"Princess, please wait."

Li Shiyue was puzzled. She turned around and saw Xie Yizhi walking towards her. She couldn't hide the surprise that flashed across her face.

Seeing her stop, Xie Yizhi was overjoyed and quickened his pace, taking three steps at a time to reach Li Shiyue.

"Princess of the County".

Li Shiyue took a small step back and nodded slightly, saying, "Thank you, young master. May I ask what business you have with me?"

This was their first meeting, and they didn't have much of a relationship. Li Shiyue didn't think she and Xie Yizhi could hit it off immediately and "catch up" here; that was unrealistic.

Xie Yizhi seemed unaware of his abruptness, crossing his arms and displaying a gentle and refined smile: "I was unable to speak with the county princess earlier, but I thought I would have the opportunity in the future. When I saw the county princess here after leaving Shousong Hall, I came to follow her."

"This is my first time being a great-aunt, and there are some things I don't understand. I need to ask the county magistrate for guidance. Please don't find me troublesome."

"How could that be? Young Master Xie's intentions are only for the good of his grandmother." Li Shiyue smiled slightly, not showing excessive intimacy.

Xie Yizhi had to swallow his words: "That's good then, I won't bother the county princess any longer."

After saying this, he bowed and left, leaving Li Shiyue and her servant standing there in confusion.

Chunling, in particular, helped Li Shiyue back to Chengyu Pavilion and finally couldn't help but ask, "This Mr. Xie is too strange."

Lian Dong took the cloak from her hand and subconsciously looked at Li Shiyue, who was sitting on the wide couch drinking tea. Seeing that Li Shiyue's expression was normal, she then looked at Chunling.

"What happened while you accompanied the girl out that has left you so puzzled?"

Chunling looked puzzled and recounted the events at Shousong Hall and on her way back.

"I just feel that there's something strange about this new young master Xie, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Sister Lian Dong, you've seen far more than I have, do you think that young master Xie is strange or not?"

Lian Dong didn't rush to speak, but noticed that Li Shiyue had put down her teacup and was looking at her.

She lowered her eyes, carefully recalling Chunling's words: "It is a bit strange."

Li Shiyue rested her chin on her hand and placed the other hand on her leg. She didn't say a word, but smiled as she watched Lian Dong's thoughtful face.

Lian Dong was silent for a moment, then turned to Chun Ling with a puzzled look on her face: "I haven't seen it with my own eyes. I've spent more time with the old lady, so I don't think I've seen much. But what you've said makes me think that this new young master Xie seems to know the masters of the manor very well."

"If I remember correctly, this should be the first time that Young Master Xie has come to the mansion. I have served the old lady for quite some time, and I have heard some things from Granny Chang. Before the old lady got married, she had a very good relationship with her cousin."

"She is Xie Langjun's biological grandmother, now the Old Madam Xie. No matter how good their relationship is, since the Old Madam Xie married into Jizhou and our Old Madam married into Shangjing, the distance has been far, and it is impossible for them to exchange letters every three to five days. However, during festivals, there are gifts, greetings, and letters exchanged."

"Letters of greeting usually just ask about health and don't mention anyone's situation. From what you've said, it seems that Mr. Xie knows very well how much our old lady loves our young lady."

Li Shiyue paused, her fingers which had been tapping her thigh absently. After hearing Lian Dong's words, the smile on her face gradually faded.

Let alone noble families, even ordinary wealthy families are wary of outsiders knowing about their affairs. What is Xie Yizhi trying to do with his knowledge of the Rongguo Duke's mansion?

Lian Dong seemed to realize something as well, and quickly fell silent. She gently shook her head at Chun Ling, who was about to ask something else, signaling her not to say anything more.

Li Shiyue's expression was somewhat serious. Although she didn't know anything about those forces and factions, she could guess from what Xu Yunci and Old Madam Xu had been saying these past few days that the Crown Prince and the Prince of Yan were probably vying fiercely for power.

At this moment, Li Shiyue dared not be careless. However, without evidence, she could not tell the Xu family that Xie Yizhi had come to the mansion with ill intentions.

Besides, if anything, she should go find Xu Yunci. Ever since she clearly rejected him in front of Old Madam Xu that day, she has rarely seen Xu Yunci in the mansion. Judging from Madam Yang's words, he has been extremely busy, mostly because of Prince Yan.

"Don't spread these things around. They're just baseless speculations. Maybe my grandmother dotes on me and could find out if she wanted to."

If you wear it out and it gets used by someone with ulterior motives, wouldn't that make things even worse?

"By the way, Fourth Master is moving out of his mansion tomorrow and has set up a courtyard next to the Rongguo Duke's mansion. The north sides of both sides have been opened up, so he can move in tomorrow."

"This is a housewarming celebration, young lady. Would you like to send something as a gift?" Lian Dong changed the subject, no longer mentioning Xie Yizhi.

Since the second branch of the family was separated, Xu Huailou felt that he was also a branch of a concubine and should also be separated. However, he was reluctant to part with Old Madam Xu, so he gritted his teeth and spent more money to purchase a house next to the Duke's mansion. The house was designed to be the standard for his current official rank, with one entrance and one exit. He also knocked down the walls on both sides so that there would be more paths for him to pay his respects. Otherwise, there were no other changes.

"We should send some gifts, after all, it's a new courtyard. Go to the storeroom and pick out some good ones, and send them over at an auspicious time tomorrow."

Li Shiyue leaned back on the cushion, thought for a moment, and then said, "I remember I have a fine yellow pearwood wooden table in the storeroom, which is perfect for practicing calligraphy. Let's have someone carry it to Jiu Niang's place tomorrow."

These are items from her dowry; the rest are for Lian Dong to choose from herself, as it wouldn't be good to lose face.

“That yellow pear wood table came into the manor with you, Miss. It is made of rare and precious wood. You really want to give it to Ninth Miss.”

Chunling blinked. She remembered that when she was in the Earl's Mansion, the old lady had said that it was made by the mistress Liu Gangren when the girl was young.

“I don’t need it, and it’s just gathering dust in the storeroom. My mother hasn’t been home for many years, so I’m giving this table to Ninth Sister as a congratulatory gift from my mother to her niece.”

"As for your fourth uncle and aunt, Lian Dong, you should choose carefully. Since you're giving them away, you can't just give them anything."

Li Shiyue did this for another reason: after the second branch of the family was separated, the order of the sons and daughters in the family was reset.

From Xu Yunci downwards, everything must be moved forward. For example, Xu Yunbo was the fourth in line before, but is now the third.

However, the fourth branch of the family has now separated, but not as thoroughly as the second branch. The order of siblings has been reduced to Xu Yunyang and Xu Lingwan, while the rest are still in the family genealogy.

Li Shiyue prefers Xu Yunbo to Xu Yunyang, especially since Xu Yunbo is a completely different person now. He took the initiative to talk to her about the past and even apologized, truly acting like an older brother.

"What about Third Young Master? Should we send something over? I heard from Third Madam that Third Young Master will be able to stay at home until after the New Year."