The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

The polo field is bathed in warm sunshine on a spring day.

Sister Hua dismounted gracefully, took the prize with a smug look on her face, and calmly accepted the enthusiastic applause and cheers that rang out for her from the stands.

"Excellent! Truly excellent!" Wu Yueyin, the eldest daughter-in-law of the Yongchang Marquis's residence, clapped her hands and laughed first, "Hua'er's handball skills have truly improved! That 'scooping the moon from the bottom of the sea' move just now was quite reminiscent of Shilan's style back then!"

This remark drew a chorus of agreement.

Everyone knows that Qin Shilan, the second mistress of the Duke of England's mansion, was one of the top female polo players in Bianjing before she got married. Even now, she is still as dashing as ever, making her unforgettable.

Wang Ruofu, seated at the table, beamed with joy upon hearing this, her eyes and brows radiating undisguised pride. Yet, she modestly replied, "You flatter me. It's not as good as you make it out to be. However, her polo skills were indeed taught to her by her aunt. Our Hua-jie is always very attached to her aunt; the two are very close. People who spend a lot of time together naturally develop some similarities."

She looked very proud.

It was as if her niece, Aunt Xiao, was some great blessing coming from a grave.

The ladies around him twitched at the corners of their mouths.

Every family has its share of disagreements between sisters-in-law and aunts-in-law, but this Madam Wang is particularly fond of her sister-in-law, praising her to the skies every time she mentions her.

...It's unique in Bianjing City.

At this moment, a slightly shrill voice broke in, carrying undisguised sarcasm: "Niece Xiao Gu, of course it's a good thing. A talent like Madam Zhang's is hard to find anywhere in the capital. But alas..."

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw that it was Madam Xue, the eldest daughter-in-law of the Marquis of Fu'an, who had spoken.

She slowly waved her round fan, her gaze sweeping over Hua Jie'er, who was surrounded by a crowd of people chatting and laughing, before drifting towards Wang Ruofu, giving her a disdainful smile: "You must learn to be good. You must not pick up those petty, jealous habits. For us wives, looks are secondary, and polo and croquet are mere trifles. The most important thing is to be virtuous and generous, and to produce offspring for our husbands' families. The saying that after many years of marriage, if you only have one son, and your husband is not allowed to keep even half a concubine in his room, must not be passed down."

The atmosphere at the table instantly froze.

Everyone present was shrewd; how could they not hear the malice in her words?

But the crowd couldn't help but agree in their hearts.

Qin Shilan married so well. Although Zhang Erlang was stationed at the border, thanks to the new weapons developed by the court in recent years, he not only lived peacefully but also gradually accumulated military merits. For the first three years, he was even granted an imperial decree to recuperate in the capital. The couple were often seen together, and it was obvious to everyone that they were deeply in love.

I've never heard of Zhang Erlang taking another beautiful concubine or having anyone else as a maid.

But if it were only Qin Shilan, that would be one thing; she wasn't the only high-born noblewoman whose life was smooth and glamorous.

Unfortunately, Wang Ruofu's simpleton life also overwhelmed many people.

Qin Zhengyang, who was neither good at literature nor martial arts in the past, has now not only inherited a title at a young age, but also, who originally only held a sinecure in the Ministry of Works, has risen rapidly in the past two years thanks to the influence of the Duke of Ying's mansion.

Wang Ruofu not only rose from the second daughter of a Grand Tutor to become the youngest Lady of the Marquis among them, but she also had a loving marriage with Qin Zhengyang, and their home was clean and tidy.

On what grounds?

Privately, some people have long said that Qin Shilan and Wang Ruofu have both inherited the crooked ways of the Qin family, and are narrow-minded, short-sighted, and jealous women.

However, because both of them had children, and the Four Directions Merchants Association, which they formed with Madam Bai of the Ningyuan Marquis's Mansion and Madam Wu of the Yongchang Marquis's Mansion, was not to be underestimated, no one dared to say anything more to their faces.

Unexpectedly, a hero has appeared today.

Immediately, some people covered their faces with round fans, revealing an attitude of watching a good show.

Wu Yueyin frowned slightly, then immediately smiled and smoothed things over: "Madam Xue is joking. Every family has its own way of doing things, and the children are still young..."

The smile on Wang Ruofu's face had long since vanished, and his expression had darkened.

In the past, if faced with such public sarcasm from Madam Xue, she would feel embarrassed and annoyed, but she wouldn't argue back, because she was tongue-tied and lacked confidence.

But now, she is Madam Wang, who has managed the Marquis's mansion for nearly ten years and is loved and respected by her husband and children.

They've long forgotten what it means to swallow one's anger.

She took a deep breath, forced a smile, and replied:

"Madam Xue is right. Having many children is of utmost importance to families like ours." She paused, her smile deepening, her gaze towards Madam Xue becoming meaningful: "But even with abundant offspring, it depends on the quality of the fruit. It's better to have only one or two, carefully nurtured, than ten or eight good-for-nothings. They can then bring honor to the family and uphold its traditions. It's not about who has the most children—"

She deliberately drew out her words, piquing everyone's curiosity, before leisurely saying, "Those mice can have ten or more offspring in a litter, so why don't you, Madam Xue, marry ten or eight of them for your husband?"

"puff--"

Someone couldn't help but chuckle.

Immediately, a suppressed chuckle and coughing sounded from the audience.

Madam Xue's face immediately turned bright red, and she pointed at Wang Ruofu, stammering, "You...you..."

You talked for ages, you were so angry you almost passed out, but you still couldn't think of a way to retaliate.

In the end, he had no choice but to get up and flee in panic.

Having achieved a stunning victory and won a decisive game, Wang Ruofu picked up his teacup, gently skimming off the foam, looking as if it were nothing special.

Only the subtle upturn of her lips betrayed her triumphant mood.

The polo match has ended.

Wang Ruofu led Hua Jie'er, who was slightly sweating, to the small pavilion for changing clothes.

As her mother helped her undo and restyle her hair, Hua Jie couldn't help but laugh:

"Mother, do you really say that?"

"Of course it's true," Wang Ruofu said.

Hua Jie'er smiled, her eyes crinkling, and couldn't help but repeat, "Mice have ten or more in a litter, Mother, how did you come up with that? It's so clever!"

Wang Ruofu couldn't help but smile smugly: "Right? I think that's a good point too!"

She glanced around furtively, noticing the servants were all standing far away, then leaned close to her daughter's ear and whispered, "Actually, it was your father's idea! Back then, that shameless Li family forced me to take a concubine for your father, and they used the same excuse. Your father specifically taught me to use this. He said that if anyone dares to make such a fuss again, I should use this to shut them down."

Hua Jie'er suddenly realized and laughed, "As expected of Father, he deserves credit!"

After the mother and daughter finished laughing, Wang Ruofu changed her daughter into clean everyday clothes while continuing to complain: "That Madam Xue is deliberately picking a fight today. Don't be fooled by her high-sounding words; it's not something respectable she's after."

"Oh?" Hua Jie'er turned her face, looking curious.

The mother and daughter always talked about everything, and Wang Ruofu didn't think there was anything wrong with talking about such trivial matters of the inner quarters with her ten-year-old daughter.

There's nothing in this world that we can't encounter. If we tell them sooner, they'll be more aware of it sooner.

Wang Ruofu: "She has a younger sister who is fifteen years younger than her, and the family cherishes her like the apple of their eye. A few months ago, she went to the Daxiangguo Temple to burn incense, and on the way back, her carriage got spooked, but she was rescued. Coincidentally, the person who rescued her was a deputy general surnamed Han under your uncle's command, who was quite handsome."

As Wang Ruofu spoke, her tone became disdainful: "Then the Xue family girl had her eye on him and went back to make a scene, insisting that she would marry no one but him. But Vice General Han was already married with a son and a daughter. The Xue family, feeling superior, actually tried to force him to divorce his wife and marry their daughter instead."

"Good heavens, this is absolutely outrageous!"

Sister Hua couldn't help but say.

With her daughter's support, Wang Ruofu spoke with even greater enthusiasm: "That's right! It's all thanks to that Deputy General Han, a man of great loyalty and integrity, who refused to comply no matter what. He was forced to ask your uncle for help. You know your uncle's temperament; he can't stand this kind of bullying. He came back and told your aunt about it."

Wang Ruofu's eyes lit up again when she spoke of Shilan: "Your aunt was incredibly decisive. She directly sent an official matchmaker to the Xue family with a thick stack of names, saying that since Miss Xue preferred married men and wanted to be a legitimate wife, she had plenty of names of recently widowed widowers in Bianjing who were waiting to remarry. She told Miss Xue to take her pick, and if she liked any of them, she could arrange a marriage and even give her a generous dowry!"

Hua Jie'er's eyes widened upon hearing this, and she immediately covered her mouth and laughed.

My aunt is so mean!

Wang Ruofu laughed, "Your aunt's move infuriated the Xue family to the point of collapse, yet they couldn't utter a single word in rebuttal. From then on, the Xue family and your aunt became enemies. The reason why Madam Xue attacked us today was simply to embarrass your aunt by making us lose face."

Therefore, she cannot simply accept it; she must strike back forcefully!

After changing her clothes, Hua'er nestled close to her mother and said softly, "Mother did the right thing!"