Jiang Xueli snorted coldly and sat down reluctantly.

"Sister, what I want to say is that if she can do it, I can do it too, but if you can do it, she may not be able to do it."

Jiang Xueli paused for a moment, then looked at her doubtfully: "Please give me some advice, sister."

Jiang Xuewei: "In recent days, I have seen my father assisting His Highness in handling official business. His Highness is still willing to give my father some face. Why don't we ask my father to come forward and help you propose marriage."

Jiang Xueli said arrogantly, "Is that witch worthy of sharing a husband with me? I don't like her at all. I even think she's dirty."

Jiang Xuewei said disapprovingly: "As long as His Highness is willing to accept my sister, these are trivial matters."

"Sister, do you have any ideas?"

"Of course, as long as His Highness accepts my sister into the inner house, everything else will be easy. As for that witch..." She leaned close to Jiang Xueli's ear and whispered, "When the time comes, we will..."

Jiang Xueli listened patiently, and slowly, a hint of surprise and astonishment flashed in her eyes. She stared at Jiang Xuewei blankly, only to see Jiang Xuewei pick a peony from the vase with fierce movements.

…

Cuiwei brought the porridge and side dishes to the table. Su Qian noticed that she was unhappy, so she asked her, "What's wrong with you? Just say it if you have something to say."

"Miss, the news that His Highness stayed in our courtyard last night has spread..."

Su Qian had anticipated this last night, so she wasn't too surprised. Such a small thing wouldn't make her frown so deeply, there must be other reasons.

Su Qian glanced at her and said, "I guess the rumors outside are not very pleasant."

Cuiwei was a little surprised. She had never thought that she could guess it. "You are really smart, young lady. Those two from Qiongdan Court and Qiongyu Court spoke so harshly, especially that young lady."

Su Qian drank a mouthful of porridge and said calmly, "Let them talk. If they really go too far, Yan Xuanye will take care of it. We don't need to worry about it."

Not long after breakfast, the maidservant beside the Tongpan's wife came over to pass on a message. She bowed respectfully to Su Qian and said, "Goddess, the Tongpan has been busy with official business for a few days and has not had time to entertain the guests. Today at 3:30 in the evening, the Tongpan will host a banquet in Qinghui Garden. I hope you can come and do me a favor."

"I know. I'll be there."

It has been such a long time since she traveled to ancient times and was bored all day long. Finally, she can have some fun and experience the ancient banquets.

"Yes, then I'll take my leave."

Su Qian thought, it seems the judge is really anxious. It's not even lunchtime yet, but he's already sent a maid to tell her about a banquet. I'm afraid he's trying to force his daughter into Yan Xuanye's arms. Maybe he'll even target her. It looks like... a Hongmen Feast.

"Since you are attending a banquet, you should dress up nicely. Not only should you outdo the two young ladies of the Jiang family, but you should also let His Highness's subordinates see clearly that you are the one who is most suitable for His Highness."

Su Qian stopped her: "No need, just dress normally."

If she was too dazzling and Yan Xuanye paid too much attention to her, she would worry about how to go back in the future.

Besides, the protagonists of tonight should be the two sisters. If she steals the limelight from them, they will probably be jealous of her.

Su Qian didn't care about anything else, she just hoped that it wouldn't hinder her from completing her task. If someone came to her room every few days to talk to her about nonsense, wasting her time, or deliberately finding things for her to do, she would be annoyed to death.

Cuiwei was anxious: "Girl!"

"Just listen to me."

Cuiwei agreed reluctantly and selected several sets of clothes and jewelry for her to choose from. Su Qian chose a white smoke gauze dress embroidered with jasmine flowers, and also chose simple jewelry.

Cuiwei helped her bathe and dress up and put on this dress.

Su Qian looked at herself in the mirror and was quite satisfied. "Let's go."

Maids held lanterns to lead her along the way. Before the hour of Si, she could already hear the sounds of singing and dancing in Qinghui Garden. The lingering sound was accompanied by laughter and chatter in the hall, and the sound of clinking glasses. It must have been extremely lively.

Cuiwei was a little dissatisfied: "Miss, when the Tongpan's wife's maid came to deliver the message, didn't she say it was three quarters past the hour of Si? Now it's not even Si hour yet, and the banquet has already started in Qinghui Garden. Are the Tongpan and his wife doing this on purpose..."

Su Qian pretended to cough twice to interrupt her: "Ahem." Then he turned around and gave her a warning look, indicating that she should stop talking.

This is the Tongpan Mansion, and the person leading the way is also the Tongpan Mansion's maid. If she speaks ill of the Tongpan and his wife right under the Tongpan Mansion's maid's nose, if the maid can't control her mouth and tells the Tongpan's wife, she will definitely not be forgiven.

When he arrived at the gate of Qinghui Garden, he saw a tall and slender black figure. Su Qian was stunned. Why was he here?

When Yan Xuanye saw her coming, the sadness in his heart instantly dissipated. He was filled with joy and immediately went to greet her. "I thought you were angry with me and didn't want to come."

"I got lost on the way here and took a few detours." She asked puzzledly, "Why aren't you sitting inside?"

"I've been sitting there listening to their flattery, my ears are all callused." He paused, then added, "And... I was afraid you were still angry, so I came out to wait. I figured if you didn't come, I wouldn't attend the banquet and would go back to accompany you."

Perhaps because he was attending a banquet, Yan Xuanye wore a black robe embroidered with gold dragon patterns today. Compared with usual, he looked more noble and not so dull.

"Come on, I'll lead you inside."

Su Qian nodded: "Okay."

In Qinghui Garden, Jiang Xueli glanced at the empty seat with annoyance. Her father had hosted a banquet, and Yan Xuanye only stayed for less than a quarter of an hour before leaving the garden without a word. No one dared to question or stop him, and they could only watch him stride away.

She said with some dissatisfaction: "Sister, the banquet is about to begin, and His Highness suddenly left the table. Isn't this a slap in the face of our family?"

There was also resentment in Jiang Xuewei's eyes, but it was hard to see on her face. "Let's wait and see."

The other people around them also talked about this matter to some extent. After all, they were the hosts of the banquet, and being discussed as the center of public opinion, especially in front of a bunch of servants, naturally made the family of five unhappy.

It’s just that the Tongpan couple and Jiang Xuewei are at a higher level and can hide their emotions. Jiang Xueli and her brother Jiang Ziyi are not so smart.

Jiang Xueli was just feeling dissatisfied when she saw Yan Xuanye holding Su Qian's hand, and the two of them came in together, talking and laughing.