"I wanted to take this opportunity to talk to my elder brother. But he was only concerned about the things in Quanzhou," Lan Ting lowered his head and wiped his eyes with a handkerchief, "and he even thought I was meddling..."

"You have to live your life on your own." Eleventh Lady held Lan Ting's hand tightly. "Why don't you write a letter to comfort Cao E? It would be even better if you can give her some advice."

Lan Ting nodded, and when he felt better, he went to the main house with Shiyi Niang.

Madam Gan was talking to Yang, Huang, and a woman in a royal blue jacket with gold all over it. When she heard the noise, the woman turned around and found out that it was an acquaintance of Eleventh Lady - the fourth wife of the Tang family, Marquis of Zhongshan.

"What a coincidence today." Mrs. Tang Si hurriedly stood up and greeted Eleventh Lady, "I didn't expect to meet you." She seemed very enthusiastic.

Eleventh Lady returned the gift with a smile.

Mrs. Tang Si invited Shiyi Niang to sit beside her and held her hand affectionately: "Last time I went to the full moon banquet, I heard that you were a little weak, so I didn't disturb you." She was listening to opera in the flower hall that day. As she spoke, she looked at her carefully, "Look at you, you are much better than last time." Given their friendship, her behavior was a little too intimate.

Eleventh Lady calmly pulled her hand out, raised her hand without leaving any trace, and supported her temples, smiling, "Thank you, Fourth Madam, for your concern. Doctor Liu is a great doctor. I am much better now."

Mrs. Tang smiled happily when she heard this: "That's good, that's good. Since you got sick, all the family affairs have been put on the shoulders of the Madam. She is old after all. Some things still need your decision." Then she pointed to the garnet bracelet she was wearing: "Madam Xu is really kind-hearted. I also have a handful of garnets like this in my box. I kept them to make beads, but they were too small. I nailed them on my lapels, and they were missing... But I didn't expect that you would string them into a bracelet and wear them on your body, so they are bright and beautiful. No wonder people say that the wife of the Marquis of Yongping is the best dresser in Yanjing."

The garnets that Shiyi Niang used to string bracelets were either the size of rice grains or soybeans, and they were irregular in shape. They were usually used to decorate shoes. But she suddenly had an idea. Wearing them on her hands was not useless as Mrs. Tang Si said. However, Mrs. Tang Si was famous for her ability to dance with her sleeves. She would exaggerate everything she said.

"I don't deserve that." Eleventh Lady smiled, "I just like to act weird." As she spoke, she quickly glanced at everyone in the room and found that Madam Gan was wearing a silk flower made of gauze on her head. She hurriedly asked, "I think Madam Gan's silk flower is very novel, but is it new in the palace?"

Mrs. Gan laughed and said, "It's not a new style from the palace. It was bought from East Street. They said it's a new Su style that came out this year."

After hearing this, Mrs. Tang Si started talking to Mrs. Gan about silk flowers: "...There are no good masters in the Imperial Household Department nowadays. It's not like when we were young, when we mentioned the Imperial Household Department, it must be good stuff." She then pulled Huang into the conversation, "You just came from the south, what is the fashion in the south now?"

Huang smiled and said, "When it comes to fashion, it's one thing at the beginning of the year and another at the end of the year. It's really hard to say. But the year I got married and came to Beijing, Xiang skirts were still eight pieces. This autumn, my sister-in-law brought me two Xiang skirts, both with twenty-four pieces. She said it was a new style for this autumn."

Mrs. Tang Si uttered a sigh and her eyes fell on Eleventh Lady. "It seems that we are all old-fashioned. Mrs. Xu Si is the one who has caught up with the latest trends."

Everyone's eyes were also on the twelve pieces of Xiang skirt that Eleventh Lady was wearing.

"This was done by our Xipu chef Jian." Shiyi Niang said with a smile, "I didn't pay attention to it."

"After all, she is a top figure in needlework." Mrs. Tang Si laughed, "Unlike us, we either keep an eye on the palace or the tailors on East Street, wearing the same clothes over and over again, but the essence remains the same." She then asked Lan Ting, "Your skirt is so well made, is it the work of Tailor Su or Tailor Hu?"

After all the talk, he ignored Yang.

Yang sat aside, her expression looking somewhat uncertain.

While Mrs. Tang Si turned her head to talk to Mrs. Gan, Eleventh Lady winked at Lan Ting.

Lan Ting understood, nodded slightly, and stood up: "It's getting late, sister-in-law, we'll leave first. We'll come back when Sister Xian delivers her dowry."

When Yang and Huang heard this, they both stood up.

Madam Gan hurriedly said, "It's rare for Seventh Aunt to come back, so you should have dinner before going back!"

"No need!" Lan Ting said with a smile, "The three of us sisters-in-law are all out, and there's no one to serve mother-in-law... Let's come and argue with my sister-in-law another day!"

When Eleventh Lady discovered that Lan Ting said this, Yang curled her lips in disdain, and a hint of sarcasm flashed in Huang's eyes.

It seems that Lanting is in a difficult situation.

She thought about it and stood up: "I'll go back first. The child is still at home, and I always feel uneasy."

Mrs. Tang Si also wanted to leave after seeing this.

"May the host be at peace, and the guest be gone." She smiled and took Madam Gan's hand. "Besides, you have been busy these days. When you are done with these days, we can have a good talk."

Seeing that they were determined to leave, Mrs. Gan tried to persuade them to stay while sending them to the Chuihua Gate.

The road was a bit long, and the corridor was winding. Everyone had their own pace, and gradually, the distance between them widened.

Mrs. Tang Si was talking to Mrs. Gan all the time, and the two walked shoulder to shoulder in the front. Mrs. Tang Si would turn her head from time to time to talk to Mrs. Huang, so Mrs. Huang followed closely behind them.

Eleventh Lady and Lan Ting have the best personal relationship, so it was natural for them to get together.

Only Yang took a few steps forward, Huang was only listening to the conversation between Mrs. Tang Si and Mrs. Gan, and she fell behind a few steps. Shiyi Niang and Lan Ting gathered together and whispered... She walked in the middle with a stiff expression. But she didn't know that Shiyi Niang and Lan Ting were about to discuss her.

"What's going on?" Eleventh Lady pouted at Yang's back, "I think Fourth Madam Tang is a little indifferent to her!"

When people like them go out for social events, they will definitely not ignore anyone or get intimate with anyone just because of their personal preferences!

"So you didn't know!" Lan Ting whispered, "A few days ago, a dike in Jiangling was washed away by rain. An imperial censor accused the governor of the river of corruption and implicated the Marquis of Jianning... The emperor was furious and ordered the imperial censors of the Metropolitan Censorate to investigate the matter thoroughly."

Eleventh Lady pondered and said, "You mean, the emperor wants to do something to Marquis Jianning..."

Lan Ting nodded: "My father-in-law is a little worried about this matter. He asked me tactfully about my relationship with you." He added, "I heard that the Marquis of Zhongshan also has something to do with this matter."

We are all smart people, so we will just stop at the point.

When she met Xu Lingyi in the evening, Shiyi Niang asked, "...Does the Marquis know about this?"

Xu Lingyi answered implicitly: "I've calculated the date, and the emperor should take action too!" Then he hugged her, "I know all these things. You just need to focus on getting well."

It means to let her worry less.

If that was the case, why did the Madam ask her about these complicated relationships when she first attended a formal social event in Beijing? She obviously still hoped that her daughter-in-law would have some political acumen.

Is it because her health is not good that Xu Lingyi is afraid that she will worry too much, so he said this?

Eleventh Lady held Jing'er in her arms, leaned against her son's head and closed her eyes.

Although Xu Lingyi had good intentions, she couldn't do it - although she was powerless to influence anything, once she lost contact with the outside world, she would gradually lose the ability to survive independently and become a dependent vine.

However, Xu Lingyi knew about this and must have his own plans.

She felt a little relieved and gradually fell asleep.

Xu Lingyi looked at the two faces leaning against each other, with a faint smile on his face.

He has been with Eleventh Lady these days, so Eleventh Lady must feel a little guilty!

Otherwise, she wouldn't have taken the initiative that day...

It's strange to say, although he doesn't like to have fun day and night, he is not the kind of person who deliberately endures it... But since Shiyi Niang became pregnant, he has been looking forward to this child, counting the days to when he will be born. After Jing'er was born, his greatest interest was to watch his son grow up day by day. Just like now, he just looks at them mother and son, and feels very comfortable in his heart.

Xu Lingyi thought about it and tucked the quilt for them with a smile.

The lady's words suddenly popped into his mind.

"The Yang family's affairs will be over this year or the year before. You should also make a decision on Yang's affairs! You can't keep dragging it out like this."

* * * * * *

After Xian Jie'er's wedding, Twelve Niang got married.

Eleventh Lady was afraid that the sound of firecrackers would scare Jing'er, so she returned to Gongxian Hutong with Xu Lingyi without taking the child.

Wu Niang's son Xin was very naughty and curious, he would open the lids to look at everything, Zhuo Tao followed him everywhere. In contrast, Ying Niang, who was also very lively, was much quieter, playing in the yard with the little maid who took care of her.

Si Niang, who was wearing a loose jacket and looked pregnant, sat on the big kang by the window. She looked through the glass window at Luo Zhensheng, who was wandering around the yard like a master with nothing to do. She smiled and said to Shiyi Niang, "Fourth brother is really lucky - he married a good wife."

It was Grandma Luo who arranged Twelve Niang's marriage from beginning to end.

"Fourth brother is not only blessed, but also knows how to enjoy it." Eleventh Lady listened and smiled while drinking a sip of tea, "Otherwise, Fourth brother would have to interfere in everything, regardless of whether it was reasonable or not. Even if Fourth sister-in-law was very capable, I'm afraid Twelfth sister's marriage would not be so smooth!"

"What you said makes sense." Si Niang nodded with a smile, lifted the curtain, and Wu Niang walked in.

"It's extremely busy outside, but you two are just hiding here and being lazy." She smiled and sat next to Eleventh Lady.

Si Niang smiled and said, "We are the ladies. If we don't sit here and watch, are we going to help?" As she was speaking, the sound of firecrackers was heard outside the door.

The Wang family’s people have arrived to welcome the dowry.

Wu Niang dragged Shiyi Niang along and said, "Fourth sister is pregnant, let's go out and see what's going on."

Eleventh Lady was afraid of firecrackers and was a little hesitant.

Wu Niang kept winking at her.

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The first day at work is always busy...⊙﹏⊙bSweat!

I'll post a draft first. It's a bit late to update, so please read it tomorrow morning!

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Thanks!