Xie Pan'Er didn't have the courage to say goodbye to her parents, so she explained instead.
"For the Double Ninth Festival's Palace Banquet, the Empress Dowager has issued a gracious decree: wives of all officials of Fifth Grade or above in the capital are to bring any daughters in their households, aged thirteen to eighteen, to the banquet to present their talents before the Emperor!"
Xie Si furrowed his brow.
"In the past, with our uncle being a Fifth-Grade Junior Minister at Guanglu Temple, you could have accompanied him to the Palace. But our family has been expelled from the clan now, so we do not meet this condition."
As Xie Si reached this point, something flashed through his mind, and his face went as white as a sheet.
"You... you aren't thinking of entering the Palace, are you?"
