"But you absolutely must not be exposed to the wind. The Duchess suffers from a deficiency of both qi and blood. If she takes good care of herself, she will recover as before."
After seeing the imperial physician off, Li Shiyue entered the room to find Xu Lingzi talking to Madam Yang.
Mother Luo stood by and, seeing Li Shiyue come in, handed her a teacup with a smile.
"The lady was just thinking about you, and then you came back."
Li Shiyue took the teacup, took a small sip, and then set it aside. When she looked up, she met Yang's gentle gaze. Although she was able to sit up, her face was pale, and she looked very weak.
"Is the epidemic about to pass? If not, invite the imperial physicians over, lest those censors think they've found something to use against the Rongguo Duke's mansion."
Madam Yang was good in every way; she came from a prominent family and was a perfect matriarch of the Xu family. There was only one flaw: she was extremely considerate of the Duke of Rong and his mansion.
For example, when she was feeling unwell, she initially wanted to go to the palace to invite the imperial physician, but after she found out, she refused to allow it, fearing that inviting the imperial physician would delay the spread of the epidemic and give those "righteous" censors grounds to impeach the Duke's mansion.
Xu Lingyu turned around and met Li Shiyue's gaze with a hint of helplessness; she too was powerless against Yang's method.
"You should take good care of yourself. Father can't come back, and even though my brother rushed back for a visit, he's worried sick."
Xu Lingzi couldn't help but feel displeased, also angry that Yang's actions were so inconsiderate of her own needs.
After taking the herbal medicine for seven consecutive days, Yang finally saw a significant improvement and was able to go out for walks on sunny days, although her complexion was not as good as before.
Several more doses of tonic medicine were prescribed, and by the time Yang's health had fully recovered, it was already early June. Summer was gradually approaching, and she had mostly changed into light silk robes.
The days are perfect; picking lotus leaves by the green lake, enjoying the scenery and having fun on the lake is incredibly pleasant.
The invitations from the Rongguo Duke's Mansion were sent to the Chengen Duke's Mansion, the Zhang family of the General's Mansion, and the last one was sent to the Qin family of the Grand Tutor's Mansion, which was personally delivered by Li Shiyue.
"The messenger said you came alone, and I was wondering how I could have some peace and quiet today."
Madam Qin greeted her with a smile and took two steps forward. Li Shiyue performed the junior's greeting, which Madam Qin returned before walking into the flower hall.
The Grand Tutor's mansion has a spacious flower hall with shelves for bookshelves on both sides, which are filled with green plants. The light brown bamboo curtains add a touch of elegance.
On the wall behind Madam Qin, who was sitting at the head of the table, hung a final piece of calligraphy, the characters flowing gracefully.
Li Shiyue withdrew her gaze and smiled gently: "It was really inconvenient at your residence before, and I had to politely decline your invitation. I've come today firstly to apologize, and secondly to invite you and Ayin to have a small gathering at the Duke's residence in a few days."
After saying that, Chunling stepped forward and handed the invitation to the nanny beside Madam Qin.
The nanny took it and handed it to Madam Qin, and Chunling then retreated behind Li Shiyue.
Madam Qin took the invitation and looked at it again and again, holding it in her hand with concern in her eyes: "How are the Duchess and the Old Madam? They have been ill for quite some time and have not dared to go out because of the epidemic."
"They've all recovered, but Mother's health has been weak for years, so she needs to be carefully cared for. But what medicine could be more important than happiness? Taking a few doses of medicine is not as good as sitting together and having a chat."
Li Shiyue spoke with a smile, glancing at Madam Qin and noticing a hint of weariness between her brows.
Only then did she notice that Madam Qin seemed somewhat different from her previous radiant self. She glanced around the flower hall and said, "Is Ayin at home? It's been quite a while since I've seen Ayin. Now that I'm here, I wonder if it would be convenient for us to meet?"
“Of course it’s convenient. She’s in her own yard. I’ll have someone take you there. You sisters also have your own private conversations to discuss, so I won’t go over.”
Madam Qin summoned a maid, and Li Shiyue rose and curtsied to Madam Qin before following the maid toward the inner quarters.
The Qin family didn't just have one branch of the Qin family, but the Qin family mansion only had three people living there, so Qin Wanyin's courtyard was naturally chosen to be slightly inferior to the main courtyard.
This was not her first time visiting the Grand Tutor's residence, nor was it her first time coming to Qin Wanyin's courtyard.
She walked in familiarly, but to her surprise, the courtyard was quiet. Even the swing that Qin Wanyin loved most under the eaves was empty, hanging there all alone.
The maidservant standing guard under the corridor saw Li Shiyue and her eyes lit up for a moment. She was Xiaoyu, Qin Wanyin's personal maid.
"Lady of the Heir Apparent!"
Xiao Yu's eyes sparkled, just like her daughter's; she was a sweet-smiling girl with delicate features. When she saw Li Shiyue, her eyes crinkled with laughter.
"Princess Consort? Is that Yan Yan?"
The door suddenly opened, and Qin Wanyin, standing inside, immediately saw Li Shiyue under the eaves and ran towards her.
"Yan Yan, is it really you? Why did you suddenly come here today? I didn't know. I should have come to pick you up."
Despite not having seen each other for a long time, Li Shiyue was not at all uncomfortable with Qin Wanyin's enthusiastic attitude.
Hand in hand, they entered the house. Li Shiyue couldn't help but smile, "You still remember me? I've heard quite a few things, and I finally had some free time to come and see you."
Qin Wanyin was a little puzzled. She pulled her down to sit and turned to her, instructing, "Xiaoyu, hurry up and serve tea."
She turned to look at Li Shiyue, her eyes filled with confusion: "What did you hear? You seem to know something. Could it be that something interesting happened in the capital again?"
"You have no idea, after you got married, my mother kept me under house arrest every day and made me look at those portraits every day. It was so boring."
She rested her chin on her hands, her slender eyebrows furrowed, seemingly not quite understanding Madam Qin's actions, yet still troubled by the fact that she had no choice but to comply.
Li Shiyue picked up her teacup, suppressing a laugh, a hint of suspicion in her eyes: "You don't know what's being said outside, do you?"
"I don't know. I can't even leave the mansion, how could I know? And because of the epidemic, I can't see you. I only found out a few days ago that the Duchess and Old Madam Xu were sick."
Qin Wanyin sighed, seemingly not faking it.
Li Shiyue suppressed her smile and looked at her suspiciously. Perhaps her gaze was a little too direct, because Qin Wanyin looked at her with some doubt: "Did something really happen in the capital?"
Li Shiyue nodded: "Yes, and it concerns you."
"What does it have to do with me? Impossible. I haven't left the house for quite some time. Even for those banquets, my mother couldn't go out and stayed at home the whole time."
Qin Wanyin refuted him very decisively, but the more decisive she was, the more suspicious Li Shiyue became.
"You just said that you've been at home the whole time, and that Madam only showed you some portraits and didn't let you see anyone?"
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