Princess Yun'an's sharp gaze fell on the timid girl in front of her, but she refused to act as she was told for a long time.

After a short while, Yun An became impatient and urged, "What, are you deaf, or blind like Wei Chengxiu?"

Wei Shuyao sobbed softly, her lips moving slightly as if she wanted to beg for mercy again, but she knew that Yun An would not let her go today.

At that moment, behind the dense bushes, on another narrow path, the refined and handsome young man suddenly paused, then silently pushed away the hand that was wrapped around his right arm and walked forward alone.

Looking at his solitary figure and the smile that had just vanished, Sheng Yun felt as if a hole had been torn in her heart, and waves of bitterness kept welling up.

Ah Xiu's brother is an extremely sensitive person. Even if others don't mention that he is blind, he often feels ashamed. That's why he didn't go to the banquet today, but instead came to stroll around the Chrysanthemum Garden with me.

Even though he carefully avoided the crowd, he still heard those cold and hurtful words...

Sheng Yun glanced angrily in the direction of the sound. She wasn't her mother, Xu Shi, who had to consider the bigger picture. So she beckoned to Ying Nu, who was following at a distance, and whispered a few instructions. Ying Nu nodded solemnly and went to rummage through her sleeve for something.

Sheng Yun quickly caught up with Wei Chengxiu, took his arm again, and said coquettishly, "Brother Xiu, slow down, I can't keep up."

Wei Chengxiu, his face pale and haggard, was hesitating whether to push away the girl beside him, whom he felt he couldn't possibly be worthy of, when he heard a few noisy voices coming from not far behind him:

"Ah—a snake!"

"Princess...your foot!"

...

Sheng Yun was overjoyed, and his previous resentment vanished instantly.

Everyone knew that besides her hawks and hounds, she loved to stay in her mansion listening to operas, but no one knew that her favorite pastime was animal training. Yingnu was a master at training animals in this pastime; monkeys, rats, snakes, and ants all became loyal little soldiers in her hands, obeying her commands.

The bell snake, with its insatiable sweet tooth, found the lychee syrup sprinkled on Princess Yun'an's shoes to be a fatal temptation.

"Brother Xiu, be careful, there's a rock in front... It's alright, I kicked it away for you." Sheng Yun said, as if asking for credit, as if he wanted to take credit for Wei Chengxiu.

Since Ah Xiu's brother is blind, she needs to grow an extra pair of eyes to clear obstacles for him at any time.

...

Princess Yun'an was bitten by a snake, and whether from fright or poisoning, she fainted on the spot. Granny Juan and several maids hurriedly carried her back to the room where Princess Jing was staying, and then called the Sheng family's physician to examine her. After learning that the snake was not venomous, they finally felt relieved.

Granny Juan ordered someone to report the news to Prince Jing so that he could take the Princess and the County Princess back to the Prince's Mansion to recuperate as soon as possible. However, when the guards arrived at Huai Ren Pavilion, they found their Prince lying on the table talking in his sleep, already drunk and unconscious.

Thus, the three men from Prince Jing's mansion arrived in a great hurry, but left lying down.

Sheng Yun's intervention had indeed relieved Wei Shuyao of her crisis, but Wei Shuyao wasn't particularly happy. She had already suffered enough fright and humiliation today, and she didn't want to stay in the Sheng residence for another second!

So when Caizhu helped Wei Shuyao up from the ground, her first words were: "I want to go home..."

But after saying those words, she felt even more distressed. She no longer had a home; the Wei family of Wu County was gone. Now, she and her parents were merely living under the roof of others.

Caizhu and her companions wiped away her tears and helped her walk, but after walking for a long time, they found they couldn't find the way they came. They wandered around but couldn't find a single servant from the Sheng family. Finally, they saw several young gentlemen composing poems and writing calligraphy at a stone pavilion. Judging from their skillful writing, they were undoubtedly talented young men.

Caizhu stepped forward to ask for directions out of the mansion, but Wei Shuyao, remembering her disheveled state, hurriedly hid behind the artificial hill, not wanting to be seen. However, when Caizhu returned, there was another person with her, the most handsome of the young men from before.

"Miss, what happened here..." Looking at Wei Shuyao covered in mud, he was speechless for a moment. If they weren't in the Sheng Mansion, he would have thought they had been robbed.

Wei Shuyao lowered her head in embarrassment, not daring to meet the gaze of the dashing young man in white before her. But the next moment, a flash of white light appeared before her eyes, and the cloak that had been draped over the young man was suddenly draped over her own shoulders…

Wei Shuyao looked up in surprise and met those deep, unassuming eyes. "Young Master, what is this...?"

“Just now, your maid came over with red eyes to ask for directions, and I knew she had run into trouble. I originally wanted to come and see if there was anything I could do to help, but seeing you like this, Miss…” He paused slightly, not saying anything that would make Wei Shuyao even more embarrassed.

She smiled gently and continued, "Since you don't want to be seen, young lady, wrap it up and leave through the back door. I have already told your maid the route."

Wei Shuyao's heart trembled, and she couldn't believe what she was seeing for a long time. When she finally believed it, she thought to herself, "Is this what they mean by 'the flowers you plant with care don't bloom, but the willows you plant without intention thrive'?"

After pausing for a moment, she said, "I am deeply grateful for your generous help today. My name is Wei Shuyao. May I ask your esteemed name?"

"I wouldn't dare. My surname is Du, and my given name is Xun."

"So it's Young Master Du. May I ask where your residence is?"

Wei Shuyao asked the question a little too hastily. Seeing the blank look in Du Xun's eyes, she quickly explained, "I just want to return this cloak to Young Master Du."

"Oh, it's just a piece of clothing, Miss Wei, there's really no need for that..."

Before he could finish speaking, Du Xun noticed a tear rolling down Wei Shuyao's cheek. Feeling sorry for her, he changed his words and said, "If you really want to return it, Miss, please have the servants in your household send it to the Begonia Society in Xiaotianshui Lane in the West City."

"Haitang Society?"

"Yes, I have just started a poetry club. If Miss Wei is interested, you are welcome to come and offer your guidance."

Wei Shuyao nodded seriously: "I've got it."

...

After the birthday banquet ended, the most talked-about family in the carriages returning from the various mansions was the Jing Prince's Mansion, which had "stole the show" that day.

Sun Lurong chattered on and on, finally bringing up her daughter again: "Do you still remember the day Wanwan was born? The sky above the old house in Wu County suddenly changed color, and hundreds of birds circled around! At that time, an old immortal who happened to be passing by predicted that this child would have great fortune in the future!"

“But the old immortal also said that Wanwan is destined to face a calamity. She will encounter misfortune at the age of seventeen, and the bitter consequences will come five years later,” Wei Zheng added earnestly.

Sun Lurong glared at him angrily, thinking to herself that he always chose the nicest words to say, how could he curse his own daughter?

"The words of fortune tellers are always a mix of truth and falsehood; we should only believe half of them! Besides, who knows, maybe that misfortune was Song Zichen himself. Now that the wedding is over, the misfortune has been dispelled, and good days are just around the corner!"

Thinking of Song Zichen, and then of Princess Yun'an and Princess Jing, Sun Lurong was overjoyed again: "Look, haven't all those who tried to bully our Wanwan gotten their comeuppance?"