But no matter how empty the national treasury was, it was not possible to keep highborn ladies from marriage. It was basically impossible to save on these expenses. It was no wonder that Marquess Qin treated Xue Chang so favourably. Faced with the amount of money the court needed to spend, if there hadn’t been a prime minister who was good at filling the national treasury without harassing the people, he would have exploited their people!

Qiu Yelan sighed for a while about the pressure on the national treasury. And then she suddenly thought of Chu Chunxiao, “Chunxiao is about the same age as Yongfu. She is 20 years old this year. Even though Yongfu doesn’t marry, she has gotten engaged. It has been three or five years now, hasn’t it? They can’t continue to force her to marry the Duke of Puyang, can they?”

Jiang Yashuang was reminded of this. He pondered for a moment and said, “All right, you should go to the palace in a couple of days and put the feelers out to see what my fourth aunt thinks. If she does not allow it, I will go there and persuade her.”

“What if your fourth aunt still forbids it?” Qiu Yelan demanded.

“Yongfu hasn’t seen much of Xiao Su in the past two years. So, my fourth aunt wouldn’t disagree.” Jiang Yashuang shook his head, “Speaking of Xiao Su, he seems to be ill again.”

The corner of Qiu Yelan’s mouth twitched, “Will Yongfu go over to visit?”

“Perhaps my fourth aunt is not willing to let her know the news. After all, she and Bicheng are going to set the date for their wedding. How could my fourth aunt allow unwanted epilogue?”

Two days later, Qiu Yelan entered the palace. She went to Hall of Taishi to see Empress Dowager. After exchanging pleasantries, the topic of Chu Chunxiao’s marriage was brought up. Empress Dowager did not mention her marriage to Xiao Su again but said, “In the past two years, there has been so much going on in the court and beyond that, I forgot about this child’s marriage! When speaking of that, it was Qizhuan who treated us like strangers. If she had come to me and mentioned it, we would have remembered it, wouldn’t we? And the child will not be unmarried until now. Luckily, you keep that in your mind!”

“I also thought of it by chance. I don’t deserve your praise, my fourth aunt.” Qiu Yelan said modestly. And then she asked if Empress Dowager Jiang had any requests or instructions for Chu Chunxiao’s marriage. “Speaking of which, my third sister has not said anything about Chunxiao’s marriage. Apart from the fact that she has had a lot of things to do in the past two years and is afraid of disturbing you, I’m afraid it’s because she has only one daughter and she doesn’t know what kind of person to choose for her. My fourth aunt, you know so many people. If you could do her a favor, she would thank you a lot!”

Empress Dowager Jiang understood her meaning and said with a smile, “After all, it should be someone that is good in character and appearance with a decent family background. And he must treat Chunxiao well and be filial to Qizhuan and her husband! If they can’t decide, just report to me. I can lend a hand!”

As such, Qiu Yelan was relieved. Empress Dowager clearly meant that she did not intend to interfere with Chu Chunxiao’s marriage.

After chatting with Empress Dowager Jiang for a while and making her happy, Qiu Yelan excused herself and went to find Empress in Beique Hall.

But when she arrived, Emperor was also there. The palace maid outside said quietly, “Emperor is watching the little prince. I’m afraid that he won’t leave for a while.”

“In that case, I’ll withdraw. Please tell Empress later!” There was nothing that Qiu Yelan had to see Empress for this visit to the palace. So, with that, she asked Mujin to give that maid a pouch and then left the palace.

After leaving the palace, she first went to visit Jiang Qizhuan’s family at the Prince’s Mansion of Qiyang and told them that Empress Dowager Jiang softened her attitude.

Jiang Qizhuan was in tears at her words. If Qiu Yelan hadn’t pulled her quickly, she would have almost kowtowed to her. After crying for a while, she was persuaded by Qiu Yelan to stop crying. But she sighed, “My husband is increasingly getting sicker. And I’m not a strong person myself. I’ve been calling the doctor over. And the smell of medicine in the mansion has never stopped! As a result, Chunxiao hasn’t been able to go out much in the past two years! How could I know someone suitable for Chunxiao? My sister-in-law, please help us once again and give us an idea!”

Qiu Yelan was very willing to help them. But it also put her in difficulty. “I’m not very familiar with the young men in Jing City. What about I go back and ask Yashuang?”

“My sister-in-law, it’s all up to you!” Jiang Qizhuan insisted on calling Chu Chunxiao to come out and kowtow to her aunt before letting Qiu Yelan go.

When she returned to the Marquess’s Mansion, her husband had already returned and was playing with the two children in the yard. So, she stood by and waited for a while. When Jiang Yashuang was free to go and came over to ask, she told him what had happened, “The third sister has entrusted me with the task of finding a husband for Chunxiao. But how do I know about the young men of Jing City? So, I told my third sister that I’ll come back and ask you.”

Jiang Yashuang thought for a while, “Let me make a list for you tonight… And you take it to the third sister.”

After the list was finished, Qiu Yelan picked it up and read it first. When she saw that the first one was the Prince’s Mansion of Puyang, she was slightly surprised. But when she took a closer look, she found that it was not Xiao Su but Xiao Mu. And then she was relieved, “Although Xiao Mu does not have a royal title, he is in good health. And from the experience that we met him before, he is not a sly person. Plus, as the Duke of Puyang’s younger brother, it’s okay for him to match Chunxiao.”

Especially, Xiao Su, at such a young age, took medicine as a meal. And he was forever falling ill. The evil thought was that he would probably not be able to put through it and die. At that time, wouldn’t the position of the Duke of Puyang belong to Xiao Mu?

The Prince’s Mansion of Puyang’s mourning period had long expired. But the brothers of the Xiao Family had not been engaged. So, Qiu Yelan pointed to Xiao Mu’s name and asked, “I think Xiao Mu is good. But how come he has not been married yet? Is there a reason for this?”

“He insisted on waiting for Xiao Su to marry before considering his own marriage. But just think about Xiao Su’s health condition. Which noble family would dare to allow their daughter to marry him? Even if there were a family who would sacrifice their daughter, old Princess Chu wouldn’t dare to make him marry. After all, he’s going to fall ill with a little toss and turn now. What if the strain of marriage aggravates his condition?” Jiang Yashuang explained, “So, both old Princess Chu and Xiao Su were in favour of Xiao Mu’s marrying first, so as to, at least, the Xiao Family can have a descendant. When Xiao Su was sick two days ago, I went to visit him. And Xiao Su even asked me privately to persuade Xiao Mu. So, when you talked about choosing a husband for Chunxiao, I immediately thought of Xiao Mu. Speaking of which, Chunxiao is quite familiar with him.”

Qiu Yelan bore that in mind and asked each of the others about their situation. The next day, she took the list to the Prince’s Mansion of Qiyang and introduced them to Jiang Qizhuan one by one, asking her to choose on behalf of her daughter. Jiang Qizhuan looked at them all. But she was hesitant to make up her mind and finally asked Qiu Yelan to choose for Chu Chunxiao.

Qiu Yelan pulled a wry face, “My sister, Chunxiao grew up in front of you. To be honest, I have not seen her many times. How can I know her as well as you know her? If the one I choose for her is not to her liking, won’t that be a disservice to her for the rest of her life?”

When she saw that Jiang Qizhuan was hesitant, she said, “We don’t have to make decisions in a day or two anyway. Why don’t I leave the list with you? You and Chunxiao can discuss it for a few days. I’ll come back in ten days. What do you think?”

Jiang Qizhuan thought it a good idea. And it was settled.

When Qiu Yelan returned to the Marquess’s Mansion before she had time to change her clothes, Mumian came up to report, “Just now, I went to Madame’s place to send something. And I have heard that Mistress Gu, who is in the Eighth Young Master’s yard, is pregnant.”

“Is Gu E’nuo pregnant?” Qiu Yelan froze for a moment and asked in a deep voice, “Did the servants say it privately, or did my eighth sister-in-law go and tell my grandmother?”

“It was the eighth madame who went to report to Madame. And Madame rewarded her with something.”

“And then let’s pack up some things and send them there too. Remember to choose the second-best ones. Do not make my eighth sister-in-law upset!”

After ordering this, Mulan came up, holding an invitation card in both hands, “Lady Yejiao will be one year old in five days. Chunfu Princess invites you to come to her mansion for a gathering, madame!”

It was Jiang Qizheng and Qiu Feng. They decided to hold a family banquet for their second daughter, Qiu Yejiao, on her one-year-old birthday.

“In a blink of an eye, my niece has turned one year old. It feels like yesterday she was held in hands!” Qiu Yelan looked at the invitation card with some emotion, “It seems like my eighteenth sister has been pregnant again, doesn’t it?”

Mulan smiled, “Madame, exactly!”

“Go open the storehouse and prepare the gifts!” Qiu Yelan put the invitation card on the desk, “By the way, take the newly made dresses out. I’ll see which one is good to wear on that day.”

After a busy period, it was time for the banquet for Qiu Yejiao’s first birthday. Chunfu Princess’s Mansion was decorated with lights and flowers. But it wasn’t too noisy as not many people received the invitation card.

“Jiao’er is so lovely. You are lucky to have both a boy and a girl. And now you have a baby again. How flourishing your family is!” He Shuijin hugged Qiu Yejiao and couldn’t stop kissing her soft cheeks.

Jiang Qizheng and Qiu Feng were both good-looking. Naturally, their children were good-looking too. Qiu Yejiao, swaddled in a red silk and pomegranate swaddle, was as pretty as a snow doll. What made her more appealing than her brother, Qiu Yebai, also known as Fu’er, was that she loved to smile.

She could laugh out loud even though no one was teasing her. And now, while He Shuijin was hugging and kissing her, her tinkling laughs never stopped. That made people melt inside.

“You already have Ya’er. You can also make it if you have a daughter.” Jiang Qizheng kept an eye on her eldest son, Qiu Yebai, who was running around, and smiled, “And Ya’er looks so much like you. I’m really jealous! Look at my two children. Fu’er looks just like his uncles. And Jiao’er looks just like her father. None of them look like me. What a pity!”

Ya’er was He Shuijin’s son Jiang Jingya. He was born in February last year as well. But it was the beginning of the month. So, the banquet had already been held. As Marquess Qin had not recovered from his illness, the scale was even smaller than today. Only the Jiang Family’s own people were invited.

“If you have a few more, you don’t need to be afraid that there won’t be one like you.” Qiu Yelan, who was feeding Jiang Jingkun with candied fruit, laughed and said, “Maybe this one in your belly now is exactly like you, isn’t it?”

“From your mouth to the God’s ear!” Jiang Qizheng smiled, “I really want a child who looks like me, no matter it is a boy or girl!”

Although the Princess’s Mansion didn’t hold a lavish feast today, Qiu Yelan and He Shuijin were not the only guests. So, when Zhuang Man heard them talking about children, she beamed, “I don’t have any children yet! You’re all talking about children. And you’re leaving me out!”

“Go back and tell your husband if you’re envious” He Shuijin teased her with a smile, “You just got married in April last year. It hasn’t even been a year yet. Why the rush? Perhaps there will be good news if you be with us, won’t there?”

Zhuang Man was not the kind of person who would be caught off guard by such words. When she was about to retaliate, someone not far away suddenly put down the bowl of tea. Chu Yitong was smiling while there was no smile in her eyes as she stood up and said, “I accidentally dripped tea on my dress. I’ll go and change. I’ll leave you out to it!”

“… It seems that we have offended my sister-in-law?” After she left, the crowd looked at each other. He Shuijin spat out her tongue with remorse, “Since last year, there has been no news after the miscarriage of my eighth sister-in-law. But two days ago, Mistress Gu got pregnant… We should not have talked so much about children just now!”

She was a tactful person and did not want to make unnecessary grudges. That was she thought so. Zhuang Man thought differently, “We’re here for the birthday banquet of Jiao’er. How can we not talk about the topic of children? If she really doesn’t want to hear it, she can just quietly walk away. Why does she drop a tea bowl to draw our attention before getting up? She gives that attitude… As if we all deserve to look at her face!”

“Forget it. It’s my fault for being thoughtless.” Jiang Qizheng’s face did not look good. As Zhuang Man had said, it was reasonable to say something about the child at a baby’s one-year-old birthday banquet. Chu Yitong could have expected this before she came here. But now she gave that attitude. As a host, her face was completely swept away.

At this moment, she covered it coldly, “We are all families. Let’s be accommodating to each other! I think my eighth sister-in-law is too upset to behave herself.”

Despite this, all felt bored. The one-year-old birthday banquet, to which not many people were invited, was anticlimactic at last. After the banquet, looking at the sisters-in-law and young aunts who were much colder than when they arrived, Mrs. Zhu could not help but advise Chu Yitong on the way back to the Marquess’s Mansion, “Madame, I know that you are feeling miserable. I understand. But on an occasion like this…”

“Leave me alone!” Chu Yitong interrupted her with an expressionless face.

There was a moment of silence in the carriage.