Her eldest daughter-in-law gaped a little when she saw the contents, or more specifically, the lack thereof. However, she still remembered to close her mouth to avoid making a faux-pas in the midst of a delicate situation. “Since Father has returned, Daughter-in-Law will go to the main kitchen and instruct them to add more of Father’s favourite dishes.”

Lady Yang only managed to restrain herself until her daughter-in-law left. Afterwards, she burst out laughing. “Was this sent by House Jing’an’s Third Young Madam?”

Lord Yang nonchalantly nodded as he sipped his tea, keeping up his innocent pretense.

“I can’t say I blame you; that girl makes the most delicious food.” After saying so, Lady Yang opened the box and picked up a pastry. The moment she tasted it, her eyes lit up. “That girl... What did she make this time? It fits my tastes even better than those longevity peach buns she made before. Mm, it’s actually salty!”

Lord Yang licked his lips. A salty pastry? What a pity he hadn’t been able to taste it.

“There were only eight pastries in this box. So it seems like each one has a different flavour.”

Lady Yang was surprised. There were such finely made desserts?

She quickly ate the very last one and confirmed that the two pastries she had eaten had completely different tastes. It was only after she was done eating that she picked up the smaller box at the side. When she saw that her coral bracelet was inside, the corners of Lady Yang’s lips curled up. “It looks like there’s more to this girl from House Ying than just being more fertile.” They finally had someone who had brains amongst them!

Lady Yang immediately wrote a reply and sent one of the Yang Family’s most trusted manservants to the Jing’an Estate with the letter.

Ever since Lord Yang had eaten the Eight Confections that Chu Lian had sent over, he had fallen in love with rose-flavoured desserts. He instructed the chefs in his estate to make some, but none of them could compare to the ones that Chu Lian had made that day, causing Lord Yang to become even pickier about his food. He even lost a few kilograms of weight after that! Of course, the birth of the gourmand Lord Yang was a later story.

......

The same return gift had been sent to Prince Wei’s estate.

Royal Princess Duanjia opened up the brocade box without any hesitation. Her big eyes were shimmering when she saw the desserts within. In order to enjoy them all by herself, she carefully brought them back to her own courtyard. Not even her second brother received a single piece when he came over looking for snacks. Seeing his little sister acting like a puppy guarding her food, the royal prince was extremely amused.

He immediately ran off to his mother’s room to tattle on his sister. “Mother, Third Sister found something really delicious, but she’s so stingy she wouldn’t let me have a single bite!”

“Oh? Has she?” Princess Wei raised an eyebrow. Royal Princess Duanjia’s personality was haughty and aloof, and it was rare to find something that could move her. Princess Wei found it interesting that something like food had managed to make her daughter act out of character.

As mother and son were talking, Royal Princess Duanjia entered the room. “Brother, how old are you? What are you doing snitching to Mother about me at your age!”

The royal prince sat next to Princess Wei and retorted, “I’m just trying to find out exactly what kind of food has bewitched my darling little sister!”

Royal Princess Duanjia glared at the royal prince and moved to Princess Wei’s other side. “Mother, in a few days, I want to invite someone to our estate.”

Princess Wei was sitting in the master’s seat. Brimming with an aura of elegant luxury, a faint smile appeared on her lips. “Is it the person who gave you those desserts?”

Royal Princess Duanjia smiled mysteriously. “I’m not telling Mother yet! Mother will know when she comes!”

Princess Wei lovingly poked her only daughter’s forehead. “Mother won’t stop you from making friends, but don’t forget your status.”

......

Back in the Jing’an Estate, the main steward in the outer court had already ordered a senior servant to bring over two letters to Songtao Court before dinner. One of the letters was even accompanied by a gift.

Chu Lian received the letters and glanced at the contents within.

One of the letters was from Lady Yang and the other was actually from Royal Princess Duanjia.

Lady Yang had sent the coral bracelet back again, saying that it was a gift for her anyway, and that she couldn’t possibly take it back. She also said to keep the bracelet properly, and if they met in the future, she could make a few more different kinds of pastries as gifts instead.

Although Lady Yang didn’t state outright if they were on visiting terms with each other, this was already a great concession for Chu Lian, and could be counted as a good connection.

What Chu Lian had found strange was Royal Princess Duanjia’s letter.

Royal Princess Duanjia had actually invited her over to Prince Wei’s estate for a small gathering.