Song Shiyu thought that living a good life—especially living comfortably in one place—meant doing things her way.
Every day had to be as pleasant as possible.
But…
She had indeed spent a bit more silver than she probably should have.
Calculating it, most of the silver Pei Qinhai had given her had already been spent. Once she finished setting up the household over the next few days, she would need to switch into “earn money” mode.
..
In Pei Qinhai’s room.
Pei Qinhai lowered his head to read, one hand resting on his slightly full stomach, his expression a little conflicted.
He had to admit—these past few days, he hadn’t been very disciplined with food.
The Pei family was poor, and they didn’t pay much attention to fine cuisine. They had never eaten anything really delicious. After all, this was a remote rural area—any truly fine foods could only be found far away in the capital. Here, even ordinary home-cooked meals were considered good enough.
But… Second Miss Song’s culinary skills were extraordinary. Her knowledge was vast and diverse, far beyond what he had imagined.
Pei Qinhai prided himself on being well-read, but when faced with Song Shiyu, he had to admit some of his own ignorance.
Everything Song Shiyu knew already surpassed what he could imagine.
Although he didn’t know how she had acquired all this knowledge, it was obvious her personality had changed considerably from before.
Since he couldn’t figure her out, the best approach was to observe her for a while.
And of course… avoid conflict.
..
Pei Jin’an pounded his own legs. After finishing dinner, he obediently went to practice horse stance.
There was no way he could maintain it for half an hour straight. But by practicing a little each day, he could gradually build endurance. It was a step-by-step process. His legs wouldn’t fully heal during this period anyway.
“My martial arts skills aren’t great. There isn’t a good teacher at home, but… I’ll find a way to get one,” Pei Qinhai said after checking Pei Jin’an’s homework, giving him a small surprise.
Pei Jin’an’s eyes lit up. “I can really learn martial arts?”
Pei Qinhai nodded. “Yes. But you have to understand—learning these skills is for training, not for using them on our own people. And you must never be reckless or fight out of bravado.”
Pei Jin’an: “Got it!”
Pei Qinhai: “Alright. Go call Second Miss Song here.”
As soon as Pei Jin’an heard this, his expression changed.
“Call her? I’m not going!”
“Third Uncle! You know we don’t get along. You know how she’s treated me before! I still don’t like her!”
Pei Jin’an held a grudge against Song Shiyu—or at least, he thought he did.
Forcing him to simply let go of that grudge wasn’t easy. In his mind, it was impossible. He certainly wasn’t going to give in so easily.
Pei Qinhai narrowed his eyes. “You don’t have to go. But then you won’t learn martial arts. Also… if it weren’t for Second Miss Song’s warning earlier, who knows how long you and your sister would have continued suffering.”
“Besides… before dinner, Second Miss Song even mentioned helping you two get justice.”
Pei Jin’an snorted. “Her? Does she even have the ability? I’m not saying it lightly, but everyone in the Pei family sees her as an outsider. How could she possibly have the skill…”
He scoffed. Second Miss Song just liked to talk big.
“Even if she’s strong, if things really went wrong, she wouldn’t gain anything.”
Pei Jin’an believed he understood her abilities fairly well.
She had been lazy before, and this was only a few days in—he wasn’t ready to make bold assumptions about her character yet.
Pei Jinxi thought for a moment before speaking slowly:
“I actually think Second Miss Song might no longer be the person she used to be.”
Seeing the two of them look at her, she cleared her throat and continued seriously:
“She didn’t just treat you and me poorly before; she treated Third Uncle that way too…”
Pei Jinxi carefully chose her words.
“She was always indifferent to Third Uncle, and… she wasn’t just lazy—she could be quite pretentious. I remember hearing her complain that she wouldn’t do laundry, and she’d never cooked before. A young lady from a wealthy family, she probably couldn’t even step into a kitchen full of smoke and oil.”
“But now, Second Miss Song seems like a completely different person. Even though it’s only been a few days, her tone and demeanor are worlds apart from before.”
“I think… it’s possible Second Miss Song has been possessed.”
Pei Jinxi bit her lip. “By that, I mean… taken over by some spirit…”
At this, Pei Jin’an’s face changed drastically, and he shivered.
In the countryside, such possessions weren’t unheard of. It wasn’t uncommon for otherwise normal people to suddenly change temperament, crying or acting strangely, sometimes suddenly displaying new abilities.
Thinking about it now… it actually could be possible.
Pei Qinhai frowned, his fingers twitching slightly, his gaze deep.
Could it be that Second Miss Song really, as Jinxi said, had been possessed?
Yet it was still hard to explain—her sudden change in behavior was completely different from before.
“Enough! Respect the gods and keep your distance! All demons and spirits will be revealed eventually. If she were truly possessed, she still wouldn’t recognize us.”
“She knows everything about the Song household, and her way of treating people is simply different from before. That doesn’t fit the signs of possession.”
Pei Qinhai’s words eased the siblings’ worries.
That’s true. Someone possessed would only know themselves, and wouldn’t know about the original Second Miss Song. But this Song Shiyu clearly remembered past events.
“And back to what I said—if you don’t go invite Second Miss Song here, then the teacher I arranged for you will have to wait.”
“….”
Reluctantly, Pei Jin’an left the room to call Song Shiyu.
Third Uncle really was strict!
Knock knock knock!
Pei Jin’an knocked casually on her door and then pushed it open.
The moment he entered, his eyes went wide.
What… was Second Miss Song doing in here? The room was full of fabric and some strange diagrams.
“What are you…” Pei Jin’an barely managed to speak before Song Shiyu stood up, stretched, and smiled at him.
“Came to call me to tell you and your sister a story again?”
Pei Jin’an’s face darkened.
“No!”
Song Shiyu: “Oh? Then why are you here?”
Pei Jin’an: “….”
He snorted coldly. “Third Uncle! Third Uncle called you! Not me!”