The warm winter noon sun shone on the gate of the East Palace. Most of the people who had come to the palace to pay homage had already left. Although the few imperial guards on duty stood straight, their expressions were relaxed. They all looked with some boredom at Xu Lingkuan who was talking animatedly with several colleagues not far away.

Seeing someone coming over, several people's expressions straightened and they returned to their previous seriousness.

The Madam Dowager and Eleventh Lady, however, were filled with suspicion.

Xu Lingkuan was chatting with people with a big smile on his face, while the Fifth Lady and Gu Mama, who was holding Jing'er wrapped in a sable cloak, stood at the palace gate. But there was no sign of Xu Lingyi.

Both the Dowager Lady and Eleventh Lady were a little confused. The Dowager Lady turned her head and was about to say something to Eleventh Lady, but Xu Lingkuan, who saw the Dowager Lady and Eleventh Lady, whispered a few words to his colleagues.

His colleagues looked at the lady, bowed, and left together.

Xu Lingkuan strode over.

When the Fifth Lady saw this, she followed the gaze of Xu Lingkuan's colleagues and discovered that the Lady Dowager and Eleventh Lady had gone out of the east gate.

"Mom!" She hurried forward.

Mother Gu saw this and followed with Jing'er in her arms.

The Fifth Lady supported the Grand Lady and said, "Are you okay?"

There was a flash of anxiety in the old lady's eyes. She raised her eyelids and saw the eunuch who followed them out. She relaxed her brows and smiled slightly, her face kind and friendly.

"Where is your fourth brother?" The voice was neither hurried nor slow, and very gentle.

"The emperor rewarded Brother Jin with many gifts." Xu Lingkuan walked over and said with a smile, "Fourth brother and the eunuch went to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to sign the contract."

The expressions of Eleventh Lady and the Madam Tai relaxed. The Madam Tai's smile became more peaceful. Eleventh Lady walked lightly to Madam Gu and whispered, "Is Brother Jin okay?"

Mother Gu quickly responded, "He's sleeping soundly!"

Eleventh Lady lifted a corner of her cloak and looked at her son.

Jing'er's face was rosy and she looked at ease. Her uneasy heart finally calmed down a little.

The eunuchs over there had already respectfully saluted Xu Lingkuan and the Fifth Madam: "Master Xu, Princess, what a coincidence! The Empress and the Crown Princess have also given the Sixth Young Master many gifts... Although the weather is cold, we have no choice but to ask the Madam, Master Xu, the wife of the Marquis of Yongping, and the Princess to wait for a while. When the Marquis comes, it won't be too late to go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs with us to sign the pledge before leaving the palace."

After hearing this, Xu Lingkuan bowed to the eunuch and said, "Thank you for keeping me waiting for a long time, eunuch." Then he took out two purses from his sleeves and stuffed them into the hands of the two eunuchs.

The two eunuchs smiled more respectfully, and one of them even greeted them: "Sixth Young Master is really good-looking. The Empress Dowager must be very fond of him. I still remember when the Empress Dowager came to announce the good news, she put her hands together and chanted "Amitabha" several times! She also asked Aunt Huang to go to the Buddhist temple to light three incense sticks."

"I don't deserve your praise, eunuch." The lady laughed and replied to the eunuch, "She looks pretty neat. She's also quite obedient. She sleeps when she's full, eats when she's well-dressed, and never makes noises at night..."

As they were chatting, another eunuch suddenly said, "The Marquis is coming!"

Everyone looked towards the palace gate and saw Xu Lingyi, wearing a seven-beam crown and a bright red python robe, striding towards them.

His face was stern and his eyes were sharp. There was no joy at all, but instead he looked very serious.

"Fourth brother!" Xu Lingkuan called out hesitantly.

Xu Lingyi's gaze fell on the Lady Dowager and Eleventh Lady.

His expression eased slightly.

The two eunuchs hurried forward, bowed, and explained their purpose.

Xu Lingyi nodded slightly, said hello to the lady dowager, and went to the Ministry of Internal Affairs with two eunuchs.

Eleventh Lady and the others waited for more than half an hour and were all starving before Xu Lingyi came out.

The lady said immediately: "Old Four and I will ride in the same carriage!"

After hearing this, Xu Lingyi helped the lady out of the palace.

The black lacquered flat-top carriages of the Xu residence had already been waiting at the door. The Madam Tai and Xu Lingyi got on the first carriage, Eleventh Lady and Gu Madam got on the second carriage, and Xu Lingkuan and the Fifth Madam got on the last carriage. Surrounded by guards, they headed towards the lotus garden.

Eleventh Lady asked Mother Gu in a low voice: "You carried the Sixth Young Master to see the Emperor. Do you know what the Emperor said?"

"I don't know!" Mother Gu's calves were shaking. She felt weak all over as she sat in the carriage. "The eunuch in the palace told me to wait at the gate of the palace. The Sixth Young Master was carried in by a eunuch named He, and was carried out by this eunuch named He."

Eleventh Lady pondered and said, "Then why didn't you go and say goodbye to the Queen?"

Mother Gu recalled, "I stood outside waiting for a long time. The third prince and the eldest princess came. After about an incense stick of time, Eunuch He carried the sixth young master out. After a while, the Marquis and the Fifth Master came out, followed by two eunuchs." At this point, she paused, "The Marquis's face was very bad at the time, but the Fifth Master was smiling and scratched the Sixth Young Master's nose, saying that the Sixth Young Master was a small rich man or something like that. The Sixth Young Master was sleeping and was woken up by the Fifth Master. He frowned and cried twice. The Marquis listened and his face became even uglier. He asked the Fifth Master to find the lady.

"The Fifth Master was stunned when he heard this, and said, "The Madam is at the Empress's place. Do you want to go and say goodbye?"

"The Marquis said nothing and walked out.

“I had no choice but to follow the Marquis out.

"The two eunuchs called out to the Marquis twice from behind, but when they saw that the Marquis ignored them, they followed us to the East Gate.

"The Marquis found me a sheltered place and asked me to stand there holding the Sixth Young Master. The two eunuchs saw that the Marquis looked unhappy, so they stood by us submissively.

"After a while, the Fifth Master and the Fifth Madam came. They said that the Empress was still talking to the Madam and Madam, and he had sent a young eunuch to report.

"After hearing this, the Marquis asked the Fifth Madam to look after the Sixth Young Master and me, and went to the Imperial Household Department with two eunuchs!"

Eleventh Lady became more and more confused as she listened.

What happened? Xu Lingyi seemed to blame even the Empress.

After finally returning home and getting off the carriage, Xu Lingyi was fine, but the lady's face looked a little solemn.

Eleventh Lady looked on in amazement, and together with Fifth Lady, she helped the Dowager Lady onto the small oil cart with green curtains, and returned to the Dowager Lady.

"You are all tired, go back and rest!" The old lady asked Mother Du to help her change her clothes, and said to her son and daughter-in-law, "You still have to visit relatives tomorrow!" Then she ordered the jade tablet, "Go and call the second wife! It's New Year's Day, and she is staying alone in Shaohua Courtyard... Let us two keep her company!"

"Mother, what you said is not right." Xu Lingkuan sat down next to the old lady with a playful smile, "The more people there are, the more lively it is. You and my second sister-in-law are alone, but it's still lonely." Then he said excitedly, "How about we play mahjong with you?"

Before the old lady could say anything, Xu Lingyi stopped Xu Lingkuan and said, "Mother has been tired all day. Let's go home first! Let her have a good rest."

Xu Lingyi couldn't help feeling a little embarrassed.

Madam Wu pulled Xu Lingkuan's sleeve and said, "Mom, we'll come back to see you later."

The lady smiled and nodded.

Everyone bowed and left.

The Fifth Lady asked Eleventh Lady, "When are you leaving?"

This year, Luo Zhensheng and Luo Si's grandmother are spending the New Year in Yanjing, so Shiyi Niang will take the children to Gongxian Hutong to pay New Year's greetings.

Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "Greetings to the Madam and then we'll set off."

Since she married into the Xu family, she would go to greet the Madam at a quarter before the hour, rain or shine. The Fifth Madam did not ask the time, but smiled and said, "Well, I will also greet the Madam early. Let's go back together."

"Okay!" Eleventh Lady nodded with a smile, and returned to the main house with Xu Lingyi.

Xu Lingyi's face darkened when he entered the room, and he ordered Hupo in a stern voice: "Go, bring Jin Ge'er over here!"

Amber didn't know what was going on and hurried to the warm room.

Eleventh Lady was just about to help Xu Lingyi change his clothes, but when she saw this situation, her heart skipped a beat: "My Lord, what happened?" Her heartstrings were tense.

Xu Lingyi said nothing, but his expression was somewhat stern.

Eleventh Lady was anxious and was about to ask again when Mother Gu came over holding the sleeping Jing'er.

Without saying a word, Xu Lingyi took Jing'er and put him on the kang, then began to take off Jing'er's clothes.

Jing'er was awakened and started crying.

Eleventh Lady hurried over and said, "My Lord, what are you doing? Be careful not to let the child get cold!"

Xu Lingyi was unmoved. His face was tense, and he quickly stripped the child naked, then looked at the child carefully.

Eleventh Lady hurriedly took off her coat and wrapped the child, saying sternly: "My Lord, if you have anything to say, just say it nicely. The child is still young, and if he catches a cold, it will be no joke..." Mother Gu was watching over there, and hurriedly put the cloak that Eleventh Lady had just taken off on her.

However, Xu Lingyi grabbed Jing'er's exposed calf and looked at it before stopping.

Eleventh Lady frowned and was about to ask for clarification, but when she looked up, she saw Xu Lingyi heaving a long sigh of relief.

Thinking of his unusual behavior in the palace, Eleventh Lady couldn't help but grab his arm and solemnly called him "Marquis".

"It's okay, it's okay!" Xu Lingyi responded to Shiyi Niang at this moment. He patted Shiyi Niang's hand, "Just now in the Qianqing Palace, the emperor was holding Jin Ge'er, and the eldest princess suddenly rushed over. The emperor was in a panic, and Jin Ge'er bumped into the armrest of the throne... and started crying. Eunuch He took him aside and comforted him for a long time, but I don't know if he was hurt!"

Eleventh Lady's heart also lifted, and she checked the child in her arms. She found no external injuries, so she gave up. She wanted to blame Xu Lingyi, but seeing that he was also worried, she forced herself to hold back the words that were on the tip of her tongue. A thought came to her mind: Is it because of this reason that Xu Lingyi has been wearing a stern face all the way?

Why did the lady look so solemn after getting off the carriage?

She wanted to ask carefully, but Jing'er in her arms was crying so hard that he was heartbroken and hadn't put on his clothes yet. A servant came through the curtain and reported, "The Ministry of Internal Affairs has sent the rewards from the Emperor, the Empress, and the Crown Princess." Xu Lingyi kissed Jing'er on the cheek and told her, "Help the child put on his clothes quickly. I'll go and take a look. By the way, let's ask a doctor to take a closer look at Jing'er."

Eleventh Lady had no choice but to say "Oh", and first she and Mother Gu helped Jing'er put on his clothes, and then tried different ways to coax her crying son.

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PS: The update is a little late, please wait and read it tomorrow morning!

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