Recently, Le Yuanhou has been suffering from his migraines. Every time there is a frustrating incident, his headaches would start to persist incessantly. This time, the headache was a result of both, upsetting Marquis Mu and facing Li Junyao who was utterly disobedient and impossible to control. Furthermore, the Wang Family also began to misbehave, and dared to visit the capital at such a critical time.
Whenever Le Yuanhou thought of these annoyances, his migraines would start acting up continuously.
However, at this time, an even more headache-inducing matter appeared.
"Lord Marquis, the proprietor of the Qinghe Shop, Miss Ji, requests an audience," a young servant came in to report.
Upon hearing the words "Qinghe Shop", Le Yuanhou jumped up from his chair, "Is it the girl who attended Junyao’s birthday banquet?"
This girl was now Mu Xiang’s woman, a woman that no one in the capital could afford to offend. What was she here for? To settle scores?
However, the servent replied, "Miss Ji said that she is here to apologize."
"Apologize?" Le Yuanhou asked in surprise. Having won the favor of Mu Houchu, she was probably supposed to be riding high and mighty. He had thought she might come looking for a fight, but he never expected her to come to apologize.
Le Yuanhou was puzzled momentarily, but considering she was Marquis Mu’s woman, out of respect for Marquis Mu, he had to welcome her in any case.
"Please invite her in."
"Yes."
When Ji Xinhe saw the young servant coming out to invite her into the mansion, it was as she had expected.
In the end, the identity of "Marquis Mu’s woman," although it brought her numerous troubles and annoyances, did come in handy at certain times.
Ji Xinhe followed the young servant inside. The last time when she came, she didn’t examine the mansion in detail. Now, coming in through the main entrance, she had a fine experience of the mansion’s splendour.
Ji Xinhe intentionally slowed down her pace and the servant naturally didn’t dare to walk too fast. They walked side by side while she casually remarked, "The mansion of Le Yuanhou does have the grandeur worthy of a top-ranked noble residence in the capital."
The young servant replied with a hint of pride, "Indeed, the ancestors of our Le Yuanhou residence have been highly meritorious for three generations, having produced countless military talents. Naturally, after such a long period of development, our mansion stands out among the rest."
Seeing peonies planted in several clusters in the courtyard, Ji Xinhe tried to probe, "These peonies are truly beautiful. Does anyone in your house have a particular fondness for peonies?"
A peony flower was embroidered on the handkerchief.
If the Wang Family and the Le Yuanhou Mansion had a secret relationship, then this handkerchief might have come from the Le Yuanhou Mansion.
The servant’s smile stalled for a moment, then he hastily replied, "Our Eldest Miss likes them."
Ji Xinhe responded calmly, "Oh."
The servant felt inexplicably uncomfortable, hurried quickening his pace and stopped speaking.
Eldest Miss prefers peach blossoms, she has planted a courtyard full of peach blossoms and invites people to admire the blossoms every year. She dislikes peonies, deeming them vulgar and lowly. Li Junyao, who looks ordinary, is particularly repellent to beautiful things, especially the peony, the king of flowers that outshines all others, she finds particularly distasteful.
Finally, they reach the flower hall where the Lord Marquis was already waiting.
"This humble girl pays her respects to Lord Marquis." Ji Xinhe greeted him in accordance with established rules.
Le Yuanhou, feeling somewhat uneasy, cleared his throat lightly, "No need for formalities."
He didn’t know if it was because she was Marquis Mu’s woman or because he found her familiar at their first meeting, but facing her now, Le Yuanhou felt somewhat constrained.
Compared to Le Yuanhou’s constrained demeanor, Ji Xinhe appeared quite composed, standing there with a beaming smile, "At the birthday banquet for Eldest Miss the other day, I unfortunately caused a lot of commotion. After reflecting on it, I realized that I was somewhat at fault for disrupting Eldest Miss’s birthday banquet. I felt very sorry and after thinking it over, I decided to come and apologize."
As she spoke, she had Fuquan bring up a jar of grape wine, "This is a small token of my sincerity, please accept it."
Lord Marquis, looking at her smiling face now and contrasting it with her cold demeanor several days ago, began to wonder if he had mistaken her identity.
"As for the incident the other day, Junyao was also at fault. There’s no need for Miss Ji to be so formal," he replied. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢
Ji Xinhe laughed, "You are too kind, Lord Marquis. It was just a small matter, and I hope Lord Marquis won’t take it to heart. I heard that Lord Marquis even punished Eldest Miss by grounding her because of this incident. I feel really guilty about that."
For some reason, Le Yuanhou, despite knowing that the girl in front of him was cunning, he found himself inclined to believe her. After all, she had made a fool of Junyao, but now, with her face that bore some resemblance, Le Yuanhou found himself instinctively believing her.
"They are all children, and they are bound to make a fuss. Since Miss Ji has plead for her, I will lessen her punishment by a few days," Le Yuanhou laughed, then after a pause, he couldn’t help but ask, "I heard that Miss Ji traveled all the way to the capital to do business. May I ask where Miss Ji’s hometown is?"
Ji Xinhe took a sip of tea, using the cup to hide her slightly chilling eyes. Was he asking knowingly? Or was it just a probing question?
"It’s a small county town near Lanshan City." Ji Xinhe replied slowly.
Upon hearing the words "Lanshan City", Le Yuanhou’s face tightened momentarily, "Lanshan City? Indeed, it’s a good place."
Seizing the opportunity, Ji Xinhe asked, "Has Lord Marquis been there?"
Le Yuanhou laughed awkwardly, "No, I have just heard about it."
"Does Lord Marquis, who lives all the way in the capital, have friends even in such remote places like Lanshan City?" Ji Xinhe probed further.
Le Yuanhou was speechless for a moment, unsure of how to reply.
At this point, Lady Hou, Lady Sun, walked in, laughing, "I was wondering who Lord Marquis was meeting with. It turns out to be Miss Ji. We truly have a distinguished guest."
Ji Xinhe pursed her lips, her eyes dimming a bit. This Lady Sun, she really knows when to show up.
"Greetings to Lady Hou."
Lady Sun nodded and smiled, "Since Miss Ji is here, it’s only right that I should host you properly."
Ji Xinhe glanced at the handkerchief in her hand and smiled, "Lady Hou’s handkerchief is lovely."
Taken aback by the sudden compliment, Lady Sun looked at her own handkerchief and then laughed, "If you like it, I’ll have some sent to you. It’s not a rare item."
"I do like it, but the handkerchief in Lady Hou’s hand is embroidered with a lotus. I particularly like peonies..." Ji Xinhe slowly responded, all the while watching Lady Sun’s face.
There was a brief moment of unease on Lady Sun’s face, and she laughed awkwardly, "Is that so? Unfortunately, we don’t have any handkerchiefs embroidered with peonies."
"That’s indeed a pity," Ji Xinhe sighed slightly and said with feigned disappointment, "Well then, never mind. It’s getting late. I should take my leave."
Lady Sun quickly sent people to escort her out.
It wasn’t until Ji Xinhe had left that Le Yuanhou’s face slightly darkened. He turned to Lady Sun and asked, "What do you think of this Ji Xinhe?"
Lady Sun let out a small sigh of relief, "She seems to be quite formidable."
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