An eight-year-old kid emptied his scumbag father's warehouse and followed his grandparents into

"Look at your character. You lose your temper at the slightest thing. How can you be the mistress of the house?" The old lady saw her like this, her face showing a slight irritation, and she knocked the agarwood Buddhist beads in her hand lightly on the small huanghuali table. "Do you still want him to edit books in the Hanlin Academy for three to five years? Why don't you ask what he, the person involved, has to say?"

"He...what can he say?" The eldest lady took the cup of warm tea poured by the maid, raised her head and took two sips to catch her breath, her handkerchief tightly clenched in her palm. "Originally, he was against even half of the Spring Festival Banquet, but now it suits his heart." As she spoke, her voice rose, with an indescribable grievance. "When I come back then, I can only choose what others have left. Which of those noble ladies from aristocratic families doesn't get engaged when they reach the age of 15? Waiting for three or five years will make you an old maid!"

"Then can you make the decision for him?" The old lady glanced at her, slowly picked up the celadon tea bowl and blew away the foam. The wrinkles at the corners of her eyes revealed her calmness in the misty tea fragrance.

"Of course~" The eldest lady thought about Erlang's seemingly gentle and filial character, but in fact he was unwilling to compromise on major principles and major issues. She was so angry that she drank up the remaining half cup of tea in the tea bowl, and then put it heavily on the table, and the porcelain bottom made a crisp sound when it hit the wooden surface.

"Parents' orders and matchmaker's words are really not enough," her voice gradually lowered. After looking at the old lady, she was like a deflated ball. She did not dare to say the harsh words "make the decision for him and force him to get married".

"Perhaps his destiny lies in the south! Why are you so anxious?" The old lady gently placed the teacup back on its gilded tray, making a subtle clinking sound. "Men from well-off families in the capital are picky about their second wives. There are only unmarriageable women, not good sons. Our Erlang is so virtuous, handsome, and knowledgeable, is he not as good as those old widowers?"

Seeing that the eldest lady was about to open her mouth to argue, the old lady angrily slapped the table, shaking the Ru kiln vase on the table. "Erlang's marriage is up to him. Don't worry about it. The eldest brother will be back in two years, so leave him some things to do. But Yin is still pregnant, so you have to worry more about the affairs of the mansion. Don't take everything to heart."

"Yes, mother!" Knowing that it was useless to say more, Zhuang finally stopped talking, wiped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, and when she stood up to leave, the hem of her skirt dragged over the threshold, bringing up a gust of lost wind.

This was the first time that Jing Chunxi took the initiative to go to the palace to find Xu Zize, and the excuse was to send him some medicinal herbs.

Although she knew that he might be handling government affairs in the Ministry of Works, she still followed the rules and went to Jingren Palace to pay her respects to the Empress. She chatted with her for a while, drank half a cup of tea, and then took her leave, planning to go to the Eastern Palace to wait for him.

The spring afternoon sun shone through the glazed tiles on the palace wall, casting tiny spots of light on the hem of her light blue skirt. She walked slowly, but in her heart she was secretly looking forward to meeting Xu Zize.

"Sister, I'll go with you." Princess Anyang grabbed Jing Chunxi's sleeve, her bright eyes showing obvious dependence and closeness.

She watched as her future sister-in-law sat with her mother for only a short while before leaving, and she began to think of following her.

"Why are you joining in the fun? The emperor and your sister Xi will be separated soon. We don't know when they will meet again. Give them some time alone." Before Jing Chunxi could respond, the queen put down her teacup and retorted with a tone that was a bit angry but also understanding.

Princess Anyang's fair cheeks flushed slightly after her mother spoke so bluntly. She pursed her rosy lips, raised her eyes to look at Jing Chunxi, who had a gentle expression, with a hint of grievance and unwillingness in her eyes. In the end, she said nothing more, but just stamped her feet, turned around, and ran away with a gust of fragrant wind.

"I'll come to play with you another day." Jing Chunxi's belated response didn't make her turn back.

Her slender back seemed somewhat lonely on the long palace road. She was obviously about the same age as Jing Chunxi, and not short either, but her figure was obviously thin and frail. She did not have the gradually plump and curvy figure of a young girl. Instead, she looked like a child who had not completely lost her childishness.

"Xi'er, you're here." Xu Zize heard Lu Ying's message in the East Palace that Princess Anping had arrived. He almost immediately put down the matters at hand and hurried back.

I thought she would be drinking tea in the main hall or waiting quietly in his bedroom, just like she was in her own "Xichun Gui" courtyard. However, I didn't expect that when I stepped into the gate of the East Palace, I would see her sitting quietly under the vermilion corridor next to the screen wall.

She casually supported her graceful chin with one hand, tilted her head slightly, and stared blankly at the four-cornered sky above her head, which was cut by the towering palace wall and was obviously narrower than the one seen above the courtyard of "Xichun Gui". It was unknown what she was thinking, and her silhouette looked particularly quiet in the shadow of the corridor column.

"Let's go! We moved in in a hurry last time and everything was so messy. I haven't taken you to have a good look at the place where we will live in the future. This time you have to take a good look at every corner." Xu Zize suppressed the bitterness in his heart due to the impending separation, walked quickly forward, and took her slightly cold hand very naturally.

He tried to maintain a cheerful tone, even with a hint of deliberate teasing, "During the time Brother Xiaokang is away from the capital, Xi'er must come to the palace often to check on our future home, to prevent any servant from being lazy and not taking good care of it. By the time Brother Xiaokang returns, this place will be so desolate that even a rabbit could make a nest here. That would be a real joke."

It was clearly a lighthearted joke, the words depicting a slightly comical scene, but Jing Chunxi, who felt a deep connection with him, could not fail to hear the heaviness beneath his deliberate concealment. The pain and struggle hidden deep within those words surged like an undercurrent. He seemed unwilling to leave this familiar capital, and her, for long.

"Xi'er will come, Brother Xiaokang, don't worry." She responded softly, and her slender fingers gently clasped his palm, trying to convey some comfort. However, her soft voice was inevitably tainted with a hint of helplessness and melancholy that could not be completely concealed.

"Do you think this East Palace is too small for Xier? Compared to your free and easy world outside the palace, this place may seem a bit cramped." Xu Zize led her into the bluestone-paved corridor on the right side of the screen wall, talking to her in a low voice all the way, trying to dispel her homesickness with the blueprint for the future.