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

His purpose was to obtain a large sum of money from Shen Ningzhu.

From frugality to luxury is easy, from luxury to frugality.

The three were dragged away, and no one knew what would happen to them. Shen Ningzhu didn't care.

As for Jiang Qingyi, who still sat high in the main seat, Shen Ningzhu had long guessed that she wouldn't be punished. After all, this wasn't the first time that scoundrel had sided with her.

The party continues.

No one present had time to speculate about the Emperor's attitude toward Shen Ningzhu; everyone perked up.

The so-called "winding stream party" is, as the name suggests, an elegant gathering that uses the mountains and rivers as a table and is based on reciting poems and composing lyrics.

However, this approach is mostly applicable to literary figures and poets.

When powerful and wealthy families host this kind of banquet, the level of the event is even higher, as exemplified by Princess Qingyi's banquet this time.

The banquet was held at a hot spring resort on the outskirts of Beijing.

A long covered walkway was built on the upper half of the mountain. In the middle of the walkway was a water channel made of stone, and clean stone tables were carved along the sides of the water channel.

Spring water from the mountains meandered down the irrigation canal, and everyone present sat down in order of seniority and importance.

Immediately, rows of maids dressed in identical attire lined up and orderly placed fine wine and delicacies in front of each guest.

Jiang Qingyi stood up, placed the wine cup in the water, and watched it float downstream.

Soon, the procession stopped in front of a noblewoman from a prominent family. The woman stood up, bowed to everyone, drank the wine in one gulp, and then composed a poem.

The crowd cheered, and the woman smiled shyly, glancing furtively at Jiang Xuan Yan, who was sitting at the very top.

Today, Jiang Xuan Yan was dressed in black, with gold and silver threads embroidering five-clawed golden dragons with bared teeth and claws on the hem and cuffs, understated yet luxurious.

Its body is sturdy and upright, like a slender bamboo.

A crack appeared in the thick clouds, and a ray of light shone through, falling on him and bathing him in a golden glow.

His slender fingers gently held the white porcelain wine glass in his hand. The light fell on his fair knuckles, making his skin, which was so white it was almost transparent, appear even whiter than the wine glass.

One hand alone is enough to reveal this person's unparalleled nobility.

He didn't do anything; he just sat there, and his noble and powerful aura as a king was overwhelming, making everyone present afraid to breathe.

It exudes a sense of aloofness amidst its elegance, creating an oppressive feeling that keeps strangers at bay.

A gust of autumn wind blew by, causing his clothes to flutter and rise in an elegant arc, inexplicably adding to his refined and otherworldly appearance, making him look like a fairy.

At this moment, he kept his eyes straight ahead, calmly drinking his wine, without even glancing at the woman who had just composed the poem.

His long, curled eyelashes drooped slightly, casting a shadow on his fair, jade-like face. At the same time, they also obscured all the emotions in his eyes, making it impossible for anyone to discern his thoughts, no matter how hard they tried.

Seeing that her efforts had not attracted any attention, a hint of disappointment flashed in the woman's eyes. She clenched the handkerchief in her hand tightly and quietly sat back down in her original seat.

Shen Ningzhu thought that Jiang Qingyi's antics for the day should come to an end.

But not long after, another accident occurred.

A maid accidentally spilled wine on her, and then knelt on the ground in fear, kowtowing repeatedly and begging for forgiveness, saying that she did not do it on purpose.

He even suggested taking Shen Ningzhu to a guest room to change into clean clothes.

Shen Ningzhu raised her eyes and looked at Jiang Qingyi through the crowd with a half-smile.

Just then, Jiang Qingyi also looked up, and their eyes met.

Jiang Qingyi was initially a little guilty, but she quickly regained her composure, nodded slightly at her, and behaved with grace and composure, without a single fault.

But the hatred in his eyes was not concealed.

Since she had nothing better to do, and since some people liked to cause trouble, she would reluctantly cooperate.

So, without saying a word, Shen Ningzhu got up with the maid and left the table.

As she turned around, she caught a glimpse of the maidservant letting out a sigh of relief. She then raised her head slightly and exchanged a triumphant glance with Jiang Qingyi at the head of the table before lowering her head and walking ahead to lead the way.

I found it somewhat amusing.

She blamed herself for acting too stupidly before, to the point that these two didn't hide anything from her at all and completely treated her like a fool and a blind person.

The two soon arrived at an empty room. The maid told her to wait inside while she went to find her some clothes.

Shen Ningzhu hummed in agreement, strode into the room, and casually found a seat at the table.

The maidservant carefully observed her expression and, seeing that she seemed perfectly normal, a flash of disdain crossed her eyes before she quickly left.

Hearing the footsteps gradually fade away, Shen Ningzhu didn't hesitate any longer. She quickly went to the window, opened it, and nimbly climbed out.

When he looked up, he met a pair of deep, dark eyes. The man narrowed his long, phoenix-shaped eyes, and a bright smile appeared in his eyes.

"What are you here for?"

Shen Ningzhu blinked, somewhat surprised.

She remembered that every time Jiang Qingyi used tricks, Jiang Xuanyan would act as if he were blind, his intelligence seemingly reduced. Not only would he fail to see through her clumsy acting, but he would also always defend her, causing her and Liu Zhiyi to suffer.

Today, the sun seems to have risen in the west.

Jiang Xuan Yan naturally saw the mockery in Shen Ning Zhu's eyes. He didn't explain further, but instead pulled her away.

Shen Ningzhu frowned and forcefully shook off his hand. "What are you doing?"

Jiang Xuan Yan sighed deeply, gently took her hands in his, and said helplessly,

"I knew you wouldn't fall for my tricks easily, but seeing you leave your seat, I couldn't help but quickly follow you."

"Zhuzhu, Xiaobao, even if it's because I care about you so much, you shouldn't speak to me so harshly, right?"

The man gazed intently at Shen Ningzhu, his eyes filled with deep grievance.

Shen Ningzhu forced a smile, said thank you, and turned her head away without saying anything more.

During the stalemate, a noise came from inside the house.

Shen Ningzhu quickly opened a crack in the window and looked inside. She saw Yun'er carrying an unconscious woman on her back and throwing her onto the bed in the room.

Judging from her clothes, she must be a maid here.

Shen Ningzhu was taken aback. Just then, Yun'er also saw her. She was startled at first, but then acted as if nothing had happened, quickly leaving the house and closing the door behind her.

Before long, Liu Zhiyi led Yun'er and Xia'er around to the window where Shen Ningzhu was.

Shen Ningzhu asked,

"Xiaoyi, that maid..."

Liu Zhiyi snorted coldly.

“I know what you mean. I originally thought that she was a servant who was just doing what her master asked, and that she had no choice but to do so. So I thought I would do what you did and let her live.”

"But you don't know, when I came here with my maid, I happened to hear her talking to herself as she walked."

"His words were full of malice towards you, and he was excitedly looking forward to seeing how miserable you would be after being insulted. His words were as vicious as could be."