Old Madam Gu followed behind with Qin Yuan. Along the way, only Madam You kept her company and talked to her. Everyone else surrounded Old Madam You, chattering and making a lot of noise.

Two out of Madam You's three sentences were meant to give Qin Yuan a hint, but Qin Yuan had made up her mind, remaining silent and smiling, behaving like a new bride who was sparing with her words.

Madam You had no choice but to chat with Old Madam Gu the whole way.

Although angry, there was nothing they could do.

Fortunately, there was still plenty of time in the day, and there was always a way to get close to the Lady of Dingbei.

As Madam You entered, surrounded by a crowd of admirers, the noisy hall fell silent. Then, a wave of ladies rushed forward to offer their congratulations. After Madam Gu and Qin Yuan took their seats, many people also gathered around to exchange pleasantries.

After a while, it was time for the ceremony to begin, and the crowd exclaimed in amazement, praising the rarity of the gifts.

Madam You smiled and said, "This year is my birthday, and I originally wanted to postpone the celebration until after the festival. However, the Empress Dowager somehow found out about this and summoned my son to the palace to speak with her. She said that the You family followed Emperor Taizu in conquering the country and were meritorious officials. It is absolutely not allowed to postpone the celebration to avoid taboo. I have asked the Empress Dowager to change her mind many times, but I did not expect that she would just refuse. It is truly a great grace from Heaven."

One of the ladies immediately said, "It is only because the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion enjoys such prestige that it is trusted and valued by the Empress Dowager and the Emperor."

Madam You's lips curled slightly.

Someone else said, "The Empress Dowager has always been frugal and celebrates her birthday simply. It's surprising that she's suddenly celebrating her birthday this year. The old lady and the Empress Dowager have a deep friendship, and the old lady is highly regarded by the Empress Dowager, which is why she's doing this."

Old Madam You coughed lightly with a smug look, and Madam You immediately said, "Speaking of the friendship between the old lady and the Empress Dowager, that's a long story. It's been decades, so it's naturally different from others. But we, as subjects, dare not overstep our bounds. We firmly remember our duties and strictly abide by the rules of being subjects. Who would have thought that the Empress Dowager would be so kind and benevolent, bestowing such dignity upon our Duke's Mansion?"

Madam You rose and bowed in the direction of the Empress Dowager's palace, and everyone else quickly followed suit.

Madam You then slowly sat down and sighed, "The Empress Dowager remembers us old folks. She dislikes extravagance and ostentation, yet she remembered my birthday and said she wanted to celebrate it well and in a lively manner. I feel like crying whenever I think about it. I'm getting old and my body isn't as strong as it used to be. I don't know how many more years I can serve the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager is truly too kind."

Everyone rushed to flatter him.

Some say the Empress Dowager can't live without Madam You, while others say Madam You will live as long as Mount Nanshan, and will probably be even more energetic on her next birthday than she is now.

Qin Yuan remained silent.

Madam Gu snorted softly and said in a low voice, "That old woman always has to show off like this, so I don't like to come to her house for banquets."

Qin Yuan smiled.

"Mother, the old lady invited us over for a chat, as if she were closer to us than to other people."

Madam Gu said, "When I first met her, she was still young and had long hair. I followed her around, calling her 'sister' all the time. Later, she married someone from the capital. She loved to show off and was very competitive. She's always been like that. Ever since the third son went to the north, I've closed the manor and rarely go out. This is because we haven't seen each other for several years, and she's calling us over to visit."

Qin Yuan then understood.

The relationship between Madam Gu and Madam You was close but not intimate, mainly depending on the men in their families.

She then said to Lotus, "Today is an auspicious day at the Duke's mansion, and many people have come. Please be careful not to offend the distinguished guests."

Lotus and Yang'er knew they had to be extra careful at the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion today.

Lotus said softly, "Don't worry, Madam, we understand."

After the children and grandchildren of the You family presented their birthday gifts, Old Madam You said, "We older folks can sit together and chat, while you young wives and girls can go and have fun on your own."

One sentence was enough to scatter the crowd.

Qin Yuan got up to take her leave. Gu Baozhu was chatting animatedly with someone else when she saw Qin Yuan get up, so she also got up to leave.

Miss You quickly grabbed him: "Where are you going?"

Gu Baozhu said, "This is my third sister-in-law's first time visiting someone, shouldn't I accompany her?"

Miss You said, "You're being too cautious. Anyone who doesn't know better would think our Duke's Mansion is some kind of cannibalistic place. Today is our ancestor's birthday, and the nobles from the palace will probably be coming later. The courtyard is full of sisters and cousins ​​from the clan helping to entertain the guests. What could possibly happen? If you keep acting like this, I'm going to get angry."

Gu Baozhu was still hesitating.

Song Ziyu laughed and said, "Last time I injured my face, didn't you ask your third sister-in-law for some face cream? I should thank her properly. Why don't we go find her and talk?"

Seeing that she couldn't be stopped, Miss You said, "I hear her praising her third sister-in-law every day. I'll go and get to know her better and see just how good she is, and whether she's as good as my sisters-in-law."

Gu Baozhu led everyone to the garden, but Qin Yuan was nowhere to be seen.

Although the Duke's mansion garden was large, it couldn't keep up with the large number of visitors.

Miss You pointed in a direction: "Let's slowly walk down this road and go around in circles. We're sure to run into you."

Gu Baozhu had no choice but to nod and say, "Then let's do it this way."

Song Ziyu exclaimed, "Your garden is so big, do you really want to walk around it? That would be too tiring."

Gu Baozhu rubbed her fingers impatiently. If she were alone, she would have finished the round in half an incense stick's time. These young ladies were really troublesome.

Miss You said, "That's true, but we might run into them soon enough and then we won't have to keep going. Besides, the banquet starts in an hour, and we should be back by the time we've finished walking and haven't found anyone."

Song Ziyu thought about it and realized that made sense, so he said, "Let's do it this way and see how far we can go. I've been to your house several times, but I've never finished exploring it."

The others echoed this sentiment, and so they walked down the bluestone path on the right, each offering their own commentary.

At this moment, Qin Yuan was sitting in a small pavilion on the left side of the garden, talking with several young ladies. Having lived an extra life, she easily became close to them.

Two of them were ladies from the Marquis of Wuding's household. They had followed the Gu family members since they first entered the Duke's mansion, and naturally overheard the conversation between Gu Baozhu and Miss You. They were very curious about the young wife of this war god.

Now that they were closer, Qin Yuan's beauty was even more striking. After several conversations, they found themselves quite compatible, and he couldn't help but feel a little sorry for her.

It's so rare to find a woman who is so beautiful, kind-hearted, and easy to talk to. How could she be so pitiful, having to live a life of widowhood at such a young age?

Although her mother-in-law and husband doted on her, the days ahead would be difficult, especially since she couldn't have children and could only adopt a child from Master Gu's family.

The more they looked at Qin Yuan, the more they liked her and felt sorry for her, their eyes filled with undisguised sympathy.

Qin Yuan: "..."