The pregnant woman pressed down on the wife, and the cousin collapsed into the prince's arms.

The furnishings of Luoxue Pavilion are exquisite and refined. The warm room is covered with a lotus-colored brocade carpet with plain patterns. A pear wood dressing table is placed by the window, and on the antique shelf next to it, a Ru kiln celadon vase is filled with a few fragrant jasmine flowers.

Pei Lingrong was a hospitable young lady, and the other young ladies were obviously not first-time visitors to Luoxue Pavilion, as they all seemed quite at ease.

Pei Lingzhu, the seventh young lady of the third branch of the Pei family, is still very young, only nine years old. She came to Luoxue Pavilion not for the sachet, but simply to have fun.

Therefore, when she saw a sandalwood box with a mechanism on Pei Lingrong's dressing table, she picked it up immediately.

The sixth young lady, Pei Lingzhang, was a concubine's daughter from the third branch of the Pei family. She was usually quite cautious. Seeing her seventh sister's actions, she gently scolded her, "Zhu'er, don't be rude. Put it down quickly, or it will break."

Pei Lingrong's words drew everyone's attention, but she showed no anger. Instead, she laughed and said dismissively, "Let Seventh Sister play with it. It's alright if she breaks it. This is a coming-of-age gift from my eldest brother. He said the gift was hidden in this box, but it's been so many days and I still haven't opened it. Tell me, isn't that infuriating!"

These words immediately aroused everyone's curiosity. The elder brother that Pei Lingrong mentioned was Pei Yuanxiao's eldest son, Pei Jingheng, who was also the first among his cousins ​​and was twenty-eight years old this year.

Although he only held the sinecure of Attendant Gentleman of the Palace, he was extremely fond of refined tastes and had excellent calligraphy and painting skills. His painting "Fishing Alone on a Cold River" attracted the attention of scholars in the capital, making him a rare and elegant person.

"It was a gift from the eldest young master; no wonder it's so exquisite," a girl in a pink shirt whispered beside her.

Pei Lingrong secretly rolled her eyes, wondering if she knew what Lü Lanxun was thinking. Seeing that her elder brother had been a widower for many years, she had the idea of ​​marrying into the Pei family as a second wife. Didn't she even consider that she, a concubine's daughter of a minor official in the Ministry of Works, was good enough for her?

If she weren't so sweet-talking and thick-skinned, she wouldn't have been able to get into this house.

When Shen Yunshuang saw the mechanism box, a thought struck her. In her previous life, Lingdang's brother was extremely skilled in these Lu Ban techniques, and she had seen quite a few of them.

Compared to the noise of others, the quiet Shen Yunshuang was clearly more likable.

Pei Lingrong glanced at the sachet she wore at her waist, pulled Shen Yunshuang over to the dressing table, opened her dressing box, and said with a smile, "Sister Shen, you gave me a sachet, so naturally I should return the favor. Take a look at the jewelry in this box, which one do you like? I'll give it to you."

In her previous life, Shen Yunshuang had never attended such a banquet, nor did she know Pei Lingrong, but this cute and cheerful girl was truly likable.

Shen Yunshuang declined, saying, "No need, you're too kind."

"Oh, don't be shy." Pei Lingrong genuinely wanted to give it to Shen Yunshuang. Seeing that Shen Yunshuang didn't choose, she picked through the makeup box herself. Pearl hairpins... kingfisher feather ornaments... After a long time, she took out a peacock holding a pearl hairpin. The workmanship was exquisite, the hairpin head was carved lifelike, and the pearl was also lustrous.

She placed the hairpin in Shen Yunshuang's hair and nodded: "Not bad, this hairpin suits Sister Shen very well."

Shen Yunshuang smiled and didn't refuse again. Just then, the mechanism box in Pei Lingzhu's hand clicked, followed by her joyful shout: "Wow! I opened it!"

Pei Lingzhang was startled. He looked away from Shen Yunshuang's face and saw that a wooden bolt had indeed popped out from the side of the mechanism box in his sister's hand, and a gap had appeared on the top of the box.

"It's no use. I can solve it up to this point, but I can't open it after that." Pei Lingrong stepped forward, took the puzzle box, and tried to open the lid, but to no avail.

Disappointment was also evident on Pei Lingzhu's small face.

At this moment, Shen Yunshuang spoke up, "Third Miss, why don't you let me give it a try?"

She had been as quiet as a wisp of smoke, but unexpectedly she suddenly stepped forward.

Lu Lanxun felt a little disdainful. This was a puzzle box given by Pei Jingheng! Who was Pei Jingheng? Anything he gave must have been carefully crafted.

So, although they were also very curious about the puzzle box, apart from the young Pei Lingzhu, no one offered to solve it, knowing they couldn't and were afraid of losing face.

What makes Shen Yunshuang think she can unlock this box? She's just a down-on-her-luck girl from the south with no talent or reputation. What makes her think she can solve this problem? She's just asking for trouble.

"Miss Shen, don't try to show off or be strong. If you can't solve it, you'll only become a laughing stock." Lu Lanxun covered her mouth and smiled, but her words were truly cutting.

She was jealous of Shen Yunshuang's beauty, but even more jealous of how effortlessly she won Pei Lingrong's favor, who even gave her a peacock hairpin.

She's been by Pei Lingrong's side for so long, but she hasn't even received a single bead!

Shen Yunshuang sensed Lü Lanxun's malice towards her, but her face didn't even turn red. She glanced at her calmly and said gently, "I was indeed just curious for a moment, and I'm not entirely sure of myself. But I think that even if I can't solve it, the sisters won't laugh at me."

Speaking softly and gently helped him extricate himself from embarrassment and also flattered others.

Upon hearing this, Pei Lingrong and the others nodded in agreement.

Then, Shen Yunshuang began to unpack the box in her hands. She pushed the wooden peg to the left, and four protrusions appeared at the four corners of the top of the box.

Then she tentatively pressed one of them, and the previously quiet wooden box made a slight sound. Without hesitation, she pressed the other three protrusions in the order of lower right, upper right, and lower left.

As she finished her last movement, the lid of the box popped open half an inch with a snap.

The mechanism box has been opened!

Shen Yunshuang's lips curled up slightly, like a breeze rippling a lake in spring, her eyes sparkling with bright light.

Pei Lingrong was momentarily stunned by her appearance before finally focusing on what this thing that had been dangling from her for days was inside the puzzle box.