After becoming pregnant, the cold-hearted nobles all went mad.

Xie Chichun bit her lower lip, looking nervous.

Shen Lingyi laughed instead; compared to that little bit of surprise, it was nothing.

"Miss Xie is indeed well-informed."

"Don't you know?"

Xie Chichun had a strange expression, as if to say, "How come you don't even know this?" He was surprised and incredulous.

"His Majesty recently rebuked the eldest daughter of the General's Mansion for her moral depravity, which has harmed both herself and others. This matter will probably spread very soon."

Shen Lingyi was stunned. She remembered that Pei Heng's words in Liangzhou, which she thought were just empty words, were actually true. He had come back and stood up for her as soon as he returned.

The subtle ripples that stirred in her heart were quickly left behind.

Xie Chichun, unaware of her thoughts, was slightly lost in thought. "My aunt told me to stay away from Shen Tingjiao. I didn't understand why. After learning of His Majesty's order, I asked around... and found out everything about your affairs in Liangzhou."

"Your aunt is doing this for your own good." Hearing this, Shen Lingyi felt that Aunt Xie Chichun was farsighted and was quite eager to get to know her.

After all, not everyone can see through Shen Tingjiao's true colors at a glance.

Just like Xie Chichun in front of us, we were deceived by her weak and innocent appearance.

A commotion arose in the crowd. Looking in the direction of the sound, they saw a woman dressed in blue, holding a scroll, walking gracefully towards them.

This was Xie Guan, also known as Mr. Tingzhu.

"My aunt is here," Xie Chichun muttered. No one knew that this fearless young lady from a military family was most afraid of her aunt.

"You're actually afraid too."

"Hmph, my aunt is different," Xie Chichun retorted softly, but didn't dare to say more. "You'll find out later."

Xie Guan also had a fascinating story to tell. General Xie was all alone, and he treated this little sister incredibly well.

However, she herself had a tragic fate, falling in love in her youth and losing her husband after marriage.

Her in-laws insisted that Xie Guan had killed their son. Later, General Xie personally went there with his sword and brought his younger sister back.

Xie Guan did not remarry. She organized the poetry collection left by her husband and added some more herself.

She was a talented woman who caused quite a stir at the time.

This eventful experience moved many people, and her reputation became even more renowned than when she was young, and she was regarded as a role model for women in the capital.

Xie Guan's arrival meant that the banquet had begun.

This poetry banquet will be judged by awarding prizes, with each person receiving one prize, and the winner taking home a golden phoenix hairpin.

Almost as soon as Xie Guan spoke, Shen Lingyi heard people talking about it.

"The Xie family is incredibly generous! This golden phoenix hairpin belonged to the Princess back then. The Xie family saved the lives of the Princess's subordinates in a critical moment, and that's why the Princess bestowed it upon them!"

Meanwhile, Xie Chichun looked on with longing, "The eldest princess is the number one female general of the Great Wei, and she leads troops as a princess. It is said that the situation faced during the reign of Emperor Zhao was much more difficult than that of the previous dynasty. At the critical moment, it was Emperor Zhao's own sister who stepped forward, seized military power, and recovered territory."

Shen Lingyi remembered this phoenix hairpin; in the story, it was Shen Tingjiao who got her hands on it.

This is still a very important thing.

For some reason, she suddenly couldn't remember why it was important when she got here; it was as if a piece of her memory had been erased.

"Miss, what's wrong?" Peony kept a close eye on her mistress's movements in this crowded place, a habit she developed from the time when Shen Lingyi and Xie Chichun were always trying to sabotage each other.

Before she knew it, the two of them had fallen into the pit again, and as their maid, she had to be ready to lend a helping hand at any time.

"It's alright, go get the paper first."

Although Shen Lingyi found it strange, she didn't pay much attention to it.

Since Shen Tingjiao is currently under house arrest and cannot leave, she just needs to find a way to take back the phoenix hairpin.

The Xuan paper has been distributed, and even Xie Chichun received one.

She scratched her head for a long time before finally her eyes lit up and she wrote a few lines. Then Shen Lingyi also handed in hers.

A moment later, Xie Guan, draped in a pearl-embroidered shawl, raised his hand and took out a folded piece of paper. "Everyone has shown great ingenuity. I have tentatively selected the top three: Miss Chen, the third daughter of the Li family, and..."

"The Second Young Lady of the General's Mansion".

Upon hearing this, those around him found it unbelievable, and Xie Chichun was utterly shocked.

Before everyone could finish processing this, Xie Guan continued, "Today's champion is none other than the second young lady of the General's Mansion, Shen Lingyi!"

Knowing it would be difficult to convince everyone, she specially displayed Shen Lingyi's poem in front of everyone, and the poems of the other two were also brought out for inspection.

a long time.

The crowd's gaze shifted from shock to bewilderment. It seemed, it appeared, that this second young lady's poetry was better than that of Miss Chen and Miss Li. How could this be? Wasn't it said that this second young lady was illiterate?

"Does anyone have any further comments?"

Miss Chen had just finished reading the poem when she blurted out, "Impossible! I've read it before; this poem wasn't written by Shen Lingyi. It was clearly written by her sister, Shen Tingjiao!"

The crowd erupted in uproar once again; who could have imagined that such a small poetry banquet could be so full of twists and turns?

Immediately, some people began to believe Ms. Chen's words.

After all, Shen Lingyi's reputation for being unruly was well-known throughout the capital. To gain fame, she chose to steal her elder sister's poems and register them under her own name while her elder sister was away. It seemed that she was capable of such a thing.

"How can you be so sure this poem was written by Shen Tingjiao?" Shen Lingyi tilted her head back, her eyes revealing undisguised sarcasm.

Miss Chen felt inexplicably guilty when she met her gaze, yet she was unwilling to relinquish the top spot. She gritted her teeth and said, "Two years ago on the Double Ninth Festival, I personally witnessed Shen Tingjiao crumple this poem into a ball and throw it on the ground."

"Out of curiosity, I picked it up and read it. Although the writing was blurred by water, I could still tell that it was a brilliant and wonderful poem."

"What you just wrote is exactly that poem, down to the last detail!"

Shen Lingyi adjusted her temples, appearing nonchalant in the face of Miss Chen's aggressive questioning.

She actually found it quite funny.

Shen Lingyi smiled slightly. "Miss Chen, can you recognize the handwriting above? Why don't you think back carefully and see how it differs from my handwriting?"

Ms. Chen subconsciously compared the handwriting on the two pieces of paper, and soon her face turned pale and her breathing became rapid.

Shen Lingyi then explained slowly, "Two years ago, I was riding a horse through the streets, and when I got tired, I happened to bump into a stall on a street corner where you could win prizes by writing poems. Shen Tingjiao was there at the time."

"On a whim, I also wrote a poem, and I accidentally won first place. The prize was a thin cloud gauze that I had no interest in, so I abandoned the poem and left on the spot."

Ms. Chen's trembling became more and more pronounced as she spoke.

When emotions run high, it's impossible to think things through carefully, but once she calms down and thinks about it, she realizes that Shen Lingyi is right.

If Shen Tingjiao won the prize based on her poem, why would she crumple up the paper to vent her anger?

"This poem is mine to begin with. Even if Shen Tingjiao were here today, what difference would it make?" Shen Lingyi said with a smug look on her face.