Bai Qingqing was indeed kept busy during the Xia Li Festival.

The Xia Li Festival was an important holiday in the Xuan Dynasty, a time for the ancestors of the Xuan family to offer prayers and sacrifices, hoping to reduce floods and droughts. It was also a significant event for Xuancheng.

During the festival, the Emperor would personally offer his blessings, and all royal family members were required to attend. The nobles and high-ranking officials of Xuancheng also had to participate.

After the blessings, a royal banquet would be held by the court, where the women of the noble families could all be seen. The event was particularly well-organized and grand, making the Xia Li Festival an impressive spectacle every year.

Bai Qingqing had attended before with her mother, but at that time, she found it dull. There were so many rules at the royal banquet, and some of the conversations were unpleasant for her, yet she couldn’t speak up. It always felt like she was just going through the motions, and by the time she returned, her smile would be frozen in place.

But this year was different. This year, Princess Huifu would also appear at the royal banquet, which made Bai Qingqing look forward to the event with some anticipation.

The person who had been caught during her mother's birthday, Bai Qingqing had asked her father and older brother about it, but they refused to tell her what had happened, only saying that the matter was already settled and that she shouldn’t worry.

How could she not worry?

But Bai Qingqing knew that there was little she could do. She wanted to take the opportunity to win some favor from Princess Huifu, so she had been spending her free time at Qingxin Pavilion, refining her skills.

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“I feel like this scent still needs a bit more time to develop.”

Bai Qingqing put down the incense stick and carefully reviewed her formula, lost in thought.

While making the incense, she didn’t even allow Zidai to stay by her side. The room was quiet, only the faint sounds of Bai Qingqing experimenting with the ingredients filled the air.

Suddenly, she felt a bit thirsty. Her eyes stayed fixed on the incense materials as her hand reached for the teacup. A cup of tea was placed into her palm, and Bai Qingqing took a couple of sips. Habitually, she held it out to pass it on, only for it to be taken from her.

At this point, she still hadn’t realized anything was wrong, while Ning Yan, standing by, silently chuckled. She was as clueless as a silly rabbit, unaware she had already been caught.

The sound of the teacup hitting the table was a little louder than usual, as if it had disturbed Bai Qingqing’s thoughts. She instinctively furrowed her brows and turned her head, then froze.

Her round, bright eyes widened, filled with confusion and doubt. Her eyelashes fluttered like tiny fans several times before she finally reacted, "How did you get in here?"

The doors and windows were all closed, and no one had come to announce anything. "How did you get in?"

"Is it so difficult for me to come in?"

Ning Yan's tone was playful, his smile subtly different from usual. Bai Qingqing noticed but didn’t give it much thought. "Well, it's not exactly difficult, but it’s not proper. People might misunderstand. Next time, you should use the door."

Seeing her earnest advice, her eyes full of surprise and disagreement, yet no fear or resistance, Ning Yan’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he suddenly asked, "Why haven’t you been to Yanlai Building recently?"

Bai Qingqing seemed to remember something when she heard this. "Speaking of that, has Miss Qiyue returned the token to you? I thought it was strange before, but I didn’t think much of it at the time since I didn’t know your identity. I asked Qiyue, and the token was from you? I can’t accept it."

"Why not?"

"No merit, no reward."

"Would you accept it if it was from Qiyue?"

Bai Qingqing glanced at him quickly, a slight blush appearing on her face. "Well, that's... that's because Miss Qiyue is so beautiful, I couldn’t bear to refuse..."