The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

Ruo Fu, seeing that the time was almost right, waved his hand and said, "Alright, I'm not a mind reader, how would I know what you're really thinking? But since you've made such a solemn oath, who knows, some passing deity might have heard it and remembered it. You should remember it yourself."

Wang Qin repeatedly agreed.

"As for today's events, I will only punish you for your incompetence," Ruofu said lazily. "You didn't stop your master from being drunk, and you didn't stop him from going to the wrong place. You bear full responsibility for today's events!"

She thought for a moment: "Finish your salary for half a year, then give you twenty strokes of the cane. Go collect your punishment yourself after the New Year. If it happens again, I'll break your legs!"

Upon hearing that it was merely a fine and caning, Wang Qin breathed a sigh of relief and quickly kowtowed, saying, "This servant accepts the punishment; thank you for your mercy, Madam!"

Hongli sat there for a while and realized that Wang Qin had taken all the blame, so his beating was destined to be in vain.

The more Hongli thought about it, the angrier he became, and the bump on his head started to hurt even more.

He gave Hailan a cold look, then suddenly stood up, flicked his sleeves, and walked out.

Seeing this, Wang Qin, ignoring the pain in his forehead from the impact, quickly got up and chased after him.

Ruofu watched his retreating figure and couldn't help but roll her eyes.

Pooh.

They had ulterior motives first, and when they failed, they still had the nerve to complain!

What a thick-skinned face! Why doesn't he transform into a city wall? Maybe he could protect the peace of the people in this area!

Ruo Fu withdrew his gaze, glanced at the remaining people in the room, and his expression suddenly turned serious: "No one is allowed to spread what happened here tonight. If even a single word of gossip circulates in the manor tomorrow, and I find out who spread it, I will sell him and his entire family to the most shameful place in the world. So that even if he has a mouth, no one will listen to him, and even if he has legs, he won't be able to walk back!"

"Did you understand?"

The two eunuchs kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "We understand! We would never dare to utter a single word!"

If Fu waved his hand, he told them to go and serve Hongli.

After everyone left, the room finally quieted down.

Hailan seemed to only come to her senses at this moment. Her legs went weak, and she knelt down again, her face prostrate on the ground.

"Thank you so much, Madam, for saving my life!"

"Why thank me?" Ruof frowned. "You learned to use the stick yourself, and you're the one who wields it."

Hailan cried even harder.

Ruofu scrutinized her for a while, then suddenly exclaimed, "She really is a beauty. Even when she cries, she looks so beautiful. No wonder he's so tormented by her."

Hailan's face suddenly turned pale.

Ruofu added, "Don't think that this matter ends here today. You need to make up your mind about what to do next. Let's be frank, he suffered today and lost face in front of so many people. He will definitely remember you for the next few days and wish he could tear you to pieces."

Hailan's body trembled slightly.

"But then again, men are inherently base! As the saying goes, a wife is not as good as a concubine, a concubine is not as good as a stolen one, and a stolen one is not as good as one that can't be stolen. The more decisively you refuse today, the more he might think you are different from others. Once he gets over this, he might want you even more."

Hailan's face grew increasingly pale.

Ruofu continued, "Now I can give you two options. One is to find a pretext to send you out of the manor and then find you a marriage. If you have someone you like, or if you want to go somewhere, you can just say so. The other is to stay in the manor and wait until the prince calms down, then I'll simply make you a concubine. With a title, at least no one will say you seduced the master anymore, and you can live openly in the inner courtyard."

Before she could finish speaking, Hailan burst into tears and said without hesitation, "My lady, this servant does not wish to serve the prince!"

The thought of everything that had just happened made her stomach churn. No matter how handsome and noble the prince's face or status was, it couldn't compare to the hands in the darkness that ignored her struggles.

She felt disgusted and scared from the bottom of her heart.

After crying for a while, Hailan said in a trembling voice, "But I have no parents and no relatives to turn to... If I leave the palace, I really don't know where to go."

She didn't outright refuse to marry, but she also didn't make any further requests.

In her entire life, apart from her father who died young and her uncle, almost none of the men she met were good.

The way she met the constables on her way to the capital, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department, and the prince who had just barged into the room—the way they looked at her frightened her.

But she knew that the Fujin was a good person. Just now, the Fujin had argued for her in front of the Prince, and now she was openly and frankly laying out all the pros and cons without deceiving or belittling her.

So Hailan thought that if the Fujin (principal wife) really wanted to choose a husband for her, she was willing to believe her this time.

She really had no other choice.

However, Ruofu did not immediately mention finding a husband for her.

It's not that we can't find someone. There are so many collateral descendants in the Fucha clan, and countless talented young men we know in the mansion. Finding a man from a decent family with acceptable character is not difficult.

But she knew better than anyone else where Hongli would end up.

Now, marrying a woman who is already being eyed by Hongli to another man is not helping Hailan find a home, but rather bringing disaster to that man's family!

In the future, if he were to ascend the throne and remember Hailan, whom he had longed for but could not have in his youth, he could casually ask her a question, and countless people would rush to find her for him.

By then...

She can protect someone for a while, but she dares not say she can protect them forever.

Besides, why should she protect her for life?

In her past life, Langhua's Yonglian also fell victim to Hailan.

Moreover, men in this world are very fickle; many seem perfect before marriage but become filthy and unbearable afterward.

If she rashly marries Hailan off, and Hailan suffers and endures hardship, and then discovers that Hongli has become emperor and she herself originally had the opportunity to become a concubine, it's hard to guarantee that she won't blame all her resentment on her.

They said she was meddling in other people's business and that she ruined her own path to wealth.

Human nature is something that cannot be tested.

She doesn't need to try.

"Then stay in my courtyard for now and think it over slowly."

Hailan was stunned.

Ruofu turned to Shenguang and instructed, "When we get back, have Zhaoying prepare a room for us. Let her do some needlework in the main courtyard for now. She doesn't need to serve you personally, nor should she be given any heavy tasks. She was frightened tonight, so have a doctor come to see her tomorrow and let her rest for a few days."

Shen Guang replied, "Yes."

Ruofu then looked at Hailan, his tone matter-of-fact: "From today onwards, you are a maid in my courtyard. The rule in my courtyard is that no one can touch you without my permission."

Hailan could no longer hold on and prostrated herself on the ground again, sobbing uncontrollably, "Thank you, Madam!"

Ruo Fu asked Shen Guang to help the person up, and left two reliable maids to tidy up the house before taking Hai Lan back to the main courtyard.

The night was quite noisy. Ruofu was full of energy when he came out, but as soon as he lay back down on the bed, a wave of sleepiness suddenly washed over him.

She is four months pregnant and is already more sleepy than usual. After talking so much, she can barely keep her eyes open now that her head is on the pillow.

Just before going to sleep, the image of the large, swollen bump on Hongli's forehead reappeared before my eyes.

Ruo Fu buried himself in the blanket and chuckled twice.

After laughing, she felt a little annoyed.

It's her fault for being too slow to realize things in her past life. Back then, she shouldn't have spent money to buy Wei Shuyi for Sheng Hong.

Wei Shuyi is beautiful, but her personality is too weak and submissive, which is a waste of Sheng Hong's talents.

She should buy Sheng Hong a fierce and shrewish woman! Preferably one with superhuman strength, like the widowed wife that little brat from the Sun family in Youyang later married.

In this way, whether it's Sheng Hong or Lin Qinshuang, if they dare to disobey in the slightest, she can just give the order and the woman will rush up and beat them up. How satisfying that would be!

Ruo Fu felt increasingly pleased as he thought about it, and in his dazed state, something seemed to flash through his mind.

But before she could grasp it, she succumbed to the overwhelming sleepiness, tilted her head, and fell into a deep sleep.