Unfortunately, this time she truly was powerless to help. She had been able to cut through all obstacles to reach her current position relying on nothing more than the wisdom and experience gained from over thirty years of hardship in her previous life. Yet the Crown Prince’s death was precisely the mystery she had never been able to fully unravel even until now. In this reborn life, she had changed the fates of many people—Song Jue hadn’t died, the noble young masters of the Yulin Guard were all still living well, and even the Crown Prince remained alive in this world.

Moreover, beside the Crown Prince was someone she found even more inscrutable, whose future remained uncertain—Zhou Weizhao.

This lifetime already differed greatly from the previous one. It was no longer a time when she could simply look at someone and know their past, present circumstances, and future destiny.

For years, Her Majesty the Empress had avoided meeting the Empress Dowager to prevent conflict. Now, to see Song Chuyi, she was actually willing to come forward and engage in false civility with the Empress Dowager—this alone was enough to show that the Crown Prince’s current situation was dire.

But if she knew nothing and couldn’t provide an answer that satisfied Her Majesty the Empress and the Imperial Grandson, then… would this palace visit truly be a journey from which she wouldn’t return?

Before long, Yulan and the others came looking for them one after another, saying that the noon banquet had been prepared and asking them to come eat.

Madam Cui also composed her emotions. Although this visit hadn’t yielded any information from her questions, since she had gathered some news, she couldn’t help but inform Old Madam Song so they could be more cautious when entering the palace and avoid unnecessary trouble.

Old Madam Song was supervising Song Yan drinking his appetizer soup. Seeing Song Chuyi and Madam Cui, she quickly urged them to drink a bowl as well: “The children have all been suffering from autumn fatigue recently. Having them drink some appetizer soup beforehand will help them eat more at noon.”

Madam Cui nodded with a smile. Seeing that there was still no movement from behind the screen, she guessed the men were probably still in the study and hadn’t entered the inner courtyard. Estimating there was still time, she smiled as she accepted the soup and placed it on the table, saying softly: “Old Madam, I’m afraid the Empress Dowager won’t be easy to deal with…”

Madam Cui had been frequently entering and leaving the palace recently. She must have heard some rumors to speak this way. Old Madam Song nodded understandingly, her eyes signaling Song Chuyi to temporarily withdraw with Song Yan, and she herself set down the bowl in her hands.

Only after Song Chuyi and Song Yan had left did she speak thoughtfully: “Originally, the Old Master and I worried about this matter, but later we couldn’t think of any good solution. However, now that the Crown Prince has been poisoned, the Empress Dowager probably won’t have the mind to hold a grudge against Little Yi, will she?”

“Because the Crown Prince has been gravely ill, he’s remained indoors in the Eastern Palace all this time. This poisoning could only have happened if something went wrong within the palace. But with the Emperor and Empress busy with headaches over this matter, it might just play into the Empress Dowager’s hands.” Saying this, Madam Cui saw Old Madam Song’s expression change dramatically and quickly added words of comfort: “But as we all know, Little Yi is not an ordinary child. Back in Tongzhou, the Imperial Grandson already knew there was something special about her. Old Madam, you needn’t hide it from me—I also know this child can dream of past and present lives…”

By the time Madam Cui said this, Old Madam Song had roughly understood. She couldn’t help but look toward Madam Cui with burning eyes. The Crown Prince had been poisoned—could it be that the Empress and the others wanted to learn something from Little Yi?

Previously, they had already anticipated that Song Chuyi’s reputation for intelligence spreading out might not be beneficial and would only bring unnecessary trouble. Now it seemed this was indeed the case.

Madam Cui continued: “This may not necessarily be a bad thing for Little Yi.” As if she could see through Old Madam Song’s current thoughts, she pondered for a moment before saying: “I know the Earl Manor intends to align with the Crown Prince. Since you already have this intention, why worry about Her Majesty the Empress? Her intervention can both help Little Yi avoid the Empress Dowager and reassure the palace consorts. Isn’t that killing two birds with one stone?”

Old Madam Song remained silent in contemplation. Madam Cui called forward a twelve or thirteen-year-old maid from behind her and smiled: “Although she’s a bit young, she spent three or four years in the palace and is somewhat familiar with palace affairs. Since Little Yi lost Hong Yu, I thought I’d simply provide her with a replacement.”

Old Madam Song glanced over and saw that the maid had delicate features and a proper bearing. Her manner of advancing and retreating also showed she had been trained in etiquette, so she nodded: “I was just worrying about where to find a suitable one for her. Since you as her maternal aunt care for her and think of her, this is naturally good. What’s her name?”

Song Yan was a child with very delicate sensibilities. Both times Madam Cui had overlooked him, making him keenly aware that something was wrong. Watching Song Chuyi walking ahead with a somewhat lost expression, he suddenly felt somewhat panicked.

The autumn sun filtered through the gaps in Ningde Courtyard’s bamboo leaves, casting golden light upon her and bathing her surroundings in a golden glow. Song Yan stepped forward a few paces and took her hand, tilting his head up to look at her: “Sister… did Maternal Aunt come because of your palace visit?”

Song Yan’s perceptiveness often made even Song Chuyi feel startled, and it troubled her as well—Song Yan was still far too young. Perhaps out of a selfish desire as an older sister, she always hoped Song Yan could live carefree and unburdened. But reality repeatedly made her hit walls—people who lived too naively were very likely to encounter misfortune. If she really raised Song Yan into an innocent young man who knew nothing, she would actually be harming him.

But today’s matter was obviously complex and intricate, unsuitable for Song Yan to know about…

While she was still hesitating, she suddenly heard a small figure emerge from the stone path, running straight in their direction.

“Is that Fifth Brother?” Song Yan tightened his grip on Song Chuyi’s hand and looked over somewhat puzzled: “Why didn’t Fifth Brother come with Fourth Sister?”

Because Third Madam had accompanied Third Master to his post, Song Yue was particularly attached to Song Chumi. The bond between the two siblings was just as close and inseparable as his relationship with his own Sixth Sister.

Song Chuyi’s brow furrowed. Seeing what appeared to be tear tracks on Song Yue’s face, she quickly bent down to instruct Song Yan to stop him: “Quickly stop him. Right now Old Madam is speaking with our maternal aunt. If he rushes in so rashly, he’ll certainly be scolded.”

Moreover, looking at the hour, Old Master Song would soon be leading Cui Yingshu to take their seats. If Song Yue happened to run into them at this moment and caused a scene about Song Chumi’s situation, it would truly be most unfortunate.

Song Yan always listened to Song Chuyi. Hearing her say this, he naturally had no objections. He intercepted Song Yue head-on as he was crying and trying to enter the courtyard, frowning as he said sternly: “Fifth Brother, Grandmother is receiving guests!”

The Song family’s younger generation had always emphasized proper order between elder and younger. Seeing Song Yan and Song Chuyi, Song Yue didn’t dare make a scene anymore, but still couldn’t help crying: “But Fourth Sister, she—”

Song Chuyi glanced at the junior maids around them who were hanging their heads and pretending not to hear. She quickly said: “Sixth Sister is moving to Guanju Courtyard. Grandmother feels quite bored, so she asked Fourth Sister to come keep her company for a few days to relieve the boredom. Look at you crying like a little painted cat.”

Song Yue knew that Song Chuyi had always been favored before Old Madam Song. Hearing her say this, he half-believed it and wiped his tears: “Really?”