The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

"Mother~"

Zhou Wanru held her teacup without even lifting her eyelids.

"Mother~"

Zhou Wanru's brow twitched.

"Oh, my dear mother~"

Zhou Wanru finally shuddered with disgust, looked up and cursed, "Are you trying to kill me?! What are you doing, doing this in broad daylight?!"

Wang Shi'an squatted down at her feet, looked up at her, and said, "Mother, please promise me. I beg you, please promise me."

Zhou Wanru rolled her eyes, completely ignoring him. She took a sip of tea and then slowly picked up a pastry to eat.

Wang Shi'an waited for half a day, but seeing that his mother showed no sign of relenting, he had no choice but to stand up and bow deeply.

"Good mother, your son is very polite!"

"Why don't you go in?"

Wang Shinian carried his sleeping son Bai Ye into the room, but halfway in, he found his wife suddenly stopped at the door.

Bai Qing turned around, put a finger to her lips to signal him to be quiet, then quietly moved aside and nodded inside.

Wang Shinian raised an eyebrow, stepped forward, and peered inside.

The next moment, I almost burst out laughing.

The younger brother, who had been putting on airs every day since entering officialdom and always maintaining a refined demeanor in front of others, was now bowing deeply to his mother, each bow incredibly devout.

The way he was doing it made you think he was worshipping some kind of living Buddha.

Zhou Wanru clearly wanted to laugh too, but she held it in and deliberately asked slowly, "What are you asking me for? I've been arranging marriages for you since you were eighteen. How many young ladies have I found for you over the years, and what did you say about me? Oh, 'Mind your own business.' Now I'm not going to interfere anymore, is that not allowed?"

Wang Shi'an immediately looked up, his face filled with shock: "Mother, you must be reasonable! When did your son ever say such unfilial things?"

Zhou Wanru gave him a cold look.

Wang Shi'an quickly changed his tune, his face full of sincerity: "I was just afraid of tiring you out, Mother, that's why I declined. You said it yourself, I'm already in my early twenties, and now that I've finally found someone I like, Mother, are you really willing to go to great lengths for me? Mother, please have mercy, I know I was wrong, please forgive me this time. Don't you like Bihua too?"

Zhou Wanru looked at him with a half-smile: "Bihua is such a good girl. She knows how to be grateful, is gentle and considerate, and is also beautiful. Of course I like her."

Wang Shi'an's eyes lit up.

"But I like him so much that I feel you're not good enough for him."

Wang Shi'an jumped up and down in anger: "Mother!"

Bai Qing, standing at the door, quickly lowered her head to suppress her laughter, while Wang Shinian, holding the child, trembled slightly.

"What are you yelling for?" Zhou Wanru remained unmoved. "Did I say something wrong? I can tell you're not sincere. If you truly loved this young lady, why would you only want an engagement and not want to get married?"

Wang Shi'an immediately became anxious: "That's because I'm going to the Northwest! Mother, you know how tough life is there. Bihua grew up in Bianjing since she was little, how could I bear to let her come with me to suffer the wind and sand? Besides, she herself can't bear to leave Third Sister and Jingning, and wants to wait until she's eighteen to get married. That's why I want to arrange a marriage for her first."

Zhou Wanru nodded: "Then I'll propose marriage again three years later, when you come back from the Northwest."

"That won't do!"

"Why not?"

Wang Shi'an paced around the room anxiously for a moment, then turned back: "Mother, think about it, Bihua is so beautiful and has such a good personality. If we don't settle down now, what if someone else snatches her away in the next three years? You say she's good, and if she's good, then others aren't blind."

Zhou Wanru neither looked at him nor spoke.

Wang Shi'an understood his mother's meaning. She had finally managed to get her to hold the biggest leverage he had ever had since adulthood. He had really offended his mother badly in the past few years because of the matchmaking incident, so she had no choice but to admit it and back down.

But now that things have come to this, he really can't care about saving face anymore.

"Mother~"

The invincible trick of coaxing from childhood is back in action!

Zhou Wanru closed her eyes.

"Mother~"

Her temple twitched.

"Oh, my dear mother~"

Zhou Wanru finally couldn't take it anymore and threw a handkerchief at him: "Alright, alright! If you keep yelling like that, I won't be able to eat lunch."

Wang Shi'an's face immediately lit up with anticipation.

Zhou Wanru, having had enough of her son's blunders, finally put on airs and said, "Tomorrow I'll go to the palace and talk to Third Sister. Whether it works out or not depends on the young lady and Third Sister's opinion, so don't be too happy about it too soon."

Wang Shi'an immediately beamed with joy, his whole being lighting up: "Thank you, Mother! I knew you loved me the most."

He tried to rub against Zhou Wanru's arm, but she slapped him away with a look of disgust: "Get lost, don't try that."

It was at this moment that Bai Qing and Wang Shinian, who were standing at the door, finally couldn't resist going inside.

Upon hearing footsteps, Wang Shi'an froze, almost immediately stepping away from his mother. He straightened his sleeves and back, and in the blink of an eye, he was once again the gentle and refined Second Son of the Wang family.

He bowed respectfully to his elder brother and sister-in-law.

"Big brother, sister-in-law."

Wang Shinian's lips twitched.

Bai Qing suppressed a laugh and greeted Zhou Wanru first: "Mother."

Zhou Wanru was too lazy to expose her youngest son, so she just waved to them and looked at Bai Ye in Wang Shinian's arms: "Has Ye-ge'er woken up yet? Come, let Grandmother take a look."

Bai Ye had woken up at some point and, unusually well-behaved, nestled in his father's arms. Upon seeing his grandmother like this, he immediately reached out his little hands to be held.

Zhou Wanru took him into her arms and casually asked Bai Qing, "How is your father's health?"

Bai Qing smiled and said, "I just caught a cold, and I'm much better now. Don't worry, Mother."

"That's good." Zhou Wanru nodded, then looked down and teased Bai Ye, "Did Ye-ge'er behave well at his maternal grandfather's place today?"

Bai Ye rubbed his eyes, then puffed out his little chest and said in a childish voice, "Be good! I fed you your medicine, you were very good, you deserve a reward!"

Everyone in the room burst into laughter.

Bai Qing scolded, "That won't do. Your maternal grandfather is your elder, and he's always treated you so well. It's only right that you, a little person, show some filial piety. How can you expect a reward?"

Bai Ye looked at his mother with a blank expression, as if he was seriously considering her words.

Zhou Wanru remained smiling and didn't interrupt, but her gaze towards Bai Qing held a hint of approval.

The child is still young, so we should teach him these small details. The Bai family is wealthy, and the Wang family is not lacking in such rewards, but if the child learns from a young age to use filial piety as a means to obtain rewards, his temperament will inevitably become skewed in the future.

Bai Ye thought for a long time, then seemed to finally give up on asking for a reward, and suddenly waved his little hand and shouted, "Giddy up, giddy up!"

Bai Qing sighed helplessly, "You're too young. I'll let you ride horses when you're older."

Wang Shinian explained with a smile, "Someone gave Old Master Bai a horse, pure white, handsome and spirited. This kid couldn't resist it and wanted to get on its back. I took him for a couple of rides, but he still wasn't satisfied and made quite a scene before we left."

Wang Shi'an listened with interest and laughed, "Good lad. He has some ambition. But with his physique, he is indeed a good candidate for martial arts. He will need to find a good master in the future."

Bai Ye didn't care what the adults were saying. He only heard his mother say no, so he immediately jumped out of Zhou Wanru's arms and rushed towards Bai Qing, stretching out his little hands for his mother to hold him.

Although he was young, he already understood that his grandmother would coax him, his father would tease him, and his third uncle would watch the fun and also be the best at entertaining him.

But when it comes to matters concerning him, it is his mother who truly has the final say.

Bai Qing helplessly reached out and caught the child. Just as she was about to comfort him again, she heard Bai Ye twist his body, press his chubby face against her palm, and call out in a childish voice:

"Mother~"

The room fell silent for a moment.

"Mother~"

Wang Shi'an's expression changed slightly.

"Oh, my dear mother~"

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Wang Shi'an's usually dashing and handsome face suddenly turned purplish-red.

The next moment, a deafening burst of laughter erupted from inside the room.

Wang Shinian laughed the loudest, clutching his stomach and unable to straighten up: "Good, good, good! Our Ye-ge'er is truly clever, he can imitate anything perfectly!"

Zhou Wanru laughed so hard she almost fell over, then covered her mouth with a handkerchief, unable to speak for a long time.

While holding Bai Ye, Bai Qing couldn't help but chuckle and gently patted his little bottom.

"You brat!"