"Perhaps His Majesty will not agree, but the Prince of Zhao is not as simple as he seems. We should be more careful, especially since the Princess of Qi is now living in the Princess's Residence in Shangjing."
The princess of Qi was the same princess who was previously the princess of Zhao, and the emperor had bestowed this title upon her a month ago.
"The princess of Qi has changed a lot. She gets along very well with the ladies in the capital and is completely different from before."
This wasn't a conclusion Li Shiyue drew on her own; it was something everyone else was saying.
Perhaps unable to resist talking about it behind people's backs, the next day, just after Xu Yunci left for the morning court, an invitation from the princess's residence arrived.
The post invited Li Shiyue and Xu Lingqing; no one else was listed.
Li Shiyue looked at the invitation beside her, which she had placed on the table and lay there quietly without moving.
"Madam, I've found out. The invitations from the Princess's residence are for people of similar age. Some are like the Fifth Miss and Madam, who have recently married. Others are like Miss Qin, who has just gotten engaged. There are also some unmarried young ladies."
"The officials are all of the fifth rank or above. The Duke of Cheng'en's mansion and the Grand Tutor's mansion have both received invitations, as has the Grand Commandant's mansion. However, Miss Xue declined, as she was going hunting that day and did not accept the Princess's invitation."
The hunting trip was ostensibly a pretext for the Grand Commandant's office to find a husband for Xue Jinzhao, but it was just a way to let the two meet.
Li Shiyue nodded: "I understand. Lian Dong, go and ask A Qing. She wants to go out now that she's engaged. If she doesn't want to, it's perfectly acceptable for her to stay at home and wait to get married. It's all up to her."
For the seven days leading up to the wedding, the bride's mother would stay at home and not go out, in order to spend more time with the elders in the family before her marriage.
There are still eight days until the Yang family presents the betrothal gifts. It would be perfectly reasonable for Xu Lingqing not to go out.
After watching Lian Dong leave, Granny Sun asked, "You didn't respond to the invitation from Pi Xiang Palace, but will the Princess's wife attend the invitation from the Prince's residence?"
Princess Qi was previously the spoiled and arrogant Princess Chunhui. Even if she didn't ask, the Crown Prince had instructed that all invitations from the Princess's residence and the Pixiang Palace should be handled with utmost care when sent to the Duke's residence.
Li Shiyue looked at the invitation beside her: "This time only Aqing and I were invited, so I can't refuse. Let's go and see what the Princess's Mansion and Pixiang Palace are like."
"Perhaps we're overthinking it; it's possible we're just attending the banquet."
Li Shiyue smiled slightly and looked at Granny Sun.
Since there's no way to avoid it, she might as well go and see, otherwise there will always be a next time. She was really curious whether the Qi princess was just pretending or had really changed her personality.
Boating on the lake during the hot summer months, especially at the Princess's Palace, is both beautiful and magnificent.
Li Shiyue held a round fan in her hand, with Xu Lingzi sitting beside her. The two of them looked at Qin Wanyin, who was playing happily on the lake, and then at the Qi princess in the crowd. She smiled gently with a dignified demeanor and looked even more like a princess than before.
"I'm quite surprised that you could come today. I thought my second brother would not let you come."
As Xu Lingzi spoke, she slightly covered her lips with a round fan, concealing the lower half of her face, and turned her head to whisper in Li Shiyue's ear.
"She seems to have changed her personality. She never used to have this kind of patience. She would have chased people away as soon as she saw them."
Li Shiyue withdrew her gaze, and similarly raised her round fan, just enough to cover the corner of her lips: "I have to go out eventually, I can't keep claiming to be sick. If I did this in Pixiang Palace before, and I do it again today, I'm afraid it will give people something to talk about."
In fact, Xu Yunci was very reluctant for her to go to the princess's residence alone, but unfortunately, the banquet at the princess's residence only invited the female members of the family, and Xu Yunci, being an outsider, could not go with her at all.
Xu Yun returned home very late last night, and she paid a heavy price to appease that person.
Thinking about it, Li Shiyue awkwardly raised her hand and tugged at her collar. After all, the inner garment she wore under her summer robe revealed a section of her collarbone, and she was afraid of revealing something that shouldn't be there.
"Lady of the Heir Apparent".
Li Shiyue looked up in response, not expecting that the Qi princess, who had just been in the crowd, had come over. Behind her, the officials' wives were still chatting and laughing by the lake, but the Qi princess had come over by herself.
Li Shiyue and Xu Lingzi stood up, and she curtsied to greet them.
The princess of Qi wore a woman's hairstyle with a lily-shaped hair bun topped with a flowing red-gold crown in the center, and two light pink ribbons hanging down the back of her head.
"Your Highness."
Li Shiyue remained calm, the surprise in her eyes just a fleeting moment before she looked up at the Qi princess.
When did she arrive? I was so distracted that I didn't even notice, and I could only hear her voice when she got closer.
Princess Qi smiled slightly and nodded to Xu Lingzi: "I wonder if I may have a private conversation with the Crown Prince's wife?"
It was still so direct, but if it were someone else, they might have said, "The scenery at the Princess's residence is beautiful. Please, Madam Guo, enjoy the view." However, for the Princess of Qi to say this was already quite polite.
After all, he wouldn't be as temperamental as before; he would probably just carry the person away.
Xu Lingzi glanced at Li Shiyue and saw a hint of reassurance in her eyes before curtsying and walking away to find Qin Wanyin.
Li Shiyue withdrew her gaze, looked up at her, and said calmly, "I wonder what Your Highness wants with me, and why you would dismiss others."
Princess Qi noticed the exchange between the two men but didn't stop them. She simply said in a low voice, "Someone just wants to see you. Come with me."
Although Li Shiyue was puzzled, seeing that the Qi princess had already stood up and was about to leave, Li Shiyue gave Lian Dong a look, and only Li Shiyue and Chunling followed.
Princess Qi seemed unconcerned, and walked around to a quiet corridor. In front of her was what looked like a row of houses, where a figure stood.
The long corridor stretched endlessly into the distance. In the middle, in an octagonal pavilion, stood a young man in fine clothes with his back to them. He was an outsider.
Li Shiyue looked somewhat displeased, but the Qi princess simply plopped down on one side of the corridor, leaning against the "beauty's rest".
"Here, he wants to see you. Don't be afraid. I'll be here guarding you. Just call out if you need anything."
She's not that stupid. Now that she has a good life and close friends, if she angers Xu Yunci, she'll be the one to suffer the consequences.
After saying that, he didn't look at Li Shiyue again, but directly opened the food box that the palace maid was carrying and started cracking melon seeds with relish.
Li Shiyue's eyes were filled with a mixture of doubt and wariness. She took a few steps and slowly walked over, stopping in the corridor, several dozen steps away from the octagonal pavilion where the young man was.
For some reason, this scene reminded her of her first meeting with Qin Ying, a commoner, in a similar long corridor and pavilion.
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