A life of leisure is worse than a life of flowers and splendour

There was a very long line of motorcades at the palace gate. Everyone took the opportunity of the palace banquet to bring their children of appropriate age to attend the banquet. If they caught the eye of a noble, it would be a way to rise to prominence.

Fortunately, as a token of their special treatment for General Zhenguo's residence, they were allowed to follow the royal family through a special passage, thus avoiding the hassle of queuing and waiting. After careful inspection by the Imperial Guards guarding the gate, the family entered the palace smoothly.

But after entering the gate, they had to get off the carriage, and the group followed the palace maids and eunuchs who led the way inside. The old general, his second uncle, and his cousin followed the eunuchs all the way to the front hall where male guests were temporarily resting. The second young master Su was taken away alone, and he was also allowed to enter the palace with two guards. This treatment was really extraordinary. Normally, except for the royal family, no one entering the palace was allowed to bring their own maids or servants, of course, except for special people, and the second young master Su was that special person. The group separated after just walking through a long corridor.

Second Aunt Du, Du Shuangshuang and her cousin followed the palace maids all the way to the imperial garden in the harem. There were some tables and chairs in the garden for everyone to rest, and there were palace maids serving nearby for everyone to use.

Along the way, Du Shuangshuang used her spiritual sense to scan every possible treasure vault. Of course, every lord's palace certainly had its own private vault, but not every private vault held valuable treasures. If she wanted to rob someone, she'd definitely target those who were both wealthy and willing to offend her. For example, the Empress Dowager, the eldest prince's mother, and the Consort Xian, Princess Yuancheng's aunt. These two masters had given Du Wushuang many hard times in her previous life. Of course, the Emperor couldn't be spared either. Ideally, she'd find the national treasury and raid it all.

When they arrived at the Imperial Garden, many wives and daughters of officials were already there. Most of them gathered in groups of three or five, chatting about family matters or discussing recent interesting events, all filled with laughter. Those women who knew each other well gathered together, greeting each other, showing concern for each other, and strengthening their relationships.

However, due to the low position of his second uncle and the gradual decline of the General's Mansion, few people were willing to approach them. Still, when Du Wushuang and his companions entered the Imperial Garden, they attracted numerous glances and scrutiny. Du Shuangshuang was particularly striking in her attire. Everyone was curious about this unfamiliar woman, wondering where the Zhenguo General's Mansion had managed to acquire such a beautiful young woman. Was she brought to the palace banquet with the intention of presenting her to the emperor? Who could tolerate such a beauty whispering in the emperor's ear? The Zhenguo General's Mansion was about to make a comeback.

In reality, it's understandable that these people failed to recognize Du Shuangshuang as Du Wushuang. After all, after Du Wushuang was rescued from the water, although most of her makeup had been washed off, some remnants remained. Du Wushuang's face was still heavily adorned with makeup, which had become smudged by the water, leaving her looking like a large tabby cat. The color on her face was unevenly distributed, with some areas retaining her original skin tone while others were covered by makeup, creating a strange color combination. Furthermore, since Du Wushuang could swim, her face wasn't completely soaked during her struggle. While she still had strength, she tried to keep her face dry. Once she lost it, she could no longer struggle and could only let her body float. This meant that only a portion of her makeup was washed off, leaving behind a vibrantly colored face.

My cousin had gone to look for her own little sisters, and my second aunt had her own close friends. Even if they were left out, they still had a few friends. Du Shuangshuang was miserable; she truly had no friends at all. Suddenly, she was alone. Du Shuangshuang found a deserted corner, drank tea, ate some snacks, and rested for a while. Then, she took a good look around the palace and took in the beautiful scenery. This wasn't some Forbidden City rebuilt thousands of years later, but the real place where the royal family lived. Although it was set in an imaginary era, it was truly ancient, with a pavilion every five steps and a scene every ten steps. She could also look for treasures and other things.

Before Du Shuangshuang could even stand up, someone came over. "Are you, Du Wushuang?" This question was clearly filled with disbelief. Du Shuangshuang was also curious about how someone recognized her so quickly. She turned to look at the person and saw her little cousin next to her. What was going on?

Seeing that the other party had no ill intentions, Du Shuangshuang said lazily, "Yes, who are you? What can I do for you?"

"Oh! It's really Du Wushuang. How come you suddenly become so beautiful?" The other person's eyes lit up, as if she had seen some treasure.

Du Shuangshuang rolled her eyes gracefully, "I just look like this."

"Ah?" The other party looked at her cousin Du Yunyan in disbelief, and stopped when she saw Du Yunyan nod. In fact, Du Yunyan wanted to say that she was not so beautiful before, but then she thought about it and realized that she had not observed her cousin carefully before. She rarely saw her cousin without makeup, and she only saw her last time when she was sick. She was indeed very beautiful, but it might be because she looked sick at that time, so her complexion and spirits were a little worse than now, which also reduced her appearance. Even if her cousin now didn't want to talk to people, her actions, every frown and smile seemed to move people's hearts, like a seductive little goblin. Even a woman like herself could not resist it, let alone a man. No wonder Mr. Su was so fascinated by him. If he were a man, he would not be able to control his heart.

I originally wanted to take the opportunity to go shopping, but ended up following two little guys around, making it inconvenient for me to go to some places. The same thing happened to my cousin's friend. No matter how cold I was, she had to stick close to me and I couldn't get rid of her. She was like a dog-skin plaster. Whose lady is like this? She looked more like a gangster than a hooligan. She kept staring at me and drooling. Du Shuangshuang almost wondered if she thought she was a piece of cake. But girl, I'm also a girl, not a handsome gentleman. Don't show me a crazy look. Seeing her like this, I suddenly remembered myself wearing a weird outfit and exaggerated ugly makeup, showing a crazy look at the eldest prince. This scene... Fortunately, the girl in front of me is quite cute.

Of course, some people were searching for Du Wushuang, but they had no idea that the new beauty, the most popular in the room, was exactly who they were looking for. This saved Du Shuangshuang a lot of trouble. Even if someone wasn't interested in this new beauty, or felt threatened and tried to inquire about her, Du Shuangshuang would shoo them away with a blunt, "Get lost!"

They are not good people, so who would want to be your sister? After driving away several waves of people, someone finally couldn't bear it anymore and took action himself.

"Hello, young lady. I am Bai Ruxue, Princess Yuancheng. May I know where you come from?" Her voice was soft and tender, yet it carried the innate sense of superiority that comes from someone in a higher position. Hehe, she's using her status as a princess to pressure me. For the sake of face, I really can't let her go. After all, I haven't gotten my money yet, and I'm not planning on leaving the General's Mansion yet. I can't break off relations with the royal family just yet, or else I'd really want to beat her up and scratch her fair face.

"Oh? Princess, don't you recognize me? I'm Du Wushuang~" Du Shuangshuang deliberately prolonged her tone, a hint of a smile on her lips, a hint of provocation and mockery in her eyes. She raised her chin slightly, confidently showing off her beauty and charm.

She stared at Bai Ruxue quietly, as if she could see through her inner turmoil. She wondered to herself, "Are you jealous of me because I'm so beautiful? Are you angry because I live such a good life?"

At this moment, Bai Ruxue's face was filled with astonishment and disbelief. Her eyes widened as she stared at Du Shuangshuang, her lips trembling as she could barely speak. She couldn't believe that the stunningly beautiful woman before her was actually Du Wushuang, the woman she had once considered a fool!

"You...how could you possibly be?" Bai Ruxue's voice was filled with shock and confusion. She thought to herself, "How could it be that idiot Du Wushuang? That idiot is so ugly and disgusting, how could she be so beautiful? She makes me feel inferior when I see her." She felt a strong surge of jealousy and uneasiness, as if the whole world had turned upside down.

She realized that if her cousin saw Du Wushuang in her current state, all her previous efforts would be in vain. She absolutely could not let this happen and had to find a way to stop it. But what should she do? Bai Ruxue was anxious, her mind in a mess. She desperately thought of a solution, but she could not find a perfect answer.

Seeing her like this, Du Shuangshuang felt delighted. Surprised? Jealous? Jealous to the point of madness? So what? Du Shuangshuang simply loved seeing others dislike her but couldn't kill her. Princess Yuancheng, Bai Ruxue, was probably in no mood to reminisce, so she'd leave her there questioning her own fate. After stabbing her, Du Shuangshuang prepared to leave, wanting to continue enjoying the beauty of the palace.

Watching Du Wushuang depart, Princess Bai Ruxue of Yuancheng clasped her hands tightly, her gaze fixed on her back. If looks could kill, Du Shuangshuang would have been ripped to pieces long ago. She couldn't understand why, having always presented herself with that ugly face, she had suddenly transformed into something so stunningly beautiful that would captivate any man. Had she always been deliberately faking her ugliness? This thought filled Princess Bai Ruxue with jealousy and resentment. She believed that such a beautiful and captivating appearance belonged to her, not that repulsive Du Shuangshuang. Therefore, she firmly believed that Du Shuangshuang's current appearance must be fake, must have been created through some kind of sorcery. Only this could explain her sudden allure. However, Du Shuangshuang was gone, leaving Princess Bai Ruxue with a heart full of resentment and anger.