The matter of entering the palace had truly made Song Yan break out in a cold sweat. Especially during the dinner banquet when both his maternal aunt and uncle seemed distracted, it made his heart sink even further. Anxious and uneasy, he stood in the entrance hall, staring blankly at the screen wall, occasionally lifting his head to glance upstairs.

He didn’t know how long he waited before finally seeing Song Chuyi descend from upstairs. He quickly ran forward, grasped her hand, and asked with some unease, “Sister, what did Grandfather say to you?”

Song Chuyi thought for a moment, then simply asked him, “Regarding Fifth Aunt’s matter back then—you knew it was me who did it, didn’t you?”

At the time, Song Jie and Song Chubin had both come one after another to inquire about the situation, but were deflected by Old Madam Song in just a few words. However, Song Yan was after all a child with delicate sensibilities. During that period, she had frequently gone in and out of Song Chengru’s study, which must have made him notice something.

Song Yan nodded hesitantly—he had always known his sister wasn’t as weak and easily bullied as she appeared on the surface.

Song Chuyi’s lips curved in a slight smile. She lowered her head to straighten his clothes and said, “Because of this matter, I’ve gotten into some small trouble. That’s why the Empress Dowager summoned me to the palace.”

Song Yan struggled for a long while, somewhat frightened. He gripped Song Chuyi’s hand tightly, cold sweat faintly seeping out. “But Fifth Aunt… she’s Her Majesty the Empress Dowager’s niece…”

Song Chuyi was gratified that Song Yan could think of this point. She took out her handkerchief and carefully wiped his palms dry, her voice as calm and gentle as always. “That’s why I said it’s a bit of trouble… But Ayan, Sister won’t do things she’s not confident about. Even for your sake, I’ll definitely protect myself well. Don’t worry.”

Song Yan gripped her hand even tighter. He raised his head to look at his sister’s eyes, bright as stars, and said word by word, “When I grow up, I’ll definitely help you block all this trouble.”

Song Chuyi laughed, dimples appearing in both cheeks. She opened her unusually bright eyes and looked at Song Yan with curved brows. “Good. I’ll wait for that day.”

She thought the wish she had made before the Buddha would surely come true. Song Yan wouldn’t be deliberately ruined like in her previous life, wouldn’t become a marginal figure in the Song family, and much less could he be confused into a ghost marriage and nailed alive into a cold coffin.

Watching Song Yan being escorted back to Chuzhou Pavilion, Song Chuyi was in excellent spirits as she crossed the arched bridge back to her Guanju Courtyard. But she had only just seen Qing Tao raise her hand to knock on the door when someone bumped into her, making her stumble.

“Don’t you watch where you’re going?!” Ziyun rarely showed temper, holding up a bright lantern directly toward the person’s face. “If you’ve injured our young lady, how do you plan to compensate?”

But when she saw who the person was, her words abruptly stopped, swallowing back the rest of her harsh words.

“F-Fourth Miss…?” She held up the lantern and tilted her head slightly to look at Song Chuyi, her face full of uncertainty and suspicion.

Song Chumi?! Song Chuyi was supported by Luyi who rushed out. Before she could examine her painfully bumped shoulder, she first raised her eyes to look at the figure who had collided with her by the lantern’s light.

Qing Tao also carried her lantern forward a few steps, and when the two lanterns shone on the person, they immediately exposed her appearance clearly.

Song Chuyi looked her up and down with some surprise. Before she could speak, Song Chumi rushed forward and embraced her tightly.

“Help me!” Song Chumi used her height advantage to hold Song Chuyi tightly, as if afraid she would run away, her fingernails almost piercing through the clothes into Song Chuyi’s flesh.

Song Chumi, who should have been in Ningde Courtyard, had actually run out and gone straight to Guanju Courtyard in the garden. This definitely couldn’t be a coincidence.

Song Chuyi pondered as she endured the pain and gave Ziyun and the others a meaningful look. The maids half-carried, half-coaxed Song Chuyi out of Song Chumi’s grasp.

Ningde Courtyard had heaps of maids and servants. Even if most of the servant women had returned to their residences on the back street at night, there should still be layers of guards. How had Song Chumi escaped so easily?

Ignoring the expression on Song Chuyi’s face, Song Chumi cried like a tear-soaked person, desperately clutching her hand for help. “Sixth Sister, you must help me! Otherwise when Mother returns, I’m finished!”

Third Madam Yun Shi had always been narrow-minded. Perhaps because Yun Shi herself had been raised by a stepmother, she never really knew how to interact with children. Song Chumi had been raised by her since childhood and thus had also contracted this problem.

Just like her marriage arrangements—she was convinced that Old Master and Old Madam Song were refusing to fulfill her wishes out of favoritism, and stubbornly refused to comply.

Song Chuyi couldn’t quite say what her attitude toward Song Chumi was at this moment—there was both contempt for her past self who had been exactly the same, and frustration at her failure to mature, as well as a hidden disappointment.

The Zhang family’s illegitimate son was clearly not a good person. He already had a wife and children, yet still pretended to be some romantic hero. She didn’t understand how such a simple matter could escape the notice of Song Chumi, who usually seemed quite shrewd.

She glanced behind Ziyun and lightly nodded at Qing Tao. Understanding, Qing Tao turned and ran into the night.

Song Chumi faced Song Chuyi and took Song Chuyi’s handkerchief to wipe her face. “I really had no other choice. Sixth Sister, the Old Madam and Old Master listen to your words. Help me, and I’ll help you too…”

Her voice drifted on the wind into Song Chuyi’s ears in the night, making it somewhat difficult for Song Chuyi to hear clearly.

Then Song Chumi pulled her hand forward a step, putting her mouth to Song Chuyi’s ear and saying softly, “Xiaoyi, you’re going to enter the palace. You also know that because of Fifth Aunt’s matter, the Empress Dowager hates you and our Earl’s manor to death. If you help me, I’ll tell you how to avoid it. How about that?”

The thing that had been floating vaguely in Song Chuyi’s mind, that she had wanted to grasp but couldn’t, suddenly became clear. She turned her head to look at Song Chumi, locking onto her face as she slowly spoke. “Did Young Master Zhang tell you this?”

The vague suspicions in her heart had always lacked a thread to connect them, but Song Chumi’s words suddenly made everything clear. The Zhang family cozying up to Song Chumi, the Crown Prince being poisoned, and her imminent entry into the palace—all these things together were far too coincidental.

She had never considered: what if Empress Dowager Rongxian’s target wasn’t just herself alone? Although Consort Song had pushed everything onto her, Empress Dowager Rongxian probably wasn’t satisfied with merely killing one wet-behind-the-ears girl from the Song family to vent her anger. What she more likely wanted was to make the entire Song family serve as burial companions for Wang Jinsi.

This speculation left her standing frozen in shock, making her blood run cold. If this were true, then this matter was truly interesting.

After much hesitation, Song Chumi nodded. She struggled not to cry out loud again, urgently grasping Song Chuyi’s hand. “You must believe me. Brother Zhang’s sister has ingratiated herself with the Empress Dowager. I heard that before long she’ll enter the palace to be a reading companion for the Ninth Princess. If you help me and Brother Zhang this time, we’ll help you too.”