Xu Lingwan had been gone for a while, but Li Shiyue stared blankly at the bronze stove on the small table beside her. She wondered who in her second uncle's family would have a conscience, but she never expected that in the end, it would be Xu Lingwan, whom she couldn't stand, who would come looking for her.

Instead of going to find Xu Yunci herself, she thought for a moment and wrote down what had happened that day: "Go and pack some flower cakes, and be sure to deliver them to Chang Shun."

Chunling was surprised: "The young lady isn't going to Songyuan by herself?"

"Just go when I tell you to. It concerns the Xu family. Just hand the things over to your cousin. If he asks, just say that Xu Lingwan came by." Li Shiyue didn't look up. She even turned her body to face inward, as if she was throwing a tantrum.

Not daring to say anything more, Chunling carefully put the envelope away. When she saw Changshun at Songyuan, it was as if she had seen a savior. Without waiting for a word, she stuffed the food box into his hand, looked around, and pressed the envelope into Changshun's palm.

“The young lady has made some flower cakes; please take them in for the young master to try.”

Chang Shun looked puzzled, but before he could react, Chunling had already started walking away. He scratched his head. If his cousin had come by herself, wouldn't she have been even happier to see the young master? Why didn't she come in person?

Since the second branch of the family separated from the main branch, they have never received any holiday gifts from the Rongguo Duke's Mansion, nor have they had any contact with them.

Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year, and it's only early in the morning, so there's no reason not to refuse a visit. Xu Yunci relaxed, closed his eyes, and propped his cheek with a fist. Even when he heard Chang Shun's footsteps, he maintained his posture of resting with his eyes closed.

Chang Shun, carrying the food box, pursed his lips and deliberately raised his voice: "Miss Biao sent someone to deliver something."

As expected, Xu Yunci opened his eyes, his gaze immediately fixed on the food box in his hand. He glanced at the flower cake and decisively opened the envelope.

The handwriting was beautiful and neat. Xu Yunci didn't say a word, but held the letter and looked at it very carefully.

The letter ended with the note: "It is not advisable to travel. Please forgive me, cousin."

With a light laugh, Xu Yunci folded the letter and placed it at the very bottom of the book, leaving only the last eight simple words.

"Are my second uncle's family still at home?"

When she spoke again, Xu Yunci's smile had vanished, and she no longer looked at him as "worthless" (in Chang Shun's eyes).

"She's still here, but the old lady isn't in good spirits, and the Duchess is keeping her company right now." Chang Shun didn't dare show what he really thought.

Xu Yunci didn't speak, then looked at the letter under the books. No wonder he didn't like going out; he probably ran into someone he didn't want to see again.

His gaze turned somber. Recalling the contents of the letter, he didn't even glance at the plate of flower cakes. He let out a deep breath and pinched the area between his eyebrows.

The second branch of the family only visited on the first day of the Lunar New Year and did not stay long. After leaving the Rongguo Mansion that day, it seemed that they had returned to the way they interacted before the New Year.

Later, I heard from the Duke of Rongguo and Lady Yang that the second branch of the family still believed they were following a wise master and were mindful of their contribution to the succession. They wanted to persuade the Duke of Rongguo's family to switch their support to the Prince of Yan.

Even Li Shiyue found these words laughable, and no one in the Xu family cared about them. They didn't even bother to give face to the second branch of the family as they used to, and there was no need to go out of their way to humiliate the Rongguo Duke's Mansion.

The New Year is the most festive time.

This festive atmosphere lasted until after the Lantern Festival, but the daytime seemed even shorter. With February approaching, it still didn't feel particularly warm after nightfall.

Li Shiyue hasn't gone anywhere since the Lantern Festival. To be precise, she played too hard on the Lantern Festival and now she's lingering with a cold that hasn't fully healed yet.

Even if she went out, whether to Shousong Hall or to see Xu Lingzi embroider her wedding dress, she would be constantly being watched and pampered, so she simply stopped going anywhere.

The charcoal fire in Chengyu Pavilion was never lacking, and Li Shiyue did not go out. She was wearing a simple bamboo-green cloak with dark patterns. She had nothing to do recently, so she learned to make necklaces for fun.

“Miss, Young Master Xie has sent an invitation, saying that he will be going out of the manor with the young men and women of the household.”

When Chunling walked in, Li Shiyue was pondering over the knotted Yingluo in her hand. She handed her the invitation.

Upon hearing Xie Yizhi's name, Li Shiyue didn't even look up. She had been suffering from a cold since the Lantern Festival and didn't want to run around.

Gritting his teeth, he said, "I'm not going. If they ask, I'll just tell them I'm busy making knots."

It has to be the young master's doing that this tassel is made; otherwise, the young lady would always be running out when she has a cold. Chunling suppressed a smile and took the invitation away.

After tying the knot several times, Li Shiyue irritably put the knot back on the small table. Ever since returning from the Lantern Festival, she had only seen Xu Yunci and caught her trying to go out to play despite having a cold.

She felt she would go crazy if she stayed like this.

"Chunling, help me change my clothes, I'm going to see my grandmother."

Having changed into a proper outfit, Li Shiyue was about to head towards Shousong Hall with Chunling when she bumped into someone coming from the opposite direction as soon as she left Chengyu Pavilion.

When Li Shiyue looked up, there was Xu Yunci, with his hands behind his back, looking at her with a half-smile.

"Cousin, I'm going to see my maternal grandmother."

With a sudden jolt, Li Shiyue spoke first. She had been feeling troubled just moments before, but now she had no resentment left. She only hoped that she wouldn't be taken back to Chengyu Pavilion to recuperate.

Xu Yunci didn't speak. He turned away so Li Shiyue wouldn't see the dark circles under his eyes. He had just come from Shousong Hall and was exhausted.

"Go."

Li Shiyue watched Xu Yunci's retreating figure without saying a word; she wasn't unaware of the dark circles under Xu Yunci's eyes.

The capital is in chaos, and even she has heard about it in the inner quarters. Recently, there has been a great deal of panic in the capital. The soldiers' pay on the border has been embezzled, and the embezzled funds from Huayuan County have not yet been recovered. The emperor is extremely angry.

The Ministry of Justice was tasked with investigating the matter by having the Jingzhao Prefecture and the Dali Temple assist the Ministry of Justice. At this time, the Duke of Rongguo was personally in charge. Ironically, most of the officials in charge of the military pay were loyal to the Prince of Yan. This brought the struggle for the crown prince position into the open.

However, the Emperor did not get angry. In fact, Consort Shun, the birth mother of Prince Yan, was promoted to Imperial Concubine Shun at the end of the first month, enjoying immense prestige for a time.

This was the first time Xu Yunci had returned to the Duke's mansion in over a month. At the time, he was busy in the capital and could hardly see anyone else.

I don't know why I came back this time. I think I was in a hurry. It seems like I just came to pay my respects to Madam Xu and then left again.

It's no wonder Xu Yunci was anxious. Consort Shun and Prince Yan were enjoying immense power and influence, and it was unclear what the Emperor's attitude was. Moreover, the embezzlement of military funds was linked to the previous clues in Huayuan County, so Xu Yunci naturally couldn't give up.

In particular, whenever Xu Yunyang came to him, he would mention Li Shiyue. Others might not know, but the two of them were very clear that they could never go back to their original brotherhood.