The clingy concubine ran away, and the sickly prince lost control.

"Sigh! In any case, things are different now. If it were in the past, she wouldn't have given up even if she was too weak."

Sun lowered her eyes, cursing inwardly. If she hadn't broken her back, she wouldn't have been able to control that brat Luo Qingyan.

"Mother, if this continues, we won't be able to get my sister to do anything," Luo Haitang said sarcastically. She couldn't handle the work of serving others.

"It's alright, it's only temporary. Once Prince Pei dies, she'll lose her support and will obediently listen to us again."

Madam Sun's eyes were sinister. Luo Qingyan had become complacent after gaining a powerful backer. "Mother is just annoyed. If we hadn't changed your position and sent you to the Duke's mansion, Kangning Pavilion would be yours now. Besides, you have a sweeter tongue than Qingyan. You might have been able to persuade the young master to give you more."

"Mother, please stop talking. My heart aches so much. Shen Nanxun is ignoring us, and Ye Hui is still bothering me. I can only avoid him." Luo Haitang clutched her chest, feeling nauseous. She could run into Ye Hui even while shopping. He was like a ghost, always following her.

"Don't be discouraged. With Tang'er's looks, she'll definitely find a good marriage. Be more outgoing and invite some ladies you know out to play and meet more people." Madam Sun brushed Luo Haitang's hair aside, her tone confident. Haitang's appearance was considered top-notch in the capital, so how could she not find a good marriage?

Luo Haitang looked embarrassed and clutched her handkerchief tightly: "But I'm no longer a virgin, how can I get married? Am I really going to marry Ye Hui?"

"Hehe, Tang'er, you're overthinking it. Mother has a plan." Madam Sun whispered into Luo Haitang's ear.

Luo Haitang's eyes lit up: "Really? Mother, if there is such a miraculous method, then I won't worry anymore."

"Don't worry, go find the person you like." Madam Sun patted Luo Haitang on the shoulder with a deep smile.

The Luo family is not of high social standing. Even if they ask a matchmaker to arrange a marriage, they can only find someone of similar social standing. If they want to marry into a high-ranking family, they have to take the initiative themselves. If they happen to catch the eye of some prince or nobleman, they will never have to worry about anything for the rest of their lives and will bring glory to their family.

Sun was making these plans.

"Mother." Luo Qingyan knocked on the door to remind them that the conversation inside had almost ended, pretending not to know anything. She just didn't know which young master her mother and sister would scheme against next.

"Come in." Madam Sun lay down.

Luo Haitang wanted to leave, but her mother had just given her advice, so she couldn't just leave like that. The smell of the chamber pot was too strong, so she could only pinch her nose and mutter, "Luo Qingyan is like an idiot, can't she smell the chamber pot?"

"Qingyan, you can take it! I don't feel like using the restroom right now." Madam Sun said gently, thinking to herself, "I can't mess with you."

Luo Qingyan curtsied and then came out carrying a chamber pot.

Liu Yue and the others watched with pity, but Aunt Luo wouldn't let them get involved.

Madam Sun was furious inside the room, pounding the quilt. These people from the Duke's mansion were really annoying; it was even inconvenient to punish Luo Qingyan by making her kneel.

Just now, it was entirely possible to say that if someone was slow to take the chamber pot, they should kneel in the sun in the courtyard.

If you kneel down a few more times, you'll become obedient and won't have the energy to talk back.

"Mother, what do you suggest we do?" Luo Haitang glanced furtively at the maids of the Duke's mansion standing in a row outside the house.

"What else can we do? Let's just get down to business." Mrs. Sun said angrily, "Dinner will be served right away."

"At that time, the Duke's mansion will abandon my sister," Luo Haitang said smugly, leaning close to Madam Sun.

"Exactly. A foundling like this has no chance of getting out of our grasp. If she doesn't behave, we'll cripple her."

Sun bit her lip, her mouth crooked.

As dusk settles, dinner is served at the Luo family mansion.

Mrs. Sun prepared a large feast, but despite her back injury, she sat in her chair with a cushion, gritting her teeth. She wouldn't have bothered coming if it weren't for something important, nor would she have considered it expensive.

"Qingyan, these are all your favorite dishes."

Sun pointed to the dishes in front of Luo Qingyan and used her chopsticks to put some into Luo Qingyan's bowl.

"Madam, please wait."

Liu Yue took out a silver needle and put it into the dish to test for poison.

Madam Sun's face fell for a moment, then she smiled again: "The Duke's mansion is indeed particular, give it a try!"

The things she put there couldn't be detected with a single silver needle.

"Have a bite." Liu Yue gestured for the maid standing behind her to come forward and try the food.

Sun's face immediately darkened, and she silently pulled away one of the dishes.

If Luo Qingyan ate it alone, and problems arose later, it couldn't be said that she was the one who caused it.

Once the maid tastes the food, an investigation can be conducted, and if the match is made, the maid can be traced back to her.

Only after Liu Yue finished her examination did Luo Qingyan begin to eat.

In order to save face in front of the Duke's mansion, Madam Sun even allowed Aunt Xue to sit at the table, demonstrating her magnanimity.

Everyone except Madam Sun and Luo Haitang enjoyed the meal. Feeling guilty, the two women could only force a smile.

Luo Daocheng felt he had finally achieved his dream of harmonious relations with his wives and concubines, so he drank a few more cups. He hadn't taken a concubine for so many years because Sun Shi was too domineering and refused.

After the meal, Sun used the excuse of back pain to quickly pull Luo Haitang off the table.

Upon entering the room, Mrs. Sun's legs went weak with anger. She leaned against the headboard, gasping for breath.

"The Duke's mansion has gone too far. They actually made me taste poison while I was having dinner with my own daughter."

"Luckily, we weren't discovered." Luo Haitang gasped. If they had been discovered, the Duke's Mansion would have devoured the Luo family alive.

"Mother, what should we do? Those people from the Duke's mansion are watching us closely, and we have no chance to make a move."

Luo Qingyan must be finished; we absolutely cannot let her be outdone.

From today onwards, she will dress herself up beautifully. She doesn't believe that no young master will not be attracted to her. Men are ultimately lustful, especially the powerful and wealthy. What do they want from women? Nothing more than lust.

If Luo Qingyan can enter the Duke's mansion, she can enter the Prince's mansion.

Luo Haitang silently made a vow.

Sun rolled her eyes and sneered, "No problem for me. It's just a taste test, right? I'll eat it myself and show them."

"Mother, you can't do this." Luo Haitang said with heartache.

"I'm almost forty, and I don't have any children, so what's wrong with that?" Sun said fiercely.

"Aunt Xue will laugh at you if she finds out." Luo Haitang lowered her eyes. Recently, they had been bullied by Aunt Xue quite a bit.

Aunt Xue spent her days coaxing her father, dressing him in gold and silver, and openly and subtly mocking them for being poor and from the countryside.

"Heh heh heh, if I don't give birth, do you think she can?" Madam Sun raised her chin and sneered repeatedly. "I already tampered with her tea, so she can't have children anymore. Are you suggesting we wait for her to get pregnant? A prostitute is just a man's plaything; dreaming of bearing children is just a pipe dream."

"Mother, you were truly prescient." Luo Haitang also straightened her back. Piaoxue was really too much. She said that she was poor as soon as she saw her, making her feel ashamed. Now that she had become a hen that could not lay eggs, she would not be ashamed in front of her.

One day, when Father has had enough of it, he will discard it like worn-out shoes.

"I'll deal with the snow later when I have time. Right now, I need to get Qingyan under control and make her obey me."

Mrs. Sun clutched her lower back; it hurt so much, she felt like it was about to break.

On the other side.

Liu Yue and the others helped Luo Qingyan wash up.

Luo Qingyan's eyes were filled with gratitude. Without them coming, her mother would probably have asked her to do something else.

"Aunt, when we were testing the poison today, I saw your mother take away a dish, saying she liked it, but I noticed she didn't touch it at all during the meal."