After returning to Lotus Garden, Shiyi Niang and Xu Lingyi first went to pay their respects to the lady-in-waiting.

The lady was very happy to see them back and asked Mama Du to serve them the food.

Xu Lingyi smiled and sat down opposite the Madam. "Have you eaten yet?"

"I've eaten!" The lady looked at Eleventh Lady standing behind Xu Lingyi and there was some hesitation in her expression.

Xu Lingyi smiled and said, "Don't worry, mother. We have met the Queen Mother. Is everything alright?"

The lady seemed to want to say something but stopped herself.

Eleventh Lady could see that the Lady Dowager had something to say to Xu Lingyi.

She smiled and bowed to the lady, "I'll go see why the food hasn't arrived yet."

There was a hint of surprise in the eyes of both mother and son, but neither tried to keep her.

Eleventh Lady understood what was happening and stepped back with a smile.

The lady looked at Eleventh Lady's back and nodded slightly: "What a clever little girl."

For some reason, Xu Lingyi coughed slightly after hearing this and said, "Mother, nothing will happen to the Empress Dowager." Then he told the Madam about the conversation with the Empress Dowager, "…Shouchang Bo was trying to get involved in the shipping business but failed. Now that I've said this, the Empress Dowager won't care about the little rift she had before! I'm afraid she'll call Shouchang Bo to talk to him today."

The lady sighed softly after hearing this: "Over the years, the Marquis of Jianning and the Earl of Shouchang have dominated the business of the Dushui Bureau, and no one else can get in. I didn't expect them to set their sights on the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Speaking of which, the Yang family has made a lot of money over the years, so why don't they stop? Why can't she understand that in this world, only the iron rice bowl given by the emperor is a stable job, and the rest are all flashy and empty. No matter how much money you have, it's just empty."

Xu Lingyi smiled and said, "How many people in the world can see through all this splendor and wealth like you?"

The lady couldn't help but laugh: "You kid, you know how to tease your mother." She laughed again, "It seems that it is good to have someone in the room. Even the conversation is much smoother."

Xu Lingyi blushed and looked around as he asked, "When is the time for the recognition ceremony? Otherwise we'll be late."

The lady smiled and said, "I'm afraid you'll be back late, so I'll set it at the beginning of the afternoon."

Xu Lingyi took out his pocket watch and took a look: "Two hours left."

The lady nodded and said, "I have something I want to discuss with you." Without waiting for Xu Lingyi to answer, she said directly, "Brother Zhun, just leave it in my room!"

Xu Lingyi was slightly stunned.

The lady said: "She is not only the child's mother, but also the child's aunt. I have nothing to worry about. I am worried that she is young, has just entered the mansion, and has many things to do, so she can't take care of it. I will help her take care of it for a few days. When she gets the hang of things, it won't be too late to let Zhun Ge follow her."

Xu Lingyi suddenly thought of the slender waist he held last night...

"It's a little too small." He murmured, "Please help look after it for now."

The lady nodded slightly and continued, "Now that she has come in, it's not a good idea to let the third daughter-in-law help manage the family affairs. But this was decided when Yuan Niang was here. If she takes the key as soon as she comes in, I'm afraid there will be gossip. I mean, let the third daughter-in-law manage the family affairs. Let's find a chance to talk about it!"

"Mother, you have thought it through very carefully." Xu Lingyi said with a smile, "Let's follow your arrangement!"

"Yes!" Seeing that Xu Lingyi agreed to the two things she was worried he would disagree with, the lady smiled even more and asked about Xu Lingyi's affairs: "How is your matter going?"

"The doctor said I have foot paralysis. I can't go to cold places anymore. I need to take good care of myself for three to five years. Otherwise, I'm afraid I'll be paralyzed in bed."

The lady laughed and said, "This is a good case of foot paralysis. There is nothing unusual about it. Whether it will get sick or not depends entirely on the weather, but who can predict the weather for sure?"

"That's exactly the truth." Xu Lingyi said with a smile, "I'm afraid I'll be idle at home in the future."

"It's good to be idle at home!" The lady looked at her son with a look full of pity: "You should also rest at home. Xiaosan is honest and loyal, and Xiaowu is not capable of achieving great things. You are the pillar of the family..."

"Mom, please stop talking like that." Xu Lingyi said with a smile, "Third brother is a cautious person. Little Five is not yet grown up. It will be fine in the future." He did not want to discuss this issue with his mother, and immediately changed the subject, "When will Fifth Brother's wife give birth? Is there anything else I can help with? Do you want to move to another place? Or move to the villa in the West Hill?"

"Why are there so many rules?" The lady laughed, "The Imperial Astronomical Observatory said that the ox and the tiger don't meet. Danyang is born in the year of the tiger, so as long as he doesn't meet someone born in the year of the ox, everything will be fine. I have asked Mother Du to do it personally. All the people born in the year of the ox in the family will temporarily move to the West Hill Villa to avoid it... Nothing will happen?"

Xu Lingyi nodded: "That's good!"

"I don't know what happened. I gave birth to four boys and one girl, but it wasn't as hard as you guys." The lady said sadly, "I just hope that the Bodhisattva will bless Danyang and give birth to a boy, adding to our Xu family."

Xu Lingyi was not sure what to say about this topic. Yao Huang came to ask, "Where should we put the food?"

The lady pointed to the east room and said, "Put it there!"

Yao Huang and the maids hurriedly removed the kang table on the big kang by the window in the east room and replaced it with a kang table that was already set with food.

Xu Lingyi couldn't help but ask, "Where's the fourth lady?"

Yao Huang smiled and said, "I'm drinking tea with Mother Du in the ear room!"

Xu Lingyi was slightly surprised.

He thought she would be standing outside the door waiting boredly...

Yao Huang looked at him and said hurriedly: "Sister Wei Zi has gone to invite the fourth lady!"

Xu Lingyi nodded, and saw Eleventh Lady walking in slowly.

"Say hello to mother and come over for dinner!" He nodded lightly towards Eleventh Lady.

Eleventh Lady replied "yes", went to greet the lady-in-waiting as she was told, and sat down opposite Xu Lingyi.

The maid brought her some water to wash her hands. She asked for a small bowl of porridge. Seeing that Xu Lingyi had ordered a large bowl of rice, she ate while waiting for Xu Lingyi. By the time Xu Lingyi put down his bowl, she had finished eating.

Xu Lingyi's eyes fell on her bowl.

Eleventh Lady thought he would say something. She had even thought of excuses like "I don't have a small appetite" and "I usually eat this much", but Xu Lingyi said nothing.

The two thanked the lady for the meal, then went back to their room to wash up and prepare for the afternoon recognition.

Xu Lingyi asked her if she wanted to take a break: "...The recognition will be confirmed in the afternoon."

Eleventh Lady felt like she was about to fall apart, so she didn't bother to be polite with him and nodded immediately: "I'll take a nap."

Xu Lingyi nodded and went to the study - his study was in the east wing of the front yard.

Eleventh Lady immediately breathed a sigh of relief, washed up simply, and fell asleep.

When Dongqing woke her up, she stayed in bed for a while.

* * * * * *

The first ancestor of the Xu family was just an orphan who didn't know his parents. He followed Emperor Taizong by chance, and that's how he got this family business. Later, due to the "Zheng An Wang Rebellion Case", the several branches went their separate ways. When Yingzong was restored to the title, except for an uncle who settled in Nanjing, the other branches could not be found.

Therefore, when the Third Lady introduced the relatives from Nanjing to Eleventh Lady, she only said: "This is Grandma Hongda, Grandma Fuer, and Grandma Dingsan from the south!"

They are the three sisters-in-law of their uncle. Except that Grandma Hongda’s husband Xu Linghong is older than Xu Lingyi, the other two are younger than Xu Lingyi.

Eleventh Lady knelt down and handed over the needle and thread she had made.

The three grandmothers each gave Eleventh Lady a set of headgear.

He also introduced Madam Huang, the Earl of Yongchang: "…my sworn sister!"

Mrs. Huang smiled and rewarded Eleventh Lady with a pair of combs inlaid with lapis lazuli.

As for the Second Madam, the Fifth Madam, Zhun Ge and Zhen Jie'er, she knew them all, so she carefully looked at Xu Lingyi's eldest son Xu Siyu and Xu Lingning's two sons Xu Siqin and Xu Sijian.

Xu Siyu was eleven years old, with a fair face and a pair of round, long phoenix eyes. Not only did he look like Xu Lingyi, but his polite manners and measured and steady manner were even more like Xu Lingyi. They seemed to be printed from the same mold.

Xu Siqin was three years older than Xu Siyu, and he was the first in the generation with the character "Si". Like all adolescent boys, he was tall and thin, but his facial features were very beautiful, and he looked like the third lady.

Maybe because he is the same age as Shiyi Niang, he looked a little embarrassed when receiving the gift.

Xu Sijian was neither as steady as his cousin Xu Siyu, who was only a few days older than him, nor as shy as his brother Xu Siqin. He was thin and small, with a sharp look. As soon as Eleventh Lady took out the needle and thread for him, he immediately went to take it: "How dare I trouble Fourth Aunt, I'll do it, I'll do it!"

When a child says what an adult says, it naturally makes everyone laugh.

Everyone had dinner in the flower hall. The lady herself saw Mrs. Huang off.

Xu Lingkuan shouted that he wanted to go out for a walk: "...It's a rare trip, I should at least take a look around!"

The three cousins ​​from the south all had the same idea, so Xu Lingyi and Xu Lingning accompanied them out.

Grandma Hongda and Grandma Dingsan went to rest at the Second Madam's place, but Grandma Fuer wanted to rest at the Third Madam's place: "...We met when the Fourth Madam passed away, and we wanted to have a good chat."

At this moment, only Eleventh Lady, Third Lady and Rich Second Lady were left.

Everyone around Eleventh Lady felt a little uncomfortable. Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "If that's the case, then I will neglect my third brother's wife."

She had a warm smile and a friendly attitude, and there was no sign of unhappiness on her face.

Mrs. Fu Er glanced at the Third Lady, smiled and exchanged a few words with Eleventh Lady, then followed the Third Lady to her residence.

Back in the house, Dong Qing couldn't help but feel sorry for Shiyi Niang: "...what she said was too hurtful!"

Eleventh Lady called the four maids over and said solemnly, "Eldest sister is the Marquis's first wife. This is something that no one can deny. None of you are allowed to feel uncomfortable or have wild thoughts when someone mentions eldest sister."

All four of them knelt in agreement.

Amber took the initiative to stay and keep watch.

"I have found out everything you asked me to find out." She helped Eleventh Lady spread the word. "Mother Tao said that the Madam Dowager gets up at 12:00 a.m. every day, leaves the inner room at 12:00 a.m., and eats breakfast at 15:35 a.m. on the 12:00 a.m. Everyone will go to pay respects from 12:00 a.m. to 15:00 a.m. After 15:00 a.m., she will go to the nunnery to chant sutras accompanied by several mothers who usually serve her. She will have lunch at 12:00 a.m., take a nap at 15:00 a.m., and get up at 15:00 a.m. In the afternoon, she will either play with Sister Zhen and Brother Zhun, or play cards with the Third and Fifth Madams. She will have dinner at 16:00 a.m., then walk around the yard for a while, return to the room around 16:00 a.m., and rest at 16:00 a.m."

It is both regular and in line with the principles of health preservation...

Eleventh Lady pondered and said, "If that's the case, then you should wake me up at noon every day from now on!"