The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

She immediately pulled her hand back, her eyes widening in surprise.

Looking around, she saw that all the children surrounding her were about the same age as Wang Shiping, and even the youngest among them was taller than her.

A young woman with her hair in two buns, seeing her expression freeze, quickly spoke up: "Wang Dalang, your sister's frightened! Be careful she goes back and tells on you, or your mother will hang you up and whip you again!"

The moment the words "hang up and whip" were uttered, the children all laughed.

Wang Shiping felt a little guilty, so he quickly reached out and half-embraced her, but he said firmly, "Don't be afraid, little sister. Big brother just wants to take you out to play. We'll all protect you, no one will dare to bully you."

"That's right, that's right, little sister isn't afraid."

"We'll take you to raid a bird's nest!"

"And cat's cradle!"

"I have some candy balls here, give one to your little sister."

A group of children surrounded her, chattering and calling her "little sister" all the time, creating a lively atmosphere.

Langhua looked back in the direction she had come from, only to find that the alley was winding and she didn't even know where the courtyard gate was.

She didn't know the way back.

After a moment of silence, he could only nod.

This nod meant they had completely dragged him into the mess.

Children's toys are actually very simple; they can just run around, jump around, or squat on the ground to arrange pebbles or play with string.

At first, she was reserved and just stood by and watched. But when the young ladies pulled her to play, Wang Shiping jumped around and demonstrated for her. As she watched, she was also aroused.

She swore that at first she was just too small to resist and could only jump around a couple of times perfunctorily.

But people kept calling for her little sister to come quickly, people kept grabbing her little hand and leading her around, people stuffing the candy balls they won into her hand, and people who lost and cheated were chased and laughed at by the crowd. The open space was noisy and the sun was warm and cozy.

Langhua stood in the crowd and suddenly burst out laughing.

Her eyes were curved into crescent moons.

She had never been so happy.

From a young age, she was the only girl in the Fucha family. Her mother was extremely strict with her, making her stand and sit properly, and even forbidding her from showing her teeth when she smiled.

She had no real playmates; those around her were either wet nurses or maids who always catered to her but were always kept at a distance by their social status.

The happiest memory she had was of a Pekingese dog that her family used to have, which would wag its head at her and beg for food.

But even this little bit of happiness was taken away by her mother when she was seven years old, who scolded her for wasting her time on play and sent the dog away along with its cage.

Later, after entering the Prince's mansion and the palace, it goes without saying that...

In her life, there has always been only the word "rules".

When Zhou Wanru came looking for her, she was initially quite aggressive.

He even had a thin vine in his hand, clearly determined to drag Wang Shiping back and teach him a lesson.

But as she approached, the first clay figure she saw was not her mischievous son, but her clever little niece.

The young woman had a bit of dust on her face, her neatly combed hair was crooked, there were mud spots on the hem of her skirt, and the tips of her shoes were filthy.

She was surrounded by several children, her cheeks flushed with laughter, her eyes sparkling. Her joy was palpable even from a distance.

Zhou Wanru stopped abruptly.

The rattan cane was still in his hand, but his anger dissipated as if it had been gently poked by something.

Mother Lai followed closely behind, looking like she was there to save her. Seeing Langhua like this, she was also happy: "Madam, look how happy our Third Madam is."

Zhou Wanru hid the rattan cane behind her back and snorted, "This brat, he's finally done something decent."

Even so, when the children realized she had arrived, they all froze.

Wang Shiping, in particular, turned pale and stammered, "Mother..."

Zhou Wanru glared at him, annoyed. "You know how to be afraid?"

Wang Shiping shrank his neck.

The next moment, Zhou Wanru walked quickly to Langhua, squatted down, first brushed the dust off her skirt, and then wiped her face with a handkerchief.

"You're all covered in mud." She complained, but her hands were very gentle. "Aren't you tired? Thirsty? Do your legs hurt?"

Langhua's face was flushed from running, and the fine sweat on her forehead hadn't dried yet. She kept shaking her head.

Judging from his expression, he still seemed a little unsatisfied.

When Zhou Wanru saw her expression, she understood everything.

She sighed and tapped her nose. "Look how happy you are. Alright, that's fine for today. From now on, if you want to go out to play, you have to tell your aunt first, understand? Don't let your older brother sneak you out like this again. What if you fall and get hurt? Who will I cry to?"

Langhua nodded obediently.

Zhou Wanru then looked up at the group of children, deliberately putting on a stern face: "You all should also look after your little sister. She's still young. If anyone takes her running around and she falls, I'll go to every house and find your mother."

A group of children nodded eagerly.

Everyone within a ten-mile radius knows how fierce and shrewish Aunt Zhou is.

Zhou Wanru was still worried, so she left another maid to look after the place.