“Elder Sister, just now Xiao Qi told me in the carriage that Lu Yuanpeng and his group of wastrel sons have enlisted to serve in the northern frontier! I think they should be among that batch of new troops we saw heading to garrison the border when we returned!” Bai Jinzhi’s voice was exceptionally cheerful.

“That’s right!” Bai Jinse said obediently and cleverly, “When Lu Yuanpeng left, he made quite a commotion. In the capital city, a whole group of wastrel sons who played with them marched off grandly to the military camp! Later, Lord Shoushan and Fan Yuhuai, the commander of the patrol battalion, both ran to Chancellor Lu’s mansion, begging Chancellor Lu to manage Lu Yuanpeng. Several officials even went to the military camp wanting to bring their children back home. Lu Yuanpeng was quite righteous and stern, saying that protecting the home and defending the Kingdom is every man’s duty. The Bai family’s daughters have rushed to the battlefield to sacrifice their lives for the Kingdom, yet you officials occupy high positions, fed by the taxes of the common people. Could it be that you want to confine your hot-blooded sons at home to embroider and marry?”

Upon hearing these words, Bai Jinzhi’s eyes widened: “That wastrel Lu could say such things?”

After thinking it over, Bai Jinzhi felt something was off, her brows furrowing tightly: “Why do I feel like Lu Yuanpeng’s words were saying that we Bai family daughters should be embroidering and marrying?”

Bai Jinxiu covered her lips with her handkerchief and laughed softly: “However, Lu Yuanpeng’s speech did make the people of the capital change their opinion of these wastrel sons. Even His Majesty praised them as hot-blooded good men of Jin, saying that though they were wastrels, their flaws did not overshadow their virtues.”

“Later, those who had used their power to pressure the military camp into releasing people and forcibly dragged their children back home hurriedly sent their children back to the military camp! This made Chancellor Lu suffer the indignity of apologizing to each family individually.”

Just thinking about that scene made Bai Jinse want to laugh.

Though Lu Yuanpeng liked to play around with cats and dogs, his nature wasn’t bad. Beneath his carefree exterior lay a childlike sincerity, otherwise the Bai family sons wouldn’t have been close to Lu Yuanpeng in the first place.

Seeing they were about to reach the small courtyard entrance, Wei Zhong quickened his pace and lifted the gauze curtain for Bai Qingyan’s group.

The Grand Princess had her silver hair combed meticulously, adorned only with a gold hairpin inlaid with jade. She wore summer clothes made last year, embroidered with crabapple flower patterns, both comfortable and elegant. She sat at the stone table in the courtyard, holding a chess piece in her hand, eyes lowered as she contemplated the chessboard. The extremely faint sunlight filtered through the gaps between leaves, casting light on a sweet white glazed flower vase nearby that held several osmanthus branches, seeming to create a halo of hazy light.

Compared to their last meeting, the Grand Princess had grown considerably thinner. Perhaps it was due to her constant vegetarian diet—her cheeks were gaunt, and her eye sockets had deepened.

Bai Qingyan led her three sisters inside. After respectfully kowtowing three times to the Grand Princess, she rose and asked: “Paying respects to Grandmother! We heard from Nanny Jiang that Grandmother was ill. Has Grandmother recovered somewhat?”

The Grand Princess placed the chess piece in her hand into the chess box and asked in a hoarse voice: “From your journey to the northern frontier, were you injured? Has Xiao Si’s hand healed?”

“In response to Grandmother, the small injury on my hand is nothing serious!” Bai Jinzhi replied to the Grand Princess according to Bai Qingyan’s instructions, her smiling gaze clear and pure, still carrying that childish air as if she’d never grown up.

The Grand Princess looked toward Bai Qingyan, wanting to reach out and call her to her side, but seeing her in full battle armor and thinking of her sons and grandsons, the guilt in her heart made the hand clutching her prayer beads unable to rise.

The wind passed, tree leaves rustling, lifting a corner of the azure patterned tablecloth spread on the stone table.

The Grand Princess still asked in a low voice: “A’Bao, what about you?”

“Thank you for Grandmother’s concern. A’Bao is well in all respects!” Bai Qingyan replied.

The Grand Princess nodded, then saw Lu Ninghuan lift the bamboo curtain and emerge from the side room, carrying a black lacquered gold-decorated square tray in her hands. On it were small dishes the size of thumbnails with exquisitely made crabapple flower-shaped pastries, and a bottle of osmanthus honey that had been warmed for a long time.

After Lu Ninghuan greeted everyone with proper ceremony, she smiled and said: “Today, as the First Miss and Fourth Miss return in triumph, the Grand Princess specially had someone prepare a pot of osmanthus honey to substitute for wine, congratulating both young ladies!”

There was no Bai family ancestral hall here, and what she had led on the expedition wasn’t the Bai family army either.

But today, the Grand Princess seemed to remember the scene from the past when the Bai family returned victorious, bustling with activity as they respectfully informed their ancestors of their safe return to the capital.

Bai Qingyan stepped forward, nodded to Lu Ninghuan, then picked up the wine cup from the black lacquered square tray, drained the osmanthus honey, and knelt before the Grand Princess in ceremonial bow: “Bai family’s eldest daughter, Bai Qingyan, has returned safely to the capital.”

Bai Jinzhi’s eyes grew slightly moist. She remembered that day when she saw Seventh Brother, how he knelt before Elder Sister, saying he had returned safely to the capital. How she wished… that every man of the Bai family could return, could kneel before Grandmother, respectfully informing their ancestors and elders that they had returned safely.

Bai Jinzhi followed suit, stepping forward to drink the sweet, sticky osmanthus honey, then bowing ceremonially to the Grand Princess: “Bai family’s fourth daughter, Bai Jinzhi, has returned safely to the capital!”

The Grand Princess nodded with tears in her eyes: “Good! Safe return is what matters!”

Nanny Jiang also brought out the tea Lu Ninghuan had brewed, having someone place several soft cushions on the stone stools.

Since Bai Jinxiu was pregnant, Nanny Jiang served her osmanthus tea, which was quite fragrant and pleasant-smelling.

“Xiao Qi… take your Fourth Sister to pick more osmanthus flowers. Your Elder Sister is here today! For tonight’s dinner, have Nanny Jiang cook personally and make a dish of osmanthus yam that your Elder Sister loves.”

The Grand Princess intentionally sent away the two children, Bai Jinzhi and Bai Jinse. Bai Jinzhi could hear the intention. She nodded and pulled Bai Jinse up: “Good! It’s been a long time since we’ve had Nanny Jiang’s osmanthus yam. Xiao Si has missed it very much!”

After Bai Jinzhi and Bai Jinse left, the Grand Princess had Lu Ninghuan sit.

After a long while, the Grand Princess spoke with a pained expression: “The Emperor is becoming more and more absurd!”

Lu Ninghuan rose and bowed before saying: “During this period, when Ninghuan took the Emperor’s pulse, I felt his spirits were high, but his pulse seemed strange, as if showing signs of consuming cinnabar!”

“Aunt, are you saying His Majesty is taking elixirs?” Bai Jinxiu looked up at Lu Ninghuan in alarm.

“Precisely! However, these elixirs are said to have become popular among the noble families of Great Wei in recent years. Taking them can make one’s complexion rosy and spirits high. There are rumors that they can extend life and preserve youth. Although cinnabar is also a medicinal substance, and if taken in appropriate amounts internally, it can treat heart palpitations, insomnia with many dreams, epileptic fits, and other symptoms, it absolutely should not be consumed in large quantities, and certainly not for extended periods.”

If we speak of life-extending and health-preserving elixirs, they should truly be considered as having become popular starting from the Jin. The Grand Princess’s grandfather, Emperor Wende, had died because of these life-extending and health-preserving elixirs. Later, when the Grand Princess’s father ascended the throne, his first act was to forbid imperial family descendants from consuming such elixirs except when needed for illness.

Bai Qingyan lowered her eyes in careful contemplation. So… Prince Liang had presented elixirs to the Emperor, which earned him imperial favor?

Lu Ninghuan glanced at the Grand Princess before continuing: “If the Emperor continues taking these elixirs, combined with the Xiliang aphrodisiac drugs, I’m afraid His Majesty won’t last two years.”