All eyes immediately fell upon Song Yunzhao. It was the first time since she had transmigrated that Song Yunzhao had been the focus of so many intense gazes.

Although the stares were all rather strange, she maintained a poised and graceful smile.

’Nervous? Not a chance.’

"Miss, are you all right?" Song Yunzhao asked Qin Xiyue with concern.

’According to the laws of transmigrating into a novel as a female side character, the original heroine’s aura is incredibly strong. One misstep, and you’ll get dragged into her tragic, drama-filled plot.’

’She didn’t want to fight the heroine for the male lead, nor did she want to fight for her unforgettable past love. There was absolutely no reason to make an enemy of her.’

Qin Xiyue had never encountered anything so ridiculous in her life. But while the other young woman had caught her with a chair, it was far better than being allowed to fall flat on her face and lose all dignity.

Qin Xiyue took a deep breath, rose to her feet, and bowed to Song Yunzhao. "Thank you for your righteous assistance, Miss. May I ask for your family’s residence? I must pay a visit on another day to offer my proper thanks."

’That won’t be necessary.’ She was all too aware of her role as cannon fodder. ’Stay away from the protagonists, stay safe.’

"It is a trivial matter, hardly worth mentioning. Please, don’t give it another thought, Miss..."

"Who do you think you are? State your family’s name! Who asked you to meddle?" He Lan Yun had wanted to utterly humiliate Qin Xiyue, but someone had interfered. Her mood soured instantly, and she redirected her anger.

Song Yunzhao fell silent. ’Of course. This is a cannon fodder’s lot in life. No matter what happens, I’m always on the front lines, the first to suffer.’

She didn’t want to provoke the novel’s protagonists, but that didn’t mean she would let just anyone walk all over her.

Song Yunzhao put on an innocent, kind smile. Just as she was about to speak, Xie Jinshu’s voice cut in.

"There you are mistaken. If you hadn’t assaulted her and conveniently pushed her in our direction, we wouldn’t have been forced to intervene. From the sound of it, are you planning to show up at our door for revenge? To think that such a bully, throwing their weight around, exists right under the Emperor’s watch and in broad daylight. It is truly an eye-opening experience."

Song Yunzhao was the one who had caught her with the chair, so He Lan Yun was directing her ire at her. She never expected Xie Jinshu, who had just been advising her not to stick her neck out, to now jump in and share the blame.

’For someone from a merchant family, he’s surprisingly righteous.’

Xie Linlang didn’t say a word, but she moved to stand beside Song Yunzhao, showing that she would face this with her.

Song Yunzhao’s feelings were... complicated.

At that moment, Qin Xiyue also stepped forward to shield Song Yunzhao, glaring at He Lan Yun. "He Lan Yun, why must you take your anger out on an innocent person?" Then she turned to Helan Yue. "Helan, the Qin Family will be waiting for you to come and demand an explanation."

"Miss Qin, Ming An was just joking out of anger. Please don’t take her words to heart." Helan Yue shot his sister a harsh glare before turning back to Qin Xiyue to plead with her.

Seeing Qin Xiyue ignore him, Helan Yue had no choice but to turn to Song Yunzhao. He forced a smile. "Miss, I apologize on my sister’s behalf for what happened today. She spoke without thinking and truly meant no harm."

Song Yunzhao detested excuses like ’She’s young and immature,’ ’She’s just blunt and doesn’t know how to talk,’ or ’I didn’t mean it, so if you get upset, you’re just not magnanimous enough...’

’Pah!’

With a deeply sincere expression, Song Yunzhao looked at Helan Yue and asked, "Sir, your words are inappropriate. Your sister is of such an age, yet she still speaks without thinking. As her elder brother, I wonder at what age you expect her to finally speak with intention? My family status is low and I’m broad-minded, so I’m forced to let this go. But what if one day your sister runs into someone from a more powerful family? I wonder how you would explain things to them then?"

Helan Yue’s face turned pale. How was he supposed to answer that? ’Doesn’t she realize I was just being polite?’

A faint smile touched Qin Xiyue’s lips. ’Forced to let this go... That was a clever turn of phrase.’

Even Ji Yunting, who had remained silent on the sidelines, glanced up at Song Yunzhao. He found that while the girl was a bit rash, her words were quite interesting.

"You must be joking, Miss," Helan Yue ground out.

"I’m a serious person. I never joke," Song Yunzhao said, her expression deadpan.

The conversation was dead. Helan Yue grew irritated, and his gaze on Song Yunzhao turned hostile.

Xie Jinshu and Xie Linlang instinctively stepped forward, flanking Song Yunzhao protectively.

Qin Xiyue also shifted slightly, taking up a position near Song Yunzhao.

"Brother, why are you wasting your breath on her? She’s just some country bumpkin. She’s probably saying these strange things on purpose just to get your attention." He Lan Yun was furious, her words growing even more crass.

Song Yunzhao met He Lan Yun’s brainless, fiery glare and spoke slowly, unhurriedly. "The Buddha said, ’To see a mountain is to see a mountain; to see water is to see water.’ I never realized you, Miss, were of a disposition to always be thinking of seducing men. Amitabha, how true, how true. As a young woman, you really ought to have more self-respect."

A flicker of amusement flashed in Ji Yunting’s eyes. He glanced at Song Yunzhao again before speaking, preempting the He Lan siblings’ explosion of rage. "Helan, this young lady is truly innocent in this matter. Since no one was hurt, let’s just drop it."

Song Yunzhao’s mouth twitched. ’What a master of placating everyone. So this is the heroine’s unforgettable love? Not so impressive after all.’

"No!" Utterly incensed by Song Yunzhao, He Lan Yun stepped forward and glared at her. "I will find out what family you’re from today!"

Before Song Yunzhao could speak, she felt Qin Xiyue come over and pull her back. "He Lan Yun," Qin Xiyue said, shielding her, "if you insist on pursuing this, the Qin Family accepts your challenge. I’d like to see just who will be proven right and who will be proven wrong when this all comes out."

Qin Xiyue was surprisingly strong. The sudden tug made an unprepared Song Yunzhao stumble back a couple of steps. In her distraction, she trod on the foot of someone watching the commotion behind her. "Oh, I’m so sorry!" she said quickly. "Did I hurt you? It was an accident."

"It’s fine."

’Huh?’

’His voice is actually quite nice.’

Song Yunzhao looked up and met a pair of jet-black eyes. The rest of his face was hidden behind a folding fan. Though she couldn’t see his whole face, her experience told her he was definitely handsome.

While she had a weakness for handsome faces, she could tell this man had a cold personality and wasn’t interested in talking. Not wanting to be snubbed, she gave him a small, apologetic smile and stepped aside.

’See? She knew how to take a hint.’

In that brief moment, the standoff between He Lan Yun and Qin Xiyue seemed to reach a temporary lull. He Lan Yun was hopping mad, while Qin Xiyue maintained her goddess-like composure and imposing aura.

Ji Yunting stood by as if he were an uninvolved spectator. Helan Yue was stuck miserably between his sister and the girl of his dreams, trying desperately to play mediator.

"Who do you think is right and who is wrong?"

’Hmm?’

Song Yunzhao hadn’t expected the cold-looking man to speak to her. Seeing as he’d been so gracious about her stepping on his foot, she lowered her voice and replied, "When someone is shameless and has a powerful family, they’re invincible. If the government office were any use, why would we even need to debate right and wrong?"

The man’s mouth twitched. "The government office is precisely the place for redressing grievances and upholding justice."

"The government office doors are open to all, but those with no money or power best not call. My friend, you have much to learn about the world."

The man’s hand, which held the folding fan, trembled slightly. His dark, somber gaze fell upon Song Yunzhao’s face.

Hearing He Lan Yun order her guards to seize the Xie siblings, Song Yunzhao no longer paid any mind to the man beside her. She strode forward and called out, "Second Young Master, report this to the authorities!"

The man stared, stunned. ’Didn’t she just say the government office was useless? Is she really contradicting herself this quickly?’