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

Pei Yun Chu's eyes flickered slightly, and a hint of shyness appeared on his arrogant and handsome face, his cheeks quickly flushing red.

He lowered his head and stammered.

"I... Xiaoyi, actually even if I hadn't come today, I was planning to come see you in the next couple of days."

“I’ve discussed it with my family, and my parents have agreed. I plan to bring you into the family as my concubine.”

Seeing that neither of them spoke, Pei Yun Chu raised an eyebrow triumphantly, "What, are you so happy to have let me follow you that you've gone crazy?"

"It's nothing. It's all thanks to your own hard work. My parents love you very much, and that's the blessing we have."

"No need to be grateful. Just serve me well in the future, and that will be your way of repaying my kindness."

Shen Ningzhu gritted her teeth.

Repay him? No, all she wants now is to beat him up, the kind that smashes his head in with a hammer. As for good fortune, he can keep that good fortune for himself; her Xiao Yi wouldn't even consider it.

Pei Yun Chu got up and started searching the room, somewhat puzzled. "What is she doing?"

Liu Zhiyi, on the other hand, was much calmer.

"Zhuzhu—"

Shen Ningzhu looked at her and saw her shake her head slightly. She immediately frowned and said unhappily, "Xiaoyi, don't let love cloud your judgment. I won't allow you to ruin yourself like this."

Pei Yun Chu was dumbfounded.

What is self-degradation?

He, the young heir of the Duke of Pei's mansion, a promising young general, was treated as a disgrace as a concubine. Was this woman out of her mind? Did she really think she was something special?

They were all like her, making a scene like clowns for so long, but in the end they all obediently became Ah Yan's concubine.

In his opinion, Ah Yan, that taciturn man, is too easy to control. If a woman doesn't listen to him, it's simply because he's been too lenient with her.

"Xiao Yi, don't listen to her nonsense. Although I can't make you a concubine, I can assure you that I will give you the utmost favor in the future. Based on this, you will only be second to the mistress in the entire Duke Pei's mansion."

"Our food, clothing, and daily necessities will not be lacking."

"Your kung fu is quite good. With more practice, you'll definitely be more capable than those young ladies from wealthy families in the capital."

"If I ever go to the battlefield in the future, I'll take you with me. We'll be a perfect couple, and we'll surely make a name for ourselves. What do you think? I still love you more, don't I?"

Shen Ningzhu: ...

No, she really couldn't stand this peacock for even a second longer.

"You go."

Liu Zhiyi said calmly.

Pei Yun Chu laughed, "So eager to become my person? Alright, wait, I'll have someone come and fetch you to the manor tomorrow."

Liu Zhiyi smiled slowly.

She tried to get up, but the moment she moved, her wound was aggravated, causing her to wince in pain and fall back down.

Shen Ningzhu, disregarding the need to find a stick, quickly went to help her. Pei Yun Chu said with a grin,

"Just lie down. We're practically family now, why bother with all that formality? No need to see me off."

Liu Zhiyi insisted that Shen Ningzhu help her sit up, looked into Pei Yunchu's eyes, and said, word by word,

"Young general, please return. From now on, though the mountains and rivers may separate us, I only wish never to see you again."

Pei Yun Chu stood there, stunned.

After a long while, his eyes moved. He was a little confused. He recognized every word Liu Zhiyi said, but he couldn't understand it when they were put together.

Shen Ningzhu kindly reminded him.

"You can get out of here. As for taking a concubine, forget it. My Xiaoyi wouldn't be interested in someone like you."

Pei Yun Chu certainly wasn't going to leave; seeing that things were about to get out of hand, Liu Zhi Yi quickly said...

"Zhuzhu is right, I'm sure I don't like you."

"Then who do you like?"

"I'm sorry, I like eunuchs. If you want me to be your concubine, that's not impossible, unless..."

puff-

Shen Ningzhu almost burst out laughing. "Did you hear that? If you want to take my Xiaoyi as your concubine, you'd better come to the palace first. Otherwise, you won't win my Xiaoyi's heart."

Pei Yun Chu finally left in anger.

Shen Ningzhu sighed, unable to smile anymore. She sat back on the edge of the bed, her eyes filled with an unprecedented sadness.

"Xiao Yi, do you think I'm particularly useless?"

"After all this effort, I suddenly realized today that in this era, even if a man hates a woman, he can still let her into his home and have her take his surname."

"Whether it's due to shared interests or because that woman has his seal on her name, she can only be his person in life and in death, and there's no way she could ever wander outside."

"I actually tried to struggle, but in the end, I was too naive and ridiculous."

But she really didn't want to accept it.

Leaving aside love, just the fact that Princess Qingyi almost killed Liu Zhiyi makes one wonder what would happen if the Crown Princess entered the mansion, along with all sorts of concubines, noble concubines, maids, and maids.

By then, where will she and Liu Zhiyi have any space to live?

Is she really going to accept her fate and fight to the death in this inner courtyard, becoming neither human nor ghost?

No, she'd rather die than accept that.

The once bright and cheerful young lady, who dared to love and hate and lived a free and unrestrained life, full of vitality and facing the sun, now has a confusion in her eyes that she has never seen before, which makes Liu Zhiyi feel extremely sorry for her.

“Zhuzhu, you did nothing wrong.”

The mistake lies in the fact that they received many years of higher education and have an absolute sense of self, yet they transmigrated into powerless and ordinary people.

Living in this backward feudal dynasty, they were imprisoned and oppressed by the patriarchal ideology and rules.

Given the circumstances, what could these two weak women, who were powerless to even kill a chicken, possibly do?

A broken spine and crushed pride are nothing compared to the fact that you are alive.

"Xiaoyi, just thinking about living like this forever, in darkness, makes me so sad."

"I don't want to see that disgusting couple. They're so deeply in love, why should we be part of their game?"

Liu Zhiyi pursed her lips.

"Zhuzhu, is it possible that His Highness the Crown Prince doesn't actually like Princess Qingyi, and only has other feelings for her?"

Shen Ningzhu wiped away the tears on her cheeks, snorted coldly, and spoke with a hint of sarcasm.

"What difference does it make? As long as he is the crown prince, I will never like him in my life."

She has had emotional fastidiousness since childhood.

Emperors are ruthless, let alone loyal to one person. She was just an ordinary person and dared not gamble that she would be an exception. It would be a blessing if she were not sacrificed to his imperial power.

The wooden door was kicked open with a bang.

The luxurious boots pounded on the ground with a dull thud. The man was exceptionally handsome, but his face was as black as ink.

"Shen Ningzhu, who did you just say was disgusting?"

If Pei Yun Chu hadn't come to complain to him, he wouldn't have heard about this amazing scene!

He considered himself ruthless and cold-blooded, but compared to the woman in front of him, he was no match for her at all.

In her eyes, he was disgusting?

One second they're all lovey-dovey and inseparable, the next they can be crying their hearts out in front of someone else, saying they find him disgusting.

Who was it that used to profess love for him and wanted to enter his Crown Prince's residence at all costs?

"Shen Ningzhu, speak."