The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

Sheng Hong, in high spirits, didn't mind her attitude and hurriedly said, "Just now, the Jingbian Marquis's residence sent someone to deliver a message, saying that the second young master of the Ningyuan Marquis's residence in Dongjing (Kaifeng) secretly went south to Yangzhou to find his maternal grandfather, the Bai family, who are salt merchants! But now he has disappeared without a trace. The Jingbian Marquis knows about this and is anxious to find him, so he has come to ask us local officials for assistance in the search!"

His surname is Bai, and he is a young man.

A thought struck Hai, and she immediately thought of the young man recuperating in the side courtyard.

Sheng Hong's joy grew even brighter: "Yes! It's most likely the child we rescued last night! This is truly an unexpected stroke of luck!"

By simply bestowing a favor, one can gain the favor of both the Marquis of Jingbian and the Marquis of Ningyuan. This deal is incredibly lucrative.

The more he thought about it, the more wonderful it seemed, as if he could already see a bright future beckoning him.

Hai Shi, however, was much calmer than him: "Since the person is being kept in our residence, you should quietly send a trusted person to the Marquis of Jingbian's residence to ask them to come and take the person away."

"Quietly?" Sheng Hong was taken aback. "Why quietly?"

"If not quietly, are we supposed to make a big fuss, like beating drums and gongs, so the whole of Yangzhou knows that the eldest son of the Marquis of Ningyuan has run into trouble in Yangzhou, was thrown into the water by thieves in the dead of night, and needs your help, Magistrate Sheng?"

Hai interrupted him, saying irritably, "Even Gu Erlang had to change his name and sneak around when he came to see his maternal grandfather off at his deathbed, but you, you want to announce it to the whole world. Are you trying to do me a favor or make an enemy?"

Sheng Hong was so embarrassed that he turned red in the face and shut his mouth. What was supposed to be a happy occasion was suddenly turned into a huge bucket of cold water, and he was in the wrong.

Feeling embarrassed, he turned to leave.

"Wait." Hai called out to him, her tone authoritative and leaving no room for argument: "Take advantage of this rare opportunity and quickly bring up the matter of annulling the engagement with the Yuan family."

Sheng Hong was even more displeased: "Since I promised you, I'm bound to do it eventually. Why bring it up now of all times?"

Such a rare favor from the two prefectures, are you going to use it before you've even received it?

Hai's gaze suddenly turned cold, and she said indifferently, "My lord, if I remember correctly, if you receive another excellent grade at the end of the year, you will have a chance to be transferred back to the capital. No matter how great the favor of a noble title, it can only be fulfilled upon returning to the capital. If you continue to stay in Yangzhou, over time, it will all be worn away, won't it?"

This is threatening his future.

Sheng Hong's face turned pale and then red, and he gritted his teeth and said, "What you say is true, Madam... I will go and explain to the Yuan family tomorrow."

Having said that, he didn't want to stay a moment longer and turned away.

-

"Mother, this is for you!"

Holding the red-gold and kingfisher feather butterfly hairpin, Minglan ran excitedly to her birth mother Wei Xiaoniang's room.

Wei Xiaoniang, several months pregnant, was resting on the couch.

Hearing her daughter say it was a prize she won from pitch-pot last night, Wei Xiaoniang showed little joy on her face. Instead, she frowned and said, "You should give this to Madam."

"Mother has one too!" Minglan hurriedly explained, "I got a pair! I gave one to Mother as soon as I got it, and this one is specially for you, my dear!"

She had specifically asked for the reward because it came in a pair, hoping that both her mother and concubine would receive it, so that neither of them would be left out.

This is what it means to treat everyone equally!

"Then I definitely can't accept it."

Wei Xiaoniang shook her head, her tone as cautious as ever: "How can I, a mere concubine, use the same things as the eldest mistress? Besides, at last night's banquet, were you the only one who stole the show again? What about the fourth and fifth young ladies? How did they perform?"

Minglan pouted, that feeling of disappointment returning.

"Mother, you're here again. Even Mother doesn't care about these things, so why is it you who can't let it go? Fifth Sister's accuracy has always been unreliable, and Fourth Sister isn't very enthusiastic about this either. She'll definitely win the poetry exam another day. Anyway, they're no match for Bao-jie. In the end, I'm the one who turned the tide!"

She puffed out her small chest, looking smug, her eyes clearly saying, "Praise me!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Xiaoniang frowned even more deeply: "And you're one to talk! You're just as stubborn as a mule. Why can't you learn to hide your shortcomings? You're the youngest of the girls in the family, yet you always insist on being the best and taking the lead in everything. What will your older sisters think if this continues? What will the eldest mistress think?"

Minglan retorted defiantly, "My sisters are all so happy for me! Mother, can't you be happy for me just this once?"

"I'm doing this all for your own good!" Wei Xiaoniang had a terrible headache, not understanding where this child got his stubbornness from, and why he was so difficult to teach.

The mother and daughter were angry with each other and ignored each other for a while. Xiao Die, who was serving them, quickly stepped forward to ease the tension.

After all, she was her own daughter, and Wei Xiaoniang didn't want to waste this hard-won opportunity on bickering and getting angry. So, taking the opportunity to back down, she softened her tone and asked, "Have you sisters sent your mother to pay your respects to the old lady these past few days?"

Minglan turned around sensibly and nodded: "Of course, but Grandmother likes peace and quiet and tells us not to disturb her unless necessary."

Wei Xiaoniang held her daughter's hand and whispered, "If you really want... if you really want a bright future, then find a way to make the old lady like you."

"Why?" Minglan asked, puzzled.

"Because the old lady is the highest-ranking person in this family, even your father and the eldest daughter-in-law have to show her some respect. If she likes you, and is even willing to raise you herself, she will naturally plan more for you when you grow up. Your marriage and future will be different."

Minglan, however, was somewhat resistant: "But I don't want to live separately from my sisters..."

"It's not like you're moving there right now, and you don't need to do anything else," Wei Xiaoniang gently advised. "You just need to visit Shou'an Hall often, talk to the old lady, and make her happy. Let her feel that you are considerate and clever, and she will naturally like you. Just think of it as making the old lady happy. You don't want her to be lonely and bored by herself, do you?"

Looking at her mother's expectant yet worried eyes, Minglan finally nodded: "...Alright, I'll give it a try."

-

"Is he really at the Sheng family's house?"

The following morning, Shilan was quite surprised to hear the news brought back by Zhang Yun.

"I only mentioned it casually last night, thinking that his wife was more shrewd and capable than other women. With such a virtuous wife, Magistrate Sheng might be more capable than ordinary officials. I never expected that I would actually be right."

Zhang Yun had been searching all night and only returned in the early morning. After washing up, he only rested for a short while and was now having breakfast. Upon learning that Gu Tingye was safe, he was completely relieved and no longer doubted his wife's words. Instead, he smiled and said, "It seems that we really have a deep connection with the Sheng family."

He finished his congee in a few bites, got up, straightened his clothes, and prepared to go to the Sheng family to pick up Gu Tingye.

Just before leaving, he remembered something and turned back to ask Shilan, "Would you like to come along?"

Shilan wasn't very interested in Gu Tingye himself, but she was very interested in Madam Hai and wanted to see for herself what the Sheng family was like under Madam Hai's rule. So she readily agreed.