Cui Jianlian shook her head and said, "Returning to the Princess's palace, that person came and went in a hurry. My daughter was afraid of delaying Mr. Zhuo's treatment, so she didn't dare ask more questions."

  What does it matter whether she is summoned or not when the Queen Dowager and the Princess of Jin are at odds?

  The Empress Dowager sent someone to the Imperial Hospital to ask about the situation, but couldn't wait any longer. She got up and was about to leave: "Roumei has always had Taigong guarding her, if it's just a minor illness, why bother asking for another doctor? Mother, I have to go see for myself before I can rest assured!"

  The empress dowager also thought so and immediately nodded: "If there is any news, quickly send someone to the palace to let me know, so I won't worry!"

  Pei You Rui was brought by the Grand Duchess of Jin, which made the Grand Duchess worry that her grandson would leave halfway. She couldn't just stay on as if nothing had happened, so she also asked to accompany the Grand Duchess and take care of things. The Empress Dowager saw that the Grand Duchess had no objection, so she agreed.

  After this incident, the atmosphere in Qingxi Hall suddenly became a bit awkward.

  Fortunately, Cui Jianlian arrived late, and it was already time for dinner. The empress glanced at the time and ordered a banquet to be served - but the empress was thinking of her great-grandson, and the imperial consorts were busy comforting their mother-in-law, who had the heart to entertain a few younger ones?

  So after the banquet was set up in the side hall, Empress Dowager and the Queen said they were afraid that the girls would be too constrained and didn't go over. The mother and daughter of Princess Dagu also had to accompany the Empress Dowager, so in the end only Concubine Cui and Concubine Jiang could come out and bring the remaining four people to take their seats.

  The two concubines didn't have the mood to linger, after the banquet they said some polite words, drank a cup of wine, and then each found an excuse to leave, throwing the four people in front of the empress dowager to curry favor.

  Although they were treated perfunctorily, with no one of high status above them, the four girls could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

  Ji Kong Yiruo then proposed a mutual introduction: "From now on, we are all relatives. Today, since we have the opportunity to sit together, it's not possible that after leaving the palace gate, we still don't know each other, right?"

  In fact, she was mainly considering Song Yixiao when she said that. She and Cui Jianliang, Xie Niangzi came from similar backgrounds, how could they not know each other in the capital?

  Song Yi Xiao gave her a grateful glance and introduced himself first, then Miss Xie followed: "My surname is Xie, my given name is Yiren, my family's ancestral title is Lai Guo Gong, my father was appointed to an external position three years ago, and now he is serving as the Vice Governor of Qingzhou."

  "Yi Ren's father was the champion of that year." Ci Kong Yiruo smiled and added, "Speaking of which, Yi Xiao, you have some connection with her, what about your father, which year's champion was he?"

  Song Yi laughed at Song Yuan's favoritism towards her, but Xie Yiren actually understood it very well.

  After all, with a status like Jian Yu's, he surprisingly married a girl who was living under someone else's roof, which piqued everyone's curiosity.

  However, since it was their first meeting and there were no conflicts, Xie Yiren wouldn't be foolish enough to expose the truth. Instead, she smiled and said: "So our dads are actually from the same class, then I'll have to get closer to Song Mei Mei from now on!"

  "Then you'd better be careful!" The always lazy Choi Jianlian suddenly interjected, "This one is extremely clever, ordinary people can't afford to be friends with her!"

  She smiled and said, "It's been a while since Miss Jiang has shown her face, hasn't it?"

  Ci Song Yi Luo and Xie Yi Ren both slightly froze upon hearing this: "Could it be that Jiang Mu Jing unexpectedly didn't get selected as the Wei King's consort, and has something to do with this person?"

  Just thinking of Jiang Muxun's promising future, it was rumored that Emperor Xian had already nodded in agreement, and after the Shangsi banquet, he would be on his way to success. But how could it be said that people were replaced? Unexpectedly, Song Yixiao, who had been low-key before, unexpectedly got a good husband!

  It's inevitable that one would suspect that Song Yixiao had framed Jiang Muxiu, in exchange for the Princess of Dai Guo introducing her to Jian Xubai as his wife!

  Song Yi laughed at their astonishment, playing with the wine cup in her hand, and said calmly: "The two words 'intelligent' should still be returned to Miss Cui herself! If I had Miss Cui's clever tongue, when the Empress Dowager bestowed the Xiang Guang Wu Yue ring on me just now, I wouldn't have been so tongue-tied that I didn't know what to say!"

  As she spoke, she dropped her sleeves, revealing the ring pendant that the empress had personally tied for her earlier. Under the illumination of the candles in the hall, it shone with a dazzling brilliance, breathtakingly beautiful.

  "It's indeed the Halo of Misty Moon!" Ci Kong Yiruo and Xie Yiren were both from noble families, even if they hadn't seen it before, they had heard of this treasure. Now, they couldn't take their eyes off it, filled with envy and admiration. "Yixiao, you really are blessed with good fortune!"

  "It's really an honor for me to receive such a precious gift." Song Yi smiled and said, "If it weren't for the Princess of Jin State speaking up, I wouldn't have dared to accept it even if you paid me."

  Si Kong Yiruo and Xie Yiren exchanged a glance, then looked at Cui Jianliang, and secretly frowned: The Princess of Jin State would speak to let Song Yixiao take down such a treasure, apparently she had a good impression of this future daughter-in-law. The princess was the mother of Jian Yu Bai, would she tolerate her son having a wife who climbed up without any means?

  As for saying that Princess Chang was deceived - Cui Jianliang, a girl who hadn't even come out of the boudoir yet knew it, could she still deceive Princess Chang?

  Obviously Cui Jianlian is deceitful and has ulterior motives!

  Xiāo Kōng Yī Luó and Xiè Yī Rén didn't necessarily have to interact with Sòng Yí Xiào, but nobody likes being calculated. Although they wouldn't mention it out loud, in their hearts, they all felt a bit disgusted with Cuī Jiàn Lián.

  Cui Jianlian's move fell through, somewhat regrettable, but soon she said: "It is said that the Empress Dowager only has a pair of Xiaguang Yunyue rings in her hands, originally intended to be given to Princess Changxing as a dowry, now unexpectedly rewarded you, your good fortune is deep and thick, really making people envy!"

  This remark was intended to provoke jealousy in both Si Kong Yiruo and Xie Yiren.

  "The Queen and the Princess of Jin have a deep affection for each other, and she favors me only because of the Princess's face." But Song Yi smiled deliberately when she saw the Xiang Guang Yu Yue ring, and had already made preparations. She showed her a sweet smile and said lightly, "Actually, Miss Cui doesn't need to worry? The Queen is benevolent and kind, how could she not love you?"

  Don't blame the empress for being biased, I'm just the empress's quasi-niece-in-law. If it weren't for my quasi-mother-in-law's face, this Xiang Guang Wu Yue Huan wouldn't have fallen to me. You are the crown prince's side consort, one of the empress's daughters-in-law! Are you still afraid that the empress will treat you unfairly in the future?

  It's just that when Cui Zhen'er arrived late, she must not have been told by Cui Guifei yet: when Empress Su bestowed the pair of Xiang Guang Wu Yue rings, she was already being questioned by the Nan Zhang Junzhu and almost lost face!

  When this remark reached the empress's ears, she must have remembered it deeply.

  Especially, she also mentioned that this was the dowry for Xiaguang Yunyuehuan, which should have been the dowry for Princess Changxing - this is equivalent to telling everyone who knows the inside story that the empress used her daughter's dowry to appease Princess Chang's anger and make amends!

  "Although the crown prince is not born to the empress, and with Consort Cui around, it's impossible for the empress to openly make things difficult for her." Song Yi smiled coldly as she gazed at Cui Jianli's angry expression, sneering inwardly, "But as long as the empress remembers this matter, with the power and cunning of the mistress of the inner palace, can't she deal with a mere crown prince's side consort?"

  It wasn't Cui Jianlian who said it, but she really didn't know that the Xiang Guang Wu Yue Huan was originally a dowry for Princess Changxing - presumably, Empress Su and Princess Changxing also remembered her now.

  How can you not feel sorry for someone who has fallen into the water?

  "It's almost time to avoid the heat, do you have any plans?" Seeing that there seemed to be some old grievances between Song Yixiao and Cui Jianliang, Si Kong Yiruo exchanged a glance with Xie Yiren and changed the subject, "I planted a pot of water lilies in my villa on Cuihua Mountain last year and instructed the servants to take good care of them. I wonder if they will bloom this year?"

  Xie Yi Ren smiled and said: "When we get to the top of the mountain, we must go take a look!"

  In the end, in the palace of the Empress Dowager, although Cui Jianlian took the initiative to provoke trouble, she didn't dare to be too arrogant. Seeing that she couldn't outdo Song Yiliao, she sulked and remained silent.

  She, the imperial concubine's niece and the crown prince's cousin, was clever and didn't have any backing, so Song Yi Xiao wouldn't take advantage of her victory to attack further. She changed her expression to one of nonchalance and smiled as she asked Xie Yi Ren about the water lilies in the garden with a full face of smiles.

  After lunch, the four of them went to thank the empress dowager and others, who were also not in the mood to keep them. They called them over and said a few words, then gave them some rewards, hinting that they could leave.

  After leaving the palace, Cui Jianliang ignored the other three and got on his carriage to leave.

  But Si Kong Yiruo and Xie Yiren chatted with Song Yixiao for a while, making an appointment to gather frequently in the future to deepen their feelings, before bidding each other farewell.

  Song Yi laughed and returned to the Hengshan Wang Fu, where she told Wei Mengying about her meeting with Empress Dowager Cui in great detail. Wei Mengying was very satisfied with Song Yi's performance: "If you had been too soft on Empress Dowager Cui, it would have given a bad impression and led to endless troubles later on. You handled the situation just right, and when the palace maid reports back to the palace, even the Imperial Consort won't be able to find fault with you!"

  She also supported her in socializing with people like Si Kong Yi Luo, "Dresses and accessories are just minor issues, but what's important is that you can't lose face in front of others!"

  Song Yixiao thanked her and asked about Jiang Muxin, Wei Mengying's face sank as soon as she heard it: "I was thinking of changing the date for you, say tomorrow or the day after tomorrow! But that side immediately became unhappy, saying something like since they missed the appointment, this life will not listen to your explanation! What kind of talk is this? It seems that Miss Jiang is a precious gem, and her mother is laughing at you, you are just the mud under her feet!"

  "Today, Cui Jianliang also mentioned Jiang Jie, I wonder if she was the one who set me up?" Song Yi smiled at her mother's words, half believing and half doubting. Although Jiang Mochen is a bit arrogant and has a quick temper, she is not an unreasonable person. If she had explained herself properly this time, Jiang should have understood.

  However, it's not good to bring up unfounded rumors, so Song Yi Xiao could only beat around the bush, "After all, there is still a virtuous consort in the palace, this misunderstanding can be cleared up or not. What do you think, Mother?"

  Wei Mengying frowned and said, "You are now the wife of the Crown Prince and a person of status. You should not be so humble to Jiang Muxiu. It's nothing if she doesn't appreciate it, but what if the Empress Dowager, Princess Jin, and Jian Xubo find out and disapprove? Even Jiang Xianfei might think you deliberately sabotaged her niece."

  "Just advise her, 'Wait until you get married and then contact her again!'"

  Anyway, there's already a rumor that the Chiang family is planning to quickly marry off Jiang Muqun to someone in Jiangnan, so she won't be left in the capital to lose face.

  Even if the news is false, after their daughter gets married, Jiang Muxiang will still be in the imperial capital, and Wei Mengying won't worry: The Yan State Duke's estate has no elders, although it means freedom, but also means that everything must be solved by the couple themselves.

  The large mansion was enough to worry two young people for a while.

  "Not only do I have to worry about managing the household, but also about winning over my husband!" Wei Mengying thought to herself with a sense of satisfaction. "It's laughable that Xiao Xiao would go out of her way to find Jiang Mochen! Besides, after marrying into the royal family, one's status and perspective change. Jian Yu Bai wouldn't be foolish enough not to inform her about the intricacies of the imperial court; by then, how could she still be worried about Jiang Mochen misunderstanding her?"

  She no longer explicitly states her political stance to her daughter, not because she wants to deceive her daughter. It's just that Song Yixiao had previously concealed the fact that she was looked down upon by Jian Xubai at the Shangsi banquet, which made Wei Mengying feel a rift between mother and daughter.

  Although Song Yi Xiao later knelt down and apologized, seemingly lowering her head to her.

  But Wei Mengying was very clear that the crack still existed.

  "After all, I left her at the Song's house for a year after remarrying before taking her back; during this time, she suffered a lot under the hands of Liu Shi. Later, when Yun'er was born, I indeed neglected her a lot." Wei Mengying wasn't surprised by this situation and had a plan in mind, "Now that discord has arisen, and this child is thoughtful, if I force my will on her, even if it's for her own good, she'll only become more hypocritical towards me! The only way is to coax and teach her at the same time, making her understand that no matter how neglectful a mother may be, she's still more reliable than anyone else!"

  When the daughter realizes that having too much to do with Jiang Muxian is not good, Wei Mengyan will come out again and confess her own fears of misunderstanding - at that time, she won't be afraid that Song Yiliao will not feel ashamed and respectful!

  "I've spoiled two husbands rotten." She gazed at her daughter's slightly furrowed brow, a faint smile in her heart, "Not to mention my own flesh and blood?"