Report to the Empress and the Eldest Princess: They're using the system to poach your men.

Shen Sangwan turned around and pulled the person into her arms, only to find that the other person was crying their eyes out.

"Since it's something from a past life, it's in the past. Why dwell on it and trouble yourself? Aren't I doing just fine now?"

He gently stroked her head and softly comforted Wen Yuening.

"But those images are like wood carvings, deeply imprinted in my mind, and I can't shake them off."

"Your Highness has always been very good; it's just that Yue Ning has been a bit immature."

He buried his face in Shen Sangwan's chest, tears streaming down his face like a burst dam, soaking Shen Sangwan's clothes.

“You’re good, but you’re too preoccupied with some things, which is trapping you. Once the war in Dongrui has subsided, I’ll take you to Qinzhou. Although it’s not as bustling as the capital, it has vast deserts that stretch as far as the eye can see, which is very refreshing.”

As she cried, Wen Yuening lost her voice and could only nod repeatedly.

"If I do anything wrong in the future, please point it out directly. I will reflect on it seriously and try to do better. Please don't hide aside and sulk like you did today."

"I didn't...!"

Wen Yuening retorted softly, her voice barely audible. Fortunately, the two were close together, otherwise Shen Sangwan would not have been able to hear her.

"If you don't have it, then what's wrong with this hand? And why keep that puppet if it's been destroyed?"

Shen Sangwan teased Wen Yuening in a tone that suggested she had figured it out.

This made the other person blush for a while, and they buried their head in their arms and stopped talking.

"What is it engraved? Can I see it?"

Wen Yuening gently punched Shen Sangwan's arm with her right fist. "Your Highness is asking a question you already know the answer to."

Shen Sangwan suppressed a laugh and continued teasing the other person, "I don't know what you're carving of me—"

"Your Highness always likes to tease Yue Ning."

"It's clearly you who likes to tease me. I tease you occasionally, so how does that make me 'always'?"

Hearing Wen Yuening's soft laughter, Shen Sangwan relaxed for a moment.

Once the two of them talked things out, everything would be much easier to handle.

Wen Yuening took a handkerchief from her sleeve, wiped away her tears, and turned to go to the dressing table to get the half-finished puppet.

After handing it to Shen Sangwan, she was met with skepticism, "A Ning, your drawing skills are so good, how come your wood carving skills are so... Are you sure this is a carving of me?"

Upon hearing this, Wen Yuening made a move to snatch it back, but Shen Sangwan anticipated this and immediately darted to the other side of the table.

After examining it closely again, he still found it hard to believe that the puppet in his hand was himself.

"It's so ugly, why don't you give it to me, Aning? I'll go back and alter it myself, maybe it'll look better."

"Doesn't Your Highness find it impossible to accept any flaws?"

"I won't mind if there's dirt on your food."

Master, you have such double standards!

Xiao Tong couldn't stand her master any longer and suddenly appeared.

Don't come back to life; if you don't speak, no one will think you're dead.

Shen Sangwan quickly muted the chat to avoid disturbing her time alone with her A Ning.

She'll be leaving in a few days, so she wants to stay as long as possible.

What does "double standards" mean?

"It's a compliment; he's praising me. You don't need to pay attention to Xiaotong's crazy talk."

Meanwhile, Xiao Tong, who was silenced, glared with her dark eyes and jumped up and down on the ground in anger.

"What do you mean by 'talking nonsense'?"

"Is this double standard being considered a compliment?"

"Master, don't go too far. You only know how to bully me. If I find a chance one day, I won't be Xiaotong if I don't give you a good thrashing."

Frustrated, Xiaotong could only squat in the corner, drawing circles and cursing silently.

"If Your Highness does not mind, then we will give it to you."

Seeing that Wen Yuening agreed, Shen Sangwan put the puppet on the table, planning to pick it up on her way back.

"Has Ah Ning had lunch?"

When Shen Sangwan asked, Wen Yuening realized that she hadn't eaten anything yet.

"Yue Ning will have Qing Que serve the meal."

The two ate together in the front hall and lingered for a long time. As dusk approached, Shen Sangwan climbed over the wall of Fengluan Palace to return to her own palace.

Bored, Cen Yan asked Ruoying to play Go with her. When Shen Sangwan came back to find her, Ruoying was all smiles, while Cen Yan had a bitter face.

"Hey, little Yan Yan, who bullied you? Why are you looking so down? Tell me, and I'll get revenge for you."

Cen Yan pointed at Ruoying across from her without hesitation.

Upon seeing Shen Sangwan enter, Ruoying quickly got off the soft couch and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."

"Huh—? How did she bully you?"

Shen Sangwan approached and glanced at Ruoying, who had her head down.

Hearing her lord speak, Ruoying was startled and quickly explained, "No...it's not like that...Your Highness, I didn't bully the princess..."

“Sang Wan, I’m a Go master, but I can’t beat a newbie who just learned the rules. I’m also injured, and she doesn’t even know to let me win.”

As Cen Yan spoke, she felt increasingly wronged, tears welling up in her eyes as if they would burst forth at any moment.

Upon seeing this, Ruoying immediately knelt on the ground.

"Little Yan Yan, when did you learn to be a scoundrel? If you can't win, you can't win, but how can you frame Ruoying? Look how scared you've made her."

"Who told her to be like a block of wood, never letting me win a game or two, always making me die miserably? You should teach her a lesson."

"Then I'll punish her by making her receive ten strokes of the military rod, to vent your anger for me."

He was about to give an order when Cen Yan was so frightened that she quickly stood up and grabbed his hand, saying, "Hey, hey... no, no, I was just joking, why did you take it seriously?"

Although Ruoying is a bit of a blockhead and doesn't really understand social etiquette, she's been very considerate of me. If you hurt her, who will take care of me?

The more Shen Sangwan listened to these words, the more she felt something was amiss, and she carefully examined Cen Yan and Ruoying.

"No way, has my little Yan Yan suddenly become smarter?"

There's something strange about what they're saying.

"What are you looking at?"

Cen Yan felt somewhat uncomfortable under Shen Sangwan's scrutiny.

"Tsk tsk tsk, something's up—"

Shen Sangwan waved for Ruoying to leave, and after she left, she pressed Cen Yan back down onto the soft couch. "Tell me—what's wrong with you?"

Cen Yan was somewhat bewildered, not understanding what Shen Sangwan meant.

He shook his head, puzzled, and asked, "What's going on? I'm perfectly fine, there's nothing wrong with me."

Shen Sangwan stared at Cen Yan with an air of anticipation, slowly approaching her, "Why were you in such a hurry when I was about to punish Ruoying?"

“I met her at the Princess’s residence, and she took care of me personally. I’ve come to regard her as a very good friend. Could a joke really have hurt her?”

"Just friends!"

Shen Sangwan deliberately dragged out her voice, looking like she was looking forward to a good show.

Cen Yan forcefully pushed Shen Sangwan away, "What else can we do?"