He favored his concubine and I cut off my wealth. Everyone in the mansion was in a panic.

When Shen Qing calmed down and looked to her side, she realized that Lu Yan was long gone.

Shen Qing reached out and touched the quilt, only to feel something cold. It was obvious that Lu Yan had been gone for a while.

Shen Qing looked out the door, "When is it?"

The voice of the night watch girl came quickly, "Go back to the princess, it's almost five o'clock."

"When did the prince leave?"

"About an hour ago."

An hour ago, at the end of the fourth watch, Shen Qing had just fallen asleep. In other words, Lu Yan got up and left after putting her to sleep.

Perhaps it was the nightmare that had just disturbed Shen Qing, but she felt a sense of uneasiness slowly building up in her heart, as if something bad was about to happen.

Her mind was clear, and her sleepiness had long since dissipated. Since she couldn't sleep, Shen Qing didn't force herself anymore. She called the girl in to hold the lamp, and then got up and walked towards the small couch beside her, covered with soft brocade quilts. She was sleeping soundly, and the peonies embroidered with gold thread on the brocade quilt kept rising and falling with Tuanzi's breathing, as if they were alive.

Shen Qing raised his hand and touched Tuanzi's soft head. The latter opened his eyes lazily and gave a coquettish "meow".

With the faint light, Shen Qing saw that Tuanzi's originally blue eyes seemed to have a little more gold, just like a few golden shells suddenly appeared on the blue seabed, which looked very beautiful.

Shen Qing was startled, thinking that the night was too dark and he had made a mistake, so he asked the girl to pick up the candlestick and bring it closer, and found that the golden color actually existed.

Shen Qing couldn't help but think for a moment, when did Tuanzi change like this? She remembered that she didn't see the golden color when she held Tuanzi yesterday, so did it suddenly appear overnight?

Afraid that Tuanzi might have some illness, Shen Qing ordered the girl to leave the house and ask a veterinarian to come back as soon as the curfew was over.

The girl responded and retreated. Shen Qing put Tuanzi on the bed and inspected her carefully. She found that there was nothing strange about her except for the changes in her eyes, and she finally felt a little more at ease.

The gong sounded at midnight, and the curfew ended. The girl hurried out of the house, and not long after, she invited a sleepy-eyed veterinarian back. It seemed that the girl had pulled him back in a hurry before he even got up.

Shen Qing first apologized to the doctor, and then explained the whole story before carrying the dumpling to the doctor.

Smelling the stranger's breath, Tuanzi opened his eyes suddenly. Just as he was about to show his sharp claws, Shen Qing forced him back, and then scolded him slightly: "Don't make trouble!"

Tuanzi instantly became more honest, and he lay down on the couch with a face of reluctance and allowed the doctor to examine him.

After a while, the doctor came to the conclusion: Tuanzi was in good health and had nothing wrong with him at all. The reason for such changes was probably because some hidden bloodline in his body suddenly awakened.

"Princess, do you know the color of this cat's parents' eyes?"

This point really bothered Shen Qing, so Shen Qing shook his head seriously.

She has never met Tuanzi's parents, but she can ask Mo Wuchen later.

Seeing this, the doctor comforted him again: "Don't worry, princess. There is gold in her eyes. Nine times out of ten, she is a precious breed. This cat is following the princess again. It is really a blessing."

If nothing else, just looking at Tuanzi's round body and smooth hair, you can tell that it is definitely well taken care of by Shen Qing.

Hearing this, Shen Qing felt relieved and asked Chanyi to fetch twenty taels of silver from the small box in the side room for the doctor.

"I asked the doctor to make a trip early in the morning. Thank you for your hard work."

The veterinary doctor responded repeatedly: "Princess, you are serious. No hard work, no hard work."

This is a full twenty taels of silver! He can't earn so much in a month, let alone getting up early, he would be happy even with two or three!

Stuffing the two heavy silver ingots into his arms, the veterinary doctor followed the girl out happily, without any of the sluggishness he had when he arrived.

After finishing the troubles with Tuanzi, Chen Shi had already passed. Chanyi gave Shen Qing a meal, while Tuanzi lay on his own small table and drank bird's nest elegantly.

"Did the army heading south leave?"

Chanyi nodded, "I'm leaving. I left with the prince just after half-way through Chou's time last night."

Because Li Yu was still ill, Lu Yan only took Li Ze and twenty secret guards away.

When Lu Tingyu forced the palace, most of Lu Yan's secret guards were destroyed. Now there are less than sixty left. Lu Yan took away one third, and the remaining ones stayed in Shengjing to protect Shen Qing Zhouquan. .

Although Shengjing is now peaceful, Lu Yan is still a little uneasy without Shen Qing by his side.

Perhaps because Lu Yan had just left, Shen Qing was not very interested in eating, so she only took a few bites and took Chanyi to Mo Wuchen's yard.

I learned from Mo Wuchen that Tuanzi’s parents and elder brother both had serious blue eyes, and they had never turned gold even though they were decades old.

Then Mo Wuchen said that Tuanzi is a Gu beast after all, and the existence of this thing itself goes against heaven, so it is normal for it to appear slightly different from normal cats.

Shen Qing thought it made sense, and looking at Mo Wuchen's helpless look, he asked Chanyi to bring him 10,000 taels of silver. The latter immediately left the house happily and went straight to Linjiang Tower.

The way he was running around was even more exciting than a gambler who had won money.

…

Around the same time, Shen Suyu came to Prince Jing'an's Mansion, bringing with him a lot of changes of clothes and supplies.

Shen Qing was a little puzzled. After asking, she found out that Shen Yian had learned during the morning court session that Lu Yan had gone to the south with Pingxi Hou overnight. He was afraid that Shen Qing would feel bored in the mansion alone, and was also worried that she was pregnant, so he asked Shen Shuyu to come and accompany her.

Shen Qing asked Chanyi to help Shen Shuyu deliver the things to Qingzhu Garden, and said with a smile: "Why do you need to go through so much trouble? I'm not a child, and besides, Ayin is still here."

She said no, but she couldn't hide the smile between her eyebrows.

The meticulous care of family members is always the most pleasing.

Shen Shuyu touched Shen Qing's hand, and after noticing that it was slightly cold, he warmed her up. "The new emperor ascended the throne, and the officials in the court have been changing, especially the Ministry of Revenue. During the morning court today, His Majesty said that the Meng family has made a lot of contributions to Da Chu over the years, especially Master Meng, so he specially promoted Master Meng to the position of Junior Secretary of the Imperial Household Department. Now the imperial edict is probably delivered to the mansion."

There are many court officials in Shengjing, so the rank of the qualification for the morning court is stuck at the fifth rank.

Meng Guanlan, as a sixth-rank member of the Ministry of Revenue, naturally did not have this qualification, but now it is different. The fourth-rank Junior Secretary of the Imperial Household Department has to attend the court, so naturally he does not have the leisurely life he has now.

As expected, Mr. Meng will summon him and Lan Yin back to the mansion soon, which is why Shen Shuyu rushed here in a hurry.

After listening to Shen Shuyu's words, Meng Guanlan felt that the sky was about to fall. No, how did he suddenly get promoted? It was promoted from the sixth rank to the fourth rank all at once. This is a full fourth rank. Doesn't Chu Lingyuan need to think carefully about it?

The most important thing is that he doesn't have the ability!

Before Meng Guanlan could wail, the servant who came to deliver the letter from the Meng family hurried over, with a strong sense of urgency in his voice, "Sir, Madam, the palace has sent an imperial edict. The old man asked you and Madam to go back quickly."

The matter was urgent, so Meng Guanlan and Lan Yin said goodbye to Shen Qing and hurried to the door.

Shen Shuyu took Shen Qing back to Qingzhu Garden, "Eldest sister, the baby in your belly is almost four months old, right?"

Shen Qing nodded, "Yes, in another half a month, it will be four months."

"That's great. When my brother-in-law comes back, I can feel the fetal movement." Shen Shuyu smiled, and two shallow dimples hung on her cheeks.

Shen Qing lowered her eyes and looked at her abdomen, with a gentle glow rising in her eyes, "How is the discussion between you and your cousin going? When is the date planned?"

"A few days ago, my father and Pingyang Bo discussed it again. My eldest sister's due date is in June, so we have to get the date before, either around the Flower Festival or around the Shangsi Festival."

If it's later, Shen Qing will be late and won't be able to attend her wedding.

Shen Qing smiled, "Both dates are good, it depends on what my father and uncle think."

Shen Shuyu responded lightly and began to talk to Shen Qing about another thing, "By the way, eldest sister, when I went to Pingyang Bo's mansion yesterday, I accidentally heard Pingyang Bo and Bo's wife talking about cousin Xiaoxiao. They said that she was always absent-minded before she left. I was worried that she might have encountered some difficulties. Could my eldest sister contact her?"

Absent-minded?

After listening to Shen Shuyu's words, Shen Qing was slightly surprised. Yun Xiaoxiao was not an introverted person. Normally, she should tell everyone when she encounters something.

Is it a secret that is difficult to talk about?

Suppressing the doubts in his heart, Shen Qing shook his head at Shen Shuyu, "No, since she returned to Yuncheng last time, we haven't contacted each other again."

Shen Shuyu was not surprised to get such a result. Fearing that Shen Qing would worry, he began to comfort her again: "Cousin Xiaoxiao has strong medical skills, and Rong Heng is with her. Nothing should happen."

Shen Qing knew Shen Shuyu's intention and nodded with a smile, but he was still a little careful in his heart. He was going to ask Lingyi to try to see if he could contact Yun Xiaoxiao. If there was really nothing wrong, they could rest assured.

Time passed quickly, and it was New Year's Eve in a blink of an eye.

Shen Qing and her sister did not stay in Jing'an Prince's Mansion anymore, but returned to Yining Marquis Mansion for a reunion.

As soon as she got off the carriage, she saw the secret guard of Jing'an Palace chasing after her. He took out a letter from his arms and presented it to Shen Qing respectfully, "Princess, this is the letter that the prince just sent back from the south. It was delivered to Jing'an Palace just after you and Miss Shen left."

Shen Qing took it with her hand, and the corners of her mouth subconsciously raised, "I know, you can go back."

After she finished speaking, she called the secret guard and added, "I will stay at Yining Marquis's Mansion tonight. Tomorrow morning, you will notify everyone in the mansion to go to the account office to collect 20 taels of silver each, which will be considered as the New Year's gift to you."

The secret guard's eyes lit up, "I thank you on behalf of everyone in the mansion. Princess."

Shen Qing waved her hand, "It's getting late, let's go back."

Looking at Shen Qing's sweet look as she tightly held the letter, Shen Shuyu couldn't help but joked, "Love really makes people lose money. Yesterday, my elder sister told me that everyone in Jing'an Palace would be rewarded with ten taels of silver on the first day of the new year. In a blink of an eye, I received a letter from my brother-in-law, and it doubled."

Shen Qing coughed lightly, "Isn't it because I thought that doing some good things and spending some money would make him smoother in the border."

Seeing Shen Qing's cheeks blushing, Shen Shuyu stopped teasing her, helped her back to the yard, and turned to go out, never disturbing her to read the letter.

Shen Qing sat on the small couch and opened the envelope. The ball in her arms lay lazily, and its tail swept over Shen Qing's lower abdomen.

Opening the letter, the first sentence that caught her eye was——

Jiaojiao, I have arrived in Nanyang City. I haven’t seen you for five days. I miss you very much.