Song Miaorong trotted back to Zhuang Yunlan with light, quick steps, stretching out her arms to hug her.
The furry edge of the gray squirrel cloak hood pressed against Zhuang Yunlan’s face.
She was momentarily stunned by this sudden embrace, but Song Miaorong had already let go.
“I’m off now,” Song Miaorong blinked her ever-sparkling almond-shaped eyes, waved at Zhuang Yunlan, then turned and stepped out of Chenghua Men.
Zhuang Yunlan: …What’s with this sudden burst of sentimentality?
Some very unpleasant scenes suddenly flashed through her mind, all of them from TV dramas she had watched before.
The characters involved would look at their friends with feigned ease, smile and bid farewell, and then the scene would shift—revealing that these people were all embarking on some mission with a resolve to die.
The only difference was that if the person doing this was the male or female lead, they would usually survive countless dangers and achieve their goal alive. But if it wasn’t the protagonist, they would truly die.
Could Song Miaorong really be planning to confront Pu Xuan Shi for Shen Zhao Yi?!
Zhuang Yunlan recalled Song Miaorong’s expression when she spoke today, and the more she thought about it, the more her scalp tingled with dread.
Would Song Miaorong really be that foolish?
This was a matter of life and death.
Zhuang Yunlan began to panic.
The trouble was, she couldn’t bring this up to discuss with Shaoyao and the others.
If word got out and Pu Xuan Shi unfortunately met with misfortune, even if Song Miaorong had done nothing, she would still be tainted by suspicion.
Zhuang Yunlan didn’t want to harm Song Miaorong.
All she could do was keep a close eye on her. Fortunately, starting from the 24th, the concubines of the Eastern Palace would gather almost daily in the main hall of the rear courtyard to accompany the Crown Princess in conversation and tea.
Song Miaorong grew increasingly uneasy under her gaze. During a flower-viewing session, she pulled Zhuang Yunlan aside and whispered, “Why do you keep staring at me?”
Zhuang Yunlan continued to stare at her. “Tell me the truth, are you…”
She cautiously glanced around, then leaned in and whispered, “Planning something dangerous?”
“What dangerous thing?” Song Miaorong looked utterly bewildered. “What are you talking about?”
Well, it didn’t seem feigned. She definitely wasn’t plotting anything major. All that worry for nothing.
With the alarm lifted, Zhuang Yunlan breathed a sigh of relief. “Nothing, I was just teasing you. Fun, right?”
Song Miaorong: …Not really.
She watched as Zhuang Yunlan quickly slipped away and asked Huamei in confusion, “What’s wrong with her?”
Huamei, as an observer, couldn’t help but laugh. “Mistress, this servant thinks Zhuang Cairen might have been frightened by your behavior yesterday and is worried about you.”
Song Miaorong still didn’t understand.
Yesterday, she had just felt that given their close friendship, it was wrong of her to feel even a hint of jealousy toward Zhuang Yunlan. Feeling guilty, she had hugged her.
Was that really so frightening?
Still, it felt nice to be cared for by a good friend.
Song Miaorong automatically dismissed the earlier feeling of unease and said to Huamei with a smile, “We’ve been the closest since our days learning etiquette, and we’ll always be the best of friends.”
Huamei: “Yes, Mistress and Zhuang Cairen have the best relationship.”
Zhuang Yunlan noticed that in the past few days, her friendship with Song Miaorong had deepened to another level.
The shallow rift that had appeared between them due to being assigned to different palaces vanished at lightning speed, and they returned to the era of hand-in-hand bathroom trips in the concubine preparatory class.
Of course, their conjoined time was limited to before The Crown Prince returned to the Eastern Palace.
Every time The Crown Prince’s usual return time approached, Song Miaorong would swiftly leave the Chenghua Side Hall, refusing to stay a moment longer.
When The Crown Prince entered, he was puzzled by the oddly arranged pieces on the chessboard. "Which palace maid did you rope into playing with you? Why is the game so chaotic again?"
Calling it chaotic was already a polite way to put it.
The reality was: it was even stranger than the game they had played before.
The Crown Prince stared at the black piece placed at the center of the board, utterly unable to comprehend which mastermind had come up with such a move.
"This time, you weren’t playing black, right?" The Crown Prince truly couldn’t imagine that such a disorganized game could have been played by someone on his side.
Unexpectedly, Zhuang Yunlan straightened her back with a hint of pride.
"I was playing black," she declared proudly. "Your Highness didn’t notice? I won. We weren’t playing Go, and the rules are different. I won this game."
Nonsense.
The Crown Prince glanced at the unmistakably Go board and pieces, deciding to see what kind of story she could spin.
He simply said, "Oh?" and asked, "Then tell me, what game were you playing? I’ve truly never seen it before. Enlighten me, won’t you?"
Zhuang Yunlan pointed a finger at the row of five connected black pieces to show The Crown Prince. "We were playing a game called Five-in-a-row chess. It’s much simpler, with far fewer rules. Basically, whoever connects five pieces in a row first wins—horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, as long as they’re connected."
The Crown Prince listened with a touch of exasperation.
Although she explained it fluently, as if it weren’t a rule she’d made up on the spot, it still seemed far too casual.
Yet Zhuang Yunlan didn’t think this way of playing was casual at all.
Joking aside, Five-in-a-row chess had its own established strategies! Zhuang Yunlan was a skilled player who had once dominated the game using those very strategies!
Zhuang Yunlan blinked at The Crown Prince. "Would Your Highness like to play a round with me? I’m really good at this."
"Alright," The Crown Prince chuckled, amused. He wanted to see just how good she could be.
Shaoyao quickly gathered the intermingled black and white pieces from the board and returned them to their containers.
The Crown Prince generously offered, "I’ll let you play black again."
Zhuang Yunlan secretly rubbed her hands in anticipation.
Today, she would show The Crown Prince the true skill of Master Zhuang and make him regret underestimating her!
Zhuang Yunlan picked up a black piece and headed straight for the center of the board.
Perhaps seeing such an opening move for the first time, The Crown Prince couldn’t help but press his fingers to his temples before picking up a white piece and placing it beside the black one.
Zhuang Yunlan quickly placed her second black piece, eagerly anticipating the completion of her Turtle Formation and the chance to relish The Crown Prince’s helpless expression after underestimating her.
Of course, if His Highness truly became frustrated, she would pretend to be carried away by the thrill of imminent victory and make a slight "mistake," allowing The Crown Prince to turn the tables.
She couldn’t guarantee her skill in the games the ancients played, but for a game like Five-in-a-row chess, she was confident she could live up to the high expectations of the palace ladies!
The black pieces were placed faster and faster, victory seemingly within reach.
Zhuang Yunlan suppressed her excitement, silently cursing the wretched feudal society while covertly observing the Crown Prince's expression to decide whether she should lose or win this game of chess. When she lowered her head again, she found she could no longer set up her Turtle Formation—
The Crown Prince had somehow "deciphered the divine secret" at some point, changing the course of the white piece in his hand midway, which coincidentally occupied the very spot she intended to place her piece.
Zhuang Yunlan: …
All that scheming for nothing.
The Crown Prince leisurely waited for her to make her move, then picked up a white piece again. Slowly and deliberately, he placed it on the board, not only completely dismantling her Turtle Formation but also connecting it directly with the existing white pieces on the board.
The outcome was already decided.
The Crown Prince drew out his tone, meaningfully uttering an "Hmm," and praised, "Minister Zhuang is truly 'formidable.'"
Zhuang Yunlan: … He was definitely mocking her!