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

He actually believed what the woman said?

Moreover, the Crown Prince's principal wife is the future mother of the nation. Shen Ningzhu looks like a pleasure-seeking person, so how could she really not care about those things?

Shen Ningzhu had only been out of the main courtyard for a short while when she ran into the two people.

The man walked ahead, cursing and swearing, looking extremely angry.

"You little wench, I must have had the worst luck in eight lifetimes to owe you this. Why don't you just have a good life and instead come here to serve people? Are you out of your mind?"

As he was talking, he realized that the people behind him hadn't followed, but had instead chased after a master and servant pair who had just passed by him. Upon closer inspection, the master seemed somewhat familiar.

"Zhuzhu?"

The person who was walking with their head down suddenly turned around, startled, and exclaimed, "Xiao Yi, what brings you here?"

Pei Yun Chu then realized that the familiar-looking woman was Shen Ning Zhu. Although they had only been separated for a few days, the two acted as if they had never seen each other before, holding hands and gazing at each other with tearful eyes, speechless and choked with emotion.

“Zhuzhu, let’s talk about this later. I’m not going anywhere this time; I’ll stay by your side.”

Shen Ningzhu paused for a moment, then nodded.

The two walked side by side toward Plum Blossom Garden. Pei Yun Chu, left standing to the side, was unhappy.

"Hey, you damn woman, are you going to discard me after I've served my purpose?"

She shamelessly pestered him with threats and inducements to take her into the Crown Prince's residence. Now that she's achieved her goal, she's forgotten about him, her meritorious official, hasn't she?

She really is a heartless little woman.

Shen Ningzhu stopped and looked at Liu Zhiyi with a questioning gaze. Liu Zhiyi stuck out her tongue and turned away embarrassedly.

"I will remember your great kindness. I will treat you to a meal another day when I have time."

Just having a meal?

He was punished by her and still has cuts and bruises on his skin.

Pei Yun Chu was dissatisfied and was about to bargain when he looked up and realized that the group had already disappeared. He clenched his fists tightly in anger and growled under his breath.

"Liu...knows...my..."

Hearing his roar from not far away, Liu Zhiyi grabbed Shen Ningzhu's wrist and ran even faster.

Without delay, the two quickly returned to Plum Blossom Garden. Shen Ningzhu pulled her into her boudoir, then ordered all the maids to leave and closed the door behind her.

Once they were alone in the room, she asked anxiously, "What happened? Why are you here? Didn't we agree to split up?"

Liu Zhiyi sighed.

“Logically speaking, splitting up is indeed the best way, but Zhuzhu, I really don’t trust you to fight alone.”

My best friend has been gentle and kind since childhood. How can she cope with the treacherous power struggles within the palace and the inner palace?

Shen Ningzhu was so angry she felt heartbroken.

"But we clearly agreed on this back then."

Wasn't it enough that she was imprisoned? She actually went ahead and willingly entered the game. What a fool! How could she be so stupid?

Liu Zhiyi said with a smile that he had only agreed to her request as a temporary measure to put her mind at ease.

In fact, she had already taken advantage of these few days to arrange things outside, so naturally she came to find her.

Shen Ningzhu: ...

Liu Zhiyi held Shen Ningzhu's hand, gently tightening it, and earnestly comforted her.

"Okay, you know I can't live without you. We used to be inseparable. Now that we're apart, I can't even sleep peacefully."

Shen Ningzhu's lips twitched.

Liu Zhiyi understands Shen Ningzhu's strong desire for freedom, but she also knows that her ideas are too idealistic.

How could a pampered young lady understand the cruel reality of life and the hardships of survival?

Leaving is not easy, but living well is even more difficult.

The most important thing right now is to survive in this secluded place. The prerequisite for riding the waves is good health.

Everything depends on the existence of life. What is this saying: "Life is precious, love is more precious, but freedom is the most precious of all"?

Just ridiculous.

She came from an orphanage, grew up in the mud, and struggled to survive in the mud. From a young age, she only knew one principle: it is better to live a miserable life than to die.

Even ants try to survive.

More important than anything else is having life, money to spend, food to eat, and clothes to wear.

With her sister's temperament, it would be very dangerous for her to be alone in this secluded mansion, so she couldn't leave her alone in the Crown Prince's residence.

“I deposited one thousand taels of the silver you gave me in a bank, and also left some for my uncle and aunt to use in case of emergencies. I used the rest to buy fertile fields, shops, and estates on the hills.”

"Renting is fine, and finding someone to manage it is also fine. Everything is arranged properly, so you can rest assured."

"Ahem, but these are all under my name. Your current situation is sensitive, I'm afraid..."

Shen Ningzhu raised her hand and slapped her on the forehead, then glared at her angrily.

"What's there to explain? Would I doubt you?"

Liu Zhiyi's eyes reddened for a moment, then she quickly blinked, her almond-shaped eyes crinkling as she hugged Shen Ningzhu's arm, resting her head on her thin shoulder and nuzzling against her affectionately.

"Sisters~~~"

Shen Ningzhu shoved her head away, baring her teeth in disgust, "Get off me, you're giving me goosebumps. If you want to act cute, go find a man. I'm a woman."

Liu Zhiyi pouted angrily at her, looking at her as if she were a scumbag.

"It's been a few days, sister, you've changed. You don't love me anymore." She sobbed twice, and then the scene suddenly changed.

"Hehe, what do I need a man for? My sisters are much more reliable than men. They've kept me as their mistress for years without me having to sacrifice my looks."

Well, since she'd already said that, what could Shen Ningzhu do? She sighed and finally relented, agreeing to let her stay. Liu Zhiyi breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

"Oh right, what's going on with Pei Yun Chu? You and him..."

Liu Zhiyi shuddered, and the breath she had just relaxed came rushing back up.

"Oh dear, what's going on? I don't understand what you're saying. Good heavens, sister, you've gotten so thin! It must be because you're not used to the food here!"

"Don't worry, now that I'm here, I'll take care of this from now on. Tell me what you want to eat, and your sister will cook it for you herself."

One sentence completely whetted Shen Ningzhu's appetite, and she no longer cared about Pei Yun Chu or not.

With sparkling eyes, she said:

"I want to eat spicy and sour cold shrimp, spicy hand-pulled wide rice noodles, and various braised chicken feet."

Liu Zhiyi waved his hand and patted his chest with great pride, "Yes, sir, wait."

Seeing that the person had left, Shen Ningzhu summoned Zhiyuan and Zhiyi.

"Give the order: Xiaoyi will stay by my side from now on. Her will is my will. From now on, she will be in charge of everything in the courtyard. Do you understand?"

The two were greatly surprised.

Shen Ningzhu didn't have time to pay attention to them and urged, "Go and pass on the message quickly, then come back to me and come with me to see Steward Zhang."

The two left dejectedly, but returned shortly afterward. Shen Ningzhu then led them to the front courtyard.

Throughout the journey, both Zhiyuan and her companion were preoccupied with their own thoughts.