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

Your Highness the Crown Prince.

Outside the Golden Palace, Xu Yanqing looked back and saw a woman slowly walking towards him from behind.

She was the daughter of Prince Qing, who had just spoken so eloquently before His Majesty. According to seniority, he should call her "cousin".

Pei Qingrong wore a polite smile and spoke in a way that was pleasant to hear: "I thank Your Highness for standing up for me in the palace just now."

"Princess, you needn't be so polite." Xu Yanqing's attitude was indifferent. Although the two were both members of the imperial family, there was a natural difference between them.

Prince Qing was originally of a different surname, but was granted the title of prince and the surname due to the great merits of his ancestors.

He changed his surname to follow his mother's in order to avoid the trouble caused by the Wan family.

Although they are cousins ​​in name only, they are actually unrelated and have never had any contact with each other.

So this was the first time Xu Yanqing had ever learned that her cousin, who was always praised for being dignified and virtuous, would actually do something as outrageous as breaking off the engagement right in front of him.

Pei Qingrong seemed to see something on his face, and smiled slightly, "Is Your Highness surprised?"

Xu Yanqing was also quite frank, "The Empress Dowager has always been very fond of my cousin, and often praised you as a role model for women in the capital. After today, I'm afraid she will have to change her opinion of you."

They all knew this was not a good thing.

"That makes sense," Pei Qingrong sighed softly, the worry between her brows quickly dissipating. "Although my father inherited the title due to the family's influence, the royal family still inevitably declined day by day. My elder brother was not ambitious, and my younger sister was still young, so he placed all his hopes on me."

There was a hint of confusion in her eyes as she spoke. Pei Qingrong had always wondered if it would be better to follow the path her father had laid out for her.

However, whenever I think about it, the gentle touch of Shen Lingyi's hand in my palm flashes before my eyes that day.

She said, "Everyone expects women to be tolerant and generous, but why can't we live according to our own wishes just once?"

"If it were me, I would never want to live a life of aimless wandering and being controlled by others."

Perhaps it was because the wind was too noisy during the Lantern Festival that day.

Pei Qingrong actually listened to her, and then, without realizing it, her thoughts changed.

Returning to the present, Pei Qingrong tightly gripped the amulet in her palm: "...Your Highness, I have no regrets."

Xu Yanqing was taken aback, then suddenly became anxious as if she had thought of something. "Did someone say something to you?"

Seeing the urgency in his eyes, Pei Qingrong suddenly understood what was going on and looked back at him quite seriously.

"I don't know what answer His Highness the Crown Prince wants from me, but as his cousin, I think I have the right to offer some advice."

"If the person you truly love is not that person, then don't pursue them. If you are sincere, then show your sincerity instead of wavering between the two."

Pei Qingrong bowed and left the palace. Xu Yanqing's mind could not be changed by her words alone.

She could only offer a brief reminder to the still clueless Crown Prince.

but,

Perhaps it's too late.

"You are not to divulge a single word about seeing Miss Shen traveling with His Majesty that day," Pei Qingrong instructed her maid.

The maid blinked, still somewhat bewildered. Thinking of what she would face next, she couldn't help but cry out, "Miss, you went to the palace without permission to annul your engagement with the Crown Prince. The Prince will be furious when he finds out. What should we do?"

"It's alright."

Pei Qingrong flipped through the Records of the Grand Historian in her hands. The old book was already yellowed, and the pages were curled up at the bottom. However, she was convinced that learning from history could help her know the way forward. Therefore, this book had always been Princess Ning's favorite.

She already knows how to proceed on her path, and she is not afraid of any more storms.

The news of Princess Ning annuling her engagement caused a huge uproar in the capital.

When Shen Lingyi learned of this, the words she had just written almost went crooked, but when she came to her senses, she felt they were excellent.

"Princess Wenliang is gentle and kind. If she were the Crown Princess, she would have suffered countless open and hidden attacks. This time, she has escaped from a sea of ​​suffering."

In the story, Shen Tingjiao's path to becoming the Crown Princess was smooth only because someone cleared obstacles for her.

If it were anyone else, they would have died countless times.

"There's one more thing... Miss, please don't get too excited when you hear it."

The next second, Shen Lingyi looked up as if she thought she had misheard, and she couldn't write anymore.

"You said Wei Chengrui wants to enter the academy? How old is he? What would he do at the academy?"

Peony looked at her hesitantly, then reminded her, "Um, Prince Wei is half a month younger than you, Miss."

The tip of the brush touched the rice paper, and a blob of thick ink spread out in a messy, chaotic manner.

Shen Lingyi is somewhat complicated; yes, she actually forgot even this.

If it weren't for the sudden misfortune that befell the Wei family, Wei Chengrui would have entered school much earlier, honed his skills at the academy for a few years, and then had his family pull strings in the military for him.

A spirited young man is destined for smooth sailing.

No one expected what happened next.

"Miss, please don't be sad. What happened back then is too complicated for us to handle."

Shen Lingyi snorted coldly, crumpled the paper into a ball, and threw it away. "If anyone's upset, let them come at me! I've never been afraid of anyone!"

Two days later.

A carriage arrived at the academy, and before it had even come to a complete stop, the sound of running could be heard. A dozen figures appeared in full view of everyone, their iron armor exuding a chilling aura of battle, making the entire academy tremble.

The usually rigid and rule-abiding Master Du was already swaying, looking like he might faint at any moment.

Wei Chengrui smiled contemptuously and raised his hand to command: "Help this old man up, lest someone impeach me for disrespecting the elderly again."

Shen Lingyi stood in the crowd watching, clicking her tongue twice.

The pomp and circumstance were even grander than when she enrolled in school; Wei Chengrui was now sure to incur hatred.

If Wei Chengrui knew what she was thinking, he would definitely not take it seriously. He would laugh and say, "When have you ever been afraid of me?"

It should be noted that since the day Wei Chengrui returned to the court, he was impeached for treason because he led 100,000 elite troops under his command. People were wary of his great power and worried that the already stable situation would be disrupted by this dark horse.

As a result, Wei Chengrui did not follow the expected procedure and beat the man up that very night by putting him in a sack.

After finishing his business, he left with a smug remark: "The one who assaulted me is Wei Chengrui. Don't go looking for the wrong person. If you want revenge, I'll be waiting for you anytime."

A group of old ministers were so angry they were about to vomit blood, but they were powerless to do anything about it.

After all, the gun in Wei Chengrui's hand was no joke.

Master Du's beard trembled with anger as he pointed at the man's nose and yelled, "The academy is for people to study, not for you to flaunt your wealth! Prince Wei brought dozens of people here to show off to the academy?!"

"Absolutely arrogant, lawless..."

"Old man, you've got it wrong," Wei Chengrui picked at his ear and sneered. "If I wanted to do anything to your dilapidated academy, wouldn't it be better to just send my elite troops here? Why do you have the right to criticize me?"

"you!"

Master Du was so angry he could hardly catch his breath; it looked like he was about to die of anger.