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

But not everyone will let her manipulate them; does she really think everyone is a fool?

The princess would never believe it, but she didn't speak up for Lin Zhizhi at the moment.

It seems they want to keep to themselves and not get involved in this pointless farce.

Lin Shangya was stammering, trying to figure out how to give a reasonable explanation that would prevent Lin Zhizhi from making a comeback.

Those around them had already realized what was going on, and felt uncomfortable having been led by the nose by Lin Shangya.

The concubine arrived late. "It's rare to see the Princess's courtyard so lively. Why are you all gathered here so late at night? I heard there were assassins in the manor. Are they assassins or thieves?"

Upon seeing her arrive, the princess said, "Don't gather here. The matter is still undecided, so don't spread rumors."

With so many people around, if any bad news were to spread, the prince would blame her for not handling things properly.

"Did you hear that? Watch your tongues! If I find out that the reputation of the Prince's Mansion is ruined because of you..." The concubine glared, not wanting to deal with those troublesome rumors anymore.

She only softened the prince's attitude towards her after offering to sell her a shop.

In Lin Shangya's eyes, the concubine and the princess's actions were biased towards Lin Zhizhi, and she felt somewhat apprehensive.

Then she remembered the silver that the concubine had given her, and she calmed down, kneeling there and crying.

The princess then turned to the servant and asked, "Why were you in Lin Zhizhi's room tonight? Did someone instruct you?"

"It was Lin Zhizhi who asked me to come over. She said she missed me so much after not seeing me for several days, and since I didn't have to serve the prince, she asked me to come over. I did ask her what she thought of her sister before, but I really didn't have the guts. She just wanted to force us to be together. A man and a woman alone in a room tonight, it's hard to explain even if we have several mouths."

The princess looked at Lin Zhizhi, seemingly wanting to hear her explanation.

Seeing that she remained calm and composed, not flustered by the dirty water, and did not feel wronged at all.

A sense of wonder arose in her heart. Her mature demeanor seemed to suggest that such clumsy techniques could not possibly affect her in the slightest.

Does Lin Zhizhi not care at all about being wronged?

The princess suppressed the thought as soon as it arose, and when she looked at Lin Zhizhi again, her eyes were already red with anger.

Only then did he calm down a little, thinking that a little maid could not possibly have such shrewdness, nor could she remain calm even if Mount Tai collapsed in front of her.

Perhaps because she had been with the prince during this time, she subconsciously imitated his behavior.

Ultimately, he had been raised in the mansion for many years and had never seen any storms, so he didn't know how to handle things when they happened.

In the end, I still need to rely on her help. I need to do something to make Lin Zhizhi remember her kindness.

"Your words strike me as very strange. You claim we're so close, so why don't you defend me in front of everyone, but instead side with Lin Shangya, even joining her in trying to kill me?"

Lin Zhizhi asked the question lightly, while the concubine beside her secretly cursed Lin Shangya for finding a fool.

The servant reacted quickly, saying, "When you were with me, you only liked me, but then you turned around and started dating the prince. That's why I felt resentful and did this."

He wanted to drop a bombshell to cover up the loopholes in his words, fearing that if Lin Zhizhi continued to ask, she might reveal something.

Then Lin Shangya said urgently, "Lin Zhizhi didn't bleed at all during her first time with the prince. She had an affair with this servant before."

These words gave the concubine a headache. She felt that the money had been wasted and that she could not take such empty words seriously.

"These are all things that the cleaning lady who served the prince told my mother when she was working in the princess's room."

Lin Shangya is now thinking of sowing discord between the Princess and Lin Zhizhi. Only when the two are at odds will it be easier for her and the concubine to deal with Lin Zhizhi.

If we can't completely ruin Lin Zhizhi's reputation tonight, I'm afraid we won't be able to stay in the mansion any longer.

Lin Zhizhi's parents love their daughter so much that they will certainly not allow her family to work in the mansion anymore.

"It's no wonder that the servants in the manor are so bold as to talk about their master's affairs so freely. Originally, the king's queen was also so lax in her governance."

Cen Jingyi was startled by the commotion in the mansion and heard that there were assassins.

After waiting for a long time without hearing any news, they realized that many people had gathered at Jinting Courtyard.

Hearing Lin Shangya say these things as soon as he arrived naturally made him feel annoyed.

"It was my oversight. I didn't expect that my conversation with the nannies would be overheard, so I didn't tell them not to talk nonsense."

She has stated that she was unaware of the situation, so how can she take responsibility for the lax management?

That old woman was also a veteran in the household, having served the prince for many years, and had long since found out what had happened.

When he was summoned, he brought Lin Zhizhi's father with him.

Seeing her father limping towards her, Lin Zhizhi immediately ran over anxiously, "The doctor said your injury is in the bone and you need to rest, why are you running around for me?"

Her voice was low and filled with concern. She had gone back several times in the past few days.

Mother took good care of Father, and the medicine provided by the system was also very effective.

The two had long noticed that Lin Zhizhi had matured a lot, and they tacitly refrained from asking her why.

Now that they knew what Lin Shangya had done, they looked at her with disappointment and disbelief.

Lin Shangya felt as if her second uncle's gaze was peeling away her skin, making her scalp tingle.

She had no choice; she had secretly used her mother's money to avoid losing face in front of the Fifth Prince's concubines by not being able to pay.

She secretly used household money, which interfered with her older brother's studies, and her mother has already given her a scolding.

If the money can't be recovered, her mother will definitely not let her off easily.

They might sell her directly to a wealthy old man in the city to continue supporting her older brother's studies.

If she hadn't been driven to a dead end, why would she have taken such a risk?

She now looked to the concubine, hoping she could save her life.

Seeing her like this, Lin Zhizhi knew that she was secretly colluding with the concubine.

Remembering how she had mistakenly trusted the concubine in her past life and was disliked by the prince, she looked at the concubine with hopeful eyes, hoping that she could explain for her.

The result was the same cold indifference as it is now.

How could a concubine possibly admit to the insidious things she had done?

The cleaning lady said, "The Princess only asked if Lin Zhizhi was a virgin. I didn't find any bloodstains, so I told her the truth. The Princess also specifically instructed me not to spread this matter, so as not to damage the Prince's reputation."

When the truth came out, the princess did not show the slightest sign of being wronged, and remained as generous and dignified as ever.

Lin Zhizhi knew perfectly well that the princess had long anticipated that this slander would be leveled against her. She had even deliberately leaked the information, but left no evidence.

Cen Jingyi looked at the princess, as if he wanted to say something.

She smiled calmly and said, "There have been too many rumors circulating in the manor lately, so it's normal for Your Highness to be anxious. Besides, Your Highness is not wrong. If I were in better health and kept the servants in check, Zhizhi wouldn't have been wronged."

The princess always maintained this dignified and willing-to-bear demeanor, seemingly trying to evoke the prince's guilt and tenderness.