"Second Prince, I am the one who saved your life. The person you should love is me, and the person you should marry is me. She stole my life-saving grace, and she lied to you!" Shen Qingli shouted without regard for anything else.

Fang Ruotang was a little surprised, staring at the show with her big, round eyes.

Didn't you just say she didn't know?

[I was completely unaware of this until later, when my stepsister subjected me to various forms of suppression, and I still didn't know about it.]

How do you know now? Will the Second Prince break off his engagement with Shen Qingyue and marry Shen Qingli instead?

Fang Ruotang unconsciously took a few steps forward, her big eyes darting back and forth between the parties involved.

[No, actually, the Second Prince always knew who saved him! Shen Qingyue, an unfavored eldest daughter of the legitimate wife, even if her stepsister didn't know that the person she saved was the Second Prince and took the credit for it, so what? How could the Second Prince not find out if he wanted to? In fact, the Second Prince was secretly quite happy that she had taken the blame for his stepsister's life-saving grace, feeling that Shen Qingyue was willing to put in the effort for him.]

The Second Prince simply liked women like Shen Qingyue, which is why he went along with the mistake. His request to the Emperor to marry Shen Qingyue wasn't to repay a debt of gratitude. Why would a prince give up the position of his primary consort for such a small favor? Even if he wanted to repay a debt of gratitude, he would at most bring her into his household, and giving her the position of a secondary consort would be a great honor.

To be fair, the Second Prince has a conscience, but not much. He knew Shen Qingli had saved his life, and he didn't stop Shen Qingyue from bullying Shen Qingli by taking advantage of his power. He only had people keep an eye on them in secret to prevent them from causing a major disturbance. He wasn't completely driven mad by love.

Therefore, in the original timeline, Shen Qingli, who constantly provoked Shen Qingyue, didn't have a good ending. However, with the Second Prince secretly watching over her, it couldn't be said that she was in a terrible situation; she was simply married off to a distant place.

However, Shen Qingyue saw it differently, so this couple's affection was merely a facade. Shen Qingyue never truly trusted the Second Prince; after all, in her view, her marriage was a forced marriage, and the person she had forcibly taken was secretly protecting her. How could she possibly care about the Second Prince?

"So, despite his many efforts as the Second Prince, he never won Shen Qingyue's heart. His death was quite sudden; he succumbed to a serious illness. Before he died, he worried that Shen Qingyue would suffer, since they had no children. Despite his illness, he went to plead with the Crown Prince, who was then the Emperor, to ensure her well-being before passing away."

Shen Qingli looked at the Second Prince with disbelief, who took two steps back with an injured expression.

Fang Ruotang's eyes widened even more.

[What an incredibly devoted lover! I thought I'd see one of those crazy men who'd first fall for Shen Qingyue, then, after discovering she wasn't his benefactor, fall for Shen Qingli, abuse Shen Qingyue to vent his anger on Shen Qingli, and finally, after Shen Qingyue dies, regret it and start abusing Shen Qingli.]

Little Mirror: ...

Others present: ...

How did you come up with such a crazy plot?

[All the storybooks you showed me were like this; in every plot involving repaying a debt of gratitude, there were always these eccentric characters appearing in droves.]

It's my fault, I won't show you this kind of thing next time.

[Fine! I don't like watching it either. Every time I watch it, I don't even know who to curse at. I just want to shoot them all through with a gun. It's too insane.]

"Shen Qingyue, someone is calling you. You might have something to do, so I'll be leaving now." Fang Ruotang felt that in the current situation, she didn't need to say anything.

The key person in this matter is the Second Prince, who is also a sensible man. As an observer, she didn't want to get involved and quickly ran towards the Crown Prince.

But while tugging at the Crown Prince's arm, she couldn't hide it at all, and her little mouth chattered out all the love, hate, and grudges between the three of them. After she finished speaking, her eyes were still fixed on Shen Qingyue and the other two.

She was so curious about what would happen to the three of them next.

Not to mention Fang Ruotang, everyone present was curious. They even formed a circle around the three of them, craning their necks and waiting for them to start their performance.

The second prince had been noble since birth, and when had he ever been treated like a monkey? But when he glanced at the Grand Preceptor, who was staring at him with excitement, and the Crown Prince, who was firmly protecting the beauty, he was speechless.

“I know you saved this prince, but I have already repaid the favor. More than a year ago, I had someone pass a message to you in a horse race, which allowed you to win the polo match and receive a prize of ten thousand taels of silver.”

The light in Shen Qingli's eyes flickered, but things had already come to this point. Even after hearing the Grand Preceptor's thoughts, she was still unwilling to give up and spoke with hope and difficulty.

"If I say I don't want that ten thousand taels of silver, can I exchange it for something else?"

The second prince didn't speak, but the polite smile that had been on his face faded, and he looked at Shen Qingli coldly.

"You saved this prince, and I acknowledge it as a favor. If I don't acknowledge it, then it's nothing. Do you understand?" The Second Prince's heartless words shattered Shen Qingli's heart.

His mother's family was not of high status. She was only granted the title of concubine because she gave birth to him. He was self-aware from a young age and knew that he was different from his third brother.

Therefore, even if his words are despised by scholars across the land, he has nothing to be afraid to say. He neither seeks a good reputation nor tries to win over court officials.

Furthermore, given the current situation, he actually hoped to be disliked by his elder brother, the Crown Prince, so that the Crown Prince wouldn't have to conscript men for no reason. He only wanted to be granted the title of "Carefree Prince" after the Crown Prince ascended the throne.

Shen Qingli's face turned pale, and tears welled up in her eyes. Feeling the gazes coming from all directions, she had no face to stay there any longer and called out to Shen Qingyue.

"You won. This is the result you wanted. Are you satisfied?"

Shen Qingyue raised an eyebrow, her face showing no sign of victory.

She... was a little panicked!

She had always thought that the Second Prince wasn't sincere towards her, and that she took advantage of him without a second thought. Now, suddenly realizing his feelings for her, she felt a pang of guilt.

She was a little afraid to look at the Second Prince.

The Second Prince glanced at the guilty Shen Qingyue, a smile flashing in his eyes. He didn't approach her to make things difficult for her, but instead walked directly to Fang Ruotang.

"Grand Preceptor, my future Second Prince's wife has a very ordinary mixed spiritual root, but she particularly admires and idolizes you. I wonder if it would be possible for her to enter the Heavenly One Sect and study under you?"

The Second Prince's words caused an uproar.

A warrior of pure love!

Shen Qingyue turned her head sharply to look, and her usually hardened heart cracked open at this moment. A small green seedling quickly rushed into it, took root, and sprouted.

Fang Ruotang's gaze slid past the Second Prince's smiling, questioning expression and landed on Shen Qingyue, who stood there, pursing her lips, anxiously waiting for her reply.

"The spiritual energy in this realm has not yet recovered, and Miss Shen has mixed spiritual roots. Even if she joins the Tianyi Sect, she won't enjoy any good resources. If you don't care, then come on over!"