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The one Yao Hanai called Beautiful Delicate Lady, Lao Fan, finally consented to leave his carriage after entering the courtyard.

Stroking his silvery beard, Lao Fan cast an inspecting glance around and nodded, "Hmm, that girl An Le really put a lot of effort into this. The courtyard looks quite nice indeed."

With Lao Fan’s praise, Princess Anle pursed her lips in a smile, "To receive a compliment from Old Mr. Zhen is truly rare."

It had to be said, Princess Anle had indeed arranged this courtyard impeccably; Lin Yuan and her family were impressed as soon as they walked in.

Even from the outside, the courtyard seemed large, but entering it revealed an even more spacious atmosphere. Lin Yuan had seen the residences of the Jin family and Li Chang, but those homes paled in comparison to this one.

This residence was similar to the Beijing Quadrangle Courtyard from Lin Yuan’s memory, but much larger, comprising several courtyards. Following Princess Anle forward, they first passed through a foyer, then came the front courtyard, which included a small garden, a flower hall, and a front hall.

Lin Yuan had yet to see how big the back courtyard was, but she learned a lot along the way thanks to Xia Zheng’s descriptions.

"From here, if you follow the corridor straight back, there’s a large garden with a small lake.

A Xiao He runs through the entire garden, creating a very distinctive scenery.

Over there, there’s a large courtyard which can be where your parents reside.

There are also several smaller courtyards on either side; you and your sisters can each have one.

Don’t look down on those small courtyards; they are still much bigger than the houses you had back in the Lin family hollow," explained Xia Zheng.

Suddenly bursting into a mischievous chuckle, seemingly thinking of something, Xia Zheng’s laughter made Lin Yuan feel slightly uneasy.

"What are you laughing at?" she asked.

Glancing at the others walking ahead, Xia Zheng leaned close to Lin Yuan and whispered with a seductive undertone, "It’s convenient for you to live alone."

Convenient for what?

Lin Yuan paused and upon seeing Xia Zheng’s fox-like grin, she sharply gritted her teeth and rolled her eyes before walking ahead swiftly.

Xia Zheng chuckled and touched his own nose, finding it adorable that it had been a long time since he’d seen the girl blush. She was so cute.

Catching up to Lin Yuan’s pace, Xia Zheng cleared his throat and continued to introduce the residence as if the earlier moment had never happened.

"Apart from the several courtyards, there’s also a greenhouse and an armory," he mentioned.

"An armory?" Lin Yuan interrupted with curiosity before Xia Zheng could finish, "Why is there an armory? Doesn’t the Imperial Court forbid..."

Understanding what Lin Yuan was referring to, Xia Zheng raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "It’s not what you think.

The Imperial Court indeed prohibits the private maintenance of armies, but this armory does not contain the kind of weapons you’re imagining.

Our Xia family has a military heritage, and my grandfather was not someone to be underestimated; the armory used to house a collection of various weapons he gathered during his lifetime.

However, after my grandfather passed away, some of those weapons were given to Little White Rabbit, and the rest were moved to Xia Mansion. It’s empty now."

I see.

Lin Yuan nodded slightly, relieved that the armory was now vacant; she didn’t want to live in a home with a trove of things that could attract danger.

Besides, with only her brother Yong Yan as a male in the household, and their parents hoping he would pursue scholarly achievements, keeping the armory seemed pointless.

Perhaps seeing through Lin Yuan’s thoughts, Xia Zheng suggested with a smile, "That armory isn’t much use now. If you don’t like it, I can have someone convert it into a wine cellar for you. Didn’t you say that wine should be stored underground? That armory would be perfect for it."

That was a good idea. Lin Yuan nodded, and she and Xia Zheng agreed on this arrangement.

As they chatted, the group arrived in the front hall. The courtyard had been cleaned very thoroughly, and the house itself needn’t even be mentioned—it was fully furnished, all new, and as they entered, their eyes were greeted by complete sets of Agarwood furniture, modestly luxurious.

Various porcelain items were also displayed on the nearby Bogu shelf, dazzling the onlookers.

Pointing to a few pieces, Xia Zheng whispered to Lin Yuan, "That cloisonne vase, that small screen with the gold thread inlay, and that over there—this and that—are some of my old man’s most treasured possessions. Tsk tsk, my mother even managed to get those here; she must have bled my father dry!"

Lin Yuan’s expression dimmed; why did she sense a schadenfreude in Xia Zheng’s tone?

As she pondered, over there, the Lin family couple and Princess Anle seemed to be arguing about something.

Listening in, she learned that Princess Anle was inviting Lin Jiaxin to take the seat of honor, but how could Lin Jiaxin dare to?

Even though Princess Anle was to be their future mother-in-law, she was also the Emperor’s sister—that made her nobility.

How could they, mere commoners, presume to take precedence over her?