“Because you need the British’s endorsement.” Cheng Zhiwen’s voice was calm and devoid of emotion. “If the British media recognize you as Zhu Shining, then you are Zhu Shining. Even if someone discovers later that you are Shen Qing, they won’t dare to touch you.”

Shen Qingquan understood.

To live on, one must discard everything from the past, including one's name.

It feels like a piece has been ripped out of my heart; it feels empty.

She had been called "Shen Qing" for over twenty years, and even when she traveled to the Qing Dynasty, she never changed it and continued to call herself "Shen Qing".

She remembered asking her mother when she was a child why she had given her such an ordinary name as "Shen Qing".

The mother said she hoped her life would always be as clear as water, free from all the messy people and things that bother her.

But from this day forward, she will have to say goodbye to this name; she will have nothing left to do with her mother.

Shen Qing felt a little sad, so she hugged her arms tightly, trying to find strength and comfort in herself.

The mattress next to her sank in, and Cheng Zhiwen sat down next to her.

"I named you Shining in the hope that you would have a peaceful life. As for why you have the surname Zhu, it's because I have a good friend with the surname Zhu in Guangzhou, and I asked him to be your nominal father."

A lifetime of peace...

Shen Qing sniffed, then perked up: "I can accept the name Zhu Shining, thank you. What time are we going to the dock tomorrow?"

Cheng Zhiwen unbuttoned his pocket watch from the buttons of his waistcoat and handed it to her: "We'll board the ship at 1-3 PM tomorrow and depart for the dock at 1-3 AM."

Shen Qing took the pocket watch and opened it.

The right side is a normal surface, and the left side... is a black and white photograph cropped into a circle.

In the photo, Cheng Zhiwen's face is slightly turned to the side, revealing her delicate features.

Shen Qing smiled, her eyes sparkling with tears: "You're so narcissistic. You put your own picture in your pocket watch, so you can feel handsome every time you check the time?"

Cheng Zhiwen frowned, not understanding what she was saying.

“Where we come from, we usually put photos of family or loved ones in our pocket watches. Putting your own photo in it would be considered…” Shen Qing explained with some difficulty, “that you are very satisfied with your appearance.”

Cheng Zhiwen understood and coughed lightly, feeling a little awkward: "This pocket watch is for you to use."

Shen Qing said "thank you" and fiddled with the pocket watch: "With this, it's much more convenient to tell the time. During those days in prison, I had no idea about time, as if I was isolated from the world. That feeling was terrifying."

Looking back now, I still feel lingering fear.

She opened her pocket watch again, ran her left fingertip over Cheng Zhiwen's photo, and whispered "Thank you."

It was to thank him for the watch, and also to thank him for saving her life.

At this moment, the hour hand of the pocket watch points to the number 3, indicating three in the morning.

Shen Qing put away the pocket watch, looked at Cheng Zhiwen, and said with concern, "You came back a little late today, you should go and get some rest."

After saying that, she glanced at the only bed in the room and asked awkwardly, "Which room will you sleep in tonight?"

She hadn't forgotten the villa in Shanghai four years ago, where Cheng Zhiwen slept in the same room and bed with her for several nights in a row.

That period was also the most chaotic phase of her feelings for Cheng Zhiwen.

This chaos continued until she left the villa, after which the two drifted apart and almost never saw each other again, before she was able to extricate herself from that chaos.

Now that her future is uncertain, she hopes to keep her life as simple as possible so that she can focus her energy on clearing her name.

“I’ll sleep there,” Cheng Zhiwen said, pointing to the sofa a few meters away.

Shen Qing looked over.

The sofa was bare, without a single thing to keep warm.

Shen Qing hesitated for a moment, then got up, picked up the blanket at the foot of the bed, and put it on the sofa: "It's late autumn, it's quite cold, cover yourself with this."

Cheng Zhiwen sat on the bed looking at her, her eyes burning: "Okay."

Shen Qing looked away, walked to the other side of the bed, lifted the covers, and got into bed.

"good evening."

"Good night." Cheng Zhiwen got out of bed and turned off the light.

The room was plunged into darkness.

She was lying in bed when she heard Cheng Zhiwen walk to the sofa and take off his suit jacket, belt, and shoes.

The belt buckle made a metallic sound as it was unbuckled, her heart skipped a beat, and she gripped the blanket tightly.

"Cough cough..."

In the darkness, Cheng Zhiwen coughed.

Shen Qing looked up at the sound: "Are you sick?"

"He may have caught a slight cold, but it's nothing serious."

Remembering how thin he had become, she asked worriedly, "You've lost a lot of weight, are you sick?"

In modern times, if a person suddenly loses a lot of weight, it is very likely that there is a serious health problem.

"No, I've been quite busy lately."

That's a possible reason.

He traveled all over the world, disguising his identity for the Qing government, dealing with foreign forces, and even facing assassination attempts.

I was so busy that I didn't have time to eat or sleep, so I lost weight.

“You’ve lost a lot of weight too…” he murmured, “You’re so thin you’re unrecognizable.”

Shen Qing smiled helplessly: "I didn't eat well in prison."

She didn't want to recall that time, her mind automatically avoiding the topic, and instead asked, "Where do I go after I get off the cruise ship?"

She wanted to make plans as soon as possible.

"You're staying at the Cheng family's place for now. I'll send you away when the time is right."

Shen Qing hesitated and said, "This will implicate your family, I can't do that. After the cruise ship disembarks tomorrow, I'll find a place to hide in Shanghai first."

Cheng Zhiwen laughed: "Okay, then hide in my villa."

Shen Qing: "..."

Zhang Ma was the only one in the villa, so Cheng Zhiwen had no more scruples and could do whatever she wanted. If she hid in his villa, she would give birth there sooner or later.

Not to mention that she didn't want to have a relationship with Cheng Zhiwen, she was still a death row inmate and absolutely could not give birth to a child at this time, causing the child to live a life of fear.

Rather than living in that equally unsafe villa, it's better to stay with the Cheng family; at least there are more people here, and Cheng Zhiwen will have some control.

"Okay, then I'll hide with you at the Cheng family's house."

As soon as she finished speaking, she remembered that the maid called her Second Concubine, and realized that this identity was a trick Cheng Zhiwen had given her to hide in the Cheng family.

Second concubine...

So he already had a legal wife, so he made her his second wife.

Thinking back to the Miss Liu she had seen at the Yongzhou Lantern Festival four years ago, although she didn't have a good impression of her, as a woman herself, she could understand the shock of a husband suddenly bringing home a concubine.

But given her current status, there's no way to explain anything to her.

Shen Qing sighed.

Never mind, I'll explain to her when she clears her name.

Shen Qing didn't fall asleep until almost dawn, dreaming that his and more than a dozen members of the Gao family had their heads scattered on the ground, before waking up in a fright.

Look out the window.

Morning light streamed in through the white paper windowpanes of the carved windows.

Daylight broke.

My gaze fell on the sofa.

Cheng Zhiwen was still fast asleep, her head resting on the armrest of the sofa, lying on her side with her face facing the bed.