Jiang Qingqing followed the people sent by the Queen all the way to the side hall of Kunning Palace.

Sure enough, a screen was placed at the door connecting the side hall to the main hall.

There is a small stool behind the screen, which is obviously prepared for Jiang Qingqing.

The palace servant successfully led her here, but turned and left without saying a word to explain.

Only two personal palace maids, Gan Yuan and Gan Lin, were present in the side hall.

At this moment, the main hall of Kunning Palace was bustling with activity.

Through the screen, one could vaguely see several figures standing in the center of the hall. Leading them was a lady dressed in the clothes of a noblewoman, and the man standing behind her was relatively tall.

Jiang Qingqing sat on a small stool, looking carefully at the figure in front of the screen, but her face showed no joy or anger, and no emotion could be seen.

"It is an honor for me and my son to be able to visit the Queen in the palace."

A middle-aged woman's voice sounded, and Chad felt that the tone was a bit sharp.

Empress Xu was sitting in the main seat. She put her hands on her knees calmly, nodded with a smile, and said to Madam Chi, "I've been wanting to find some new people to chat with recently. I thought about it and thought that Madam Chi is the most suitable for my personality, so I invited Madam Chi to the palace."

The two people talked back and forth, and were even very polite.

The fake conversation content made Jiang Qingqing chuckle.

She couldn't control her laughter for a moment, and it happened that the palace fell into silence at this moment, so her laughter became more obvious.

Mrs. Chi and Chi Dao subconsciously turned their heads to look at the source of the sound, only to see a screen and some decorative objects.

It is obvious what this cover-up is for.

Mrs. Chi realized the possibility and her expression changed.

Chi Dao glanced at the screen carefully, and it seemed as if he could see Jiang Qingqing herself through the drawing board on the screen.

The corners of his mouth curved up in a determined manner.

Empress Xu acted as if nothing had happened, and remained calm and composed as she had just done. She then asked, "Although Master Chi is the youngest, he should be old enough to get married, right?"

"My son is just over 18 years old, which is the right age for marriage. He has been attending many banquets these days to look for suitable marriage partners."

Madam Chi followed Empress Xu's topic and responded very quickly, taking up the Empress' topic and speaking with a smile.

"Looking at it this way, he is about the same age as our princess. Why don't we pick a good day, a sunny day, and take the children out to play together, so they can relax and have some fun."

Empress Xu looked at Madam Chi thoughtfully.

Madam Chi paused for a moment, as if she was trying to figure out what Empress Xu meant. By the time she realized what she was saying, she was already smiling.

"Everything is up to the Madam's arrangement."

After hearing this, Jiang Qingqing felt it was boring. She stood up and looked at Chi's mother and son. She sneered, turned around and walked out of the side hall.

He didn't even worry about being discovered, and walked openly on the avenue of the Kunning Palace courtyard.

Empress Xu's seat was facing the main entrance, so naturally she could see Jiang Qingqing.

Madam Chi had been carefully observing Empress Xu's expression. She noticed something strange and subconsciously looked back in the direction she was looking.

Then I saw a young girl wearing a rouge-colored palace dress. She had a slim figure, a straight back, and a graceful temperament. She walked out of Kunning Palace with big strides like a meteor.

This needed no introduction from others, as Madam Chi and Chi Dao could both tell that the figure behind was the person at the center of the topic just now, Emperor Qing's favorite daughter, Princess Dunming.

Empress Xu smiled and changed the topic to the children's outings outside the palace, trying to deepen the subject.

Here, Jiang Qingqing was too lazy to listen to Empress Xu's arrangements. She walked back to Huaning Palace and saw the eldest princess still sitting in the main seat.

When Her Royal Highness the Princess saw Jiang Qingqing coming back so soon, she looked a little strange.

"So soon? According to the previous palace rules, shouldn't you find a reason to meet and say a few words? Did you talk?" As an elder, the eldest princess was curious about the interaction between the younger generations.

Jiang Qingqing waved her hand and said, "Chi Dao, I've seen him before. Previously, in Lin'an Pavilion in Qi Town, he didn't recognize me as someone from the palace, and even wanted to invite me for tea or wine. He looked frivolous and I'm not interested."

When the Princess heard that they had met before and that her first impression was not very good, she became interested.

"Then just say it directly. Say that Chi Dao has bad character and ask your father to find someone else."

"Forget it. I'll always refuse no matter who is chosen. It's better to choose someone again. Maybe it won't be easier to deal with than Chi Dao."

When Jiang Qingqing thought about this marriage arrangement, she felt overwhelmed.

Her Royal Highness, who was very open-minded about the feelings of the younger generation, shrugged.

"Aunt, Qingqing won't entertain you. I'm too tired. I'm going to take a nap." Jiang Qingqing bowed obediently to greet Her Royal Highness the Princess, then walked towards the backyard without looking back.

The eldest princess looked at Jiang Qingqing's departing back thoughtfully. She thought for a moment, then wrote a few words on the rice paper on the table and walked forward.

——

Three or four days later than the last time she saw Chi Dao and Madam Chi across the screen in Kunning Palace, Empress Xu organized an outing for the children of noble families to worship Buddha at Guangming Temple on the pretext of enjoying the spring.

The leader of the team this time was not Empress Xu, nor Concubine Zhao, but Jiang Qingqing, who deliberately avoided the heat in Huaning Palace.

Jiang Qingqing was pushed to the position of leader. She sat in a gorgeous carriage sent by the palace and left the imperial city in a grand manner, heading towards Guangming Temple in the suburbs.

On the road ahead, the palace's gorgeous carriage was only surrounded by gauze curtains, so Jiang Qingqing could easily see the surrounding environment.

One could even see Chi Dao, who was specially arranged by Empress Xu to accompany the carriage.

"What does Mr. Chi like to do on a daily basis?"

Jiang Qingqing felt drowsy as the carriage swayed, but the surroundings of the carriage were too transparent and it was difficult to take a nap. She could only force herself to stay awake and asked casually.

Chi Dao followed the carriage on horseback. He was thinking about the unpleasant incident that happened between him and Princess Dunming in Qi Town before. Logically, the princess should be unwilling to pay attention to him.

But he never expected that she would take the initiative to chat.

"Just... read books at the mansion, and occasionally go to Qi Town with friends to play."

He introduced himself calmly.

He really said this out of guilt, "It seems like he likes to go to Lin'an Pavilion to find targets to attack."

Her words were very subtle. If Gan Yuan and Gan Lin had not witnessed what Chi Dao did, they would not have made that connection.

Chi Dao didn't expect that she would bring up this matter after all. For a moment, he coughed dryly out of embarrassment.