Am I, a county princess of a different surname, really going to go up against a prince?

Moreover, it triggered a series of butterfly effects...

The drumbeat in her heart grew louder and louder, so loud it made her heart tingle and her body grow hotter and hotter.

She had been traveling through the night, and her hands and feet were numb with cold, but now she was sweating profusely.

Especially with the large characters in her hand, Jiang Shuwan had never felt a piece of paper so hot before. It was as if a fire had suddenly shot up along the paper to her arm, igniting her body and causing her to sweat profusely and feel dizzy.

"Damn it, just destroy it..."

Bending down, Jiang Shuwan raised her hand to burn the exam questions when suddenly the sounds of fists and kicks erupted outside.

She clenched her fists tightly as she burned the paper, leaned against the window, and opened it to see two groups of bodyguards dressed in dark, tight-fitting clothes fighting in the snow under the dim moonlight.

Every move was ruthless, and some even used weapons. The glint of blades reflected a cold light under the moonlight, and people were knocked down from time to time.

Then they climbed in and continued their struggle. The two groups fought fiercely, their footsteps crunching in the snow as they moved about, leaving a trail of footprints.

"..."

Jiang Shuwan felt a chill run down her spine. She looked towards Qingxing's location, where Qingxing's shadow drooped in the corner through a door.

Next to the green apricot, there was a taller shadow, with broad shoulders and a narrow back, clearly the shadow of a man.

"Qingxing," she whispered, clenching her fist.

"Miss, I'm fine," Qingxing replied, her voice weak and tinged with fear, as if she had seen something terrifying.

Unconsciously biting her nails, Jiang Shuwan stared at the tall, thin figure on the door.

Darkness, like thick ink, permeated every corner. By the faint moonlight, his shadow moved slowly, making a soft sound as he stepped on the wooden floor. He could also hear the howling of the cold wind outside. For a moment, Jiang Shuwan forgot to move.

In the girl's clear eyes, she could only see the man's blurry figure slowly walking towards her from the darkness.

As the figure drew closer, her breath almost stopped.

He continued to walk towards her step by step, steadily and powerfully. As he drew closer, the dim yellow light of the oil lamp slowly illuminated his face.

"Pei Yanzhi—"

This was the first time Jiang Shuwan had called him by his full name.

The man's gaze lingered on her face for a moment, then fell on her right hand.

The girl held a crumpled piece of paper in her soft, white hands, with the edge of the paper less than a centimeter from the lamplight.

This is clearly a posture that looks like it's about to be burned.

"They're not little kids anymore, how can they play with fire so late at night?"

This was the first thing Jiang Shuwan heard Pei Yanzhi say.

His voice was gentle, just like always, and his tone was exactly the same as when he said he would take Jiang Shuwan back to the hospital last time.

You could tell he was in a neutral mood.

After saying that, he reached out and took the crumpled paper from Jiang Shuwan's hand, unfolded it on the table, and then folded it layer by layer along the original pattern and placed it in the tea manual.

Finally, it was placed in the rightmost position on the second shelf of the third bookshelf in the east-facing position.

Jiang Shuwan's pupils contracted.

This is where she found the exam questions.

"..."

She took a deep breath and clenched her fists at her sides.

After putting the book away, Pei Yanzhi calmly turned around and leisurely found a palace lantern on the second floor and lit it.

The two went downstairs together, and when they reached the snowy area, the two groups were still locked in a battle.

The ground was covered with their footprints and rolling marks. As soon as they came out, the two groups immediately separated. One group sheathed their swords and stood to the side, while the other group, led by General Xiao Gu, went directly behind Jiang Shuwan.

"Princess, are you alright?"

General Gu was panting heavily. He first glanced at Yin Quan, who was fighting against him.

Finally, he turned his wary gaze to Pei Yanzhi, the knife in his hand gleaming coldly.

Pei Yanzhi sensed his hostility. He glanced at General Gu but remained silent. Yin Quan, however, stepped forward and smiled.

"I had long heard that General Gu, who was by General Sun's side, was very skilled. Seeing him today, I can confirm that he is indeed extraordinary. With General Gu protecting the county princess, she must be safe and sound."

General Gu sneered and did not accept his explanation.

"It's alright, let's go back," Jiang Shuwan said softly, then asked if any of her brothers were injured.

"They're just minor injuries, they'll be fine after a good night's sleep."

As General Gu spoke, he wiped his right cheek with his right hand. Yin Quan had slashed his right cheek, and he had also stabbed Yin Quan in the left arm.

Yin Quan showed mercy; he didn't kill him.

Nine parts discussion, seven parts probing.

It was a 50/50 match.

In the snow, General Gu and his guards concealed themselves, while Yin Quan and Xiao Wu, along with their attendants, knelt on the snow, heads bowed in unison.

"Respectfully seeing off the County Princess!"

Glancing at them, Jiang Shuwan thought to herself that perhaps some of these people were the ones who had been spying on her before, or perhaps not.

"It's dark and the roads are slippery, let me take you home."

This is the second thing Pei Yanzhi said tonight.

The man, with a calm expression, led the way with a lantern, and as always, Jiang Shuwan followed behind, stepping on his shadow.

A cold wind howled past, and she pulled her cloak tighter around herself. Only then did she realize that Pei Yanzhi in front of her was not dressed as a groom, but was wearing his usual old clothes. There was no smell of alcohol or perfume on him.

"..."

Jiang Shuwan followed him silently without saying a word.

They soon arrived at her courtyard. Pei Yanzhi followed her to the door and watched her go inside before slowly turning back and leaving.

He didn't explain a single word about the exam questions during that period.

"Is Miss cold?"

Seeing that Jiang Shuwan's face was a little pale, Xiao Tao quickly brought her some hot water to wipe it, and asked the maid to bring another brazier. She then busied herself wiping Jiang Shuwan's face and hands for quite a while.

"It's alright, you've worked hard too, go and get some rest."

Patting Xiao Tao's head, Jiang Shuwan stared at the basin of hot water at her feet, the surface of the water reflecting the surging emotions in her eyes.

A major event occurred in the Marquis's mansion in the previous life.

Pei Yanzhi, as the most outstanding member of the Pei family, was removed from the family genealogy and expelled from the Pei family by the old Marquis when he was in power.

This event was like the sky falling for the entire Pei clan.

Especially for the Earl's Mansion at that time, Pei Lingyu was disappointing. Without his nephew Pei Yanzhi, who else in the Earl's Mansion would respect him?

Upon learning of this, the Lady of the House went to the Marquis's residence in a great hurry to find out what was going on.

After returning home, he lay paralyzed on the bed and refused to say a word. Later, when his wife was drunk, she heard that Pei Yanzhi had committed a huge taboo, one of which was related to cheating in the imperial examination.

She found it strange at the time. Pei Yanzhi was innocent in the imperial examination fraud case; he was the victim. How could he be kicked out of the house by the old Marquis because of this?

Now that I think about Pei Yanzhi's attitude, it's clear he already knew.

And there were the words that Wen had said to her at Lotus Manor before.

"You think he's saving you? He just wants to get rid of me!"