"Lingjun, why did she mention Qiu Lingjun?" Baoning tilted his head and asked Pei Yuan, "What happened to Qiu Lingjun?"

Pei Yuan paused: "It seems that she is dying." He asked someone to do it.

Pei Yuan was a little worried that Baoning would soften her heart. If she asked about it, it would be difficult to explain what he did.

He didn't say anything else, staring at Baoning nervously to see her reaction.

Baoning said "Oh".

Pei Yuan waited for a while and asked: "No more?"

"What's gone?" Baoning asked back in confusion.

Now it was Pei Yuan's turn to be curious: "Qiu Lingjun, I said she was going to die, don't you have anything to ask?"

"Did you do it?" Bao Ning pursed her lips, "Nothing to ask. Whether it was you who did it or she got sick, I don't care. She is so mean, people with mean hearts will definitely die earlier."

Pei Yuan laughed. His concerns just now disappeared, and he lowered his eyes to look at Bao Ning's face. His eyes fell on her lips with bright red lipstick, and he really wanted to take a bite.

He liked Bao Ning too much, and he loved her personality, to the core.

It was a pity that he was not at home now, and he couldn't kiss her whenever he wanted. Pei Yuan put away his thoughts in disappointment.

"Is your fourth sister mentally ill?" Pei Yuan thought about what happened just now, "The more I think about it, the more I feel unsatisfied. She said so much and we just said a few words in return. It's boring. Should we beat her up on the spot?"

"Don't! Are you crazy?" Bao Ning looked at him in surprise, "I still have some dignity. If we really quarrel, my entire family will be in disgrace."

Pei Yuan said, "Do you want to take revenge on her secretly?"

"Let's take revenge on the spot just now and don't mention it anymore." Bao Ning said, "If there is a next time, push her into the lake. But be secretive and don't let anyone see it."

Pei Yuan called out, "Chen Jia!" Someone

quickly came out from behind him and responded, "Chen Jia is here."

Bao Ning turned around and saw Chen Jia three steps behind them. When Bao Ning got off the carriage, he didn't see him, so he thought he didn't enter the palace. Unexpectedly, he followed him all the time, and he walked without making any sound.

Pei Yuan asked, "Did you hear what I said just now?"

"I heard it!" Chen Jia said, "If it happens again, I will push the prince's concubine into the lake!"

Pei Yuan nodded with satisfaction.

...

Walk through this corridor and turn a corner to Yimei Garden, where Tao lived. Now it was full of people, all of whom went to congratulate.

Many people recognized Pei Yuan. He was famous. Although it was not a good reputation, it was scary enough. Seeing him about to enter the house, several people who were about to enter stopped and waited outside.

Bao Ning whispered to Pei Yuan: "They look at you like a tiger or a wolf."

"They are just ignorant people." Pei Yuan looked straight ahead, "I look at them like ants."

Bao Ning whispered: "You are still more excessive."

Pei Yuan looked at her and stepped forward to hold her waist: "The threshold is high, take bigger steps. Your legs are so short, I will get you some milk with bone powder when you go home to replenish your body, but I don't know if it will still work."

"You are so annoying." Bao Ning slapped Pei Yuan's hand away, and they entered the house. Immediately, a maid came to lead the way. Bao Ning put on a solemn expression and followed them to see the child and Tao.

A very cute little baby, pink and chubby, Tao named her Ah Zhao. What Zhao means is self-evident.

Bao Ning looked at Mrs. Tao's slightly haggard face, and suddenly felt a little sad. She took out the longevity lock she had prepared, had a brief conversation with Mrs. Tao, and left quickly.

But after staying for half a minute, when she left, Bao Ning looked much more depressed than when she came in.

Pei Yuan saw what she was thinking, and whispered in her ear: "I don't have to have a son, don't worry about it."

Bao Ning smiled, and she led Pei Yuan to Mrs. Xu's courtyard: "I'll take you to see my aunt."

Pei Yuan's performance this time was still very good, at least he looked humble and polite. Mrs. Xu was very happy, and put out the best fruits and snacks, and urged them to eat.

Baoning looked at Mrs. Xu's face. She must be living a happy life. She didn't look old and her tone was cheerful. Baoning felt relieved.

She was thinking about the Yuanzi drum. Mrs. Xu cut a piece of bear skin for her. Baoning fixed it neatly. The drum was not big, so she put it directly into the inner pocket of her sleeve.

They stayed in the yard for a while before a servant from the front yard came to say that a banquet was about to be set up and asked them to go over.

The banquet was divided into men's and women's seats. Pei Yuan was not in the same room with them. They walked for a distance before they had to say goodbye. Mrs. Xu walked beside Baoning. Pei Yuan could not see her expression, nor did he know what she thought of him. Thinking back to the whole process, he seemed to have said nothing and felt a little annoyed.

"Please ask for me later." When they were still a few steps away from the intersection, Pei Yuan gently pulled Bao Ning's sleeve and looked at Xu. "If it really doesn't work, I'll ask Wei Meng to send a gift tomorrow."

Bao Ning understood and felt that his little thoughts were childish but cute, and it was not like him at all. He smiled and whispered, "Don't worry, I'll say good things for you."

Pei Yuan said goodbye to Xu, Chen Jia stayed, and he turned to the men's seat.

Xu looked at Pei Yuan's back as he left, and said happily to Bao Ning, "The fourth prince seems to have changed. He looks much warmer. Although he is still a little cold and fierce, his flaws do not outweigh his merits. He is still very good."

Bao Ning thought, it's a pity that Pei Yuan didn't hear it, otherwise his tail would be flying to the sky?

"Baoning, how did you do that?" Xu secretly asked Baoning, "Did the Fourth Prince read Buddhist scriptures? Buddhist scriptures are good, reading them can get rid of evil spirits."

Baoning choked, and then thought that it was fortunate that Pei Yuan didn't hear it, he probably didn't like it.

...

In the banquet hall, the sisters and aunts of the Ji family naturally sat at one table. The second sister Ji Tongchu had two children, and the third sister Ji Anlu was also pregnant, four months, but not too obvious. Together with Baoning, Xu and aunt Ming, they just fit into one table.

Ji Jiaying disdained to be with them, and sat at another table, surrounded by many friends, talking loudly and accepting people's praise.

The dishes were served quickly, a roast goose and two legs were given to each of the nephews. Baoning smiled, but was salivating in her heart, thinking about making it herself when she got home.

Ji Jiaying deliberately sat at the table next to them, and Baoning could vaguely hear the flattery of the noble ladies.

When the party was about to end, a little girl came over to toast Ji Jiaying. She looked about twelve or thirteen years old and spoke timidly. It seemed that she didn't understand the relationship in the Duke's Mansion. She was pushed by her mother to show her face.

She first praised Ji Jiaying, saying that she was beautiful and dignified, and had a good temperament. Ji Jiaying was very happy at first, but then she heard the little girl say: "The prince is also a dragon among men. He is heroic since he was young. The queen has a good brother."

Ji Jiaying's face sank instantly: "What prince? There is no prince in our Duke's Mansion. Even if there is, it can't be a bastard!"

Her tone was too intense, and the little girl was frightened. Tears welled up in her eyes and she was about to cry. The nanny hurried over to comfort her.

Mrs. Xu waved her hand and said, "Let's go, let's go too. If we stay any longer, we don't know what will happen."

Baoning stood up and walked out holding the hand of a little nephew. Their table was quickly cleared. When they reached the door, they heard the sound of Ji Jiaying smashing a cup behind them.

The third sister was in poor health and had to go home to take care of her pregnancy. She said goodbye and left the banquet hall. Baoning and the second sister's family went to the lotus pond to watch the fish.

The two little nephews were two years old and three years old. They were both just able to walk and run. They were very naughty and would jump into the lake without being held by their hands. Baoning hugged the younger one and was thinking about the eldest sister and Jia Ling. He hadn't seen the eldest sister for a long time and thought she was late, but now she hadn't come yet, which made people suspicious. Besides, Ji Xiangzhen has always been very polite and would not do such an unruly thing.

Baoning hesitated and asked Ji Tongchu, "Second sister, do you know what the eldest sister did today?"

"She had a quarrel with the prince again." Ji Tongchu stroked her eldest son's hair that was messed up by the wind and said to Baoning, "You don't know, the eldest sister and the eldest brother-in-law quarrel every day, and there was another big fight a few days ago." Baoning

pretended to be surprised and said, "I don't know."

She asked, "Why are you quarreling?"

Ji Tongchu asked in surprise, "Didn't you quarrel with the fourth prince?"

Baoning thought about it and found that she had quarreled a lot. But except for the time when she ran to Lihu because of the hairpin, the rest were trivial matters. Thinking back to the reasons for the quarrels, she felt embarrassed.

"It's because of two things, one is the child, and the other is the concubine." Ji Tongchu said, "The prince is a playboy. He has more than a dozen concubines at home, and his own courtyard can't accommodate them all. He discussed with your second brother-in-law to tear down the wall of our courtyard and rebuild it, giving him five meters of land and building a house, so that he can move in. My eldest sister cried so hard that her eyes are about to go blind."

Baoning had indeed never heard of this, and was so shocked by this extraordinary act that he couldn't recover for a long time, and asked again: "What kind of person is my eldest brother-in-law?"

Ji Tongchu thought for a while: "He is a playboy, good at talking, and can make the old man happy. He is talented, courageous, and ambitious. He is a good minister, but not a good husband."

Baoning thought to himself, now he may not even be a good minister.

"Speaking of which, Jiaying is still lucky. Marrying someone is really determined by fate." Ji Tongchu shook her head and said, "Look how much the prince gave her face. He even accompanied her to such a small full-moon banquet. It was very glorious."

Aunt Ming couldn't help but interrupted, "It's all because of the fate that the imperial teacher said. Everyone in the royal family believes in fate."

Xu nodded and said, "The imperial teacher said that the fourth lady has a rare good fate. Not only will it help the country's fortune, but she is also a perfect match for the prince, like a pair of lotus flowers."

Ji Tongchu didn't believe it: "Did Tao give money to the imperial teacher?"

Aunt Ming hurriedly tried to stop her mouth: "What nonsense are you talking about! You dare to say anything."

"I won't say anymore." Ji Tongchu smiled, "But everyone in the royal family believes in fate. I don't agree with this statement. Our current emperor doesn't believe it and is a very loyal person. I heard from Jia Xian that when the deceased Concubine Qin Xiang first entered the palace, the imperial teacher said that she had a bad fate and was destined to bring disaster to the country. The emperor didn't believe it and was still very good to Concubine Xian, but it was a pity that she died early."

Baoning was chatting with her sisters and smiling, but when she heard this, she widened her eyes in surprise: "Isn't Concubine Xian the biological mother of the fourth prince?"

"Yes. But these are all royal secrets, and few people know about them now." Ji Tongchu took Baoning's hand, "Don't tell anyone about it!"

Baoning nodded randomly.

"Dabao is sleepy?" Ji Tongchu rubbed his eldest son's face, "Let's go, mother will take you to bed."

She stood up with a smile: "Baoning, I'm leaving first. If you come to my house to play when you have time, I'll entertain you."

Aunt Ming also got up. Baoning said goodbye to them and sat for a while. Xu was also tired, so she was taken down by the maid to rest. Baoning was the only one left in the small pavilion in the middle of the lake, and she was waiting for Pei Yuan to come back.

She leaned against the railing, twisted a handful of fish food and threw it down. While watching the fish compete for food, she thought about what Ji Tongchu said just now.

Is Pei Yuan's mother-in-law like that? Baoning recalled the time when Concubine Xian died, about ten years ago, when she was five years old. When I was five years old... Baoning's heart skipped a beat. She suddenly remembered that there was a big earthquake that year. It happened in the capital area. The capital was also greatly affected and many people died.

Are there any connections between the two?

Pei Yuan never told her about his mother. Baoning wanted to know, but she didn't want to open his scars. This doubt has been dragging on.

...

"Madam." Baoning was lost in thought when she heard Chen Jia's voice from behind, "She's here again!" Baoning

turned around and met Ji Jiaying's embarrassed expression. She snorted and flicked her sleeves and said, "You have a good dog. It will bark when strangers come."

Baoning felt annoyed. She didn't want to pay attention to Ji Jiaying at all.

Pei Xiao was still with Ji Jiaying. Bao Ning thought, how could this prince be so tactless that he couldn't see that others disliked them and kept coming closer.

"You two chat." Bao Ning put the small jar of fish food on the table, turned around to leave, but was stopped by Ji Jiaying.

"Why are you leaving? Sister wants to see you, don't you want to reminisce about the past?"

Ji Jiaying was not afraid that Pei Xiao would be annoyed by her behavior. She felt that Pei Xiao must love her very much. She lost his only son, and Pei Xiao just treated her coldly at first, but now he is accompanying her back home? What's more, she has been willful and naughty for a long time, and Pei Xiao also indulges her. Doesn't this mean that Pei Xiao likes her willfulness and nonsense?

Ji Jiaying felt that all men fall for this. She was mean to Bao Ning, partly because of her inner displeasure, and also to show Pei Xiao, so that he would think she was mean and cute.

Pei Xiao's eyes fell on Bao Ning, and saw that her face was red with anger. It was rare to see her so angry, and it was more lively. Pei Xiao smiled.

Ji Jiaying took this as encouragement to herself, raised an eyebrow and looked at Bao Ning, pushing her to sit down: "Later, I won't eat you."

Pei Xiao was dissatisfied with her action and frowned.

Bao Ning stood up and shouted, "Chen Jia!" As she spoke, she pushed Ji Jiaying away and walked out.

"You pushed me?" Ji Jiaying grabbed Bao Ning's sleeve dissatisfiedly.

Pei Xiao said coldly, "Let go."

Ji Jiaying argued, "Your Highness, she pushed me!" She refused to let go, and during the tug, the small drum in Bao Ning's sleeve fell off and landed on the ground with a bang.

The attention of everyone present was attracted. Bao Ning hurriedly picked it up, and Ji Jiaying stretched out her foot to step on it. Pei Xiao's expression froze for a moment.

He recognized that it was Yuanzi's small drum, and his pupils suddenly dilated. He looked at Bao Ning in disbelief, not noticing Ji Jiaying's actions.

Ji Jiaying's foot was about to step on Baoning's hand, and Pei Yuan shouted from behind: "Chen Jia, why do I keep you alive? Kill her for me!"

The next moment, Baoning felt a flash before his eyes, and Chen Jia rushed over in two steps, squatted down, picked up Ji Jiaying's feet, and threw her into the lake headfirst. There was a loud bang, accompanied by Ji Jiaying's screams.

Baoning grabbed the small drum on the ground and trotted to Pei Yuan.

Pei Xiao's eyes were still fixed on the small drum in Baoning's hand, his fists clenched tightly, and he turned a deaf ear to Ji Jiaying's cry for help behind him. He lowered his voice: "Baoning, where did

you get this small drum?" "It's none of your business, my grandson's." Pei Yuan looked at him with disgust, narrowed his eyes and said, "Can you call Baoning? Do you have any shame?"

"Let's go, someone will come soon, it will be bad if they see us." Baoning pulled his sleeve, "Let's go home."

There is no point in being stuck here, it's better to settle the score later. Pei Yuan glanced at Pei Xiao with contempt, grabbed Baoning's wrist: "Let's go."

"Chang Xi!"

Pei Xiao looked at their backs: "Keep an eye on them."

As he said, he followed.