Honghui's funeral was held quickly, and afterwards, the Fourth Prince's wife was in poor health and was bedridden all day.

Heyue returned to her residence to rest for a while, occasionally visiting the Fourth Prince's wife.

Days passed like this. The Fourth Prince's wife's health gradually improved, but her spirits remained low. When she went to the palace to pay her respects, Consort De kept her aside for a private conversation.

Knowing what Consort De wanted to say, He Yue and the Fourteenth Prince's Consort left first.

Although the two were sisters-in-law, their relationship was never very close, maintaining only a superficial politeness and friendliness. Furthermore, because Wanyan was out of favor, she was often moody and unpredictable. On several occasions, Heyue even saw her scolding the servants around her, which made her even less willing to have any contact with her.

After leaving Yonghe Palace, Heyue said goodbye to Wanyan Shi and was about to leave when Wanyan Shi stepped forward and called her back.

"Thirteenth Sister-in-law".

He Yue paused, looking over in surprise.

This was the first time in years that Wanyan had spoken to her affectionately.

With a beaming smile, Wanyan stepped forward and took her arm in a very intimate manner: "To be honest, we sisters-in-law have never had a proper conversation. Thirteenth Sister-in-law always comes and goes in a hurry, which makes me quite disappointed. The weather is fine today, why don't we take a walk together?"

He Yue withdrew her hand and smiled faintly: "Sister-in-law, you flatter me. I didn't sleep well last night and I'm a little tired today. I'm thinking of going back to rest properly, so I won't say any more to you."

She had no interest in playing along with such a two-faced person; rather than wasting her time trying to guess his motives, she'd rather go back to sleep.

Wanyan's expression changed, and she bit her lip as if she had suffered a great injustice: "Does Thirteenth Sister-in-law really not want to talk to me? I know I offended Thirteenth Sister-in-law in the past and made her unhappy, but I have apologized to her. Why does Thirteenth Sister-in-law still hold onto that little grudge?"

Ha, so you've learned to play the victim.

But she wasn't buying it. She still smiled innocently and said, "What are you saying, sister-in-law? When have I ever had a disagreement with you? I don't remember. Aren't you just making people misunderstand me? I'm really tired, so I'm not going to keep you company."

Without waiting for her reaction, he walked away.

Heyue didn't take this incident to heart at all. She originally wanted to wait for the Fourth Prince's wife at the palace gate, but she had to leave first because of Wanyan.

But after the carriage had only been traveling for a short while, they heard a call from behind.

The sound of horses' hooves rose, and the carriage was forced to stop. A familiar, clear voice came from outside: "Yinzhen greets Thirteenth Sister-in-law."

Hearing the voice, He Yue was surprised for a moment. She reached out and lifted the carriage curtain, looked at the Fourteenth Prince sitting upright on his horse in the sunlight, squinted her eyes, and smiled brightly: "What brings Fourteenth Brother here?"

She didn't believe it was a coincidence. She had just been entangled with Wanyan Shi when the Fourteenth Prince came chasing after her. She really didn't believe there was nothing fishy about it.

The Fourteenth Prince smiled broadly: "It's a rare opportunity. Thirteenth Sister-in-law, may I have a word with you in private?"

After thinking for a moment, He Yue decided that there was nothing wrong with it and nodded in agreement.

The two went to a restaurant and went straight to a private room on the second floor, where two of his maids and his servant stood guard outside.

"Fourteenth Brother, is there something you need?" He Yue asked directly.

The Fourteenth Prince smiled, revealing a set of white teeth: "Why be so formal, Thirteenth Sister-in-law? Not to mention that Thirteenth Brother and I have always been on good terms and should have more contact, it was just a chance encounter with Thirteenth Sister-in-law that we had some tea and exchanged greetings."

Shall we say hello?

He smiled even more broadly: "Fourteenth Brother is absolutely right."

The waiter knocked and came in, and the two stopped talking.

After the waiter served them tea and left, Heyue picked up her teacup, lowered her head to sip the tea, and remained silent.

"I heard that when Thirteenth Sister-in-law was still young, she had a lot of contact with Eighth Sister-in-law. Eighth Sister-in-law often mentioned Thirteenth Sister-in-law, saying that she was as close as sisters with Thirteenth Sister-in-law and praising Thirteenth Sister-in-law as being comparable to a man. However, Yinzhen has never had the opportunity to meet Thirteenth Sister-in-law and is really curious."

Hearing his words, He Yue pondered for a while, wondering what he was trying to tell her, so she continued to listen.

Seeing that she remained silent, the Fourteenth Prince continued, "My thirteenth brother and I grew up together since childhood, and our relationship is naturally different from that of the other brothers. However, as we grew up, we were no longer as carefree as when we were children, and we inevitably became less close. But no matter what changes occur, I have always regarded my thirteenth brother as my closest person."

His words sounded sincere, but He Yue secretly chuckled to herself, thinking, "They're all such good actors."

However, she had no interest in dealing with people who spoke in roundabout ways; she preferred to speak her mind directly. But the Fourteenth Prince was clearly used to this and couldn't understand.

If it were anyone else, she would have gotten up and left long ago. But since the other party was, after all, Thirteen's brother, she patiently continued to listen to what he had to say.

“I know what Fourteenth Brother is thinking, and I believe Thirteenth Master also understands Fourteenth Brother’s brotherly affection.”

The Fourteenth Prince grinned, extremely pleased: "That's good." He added, "I often visit Eighth Brother, and Eighth Brother and his wife often praise Thirteenth Brother and his wife. I know that Thirteenth Sister-in-law must be a very good person, just like Thirteenth Brother. I feel guilty that Mingshuang doesn't have many friends and I don't have time to accompany her. I hope that Thirteenth Sister-in-law can come to the mansion often to talk to Mingshuang."

So that's where they were waiting.

He Yuexin understood and nodded with a smile, "Of course."

The Fourteenth Prince breathed a sigh of relief: "Yinzhen thanks Thirteenth Sister-in-law."

Once Heyue returned to her residence, she put the matter behind her, thinking that the conversation between Consort De and her fourth sister-in-law today was nothing more than a gesture of comfort.

I just hope that my fourth sister-in-law can recover as soon as possible.

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