Xu Tianchu came to Luodu not only wanting to find a wealthy wife, but also to find a minor official position for himself. He had taken the imperial exams for several years without success, so he could only go through connections. He originally thought that by marrying Xiao Jinyue and becoming the son-in-law of the Prime Minister, he would gain both wealth and power. Who knew he would offend a prince because of this.

Xu Tianchu was badly frightened. After returning to the Prime Minister's manor, he didn't dare stay even one more day. Ignoring the pain all over his body, he packed his things and wanted to return to his hometown in Jiaodong. Madam Xiao found out and brought people to stop him.

"What are you doing? Didn't we agree on everything? Now that things are going well, how can you leave just like this!"

Because the punches landed on his body and not his face, the injuries couldn't be seen without lifting his clothes, so Madam Xiao was perplexed. She just felt this nephew was truly useless. If not for him being the only son of her family's sole younger brother, she wouldn't bother with him.

Xu Tianchu was in pain all over. At this moment, he also resented Madam Xiao, feeling it was her fault he suffered. Hearing this, he shouted, "If I don't leave, am I waiting to die here? I'm injured everywhere on my body!"

Madam Xiao was baffled and scolded, "What injuries? Explain it clearly to me. Did someone beat you? How outrageous, right under the Emperor's nose in Luodu, who dares to do such a wicked thing? Is there no law anymore?"

Xu Tianchu: "..." The one who beat me is the son of the law.

Madam Xiao: "Was it that little slut Xiao Jinyue who did it? Tell me, the Prime Minister will surely give you justice!"

Xu Tianchu's eyes showed fear: "It wasn't her, don't talk nonsense. I don't know anything, don't ask me! I really must go!" How dare he say these things. If Prince Yu found out, he might send someone to beat him again, or simply have him killed. How could a nobody like him fight against nobility of the imperial bloodline.

This matter was truly upsetting to speak of. Although Xu Tianchu didn't explain it clearly to Madam Xiao, when he went to bid farewell to his friends, he couldn't hold back his frustration and complained a bit to a few of them.

So after he left Luodu, rumors started spreading in private that Prince Yu still had lingering feelings for the former Princess Yu and was secretly obstructing her remarriage, even putting out word that anyone who dared to marry Xiao Jinyue was fighting him over her.

When Madam Xiao heard this rumor, she finally felt she found the reason for her nephew's hasty departure. So when he said he was beaten, it was done by Prince Yu. But didn't Prince Yu despise Xiao Jinyue? Why would he do this kind of thing?

Prime Minister Xiao also couldn't figure it out after much thought, just feeling Prince Yu's mind was truly unfathomable. After thinking it over, he couldn't put his mind at ease no matter what. He specially summoned Xiao Jinyue back to the Prime Minister's manor to personally question her.

"Daughter, what exactly is going on between you and Prince Yu? How does he treat you...?"

Jiang Yuchao: "I also don't know what exactly is going on. But since there are such rumors, they must have some basis. Why don't we wait until the Mid-Autumn Palace Banquet in two days. Father, bring me into the palace. If we can see Prince Yu, I will definitely find a chance to ask him."

This matter couldn't be left hanging. After some thought, Prime Minister Xiao nodded in agreement. "Since that's the case, go back and prepare well. When you enter the palace, you must keep a low profile. Be even more cautious when dealing with Prince Yu, you mustn't anger him."

"Yes." Jiang Yuchao agreed. After leaving the Prime Minister's manor, a smile immediately appeared on her face.

Her suggestion to attend the Mid-Autumn Palace Banquet of course wasn't to go ask Prince Yu anything. No one was clearer than her about the inner reasons for this matter.

Going to the palace banquet this time was to cheer for her idol, Shaoyuan. Ever since learning her idol was going to attend the palace banquet for the Mid-Autumn Festival, she also wanted to go, even if just to get a distant glimpse of him.

Unfortunately, it wasn't like modern times where you could buy tickets to go support your idol at events. In this era, the "ticket" to enter the palace was really hard to get. Fortunately, this time she happened to encounter an opportunity.

Jiang Yuchao treated this Mid-Autumn Palace Banquet as an event to support her idol. Most people were going for the sake of the unmarried princes. Usually when the palace held such a grand banquet, the Empress would inevitably take the opportunity to arrange some matchmaking, resolving the major life events for the children of high officials, nobles and the imperial family.

So at times like this, all the fabric and jewelry shops would be lively, with countless luxury carriages parked out front, and ladies and misses from great families going in and out.

Ever since receiving the fabrics Xi Zhuoyu sent, Jiang Yuchao had them made into several sets of clothes which she wore daily. Naturally, she was also going to wear them to the Mid-Autumn Palace Banquet.

Xiao Jinxiang was also going. From the Prime Minister's manor, it was just these two girls attending. Xiao Jinxiang was dressed in an eye-catching manner, wearing the currently popular "hundred flowers" style in Luodu that made people dizzy looking at it.

"Mother, how can she also be allowed to go! How could Father let her go along and embarrass us? When my close sisters see me walking with her, they'll all laugh at me!" Xiao Jinxiang complained to Madam Xiao in a low voice, but was scolded by her. She sat to one side, aggrieved, staring at Jiang Yuchao with a murderous gaze.

Jiang Yuchao ignored her. This attitude made Xiao Jinxiang so angry she nearly fainted. The whole way, she had a stiff expression. Madam Xiao reprimanded her: "You better show a smile. With so many people coming today, you never know which one might be your future husband. Shouldn't you leave a good impression so you can choose well?"

Xiao Jinxiang muttered: "The male and female guests aren't even together, separated by a lake. Can they even see if I'm smiling or not from the other side?"

Jiang Yuchao nearly laughed out loud. Were they going to a matchmaking corner?

However, Xiao Jinxiang wasn't wrong. They were led to the edge of the imperial lake in the imperial garden.

Jiang Yuchao saw two palace halls facing each other across the lake. The sides facing the lake were wide open. The male guests were on the left and the female guests on the right. Inside the palace halls there were also stages, and below there were platforms by the lake displaying all kinds of chrysanthemums. At this distance, you indeed couldn't see people's faces clearly, and voices were also faint. You could only roughly make out what the people on the opposite side were wearing.

Jiang Yuchao calmly followed Madam Xiao to pay respects to the Empress as well as several imperial concubines, imperial relatives, and elder noblewomen. After making a round, she vaguely heard whispers mentioning Xiao Jinyue and Prince Yu.

Ignoring the gazes falling on her, Jiang Yuchao then went over to the group of young ladies and sat contentedly to one side. Today, most of the young ladies attending the banquet were dressed as flashily as Xiao Jinxiang. Even those who appeared calm and aloof had some floral patterns adorning their clothes.

In contrast, Jiang Yuchao's simple attire of a pearl-white dress with purple gauze stood out among the flower-like girls.

After a brief moment of quiet, Jiang Yuchao heard someone say in a voice that was neither loud nor soft, "Not everyone can attend today's banquet. Some people just don't have self-awareness. They've already been rejected, yet they still shamelessly show up, probably intending to pester endlessly."

Jiang Yuchao thought: Ha, they're talking about me.

She glanced at the indignant woman sitting with Xiao Jinxiang. Okay, she's a fan of the Prince Yu. The Prince Yu was handsome, with a strong and tall physique, exuding a manly aura. He had quite a few admirers among the young ladies in Luodu, and more than one or two here have their hearts set on him.

When Xiao Jinyue relied on her family's influence to marry the Prince Yu as his consort, she was secretly stabbed in the back countless times.

Now, they finally had a chance to vent their frustrations. Rarely seeing Xiao Jinyue, they immediately gathered together to mock her. The others didn't intervene and simply watched the drama unfold.

Jiang Yuchao initially wanted to retort, but she saw a group of people gathered in the palace across the way. Among them, a man in an elaborate floral robe stood out like a crane among chickens, seemingly looking in this direction from the edge of the platform.

She instantly forgot about the quarrel, her heart surging with excitement as she gazed at that figure. Quarreling is not as important as her idol, not at all!

On the men's side, in contrast to the women, aside from one eye-catching floral outfit, the rest were dressed in plain and simple attire. Prince Yuling, Xi Zhuoyu, was the most dazzling among the crowd. He stood out not only because of his face and clothes but also due to the large dog lying at his feet, with smooth black fur and yellow hair on its belly and ear tips.

He was the only one who dared to openly bring a dog to the palace banquet. However, others were used to it. This Prince Yuling was obsessed with dogs, and the emperor doted on him, allowing him to bring dogs into the palace. This wasn't the only dog he had brought in; he would casually switch between different dogs depending on his mood.

"Who is Brother Yu looking at?" the Seventh Prince asked curiously.

Xi Zhuoyu withdrew his gaze. "I'm not looking at anyone. That side seems quite lively."

The Seventh Prince grinned and looked towards the ladies in the lakeside palace. "Oh my, why are they all wearing floral clothes? It seems Brother Yu is still the most popular."

Xi Zhuoyu shook his head. He didn't know if they were wearing floral clothes for him, but he knew that the woman sitting by the lake, dressed in a white dress with purple gauze, seemed to be his die-hard fan. The fabric was even sent by him.

Clearly, wearing floral clothes or not was not the standard for judging fans.

On the other side, Jiang Yuchao also recognized that the fabric on her idol's body was the one she had sent over. Her mood instantly improved, and she couldn't be bothered to pay attention to those who were clearly trying to pick a fight. In a good mood, she decided to let them off the hook.

"Ah, isn't that Prince Yuling? Is he looking in our direction?"

"Prince Yuling must be looking at Princess Chunxi. Today, among us, only Princess Chunxi is wearing the most dazzling and eye-catching clothes."

"I heard that Her Majesty the Empress intends to give Princess Chunxi to Prince Yuling as his princess consort. Is it true?"

Jiang Yuchao's smile disappeared. She slowly turned her head and looked at a proud-looking woman in the crowd.

That woman was wearing a long dress with red, blue, and purple floral patterns, adorned with large patches of delicate golden floral embellishments. It was indeed very eye-catching, so much so that people could only clearly see her dress at first glance and not her face.

Jiang Yuchao carefully observed her and then snorted. With that appearance, she still wants to marry my idol? It's like a toad trying to swallow the moon—a pipe dream.

Princess Chunxi was complacent. "Her Majesty said she would soon discuss this matter with Brother Zhuoyu. Brother Zhuoyu has always treated me differently since we were young. We met in the palace when we were children, and he even helped me take care of my puppy. He hasn't married for so many years; I think he's been waiting for me. Brother Zhuoyu is meant to be mine."

Extremely arrogant.

Jiang Yuchao laughed coldly. The toad croaks, not afraid of dislocating its jaw from the wind. How much garlic did she eat to have such big talk? It's hilarious.

Princess Chunxi's sharp ears caught the cold laughter, and she immediately furrowed her brows. "Who's laughing?"

Jiang Yuchao calmly said, "Princess, it was me laughing. Just now, I saw a white crane outside the pavilion, so I laughed."

Princess Chunxi: "So it's you. What's so funny about that? I heard that after being abandoned by Prince Yu, you moved into a Taoist temple. You can still laugh now? Has your brain gone bad from chanting scriptures?"

Jiang Yuchao: "A white crane is certainly not funny, but just now, there was a toad beside the white crane. The toad wanted to eat the crane but couldn't reach it, so it croaked angrily. Isn't that very amusing?"

Princess Chunxi was stunned for a moment, then became furious. "Are you talking about me?"

Jiang Yuchao: "How could that be? The toad's tongue is so long; how can Princess be compared to a toad?"

Princess Chunxi arrogantly said, "You are talking about me!"

Jiang Yuchao tidied her sleeves. "I'm really not talking about Princess. Why must Princess identify with that toad?"

Some young ladies couldn't help but laugh, then quickly stifled it, making Princess Chunxi even angrier. She stood up with a huff. "What kind of thing are you to dare ridicule me?!"

Just as things were getting lively on their side, something happened among the group of male guests across the way. It started with the Sixth Prince who had not yet received an official title, Zhaofeng, who was talking to someone about some recent romantic gossip in Luodu. He was young and loved these tales of romance. Somehow, he brought up the matter of Prince Yu.

"I heard that Prince Yu and his former consort are still entangled, forcing her to remain unmarried."

"Third Brother has always been domineering. With his temperament, he's unwilling to let others touch what he likes. Now it seems that his previous dismissal of Xiao Jinyue might have been a pretense. Perhaps he still misses her in his heart." The Sixth Prince Zhaofeng said with a grin.

This was originally just a casual joke, but coincidentally, Prince Yu happened to walk in and hear this remark. His face immediately darkened, and he said, "Sixth Brother, it's best not to speak nonsense. Those are just marketplace rumors.

He snorted, his face full of disdain and disgust: "That Xiao Jinyue has an ordinary appearance, not even as pretty as the maids who serve me. Her personality is weak, boring, and annoying. She's tasteless and a shameless woman who can be anyone's wife. Who could ever fancy such a woman..."

Normally, no one would offend Prince Yu over a mere woman. Even the Sixth Prince, seeing his anger, was ready to join in with a few mocking words to appease him.

But unexpectedly, Prince Yuling, who was sitting to the side and usually never involved himself in anything, suddenly spoke up, his tone heavy, "Prince Yu, there's no need to slander an innocent woman like this. I find Lady Xiao to be gentle and polite. She doesn't seem like the shameless woman you describe. Prince Yu, you'd best watch your words."

The scene suddenly fell into an eerie silence.

Author's Note: Jiang Yuchao and Xi Zhuoyu's secret affair is about to be exposed—but they haven't even had a chance to start one yet.