like him.]

Yanshu was speechless.

That's true. Who else in the world would be like her, not minding the Emperor's inability to perform?

Thinking of this, she unconsciously touched her belly, secretly marveling that the saying "with enough perseverance, an iron rod can be ground into a needle" was indeed true.

Yuwen Lan: "???"

That's the wrong idiom!

"Patience is rewarded" would be more appropriate!

What do you mean by grinding an iron rod into a needle?!

Yanshu returned to Ganlu Palace in the imperial carriage. Not long after, people from the Imperial Wardrobe Bureau and the Office of Imperial Treasures arrived.

They were busy taking measurements for new clothes and selecting jewelry for quite some time.

The next day, the imperial edict for her formal appointment was issued. After the conferment ceremony, she officially became Imperial Consort Yi.

Her family outside the palace, the Household of the Earl of Loyalty and Righteousness, was officially elevated to become the Marquis of Loyal Righteousness's Mansion, inspiring much envy.

Meanwhile, in the Palace of Benevolent Peace, Nanny Zhuang, who had finally been allowed to leave after kneeling in the Buddha hall for three days, was now weeping bitterly before the Empress Dowager, begging for forgiveness.

"This slave forgot her place in a moment of anxiety. Please forgive me, Your Highness."

The Empress Dowager still spoke coldly, "His Majesty has an heir now. What are you anxious about?"

Nanny Zhuang cried, "This slave was entrusted by the old master and mistress to help Your Highness maintain the glory of the Duke of Cheng'en's Mansion. Who would have thought that now, watching others about to give birth to the emperor's firstborn son, this slave couldn't help but feel resentful on behalf of the Duke of Cheng'en's Mansion!"

Having been mistress and servant for decades, and since this was a maid she had brought from her maiden home, the Empress Dowager knew her words were not false. She could only sigh, "What is there to resent? I have done my best these past twenty years. If they themselves are incompetent, what can be done?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Nanny Zhuang quickly wiped her tears and said, "After all that has happened, I expect the Duke of Cheng'en has reformed. Now the third young miss has also grown up. The third young miss has a gentle disposition, as you know..."

Before she could finish, the Empress Dowager raised her hand to stop her and said, "Do you think entering the palace is a good thing? If one can live well outside, why come into the palace to suffer this darkness? Why go and ruin the third girl's life? Do you think I'm living happily now?"

If she could choose again, she would never enter the palace. Looking back, her whole life seems to have been wasted like this.

Nanny Zhuang frowned and said, "But aren't you worried about what will happen to the Zhou family in the future?"

The Empress Dowager gave a cold laugh, "That's for the Zhou family to worry about themselves. Out of consideration for our years as mistress and servant, if you still want to stay by my side, just do your duty. If you don't want to, I'll find a place outside the palace to settle you, and we need never see each other again."

Nanny Zhuang paused, then could only cry again, "How could this slave abandon Your Highness and go outside the palace? From now on, this slave will never mention this matter again."

As her pregnancy progressed day by day, Yanshu's symptoms became more and more severe.

At first, she could still eat, but later she would feel nauseous at the smell of meat and oily foods, and vomited for several days in a row.

Seeing his beloved consort's face noticeably thinner in just a few days, the Emperor was naturally worried. After some thought, he had no choice but to send someone to the Marquis of Loyal Righteousness's Mansion to invite the Marchioness into the palace.

As someone who had been through it herself, Ms. Zhu knew her daughter was going through a difficult time. So she specially prepared some of her daughter's favorite foods from before and brought them into the palace.

As soon as Yanshu saw her mother, she smelled the aroma she had been dreaming of.

Chive dumplings!!!

Before her mother could speak, she asked eagerly, "Mother, did you bring chive dumplings?"

Ms. Zhu smiled and opened the package she had brought, "The young mistress has a keen nose indeed. Here, I just made these before getting in the carriage. They're still warm."

As she spoke, she handed over a warm chive dumpling.

Yanshu was like a traveler who had journeyed long through the desert and finally found an oasis. She immediately took it and stuffed it into her mouth.

Mmm, it was indeed her mother's handmade chive dumpling. The pastry had a rustic wheat fragrance. Knowing that she was currently averse to oily foods, her mother had only used tofu and chives for the filling, and had used almost no oil when pan-frying. It tasted light and pure, yet very flavorful. It was exactly to her liking. In just a few bites, she had finished one.

Seeing this, her mother Ms. Zhu worriedly handed her some tea and advised, "Eat slowly, my dear. There are plenty more. Don't choke."

Yanshu made a sound of acknowledgment and picked up another one. In no time at all, it too had gone into her stomach.

Mmm, her stomach, which had been feeling acidic for days, finally had something in it. She felt much better.

Yanshu drank two more cups of tea before asking her mother, "How is everything at home recently? How are you and father? How is grandmother's health?"

Ms. Zhu nodded quickly, "Everything is fine at home, don't worry and just focus on taking care of yourself. Your grandmother is doing well too. She had originally... wanted to come along today, but when the eunuch delivering the imperial edict said His Majesty hoped I could stay in the palace for a couple of days, she didn't dare come and stayed at home instead."

Yanshu's eyes lit up, "Is that what His Majesty said? That's wonderful!"

Having her mother by her side was like having a spiritual pillar, making her body, tormented by pregnancy symptoms, feel somewhat better.

Ms. Zhu nodded, "That's what the eunuch delivering the edict said. I specially brought a few more changes of clothes."

Yanshu quickly said that was good and told Lianxin to prepare a room for her mother.

After making the arrangements, she asked, "How is Tianrui doing at the Imperial Academy? Has he adjusted well?"

Come to think of it, in the blink of an eye, her brother Li Tianrui had already been at the Imperial Academy for three months.

Unfortunately, due to protocol, although Yanshu had seen her parents and grandmother, she still hadn't seen her brother.

Mother nodded and said, "He's doing well too. Being admitted to the Imperial Academy has really made a difference. Not only has he learned a lot, but his temperament has also improved. Just the other day, he was cheated while buying something on Examination Hall Street. In the past, he would have gotten into a fight right away, but now he knows his position is different. He didn't want to tarnish your reputation, so he managed to control himself."

Yanshu found this curious and quickly asked, "What happened when he was cheated?"

Ms. Zhu explained, "Well, you know Examination Hall Street is where they sell all the scholar's four treasures, right? At the Imperial Academy, they're required to use white hemp paper for writing. That day, he had run out of paper, so he went to Examination Hall Street to buy some. But when he got it, he realized something was off about the paper. He wanted to argue with the shopkeeper, but luckily, someone advised him against it, so he didn't pursue it further and went somewhere else to buy paper instead."

Ms. Zhu added pointedly, "Your father has warned him that now that we've been elevated to a Marquis's household, many eyes are watching us from the outside. It's better to suffer a small loss than to cause a scene that might affect you."

Yanshu nodded, understanding her father's good intentions.

After all, Li Tianrui was now the heir to a Marquis's household. If he got into an argument with a shopkeeper over paper, who knows if someone might accuse him of bullying commoners.

Considering her brother's youthful temper, it must have been difficult for him to hold back.

Just then, her mother frowned and said, "Come to think of it, it's strange. I don't know what's going on with Examination Hall Street, but several paper shops there are passing off inferior goods as high-quality ones. Tianrui went to several places before finally finding genuine white hemp paper at a small shop next to our house."

Yanshu also found this odd. Examination Hall Street was supposed to be the most famous place in the capital for buying stationery. Most students went there for their supplies. How could the shopkeepers dare to sell substandard goods, making it impossible to buy good paper?

The system chimed in, [It's simple. Someone in the court is using their position for personal gain, monopolizing the main stationery shops in the capital.]

Yanshu was stunned. [How could someone be so bold? Who is it?]

The system replied, [The man's name is Bao Qiwen. He's currently the Director of Studies at the Imperial Academy, responsible for its daily affairs. A few years ago, he secretly opened a paper mill outside the city. He's been selling cheap hemp sandpaper as white hemp paper, controlling the supply for several stationery shops on Examination Hall Street. Moreover, he's also supplying the Imperial Academy and several other government-affiliated academies. The students are all using his paper.]

Yanshu was puzzled. [He's being so blatant about it? Hasn't anyone noticed?]

The system explained, [He's been in this position at the Imperial Academy for many years and has built good relationships with many academies. Besides, he provides good paper for the teachers and inferior paper for the students. The students are young and naive, and the teachers are afraid of causing trouble. Plus, it's all paid for with government money, so who wants to bother with it?]

Yanshu gasped, [Each academy has at least several hundred students using paper every day. That's a huge consumption. He must be making a fortune!]

The system confirmed, [Indeed. Over the years, he's made a killing. He's practically the number one rat stealing from the government.]

Yanshu asked, [Has no one discovered this?]

The system sighed, [This man is excellent at feigning poverty. He still lives in an old house from over a decade ago, one that even leaks when it rains. His clothes are washed until they're faded, and he and his wife eat simple meals daily. He appears extremely frugal. Who would suspect him?]

Yanshu was bewildered, [Then what's the point of making all this ill-gotten money? He's not enjoying any of it!]

The system replied, [Who says he's not enjoying it? In fact, many years ago, he bought the best lakeside mansion in the luxurious Golden Bright Pond area of the capital. It's filled with beautiful serving girls, creating a veritable paradise of wine and pleasure. He goes there every few days to indulge himself.]

Yanshu was speechless. [...] What a character!