Song Zaishui was a prudent person. Although she was pinching Wei Changying's ear and was scolding her, she knew how far to go. She was not pinching too tight, so she wouldn't hurt Wei Changying. However, she had underestimated Wei Changying's shamelessness. How could Miss Wei let go of such an opportunity? As Song Zaishui was pulling her ear, Wei Changying deliberately fell into her arms!

Song Zaishui was frightened. She immediately stood up and screamed after a short freeze. She let go of Wei Changying's ear and held Wei Changying as she asked, “You? You? What's the matter?”

“Miss Wei!” said the maidservants as they helped the beloved Wei Changying sit on the couch. They ma.s.saged her back, served her a cup of water and served her to lie down. Just as they were hesitating whether they should ask Song Zaishui to call a doctor, Wei Changying, who was pretending faint, opened her eyes. Song Zaishui was worried about her and asked softly, “My good Changying, what…what happens to you?”

— She didn't pull Wei Changying's ear hard! She was not a rude person like Wei Changying, and it was just a girls' fight…. Why…why did she faint?

Just as Song Zaishui did not know what to do, Wei Changying seemed to be at her last gasp. She reached out her trembling hands and grabbed Song Zaishui's hand as she said disjointedly, “Cou… cousin! I… I'm dying… I….”

The scene that Wei Changying was going to die in no time confused the maidservants. But Song Zaishui had understood, and her face turned sullen immediately!

After being colored with balsamine juice, her fingernails were as red as blood. She reached her hands for Wei Changying's neck as she said, “How dare you frighten me!!!”

Poor Song Zaishui was so regretful! In the beginning, she was reluctant to depart from Jiangnan for the capital, so she insisted to visit her aunt Madam Song in order to prolong the arrival time. When Song Zaishui had just arrived in the Wei Family's, Madam Song was delightful to see her lineal niece. But when talking about her children who were at Song Zaishui's age, Madam Song always said in pity that among her two children, the younger brother called Changfeng was fine, but the sister called Wei Changying was a bossy girl and was hard to get along with. So Madam Song had asked her to forgive Wei Changying if she had done anything annoying….

Song Zaishui got along with her cousin with much care at the beginning. After contacting several times, she thought that although Wei Changying was a bit too outgoing and was too obsessed with martial arts, she was a nice and frank person. How would she be so bad as Madam Song had said? She thought that it was because Madam Song didn't approve Wei Changying to practice martial arts, and that Madam Song was making modest remarks, which had caused such description on Wei Changying.

…Now Song Zaishui understood that she was the one who had been blinded! Madam Song was her lineal aunt! How would Madam Song cheat her?!

After Song Zaishui knew that she was pretending, Wei Changying became vigorous again. She ignored the maidservants who were looking at her speechlessly and pushed Song Zaishui away to sit up. She was half lying on the couch with one leg swinging by the edge. She then made a funny face and said, “Well, I know I can't fool you since you are so brilliant….”

“Get out! Now!” Song Zaishui said in anger. She thought that since she had been cultivated by her grandmother as the future Empress, she was able to tolerate the imperial concubines in the emperor's harem, so Wei Changying was nothing to her. But now she found she was wrong, for none of those imperial concubines could be worse than Wei Changying. Her cousin was a real genius for p.i.s.sing others off!

“No, no! I can't get out!” Wei Changying said as she lied down again on the couch, “A short while ago, you have just pinched my ear, and now my head hurts! I suppose I have to rest for thirty or fifty days before recovery. In this period, I could only lie here and learn about the rules and the style of speaking!”

Song Zaishui hoped that she could pour the pot of frozen cheese next to her onto Wei Changying!

“I've just pinched you slightly…, and you said you need to rest for thirty or fifty days?” Song Zaishui said as she held the round silk fan and fanned furiously. She glanced fiercely at Wei Changying and gnashed her teeth as she said, “You…. Do you think you are as fragile as tofu or colored glaze?!”

Wei Changying sighed and said, “As the children beloved by the family, although we are not as fragile as tofu or colored glaze, what kind of tofu and glaze could be more delicate than us? As the proverb goes, ‘the children from distinguished families can never put themselves in risks.' I should seize the opportunity that G.o.d has offered me to become a daughter of a n.o.ble family! I have to love myself! Therefore, my dear cousin…. Let's just forget about the manners and postures for several days, and talk about it after I recover….”

“Yes, yes. You are the apple of their eyes, what am I?” All of a sudden, Song Zaishui's face turned sullen like the sky before a storm. Her voice was so cold that anyone who had heard it would tremble out of fear. She was really angry this time. She stopped fanning, put her fan against her cheek and looked at Wei Changying coldly. Word by word, she said, “I've lost my mother since I was a child and was uncertain about my future. What kind of beloved child would be as miserable as I am? Have you ever seen a beloved child who has nominal children before she gets married? Or have you seen a beloved child who is forced to get married?”

Song Zaishui had so much resentment towards her marriage that Wei Changying dared not talk about it anymore. She stopped pretending and said, “Why are you so worried? You see, since the letter you received last time, Uncle Song hasn't done anything. Maybe he has changed his mind, don't you think so?”

Wei Changying meant to comfort Song Zaishui, but Song Zaishui was so smart that she was reminded by Wei Changying's words. She was so terrified that she nearly dropped her round fan. She said, “Yes, father has said in the letter that the Royal Astronomical Observatory has begun to fix the date, and that I should set out as soon as possible! I didn't reply, but my father should have sent me another letter after knowing that I'm here. Why didn't he?”

Wei Changying clapped her hands and said, “See? I told you that Uncle Song loves you. Perhaps the letter was aimed to show other people but not to urge you to go to the capital!”

Song Zaishui frowned and said coldly, “What do you know? I'm thinking that maybe my father…. Maybe after seeing me so disobedient, he wrote a letter to other people and asked them to take me away by force. Maybe that's why he didn't urge me anymore.”

“… He's unapt to do so, isn't he?” said Wei Changying. Old Madam Song and Madam Song didn't tell Wei Changying that Song Zaitian was coming to Fengzhou with Shen Zhou, so she didn't know about it either. However, Song Zaishui's words made Wei Changying believe that since Song Yuw.a.n.g had insisted that Song Zaishui should marry into the royal family, he wouldn't change his mind so fast…, so Song Zaishui's surmise might be true. Wei Changying thought for a while and said, “What about the people around you these days….”

She looked at her four maidservants—Chunjing, Xiajing, Qiujing, and Dongjing—one by one, which made them cry in their minds. They knelt down and said, “We have never received any secret letters. We have served you for so many years, how could we betray you?”

Fortunately, their master Song Zaishui was penetrative enough. She glared at Wei Changying and said, “Do you think four of them can take me to the capital by force? Even if my father sends a secret letter, he will give it to my bodyguards!”

“There's no way to know then. Those bodyguards are not at the backyard, so I haven't even seen them.” Wei Changying frowned as she said, “What about letting Changfeng ask?”

Song Zaishui bit her lip and thought rapidly for a moment. She then shook her head and said, “Changfeng is too young, and he hasn't talked with these people before. If he asks them now, they will suspect him.”

She then paused and said, “Now it's still hot. If they tell my grandaunt and aunt that they are going to take me away, they will need ice on the way to the capital, and they should begin to tidy my carriage these days…. Find a way to let someone keep an eye on these two situations.”

Wei Changying appreciated her scrupulous cousin in her mind and nodded as she said, “Ok!” However, she had another thought….

“However, even if Uncle Song has sent letters to those bodyguards, and the bodyguards have told my grandmother, my grandmother can't disobey Uncle Song's decision. Therefore, even if you really know what they are planning, what can you do?”

Song Zaishui stared at her for a while and said sullenly, “I can find a way after knowing what they are planning! How do you know whether I can figure out a way or not?”

“Actually, I have a good idea,” Wei Changying warmly suggested, “I can ask Uncle Jiang to make some knockout drops which can make the guards fall asleep on your way to the capital. And then….”

“Go back to your Xianshuang Court and practice with your Uncle Jiang!” Song Zaishui was so angry that she threw her fan onto Wei Changying and said, “Firstly, how can I put the knockout drops into everyone's food? Secondly, what if one of my bodyguards recognizes the knockout drops? Most importantly, if they all fall asleep, who will serve me and protect me?!”

Wei Changying didn't think that her idea was ridiculous and stupid. She said, “Oh, I give you such an idea because I think you don't want to leave. Although my idea is impractical, maybe you can come up with a perfect idea inspired by me.”

Song Zaishui waved her hand in desperation and said, “Go away now! Don't bother me! Leave me alone!”

After Wei Changying was driven out of Mingse House, Lvchi asked carefully, “Miss Song is extremely reluctant to return to the capital, why do you always mention it?” Wei Changying had just said to Song Zaishui that Song Yuw.a.n.g didn't write letters these days. Although she seemed to be comforting Song Zaishui, Lvchi and Lvfang, who had been serving her since she was small, knew that Wei Changying did it deliberately!

Song Zaishui was a prudent but suspicious person, and she was already worrying about being taken back to the capital. Therefore, after Wei Changying had mentioned it, Miss Song fell into her scheme, which was aiming to let her suspect that she would be taken back to the capital by force. Miss Song had even asked Wei Changying to get some information about the bodyguards of the Song Family. Although the information that Wei Changying would provide for Song Zaishui wouldn't prove her surmise, it would definitely make her feel terrified….

However, Song Zaishui was the future Empress, though she was reluctant to become the Empress. Lvchi was a bit worried about Wei Changying, because she had schemed on the future Empress Song Zaishui.

“What do you know about?” said Wei Changying. Having found that there were no other people around, she smiled cunningly and said, “Didn't you hear that my mother has asked my cousin to teach me how to talk with my future uncle-in-law? But now she is bothered by her own affairs, how will she have time to teach me now? If I didn't mention her marriage, how would I have a chance to escape from learning those manners?”

Having heard what Wei Changying had said, the maidservants became speechless. Lvfang said anxiously, “But if you don't learn…, what if the people of the Shen Family come and see you….”

“Although Shen Zhou is an elder, he is a male,” Wei Changying smiled as she said confidently, “also, his coming is aimed to read the imperial edict and discuss my wedding. The former one is a public affair, which is none of my business; as to the latter one, he will discuss with my grandparents but not with me anyway. Even if I greet him, do you think we will have a long conversation?”

She shook her head and said, “I think after he completes the public affair, my grandparents will invite him to the rear hall and make an excuse to let me greet him. So all I'll need is to say several courtesy words and then stand behind my grandparents and listen to them like a fool. How difficult can it be? What's more, I've already learned some rules and manners!”

Hearing what Wei Changying had said, Lvchi and Lvfang thought she was right. However, they were still worried about their master Wei Changying….

Therefore, Lvchi said, “You can cope with the member of Shen Family this time, but…what about after you get married?”

“You're so stupid! My wedding day is in the next year, so we can talk about it then!” Wei Changying said frivolously.

“….” The maidservants kept silent. Alright, since their master was feeling at ease, the servants couldn't force their master to learn.

Even if they wanted to, what about poor Miss Song! Because Miss Wei didn't want to learn the rules and manners, she made Song Zaishui suspect that she was going to be taken back to the capital. This future Empress must have been punching her pillow and biting her quilt and thinking hard about how to struggle….

She was Miss Wei's lineal cousin!

As to Miss Wei's servants, how badly would they be schemed by Miss Wei?!

It was better not to think too much about it….