The Xue Family always got along well with Qiu Jinglan and Qiu Yelan. Besides, Xue Nongqing was a good friend of Qiu Yelan. Xun Yuxi made friends with Qiu Jinglan while now he was an assistant of Jiang Yashuang. So, if they were engaged, Qiu Yelan had to choose gifts carefully. She asked Mrs. Qu and Mrs. Zhou to help her. And then she considered for a while and settled the presents down.

“Please count all the presents and send them in the morning.” Qiu Yelan sipped tea and said, “Please tell the Xue Family that I will congratulate them in several days!”

Mrs. Qu and Mrs. Zhou answered together and they reminded her, “Young master’s cousin will get married this month. Should you go to the Zhuang Family?”

“Sure.” Qiu Yelan nodded, “But after tomorrow.”

This was in accordance with the rules. They were all friends with her. But Xin Fubing now was the Empress. So, neither Zhuang Man nor Xue Nongqing could receive congratulations before her. What was more, Empress Dowager Jiang was in the palace.

The next day, Qiu Yelan brought Jiang Jingkun and Fu’er into the palace. According to the regulations, she had to visit Empress Dowager in the Hall of Taishi. Empress Dowager was so happy when she saw the two kids, “They look like the same! If I don’t know they are cousins, I will think they are born by the same parents.”

“My mother said that the nephew was like the uncle. An is like my eighth brother. So, they look like the same.” Qiu Yelan smiled and answered.

Empress Dowager asked maids to bring the two kids to her. She pulled out a jade hairpin for them to grasp, “It is true that these two children look the same as Yashuang and Yadan when they were children.”

The fourth branch hadn’t entered the palace for almost five months. Now they met with each other. So, the topic would not always be kids. A few moments later Jiang Jingkun and Fu’er were sent to the partial house to play.

Empress Dowager Jiang asked the maids to leave. And then she talked to her niece about serious issues, “I heard that after your father came back, a bunch of people was cleared up in the Imperial Guard. Now I am assured. But there must be guys left. You should be precautionary!”

Qiu Yelan agreed with her. The issue was not handled by her. So, she didn’t know it very well. But she was just a messenger so she had to tell her husband about what Empress Dowager said.

Empress Dowager Jiang talked with her for a while about the military embargo. And then she mentioned Emperor and the Empress, “Emperor is kind to Fubing. I see that Fubing’s pregnancy has relieved the annoyance that she had before she got married. That’s a good thing. After all, you’ve been there now. And you know that if you are upset during pregnancy, it’s not good for you or your baby.”

She sighed when she mentioned that topic, “Besides, the madame of the first branch has finished mourning, right?”

Jiang Huizhi mourned for three people last year. The first one was her grandmother, for whom the mourning lasted for a year. And then it was her grand uncle, for whom the mourning also lasted for a year. The last one was her great grand uncle, which took her three months.

She finished mourning for Sir Jibei in February, which was earlier than Qiu Yelan. Madame Dou and Jiang Yayue died in the first half year. Now it was April. There would be a Noble Consort, which was undoubtedly a matter that would greatly affect the mood of Xin Fubing.

Qiu Yelan smiled, “It was alright to observe mourning. You are still here, my aunt.”

Empress Dowager got it. The fourth branch, at least for now, wasn’t trying to suppress the first branch by taking advantage of the harem feud. She nodded, “OF course, I hope Fubing can give birth to a royal child safely.”

She pondered, “My sister is vixenish, but the Xin Family is unmatched by the imperial family. Her family does not improve until she is appointed as the Empress. Fubing is pregnant now. The prestige of the family, though rising, is still unmatched with the first branch. Somehow the first branch has been in operation for so many years with father and uncle’s support.”

“My fifth sister is very mean. She is still angry about the contradiction between Fubing and Mi Yinyin so she refuses to reconcile with Madame Mi! Now she cannot take advantage of the forces of the sixth branch… If the fourth branch doesn’t take action, I’m afraid it will be Fubing who will suffer the loss! That’s not good.”

Empress Dowager Jiang hoped that Xin Fubing could have the upper hand. After all, Xin Fubing was the daughter-in-law that she chose. But she also needed to be vigilant, lest Jiang Huizhi seizes the opportunity to attack them! As for Jiang Huizhi, although she could only stop at the position of imperial concubine, she always felt that if she worked hard, she could get the position of Empress or even the position of Empress Dowager!

If so, her attitude would decide the consequence of the battle, which would make her be cozy and have a sense of control.

“I guess it has something to do with my fourth brother who came back last year.” During these five months, the master of the Jiang Family had to observe filial piety so they did not enter the palace. But the maids went into the palace to send presents to please her. So, Empress Dowager also knew a little. Qiu Yelan got along well with Xin Fubing. The reason why she took on the responsibility might be the words said by Jiang Tianchi.

“Does my fourth brother want to help those who may give him more benefits?” Empress Dowager Jiang had always been afraid of her brother. In fact, the time that she stayed with Jiang Tianchi was not long. So, she was mainly influenced by Madame Tao. Madame Tao used to say, “At the beginning, I advised your third brother to join the army, but he firmly refused and even suspected that I had ulterior motives! I didn’t say anything to your fourth brother. But he chose this path on his own. This affair showed the wisdom of your fourth brother. So, in the future, if the third branch and the fourth branch have any contradiction, we can rest assured to choose the fourth branch! Your third brother’s vision, verve, and perseverance are far worse than your fourth brother’s. He only bears the title of first trueborn son of a legal wife!”

Since now Jiang Tianchi said so, Empress Dowager Jiang dared not to force the fourth branch. She thought for a while and then decided that she should make the plan slowly, “No matter what may happen, Jiang Tianchi is my brother. He always treats her son and daughter-in-law well. Since I don’t have conflicts with him, he will not set me up. The reason why he did so, I suppose, may be that Jiang Yashuang had been so cruel in the last two years that most of the advantages were gained by him, which made his father so angry.”

Thinking so, Empress Dowager Jiang literally said a few words with Qiu Yelan. So, she asked Qiu Yelan to the Beique Hall to visit her, “Fubing has been missing you! She is going to greet me this morning. So, she can wait for you here! I take into account that she is going to give birth to a baby in July. Now that she’s pregnant, she’s going to be exhausted if she walks too far. So, I let her wait in her own Hall. Please go.”

Qiu Yelan smiled, “Sure. After all, she is Empress. I can’t afford such a treat now!”

“Don’t be too polite when there are no outsiders!” Empress Dowager Jiang did not mind at all, “We used to be relatives. Now we still are relatives!”

She got out of the Hall of Taishi. Qiu Yelan led her servants to Beique Hall. When they were on their road, she saw Xin Fubing standing at the white jade steps in front of the Hall with the support of the maids in the distance. She could not help urging the sedan to go faster. They hurried to the hall. Before the soft sedan stopped, Xin Fubing came up with a big belly and asked with a smile, “Where are An, Fu’er, and Lang’er? Yongfu came to tell me that the children looked different every day. Children’s eyes and eyebrows grow now. They’re a lot cuter than they were last year. How I wish I can see them!”

“An and Fu’er have come here. Lang’er is too young to come here.” Qiu Yelan smiled and saluted to her. But Xin Fubing stopped her, “Don’t do that. We don’t need to be polite. Are the kids in the sedan?”

“Their wet nurses are holding them.” Qiu Yelan held her, “Do not hurry. Since I come to the palace, I will take them to you. Why are you waiting here? Take care!”

“I’m fine. I just walk several steps. I can handle it.” Xin Fubing was happy when she looked at the nephews the wet nurses were holding. “They are even more handsome!”

Jiang Jingkun and Fu’er played for a while in the Hall of Taishi. But they were so young. So, after playing for a while, they became exhausted. They didn’t respond to Xin Fubing’s tantalization.

“They look tired!” Xin Fubing stopped regretfully. She told her servants to take them to the side hall to rest. She turned back to the Hall with the support of Qiu Yelan, “I heard Qizheng would come back, right?”

“Yes. But she is exhausted on the road. After she returns to Jing City, my mother-in-law wants her and her husband to stay in the Marquess’s Mansion for a few days to recover health.” Qiu Yelan continued with this topic. And then they talked about the situation of their relatives. And they walked to the hall and took seats.

Xin Fubing asked the servants to leave. She left only three maids to serve tea and fruit. She concentrated and spoke directly about Jiang Huizhi, “I’m counting the days. It is time for her to come to the palace. I think that if I have promised my grandfather to be kind to her when he was about to die, the wedding process could not be simplified. And it still needed a little more ceremonious. After all, she’s going to be an imperial concubine, which is just lower than me, isn’t she?”

Qiu Yelan thought for a while, “If we want to hold a ceremony, we have to choose a nice day! Otherwise, if even the wedding day is casually chosen, the ceremony is also hard to avoid being underestimated.”

“Right!” Xin Fubing smiled, “I’m going to ask the Royal Observatory to predict a nice day which should be happy and prosperous!”

“You love her so much, but how could the first branch not appreciate?” Qiu Yelan laughed, “I’ll tell my mother and grandmother to make sure that the first branch gets ready to thank you!”

Originally Jiang Huizhi would definitely marry into the palace before June, while Xin Fubing’s delivery was in July. So, she was busy supervising Jiang Huizhi. But now Xin Fubing treated her so “well”. Unless the Royal Observatory was a fool, otherwise, they would not choose a date before August. If so, after Jiang Huizhi went into the palace, Xin Fubing could personally supervise her.

Qiu Yelan praised secretly that Xin Fubing did it well. She said that she promised Sir Jibei that she would treat Jiang Huizhi well. So, the first branch even could not refuse her!

“When you go back, please bring her some gifts. Let her know that I have not forgotten her, though I am with a child!” Xin Fubing turned the bird’s nest cup in her hands and said with a weird smile, “I promised my grandfather I would treat her well. I can’t forget it! I have to let others know that I think of her all the time. I am thoughtful and committed!”

“Are you sure?” Qiu Yelan murmured. She reminded her, “If she takes advantage of your words, she will say that she is very grateful to you. In order to repay your kindness, she wants to come into the palace to serve you as soon as she finishes filial piety.”

Xin Fubing answered her without thinking, “If so, I will insist on letting her stay at home to keep the filial piety. After all, it will surely be difficult for her to go back home when she enters the palace. When I don’t allow her to enter the palace, she can’t make it even if she begs me!”

Qiu Yelan was relieved when she saw Xin Fubing was calm and at ease, “If you can control the situation, it will be fine.”

“Your Majesty has been kind to me. So, we hit it off.” Xin Fubing said directly, “I was just unhappy before. I really don’t want anyone to rob my husband now… Especially she’s my junior! But now, I have promised to my grandfather so I have to do my best!”

She was the original legal Empress anyway. Xin Fubing wanted to kill her by “supportive” strategies. Jiang Huizhi could do nothing. But Marquess Qin was not in a position to blame his grandniece. It was just too tiring to be constantly calculating. Qiu Yelan prayed, “I hope my cousin could produce the first prince or princess safely. And then she will win right away!”

She didn’t make any efforts this time to enter the palace. In the evening, Xin Fubing ordered the maids to serve dinner earlier. She invited Qiu Yelan to finish eating. And then she let her leave.

Back to the Marquess’s Mansion, Qiu Yelan asked the maids to bring her nephews to her yard. And then she went to Madame Zhuang’s room to report about what happened in the palace.

When they were talking, Mrs. Chang came here and told them, “There are two ladies at the backdoor of Marquess’s Mansion. They want to see madame Qiu.”

She said in a weird tone, “According to the porter, they are richly dressed, but not very respectable.”