The lively palace banquet did not end until the beginning of the night of Hai.

Princess Jingyang and the Lord of Qinghe County live in Yuming Palace, which is where Princess Jingyang lived before she got married. Emperor Zhaokang has kept it for her all these years, and the layout and furnishings inside are exactly the same as in previous years.

As for Young Master Xie, he was a foreigner and was temporarily living in Xianliang Pavilion outside the palace.

Before parting, Tao Ti asked Qinghe to come to the East Palace to visit her when she was free.

Qinghe smiled gently and agreed happily.

The next day at noon, Ganlu Palace.

After Queen Zhou had ordered the palace maids to prepare good tea and cakes, she saw that Pei Lingbi was still not here, so she wanted to send someone to urge her.

Before the palace maid walked out of the door, she heard a jingling sound and saw Pei Lingbi, dressed in gorgeous clothes, walking towards her.

"Mother, is it okay for my daughter to dress like this?"

Pei Lingbi opened her arms and turned around in front of Queen Zhou like a peacock spreading its tail.

Today she was wearing a long-sleeved purple dress, with a slender waist and jingling jewelry. She had her hair in a snake bun and wore a ruby ​​headpiece, looking extremely glamorous, bright and beautiful.

Queen Zhou squinted her eyes and smiled, "Not bad. Your aunt has always loved beautiful clothes, especially bright colors. She will definitely like the way you dress."

Pei Lingbi smiled brightly after receiving the compliment. She raised her lips and said, "I started dressing up early in the morning. If she doesn't like it, it means she has no taste."

The mother and daughter sat down, and Pei Lingbi asked expectantly, "Mother, will cousin Qin Shi come later?"

Queen Zhou said, "He lives outside the palace and should not come into the palace today. I told your brother yesterday to take Yan Shi for a good stroll in Chang'an City and show his courtesy as a good host."

"Oh, so..." Pei Lingbi felt a little disappointed, pursed her lips, and pulled her skirt.

Seeing her like this, Queen Zhou teased her, "I said I wanted to marry you to him before, but you refused to agree. How come you changed your mind after just meeting him yesterday?"

Pei Lingbi blushed and said, "The last time I saw cousin Qin Shi was six years ago. He was dark and thin, like a monkey, so I definitely didn't like him. I didn't expect that after six years, he...he has become so handsome..."

Looking around, it is hard to find another man as elegant and noble as Xie Yunshi in Chang'an City.

Queen Zhou curled her lips slightly, thinking in her heart:

The Duke of Jin's Mansion guards Longxi Mansion. The Duke of Jin has only one legitimate son, Xie Yanshi. When the Duke of Jin abdicates, Xie Yanshi will be the next ruler of Longxi Mansion.

Regardless of his background, Xie Yunshi was a handsome, polite, and talented writer. Lingbi herself admired him, so he was the perfect choice for a royal consort.

The mother and daughter each had their own thoughts. Not long after, a palace maid came in from outside the palace to report, "Princess Jingyang has arrived—"

Queen Zhou and Pei Lingbi stood up to greet them. They saw Princess Jingyang in a rose-purple dress and looking energetic, which showed that she had a good rest last night.

After the greetings, the three of them took their seats.

Queen Zhou asked with a smile, "Jingyang, why don't you see Qinghe?"

Princess Jingyang took a sip from her teacup and said calmly, "Qinghe went to the East Palace to play early in the morning."

When Queen Zhou heard the word "Eastern Palace", her smile froze for a moment, her mind racing. Was she going to look for the prince? Did Qing He fall in love with the prince? This was not good.

Princess Jingyang glanced at the empress and her daughter calmly, guessed what they were thinking, put down her cup, and slowly explained, "She went to Yaoguang Palace to play with the Crown Princess. The child sat with the Crown Princess last night and they got along very well."

Go find the Crown Princess?

Pei Lingbi clenched her fingers, feeling surprised. Qinghe was always aloof and didn't like to talk to people. If you talked to her, she would only reply once out of ten sentences. Why did she rush to play with Taoti after only knowing her for one day?

This Tao Ti must be a ghost, performing some kind of witchcraft!

Queen Zhou's eyes flickered and she secretly breathed a sigh of relief, as long as she didn't fall in love with the prince.

She smiled gently, "They are of similar age, and the Crown Princess is lively and interesting, so it would be nice for them to play together."

Princess Jingyang smiled but said nothing.

Queen Zhou chatted with Princess Jingyang about some family matters, and when they were almost done, she brought the topic back to the main topic, "Your Majesty said that Jingyang, you brought Qinghe to the capital this time to find her a boyfriend?"

"The Queen is well-informed." Princess Jingyang raised her eyebrows and said, "Qinghe has reached the age of marriage, it's time for her to find a husband. I've looked at all the families in Longxi who are suitable for her, most of them are rough and crude military generals, there's no suitable one."

"That's right. The people of Longxi value martial arts, and the warriors are rough and strong. How can a delicate girl like Qingheshui marry into those families?" Queen Zhou agreed and asked, "Which families in Chang'an have you chosen? You live in Longxi for a long time, so you may not be familiar with the situation in Chang'an. Tell me about it, so that I can be your advisor?"

Princess Jingyang carelessly rubbed the agate gold bracelet in her hand and said slowly, "I'm not in a hurry. Anyway, I will stay in the palace for at least two months this time. I can take my time to choose during this time."

Queen Zhou smiled and said, "If you don't have a good candidate in mind, I would like to recommend someone."

Princess Jingyang raised her eyelids and asked, "Oh?"

Queen Zhou said, "He is my nephew from my mother's side, my brother's third legitimate son, Shaohui. This child is seventeen years old this year, handsome, eight feet tall, good-natured, and good at both literature and martial arts. He has not yet married. He is currently working in the Ministry of Personnel. After two years of training, he will naturally have a bright future. By the way, he met Qinghe when he entered the palace three years ago."

Ever since Queen Zhou brought up the topic of Qinghe's marriage, Princess Jingyang had guessed the intention. Now that she heard Queen Zhou say it, she was not flustered, but just nodded and said, "The Queen's nephew is naturally good, but--"

After a pause, she sighed faintly, "There is something I need to explain first... Well, Queen, you know that Qinghe was born with a deficiency syndrome. He has been taking medicine since he was a child. He will get sick when it is cold and will get sick when it is hot. It really makes me, a mother, worried. The imperial doctor said that Qinghe has weak bones. If she gets pregnant and gives birth to a child, she may be in danger of her life."

Queen Zhou and Pei Lingbi were both surprised.

Princess Jingyang said worriedly, "The customs in Longxi are not good. A daughter-in-law must give birth to a child, and she must give birth to a boy. If she fails to do so, she will be rejected and tortured by her in-laws. So I went back to Chang'an specifically to find a husband for Qinghe who is considerate, gentle and caring, devoted to her, and will not force her to give birth to a child..."

Queen Zhou was silent for a while, then asked carefully, "Does this wholehearted commitment mean that you cannot have concubines or maids?"

Princess Jingyang said without hesitation, "Of course."

Queen Zhou choked but didn't show it on her face. She was complaining in her heart, "Your daughter is delicate, but she is a barren and sickly girl, and you don't allow her husband to take a concubine. Aren't you trying to make him childless?"

It's not like a son of a prominent family can't find a good woman. But who would marry, or who wants to marry, a woman like your Qinghe?

Pei Lingbi thought the same in her heart, but she wanted to flatter Princess Jingyang, so she smiled and said, "Don't worry, aunt. Sister Qinghe is beautiful and has a good personality. She will definitely find a good husband."

Princess Jingyang looked up at Pei Lingbi, and seeing that she was dressed in brocade and pearls, she smiled and said, "Then I'll borrow Lingbi's good words."

Pei Lingbi smiled shyly.

Queen Zhou was also entangled. She originally wanted to use her children's marriage to bring Long Xi to their side and give Pei Changzhou an extra boost in ascending the throne, but she never expected Qing He to be in such a situation.

If I accept this, my brother, sister-in-law and nephew will probably be unhappy. Well, it seems that I still need to discuss this matter with my brother.

Since Qinghe was blocked, Queen Zhou took the opportunity to ask about Xie Yunshi's marriage.

Princess Jingyang caught a glimpse of Pei Lingbi's sudden excitement and guessed what the mother and daughter were thinking. She kept smiling and said that Xie Rongshi was a boy and there was no rush for his marriage.

Seeing that Queen Zhou was still going to ask, she soothed him, "If you can find a good wife in Chang'an, that would be great. If you can't find one this time, you can go back to Longxi and choose another one."

Princess Jingyang was not in a hurry, but Pei Lingbi was. She finally found a candidate for a son-in-law that she liked, and she didn't want to let it go.

Just when she was about to blurt out "Aunt, what do you think of me", Queen Zhou gave her a look at the right time. Pei Lingbi swallowed the words back, bit her lip and lowered her head in grievance.

There is a drama between three women in Ganlu Palace, but the situation in Yaoguang Palace is quite different.

Tao Ti slept until noon as usual. Just as she was stretching, she saw Linglong approaching with a troubled look on her face, "Crown Princess, you are finally awake!"

Tao Ti was confused, "What's wrong?"

"The Lord of Qinghe County has been sitting outside for nearly two hours."

"???"

Tao Ti was stunned, "Why didn't you wake me up when she came?"

Linglong said, "It was the county mistress who forbade us to call you. She said that coming to Yaoguang Palace was already a disturbance, and it was even more unkind to disturb your sleep."

"It's not good to make me wait so long..." Taoti didn't want to blame Linglong, and got up from the bed quickly, "Help me wash up quickly."

Linglong hurried forward to serve.

Tao Ti had her hair in a simple low bun, secured with a white jade hairpin. She casually put on a moon-white shirt with gold flowers, and a grass-green twelve-panel Xiang skirt embroidered with plum blossoms. She looked clean, neat and homely.

She walked out quickly, and just as she walked out of the bedroom, she saw the Lord of Qinghe County sitting under a big tree in the courtyard with lush green shade.

She was wearing a plain silk gown of sky-blue color, and had a thin figure. Her hands were folded on the stone table, her little head was lying on the table, and her pair of dark eyes with a faint smile were looking at the lazy cat Yuanbao on the stone table.

One person and one cat, lying opposite each other, peacefully and quietly, beautifully and naturally.

Tao Ti couldn't help but lighten her steps, fearing that she would disturb the scene.

Qing He had good hearing, and when she heard the footsteps, she turned around and saw Tao Ti. She stood up a little embarrassedly, straightened her dress, and politely said, "Cousin, you are up."

Tao Ti also felt embarrassed and said, "Yeah, I'm a sleepy person and always get up late..."

"I was rude." Qinghe said.

"Why did you come to see me...?" Tao Ti asked.

Qing He's eyes were bright, "Yesterday my cousin's wife said I could come and play with you when I'm free, I'm free."

Taoti, "..."

She was just being polite, but she didn't expect this silly girl to take it seriously.

But it’s okay, she likes Qinghe very much, and it’s a good thing for them to be friends.

The two of us stood there for a while, neither of us speaking, in complete silence.

After a moment of silence, Tao Ti spoke first, "It's time for lunch. Hmm, what do you like? What dishes do you like? Is there anything you don't like?"

Qing He's long eyelashes fluttered slightly, and she said softly, "I can't eat spicy food, but everything else is fine. Cousin, you don't have to worry about me too much, I don't eat much."

Tao Ti remembered that Qing He only ate half a bowl of rice and a few chopsticks of vegetarian dishes last night. No wonder the little girl was so thin, as if she would fall down if the wind blew. So she said, "Okay, then I'll make you something light."

Qing He was stunned for a moment, and only came to his senses when he saw Tao Ti rolling up her sleeves, "Cousin, are you going to cook for me yourself? No, no, you are too polite, just let the kitchen do it."

Tao Ti smiled brightly at her, "Don't be nervous, I like cooking and I often cook for myself on weekdays."

Hearing this, Qinghe was even more surprised.

Seeing Tao Ti going to the kitchen, she was curious and asked carefully, "Can I go with you?"

"Of course." Tao Ti agreed, and winked at Qing He slyly, "Come, let me show you my cooking skills."

Qinghe was stunned.

Suddenly, he relaxed, smiled, and said, "Okay."