Best friends dressed up in ancient times to become mistresses? You run, I run too!

The sweet-smelling tent was suddenly filled with the sharp, masculine aura of a man.

Gradually, the two scents mixed together and kept entering Shen Ningzhu's nostrils.

It stirred a ripple in her calm heart.

"Zhuzhu, is it okay?"

……

The next morning, the butler came to see Shen Ningzhu with an invitation and said respectfully...

"When Princess Qingyi left this morning, she gave this to this old servant and instructed me to make sure it was delivered to you."

Shen Ningzhu hummed in agreement, took the invitation, and saw that it was a banquet invitation. She immediately smiled.

"A chrysanthemum appreciation banquet? Isn't this more like a trap?"

She casually tossed the invitation aside and took a sip of tea. Fuling lifted the curtain and entered, curtsying slightly to Shen Ningzhu.

"Madam, Miss Yi has arrived."

"Ah."

Just as she answered, footsteps sounded outside the door. Then, Liu Zhiyi arrived gracefully like a butterfly, wearing a light purple high-waisted ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) and a dark blue silk cloak with gray squirrel fur draped over it, carrying a cloisonné enamel hand warmer in one hand.

Her thick, black hair danced in the wind, and the gold and kingfisher feather hairpins tucked at her temples swayed gently with her steps. Her smoky pink earrings also swayed, making her flawless, jade-like face even more radiant.

Her almond-shaped eyes sparkled.

As soon as he entered the room, he grinned and tossed two pieces of paper from his other hand at her, saying with great enthusiasm,

"Look, what is this?"

Shen Ningzhu's curiosity was piqued.

"what?"

Liu Zhiyi lowered her eyes and smiled shyly, a faint blush rising on her cheeks, and immediately lowered her voice considerably.

"Ahem, it's a jade mine."

She paused, then added, "Song Hanchuan gave them to me. There were two in total, one for you and one for me."

puff--

Yesterday Pei Yun Chu gave him jade, and today Song Han Chuan is giving him a jade mine? This Song Han Chuan is spoiling him too much!

And then there's her best friend's aura, her carefree and unrestrained demeanor, and the bright and flamboyant look in her eyes—all of these make her appear like a peony in full bloom.

Loving people is like growing flowers.

Song Hanchuan took excellent care of Liu Zhiyi.

My best friend is definitely living the life of a spoiled, powerful heroine in a romance novel. Waaaaah, I'm so envious! But mostly, I'm happy for my best friend.

What does it matter if a man who pampers and cherishes his woman like this can't have sex with her? Just like my best friend said, there's more than one way.

"Come on, I'll take you to pick out some good materials right now. Then, I'll have the craftsmen in the palace make a set of jewelry for each of us, and a jade pendant for each of my godson and godson. I'll draw the designs myself, and I guarantee they'll be one of a kind."

After saying that, he hurriedly tried to pull Shen Ningzhu away, but Shen Ningzhu grabbed him.

"What's the rush? If it's yours, it won't run away. Sit down first, I have something to tell you."

Then he instructed the maid to serve tea.

The two took a sip of hot tea before Shen Ningzhu picked up the invitation and handed it to Liu Zhiyi.

"Jiang Qingyi has made a move. This morning, she had someone send this over. What do you think, should we go?"

Liu Zhiyi answered without hesitation, "Of course."

Although the banquet was not a good one, if we could make good use of it, it could be a free advertisement for the shops that would be opening in the capital.

"I'll be free in three days... She didn't send me an invitation, so I'll go with you then, and we'll go together."

"it is good."

"Oh, by the way, I heard the coronation ceremony was canceled. Why? You still can't accept Jiang Xuan Yan?"

Liu Zhiyi initially thought that her best friend's unreserved return to Beijing meant there was room for improvement in their relationship, but she never expected...

Shen Ningzhu curved her lips into a smile.

“He is domineering and has a terrible temper. If I marry him, I will be molded into a round and flat person, and I will be at his mercy. I have resisted for so long, but I still can’t change him in the slightest.”

"How can someone like that be a husband?"

"The best course of action now is to deceive and coax him into achieving our own goals."

And she, at most, sacrifices a little bit of her looks.

That man was the most handsome man in Jiang Kingdom, and he also had very attractive eight-pack abs.

All things considered, she didn't lose out.

Liu Zhiyi agreed, "You're right. What you can't have always stirs your heart, and what you've lost can never be forgotten."

"If you enter the palace, you will have to take his surname, and there will be a distinction between ruler and subject. When you meet him, you will have to kneel before him. Once you kneel, the cinnabar mole will soon turn into a mosquito bite."

Jiang Xuanyan is different from Song Hanchuan.

"I want to be the kind of person who gets something but doesn't get it, loses something but doesn't lose it completely. That way, my trump card can last longer, giving us more time to plan and strategize."

She dared not and did not want the love of an emperor, a love that was condescending and looked down upon her.

The only way to ensure one's children are fully grown and in control is to help them quickly gain power.

It had been raining for a day and a night, but now the sun was shining brightly again. Although the roads were still wet, they were all paved with bluestone slabs and there was no mud, so it didn't prevent people from going out.

This is the advantage of being in the capital, right under the emperor's nose.

The two boarded a carriage and arrived at the foot of a mine on the outskirts of Beijing. As soon as they got off the carriage, a middle-aged man who looked like a manager came forward to greet them.

"This old servant respectfully welcomes the lady."

Liu Zhiyi waved her hand, indicating that the other party should not stand on ceremony, and said with a smile, "You must be Uncle Wu?"

The other person nodded, "Exactly."

"Madam, after the Prime Minister sent word yesterday, this old servant immediately instructed his men to select the best materials. They're over there; shall I take you there to choose?"

Liu Zhiyi agreed and asked Uncle Wu to lead the way.

Soon, they arrived at a thatched shed at the foot of the mountain. The shed was very large, about four or five hundred square meters.

Inside were rows of neatly arranged wooden tables, each with a small pile of jade on it.

Inside, there were still four or five people working, moving the materials from the wooden cart onto the empty table.

"You all go and do other things first."

"Yes."

After Wu Shuqing finished his performance, he came out and led Liu Zhiyi and her servants into the shed.

Once inside, the group was surprised to find so many materials to choose from, leaving them overwhelmed with choices. In the end, they selected dozens of pieces of material of varying sizes.

Liu Zhiyi thought for a moment,

“It’s still early, Fuling, you guys go pick some too, each of you pick a few, consider it as our dowry for you in advance.”

The four of them, who had been dazzled and beaming with joy, turned pale with fright upon hearing this and hurriedly knelt down in terror.

His voice trembled as he spoke.

"Please forgive us, Miss. We know we were wrong."

Liu Zhiyi blinked her bright almond-shaped eyes, her delicate eyebrows furrowing almost into a knot. "Ah? Forgive me? Forgive me for what? I'm just letting you pick out some things. Why are you kneeling? Get up and talk."