As night deepened, the rustling sound of autumn wind sweeping the ground could be heard outside.

Shen Qing leaned against the headboard, her hand occasionally touching her hair bun.

The place was empty; the hairpin knife that Cheng Zhiwen had given him was gone, stuck in Master Zhao's carotid artery.

Shen Qing felt somewhat lost.

I remember the feeling when I lost the only keepsake my mother left me during my senior year of high school.

I feel empty inside, like I've lost someone who's been with me for a long time and is very important to me.

"Knock knock," someone knocked on the door.

She snapped out of her daze and sat up straight: "Please come in."

Qi Zhenheng opened the door and came in, sitting down by the bedside, looking at her tenderly: "How are you feeling? Are you feeling better?"

Shen Qing nodded: "Much better."

"I heard from the kitchen maid that you can't eat because the food doesn't suit your taste?"

"No... It's my own reason that I can't eat, it has nothing to do with the food."

"The doctor said you've been working yourself to the bone and are weak. If you don't rest properly and eat more, I'm afraid you'll..."

Her life was cut short.

Remembering the doctor's advice before he left earlier that day, Qi Zhenheng couldn't bear to continue.

Shen Qing was unaware of all this and smiled indifferently: "It's just a problem caused by lack of sleep. Once business stabilizes, I'll sleep like a log."

“Shen Qing…”

Qi Zhenheng suddenly called her name.

Shen Qing also stopped laughing and looked at him seriously: "Hmm?"

His face suddenly flushed red, and he said, "I love you. Would you like to be with me?"

Shen Qing was startled and instinctively stepped back.

Qi Zhenheng's eyes dimmed for a moment, but his gaze quickly hardened again: "I will marry you. I swear I will never take a concubine in this life, only you."

Shen Qing stared at him in astonishment.

An official pursuing a widowed woman is utterly inconceivable, even in modern times, let alone in a feudal society that placed great importance on female chastity.

Shen Qing felt that Qi Zhenheng was possessed and reminded him, "Lord Qi, I have been married before. I am the young mistress of the Gao family, and also a widow..."

Qi Zhenheng said firmly, "I am certain that I love you, I want to be with you forever, and I want to marry you!"

Shen Qing: "..."

She didn't understand, she really didn't understand.

Even Cheng Zhiwen, who had studied abroad and had modern ideas, minded that she was just a merchant's wife and a widow. Although he coveted her body, he only wanted to have a secret affair with her.

Qi Zhenheng, who is well-versed in classical Chinese literature and is a traditional feudal man, actually wants to marry her.

Shen Qing swallowed hard and advised, "Lord Qi, please listen to me first."

He looked at her with a smile: "Go ahead, I'm listening."

"First of all, we are both in Jiangzhou. Everyone knows that I am the young mistress of the Gao family and you are the prefect. If you marry me, what will the local people think of you?"

I don't care what others think of me.

Shen Qing: "..."

He scratched his head and advised again, "Secondly, I was engaged to Cheng Zhiwen before, and you two are good friends. It's not appropriate for us to get married..."

"I don't care what Zhiwen thinks of me, do you?"

Shen Qing choked, glanced away, and touched her nose: "I definitely wouldn't mind."

Realizing the ambiguity of her statement, she quickly explained, "It's not a question of whether I mind or not, it's just that it's impossible for us!"

"We're both single, and the man is unmarried, so what's impossible about us?"

In her haste, Shen Qing blurted out, "Because I don't like you!"

She immediately regretted saying those words.

Because she noticed that Qi Zhenheng's expression had turned very bad.

Qi Zhenheng saved her time and time again, and she didn't want to hurt his feelings.

"Lord Qi, I'm so sorry... I..."

Qi Zhenheng smiled at her: "It's alright. I know you don't love me. Originally, I also wanted to keep my feelings for you hidden in my heart, but seeing you in such danger today, I... I really can't bear it anymore! I want to give you a stable life!"

Shen Qing understood what he meant.

He wanted to use his position to protect her.

Remembering the case of Master Zhao, Shen Qing suddenly understood something and asked, "If I kill Master Zhao, will I... be arrested?"

Qi Zhenheng remained silent for a moment.

Only after Shen Qing repeatedly questioned him did he say, "There is a high probability that there are both witnesses and physical evidence. Even if you can prove that you were kidnapped that day, faced great danger, and killed someone to save yourself, you may be spared the death penalty, but you will not escape punishment."

Shen Qingxin asked, "What is a living punishment?"

"Confiscate their property and exile them."

Thinking of Gao Yuanxiang, who was exiled to a place a thousand or two kilometers away to be a government maid, and knowing that she herself might suffer the same fate, Shen Qing shuddered.

Moreover, confiscating the property would take everything the Gao family owns. What would happen to the dozens of Gao family members and Su Lan...?

“I’ve racked my brains, but I can’t think of a way to exonerate you from this case… The only way is for us to be together when the incident happened, so that everyone in the prefectural government can testify. You are the future wife of the prefect, and you rarely leave the house. How could you possibly have anything to do with the death of that wealthy man surnamed Zhao?”

Shen Qing understood.

Even though she was in danger, she couldn't bear to involve Qi Zhenheng.

"Lord Qi, I know you did this to save me, but I can't harm you. If this matter is discovered, you'll lose your position!"

“Even if it gets out, my dad can protect us. I didn’t mean to flaunt our family’s power, but I wanted to put your mind at ease.”

Shen Qing had nothing to say.

The Qi family's power was so great that they could settle a local murder case without affecting Qi Zhenheng in any way.

So as long as she accepts Qi Zhenheng's proposal today, she can extricate herself from this case without leaving a trace.

But at the same time, she will have a new identity—the wife of the prefect of Jiangzhou.

His name changed from Shen Qing to Qi Shen Shi.

She would stay by Qi Zhenheng's side day and night, live a married life with him, have children, and never leave the house.

Shen Qing stared blankly at a spot on the wall, asking herself if she was willing to accept these changes.

In that instant, she recalled the days when she was busy in the business world.

Shanghai, Zhejiang, Guangzhou, Fujian, the United Kingdom...

Life was tough, but we were free.

She already had the answer in her heart, and looked at Qi Zhenheng apologetically: "Lord Qi, I'm sorry, I can't drag you into this. I'm not worth you taking the risk for me."

She threw back the covers to get out of bed.

Now that things have come to this, we can't stay at the prefectural government office any longer, otherwise it will be awkward for everyone.

Qi Zhenheng pressed down on her shoulders and pushed her back onto the bed.

"Okay, I won't force you. We can talk about our business later. I'll mediate this case."

"How will you mediate?"

"Isn't that guy surnamed Zhao backed by someone? Let's find out who it is!"

Upon hearing this, Shen Qing also recalled the surname of the person that Master Zhao had personally called out!

She just couldn't remember it for the moment.

My brain seems to have lost some information because of the intensity of today's events.

She slapped her head: "Why can't I remember..."

Qi Zhenheng immediately pressed her hand down to stop her from hitting her head: "Don't think nonsense, get some rest first."

He put her hand back under the covers, leaned down to look into her eyes, and said softly, "Sleep, don't worry about anything. Even if the sky falls, I'll hold it up."

After saying that, he turned to leave the room.

A word suddenly entered Shen Qing's mind.

She called out to Qi Zhenheng's retreating figure, "I remember now! That man's surname is Li! Master Zhao calls him 'Lord Li'!"