Lin Youning returned from the palace to the mansion and talked about what happened in the palace with her brother and sister-in-law. Upon hearing about Consort Zhou, Zhao Housheng only furrowed his brow slightly and didn’t say much. Liang Hui, however, was quite displeased; her usual temperament would make her say a few more words, but as her husband was present, she refrained.

Once she finally returned to her own room, Lin Youning asked Hailan, "Did anyone from the Marquis send a message today?"

She had arranged for someone to send word to her eldest brother about going to the palace, but didn’t expect to be gone so long. By the time she returned to the mansion, it was already dinner time, and she didn’t know if her eldest brother had come over.

Today, Lin Youning had taken Nanny Wang into the palace with her, as Nanny Wang had experience in the palace. So, Hailan stayed behind at the mansion.

Hailan replied, "No one from the Marquis has come, but Zhao Wu did come once. He said that things are fine with the old madam and that the Marquis was busy with other matters and wasn’t at the mansion."

Lin Youning nodded, knowing that Zhao Wu couldn’t have just delivered this message. This indicated that her eldest brother had already appeased her aunt, but the words couldn’t be said directly, hence Zhao Wu delivered the message this way.

"Miss, while you were in the palace today, Miss Dong came to the mansion again. She didn’t insist on seeing you but made a set of clothes for you, saying it was something she promised to make long ago. Originally, it was always being made, but many things delayed it. Now that it was finished, she sent it over." Hailan took the clothes from the wardrobe and placed them in front of her mistress, "Take a look, Miss. It’s this set. I didn’t want to accept it, but after Miss Dong handed it to me, she left, and I couldn’t stop her."

Lin Youning looked at the clothes on the tray; the delicate pink garments were like spring flowers. She remembered Dong Boyun once said her clothes were too plain and that she was learning to embroider a certain pattern to make a new set for her. Lin Youning thought it was a joke back then and didn’t take it seriously, but now the clothes had actually been delivered.

"I checked the stitches and it seems like it was made a long time ago, with several attempts visible." Hailan added from beside her.

Lin Youning nodded, "She’s not usually the type to curry favor. It must be the Dong Mansion using her aunt to pressure her, forcing her to come here."

Hailan also thought the same, "I found it strange too, as Miss Dong wasn’t like that before. But now it seems you’re right, apart from her aunt’s matters, nothing else could make her do such a thing."

Lin Youning nodded, "Put it away, somewhere I can’t see it. When she tried to poison me before, fortunately, nothing serious happened. For the sake of our past relationship, I won’t hold a grudge. Though I’m not pursuing it, it doesn’t mean nothing happened."

"I understand." Hailan replied, storing the clothes away, and instructed the young maid to place them at the bottom of the wardrobe.

Lin Youning was exhausted and had Hailan assist her with a bath. Only after lying on the bed did she yawn, "You’ve been with me these days, is Zhao Wu alright on his own? You’ve only been married a few days, you can’t stay here with me all the time. You should go back to the mansion for a few days. Nanny Wang is here with me, and you can come over again when we move to the Prince Mansion."

"Zhao Wu is a grown man; he doesn’t need my care. Your body is getting heavier day by day, I won’t leave while you’re here." Hailan said with a playful smile, tucked Lin Youning in, and quietly left.

Lin Youning was genuinely tired, and as soon as she closed her eyes, she fell into a deep sleep. Outside, when Gu Yifeng finished his affairs and arrived with snowflakes on his shoulders, he saw she was already asleep.

Gu Yifeng told Hailan to leave, removed his cloak and outer shirt alone, washed briefly inside, and then got into bed. As soon as he lay down, the petite body on the bed snuggled closer, and Gu Yifeng indulgently held her in his arms.

Gu Yifeng hadn’t planned to visit, but after finishing his tasks, he couldn’t resist and came directly. Seeing Sister Ning restored his peace of mind.

The next morning, Lin Youning opened her eyes, glanced at the person beside her, shifted her body to a comfortable position, and planned to continue sleeping. But as soon as she closed her eyes, she immediately opened them again.

"Big brother?" How did he suddenly appear here?

Lin Youning initially thought she was in the East Mansion, but quickly remembered she was staying with her brother this time.

Gu Yifeng gave a lazy smile, "I came over last night. It’s just dawn outside, sleep a bit longer. I’ll wake you later."

Lin Youning couldn’t sleep anymore, she clung tightly to her brother, "It was only a day apart, but it felt like a long time."

She never wanted to be apart from her big brother again.

Gu Yifeng embraced her, his voice husky, "We won’t be apart again. Mother has agreed to bring Mrs. Dong back to the mansion. That will silence the outsiders and prevent the Dong Mansion from scheming anything else. Aunt Lv will manage the household affairs now."

Lin Youning didn’t believe it was that simple, "Aunt must be unhappy about this, did big brother have to say a lot?"

"It was tough, and Sister Hui’s marriage proposal was rejected by mother, who now wants to find a match within a noble family." Gu Yifeng sighed, "She’s getting older and wants to feel secure by doing something. But Sister Hui recently broke an engagement, so finding another match won’t be easy; she should take her time looking."

"This is a lifelong matter, and Aunt won’t take it lightly. Big brother, don’t worry; Aunt’s anger this time is also due to my father’s actions, which displeased her." Lin Youning felt a bit embarrassed, "I just heard from father that they were discussing marriage with the Vice Minister Zhang’s Mansion, which is why he made those statements. If I had known earlier, I would have stopped it."

"You did well, otherwise, if someone really entered the mansion, it would have caused a lot of trouble." Gu Yifeng said with a hint of amusement, "With such a formidable father-in-law, no one would dare offer their daughters to me in the future."

"Hmph, is big brother disappointed by that?" Lin Youning huffed. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Gu Yifeng whispered softly, "Such a fiery little pepper."