With legs weak, the sickly stable boy became a mad regent.

After returning to the Shen residence, Xiao Yunzhao first had lunch with Shen Nannan.

He said he was accompanying her, but in reality, he had only eaten two steamed buns since he left home in the early morning. On his way back, he rode a horse for a long time, and most of the food on the table ended up in his stomach.

Shen Nannan sat to the side and watched him finish his second bowl of soup before pushing the almost untouched plate of crispy pork in front of him. "Slow down, no one's going to take it from you."

"Madam has been watching me," Xiao Yunzhao said, putting down his bowl. "I thought you wanted to eat too."

"I've just never seen Prince Zhao so hungry."

As soon as Shen Nannan finished speaking, the man picked up a piece of crispy pork and held it to her lips, "Try a bite."

Shen Nannan has recently become sensitive to strong oily smells, so she turned her head away and said, "No."

Xiao Yunzhao didn't force her. He ate the crispy pork himself and then picked up some light green vegetables for her.

From the outside, Xiao Yunzhao should still be on the official road heading north.

The two military supervisors and the spies sent by the Crown Prince all followed behind the banner of Prince Zhao. In order not to arouse suspicion, the northward-bound entourage would continue for at least two more days.

The real commander-in-chief was already sitting at the dining table in the Shen residence, watching as his princess ate an extra half bowl of rice.

"Is there any news from your brother?" Shen Nannan asked suddenly after taking a couple of bites of vegetables.

"The people from the Eastern Palace haven't made a move yet."

Xiao Yunzhao raised his hand to wipe away a bit of soup from her lips. "The Crown Prince is still waiting for the second batch of spies to return to the capital. At the latest, he will confirm that I have not returned by tonight."

"Then the capital will never be peaceful again after tonight."

Shen Nannan subconsciously touched her lower abdomen, feeling a vague unease in her heart.

"You promised me you wouldn't leave me alone in the palace."

"I'm not leaving."

"What if something happens in the palace?"

"I'm not leaving either."

Xiao Yunzhao looked up at her, his eyes calm. "The Crown Prince hasn't staged a coup yet. If I show up prematurely, it will only make him back down. Mo Bai has people watching the palace. I won't show myself until the very last moment."

Moreover, Shen Nian is still in Cining Palace.

Now that the Empress Dowager has already extended her reach to the Shen family, they must not rashly alarm her.

Just as Shen Nannan was about to ask if there was any news from the palace today, Qiu Yun's voice came from outside, "Your Highness, a letter has arrived from Cining Palace."

Shen Nannan immediately put down her chopsticks.

The messenger was the same palace maid from the previous two days.

This time, however, there were no rewards or the Empress Dowager's seemingly benevolent instructions; all that was brought was a neatly folded piece of paper.

The palace maid waited in the outer room but did not come in.

Shen Nannan unfolded the letter.

Shen Nian continued to write about trivial matters in the palace.

The Sixth Prince has been eating properly lately, and yesterday he even took her to see the two deer kept in the Imperial Garden. She's gotten tired of the osmanthus cakes at Cining Palace and is starting to miss the jujube paste pastries made by the Shen family's kitchen.

The letter did not mention that Tuanzi liked osmanthus cake.

The handwriting was also neat and orderly.

Shen Nian is safe.

But when Shen Nannan saw the last few lines, her brows furrowed slightly.

"What's wrong?" Xiao Yunzhao took the letter.

In her letter, Shen Nian said that the Imperial Clothing Bureau had delivered a new set of clothes today.

It wasn't for her, it was for the sixth prince.

The Empress Dowager had someone take measurements from head to toe, and even the belt and crown had to be remade. The Sixth Prince didn't like the color of the outfit, and he secretly ran away halfway through trying it on, for which he was scolded by his nanny.

It's not a big deal for a prince to change into new clothes.

However, Shen Nian specifically wrote in the letter, "The Sixth Prince has no occasions recently where he needs to wear formal attire."

Shen Nannan pointed to those lines of text: "Even if the Empress Dowager wants to take him to the palace banquet, there is no need to make a new crown."

"Unless that the clothes were not ordinary prince's formal attire to begin with."

Xiao Yunzhao's eyes turned cold.

Shen Nannan looked up at him.

They both thought of the same thing.

The Empress Dowager brought Shen Nian into the palace and suddenly began preparing new clothes for the Sixth Prince.

It didn't seem like a spur-of-the-moment decision. It was more like she had anticipated what would happen next.

"It seems that the Crown Prince's Palace is not the only one waiting for me to leave the capital."

Xiao Yunzhao folded the letter again.

"The Queen Mother is also waiting."

Shen Nannan was silent for a moment, then suddenly reached out and took the letter back. "Niannian should have already figured something out."

Otherwise, she wouldn't have specifically written this down to herself.

But the fact that she didn't use the agreed-upon code means that she hasn't encountered any danger yet, nor has she found anything truly important.

"Send a message back to the palace maid who delivers the letter."

Shen Nannan thought for a moment, "Just say that Tuanzi has been waiting for her at the door these past few days, so that she can stay with the Sixth Prince without worrying about home."

There was no rush.

There was no reminder for her to look up anything.

It's one thing for her to be willing to keep an eye on things happening at Cining Palace, but Shen Nannan would never willingly push her into danger just to get information.

Xiao Yunzhao looked at her, clearly understanding the meaning of those words, "I will have people in the palace keep an eye on her."

"Don't get too close to her." Shen Nannan held his hand. "Since the Empress Dowager wants to use her, there must be eyes and ears around her. If she finds out that someone is secretly protecting Niannian, she will become suspicious."

"Um."

Xiao Yunzhao didn't give orders directly like before, but instead held her fingers tightly, saying, "I'll listen to you."

The palace maid quickly left with Shen Nannan's reply.

Neither of them knew that the Cining Palace was in a far more turbulent situation than described in the letter.

The Empress Dowager remained in the main hall from early morning. Palace servants came and went, but instead of the usual Buddhist scriptures and refreshments, they brought in secret letters from outside the palace.

When the sixth prince, Xiao Yunli, was summoned to the main hall, the people from the Imperial Wardrobe had been waiting for a long time.

The new clothes were placed on a tray in the hall.

Bright yellow fabric.

The collar and cuffs were embroidered with gold thread, and the waist was adorned with a jade belt that the Sixth Prince had never seen before.

He stood inside the hall, not immediately stepping forward. "Grandmother, these are not the clothes I usually wear."

"It's just so you can try it on in advance." The Empress Dowager sat at the head of the table, her face still bearing a kind smile. "You're not a child anymore, you should have a few decent clothes. Wear this outfit when there's a banquet in the palace in a few days."

Xiao Yunli still refused to move.

Although he was young and didn't understand the political situation in the court, he knew that some colors and patterns were not something an ordinary prince should use.

Seeing his hesitation, the old woman behind him stepped forward to help him undress.

Shen Nian stood to the side the whole time.

She noticed Xiao Yunli's resistance, stepped forward, and obediently bowed to the Empress Dowager. "Your Majesty, the Sixth Prince ate little for breakfast this morning and just said he felt a little dizzy. Could you let him rest for a while and try again when he feels better?"

The Empress Dowager's gaze fell upon her.

Shen Nian felt a tightness in her chest from being stared at, but she still tried her best to maintain a bewildered expression.

After a moment, the Empress Dowager chuckled softly, "You do seem to care about him."

Shen Nian lowered her head. "Sixth Prince also often takes care of me."

"Since you're not feeling well, then don't try it on for now." The Empress Dowager fiddled with the prayer beads in her hand, her tone very tolerant. "Leave the clothes here, we'll talk about it later."

Xiao Yunli then secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

The people from the Imperial Wardrobe folded the clothes again.

Just as the palace servants were about to leave, a eunuch hurried in and whispered a few words in the Empress Dowager's ear.

The Empress Dowager paused for a moment, her prayer beads still in her hand. "You saw it with your own eyes?"

"Yes."

The eunuch lowered his voice even further, "Prince Zhao has already headed north with the army, and the two supervising officers have gone with him. After the Crown Prince received the news, some people in the Eastern Palace have already started making moves."

A faint smile flickered in the Empress Dowager's eyes. "I understand."

She got up and walked towards the inner hall.

The old woman beside him took out a flat wooden box from her sleeve and followed closely behind.

Shen Nian kept her head down, but her peripheral vision kept falling on the wooden box.

When the nanny took something out just now, the box lid was slightly ajar.

A corner of bright yellow silk was visible inside.