Lin Wans smiling face stopped Lin Huan: "Yuanyuan."

  Lin Dai went forward and paid her respects, calling out: "Third Aunt."

  Lin Yan smiled and looked her up and down before saying, "It seems that youve fully recovered, and your complexion is much better than it was before."

  Lin Yan said: "Yes, its all my fault that seniors are worried about me."

  "A family member, shouldnt you care about me?"

  She took a few steps forward, grabbed Lin Xiaos hand and smiled: "Come on, lets go to my courtyard and chat. Youve been away in the northwest for three years, and after you came back, you were ill all the time, so I didnt have a chance to talk to you. These three years really made me miss you." After finishing speaking, she didnt give Lin Xiao a chance to refuse, and then half-pulling and half-dragging her, took Lin Xiao to her courtyard.

  The courtyard of Lin Xiangru was located in the northeast corner of the Wu Guogong Mansion, with a elegant environment. Upon entering, there was a cluster of bamboo trees, and the arrangement of the house was also elegant. On the walls were hung famous paintings, on the desk were placed various zithers, and on the kang table was placed an unfinished game of Go. Books were neatly arranged on the bookshelves and desks... Just by looking at the arrangement, one would think that the owner of this house must be a talented and artistic young lady.

  Lin Ge made someone move the Go board from the kang table, invited Lin Xiao to sit down on the kang, and had the maid bring up tea. Then he personally picked up a teacup and handed it to Lin Xiao, saying: "Try some, this is Longjing tea that was stored since last spring."

  Lin Xiangdao thanked her and took the tea bowl to take a sip. After putting down the tea bowl, she found that Lin Wei had been smiling at her all along.

  Lin Xiao couldnt help but ask: "Third Aunt, why have you been staring at me all along?"

  Lin Wan said: "Its only natural because youre so good-looking. Three years havent passed, Yuan Yuan, Ive found that youve become more and more beautiful, even your aunt cant help but be infatuated with you."

  Lin Yan smiled and said: "Auntie loves to joke, if you want to talk about beauty, in the whole Lin family, who can compare with Auntie?"

  Lin Yans words were not considered polite or flattering. As for her appearance, Lin Xiao was indeed outstanding. Lin Yan remembered that four or five years ago, the capital held a contest to evaluate the beauty of noblewomen, and a group of young men came to vote. Lin Xiao was among the top three. At that time, Li Shi strongly disliked such contests, saying that it was just a group of idle young men indulging in fantasies about women, not taking them seriously. They had the leisure to think about this, why didnt they go to take the imperial examination or go to battle for their country? Anyway, Lin Xiaos beauty still gained recognition from most people.

  Lin Ges beauty is a fierce and deadly attraction, like a rose in the dark of night. Lin Di is also beautiful, but her beauty is more gentle, like an orchid growing on the rocks in the valley, strong yet delicate.

  Lin Ge pointed to her forehead with her finger and smiled: "This little mouth of yours is really good at flattering people. Never mind, whether what you said is true or not, I love listening to it." After a pause, she pulled Lin Yus hand again and said: "Actually, Yuan Yuan, although I am your aunt in terms of generation, we are only a few years apart in age, but in my heart, I feel more like treating you as my younger sister. Moreover, since childhood, I have always felt that among the entire household, only you make me feel closest."

  Lin Xiao smiled and didnt say anything.

  Actually, Lin Yi and Lin Wei were not close from childhood to adulthood. When they were young, everyone played together in the mansion, but Lin Wei loved to put on airs as a senior and lecture them, so Lin Yi and Lin Han never liked playing with her. On the other hand, Lin Yu would listen to her words, so the two became even closer. Now Lin Wei says that Lin Yi is the one she feels closest to, which is really quite absurd.

  Lin Wan propped her hands on the kang table, supporting her chin with one hand, her slender eyebrows slightly furrowed, looking like she had something on her mind. After a while, she looked at Lin Huan again and asked, "Yuanyuan, do you know why Mother wrote to ask you to come back?"

  Lin Yi naturally knew that Lin Ying and Zhuang Shis way of educating children was to stop treating them as children from the age of ten, and they would also tell them about all the big and small things in the family. Since receiving Li Shis letter, they had never kept anything from Lin Yi.

  But now Lin Xiao intentionally pretended to be silly and said: "Because grandma missed me, so she wrote a letter asking someone to pick me up and bring me back."

  Lin Wan looked at Lin Yan, whose expression was calm and collected. Lin Wan couldnt tell if she was pretending to be stupid or if Zhuang Shi really hadnt told her. She didnt quite believe that such a big thing would be intentionally hidden from her by Lin Ying and Zhuang Shi, so she deliberately teased her: "Yuanyuan, Ive discovered that youre not very honest either."

  "Second Aunt, what are you talking about? Cant Grandmother have other reasons for asking me to come back? Youd better tell me, or Ill be kept in the dark by my elders."

  "Didnt you really know?"

  "Come on, Auntie, tell me, whats going on that Grandma and them are hiding from me?"

  "Never mind, its nothing."

  She finished speaking, her hand still supporting her chin and her eyes gazing at the kang table. Her other hand was placed on the kang table, her fingers constantly circling around the surface. After a while, she let out a soft sigh and said: "Its been almost two years since Second Sister left the palace, and there is no new empress yet. I heard people say that recently the imperial court has been arguing over who should be the next empress to the point of almost turning the sky upside down, but the Emperor hasnt shown any intention."

  Lin Dedao said: "The emperor and Second Aunt are deeply in love, the emperors heart may still be thinking of Second Aunt, so he is not willing to establish a new empress."

  Lin Ge said, "Its not that simple. A country cannot be without a ruler for a day, and similarly, a country cannot be without an empress for a day. The position of the empress is so important! Without an empress, who would manage the concubines in the palace and the noblewomen outside? The emperor understands this too, and a new empress will eventually be appointed." After finishing her sentence, she leaned in close to Lin Yis ear with a mysterious tone and whispered, "I heard that there are plans to select another girl from our clan to enter the palace as well."

  Lin Xiao pretended not to understand and looked at Lin Wei, waiting for her to continue.

  As expected, Lin Wei continued: "The Crown Prince is still young, and Second Sister passed away early. If theres no one in the palace to support him, how can he stabilize his position as Crown Prince? Not to mention others, just take Wu Guifei, for example. In terms of family background and achievements, Wu Guifeis natal family, the Duan Guo Gong Fu, is not inferior to ours in any way. Wu Guifei gave birth to the Second Imperial Son, who is only one year younger than the Crown Prince. I heard that many people in the court have proposed making Wu Guifei the Empress. Think about it, if Wu Guifei becomes the Empress, the Second Imperial Son will become the legitimate heir, and Mother and Second Brother will definitely consider this for the sake of the Crown Prince."

  Lin Xiao smiled and said: "Whats wrong with that? The crown prince is the eldest son after all."

  Lin Ge let out a soft "tsk" and said, "Why cant you understand? Whats so special about being the eldest son? How many emperors eldest sons have been deposed throughout history? Especially those who no longer have their mothers to protect them." She sighed and continued, "Forget it, theres no point explaining. By the way, Yuan Yuan, have you ever seen the Emperor?"

  Lin He had naturally seen him before, when he was very young. At that time, he was just the hidden prince, and Lin Xian, who was still just a princess, loved her dearly and often took her to the palace to keep her company. After he ascended to the throne, due to the distinction between ruler and subject, they never met again. The time was too long ago, Lin He had already forgotten what he looked like, only remembering that in her impression, he was a very gentle person, wearing a cyan-colored brocade robe, with a piece of extremely fine green jade pendant on his waist, who would tease her with pastries and let him hold her.

  Lin Xiao had a moment of daze, but quickly came back to her senses and replied to Lin Weis question: "Havent seen it."

  Lin Jins cheeks suddenly flushed, her face as red as a flower, with a hint of shyness, she said: "Ive seen...". She put her hand on her cheek, as if wanting to cover up the blush on her face: "Last time, last Mid-Autumn Festival, my mother took me into the palace together, I accidentally met the emperor in the Imperial Garden... and the emperor even spoke to me, he asked me which familys daughter I was, he said I looked very similar to my sister...". She giggled and buried her face in her palm, as if too shy to show her face, continuing: "He even pinned a branch of osmanthus on my hair..."

  Lin Xiao smiled and didnt say anything.