With legs weak, the sickly stable boy became a mad regent.

The next day, A-Chao was transferred to the Wutong Courtyard.

Qiu Yu led the people in, her mind filled with doubt.

This person is really strange. Despite being so badly injured, he acts like nothing happened.

He stood outside the stable early in the morning, saying he wanted to repay the young lady's life-saving grace as soon as possible.

She led him to the corridor.

"Well, the young lady said your injuries haven't healed yet, so you'll have to stay in the corridor and serve for now."

"Yes." He bowed his head, respectful and attentive, without finding any fault in his words.

The maids sweeping under the eaves stopped what they were doing, their eyes all drifting in that direction, and whispers arose.

Ah Chao ignored him, but his eyes subtly took in the entire courtyard.

The main house, east wing, west wing... are laid out in an orderly manner, yet the guards are not lax.

The courtyard of the eldest daughter of the Shen family was easier to enter than he had imagined.

"Alright, that's all. Don't go near the main house unless it's absolutely necessary. We'll call you if we need anything." Qiu Yu waved her hand, turned to leave, then remembered something.

"By the way, Miss is still asleep, so don't make any noise in the corridor."

"Yes."

-----

Surprisingly, Shen Nannan slept through the night.

I didn't dream of that bedchamber, nor of the cold fingers and entangled bodies, nor of the final cup of poison.

When she woke up, it was already broad daylight. She lay in the soft brocade quilt, feeling dazed for a while.

Surprisingly... I didn't have any nightmares.

Is it because you saw the living, yet still immature, regent yesterday?

Do you feel there's still a chance to salvage the situation? Or is it because...?

"Miss, you're awake?"

Qiu Yu came in and saw her staring blankly with her eyes open, and smiled.

You look much better today.

Shen Nannan sat up and rubbed her temples.

Yes, it's good that I didn't have nightmares, but I'm even more on edge now.

Xiao Yunzhao woke up. That person's thoughts were so deep, which meant that the game had truly begun, and every step had to be correct.

She washed up and changed her clothes, choosing a pink spring dress that made her skin look even whiter.

The person in the mirror had a charming face, and when she looked up, she had a breathtakingly alluring look.

Even Qiu Yu was stunned for a moment, thinking to herself, "Miss now... how come her eyes and brows seem to be soaked with spring water, making her even more dazzling?"

"What are you holding in your hand?" Shen Nannan noticed that Qiu Yu was still holding a booklet.

Qiu Yu then remembered the important matter.

"Miss, this month's allowance..." Qiu Yu handed the booklet to her, pointing to a spot with her finger. "Take a look."

Shen Nannan took it, glanced at it, and frowned.

Fifty taels.

She is the legitimate daughter of a general, and her monthly allowance is much more than that.

"Who delivered it?"

"It's Granny Zhang from the second branch of the family," Qiu Yu said, biting her lip. "This servant said the numbers are wrong, she said... she said..."

"What did you say?"

"They said that you bought several new clothes last month, and also gave extra tips to the people in the courtyard. The account was overdrawn, so this month they will deduct some of it back. It's all the rules of the public treasury."

Shen Nannan closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

It was the same in my past life.

The household affairs of the General's Mansion had always been managed by the second wife, Madam Tong.

When her monthly allowance was withheld, Shen Nannan went straight to the second wife's house and pointed her finger at Tong Shi's nose and cursed her.

And what happened? Madam Tong publicly cried out, "The young lady has wronged me," and then immediately spread the word that she was "extravagant and wasteful, and had no consideration for the soldiers on the frontier."

She later learned that Tong had done it on purpose.

While her father was busy with the war on the frontier, she, the legitimate daughter of the general's family, was spending money recklessly in the mansion—this news spread throughout the city and added another chapter to the Shen family's history of "colluding with the enemy."

Stupid. Really stupid.

She opened her eyes, closed the account book, and her voice was so calm that it startled Qiu Yu:

"Keep it. Don't tell anyone."

"Miss? You're not angry?"

Shen Nannan didn't say anything, stood up, walked to the window, and pushed it open a crack.

The figure in black stood under the eaves.

"Go and bring me the accounts from the past few years, without disturbing the second branch of the family. Also, go and find me a few reliable accountants from outside."

Qiu Yu's eyes lit up: "Miss, you finally—"

Shen Nannan understood as she looked at her expression.

She, a domineering young lady, never interfered in the affairs of the household, but the servants in the household knew this.

Qiu Yu was loyal; he had subtly mentioned it to her a few times, but she hadn't paid any attention.

However, in her previous life, when the border regions were facing a food shortage and the imperial court's military pay was delayed, she thought of sending some money from her household to her father first.

Unexpectedly, Tong, the second wife, insisted that there was no cash in the account, and that her father had been seriously wounded in that battle because he couldn't wait for supplies and had to break through the encirclement at the cost of his life.

Go ahead. Don't let anyone know.

The autumn rain departed as promised.

Shen Nannan looked out the window again.

She was foolish in her past life, but she's not foolish in this one.

Did the Tong family want her to make a scene? She refused to.

She had to wait, until her father returned, until the evidence was conclusive, until she had enough power in her hands.

Her gaze fell on the figure in black under the eaves.

The general's guard uniform clung to him, highlighting his broad shoulders, narrow waist, and straight back.

He turned his face slightly to the side, his features clearly outlined by the light—a high, straight nose, thin lips, and a smooth, austere jawline.

That face was too handsome.

He was too handsome to be standing in this ordinary corridor, and he shouldn't be wearing such coarse clothes.

But it's this face...

In bed, he would always trace her body inch by inch with that creepy gaze.

Each time, it filled her with fear and trembling.

At this moment, however, his face was still young, and he did not yet possess the sinister and ruthless aura that would later seep into his very bones.

As if sensing her gaze, Ah Chao suddenly turned his head.

Eyes facing each other.

Those eyes remained unfathomable.

While she was still in a daze, he had already looked away, bowed his head and greeted her: "Miss."

Plain, respectful, and flawless.

Shen Nannan was stunned for a moment, a complex feeling welling up in her heart.

In their past life, he was the regent, and she was his concubine. She was always the one waiting for him, never the other way around.

"Um..." She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but didn't know what to say.

My gaze fell on his chapped lips.

"You, come here."

Ah Chao hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward.

He saw it clearly in that one glance just now—

When she saw him, she froze for a moment. There was a fleeting look of confusion in her eyes, as if she were seeing someone else through him.

It was that look in his eyes again.

He frowned, suppressing the inexplicable irritation in his heart.

Shen Nannan held a celadon teacup in her hand and handed it to him:

"Drink it."

Ah Chao looked up at the white porcelain teacup in her hand, but didn't take it.

"Just drink it. You've been standing all morning, aren't you thirsty?"

Ah Chao then reached out and took the teacup, glanced at it, and then brought it to his lips and took a sip.

The tea has a faint floral fragrance.

He took another sip—a rare treat that suited his taste.

Then he stuck out the tip of his tongue and licked the corner of his lips very lightly.

He raised his eyes and looked directly at her: "It's a gift from Miss, and it smells very good."

Shen Nannan's heart skipped a beat as she watched his actions.

In his past life, after he had finished with her, he would lick his lips like this, like a beast that had just had its fill.

This tea is the flavor that Xiao Yunzhao loved to drink in his previous life.

During the three years she was imprisoned in the Prince's mansion, she spent a long time learning how to brew the tea to his liking in order to please him.

I was hoping to gain some goodwill.

She lowered her eyes, but was startled when she saw the teacup in his hand.

Oh no, I took the wrong one!

She had just used it to drink tea and hadn't noticed; she just picked it up without thinking.

Her lips touched the rim of the cup, still bearing a faint trace of lip rouge.

So he...saw it? And...

Shen Nannan panicked.

She took a deep breath, trying to make her voice sound normal: "Where...are you staying tonight?"

Ah Chao looked up, his gaze lingering on her face for a moment before falling back down: "Miss, there is a place for night watch in the corridor."

"So you'll sleep in the corridor?"

"Yes."

Shen Nannan opened her mouth, as if to say something, but then swallowed it back.

She nodded: "Okay. You can rest now."

After saying that, he turned around, went back into the house, and closed the door.

She leaned against the door, her heart pounding like a drum.

Just now, Ah Chao clearly had his eyes downcast and was very respectful, but when his gaze swept over,

She always had this feeling that... she was being watched by something.

She knew that look in her eyes all too well.

In his past life, this was how he always looked at her before he was about to torment her.

No, that's not right.

At that time, he was the regent and never concealed his desire for her.

But now—

It's hidden.

It's pressed down.

It hasn't fully grown yet, but it has already sprouted.

Shen Nannan suddenly shivered.

She just wanted to please him, to make him remember her kindness, so that he could protect the Shen family in the future.

But if—

What if he had those feelings for her a long time ago?

What if what she's doing isn't "taming" him, but rather "awakening" him?

In her past life, she did nothing, yet he imprisoned her for three years. In this life, she actively courts him—

Ah Chao was still standing under the eaves.

Hearing the door open, he turned his head and his gaze fell on her.

Shen Nannan's heart skipped a beat when she met those eyes.

wrong.

This time she saw it clearly.

That wasn't scrutiny, that wasn't vigilance—it was...hunger.

She suddenly understood.

Her previous strategy was wrong.

She thought that by being kind to him, showing him favors, and catering to his preferences, she could earn his gratitude.

But that's a way of raising dogs.

He is not a dog.

He's a wolf!

If you feed him, he won't be grateful; he'll only remember that you smell like meat.

Shen Nannan felt a chill run down her spine.

In her previous life, she was the prey.

This life—

She raised her hand and pressed it against her wildly beating heart.

She remembered those nights in her past life when he pinned her down and said, "My dear, the more you try to hide, the more I want you."

She closed her eyes. If hiding was useless, if appeasement was useless, then the only way...

The idea was to make him think he was the hunter, but in reality, she was the one who set the bait.

The only way to deal with wolves is to tame them!

She summoned the autumn rain.

After deliberating for a moment, I finally made up my mind.

"Bring me my summer nightgown, and also find that light purple undershirt."

Qiu Yu was taken aback. "Miss... it's still cold today."

Shen Nannan gritted her teeth, "Just go get it when I tell you to."

lotus root color, this was the color Xiao Yunzhao liked her to wear the most in her past life...

"Go and get ready. Once you've taken your things, you don't need to stay here to serve today."

She has more important things to do tonight!

---

Under the eaves, the setting sun casts its rays.

Ah Chao stood still, his gaze fixed on the tightly closed door of the main room.

She ran away.

It's always like this. Every time he gets a little closer, she runs away.

Like a frightened rabbit, it's terrified but insists on putting on a show of being the master.

Even more suspicious is...

When she saw him, she was momentarily dazed, as if she were looking at someone else.

Who is that person?

Ah Chao closed his eyes and smiled silently in the darkness.

How could a wolf that has spent over a decade crawling through the mud and witnessed the ugliest side of human nature find a spoiled rabbit cute?

He closed his eyes, suppressing the restlessness that shouldn't have been there.

Don't rush.

Rabbits will bite the bait on their own.

In the darkness, he silently curved the corners of his lips into a smile.

Miss, you'd better actually want something from me.