About half a month passed slowly and steadily. Li Shiyue gradually got the hang of the affairs of the Duke's mansion's inner quarters, and in some places she could do very well without the help of Granny Sun or Granny Luo.

After having breakfast, Xu Yunci had already returned home from the morning court session. The couple chatted for a while, and Li Shiyue was about to go to the flower hall with Chunling.

Before they had even left Tongxin Hall, Granny Sun came over alone, her steps quick and swift. When she saw Li Shiyue, she curtsied and said, "Someone from the palace has come to see the young master's wife."

"See me?"

Li Shiyue looked at Granny Sun with some doubt, and she nodded again.

As Li Shiyue walked towards the main hall, she wondered who the person from the palace could be. If Chonghua Palace belonged to Xu Lingyu, she would usually see Yang Shi, and it was Yang Shi who would tell her everything.

Aside from Chonghua Palace, she couldn't think of anyone else in the palace who would be looking for her.

Just as they were wondering, they arrived at the main hall. Looking at the unfamiliar palace maids, they couldn't immediately recall if they had seen them before.

The woman seemed to notice the scrutiny in Li Shiyue's eyes and curtsied, saying, "This servant is Xia Lian, the head maid of Pixiang Palace. I have come to the Duke's mansion on the orders of the Noble Consort to deliver a letter to the Heir Apparent's wife."

As she spoke, she took out an ornately decorated invitation and handed it over, with herself smeared with gold ink on it.

With neat and beautiful handwriting, Xia Lian smiled and said, "The Imperial Concubine will be hosting a small banquet in three days. We hope that the ladies of the Rongguo Duke's Mansion will be able to attend the banquet."

"To do me a favor?" If the women of the Rongguo Duke's Mansion were to call a banquet for a first-rank imperial concubine a favor, wouldn't that make people say that the Rongguo Duke's Mansion was arrogant and conceited?

Li Shiyue glanced sideways, and Chunling stepped forward to take the invitation, carefully putting it away.

"The Imperial Concubine's banquet is so dignified and respectable, there is no need to ask for favors. It is an honor for the Duke's mansion. However, although I am now in charge of the household, I still need to ask the elders. My mother has not been feeling well lately, and I am afraid that it will be inconvenient for her to go out."

"Why don't you ask Miss Xia Lian to wait a moment? I'll have someone inquire with my mother. If it's convenient, I'll naturally accept the Imperial Concubine's invitation."

"Miss Xia Lian, it would be good for you to return to the palace to report back."

After saying that, Xia Lian nodded, appearing to be obedient.

"Chunling, go ahead."

What remained was Granny Sun. Xia Lian was not sure which word caught her attention, but she looked up and secretly sized up the old woman.

When Li Shiyue looked over, he didn't seem embarrassed at all and calmly lowered his head.

There was some distance between the main hall and the main courtyard, but without being told, servants came to serve tea.

Although Xia Lian was a palace maid, she was still from the palace and was the head maid of the Pixiang Palace. She had a certain rank, which was not comparable to that of an ordinary palace maid.

Although they did not have close ties with the Marquis of Changping or the Pixiang Palace, they still had to maintain a certain level of decorum and not allow anyone to speak ill of the Rongguo Duke's Mansion.

When Chunling returned, she was with Mother Luo. Although the two of them walked very fast, each step was steady and powerful.

"Lady of the Heir Apparent, the Duchess of the State heard that someone from Pixiang Palace had come, and she specifically sent me to report this."

Mother Luo stood in front of Li Shiyue, turning to face Xia Lian.

"This is Mama Luo, the head maidservant by Mother's side. Mama Luo, this is Miss Xia Lian, the head maidservant of Pixiang Palace. She is a person by the side of the Imperial Concubine. She said that the Imperial Concubine will be hosting a banquet for various families in three days and wants to invite the female members of the Duke's family to the palace."

Li Shiyue's gaze met Luo's mother's for only a moment. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Chunling walking back to her side. Chunling had her back to Xia Lian, and her fingers were tapping at the base of her thumb.

He didn't say anything more, but picked up the teacup beside him and listened silently.

“Miss Xia Lian, the Duchess has not been feeling well lately and is afraid of offending the Imperial Concubine, so it is probably not appropriate for her to enter the palace this time. The Old Madam is also still ill, and the Heir Apparent’s wife has been taking care of her. Please apologize to the Imperial Concubine on behalf of the Duke’s Mansion and visit the Imperial Concubine at Pixiang Palace another day.”

Madam Luo wore an apologetic smile. This wasn't a lie; Madam Yang wasn't feeling well and hadn't accompanied Li Shiyue to the palace earlier, nor had she refused to enter the Pixiang Palace alone.

However, since Madam Xu was feeling better, she didn't want Li Shiyue to get involved in the current affairs of Pixiang Palace.

Recently, there have been rumors that Consort Fu wants to register Prince Zhao under her name, following the previous actions of the Earl of Changping. Who knows what Consort Fu's motives are?

Moreover, Consort An, the birth mother of the King of Zhao, is still alive. Openly snatching someone else's son is too blatant. The King of Zhao is already of age and doesn't need any care.

Who knows what they're thinking? After the incident with the Prince of Yan, the Rongguo Duke's Mansion belongs to the Chonghua Palace faction, so they have to be careful.

The words were phrased rather tactfully, but Xia Lian could still sense the rejection in Luo's mother's attitude. She wasn't surprised; it was as if she had expected it.

"I see. I hope the Duchess and the Old Madam recover soon. Forget about apologizing; the Consort is very concerned about the Rongguo Duke's Mansion."

"It's getting late. The Imperial Concubine is waiting for me to return to the palace to report, so I won't bother you any longer."

Xia Lian had gentle features and a faint smile in her eyes, though the smile was barely perceptible beneath them, giving her the air of an old-fashioned palace maid.

"I'll trouble Miss Xia Lian to make this trip. Chun Ling, you and Granny Sun go and see them off."

Li Shiyue did not get up, but watched Chunling follow Chang Mama beside her.

As they walked out of the Duke's mansion, Chunling took two steps forward, smiling as she took Xia Lian's hand and handed her the purse she had prepared beforehand.

"Sister Xia Lian, please come over and have a bowl of herbal tea to quench your thirst. It's really not convenient at home. I will definitely go to Pixiang Palace another day to apologize to the Imperial Concubine in person. Please put in a good word for me."

If you're not speaking well of the Imperial Concubine, and you've taken something from the Duke's mansion, then don't spread any words that are detrimental to the Duke's mansion.

They were all intelligent people. Xia Lian glanced at the purse in her hand, which felt thin to the touch.

Her smile deepened. If the silver was in her purse, it would be heavy. But if it was thin, it meant that it contained silver notes with a face value of at least one hundred taels, more than double the amount of silver.

"The Rongguo Duke's Mansion is of course excellent. I urge the Duchess and the Old Madam to take good care of your health. I will also explain the situation to the Consort truthfully and will not blame the mansion."

She left the palace in a plain carriage, which looked like an ordinary carriage. She put away her purse, turned around, and got into the carriage.

Watching the carriage slowly disappear at the end of the long street, Chunling withdrew her gaze and turned to meet Granny Sun's smiling eyes.

After entering the Duke's mansion together, Chunling couldn't help but ask, "Granny, did I do something wrong?"

"No."

Granny Sun was not usually fond of smiling. She had seen too many maids and servants, so even if Chunling was a bit lively, she didn't think anything of it.

“You did a good job. When someone comes from the palace, you should treat them well, no matter who they are.”