The room fell silent for a moment. Mu Yunhan sighed softly, and just as he was about to speak, they heard light footsteps approaching the courtyard.

“Someone’s coming. You should leave first,” Mu Yunhan said.

“Mm.”

As Mu Yunjin stepped into Mu Yunhan’s courtyard, from the corner of her eye, she seemed to glimpse a figure in blue flying out of the window with incredible speed.

Standing in place and blinking, Mu Yunjin figured it must have been a momentary illusion.

“Yunjin, you’ve come.” Mu Yunhan walked out the door, and upon seeing Mu Yunjin standing in the courtyard, he displayed a generous, spring-like smile.

Mu Yunjin raised an eyebrow, looking Mu Yunhan up and down, then narrowed her eyes with a smile. “Brother, it’s been a while. Have you missed me?”

“I wouldn’t dare to miss you. Prince Ning, missing you is quite enough; you shouldn’t be too greedy.” Mu Yunhan smiled teasingly, led Mu Yunjin to sit down, and ordered a maid to serve tea.

After the tea was served, Mu Yunjin casually took a sip, then put down her cup, her gaze coolly resting on Mu Yunhan.

…

…

“Brother, when I went to the back garden earlier, I saw Sister Yuyan. Her complexion didn’t look too good,” Mu Yunjin said softly, observing Mu Yunhan from the corner of her eye.

Hearing this, Mu Yunhan’s eyes revealed a strange look, but he quickly returned to normal and said indifferently, “Has she seen a doctor?”

“That I wouldn’t know.” Seeing Mu Yunhan’s attitude upon mentioning Zhuang Yuyan, Mu Yunjin estimated that Zhuang Yuyan’s words were not at all false.

So she couldn’t quite understand. Mu Yunjin scratched her face, frowning, and spoke lazily, “I heard…”

Mu Yunjin dragged out the word “heard” for quite some time.

Mu Yunhan raised an eyebrow, seeing that she had something on her mind, and smiled. “You little girl, what exactly are you hiding and wanting to say?”

“I heard that after you married Sister Yuyan, you’ve never touched her?” Mu Yunjin finally asked, her gaze fixed on Mu Yunhan, watching his expression.

Mu Yunhan’s brow furrowed, then curved again. “Did she tell you this?”

“Brother, you suddenly married Sister Yuyan to deal with Chu Qingchang, but now that you’ve married her, leaving her empty in the mansion isn’t a solution, is it? After all, she is the daughter of the Grand Tutor’s mansion. Treating her this way seems rather irresponsible,” Mu Yunjin sighed slightly after speaking.

“If I were to touch her, that would be even more irresponsible.” Mu Yunhan noticed Mu Yunjin’s empty teacup and refilled it with some tea.

Hearing this, Mu Yunjin realized she didn’t understand her brother at all. Thinking about it, she sighed again, feeling she must have had a brain lapse to meddle in others’ affairs.

No matter what, Mu Yunhan had his thoughts. She had listened to Zhuang Yuyan’s words and come here to persuade Mu Yunhan, interfering in others’ lives, which seemed a bit excessive.

So she changed the subject, a smile spreading across her lips. “Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore. I believe you have your measure and judgment.”

“Hmm?” Mu Yunhan saw how quickly she changed the topic and raised an eyebrow. “You little girl, you’re becoming more and more capable.”

“Of course, just look at whose sister I am.” Mu Yunjin smiled.

“How are things between you and Chu Li lately? I heard many stories about you two from the imperial guards who returned. Mu Yunhan looked at Mu Yunjin with a smile, his eyes full of brotherly love.

At the mention of Chu Li, Mu Yunjin nodded with a smile, taking a bite of preserved fruit, its sweet and sour taste spreading throughout her mouth. “He treats me very well.”

“Good, that’s good.” Mu Yunhan’s gaze became slightly unfocused, his hand holding the teacup paused briefly, his eyes showing some contemplation.

It seemed it was time to retire from his mission.

At this moment, Zhuang Yuyan, standing outside the courtyard, covered her mouth with her hand, tears falling one by one, before she hurriedly walked back.

These people of the Mu family were too much.

……

When Mu Yunjin left Mu Yunhan’s courtyard, she repeatedly urged him to find time to talk with Zhuang Yuyan properly and resolve her worries.

Mu Yunhan verbally agreed.

Only then did Mu Yunjin leave with peace of mind. As she passed through the front hall, the Prime Minister had not yet returned, and the officials’ wives who had been drinking tea earlier were still there.

When Mu Yunjin appeared in the front hall, she immediately felt the atmosphere was somewhat strange. She paused her steps and looked at these officials’ wives.

“What’s wrong? Is there something on my face?” Mu Yunjin touched her face.

One of the officials’ wives, hearing this, covered her mouth with a laugh, stood up, and pulled Mu Yunjin to sit down beside Luo Ningyu in another main seat. “Princess Ning, it’s still early. Since you have nothing to do upon returning, why not chat with us?”

Huh?

Mu Yunjin didn’t understand what these older women wanted to chat about.

“Yunjin, let me introduce you first.” Luo Ningyu stood up with a slight smile, then pointed to the woman who had just pulled Mu Yunjin to sit down. “This is the wife of the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, Madam Chen.”

Mu Yunjin nodded. So this was Chen Pu’s wife. Mu Yunjin had a good impression of Chen Pu, so she generously smiled at Madam Chen.

“These two are Madam Yang from the Minister of War’s family and Madam Wei from the Minister of Revenue’s family.”

Although Mu Yunjin didn’t understand why Luo Ningyu was introducing them, she nodded to each one as a greeting.

After sitting down, a maid came forward to serve tea.

“Princess Ning, when Prince Ning was enfeoffed as a prince recently, we didn’t properly congratulate you with a visit.” Madam Chen looked at Mu Yunjin, holding a handful of melon seeds.

Mu Yunjin tugged at the corners of her mouth but didn’t respond.

“Speaking of the Prime Minister’s children, except for the pitiful Second Young Master, the eldest son married the daughter of the Grand Tutor’s family, the Third Miss married Prince Ning, and the Fourth Miss married Prince Rong. They all found perfect marriages. The Prime Minister is truly blessed…” Madam Yang said.

“Yes, now only the Fifth Miss Xiarou remains unmarried,” Madam Wei smiled.

After Madam Wei spoke, Madam Chen took a sip of water and continued, “Indeed. I saw little Xiarou this morning, and she has grown increasingly beautiful, like a young lady.”

“It’s just that now most of the good young men in the city are already married, and those who are still young haven’t accomplished anything yet. Choosing a marriage partner is a headache.”

Listening to the three ladies speak one after another, Luo Ningyu smiled slightly. “Sisters, please don’t say anymore. Xiarou still has two years before her coming-of-age ceremony. Discussing these matters now is too early.”

Mu Yunjin sat to the side, listening in confusion, feeling she couldn’t participate in the topics these middle-aged women were discussing.

“Two years pass in the blink of an eye. Look at Princess Ning and Prince Ning. Weren’t they betrothed in advance? Later, on the day of Princess Ning’s coming-of-age ceremony, Prince Ning hurriedly married her, and now they live a beautiful life,” Madam Chen said with a smile.

Seeing the conversation turn toward her, Mu Yunjin awkwardly tugged at the corners of her mouth. Just as she was about to stand up and leave, she heard Madam Chen continue, “By the way, there may not be good families outside the palace, but aren’t there plenty inside? Now that Princess Ning has married into the royal family, isn’t it perfect for her to help advise her fifth sister?”

“Yes, yes, the Third Prince—no, Prince Zhen—and the Crown Prince, don’t they both still not have formal wives?” Madam Yang said.

“Exactly, why not have Prince Ning help with this matter…”

Mu Yunjin now understood. She had wondered why these middle-aged women wanted to chat with her. It turned out that after all this talk, they were paving the way for Mu Xiarou.

Prince Zhen Chu Qing? Crown Prince Chu Ye?

They dared to dream.

Luo Ningyu, seeing that these ladies were speaking too directly, looked at Mu Yunjin with an apologetic expression. “Yunjin, these ladies are just joking with you. Don’t take it to heart.”

“Alright, I won’t take it to heart.” Mu Yunjin’s lips spread into a brilliant smile. She then took a sip of tea and stood up. “I’ll head back to the Prince’s mansion first.”

With that, she sauntered out with Zixiang.

Behind her, the officials’ wives sat in place, staring at each other. “Did she not understand what we were saying, or is she pretending not to understand?”

“Ningyu, are you stupid? Why did you say that? You’ve wasted all our earlier efforts…”

……

On the way back to the mansion, Zixiang walked beside Mu Yunjin. “Third Concubine’s calculations are quite good, actually aiming for the Crown Prince.”

“You caught that too?” Mu Yunjin raised an eyebrow, looking at Zixiang.

Zixiang nodded. “Of course I could tell. They talked for so long, but it was all about wanting you to step forward and help the Fifth Miss secure a good marriage.”

“By right, Father should decide on Mu Xiarou’s marriage. It’s not my place to speak. But truly, my fifth sister isn’t completely bad. From a sister’s perspective, I still hope she doesn’t marry into the palace. Otherwise, she might die without even knowing how in the future.”

“Miss, the Fifth Miss isn’t bad? Back then, she and the Fourth Miss bullied you so many times!” Zixiang, recalling past events, felt indignant on Mu Yunjin’s behalf.

“She was young then, and being a concubine’s daughter, she naturally had to curry favor with the most powerful people in the mansion. Tell me, who could have been more glorious in the Prime Minister’s mansion than Mu Lingzhu in those days?” Mu Yunjin said with a smile.

Hearing this, Zixiang understood. “Miss, you should just live a good life with His Highness from now on. There are too many complicated matters in the Prime Minister’s mansion. It’s best not to get involved.”

“Mm.” Mu Yunjin nodded, pondering all the events at the Prime Minister’s mansion today.

Sister Yuyan had a heap of worries; her brother appeared calm on the surface, but a faint sadness was hidden in his brow. As for Luo Ningyu, there was always an indescribable strangeness about her, whether obvious or subtle.

How much longer could this Prime Minister’s mansion last?

When she returned to the Prince’s mansion, Chu Li had already returned from court. He was now sitting in the Liquan Pavilion courtyard, having changed into a light, plain robe.

“How was your first day at court?” Mu Yunjin walked to the table in front of Chu Li, smiling at him.

“Not great.” Chu Li seemed somewhat tired after speaking, taking a slight breath, and beckoned to Mu Yunjin.

Mu Yunjin was startled, looking at Chu Li. “I’m right in front of you. Why are you beckoning?”

“Come here and let this Prince hug you.”