Mrs. Guo left the palace feeling utterly aggrieved. She was still in tears when she returned home and recounted the events to her husband.
"That woman from the Rong family goes too far!" Guo Ruikuo felt he had lost a great deal of face. After all, it was his wife who had requested an audience in the palace, representing his honor. For Noble Princess Consort Rong to dare insult her clearly meant she didn't fear his retaliation. "And you," he snapped, "I told you to find Gu Zhaoyi and plead your case. How did you end up with the Noble Consort?"
Annoyed, he refused to look at his weeping wife, who had buried her face in her hands. "All you do is cry. You can't even handle a simple task like this."
Mrs. Guo explained, "After I paid my respects to the Empress, the palace maid led me directly to Zhaoyang Palace. Gu Zhaoyi was there, too, but she was very quiet and seemed to defer to the Noble Consort's lead."
That day, Jiang Xian hadn't uttered a single word of ridicule toward her.
