The Grand Secretary has no heir? His concubine gives birth to triplets.

The doll was like a spark of embers in her frozen palm.

She instinctively pressed it tightly into her arms.

So warm!

She'd had enough of being a servant for the past month.

The water-boiling woman was selective in her serving; the water she gave the head maid was hot enough to cook an egg, but when it came to her, there was only half a bucket of lukewarm water left.

The old woman in charge of the charcoal was even better at dealing with people; she delivered baskets of silver frost charcoal to Cuiping's house.

She even had to exchange needlework for scraps of charcoal.

When she worked as a prostitute, she thought most of the servants were honest and dutiful.

Only now do I realize that even servants can be worlds apart.

Jiang Guo'er sniffed her frostbitten nose, stuffed the doll into her inner garment, and tightened it with her belt.

Never mind, I'll keep it to keep myself warm!

In the inner courtyard's clean room, steam seeped out beyond the screen.

Pei Yan took off his clothes, leaving only his undergarments and trousers, and entered the bathtub.

Cuiping, accompanied by two maids, arranged the soap, bath beans, dried fine cotton towels, and clean undergarments in order from left to right.

There must be no slightest deviation or scrambling.

Light another piece of rhinoceros horn incense and place it inside the screen.

She took a risk and broke the rules today, dressing up specially.

Pei Yan, however, never glanced at her.

Cuiping curled her fingers inside her sleeve, then mustered her courage and stepped forward.

"Your Excellency, let me massage your head to relieve your fatigue."

However, as soon as her hand touched Pei Yan's shoulder, Pei Yan raised his hand, grabbed her wrist, and flung her away.

Pei Yan didn't hear what she said at all.

Just now, a strange, soft sensation suddenly pressed against his chest.

[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name: 20 ...

But when I looked down, there was nothing there.

The delicate touch felt incredibly realistic.

It was as if some shameless woman had concealed her form, opened her clothes, and pressed her soft breasts against his body.

Pei Yan's face was gloomy, but a faint blush appeared on his pale ears.

For twenty-nine years he lived a life of abstinence, unable to feel the slightest interest in any woman.

But at this moment, this stagnant body suddenly showed a reaction never before seen!

Who is plotting against him?

Cuiping noticed that his aura had changed, and her heart leaped with joy. Just as she was about to get closer, she heard him speak coldly.

"go out."

"Prime...Master?" Cuiping was startled and hurriedly knelt down.

"Get out, everyone!!!"

Cuiping dared not linger any longer and immediately led her people away.

After closing the door, Pei Yan checked the entire clean room.

Incense burner, water bucket, bath beans, soap pods, clothes—not even the window cracks were spared.

There were no hidden weapons, no poison powder, and no one.

"Did those three maids confess?"

In the misty steam, his broad shoulders stretched into an arc under the flickering candlelight.

The leader of the secret guards, Xiao San, knelt on one knee outside the door.

"Your subordinate is incompetent; you failed to interrogate the assassin!"

"There were no traces of concealed weapons around the clean room. The snacks, fruits, tea, and incense burner were all tested with silver needles and were found to be non-poisonous."

"The three maids all swore by their families that they had never done anything improper to the Prime Minister."

Pei Yan's suspicions deepened, so he picked up a wooden ladle, filled it with water, and poured it over Pei Yan's head again.

The water trickled down his chiseled jawline and landed on his bulging pectoral muscles.

However, that feeling still clung stubbornly to his heart, and he couldn't shake it off no matter what.

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, Jiang Guo'er woke up.

She reached into her bosom and stroked it, finding the doll from last night still there, and smiled wryly.

He folded the coarse cloth skirt he hadn't finished mending last night, took out half a cold steamed bun from under his pillow, and swallowed it with cold water.

There were two maids sweeping snow outside the door, whispering and gossiping as they swept.

"Yesterday, Sister Cuiping was kicked out by the Prime Minister."

"Really? She's so beautiful and has such a great figure, how come it didn't work out?"

"What's wrong with her? I heard the Prime Minister didn't even let her serve him; he just kicked her out."

"Could it be that the Prime Minister is... impotent, as the rumors say?"

"Shh! Are you out of your mind?"

Jiang Guo'er almost choked, so she quickly patted her chest and swallowed the cold bun.

Is Pei Yan not up to the task?

If he really can't succeed, what's the point of risking his life to sneak into the Pei residence?

However, in the secluded courtyards of mansions, there were many errors in the transmission of messages.

Jiang Guo'er quickly perked up and went to the small kitchen to help prepare breakfast.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, he smiled and tried to get close to the old cook, promising to embroider her a bellyband, and successfully got a stove.

I took some scraps of ginger that my master wouldn't eat, scraps of brown sugar, and shriveled red dates, and boiled them into a small jar of ginger candy.

She poured the ginger candy into oil paper, divided it into three packets, left one packet for the cooks, and gave one packet to Lianhua, who was still recovering from a cold.

"Put one in your mouth while it's still warm, and don't let anyone see."

Lotus nodded with red eyes, her nose tingling with emotion.

"Guo'er, out of all my sisters, only you remember me! I'll definitely repay you when I get better!"

"We're all sisters, no need to be so polite. Eat quickly, it'll help you recover faster!"

Immediately afterwards, Jiang Guo'er went to Songhe Garden to deliver the washed and dried handkerchiefs.

Halfway there, they bumped into Granny Li.

Granny Li, wearing a gray squirrel fur cloak, coughed twice, and the maid beside her hurriedly patted her back.

Jiang Guo'er immediately lowered her hands and stepped aside, saying, "Greetings, Granny."

Granny Li glanced at her. "Are you that girl from the Wu Jiang tribe?"

"Yes." Jiang Guo'er took out a small packet of ginger candy from her sleeve and handed it over with both hands.

"Sister Lotus is sick, so I made some ginger candy for her. I heard that Granny is coughing a lot. If you don't mind, you can suck on one to soothe your throat."

Granny Li had been coughing for several days and her throat was itchy. She gestured with her eyes for her to open the package, and then took one and put it in her mouth.

The ginger flavor is not overpowering, the sweetness is not cloying, and it also has a hint of jujube aroma.

"Your skills are quite good. Since you're a concubine, have you served the Prime Minister?"

Jiang Guo'er was flattered and overwhelmed.

"Replying to you, Granny, I have only been in the manor for a little over a month, and there are still many rules I haven't learned well."

"Sister Cuiping is kind-hearted and has granted me permission to study for a few more days before serving the Prime Minister."

Granny Li gave her a meaningful look.

"She's a sensible person."

Just as he was about to leave, his gaze was suddenly drawn to the purse at her waist.

Although the purse was made of old material with frayed edges, it was embroidered with a complex lotus scroll pattern.

The petals are distinctly layered, with a unique color scheme. They are layered yet perfectly orderly, and the stitching is extremely neat.

"Who embroidered this?"

Jiang Guo'er smiled and took off her purse, handing it to Granny Li.

"I embroidered it myself. If you think it's acceptable, you can use it to store odds and ends."

Granny Li touched the purse and this time did not refuse.

"Come to my room another day. There's a gold-threaded soft pillow of mine that's torn. Go and see if you can mend it."

Jiang Guo'er was overjoyed. "Thank you, Granny."

By the time they returned to the servants' quarters, it was already completely dark.

Several maids lit a brazier to warm her hands, and when they saw her return, they immediately pushed her tattered socks and clothes over.

"Guo'er, please help me with two more injections."

"My skirt has a hole burned through it, what should I do?"

"Hurry up and replenish it for us, this jar of pickled cabbage is yours!"

Jiang Guo'er calmly accepted a small jar of pickled cabbage, sat down, rubbed her hands together, and began mending.

The needle and thread moved swiftly in her hands, and she quickly mended several items.

"With your skills, you should be serving in the main wife's house, why are you still here?"

Jiang Guo'er didn't look up. "Bad luck, I guess."

Everyone chuckled twice, and no one asked any more questions.

After they all left, the brazier in Jiang Guo'er's room was almost extinguished.

She took the doll out of her arms and lit a candle stub.

It was too late yesterday, and she hadn't had a chance to examine the doll closely.

This sight was astonishing!

This doll is exquisitely made.

He wore a dark brocade robe with narrow sleeves and a waist belt, and even the frog buttons were neatly sewn on.

Beneath the hem of the garment, even the most intimate parts for men to procreate were embroidered with distinct veins using a special technique.