As Jiang Yanyi left the private room, she encountered the Chu sisters on the stairs leading to the third floor.

Each of them was holding a bowl of small glutinous rice balls, happily eating them while sitting on the wooden steps.

Seeing Jiang Yanyi, Chu Shubao quickly called out, “Ayi, these rice balls are delicious! Come and get a bowl to try!”

It was already past noon, and since there were still many guests dining in the restaurant, the staff were busy.

To avoid adding to the burden in the kitchen, the Chu sisters snacked on some pastries and sweet soup whenever they felt hungry.

Jiang Yanyi had prepared two large barrels of sweet soup for all-day service in the kitchen—one was a white fungus and goji berry soup, and the other contained soft and chewy rice balls.

Although made in large pots, the taste was even better than what some private chefs could manage.

Having just finished a hot pot meal with Feng Shuo, she wasn’t hungry, so she said, “You all enjoy, I’ll go check downstairs.”

She planned to make them something tasty.

Suddenly, Chu Jiabao asked, “Second sister, why were you in the Bamboo Room for so long?”

Their current position allowed them to see the Bamboo Room, and the sisters had already eaten most of their rice balls.

Since they had to pass this spot to get to the Bamboo Room, they hadn’t seen Jiang Yanyi walk by, which meant she must have entered the room before they came to eat.

Jiang Yanyi felt embarrassed to say that Feng Shuo had come, so she made an excuse, “An old lady didn’t know how to cook the meat, so I helped her out for a while.”

Watching her head down the stairs, Chu Shubao propped her bowl with one hand, resting her elbow on her knee, and supported her chin with her palm while glancing at Chu Jiabao. “Jiabao, can you help me cook the meat when I eat the hot pot later?”

Chu Jiabao, still munching on the sweet and soft rice balls, replied without looking up, “Do it yourself!”

Tilting her head, Chu Shubao happened to see the door of the Bamboo Room open.

A man emerged wearing a dark silk brocade long robe, draped in a heavy fox fur cloak.

Though she could only see half of his profile, he carried an air that fit the description of “face like a jade crown.”

Chu Shubao was stunned—was this the “old lady” Jiang Yanyi had mentioned?

Before Feng Shuo came over, she quickly pulled Chu Jiabao up the stairs. “Hurry, let’s go!”

“What’s going on?” Chu Jiabao was confused as her cousin dragged her to the third floor.

Chu Shubao hid with her cousin at the stairwell on the third floor, watching as the man walked past on the second floor.

A guard behind him spoke in a low voice, reporting something: “Your Highness, regarding the Marquis of Xing’an…”

Just as the guard started to speak, the man in the cloak seemed to sense something.

He raised his hand to stop the guard from continuing.

Looking up at the third floor, his deep, narrow eyes seemed to pierce through; at that moment, it felt as though countless sharp blades were aimed at the back of their necks.

Feng Shuo quickly withdrew his gaze and left with Xing Yao.

Chu Shubao and Chu Jiabao sat frozen at the wooden railing of the stairs, a chilling dread creeping up their spines.

“Who… who is that person?” Chu Jiabao stuttered.

Chu Shubao’s face turned pale. “How many princes can there be in Xizhou City?”

Chu Jiabao shuddered.

Thinking of Jiang Yanyi being with Feng Shuo just now, Chu Shubao couldn’t help but feel pity for Jiang Yanyi.

No wonder Jiang Yanyi hadn’t told them the truth; she must have been worried about them.

This Prince of Liaonan was intimidating with just a glance.

If she were in the same room with him, she might faint from fear.

For the sake of Jiang Yanyi’s reputation, she decided not to tell Chu Jiabao about this.

After Chu Jiabao finished shuddering, she said, “Since our second sister’s Ruyi Lou opened, even the Prince of Liao South came to support it. Why haven’t we seen Er Ge come over?”

Chu Shubao thought carefully and realized there was some truth to that.

Her dissatisfaction with Chu Chengmao outweighed her fear of Feng Shuo.

She said, “This year, don’t make a pouch for him!”

Meanwhile, Chu Chengmao, who was on the Chu sisters’ minds, was at the tavern drinking with others.

Having grown up in the army under the guidance of Chu Changping, he understood military ruffians better than anyone.

He was aware that the Chu family had a weak presence in Xizhou and needed to establish a firm foothold quickly.

On the way back to Xizhou, he tried to mingle with the lower-ranking soldiers, and he had already made several connections with small leaders.

Having finished a jar of strong liquor, Chu Chengmao kicked the empty wine jar underfoot, swayed unsteadily as he stood up, and pointed at a group of drunken soldiers sprawled out on the ground. “You guys lost! Tonight, you all have to eat at Ruyi Lou!”

The drunken soldiers, barely able to comprehend, mumbled in response, “Let’s go, let’s go.”

Chu Chengmao knew he was drunk, so he shook his head and poured a jug of cold water over his face, which helped clear his mind a bit.

He kicked one of the small leaders who had collapsed on the ground and scolded, “Drunk like this, how can you go to Ruyi Lou and act like a young master!”

The tavern’s waiter, seeing that he was somewhat sober, quickly approached him with a smile, “Sir, your total for the drinks is five taels and seven coins; what do you think?”

Chu Chengmao rummaged through his waistband, pulled out some silver, counted out six taels, and handed it to the waiter.

Seeing he was well-dressed but slightly tipsy, the waiter didn’t intend to give him change and happily said, “Thank you, sir!”

As the waiter turned to leave, he was suddenly grabbed by the collar.

Though Chu Chengmao wasn’t particularly burly, standing over nine feet tall with arms full of muscle, he lifted the waiter as easily as if he were a small chick.

The shop assistant was almost scared to tears: “Sir, what are you doing?”

Chu Chengmao extended his hand: “Looking for change.”

The shop assistant, with a gloomy face, found three coins and handed them to Chu Chengmao, who then released his grip on the boy’s collar.

At the door, a young servant from the Chu family stumbled in: “Young Master Chengmao, I finally found you!”

The young ladies of the Chu family were all out conducting business, and Old Lady Chu was worried, so she had sent a servant to keep watch at the shop door.

In case anything happened, they could inform the family promptly.

When a few big men went to cause trouble, the Chu family’s servant saw the situation was bad and immediately ran back to report.

Currently, the Chu family was managed by the Xue clan, and with Chu Changping in the military, she had dispatched the Chu family’s guards to Ru Yi Lou and also sent a servant to find Chu Chengmao.

However, just as the guards left, they heard that the dispute had already been resolved at Ru Yi Lou, so they gave up.

The servant sent to find Chu Chengmao didn’t return, as he had run around quite a bit to learn of Chengmao’s whereabouts.

With his eyes slightly red from the alcohol, Chu Chengmao looked at the frightened servant and asked, “What do you want with me?”

The servant replied, “Someone is causing trouble at Second Miss’s Ru Yi Lou…”

Chu Chengmao rolled up his sleeves and was about to leave.

The servant, scared, quickly grabbed hold of Chu Chengmao’s leg: “Young Master Chengmao, please let me finish! The troublemaker was taught a lesson by Princess Xing’an, and the Young Madam is worried. She wants you to go to Ru Yi Lou to check on the young ladies.”

Chu Chengmao was seven parts drunk and felt somewhat disoriented.

He pinched his brow and said, “I’ll go over now.”

Seeing that he could barely walk straight, the servant didn’t dare let him go alone and used himself as a makeshift crutch, helping Chu Chengmao leave the tavern and stop a bullock cart.

Inside the tavern, a tipsy small leader seemed to hear the servant’s words and chuckled, speaking nonsensically under the influence: “Chu… Brother Chu, the short, effeminate guy you saved that day is… is Princess Xing’an…”

---

The daytime birthday feast passed with minor incidents.

Except for Madam An falling outside her shop and breaking a tooth, which was a bit unlucky, both the dishes and service at Ru Yi Lou earned the praise of the guests.

Jiang Yanyi settled the payment with Madam An.

To express her gratitude, Madam An added ten taels of silver, and Jiang Yanyi had the kitchen pack a box of flower cake suitable for the elderly to give to Madam An to take back.

Many wealthy families felt the birthday feast was well done, with six or seven families inquiring about the price.

Some old customers wanted to book the venue for their own events and promptly paid deposits, filling up Ru Yi Lou’s business for the next three days.

As Madam An was leaving with the support of the An family servants, Jiang Yanyi hesitated several times and finally called out to her, “I just checked the accounts and found some silver wasn’t calculated correctly. Could you please come upstairs with me to recalculate?”

Madam An sensed that Jiang Yanyi wanted to speak with her privately and instructed her people, “You all take the birthday gifts for Grandmother to the carriage first.”

Some guests, having received the news, no longer went to the An residence and came directly to Ru Yi Lou, bringing the birthday gifts along.

An experienced matron said pointedly, “Madam, your mother is injured, and the General is not at home. Everyone knows you are filial. It’s almost time; you should quickly return to see your mother.”

Madam An looked a bit embarrassed.

This matron was close to Madam An, and her words implied that Madam An was being unfilial by not returning to attend to her mother.

She replied, “Liu Mama, I’ve already sent someone to notify the General at the camp in Xizhou. Your presence is indispensable for my mother. Please take the birthday gifts back to the house, and I’ll return soon.”

There’s no rule for servants to leave their master behind.

However, the matron was one of Madam An’s people, and she knew very well how Madam An treated her daughter-in-law. With a forced smile, she replied, “Old servant is just worried about the Madam. Since the Young Madam has said so, then I will take my leave first.”

The matron took the An family servants away in a haughty manner, leaving only Madam An’s personal maid waiting for her.

Seeing that Madam An’s eyes had turned red, Jiang Yanyi sighed lightly and said nothing more, leading Madam An to a private room on the second floor.

“What does Miss Chu want to discuss with me?” Madam An asked directly after sitting down, without beating around the bush.

Upon hearing how Madam An addressed her, Jiang Yanyi understood that this Madam An was likely aware of her current status.

She poured a cup of tea for Madam An, “You don’t need to be nervous; this is Junshan Silver Needle from last year. Please try it.”

Madam An held her handkerchief, saying, “Thank you, Miss Chu, for your kindness. However, I am quite crude and cannot appreciate the taste of such fine tea, so I won’t waste your tea.”

Though she belittled herself, her true intention was to avoid touching the tea. Jiang Yanyi appreciated this vigilance.

Not pressing further, Jiang Yanyi took a sip herself and said, “Though this may be presumptuous, I still want to ask you one thing: do you know Lord Lu Linyuan?”

Madam An’s expression changed almost instantly.

She stood up and said, “I must go back.”

Jiang Yanyi’s voice remained calm and steady: “I know there’s been friction between you and General An because of Lord Lu. All you need to do is answer me this question, and I have a way to reconcile you with General An.”

Madam An’s nails dug into her palm as she looked at Jiang Yanyi with a bitter smile: “It was he who made me marry An Yongyuan!”