The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

Shilan and her family had a good time tonight and returned to their guesthouse in high spirits.

Along the way, Guifen kept talking, still savoring the exhilarating experience of playing pitch-pot that day, praising the outstanding performances of the newly acquainted Sheng family sisters, and begging Shilan to invite them over to play together.

Shilan, unable to resist her sister-in-law's persistent pestering, could only reply, "I know, I know. Aren't all the new and exciting things we see in Yangzhou enough for you to enjoy? Besides, we won't be staying here for long; we'll be heading south again soon."

The implication is that there's no point in bothering to cultivate a friendship that's destined to be short-lived.

Although Guifen was young, she was clever and understood what she was hearing, but she didn't take it seriously. She tilted her little face up and said, "Don't worry, I can write a letter to my sixth sister!"

Shilan raised an eyebrow and asked her, "Write a letter? How many characters do you recognize now? And how many characters can you write?"

Guifen hesitated for a moment, remembering her father's oft-repeated adage of "never losing face," and then stubbornly said, "Let An'er write it for me! If not, there's Rui'er and Ming'er! Aunt is in trouble, how can we, as the younger generation, not do our best?"

His condescending and self-righteous tone drew laughter from everyone.

An'er shook her head and mimicked an adult's tone, saying, "Look at you! I've told you before that it's more important to study! You've made a fool of yourself!"

Guifen pounced on her and started playfully fighting with her.

They returned to the courtyard chatting and laughing. After the two children had washed up and rested, Shilan also took a comfortable hot bath.

As the steam dissipated, she emerged wearing a light, soft nightgown. Her skin, flushed and rosy from the heat, appeared even more radiant and captivating.

Zhang Yun's heart warmed at the sight, and he was about to pull the man into his arms, intending to do something intimate between husband and wife in the quiet of the night, when suddenly, a low but urgent voice came from outside the door from his servant, Shan Zhu:

"My lord, something has happened."

Zhang Yun and Shi Lan exchanged a glance, quickly straightened their clothes, and Zhang Yun went outside, only to find that another uninvited guest had arrived in the middle of the night.

Upon entering the outer hall, they saw Yuan Wenchun, who was covered in sweat and looked anxious.

"Uncle, Ye-ge'er is missing!"

Zhang Yun was taken aback and ordered him to explain himself clearly.

Yuan Wenchun hesitated and kept trying to shirk responsibility, taking a long time to finally explain himself.

It turned out that before the Yuan family set off, Gu Tingye suddenly visited, saying that his maternal grandfather was seriously ill and he wanted to go to Yangzhou to visit him, asking if he could take a boat from the Marquis of Zhongqin’s mansion to go south.

He claimed that because his father disliked his association with the Bai family and he did not want to cause trouble, he used the pseudonym Bai Ye and traveled light.

Yuan Wenchun, wanting to curry favor with the Ningyuan Marquis's family, agreed.

Of course, there is another reason that is not known to outsiders. As everyone knows, Gu Erlang of Ningyuan Marquis’s family is famous for his skills in riding, archery and pitch-pot among the noble sons in the capital. If we can use his status and skills to give the Sheng family a hard time at the engagement banquet, wouldn’t it be easier for them to control their future sister-in-law after she marries into the family?

He and his wife had planned everything meticulously, but unexpectedly, they encountered some bad luck from some deity, and things went wrong at every turn.

First, the Sheng family's attitude was unexpectedly tough. After learning that the parents could not come in person, they even refused to allow the betrothal gifts to be taken off the ship.

The pair of live geese that Yuan Wenshao, the younger brother, had painstakingly hunted were on the verge of dying, and the situation remained stagnant.

To make matters worse, Gu Tingye disappeared after disembarking at dusk.

Yuan Wenchun didn't pay attention at first, assuming that Gu Tingye had gone to his maternal grandfather's Bai family.

It wasn't until the people he sent to inquire at the Bai family reported back that Old Master Bai had passed away the previous night, and that Gu Tingye hadn't even visited their home that he panicked!

If something were to happen to the eldest son of the Marquis of Ningyuan's family while he was traveling south, how could he bear the responsibility?

In his frantic state, he remembered that the Marquis of Jingbian and his wife were in Yangzhou, and that the Marquis of Jingbian's wife was related to the Marquis of Ningyuan's family, so he rushed over overnight to ask for help.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yun's face instantly turned ashen, and his sharp gaze shot towards Yuan Wenchun: "He's just a teenager, saying he wanted to travel south alone to visit a sick person, traveling light, and you actually believed him? And you even let him board the ship with you?!"

Yuan Wenchun was speechless when asked the question and could only lower her head guiltily.

Seeing his appearance, Zhang Yun knew that further words would be useless, and the most urgent task was to find the person.

He immediately instructed Shanzhu: "Go to the prefectural government office to report this matter and ask them to assist in the search. Also, send a few clever and reliable servants to search carefully along the dock and the path leading to the Bai family's house."

He then turned and went back into the inner room to change his clothes and go out himself.

Having overheard the entire story from the side room, Shilan couldn't help but ask, "Where do you intend to look?"

As Zhang Yun changed his outer robe, he replied, "The Bai family. Since Ye-ge'er has come for his maternal grandfather, he should at least go to the Bai family to see him one last time. There's no wrong place to go."

Shilan pondered for a moment, then said, "Let the Sheng family keep an eye out for him as well. Let them know a little about Ye-ge'er's age and physical characteristics, and ask Magistrate Sheng to inquire within his jurisdiction."

Zhang Yun paused, somewhat puzzled: "The Sheng family? They're new here, what does this have to do with us?"

Shilan couldn't say that Gu Tingye had a deep connection with the Sheng family in the original story, so she could only say, "The Sheng family are local officials, so they're always better informed than us. Having another way out is never a bad thing."

Although Zhang Yun felt it was a bit abrupt for his wife to mention the Sheng family at this time, he was eager to find someone and didn't delve into it further. He nodded and agreed, "Okay, I'll send someone to deliver a message."

After saying that, he hurriedly went out, and his figure quickly disappeared into the night.

Shilan gazed in the direction he had left, muttering to herself, "No way... it really is such a coincidence?"

-

A side courtyard of the Sheng family mansion.

Gu Tingye woke up groggily to find himself lying on a clean and comfortable bed, his wounds having been properly treated and bandaged.

He sat up slightly and found a kind-faced woman sitting by the bed, who had a serious and capable air about her. She was looking him over and asking him his name and how he had ended up like this.

Gu Tingye recalled the scene before he fainted and knew that he must have been saved by a wealthy family. He was grateful, but he was also cautious and did not reveal his true identity or purpose. He only said that he was a distant relative of Old Master Bai. Because the old master had given him some money before he died, he accidentally lost the money on the way and was ambushed by villains, which is why he was injured.

He spoke earnestly, repeatedly thanking the family for saving his life, and said that he would leave as soon as he was better and would not cause any trouble.

Finally, he solemnly inquired about the family's surname, saying that he would definitely repay them in the future.

Seeing his clear and honest eyes and his gratitude, Madam He felt a sense of goodwill towards him. Moreover, the doctor said that the young man's injuries were caused by sticks and were not serious. He had fainted because he fell into the water. It seemed that he was indeed a pitiful person who had encountered misfortune, just as he said. So she told him that this was the residence of Sheng Hong, the magistrate of Yangzhou.

After watching Gu Tingye drink his medicine and fall asleep again, Madam He returned to the main courtyard to report to Madam Hai.

She had just finished repeating what Gu Tingye had said when Sheng Hong came in from outside with a cheerful expression, his steps even lighter than usual:

"My dear wife! You've done me a huge favor again!"

What Hai found most annoying was his cloying manner when he needed something or was carried away with pride. He asked coldly, "What is it?"