"Miss...how do you know these things?" Siqin was more surprised at her young lady's eyesight than the value of the items.

Oops... I seem a bit pretentious. "Your young lady knows a lot, so you'll just believe it from now on."

"Then why do you still think that Madam has bad intentions?"

"Look at all the things she sent me. They're all made of jade or porcelain. Even the teacup I drink from has been replaced with a glass one. If I accidentally break it, do you think she'll go to Dad and ask for an eye drop? If you girls accidentally break it, she'll have an even better excuse to get rid of you."

"What? How could she be so mean? On the one hand she coaxes the master into thinking she is so kind to you, and on the other hand she is waiting to find fault with you!"

"Yes, the Gu family will definitely put on a good front, but they are truly vicious inside."

"So what should we do? Should we...put these things away?"

"Why would you accept it? If you give it to me, it's mine. It would be a shame not to display such a beautiful thing."

"Then the servants will just have to be careful. Hehe, you know what, these things are indeed no worse than those in the young lady's room."

"Why are you so silly? The things in the eldest lady's room are hers to deal with as she pleases. How can we do the same?"

"Oh..." Siqin finally realized that this wasn't a gift of treasure, it was clearly a gift of firecrackers, which might explode at any moment. "Then I'll go copy those Buddhist scriptures first. In ten days, Madam will go burn incense a hundred times... Sigh!"

"No need, don't listen to her." Xu Yixing waved his hands. If he copied her a hundred times, his hands would be broken. He didn't want to care!

"What if Madam asks about it?"

"It's cold, you don't have to worry about it."

Xu Yixing knew that the 20th of every month was the Xu Mansion's guest reception day.

The noble ladies in Beijing had nothing to do during the day, so they could only get together to chat and play mahjong. Over time, each family established a fixed day for entertaining guests, so that everyone's gathering dates would not overlap and there would not be several families entertaining guests at the same time, leaving the guests unsure of which house to go to.

It's tomorrow... The eldest daughter of the Xu family is already married, and as the remaining daughter, I will definitely be called to accompany the guests. So what if I'm confined today? I'll be released tomorrow anyway. Humph, just wait until tomorrow and I'll make you proud!

"Oh, by the way, go get some cloth and cover all these things up."

"Huh?"

"I've suddenly changed my mind. I'll cover them all up. They'll be useful tomorrow."

If I see guests tomorrow, I'll bring a few young ladies into the room and let them see that all the valuables in the room are covered up. They'll definitely ask why. Then I'll explain the mistress's "good intentions" and I'm not afraid that these young ladies won't shout it out.

As Xu Yixing thought about this, he couldn't help but despise himself. In the past, he looked down upon those little white flowers who only knew how to pretend to be weak, but now it was his turn.

Until noon, Xu Yixing was in the room, copying Xu Yiyan's handwriting with a pen. He also took the account book from yesterday and carefully memorized it in his mind. He did not dare to let Siqin see him. Fortunately, Siqin knew the rules and did not disturb him unless he called her.

She finally remembered most of it, and the hunger in her stomach made her feel very uncomfortable, so she put away the pile of things and called for food.

Siqin came in, but she didn't bring a lunch box. She just lowered her head and said, "Miss, the kitchen didn't deliver any food today."

"Huh?" Xu Yixing finally realized that the house arrest Gu mentioned actually meant not even giving them food. "What about the maids and servants in the courtyard? Are they starving too?"

"Yes, but since they can go out, they naturally find a place to eat on their own."

"Oh, that's not stupid. Go to the kitchen and ask them to make some for me, and one for you and Si Hua as well."

"Miss, since Madam doesn't want anyone to bring us food, she will definitely give instructions to the kitchen."

"You're such a fool! What do you think I asked you to do with all that money yesterday? Just go ahead and throw the money in their faces. I'll see if they'll do it or not."

"Ah..." Siqin thought the young lady was going to do something big with the money, but she was disappointed to find that she was just using it to bribe her stomach. However, when she thought about having a meal, she went there happily.

Soon, a box of food arrived, containing four dishes, a soup, and a large bowl of fragrant white rice. Xu Yixing happily accepted it, devouring it all in one gulp. And then, as expected... he developed a stomach upset.

Lying in bed, she felt extremely uncomfortable. Who knew Xu Yiyan was so fragile? Just eating a little bit of food would cause her such pain. However, despite the pain, she thought that it might be because Yiyan usually ate little and rarely had meat, so he couldn't bear it after suddenly eating and drinking so much today.

She stayed up too late that night, and when Xu Yixing woke up the next day, it was already past 9:00 PM. She quickly jumped out of bed and called for Siqin to help her dress.

"Today is the banquet day at the mansion. All the guests should be here by now. It's so inappropriate for me to arrive late!"

Siqin looked at her anxious appearance and found it amusing: "Madam didn't ask you to meet the guests today."

"Ah?" Xu Yixing stopped tying her skirt. Why wouldn't she go? . . . This was all in vain. Looking at the rags of different colors in her room, her mood worsened. Just as she was about to reach out and pull off the covering of the jade pendant at the head of the bed, she heard some movement outside the courtyard.

"Is someone coming?"

"I agree with you. Please get dressed first. I'll go outside to take a look." Siqin jumped out in a few steps, and Xu Yixing quickly got himself ready.

All that could be heard was Gu's voice outside, her body shaking with laughter: "Yes, yes, in our family, fairness is the most important thing when educating our children. Your Highness, you will know once you go to Yan'er's room. She is so precious!"

Then, without waiting for Siqin to stop her, Gu pushed open the door and was about to invite the ladies in, but her smile froze on her face: the whole room was like a ruined temple, with gray cloth everywhere, covering the treasures she had specially sent yesterday.

Xu Yixing was also surprised, but it was an unexpected surprise. He had thought that all his efforts were in vain, but who knew that Gu would come in headfirst.

It turned out that she had sent the gifts yesterday out of good intentions in order to let the ladies of each family take a good look at her "virtue" today, but she didn't expect the scene to be like this.

"Mother is here? Why didn't you inform me in advance? I'm sorry for being rude." Xu Yixing walked over slowly from the bed. Although she had dressed quickly, her belt was still a little crooked. It was obvious that she was in a hurry and not prepared to meet the guests.

Arriving at the door, Xu Yixing saw a large crowd of six or seven ladies. He knew all of them, all of whom were close friends of the Xu family. The wife of Minister Yan, who was at the back, couldn't help but smile, and quickly covered her face with a handkerchief, but Xu Yixing still saw it.