After being reborn, her aloof ex-husband and her crazy deceased husband got into a fight.

On the day of the lotus appreciation banquet, the beautiful woman in Emperor Jinghe's eyes got up early in the morning to start dressing up his left and right hands.

Decorating the Lanting Boat was one of Gan Cai'er's happiest moments.

She was keen to show everyone the best side of Lan Tingzhou, and then she would boast about it everywhere, saying that such an outstanding man was hers!

In this second life, she had long since given up on those thoughts. But this time was different. Even if Lan Tingzhou couldn't make a splash at the lotus viewing banquet, she still hoped he would be noticed and leave a good impression.

She took out three outer robes alone: ​​one moon-white, one light blue, and one jet black with silver thread, all made of the finest brocade, understated yet luxurious.

Just as Gan Cai'er was about to pick up the clothes and try them on Lan Tingzhou one by one, Lan Tingzhou directly took the plainest and most inconspicuous light blue robe and put it on.

Gan Cai'er looked at the moon-white dress with regret in her eyes.

Lan Tingzhou looks best in moon white; the crisp, warm white accentuates his handsome features and refined demeanor, making him appear like a banished immortal. It's just a pity he doesn't like wearing white, saying it gets dirty easily.

However, her regret was only momentary, and she soon showed Lantingzhou the results of her shopping trip over the past few days with great enthusiasm.

A jade hairpin, a jade pendant, two jade rings, a sachet, several palace sashes, and a large piece of emerald green jade.

Lan Tingzhou felt like Gan Cai'er was going to hang him up like a colorful tree for good luck.

He sighed and removed all the colorful and gorgeous ornaments one by one, leaving only a jade hairpin and a sachet.

"We are not honored guests at this banquet. There's no need to be too particular about our attire; just be neat and presentable. Otherwise, we might overshadow the host and lose our composure," Lan Tingzhou explained slowly.

Upon hearing this, Gan Cai'er couldn't help but glance down at her long dress. The crimson color shimmered with gold threads, vibrant and flamboyant, dazzling like a leaping flame. It could be seen from a hundred paces away.

As expected, it can "steal the show".

Her face fell immediately, and she felt dejected. She was always careless about these tedious etiquette rules, and despite making so many foolish mistakes in her past life, she hadn't learned anything in the end.

It seems I'm never cut out to be a lady of leisure, nor can I ever be the mistress of a household.

She silently took off her long dress and changed into a plain, light red dress.

Seeing Gan Cai'er's initial enthusiasm turn into a gloomy expression, Lan Tingzhou pursed his lips, feeling a pang of annoyance.

He was only referring to himself and had no intention of having her change her clothes as well.

He opened his mouth, but in the end he didn't say anything.

He's not used to explaining.

Du Zhong's love for lotus flowers was renowned and had even become a defining characteristic of him. When he first took office as the prefect, the first thing he planned when renovating his residence was not the main courtyard or the study, but the lotus pond.

Everyone who has visited the Du family mansion praises the exquisite and ingenious design of its lotus pond.

The lotus pond at the Du residence is vast, with a wide expanse of water rippling gently. It's more like a lake than a pond. A circle of oddly shaped rocks is arranged along the shore, seemingly random yet meticulously crafted, exuding a rustic charm.

It's June, the season when lotus flowers are in full bloom.

Upon entering the lotus pond, one is greeted by a verdant landscape, and a refreshing coolness immediately arises, like taking a sip of ice-cold honey water in the middle of summer, which is extremely pleasant.

Amidst the verdant leaves, pink, white, and deep red lotus flowers are in full bloom. A gentle breeze stirs, and the flowers and leaves sway gracefully, creating a beautiful summer scene.

It is truly stunning!

There is a wooden arched bridge spanning the lotus pond, with an exquisite pavilion on it, covered with green tiles and upturned eaves at the four corners.

The lotus-viewing banquet was held with this wooden bridge serving as the boundary, separating male and female guests on opposite banks. The left bank was for male guests, and the right bank was for female guests.

Although the two places are separated by half a lotus pond, you can still vaguely see the lively scene on the other side.

Gan Cai'er and Xiao Hong strolled aimlessly along the lake shore.

Xiao Hong was very excited the whole way. She was happy to point at the lotus flowers and happy to see the red carp in the pond. She kept pulling her and chattering. She even went to the lakeside, picked two lotus leaves, put them on her head, and jumped around.

Gan Cai'er, however, showed little interest and remained listless, unable to muster any energy.

She came to the lotus appreciation banquet for two reasons: first, to let Lan Tingzhou make an appearance in the Danzhou literary circle as soon as possible, so as to avoid being criticized for his identity in the future; second, if Lan Tingzhou could gain the favor of one or two well-known figures, then he would have a chance to enter Luming Academy.

Therefore, by delivering the Lanting Boat to the Du residence, her mission was considered complete.

As for how much of these two goals can be achieved, that depends entirely on Lan Tingzhou's abilities and luck, and has little to do with her.

She herself had absolutely no interest in the lotus-viewing banquet, nor did she find it anything special. She had attended many such banquets in her previous life, but had hardly any pleasant memories of them.

"Miss, look. There are quite a few young ladies and wives in the pavilion ahead, it seems to be quite lively. Let's hurry over there," Xiao Hong said, pointing into the distance.

Gan Cai'er stared intently and saw a pavilion about ten feet ahead. Inside the pavilion sat seven or eight young women, who, judging from their attire, should all be daughters of noble families. They seemed to be getting along very well and were enjoying themselves, with faint laughter coming from them.

However, Gan Cai'er did not want to go there.

She could never learn how those women could hide a knife behind their charming smiles, how a single sentence could conceal a hundred and eighty hidden thoughts. She also couldn't distinguish which words were genuine praise and which were veiled sarcasm.

If you can't afford to offend, you can always hide.

"It's too noisy with so many people, let's go this way instead." Gan Cai'er casually pointed to the left.

To the left is a path paved with bluestone slabs, with rows of green bamboo planted on both sides. The bamboo stalks are long and the leaves are dense, creating a quiet and secluded spot in the summer.

Xiao Hong peeked in that direction and shook her head, saying, "Miss, this place looks very deserted. I doubt there's anyone here. It's quite boring."

“What’s wrong with being quieter?” Gan Cai’er stepped to the left and turned into the path.

Xiao Hong scratched her head. She felt that her mistress seemed to have changed recently, becoming different from before.

Miss used to love gossip and being a crowd-pleaser; she'd flock to wherever there were lots of people, and she was incredibly competitive and always found a way to outdo others. Why has she suddenly become so quiet and avoids trouble lately?

Although Xiao Hong was puzzled, she still quickly caught up with Gan Cai'er.

The path was long and quiet, with a thin layer of moss on the flagstones, suggesting that it was not often visited. Gan Cai'er and her servant walked for quite a while, and apart from the increasingly dense bamboo forest, there was nothing else around.

"Miss, this road probably leads to some deserted place, right? We'd better go back." Xiao Hong pulled Gan Cai'er back.

The further they walked, the more desolate it became, and Gan Cai'er sensed something was wrong. She nodded and turned to go back the way she came.

Just then, a commotion of voices suddenly came from ahead, including crying, cursing, and laughter. It sounded like a group of boys.

There was only one road; if they continued forward, they would inevitably run into it. Hearing the voices getting closer, Gan Cai'er grabbed Xiao Hong and ducked into the bamboo grove.

The life-saving secret I learned in my past life is to stay away from trouble.

Just as Gan Cai'er and her servant had hidden themselves in the bamboo grove, they saw several children appear on the stone path, all dressed in fine clothes. One was crying, while the rest were laughing.

The child, about three or four years old, was crying. His face was covered in dirt, his hair was torn and messy, and his dark gold brocade robe was ripped into pieces.

He was being dragged along the ground by a bigger child, his eyes red and swollen from crying. He sobbed and begged, "Fifth Brother, it hurts, it hurts, please let me go~~~"

"Pah! You little bastard, who's your fifth brother? If you keep yelling like that, I'll stomp your mouth off!"

The one who was cursing him viciously was his older child, about eight or nine years old, who was dragging him along. After cursing, the child kicked him.

Gan Cai'er sighed silently. It seems that every family has its share of shady dealings in their private quarters.