Looking at the young lady bowing in greeting, the Crown Princess did not immediately allow her to rise.

Miss Luo was no longer a seven or eight-year-old girl now; she should surely understand what the Crown Princess represented.

Her younger sister sometimes entered the palace, and would occasionally mention this Miss Luo with a contemptuous tone.

For instance, how Miss Luo had snatched a man from the street to be her male companion, or how Miss Luo had beaten up a daughter from the Prime Minister’s household.

Ultimately, it was because Miss Luo had a powerful and influential father that she dared to behave so recklessly.

But no matter how powerful and influential Grand Commander Luo was, he was still just a minister. Miss Luo, who had already reached the age of hairpin ceremony, could not possibly fail to understand this point.

If she truly acted without regard for anything, why hadn’t she gone and given Princess Changle a beating?

Luo Sheng raised her eyes to glance at the Crown Princess’s inscrutable expression, then straightened up and instructed the palace maid whose face showed astonishment: “Why haven’t you brought a chair for me to sit on? Are you going to make your Crown Princess’s invited guest stand?”

That picky and disdainful tone made the palace maid only know to look at the Crown Princess.

The Crown Princess’s face contorted involuntarily for a moment.

Seven or eight years had passed, and Miss Luo was still the same Miss Luo!

“Go bring a chair,” the Crown Princess ordered the palace maid.

Once the chair was brought over, Luo Sheng sat down without any courtesy, raised her lips in a smile toward the Crown Princess: “After all these years apart, I never expected the Crown Princess to still be so considerate and magnanimous.”

The corner of the Crown Princess’s mouth twitched slightly.

These words sounded somewhat far-fetched.

Not reprimanding Miss Luo for her rudeness could be called magnanimous, but what did it have to do with being considerate?

Thinking about how the young lady before her was famously unlearned and unskilled, the Crown Princess didn’t think too deeply about it.

Since they were complimentary words, she might as well let her say them.

“Why don’t I see Consort Yu?” Luo Sheng scanned the room once and asked with complete justification.

The Crown Princess couldn’t help but twitch the corner of her mouth again.

This was too direct!

She had thought there would at least be some conversation before bringing up Consort Yu.

“Did the Crown Prince not mention it to the Crown Princess?”

“The Crown Prince told me about it.” The Crown Princess could barely maintain her composure.

If the Crown Prince hadn’t said anything, why would she bother inviting such a crude and rude person to the Eastern Palace to annoy herself?

“Go invite Consort Yu.” After the Crown Princess gave the order to the palace maid, she saw Luo Sheng lower her eyes and clearly had no further interest in continuing the conversation.

The Crown Princess couldn’t help but feel vexed.

To discard someone after using them—there had never been anything this quick.

The Crown Princess kept a straight face and said nothing.

Luo Sheng didn’t feel awkward at all and was happy to have the peace and quiet.

The Crown Princess had been watching with cold eyes the whole time, and seeing that the other party was truly at ease, she instead couldn’t maintain her silence.

What kind of help could someone like Miss Luo possibly provide to the Crown Prince?

The Crown Princess’s mind stirred.

Some questions weren’t appropriate to ask the Crown Prince, but she could ask Miss Luo.

After all, with Miss Luo’s personality, coaxing a few words out of her wouldn’t matter.

“I heard from the Crown Prince that Miss Luo helped him with something.”

“That’s right.” Luo Sheng nodded.

Seeing that after those two words there was no continuation, the Crown Princess tightened her grip on her teacup.

Forget it, one couldn’t demand too much from such a blockhead.

The Crown Princess simply spoke plainly: “I wonder what favor Miss Luo did for the Crown Prince?”

Luo Sheng looked surprised: “The Crown Prince didn’t tell the Crown Princess?”

The Crown Princess steadied herself and said, suppressing her irritation: “The Crown Prince is busy with affairs; I didn’t ask in detail.”

“I see—” Luo Sheng drew out her tone, the corners of her lips slightly raised. “Does that mean the Crown Princess also doesn’t know that the Crown Prince hosted guests at the tavern I own yesterday?”

“Hosted guests?” The Crown Princess’s attention was momentarily diverted.

Luo Sheng smiled: “Yes, the day before yesterday the Crown Prince hosted guests and drank at the tavern, becoming the customer who spent the most on a single meal, so I remember it vividly.”

The Crown Princess immediately thought of the two thousand taels in banknotes the Crown Prince had asked her for.

The Crown Prince said he had expenses to handle—could it have been for hosting this drinking party?

Just how many people did the Crown Prince invite that it would cost two thousand taels?

This was the scale of a wealthy family’s wedding banquet.

Luo Sheng raised her hand to adjust her stray hairs, saying with a smile: “Crown Princess, don’t worry. Early yesterday morning the Crown Prince sent an inner attendant to deliver the payment for the drinks. Although it was initially short by one thousand one hundred taels, it was quickly made up.”

The Crown Princess gripped her teacup forcefully, her face darkening slightly.

Setting aside how much the Crown Prince spent on that meal, it turned out he took silver from her to fill a shortfall.

Short by one thousand one hundred taels, he took two thousand taels from her—if she wasn’t mistaken, that meant he actually profited by nine hundred taels??

Watching the Crown Princess struggling to contain her anger, Luo Sheng curved her lips in a light smile.

She had only agreed not to bring the bill to the Crown Princess, but she never said she wouldn’t mention it to her.

Of course she had to mention it—why should she save face for that heartless wretch?

After that, the Crown Princess truly had no mood for conversation.

Until the palace attendant at the door called out loudly: “Consort Yu has arrived—”

Luo Sheng looked toward the entrance.

The woman who entered had her head slightly lowered, making it difficult to see her face clearly for a moment.

Luo Sheng watched her approach step by step and curtsy properly to the Crown Princess: “Greetings to the Crown Princess.”

Luo Sheng’s hands hidden in her wide sleeves clenched tightly.

It was Zhaohua’s voice, and also Zhaohua’s appearance.

But it was still different from the Zhaohua in her memories.

For her, the life-and-death separation from her four maids had been only half a year ago, but time had mercilessly flowed past them for twelve years.

Her maid Zhaohua used to carry a bit of proud cleverness, not this rule-abiding, lifeless demeanor.

Luo Sheng thought of Xiu Yue again.

The exceptionally beautiful Xiu Yue had disfigured herself and spent over ten years in that familiar city of Nanyang being called “ugly old woman” by those who came to eat bean curd pudding.

Thinking of these things, how could she not feel hatred?

“Consort Yu, this is Miss Luo, daughter of Grand Commander Luo. Come greet her.”

Zhaohua bowed slightly in Luo Sheng’s direction with lowered head: “Miss Luo.”

She wanted to look carefully at this Miss Luo who had opened a tavern called Youjian Tavern.

She even wanted to ask whether there was a head chef named Xiu Yue at Youjian Tavern.

But she didn’t dare act rashly.

The Crown Prince had said that Miss Luo had taken a fancy to the gold-inlaid seven-treasure bracelet.

A casual voice sounded: “Can the Consort raise her head and let me have a look?”

The Crown Princess lowered her eyes to hide her amusement.

Listen to Miss Luo’s tone like some libertine—how very familiar indeed.

She wanted to see whether Consort Yu could withstand it.

Zhaohua raised her head and looked over.

The two’s gazes met, and there was a moment of silence.

Luo Sheng raised her wrist and smiled charmingly: “No wonder the Crown Prince refused no matter what to give me the Consort’s bracelet. Today, seeing Consort Yu, I finally understand.”

“Miss Luo flatters me.”

The Crown Princess’s smile froze at the corners of her mouth.

Hearing these words, why did they pierce her heart so?

From the corner of her eye, Luo Sheng caught sight of the Crown Princess’s expression and shifted her gaze away from Zhaohua.

As if she had only taken a look at Consort Yu herself, satisfied her curiosity, and had no further interest.

“If the Crown Princess has the opportunity to leave the palace, why not come try my tavern? The dishes and wine the Crown Prince likes should also suit the Crown Princess’s taste.”

“The Crown Prince likes it very much?” the Crown Princess asked casually.

Luo Sheng smiled: “Of course he likes it. Otherwise, why would he spend over five thousand six hundred taels on one meal?”

“How much?” The Crown Princess lost her composure.

“Five thousand six hundred twenty taels. If the Crown Princess tries it, she’ll know it’s worth every penny.” Luo Sheng smiled with sincere earnestness. “I even specially gave the tavern an elegant name. Has the Crown Princess heard of it?”