The carriage had come to a steady stop at the gate of the Duke's mansion, but the young master inside still didn't look too good.

Stepping into Shousong Hall, Li Shiyue and Old Madam Xu sat cross-legged on the bed inside. Li Shiyue's face was still covered with pale makeup, but Old Madam Xu was intently craning her neck to look at the embroidery needle in Li Shiyue's hand.

"The young master is back."

Chunling, who was standing at the edge of the bed, had sharp eyes and caught a glimpse of Xu Yunci, who had been standing there for who knows how long.

He put down the neatly wrapped gold thread in his hand, got up and made way for the edge of the bed, and walked to the side of Granny Chang.

"Why did you come so quietly, cousin? I'm afraid you're not sick, but you've already been frightened."

Li Shiyue looked up and met Xu Yunci's deep eyes. She smiled gently, clearly seeing the tenderness in his eyes.

There was a stack of pastries next to Madam Xu on the bed, but they were wrapped in oil paper.

"Cousin, you probably don't know, but the medicine is really bitter, even more bitter than before. You see, even Grandma has to eat an extra piece of fruit cake before taking her medicine, otherwise the bitterness won't be able to be suppressed."

He put the bright red brocade aside, tugged at Xu Yunci's sleeve, and pointed to the plate of pastries that Old Madam Xu had eaten, leaving only half a piece.

Shousong Hall was completely surrounded, and no one could get in or out. Only the Duke of Rongguo and Madam Yang were allowed to leave freely, partly to avoid being discovered, and they didn't even tell Madam Zhou from the fourth branch of the family.

No one knows what method she used, but Yang really managed to isolate them, preventing anyone from finding out even the slightest bit of news about Shousong Hall.

As a result, apart from Madam Yang, there were only Granny Chang, Chunling, Lianchun, and Liandong; not a single hair of the others could be seen throughout the day.

Li Shiyue was worried that Old Madam Xu was bored. She looked at Xu Yunci as if she had seen a savior, and hurriedly tugged at his clothes slightly, signaling him to continue the conversation.

"Is it really that hard? I should have brought some fruit cakes from Shunxiangzhai for my grandmother when I came back."

Xu Yunci understood her meaning and sat directly in front of Old Madam Xu, scrutinizing their expressions: "Your faces have turned so pale after not seeing you for a few days. Is it no use?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Li Shiyue couldn't help but laugh and crawl to the other side of Old Madam Xu, pointing to her own cheek and then to Old Madam Xu.

“I drew it. Cousin, you must take a good look. I drew my grandmother so realistically that even my aunt was startled when she came over.”

Madam Xu leaned against the shelf behind her, enjoying the soft furnishings without feeling uncomfortable. Seeing Li Shiyue's hearty smile, she couldn't help but smile as well.

Seeing that Madam Xu was smiling happily, Li Shiyue knew that her goal had been achieved, and then said, "You're finally smiling. I was so worried that your eyes would get tired from watching me embroider my wedding dress."

“I’ll worry about this as long as it’s not over. If we don’t find the culprit this time, who knows if they’ll harm people again in the future?” Old Madam Xu sighed, pulling her hand as she looked at Xu Yunci in front of her.

"Don't worry, with Mother at home, Father and I are doing quite well outside. My elder sister in the palace also knows about it. There are some things that are easier for my elder sister because of her status, so I also told His Highness and my elder sister."

Xu Yunci then slowly began to recount the events that had occurred outside in the past few days, but as he spoke, his gaze involuntarily drifted towards Li Shiyue's expression.

Madam Xu also looked over frequently, which puzzled Li Shiyue, who had been silent all along: "Just say it, what else do you think I can come up with?"

That little mouth of hers is so clever; I just hope she won't get angry later.

Xu Yunci coughed twice before speaking under the watchful eyes of both of them: "People outside are saying that the heir of the Rongguo Duke's Mansion is about to marry the Princess of Yichang, but he is keeping someone outside, which has made both Old Madam Xu and the Princess of Yichang sick with anger."

He deliberately mimicked the man's tone, his face remaining serious.

Li Shiyue couldn't help but chuckle. Xu Yunci glanced at her and asked, "You're not angry at all?"

Madam Xu also looked over, observed the expressions of the two, and remained silent.

"It's not true, why should I be angry? Does my cousin think I'm a jealous old man who gets angry over everything?"

Li Shiyue glared at him angrily, then turned her head and saw the teasing look in Old Madam Xu's eyes. A blush quickly swept across her cheeks.

"This is clearly just hearsay. Besides, this plan was devised by us. If my cousin really has someone he likes, he will definitely bring her back openly and honestly to show Grandmother and Aunt."

These words carried a hint of defiance. After speaking, he turned his head away and refused to look at Xu Yunci's expression again.

Madam Xu couldn't help but smile as she looked at Xu Yunci, making no attempt to hide her amusement: "Don't look at me like that. She has a terrible temper. You'll have to go and appease her yourself."

Although Li Shiyue was facing the other side, Xu Yunci could see a faint upturn at the corner of her mouth in her profile, so she wasn't really angry.

"Cousin, don't be angry with me. It's just that I'm bad with words."

Li Shiyue pulled her sleeve back, glanced at Xu Yunci, and gestured for Xu Yunci to face the direction of Old Madam Xu. Her almond-shaped eyes flickered slightly.

"My cousin is so good with words. He can imitate the tone of those people outside perfectly. I almost believed that my cousin really had someone else."

After saying that, she turned away again.

Xu Yunci immediately understood her meaning and quickly moved closer to Old Madam Xu: "Grandmother, please help me. I just said I wouldn't be angry, but what should I do now? How could I get angry so suddenly?"

Madam Xu wasn't senile; she saw through their little tricks, yet she still laughed heartily.

Chunling, standing to the side, had already blushed and turned her head away. Was this still her young lady? So this was how the young master acted in front of her.

Looking up at Granny Chang, the old woman and the young boy exchanged glances and then left.

Putting everything else aside, Li Shiyue and Xu Yunci's banter and teasing of Old Madam Xu brought the old lady a lot of joy.

As they approached the curtain, Granny Chang glanced into the inner room and said, "Chunling, you stay inside. I'll go outside and see if anyone comes. If anyone does, listen carefully and go in to report."

Chunling nodded hurriedly: "Understood, Granny."

Granny Chang lifted the curtain and went out. She walked around the main room and took a dozen steps to the back. She turned into the corridor and went through a small door, which led to the back room where Madam Zhao was.

The place wasn't very big, and it was filled with the scent of herbs.

This is the place where medicine is prepared for Madam Xu and Li Shiyue. They came to the two medicine pots and said, "This medicine is even more bitter today."

Zhao, who was grinding medicine with two maids, smiled when she heard what Granny Chang said: "It has to be bitter to detoxify. Why don't you tell me how the old lady is doing today? I'll go and see her later."