Let's just drift through life together in this quick transmigration story.

Palace maids and eunuchs were not allowed to learn to read, so the original owner did not know how to read until she was ten years old.

Yan Qingxun noticed that the original owner was illiterate, so before each trip to the palace, he would hide some literacy booklets in his pocket. Once inside the palace, he would find an excuse to go to the Imperial Garden, and after Wang Xiaolian finished eating, he would take out the booklets to teach the original owner to read.

Knowing that literacy would earn Wang Xiaolian more snacks and dried meat, she began to slowly learn to read. During that time, Wang Xiaolian's happiest moments were spent visiting the Imperial Garden.

The eunuchs and maids in the Cold Palace wouldn't care about Wang Xiaolian's affairs. A ten-year-old princess, illiterate, wouldn't be able to make any waves. She might just fall into the pond in the Imperial Garden and drown one day if she wasn't careful.

Two years passed in this way. Wang Xiaolian's life was not bad with the help she received, but she grew into a graceful young woman and began to show her future beauty. Yan Qingxun felt a great sense of accomplishment watching Wang Xiaolian grow up like this. She was the girl he had raised little by little.

When Yan Qingxun learned the phrase "one life, one love, one partner," he promised that he would marry Wang Xiaolian in the future and would definitely take her away from the palace, which was full of wolves and tigers, so that they could live a carefree life together outside.

Yan Qingxun also carved two small wooden figures, one named Yan Qingxun and the other Wang Xiaolian, who will be together forever.

The palace began recruiting eligible companions for the princes. Yan Qingxun, eager to better accompany Wang Xiaolian, fiercely competed with other young masters from prominent families, finally securing a spot and thus gaining legitimate access to the palace.

Whenever he had time, he would come to find Wang Xiaolian, bring her food, and teach her to read. Wang Xiaolian would also secretly come to where Yan Qingxun was having class and watch them study through the window.

Wang Xiaolian was looking forward to growing up. Once she grew up, she could marry Qingxun and they could be together forever, without having to sneak around to see each other every day.

But childhood promises are the least reliable. Before he knew it, Yan Qingxun visited Wang Xiaolian less and less often, and each time he would rush over, leaving the food behind and leaving immediately.

Wang Xiaolian actually wanted Yan Qingxun to spend more time with her, just like when they were little, teaching her to read and write. But every time, Yan Qingxun would make excuses, saying he was too busy and that the princes had heavy workloads. If they didn't finish the assignments given by the teacher, they would be punished together.

Since Yan Qingxun didn't come to find her, Wang Xiaolian went to find him instead. Even just seeing Brother Qingxun from afar would be enough.

What followed was a scene Wang Xiaolian didn't want to see: Yan Qingxun and several princes were standing beside a girl, saying flattering things. Someone mentioned, "The deposed princess of the Cold Palace."

Yan Qingxun said with a look of disgust that he liked talented women like the Third Princess, while the useless princess in the Cold Palace was just a way to pass the time. He wanted to know what the difference was between a dog and that useless princess.

Wang Xiaolian's heart broke when she heard these words. She was not a time-waster, nor was she a useless princess who could be compared to cats and dogs at will. She was Wang Xiaolian.

Running all the way back to the Cold Palace, Wang Xiaolian pulled out the little wooden figure that she had been caressing so much that it was almost reflective, and threw it hard on the ground. Still feeling unsatisfied, she lit a fire, intending to burn the little wooden figure to ashes.

Wang Xiaolian regretted it when the little wooden figure was only half-burned. She quickly pulled it out of the fire, and even though her hands were scalded with blisters, she didn't let go. She ran to the pond and put the little wooden figure in.

The wooden figures were mostly still there, but their facial features were burned to a crisp, and the words carved on their backs were gone. Wang Xiaolian held the two wooden figures in her arms like treasures.

She has no parents, no nanny, and no brother Qingxun; now she only has the little wooden figure.

After all, it was a friendship from their youth, so Yan Qingxun eventually came to find her and gave her a long explanation, saying that he was only forced to do so at the time and that he had always regarded Wang Xiaolian as a priceless treasure.

Perhaps because those who were good to Wang Xiaolian gradually left, Wang Xiaolian easily forgave Yan Qingxun, but the two could never go back to the way things were before.

The words he spoke to Wang Yuening, while seemingly flattering, likely also reflected his true feelings.

Wang Xiaolian went to see Yan Qingxun several more times. After Yan Qingxun gradually noticed her, he began to drive her away, hoping that she would not go there again, so as not to make him lose face in front of Princess Yue Ning.

In this dynasty, men could marry after the age of fifteen and women after the age of sixteen. The two of them were both seventeen years old, but Yan Qingxun never mentioned marrying Wang Xiaolian.

Everyone has impulsive moments when they're young, but who would take a joke made in their youth seriously?

A major event occurred in the dynasty: the fierce general defending the city was defeated in battle against the barbarians, who were about to march south. The court was in a state of panic, with the pro-war and pro-peace factions arguing endlessly every day, giving the emperor a headache.

The dynasty's supplies and troops were inferior to those of the barbarians. The barbarians were well-prepared for this southward invasion. The emperor wanted to become a great emperor for all time, but the dynasty's military and financial resources did not allow for war.

At this moment, the barbarians suddenly presented a letter of invitation, saying that they had long admired the noble lady of the dynasty, and that their Khan was seeking to marry the princess, hoping that the two countries would forever be united in marriage.

A princess could buy a dynasty decades of peace and prosperity; it was a sure-fire deal, since all they had to do was find a woman from the common people, groom her, and marry her off.

But this time the barbarians seem to have put their minds to it, insisting on marrying the only princess of this dynasty—Wang Yuening. If they discover that the dynasty has deceived them with counterfeit goods, their iron cavalry will raze the dynasty to the ground.

The pro-war and pro-peace factions did achieve a united front, which was to marry Wang Yuening off to the other side.

These things have nothing to do with Wang Xiaolian. Blame Yan Qingxun. Yan Qingxun brought a lot of food to Wang Xiaolian, saying that he hoped the original owner would marry in her place. Wang Yuening was spoiled since childhood and could not bear the hardship of marrying a barbarian far away. Moreover, Wang Xiaolian was also a princess, and the two looked alike, so the barbarians could not tell them apart.

Having gained none of the benefits of being a princess, and now being the first person considered for a political marriage, Wang Xiaolian was no pushover. She slapped Yan Qingxun across the face, saying, "If you can't bear to part with Wang Yuening, then go marry her! What are you doing here with me?"

Yan Qingxun didn't retaliate, but said with a gloomy face that Wang Xiaolian had no choice but to marry him, as he had already reported it to the emperor and the imperial decree to bring the princess back to the palace would arrive soon.

Wang Xiaolian realized for the first time how shameless Yan Qingxun was, but the matter was already settled. She quickly ran back to the Cold Palace, intending to hide there first and then find a way to sneak out of the palace after everyone left. A marriage alliance was out of the question.

In the end, Wang Xiaolian was taken out of the Cold Palace. As she left, she cursed Yan Qingxun, saying that Yan Qingxun must have exposed her location, which was why she was taken away.

Yan Qingxun remained silent. Wang Yuening, who had appeared behind Yan Qingxun at some point, mouthed to Wang Xiaolian, "Being able to take your place in marriage is your good fortune."

Wang Xiaolian was furious and almost broke free from the palace maid's grasp to rush over and beat the adulterous couple.