The system forced me to blow up the female lead's fishpond.

Shen Zhizhi chuckled and waved her hand, her eyes brimming with flattery.

"Oh, Third Sister, I was just thinking that if you went to the banquet to surprise His Highness, he would love you even more."

Shen Qinshou's lips curled slightly, her eyes filled with sarcasm that struck her heart directly. "You're being hypocritical and harboring ill intentions. Just tell me straight, what is your purpose?"

Shen Zhizhi clicked her tongue in embarrassment.

What other purpose could she have?

She simply wanted to enter the Crimson King's Palace to celebrate Chu Tu's birthday, complete her mission, and incidentally cure her poison.

If Shen Qinshou doesn't go, let alone celebrate her birthday, she'll probably be hacked to death by the guards as soon as she gets to the jade lion.

After all, she was the one who completely fooled them that day, sob sob.

Shen Zhizhi was on the verge of tears, but after a moment's thought, a sudden inspiration struck her, and she blurted out a fabricated story:

"Oh dear, what could my sister possibly want? She just wants her older sister to be more favored by the Third Prince."

Shen Qinshou stared at her, a cold smile playing on her lips. "No need to trouble you, sister. You should think about where you'll find shelter tonight. After all, there's nowhere else to stay in this courtyard."

"..." Shen Zhizhi's lips twitched.

If she doesn't take the antidote, a coffin will likely be her final resting place.

Thinking of this, Shen Zhizhi was overwhelmed with grief, and looked at her with teary eyes, "Sister, actually, I am seriously ill, and my only wish is to see you celebrate the Third Prince's birthday."

Shen Zhizhi feigned pain, but secretly glanced at Shen Qinshou out of the corner of her eye.

Thinking it over, she rolled her eyes, clutched her chest with both hands, let out a howl, fell to the ground, her neck lolled to the side, and remained motionless.

According to the novel's plot, the words spoken by a dying person are usually very persuasive.

Will this sea queen heroine—

Before my thoughts could clear, a cold female voice rang in my ears:

"Is that so? If you are seriously ill, that would be even better."

Shen Qinshou glanced at her momentary immersion in the role, ruthlessly shattering her beautiful dream.

Shen Zhizhi, who was lying on the ground, cursed inwardly that the female lead was simply not following the script. She dusted off her robes expressionlessly and got up again.

Just as Shen Qinshou was feeling smug, she suddenly heard Xiao Tao rushing over, panting, "Miss, Miss, something terrible has happened! The Second Prince is coming this way."

"what?!"

Shen Qinshou shuddered slightly, a hint of doubt in her eyes.

The Second Prince never sets foot in this backyard. Even when he looks for her, he does so in the front hall. Why would he come here today?

Before Shen Zhizhi could react, she subconsciously turned around and saw a figure in a dark robe enter her field of vision first, meeting her gaze.

His eyes, which had been filled with laughter, furrowed when he saw her.

She was just crying? Why was she crying?

Chu Chouchi shifted his gaze, his dark eyes sweeping over the messy courtyard. He stood frozen at the doorway, unable to recover for quite some time.

A moment later, a murderous intent suddenly arose in his eyes.

Shen Qinshou stared at Chu Chouchi, who was walking towards her, her heart filled with smugness.

She knew it all along; how could the Second Prince have been seduced by Shen Zhizhi in just a few days? He must have felt guilty towards her these past few days and specially brought rare treasures to try and amuse her.

Thinking of this, Shen Qinshou gracefully stepped forward to greet her.

A confident smile played on her lips, but her face was flushed with shyness. "Brother Qiu Chi, what brings you here? Did you come to play chess with A Shou?"

Chu Chouchi strode over, ruthlessly dodging Shen Qinshou's outstretched wrist, and brushed past her.

"..." Shen Qinshou's face stiffened, and she and her outstretched hand froze on the spot.

Chu Chouchi stepped forward and, before Shen Zhizhi could recover from her shock, raised his hand to wipe away the tears she had squeezed out while acting.

"Eh? Second Prince, you've come at the perfect time, I—"

Her eyes lit up suddenly, and she was about to say something when she was interrupted by his cold gaze.

Shen Zhizhi paused, silently swallowing back the words that were about to come out of her throat.

"Are you injured?" Chu Chouchi's voice was devoid of emotion, extremely indifferent.

Shen Zhizhi blinked, glanced around the courtyard, and realized that he must have misunderstood that a battle had just taken place, so she quickly shook her head.

"Your Highness, it's alright, I—"

Before she could finish speaking, Chu Chouchi turned his emotionless dark eyes to the anxious Shen Qinshou beside him, his voice turning cold:

"Who turned her courtyard into this state?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Tao and the other maids who were standing beside Shen Qinshou immediately knelt down, trembling and not daring to say another word.

This silence only fueled Chu Chouchi's anger.

This courtyard is messy, dilapidated, and filthy. How could this be the residence of the Prime Minister's daughter?

Even the illegitimate daughters of other wealthy families might not be in a worse situation than her.

No wonder she, as a woman, practices martial arts; no wonder she always feels sorry for those few taels of silver. I didn't understand why before, but now I see why.

The environment in which she grew up was so harsh.

The sudden turn of events threw Shen Qinshou into a panic, and the kneeling maid was even more frightened, kowtowing repeatedly and begging for mercy.

"Your Highness, spare my life! Your Highness, spare my life!"

Shen Zhizhi looked up at Shen Qinshou's pitiful appearance and felt a secret sense of satisfaction.

It's good to teach her a lesson, so she won't keep going against her.

Shen Zhizhi curled her lips into a wicked smile, unaware that the person beside her was already radiating murderous intent.

Chu Chouchi's eyes darkened, and a bloodthirsty glint suddenly appeared in them. His tone was calm, yet it was as terrifying as a demon's.

"Fine, since none of them will talk, then kill them all."

Shen Zhizhi:? ? ?

Shen Qinshou's eyes were almost overflowing with grievance and anger. She stared at Chu Chouchi with red eyes, trying to get some care from him.

But his eyes held nothing but coldness and sternness.

[Attention! Attention! Chu Chouchi's corruption level is rising. Please stop it as soon as possible.]

[Warning! Warning! The female protagonist of this story is being threatened! Threatened!]

The repeated alarms from Ya Dan gave Shen Zhizhi a headache, and she couldn't help but look at Chu Chou Chi, whose eyes were red with surprise.

Damn it! You can beat her up! But you absolutely mustn't have murderous intent towards her!

This is the favored daughter of Heaven; if she dies, the entire plane will collapse.

Shen Zhizhi forced herself to calm down and smiled, "Second Prince, actually this matter has nothing to do with them. It was my own idea to renovate this courtyard that made it so messy."

The maid, who was trembling on the ground, was shocked to hear this, and gratitude flashed in her eyes.

Given such a good opportunity, Miss Shen not only didn't blame them, but also defended them.

"They treated you like this, and you're going to plead for them?" Chu Chouchi frowned, his tone clearly displeased.

Shen Zhizhi cautiously raised her eyes and secretly glanced at him. Seeing that his expression was not good and he looked like he was about to get angry, she couldn't help but shrink back.

"Your Highness, don't resort to violence all the time. Just scare them a little."

The weak voice reached Chu Chouchi's ears, making him both annoyed and amused, but he couldn't refuse her request.