The concubine, a former cannon fodder, becomes pregnant, and the childless prince spoils her rotten.

The concubine said, "I see you're not that old, so this is for the best. You don't need any more of these burdens."

She didn't want to let Lin Zhizhi go out and harm other men, which caused a lot of resentment.

If those women found out that she had told Lin Zhizhi these techniques for seducing men, wouldn't they skin her alive?

Seeing that she had misunderstood, Lin Zhizhi looked bewildered and said timidly, "I just think that such an item must cost a lot of money."

"Are you short of money?" Her eyes lit up when she saw Lin Zhizhi nod.

Then she said awkwardly, "The monthly allowance in the household was originally enough to live on, but my eldest uncle has recently fallen ill, and although my cousin is preparing for his exams and doesn't need financial assistance, he really can't afford it. My older cousin is just a helper, and her monthly allowance is even less than mine. My father was injured, and my mother was punished because of it, so she can't help either. I'm really in a hurry, but the prince is so considerate that he has given me a job..."

At this point, Lin Zhizhi subconsciously covered her mouth, as if she had said something she shouldn't have.

"Look at me, I felt so close to you today, and I blurted out something. Why am I saying all this to you?"

The concubine stared at Lin Zhizhi for a long time; her performance was so smooth and natural, it didn't seem like acting.

She then subconsciously looked at Lin Shangya and saw that although the fabric of her clothes was not expensive, it was soft, comfortable and quite pricey, and she couldn't afford it with her monthly salary alone.

In contrast, Lin Zhizhi was wearing the most common maid's clothes, which were durable, dirt-resistant, and easy to work with, but they made her skin red from chafing.

This doesn't look like the attire of a favored concubine at all. It looks more like she's been drained of her value by Lin Shangya and forced to seek out illegal ways to make money.

She looked embarrassed. "I hope you don't mind, sister. If it weren't for your generosity, how would I have had the chance to enter this Fragrant Tea House?"

Lin Zhizhi appeared reserved upon arrival, glancing around frequently, clearly indicating it was her first time here. Lin Shangya, on the other hand, had accompanied them in and out many times.

Lin Shangya never expected Lin Zhizhi to tell outsiders about her family affairs, and her face turned red.

Just as he was about to retort, he heard the concubine ask, "So it was my fault. I didn't know your father was ill. I even dragged you to such an expensive place to have fun. If others knew, they would say you are unfilial."

Lin Shangya's face turned pale. With this label of being unfilial attached to her, her reputation was truly ruined.

Fearing that the concubine would no longer want to take her along, she dared not show her anger and could only force a smile and say, "Father is much better. I was really worried about my sister and afraid that she would not dare to interact with others, so I took some time out to come out."

"That's as if I'm some kind of monster that can devour your sister."

This remark only made the concubine more displeased. Lin Shangya gave a wry smile, "It's because my sister isn't good at socializing. I'm really afraid she'll offend someone important. Our family simply can't afford that much money..."

This makes it sound like Lin Zhizhi is the culprit who caused their poverty.

In her past life, Lin Zhizhi was similarly smeared with dirty water and accused, yet she was powerless to refute it. The more she said, the more mistakes she made, and no one believed her at all.

At this moment, she pretended to be aggrieved and said, "My sister always says this. I don't know where I offended her. She always has to talk bad about me to the people I want to befriend."

"How come I didn't notice before that Lin Shangya, there's something wrong with you?" The concubine didn't care about the intricacies between the two sisters. It was their blatant exploitation of her that made her uncomfortable.

Does she really think she can ruin Lin Zhizhi's reputation with just a few words?

The concubine wouldn't antagonize her until she could extract some interesting anecdotes about Cen Jingyi from her.

Lin Shangya suppressed the resentment in her eyes. It was all Lin Zhizhi's fault for being so irrational today, not giving her any face at all.

In the past, weren't you always timid and silent, even when you wanted to argue, you didn't know what to say?

If he allows the concubine to belittle her now, he will probably never take her with him again in the future, cutting off one of her paths to success.

Lin Zhizhi would certainly not let Lin Shangya run wild. Her purpose in coming here was to completely destroy any signs that Lin Shangya might betray the royal family.

The concubine, seeing that she hadn't gotten any substantial information, wasn't in a hurry.

Lin Zhizhi was, after all, a servant born into the household, and she had a deep affection for the Prince's Mansion and was loyal to her master.

If the master of the Prince's mansion was indeed of a vile nature, then she would suspect that the two sisters had set a trap together.

Since Lin Zhizhi doesn't look well and there's a rift between the sisters, they're bound to dig up something.

The concubine now felt that the information Lin Shangya had revealed earlier might be true, but the key to the problem still lay with Lin Zhizhi.

If she could make a scene and say that Cen Jingyi was lustful and forced her, that would be best.

Judging from her personality, she's indecisive and needs Lin Shangya to guide her.

Lin Zhizhi remained kind throughout, and this interaction allowed her to get to know the concubine better. The idea she had previously mentioned to the prince proved to be feasible.

If there is something to gain from a concubine, she can be more discreet when talking about these romantic affairs.

As long as the prince's reputation is not ruined because of her, she will not be despised and repeat the same mistakes.

They chatted happily, but when she left with Lin Shangya, she looked unhappy. As long as she didn't gain any advantage, she would consider it a great loss.

If she really made the concubine pay the bill, she could forget about ever speaking to that concubine again.

After a busy day, I still lost a lot of money.

She complained to Lin Zhizhi, "My sister knows my family is struggling financially. The expenses at Xiangminglou are beyond what a family like mine can afford. You chatted happily with her, completely forgetting about me, the older sister who acted as a go-between."

This is saying that Lin Zhizhi took all the benefits but watched as she gave away a lot of money, showing that she was very hard-hearted.

It seems she wanted others to see how shameless Lin Zhizhi was, how her older sister was taken advantage of while she diligently managed the household.

Lin Zhizhi pretended not to understand the implied meaning in her words and said, "Thank you, cousin. Since you are not feeling well, you should go back and rest quickly. Don't worry about me anymore. I will remember your kindness."

Lin Shangya was stunned. That's it? What's the use of just remembering it? Why don't you take out the money?

Looking at Lin Zhizhi's ambiguous smile, I suddenly remembered that her mother had said the same thing when she went to her second aunt to borrow money.

He never mentioned when he would repay the money, and while he verbally expressed his good intentions, he privately insulted Lin Zhizhi and her family.

Several times, others overheard the conversation and whispered it to Lin Zhizhi's mother, but the family never took it to heart.

It's unclear what's wrong with Lin Zhizhi these days; she seems to be petty and selfish.

People around her started talking, seemingly enjoying watching her make a fool of herself.

Lin Shangya knew that she wouldn't get anything out of continuing the conversation, and if she angered Lin Zhizhi, she might reveal what her family had done in the past, so she stormed off in a huff.

She simply couldn't believe that Lin Zhizhi, knowing her father was ill, would be so disrespectful as not to visit him.

Lin Zhizhi was summoned to the Prince's study upon entering the mansion. At that moment, the concubine and Liu Gulan were both there, and their expressions were different when they saw her.