The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

Sheng family.

Madam Xu sat in the main hall, looking at the items prepared for the engagement ceremony.

Silk, tea cakes, gold and silver jewelry, betrothal geese, and gift books were all neatly arranged.

While not exceptionally generous, it was by no means a sign of neglect.

After all, it was a marriage bestowed by the emperor. No matter how unwilling one was, one could not be lacking in formalities, otherwise it would be a slap in the face to the emperor.

Sheng Hong stood to the side, his expression respectful, but a hint of relief was hidden in his eyes.

Madam Xu said calmly, "They're all here. You can check them to make sure everything is in order."

Sheng Hong hurriedly said, "What Mother prepared must be the most thoughtful and appropriate, so I don't need to look at it."

Xu said in a flat tone, "After all, she's the wife you've chosen for you, so you should be the one to approve of her. How things turn out in the future is entirely your own business."

Upon hearing this, Sheng Hong felt a sudden tightness in his chest.

He keenly sensed that his mother was somewhat different today than usual.

Although she was strict and rarely smiled in the past, she always thought of the best for him, paved the way for him, and made plans for him. Even when she scolded him with a cold face, it was all for his own good.

But today, she seemed to have suddenly distanced herself from herself, wanting only to finish the business in a professional manner.

I don't want to worry about anything else.

However, this unease only lingered in his mind for a moment before he quickly suppressed it.

How could his mother sever ties with him and never care about him again?

He is the only heir of the second branch of the Sheng family.

His stepmother had no biological children, and in order to stay in the Sheng family to raise him, she refused her own family more than once, and even fell out with them.

Later, after the Marquis of Yongyi passed away, the family property fell into the hands of his cousins, who were not easy to deal with. Over the years, the stepmother has never mentioned maintaining close ties with her maternal family, indicating that her escape route has long been cut off.

In the end, she will still have to rely on him to take care of her in her old age and see her off in death.

Besides, he will be taking the imperial examination next spring. She has poured so much effort into him over the years, and it's about to bear fruit. How could she give up at such a crucial moment?

With this thought, Sheng Hong felt a little more at ease.

He took a step forward and softened his voice: "Mother, Ruoyu may be a bit spoiled, but she is not a bad person. That time, she was obviously tricked and was afraid that her son would abandon her after taking advantage of her, so she lost her temper. Please don't hold it against her."

Xu listened quietly, her face expressionless.

Sheng Hong added, "Besides, this marriage is bestowed by the Emperor, and we cannot refuse. Mother, I promise you, once she enters the family, I will certainly treat you with the utmost respect and care."

He spoke with genuine sincerity.

Even he himself was somewhat moved by these words.

Xu only looked down at the gift list in her hand and did not say anything.

Sheng Hong paused, then continued to persuade, "Besides, in my humble opinion, this matter may not be entirely a bad thing. That Third Lady is indeed a good person, but she's too good. Didn't you see that even the Emperor has taken a liking to her? The imperial edict to make her Empress has already been issued, and she will soon be the Empress. How could I, your son, have such good fortune and ability to compete with the Emperor? Even if it's not so good, she's still Third Lady's sister, born of the same mother."

Sheng Hong lowered his voice, but couldn't suppress his excitement: "Our dynasty has always been lenient towards relatives of the imperial family."

Madam Xu chuckled softly.

Sheng Hong was startled and immediately shut his mouth.

Xu looked at him. Clearly, his face still showed the handsome and gentle features of a young man. Who would have thought that deep down he had already calculated everything about his future, marriage, wealth, and power?

She suddenly felt tired.

I'm very tired.

They were too lazy to even scold him.

"Go down."

Sheng Hong hesitated for a moment: "Mother..."

"Rest assured. As you said, this marriage is an imperial decree. Even if you gave me a thousand lives, I wouldn't dare disobey it. We'll hold the engagement ceremony tomorrow to finalize the marriage."

Sheng Hong was finally completely relieved.

He bowed respectfully and said, "Your son takes his leave."

After he left, the room became quiet.

Xu remained seated, her expression inscrutable.

Standing beside her, Mrs. Fang felt a pang of sadness. She slowly stepped forward and poured her another cup of hot tea.

"Does the young lady regret it?"

Xu's eyelashes twitched slightly.

After a long while, she finally looked up at her mother, a hint of weariness and bitterness appearing on her face.

"What's the use of regretting it?"

Her voice was very soft.

"The most useless thing in this world is regret."

"No matter how long or difficult this road is, it's the one I chose."

She lowered her eyes, chuckled softly, her voice hollow: "Anyway, in this world, I have nothing left to cherish."

Hearing this, Mrs. Fang's eyes reddened. She knelt down and grasped her hand tightly: "Girl!"

"Young lady, you should know that once you enter a dead end, you should turn back immediately! Even if you can't turn back right now, there's no reason to knowingly rush into a dead end with a thick wall in front of you and end up with a bloody head!"

Ms. Xu was stunned.

Madam Fang retorted, "You're naturally stubborn. Once you've made up your mind, nothing can change it. In fact, the more others try to dissuade you, the more determined you are to prove you're right. Therefore, all these years, I've always endured it all, daring not to say a word or offer any advice!"

"But I really have to say it today. Over the years, I thought that Hong-ge'er was raised by you, Miss. You treated him sincerely. Even if he can't treat you as his own mother, he should at least remember some of your kindness."

"But what about now?"

"He had an affair with the eldest daughter of the Wang family first, causing her to lose face. Later, when he saw that the third daughter of the Wang family was even better, he easily relented and let the girl ask for his hand in marriage."

"And now, knowing full well that the young lady suffered such a great injustice at the Wang family that day, being pointed at and insulted by a junior, and almost coming to blows, has he ever asked her a single question? Has he ever felt even a little bit sorry for her?"

"No!"

"He pretended not to know, thinking only that now that the Wang family had produced an empress, if he could settle for marrying that young lady, he would become related to the emperor by marriage, which would bring him immense benefits!"

"His mind was preoccupied with wealth and future prospects. He couldn't be more eager than to marry someone and keep her at home, simply because he could gain so much from it!"

"As for whether you will be wronged, he doesn't care. He probably hopes that you will be bullied by the new bride in this mansion and can't live there anymore, so that you can go back to your hometown of Youyang or return home, and that you will be less of an eyesore to him."

"Girl, oh girl! My dear girl."

She gripped Xu's hand tightly, and tears finally fell.

"This ungrateful wretch can't be raised anymore! At the very least, you can't keep feeding him with your own heart and soul."

"He's a cannibal!"