Qin Muyue was choked by those words, unconsciously glancing around. Chu Li’s statement just now was neither loud nor soft, but clear enough for those standing nearby to hear distinctly.

Thus, Qin Muyue lowered her eyes and gave a soft laugh. “Brother Li, I was just joking with you. Of course, I know that addressing you by your name is Sister-in-law Yunjin’s exclusive privilege.”

After speaking, Qin Muyue looked at Mu Yunjin again, her face flowing with smiles. “Sister-in-law Yunjin, you are truly fortunate.”

Mu Yunjin’s smile didn’t reach her eyes as she tugged at the corner of her mouth, not responding to Qin Muyue’s words.

The atmosphere became somewhat awkward. Qin Muyue looked at Chu Li, then at Mu Yunjin, lowered her eyes, and stood beside Chu Li without saying anything more.

At this moment, shouting and the sound of firecrackers came from outside the door.

Soon after, amidst the crowd’s cheers and clamor, Prince Rong was seen carrying Mu Lingzhu in his arms as he entered.

Mu Yunjin instinctively looked at Princess Rong, but saw that she was still sitting in the main seat with Old General Qin, showing no intention of standing up to avoid them.

Only after Prince Rong set Mu Lingzhu down did Princess Rong rise and give a shallow bow to Prince Rong.

…

…

After completing her bow, Princess Rong sat down again. Her gaze swept softly toward Mu Lingzhu, who was now wearing a red veil, and she spoke in a gentle voice, “According to tradition, marrying a secondary consort doesn’t usually require the elaborate ceremony of bowing to heaven and earth. But considering you are the daughter of Prime Minister Mu, today we’ve made an exception to allow you to perform the ceremony with the Prince. I hope that after you enter the household, you will serve the Prince well and assist me in managing the household affairs.”

Princess Rong’s speech left the people present dumbfounded. Mu Lingzhu had not yet officially entered the household, yet Princess Rong had already publicly put her in her place.

Looking at Prince Rong in his wedding attire standing nearby, he seemed not to have heard, even nodding in complete agreement with Princess Rong’s words.

Mu Yunjin looked at Princess Rong, then at Mu Lingzhu, and seeing her fingers tightly gripping her sleeves, knew she was trying hard to contain her emotions.

However, Princess Rong’s earlier words made Mu Yunjin, as a member of the Xiang family, inexplicably annoyed.

After the simple marriage ceremony, according to custom, they should have been sent to the bridal chamber. But Princess Rong, seated in the main position, spoke up again.

“I have been unwell for some time. Today I barely managed to come out to meet guests. Why don’t you, sister, perform the tea-serving ceremony for me now? Just in case my weak body feels unwell again tomorrow, which would spoil your good fortune.” Princess Rong sat upright in her chair with an ambiguous smile, her eyes revealing a hint of contempt.

Nearby, murmurs of surprise rose from the guests.

Everyone knew that a bride’s red veil should be removed in the bridal chamber by her husband. But Princess Rong wanted the Fourth Young Miss to serve tea now, which meant she would have to remove her red veil in front of everyone at this moment.

This… was not proper…

“Your Highness…” Mu Lingzhu stood in place, naturally understanding that Princess Rong was deliberately making things difficult for her. But with many guests around and her status as a secondary consort, she couldn’t directly confront Princess Rong.

“Zhu’er, just listen to the Princess. The Princess has truly been unwell recently. Only after news of my happy occasion spread did her health begin to improve somewhat. Right now, you should perform the tea ceremony for the Princess first.” Prince Rong said.

As Prince Rong finished speaking, Mu Lingzhu drew in a sharp breath. Her body began to tremble uncontrollably. From the side came several low, suppressed chuckles.

Mu Lingzhu bit her lip hard and went over Prince Rong’s words again. If she hadn’t misheard, was he saying that taking her as a secondary consort was because Princess Rong was ill and needed a joyous event to dispel the illness?

In an instant, Mu Lingzhu felt a sense of humiliation she had never experienced before.

Mu Yunjin kept her brows furrowed, her gaze constantly shifting between Prince Rong and Princess Rong. Seeing the two of them exchanging meaningful glances during their conversation, it was clear they had planned this.

Originally hoping to enter the household and defeat Princess Rong to become the true mistress of this residence, Mu Lingzhu now suddenly became a bride meant to bring good fortune and dispel illness. She must be nearly furious enough to spit blood by now.

After a moment, a small maidservant carrying a teacup walked to Mu Lingzhu’s side and bowed slightly. “Secondary Consort Mu, please serve the tea.”

Mu Lingzhu lowered her eyes. Through the narrow gap in her red veil, she saw the tea on the maidservant’s tray, and her expression suddenly turned cold.

Just wait, Princess Rong. The days are long, and we’ll see!

With that thought, Mu Lingzhu pulled off her red veil. The carefully arranged hairstyle she had prepared for today became somewhat disheveled after she removed the veil, with a few strands falling, making her look somewhat bedraggled.

Mu Lingzhu reached for the teacup on the maidservant’s tray. Just as her hand touched the rim of the cup, she withdrew it, looking down at her fingers that had turned red from just barely touching the cup.

Mu Lingzhu’s brow furrowed tightly as she examined the cup. The entire cup appeared somewhat blackened, obviously having been heated over a fire for a long time.

“What’s wrong? Sister, you shouldn’t miss the auspicious time for entering the bridal chamber. Please take the cup and serve the tea.” Princess Rong glanced at Mu Lingzhu, a faint smile curling at her lips.

Mu Yunjin kept her hands behind her back, her gaze constantly shifting toward Princess Rong. Now, seeing Mu Lingzhu’s extreme hesitation and fear of touching the teacup, she knew there must be some trick with the cup.

Inexplicably, her gaze moved to Qin Muyue standing to one side.

She saw Qin Muyue covering her mouth with a handkerchief, her facial expression unclear, but her eyes unable to hide a mocking smile.

Such people, these Qins.

After pausing for a moment, Mu Lingzhu tentatively reached for the teacup again. Having cooled for a while, the cup was still scalding but not as shockingly hot as before.

After securing the teacup, Mu Lingzhu stepped forward a few paces, knelt before Princess Rong, and said, “Please drink the tea, Princess.”

Princess Rong looked down contemptuously at Mu Lingzhu, showing no intention of reaching out to accept the teacup. After a while, she lowered her head and coughed several times. “I’m so sorry, I almost forgot. I’ve been coughing badly recently, and the doctor doesn’t allow me to drink tea brewed with these leaves.”

“Well, that’s enough for the tea ceremony today. I won’t disturb the Prince and my sister’s pleasure anymore. Please escort them to the bridal chamber.”

After speaking, Princess Rong stood up and cast a coquettish glance at Prince Rong. “Prince, you won’t blame your wife for delaying your pleasure, will you?”

“Princess, you jest. Seeing you in better health today, I couldn’t be happier!” Prince Rong said with a smile.

Princess Rong smiled and nodded, glancing at Mu Lingzhu, who kept her eyes lowered, then casually turned her gaze away.

After Mu Lingzhu was led to the back garden by the wedding attendant, the atmosphere gradually became more lively.

“Aunt,” Qin Muyue ran to Princess Rong’s side, intimately linking arms with her.

Princess Rong glanced at Qin Muyue, and her face finally showed a genuine smile. “Oh, it’s Muyue. I didn’t even notice you earlier.”

“Aunt, your complexion does look much better today. It seems having some joyous events in the household can indeed dispel some inauspiciousness,” Qin Muyue said with a curled lip, her sidelong glance lightly sweeping over Mu Yunjin.

“Yes, my body has indeed felt much lighter lately. You clever girl, coming up with the idea of using marriage to dispel illness,” Princess Rong said with a smile.

Qin Muyue lowered her eyes and smiled. “I heard about this from villagers at the border when I was fighting there. I thought it was just superstition, but now it seems there’s some truth to it.”

Princess Rong and Qin Muyue spoke in low voices, but Mu Yunjin, with her excellent hearing, caught everything. She frowned slightly, looking Qin Muyue up and down.

So, bringing in Mu Lingzhu to dispel illness was Qin Muyue’s idea.

Mu Yunjin suddenly felt bored standing there. She tilted her head to look at Chu Li. “How much longer do we need to stay here?”

“We can leave after delivering the wedding gift,” Chu Li said calmly.

Mu Yunjin nodded and said to Zixiang beside her, “Go and give the gift box to the mansion’s steward.”

“Yes, Young Mistress.” Zixiang bowed slightly, then carried the gift box toward the steward.

At this moment, Princess Rong seemed to notice them and, supported by Qin Muyue, slowly walked toward Mu Yunjin and Chu Li.

As she approached, Princess Rong automatically ignored Mu Yunjin and smiled at Chu Li. “Your Highness, the Sixth Prince, it’s been a long time.”

“Mm,” Chu Li responded.

“I’ve been unwell for years, and it must be three or four years since I last saw you. I can’t believe that in just the blink of an eye, you’ve grown so tall,” Princess Rong said.

“Aunt, isn’t Muyue right? Brother Li is still the same as when he was young—handsome as jade, talented, and extraordinary,” Qin Muyue said with a raised eyebrow, her words carrying a hint of pride.

Princess Rong nodded, and only then did her gaze fall on Mu Yunjin beside Chu Li. She lowered her eyes and smiled. “Muyue is right. The Sixth Prince is truly exceptional, even the little maidservant by his side is so beautiful.”

Little maidservant…

Mu Yunjin strongly resisted the urge to punch Princess Rong into the wall so hard she couldn’t be pried off. She forced a smile and looked coldly at Princess Rong, her eyes revealing a hint of frost.

“Miss Qin, what do you usually call me?” Mu Yunjin suddenly turned and fixed her gaze on Qin Muyue, standing beside Princess Rong.

Qin Muyue was stunned. The hand linked with Princess Rong’s arm gradually tightened as she replied awkwardly, “Sister-in-law Yunjin.”

Hearing this, Mu Yunjin directed her somewhat challenging gaze toward Princess Rong.

Princess Rong was inexplicably startled by this cold gaze. She placed a hand over her heart and tugged at the corner of her mouth. “So you’re the Sixth Prince’s Consort. Please forgive my poor eyesight.”

“Hmph…” Mu Yunjin snorted a laugh, turned her face away, and ignored Princess Rong.

As far as she could see, what kind of prestigious military family were the Qins? They only produced petty people, without any trace of nobility.

Princess Rong was momentarily speechless. Seeing that Mu Yunjin was truly as rumored—rude and overbearing—she wasn’t particularly surprised. She rubbed her temples and looked at Qin Muyue. “I’m a bit tired. Muyue, help me back to rest, and we can chat with your aunt.”

“Yes, Aunt.”

After Qin Muyue escorted Princess Rong away, Mu Yunjin rolled her eyes at Princess Rong’s back and looked at Chu Li with impatience written all over her face. “Can we leave now?”

Chu Li glanced sideways at Mu Yunjin, his clear eyes tinged with an elegant light. “Let’s go.”

Just as they stepped down from the stairs outside Prince Rong’s main gate, Mu Yunjin and Chu Li were stopped. Turning around, they saw Chu Qing walking quickly out the door.

“Sixth Sister-in-law, when this Prince passed by the back garden just now, I heard your sister crying and making a fuss inside. Aren’t you going to comfort her?”