30 Inviting to Dinner

Early morning, Yu Mei made her way to Ji Er's Plum Blossom Palace. She had stayed up all night cooped up in her room, creating the perfume satchel meant for Ji Er.

Chu'mei couldn't believe she let her lady leave the house like that. Yu Mei was practically a walking ghost with panda eyes. But there was nothing Chu'mei could do when facing the stubborn Yu Mei who refused to dress up. She didn't bother to fix her hair. It was in a simple bun. As for her gown, a plain yellow robe. When she stood next to Ji Er, she could be mistaken for a distance cousin visiting instead of an imperial consort.

Ji Er didn't expect to see Yu Mei this early in the morning, unannounced. It wasn't a bad thing but she wasn't prepared. In reality, Ji Er was probably more prepared than the tired and dark circle Yu Mei.

While Ji Er had her two maids Li Lu and Ling Lu get some tea and snacks, she brought Yu Mei to the main room. They sat down at the round dining table. "Sister Yu Mei, did you not get any sleep?" a concerned Ji Er asked. Those tired eyes, if anyone saw, they would not be able to avoid the question. Yu Mei touched her under eyes lightly and chuckled. "Are they really that bad? I couldn't sleep last night," she lied.

"Mother got me some scented incents. It helps me relax. If you want, I can give you some to try," Just hearing about her mother in law made Yu Mei shake. She did not want to see her mother in law for as long as she could. That woman was really too much.

"No, it's okay. I can't bother you," Yu Mei quickly refused. She scooted her chair closer to Ji Er's. "Eh, Sister Ji Er, do you remember the thing I promised to give you?" she whispered with bright eyes.

"En," Ji Er nodded shyly. She couldn't believe she even asked about that thing.

The next moment, Yu Mei pulled something out of her sleeves, dangling it in front of Ji Er. A small red pouch the size of two fingers sewn shut tightly with a gold thread. The moment it reached Ji Er's nose, she couldn't stop inhaling it. "Sister Yu Mei, it smells so nice," Ji Er slowly reached for it. Yu Mei suddenly pulled it back, holding it close to her chest. "Sister Ji Er, you have to take good care of it. It took me a long time to get this from Beauty Chen," Yu Mei once again praised herself. Thinking that Ji Er has probably heard of this name, she smiled arrogantly. "Beauty Chen?" Ji Er stared blankly.

"En. She is the most well-known supporter of love," still a blank look. Yu Mei was offended. Which noble lady hadn't heard of her name before? That was beyond her purpose for being her. She set the issue aside and handed the perfume satchel over to Ji Er. Ji Er had to admit, the little pouch was very cute. "Are you sure this will work though?" Ji Er turned to ask.

"Of course, my product…I mean Beauty Chen's products have never failed. How do you think I got to marry Pei Nan,"

"Really? To be exact, I've only heard rumors. So how did you get Pei Nan to marry you?" a very nosy Ji Er asked. This time it was Yu Mei who was dumbfounded. She didn't know. A lie it was. "Sister Ji Er, let me tell you a secret. It was this scent that got Pei Nan crazy for me. It's true I was the one chasing him first but after I got this perfume from Beauty Chen, Pei Nan kept chasing me. No matter how many times I told him to go away, he kept chasing me like a mad dog. In the end, I agreed to marry him," Of all things Yu Mei could have said, she had to spew such a ridiculous lie. Ji Er wasn't convinced and Yu Mei could read it on her face.

"Really. I give two days before Pei Nan comes to find you. If he does, you owe me dinner" Yu Mei made a bet.

"Deal. I'll trust you Sister Yu Mei, but…" Ji Er gripped tightly onto the satchel and hesitated. "But Pei Nan hasn't come to my courtyard in over a month. He spends all his time with Consort Ning,"

"Don't worry about it. Leave it to me. Come over to my Southern Palace for dinner, I promise he will be there,"

"Okay,"

After exchanging a few more words, Yu Mei set off for her most difficult mission yet; inviting Pei Nan.

The moment she entered through the gates of his palace, she couldn't take another step. More like she didn't want to. How was she supposed to invite him over? It was impossible. Operation retreat. She thought about turning back. After all, she still had the whole day to come back. Surely by then she would have gathered enough courage. But why didn't the heavens look upon her favorably. The moment she turned back, Pei Nan had coincedently walked through the gates. He hadn't been home until now, thought Yu Mei.

Dressed in a bright red court official robe was a dashing Pei Nan. He displayed that same strict and emotionless expression on his face. Yu Mei wondered, maybe it wasn't just her he gave that annoying look to. Maybe he always looked like that.

The moment he saw her, he frowned. Yu Mei pouted her lips when she saw the sour look he was giving her. [Hmph! Must you always give me such hateful looks! It's not like I'm even here on my own free will] Yu Mei complained in her heart.

On the other hand, Pei Nan was indeed frowning, not because of her surprise visit but something else…The moment he saw her, there was only one thing on his mind. [It took you three weeks to come visit me. What kind of consort are you?] Ever since Ju Ming entered the body of Yu Mei, she had not visited him once. It was always him visiting her.

The two of them were so distracted with their staring contest, they had forgotten all about the people around them. [Hey buddy, how long are you going to keep staring? I"m right here!] "AHEM!" Hou Lei loudly cleared his throat. Pei Nan and Yu Mei snapped out of it, staring elsewhere awkwardly. "Aiya, no wonder it's so sunny today." Hou Lei pretended to look at the clear sky."Sister in law is here," Hou Lei walked up to Yu Mei and greeted her.

"Hou Lei," she returned the friendly greeting. "What brings sister in law here today?" Just thinking about the reason she was here, she wanted to run away. "Nothing, I'm here because I'm bored,"

"Huh? So sister in law came to find Pei Nan to play with? Isn't it too early to be finding Pei Nan. Wouldn't you want to find him at night?" he teased, hinting at something else. Yu Mei clenched her teeth. Why was Hou Lei such a big mouth? "Hou Lei, you nonsense talker," she lightly hit him a few times. "How can you say that. I'm not that shameless," she continued to hit him. Hou Lei was laughing and trying to defend himself from her ruthless hits.

"AHEM!" this time it was Pei Nan who coughed. How could they disregard him like this? [YU MEI! How dare you touch another man when your husband is right here]. Pei Nan was irritated.

Hou Lei and Yu Mei quit acting childish as they turned their full attention on the frowning Pei Nan. "I'll take my leave then," when Hou Lei saw the deathly glare Pei Nan was giving him, he decided it would be best to leave.

Now there were two. Yu Mei smiled brightly at him. "Your highness, how was court today?" she awkwardly asked. Pei Nan put his hands behind his back and walked past her coolly. "You still remember that I am your husband? I was beginning to think you didn't know how to visit," he complained. Yu Mei who was following behind him threw air fists at him. [Stupid Petty Nan].

Just as she was throwing another air fist, he turned around. Yu Mei nervously put her hand down. "Hehe, Your highness must be joking. It wasn't that I didn't want to visit. I was merely being considerate of you," Pei Nan stopped and arched his brow. "Considerate of me? How so?"

[What was this? An interrogation?] "Your highness is very busy these days. I didn't want to bother you," she lied. But then...she wasn't about to tell him that she didn't want to see his stupid face. "You're right, I am very busy these days. Unlike...some people." he paused."Should I make time for you?" Yu Mei bit her lips and shifted her eyes nervously. This wasn't how she planned their conversation. How was she supposed to bring up dinner? This conversation itself was awkward enough. "I'm still very busy right now, but since you are here to be me to see you...I guess I can spare you some time. I'll come over to the Southern Palace for dinner," Yu Mei almost choked from shock. Could there be anyone more conceited than the man in front of her? Her dissatisfaction in his selfish words slowly turned into a good thing. This meant that she didn't have to bring up the dinner topic. But what was going on? She didn't believe it. There was no way these words could be coming out of Pei Nan's mouth. She had to make sure. "Dinner?"

"Why? Don't want to? Fine," Pei Nan turned to leave when Yu Mei grabbed his hand. "No, that's not what I meant," thankfully Yu Mei couldn't see his face or else she would be shocked. He had an utterly confused expression on his face. "Ahem, how can a girl hold a man's hand first," he scolded.

"I didn't mean to," Yu Mei quickly retracted her hand.

"Next time, you can not touch my hand without my approval. Also, do not flirt with other men in front of me. Remember you are the Lady of Virtue. Don't tarnish the title I gave you," he warned her. "Oh," she quickly understood.

"Good, you may leave," he shooed her away. Yu Mei took two steps before Pei Nan stopped her. "Make sure to go straight home," thinking that he was being considerate of her, she smiled. Just as she was about to say something nice, he changed her mind. "I can't be having a tired panda walking around the palace," Pei Nan turned around. The moment he couldn't see her, he grinned.

[Aish! PETTY NAN! You big jerk!] Yu Mei stomped her feet.

After going back to her Southern Palalce, Yu Mei was idling in her room all afternoon. To be exact, all she did was eat a full course meal, take a nap, eat and then nap again. It wasn't until almost evening that she got up. Fine, she only got up by force. If it wasn't for the loyal Chu'mei dragging her out of bed, Yu Mei would still be in bed with her arms and legs spread out like a butterfly.

Chu'mei was excited for her lady. This was the first time Prince Nan was having dinner at the Southern Palace. Chu'mei didn't like Pei Nan to begin with but the thought that Yu Mei and Prince Nan were patching things up made her feel much better. If her lady played her cards right tonight, she wouldn't be living like a lonely ghost anymore. They might even do the deeds. Chu'mei blushed just thinking about it.

Dinner time came. Chu'mei didn't have to do anything. All she did was watch as Pei Nan's people brought in trays after trays of food, filling up the whole table. Once they were done, both Yu Mei and Chu'mei stared at the table in amazement. There were at least 15 dishes on the table. Dishes consisting of soups, dumplings, fried chicken, vegetables, etc. Just looking at it, Yu Mei was tempted. Her hand naturally reached out to grab a dumpling, *slap* She retracted her hand. Chu'mei actually slapped her hand lightly. "Xiaojie, how can you eat before Prince Nan. If he finds out, we'll be in big trouble," Yu Mei who was rubbing her hand pouted her lips at Chu'mei. "Who cares about him! I am hungry,"

"Xiaojie, you must have patience," Just as Yu Mei was about to retort Chu'mei's words, an eunuch announced Prince Nan's arrival.