The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

"Liu Zhu!"

Zhen Huan quickly spoke up to stop her.

But her shout reminded the other two, and the three of them looked at each other, and finally couldn't help but laugh at the same time.

Huanbi covered her mouth, laughing so hard she couldn't stand up straight: "Miss, you don't know, I was really fooled just now! You know, his whole demeanor made him look like no ordinary person, and I was so nervous! I never expected..."

She recalled the age difference between the two men, and the awkward expression on the man who called himself Prince Guo's face when Seventeen appeared later, and couldn't help but laugh uproariously.

Liu Zhu laughed so hard she stomped her feet: "Oh my goodness, in all my years, this is the first time I've ever seen someone impersonate another person and get caught red-handed! That gentleman's face must have been burning up!"

The three chatted and laughed as they walked toward the backyard.

Just as they turned the corner of the hanging flower gate, they bumped into Zhen's mother.

The laughter stopped abruptly.

Mother Zhen looked her daughter up and down, her gaze sweeping over her face before glancing at the two maids behind her who were desperately trying to suppress their laughter. She frowned slightly and asked, "You went out to offer incense, why have you been gone for half a day? Did something happen?"

Zhen Huan quickly suppressed her smile, stepped forward, curtsied, and said gently, "Mother, nothing happened. I just encountered a very interesting spectacle on the way, and I got carried away and took a few extra glances, which is why I was delayed. Please don't blame me, Mother."

Mother Zhen shook her head helplessly and scolded, "You're a grown girl now, and you're still so playful." Then she waved her hand and said, "Alright, alright, go back, change your clothes and rest."

"Yes, Mother."

Zhen Huan quickly led the two maids back to her own courtyard.

Back in the room, Liu Zhu helped Zhen Huan wash her hands, while Huan Bi went to find some ordinary clothes for her to change into.

The three men, master and servant, started gossiping again while they were inside the room.

As Huanbi straightened her clothes, she said, "Miss, the one following behind us is that younger brother. Do you think... he really is Prince Guo?"

Zhen Huan took the handkerchief handed to her by Liu Zhu, wiped her hands, and pondered for a moment: "Although the two of them are much different in age, they have some similarities in their features. Moreover, their overall air of wealth and nobility makes it somewhat believable that they are of noble birth."

She paused, then said, "The current emperor is fifteenth in line and is only in his early twenties. Judging from the young man's age, it would be reasonable to say that he is seventeenth."

Upon hearing this, Liu Zhu couldn't help but laugh again: "Then... who is that older one?"

Before Zhen Huan could speak, Huan Bi interrupted, "Didn't you hear that young man call him Fourth Brother? Miss, who was the late Emperor's fourth son again?"

Zhen Huan looked up at her and slowly said, "It should be Prince Yong."

The teasing look on the two girls' faces vanished instantly.

Zhen Huan's expression also became serious. A prince, a prince of that age, was not someone they could joke about.

She looked at the two of them and lowered her voice, saying, "What happened today must not be revealed. He is one of the few brothers of the Emperor who has not been imprisoned, and he is certainly not a simple character. He embarrassed himself in front of us today. If outsiders find out, our family will definitely be in trouble."

Liu Zhu nodded hurriedly, looking nervous.

Huanbi, however, was somewhat unconvinced and whispered, "But we haven't announced our family name, how is he going to find us?"

Zhen Huan looked at her, her gaze carrying a hint of helplessness and seriousness: "How difficult would it be to find even one or two such important figures in the capital?"

Huanbi was taken aback.

-

The rear hall of the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

The flickering candlelight cast a warm yellow glow throughout the hall.

Yan Zhi dismissed the palace servants as usual, leaned back on the soft couch, and listened to An Ying's report.

"Oh?"

She raised an eyebrow, a mischievous smile playing on her lips: "Did Prince Yong really use the identity of Prince Guo?"

"What I saw with my own eyes and heard with my own ears, I dare not deceive."

Yan Zhi couldn't help but laugh again.

In the original story, when the two first met in the Imperial Garden, it is unknown what Yinzhen's mindset was, but he also borrowed the identity of the seventeenth prince.

Unexpectedly, through her deliberate arrangement, the two of them met again amidst the apricot blossoms and spring breeze, following the usual storyline.

The only difference is that this time, the real Seventeenth Prince is present.

They even exposed his little trick on the spot.

Yan Zhi couldn't suppress the smile that might have appeared on Yinzhen's face at that moment.

"As for that wandering Taoist priest," she said casually, "let him be. He's just a pawn who knows nothing; what can he possibly do?"

"Yes."

"Go down."

The shadowy figure tried to retreat, but was stopped again.

"Wait a minute." Yan Zhi raised his eyes, his gaze deep and unfathomable. "Is the Fourth Prince still keeping the matter between Consort De and Longkodo a secret from the Fourteenth Prince?"

"Yes."

A hint of a smile flashed across Yan Zhi's eyes.

"How can that be?" Her voice was gentle as water. "They were both born to Consort De, and the Fourteenth Prince was always her most beloved son. How could he not know how his mother died?"

"Similarly, we shouldn't keep it a secret how the fourth prince sent Longkodo on his final journey. Go, lead the fourteenth prince to investigate. This time, I will make sure that all the old forces left behind by the Uya clan in the palace are exposed."

Shadow lowered his head: "This servant understands."

The figure disappeared silently into the night.

Yan Zhi withdrew his gaze and looked at the flickering candlelight.

"Yinzhen, oh Yinzhen."

She murmured, "Logically speaking, you've paved the way for me and rendered a great service. What harm would it do for me to make you a wealthy and noble prince for life?"

"But you shouldn't have, by all accounts, used your intelligence out of resentment."

The candlelight flickered.

"Fine. You'll repay the life you owe Nian Shilan, and the unrequited love you had.