The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

The sixteenth day of the twelfth lunar month was an auspicious day, and also the joyous occasion of the Duke of Qi's family welcoming Princess Pingning.

The mansion was brightly decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, and was bustling with guests.

Meanwhile, in a charming, warm pavilion within the inner courtyard, a different kind of lively scene unfolded.

The insulated heater was burning warmly, dispelling the winter chill outside the window.

A group of young girls of similar age, dressed in bright clothes, were sitting around a table with warm fruit wine and delicate tea and snacks on a low table in the middle. The air was filled with a sweet fragrance and the coquettishness of young girls.

"Double Ears! You won again! Shilan, is your pitch-pot skill some kind of divine instruction?" A girl in an apricot-yellow silk jacket pouted and laughed as she tried to snatch the red gold agate bracelet from the winner's hand.

Shilan deftly tossed her hand, neatly slipping the bracelet into her sleeve. Then, she raised her chin slightly, her eyes brimming with smugness: "It's just a trivial skill. If Sister Wu can't bear to part with this little bit of prize money, she can win it back at the polo field next time."

"Let's not talk about polo," another girl in a lake-blue vest sighed, resting her chin on her hand. "Since autumn started, my mother has been forbidding me from going out, saying that too much cold wind will give me a headache. My body is practically rusting from idleness. If it weren't for the Duke of Qi's joyous occasion today, how could we all be gathered here?"

The others all showed expressions of agreement.

The girls present were all acquaintances of Shilan from her polo lessons. These days, girls who come out to learn polo are all, without exception, cheerful and lively. They were also impressed by Shilan's superb polo and pitching skills, which led them to play together and their feelings for each other grew stronger day by day.

Unfortunately, it was inconvenient to ride horses after the autumn chill set in, and everyone's families were very strict with each other. Apart from sending messages, the sisters had not seen each other since.

It was a rare treat to have the opportunity, thanks to the joyous occasion at the Duke of Qi's mansion, to come out with my elders and steal half a day for a quiet get-together in the warm pavilion. I was naturally overjoyed.

Amidst the laughter and merriment, Biqin, Shilan's head maid, tiptoed in and whispered in her ear, "Miss, the Second Young Master is already waiting at the entrance of the Second Courtyard, urging you to go back."

Although the voice was soft, it was still heard by Wu Yueyin, who was standing closest to her.

Without waiting for a reply, she grabbed Shilan's arm: "No, no! Let your second brother go back by himself. We sisters haven't had enough time to talk, why is he getting involved!"

"That's right, good Shilan, stay a little longer..." The other sisters chimed in, and a chorus of pleas for them to stay filled the warm room.

Although Nian Shilan was reluctant to part, she remembered that she still had an "important task" to attend to today. She smiled and stood up, straightening her skirt: "Alright, it really can't be today. I have important matters to attend to at home. Another day, another day I'll send you an invitation to come over, and we can have some fun then."

Judging by the time—Qin Nanyan should have met Gu Yankai by now. If she went over there and blocked them in the act, she would probably still have time to thoroughly disgust them.

Since God sent her here, she absolutely cannot let those two scoundrels get married so easily!

Seeing that she was determined to leave, the sisters had no choice but to let her go.

Unexpectedly, just as Shilan put on her cloak, the Sun family girl, who had just used the excuse of changing, came running back excitedly, lifting the hem of her skirt. She grabbed Shilan's hand, her face flushed with excitement: "Shilan, Shilan! Guess what I just saw?"

She successfully piqued everyone's interest, and Shilan stopped what she was doing and looked at her expectantly.

The young lady from the Sun family looked around and, seeing that everyone's eyes were on her, felt a surge of satisfaction. She then lowered her voice and said in a somewhat dramatic tone, "I just returned and passed by the plum garden. Guess what? I saw your eldest sister, facing a few white plum trees, frowning, tears welling in her eyes, lamenting the passing of spring and the coming of autumn!"

As she spoke, she held her handkerchief and imitated Qin Nanyan's delicate, swaying figure, reciting in a soft voice, "...walking alone, sitting alone, singing alone, drinking alone, and sleeping alone... Oh dear, that appearance, it truly evokes pity!"

Her girlfriends were so amused by her incredibly lifelike imitation that they laughed uproariously.

After laughing enough, Miss Sun continued, "As luck would have it, the heir of Marquis Ningyuan, Gu Yankai, happened to be passing by and witnessed this scene! I saw from afar that the young master was stunned, his eyes wide open, he must have been amazed by the sight! Sister Shilan, I reckon it won't be long before we hear good news from your household."

She winked at Shilan.

Shilan accepted the suggestion without question: "The Ningyuan Marquis's residence is also a good place to go."

It has been almost New Year's since the establishment of the new dynasty. Apart from the Zhang family of the Duke of Yingguo's mansion, who still holds great power in the army, only the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion and the Zhongqin Marquis's mansion still have some influence in the army and can be called the emperor's close ministers.

Although the people present were still young, they all came from similar families and had this much knowledge, so they didn't refute anything.

Meanwhile, the spirited young woman in the corner, dressed in a lake-blue vest, seemed to have thought of something and scoffed, "What kind of taste do those men have? They only like women like these parasitic vines, who would fall over in a gust of wind. What's so interesting about them?"

After she finished speaking, the warm pavilion fell silent for a moment.

Those present were all shrewd daughters of military or noble families, and they had all heard and seen much about the affairs of the inner quarters. The spirited young woman's words undoubtedly struck a chord with some of them.

For example, Wu Yueyin recalled her father, who was infatuated with a concubine of the same delicate type and neglected his mother.

Compared to the girls' sympathetic feelings, Shilan didn't feel so much. In her previous life, she spent her whole life fighting in the palace, and her biggest realization was that men like all kinds of women.

Whether virtuous and gentle, willful and mischievous, kind and vicious, or even exceptionally ugly, as long as she's a woman, she can be dragged into bed.

Therefore, trying to figure out what kind of women men like is a pointless endeavor.

Instead of wasting time, you might as well make yourself another piece of clothing or another set of jewelry.

At least these are things I like.

"Who cares what they like? Girls like us can't get married just to have romantic relationships with men."

Shilan stopped there.

Before the Sun family girl and the spirited girl could react, Wu Yueyin was startled and looked at her with considerable surprise.

Shilan smiled at her sisters, and this time she really turned and left.

The afternoon sun in winter cast dappled shadows on her through the window lattices of the corridor.