On the afternoon of the day after the start of autumn, dozens of soldiers led the way, escorting a horse-drawn carriage slowly towards the Jiangzhe region.

Inside the carriage, Shen Qing, with her pregnant belly, sat by the window, while Qi Zhenheng sat beside her, holding her hand tightly.

She gazed out the window at the still-sweltering world and murmured:

"When I left Jiangzhou last year, it was the same weather. It was just the beginning of autumn, but it wasn't as cool as true autumn. I was being escorted in a prison cart from Jiangzhou all the way to the provincial judicial office. One moment I was sweating profusely from the heat, and the next it was dark and so cold it hurt my bones. That's when my health was ruined..."

Before she could finish speaking, Qi Zhenheng gently pulled her into his arms.

Afraid of pressing on her pregnant belly, he held her carefully, his eyes red, and said, "Qing'er, it's my fault for being useless and making you suffer! From now on, I will protect you and the baby!"

Shen Qing smiled weakly, "Thank you, elder brother. But I can't be a burden to you any longer. After you've taken me to Jiangzhou, go back to Hanzhou!"

She hadn't forgotten that Qi Zhenheng had been placed under house arrest by the Qi family for a whole year because of her own affairs.

Now that Qi Zhenheng has cleared her name and given her the opportunity to return to Jiangzhou, she should be content and not continue to be a burden to him.

When Qi Zhenheng heard that she wanted to go back to Jiangzhou by herself, tears welled up in his eyes.

He wasn't crying because Shen Qing's child wasn't his; he was crying because Shen Qing's future was uncertain.

She was a widow who had been widowed for many years. After being arrested for a year, she suddenly appeared in Jiangzhou with a big belly. It is easy to imagine how difficult her life would be.

Even though she was once the head of the second branch of the Gao family, could the entire Gao family accept her and the unborn child in her womb?

The image of them drowning her in a pig cage a few years ago is still vivid in my mind.

Thinking of this, Qi Zhenheng released Shen Qing and slapped himself hard.

Shen Qing was startled and quickly grabbed his hand: "Big brother, don't do this!"

"Qing'er, don't go back to Jiangzhou, come with me to Hengzhou!"

Shen Qing shook her head: "I don't want to go to Hengzhou."

Although she believed that Qi Zhenheng would treat her and her child well, what would happen if he got married and his family had a mistress, and she and her child were living with him?

Without a proper name, one's words will not be righteous; one will be dependent on others, and this will also make Qi Zhenheng a target of criticism.

In Jiangzhou, she had a business that she had risked her life for. She was the head of the second branch of the Gao family and single-handedly supported the Gao family. She lived in the Gao family, which was perfectly legitimate. The Gao family was the foundation for her and her children's livelihood.

Therefore, she was determined to return to Jiangzhou.

Qi Zhenheng knew perfectly well what she was worried about. He held her hand tightly, tears streaming down his face, and pleaded, "I beg you, Qing'er, don't go back to Jiangzhou. Come with me to Hengzhou! I promise to treat you and the child well!"

Shen Qing ultimately refused Qi Zhenheng's offer to go to Hanzhou with him, and a few days later, they returned to Jiangzhou.

As soon as she entered the city gate of Jiangzhou, she lifted the curtain and looked outside.

Jiangzhou City, which I haven't visited for a year, is still the same as I remember it.

Shen Qing called out to the outside of the curtain, "Old Xu, let's head to the market."

"Okay!"

The carriage headed towards the bustling market street.

Shen Qing looked around and finally saw the Gao family's silk shop.

The shopkeeper had just seen a few girls who had bought silk out of the shop, and there were still a few customers selecting silk in the shop behind him.

Everything seemed normal, and nothing had changed because she had been gone for a year.

Shen Qing lowered the curtain and turned to look at Qi Zhenheng: "Brother, in the year I was away, I am very grateful for your help in managing the Gao family's business."

Qi Zhenheng snapped out of his daze, his face pale, but he still managed a smile for her: "I swore an oath to protect all of this for you and wait for you to come back."

Shen Qing nodded gratefully to him, then looked out the window.

The carriage drove through the bustling streets and arrived at the Gao family's door.

Jiang Shen and He Fei, who were sitting in the front of the car, jumped out and placed the footrests.

Qi Zhenheng helped Shen Qing out of the car carefully.

Not far away, the gatekeeper saw a carriage stop in front of the Gao family's house, along with a large group of soldiers. They all looked over nervously, and when they saw Shen Qing, who was pregnant, getting out of the carriage, they were stunned and stood there.

"That...that's the young mistress, isn't she?!"

"It's definitely the young mistress!"

"Isn't the young mistress dead?!"

"..."

Qi Zhenheng helped Shen Qing up the steps. He saw two servants standing trembling behind the door. He stared at them sternly and roared, "Your young mistress is back! Why aren't you coming out to greet her? What are you standing there for?"

The servants snapped out of their daze, recognized the thin, pale-faced Shen Qing, and ran into the house screaming, "A ghost...a ghost..."

Qi Zhenheng raised his hand in anger: "Men, arrest those servants!"

At the bottom of the steps, the soldiers with swords shouted "Yes, sir!" in unison, drew their swords, and were about to rush into the Gao family's house.

Shen Qing quickly stopped him.

This saved the two servants from physical pain.

This commotion attracted everyone out of the house.

Seeing Shen Qing standing there with her big belly, some people were afraid, while others whispered among themselves, saying that she might be carrying a ghost child and had come to the Gao family to collect a debt.

It was Gao Liu who was bolder, asking Shen Qing, "Qing'er, are you out of money down there? Mother will have someone burn more paper money for you."

Shen Qing was both amused and exasperated.

Seeing that she didn't speak, but only smiled palely, Gao Liu asked again, "Besides money, what else do you want your mother to do?"

As she spoke, she looked at her pregnant belly and asked in a trembling voice, "Were you bullied down there? Do you want your mother to avenge you?"

Qi Zhenheng, who was standing to the side, couldn't stand it any longer and said in a gruff voice, "Qing'er is a living person standing in front of you! Get out of my way and go do what you're supposed to do. Stop standing here pretending to be a ghost!"

The maids and servants scattered like birds and beasts.

Only Gao Liushi, her maid, and the steward remained standing.

Gao Liu looked at Shen Qing in disbelief, then at the blazing sun outside, before she finally believed that Shen Qing was not a ghost.

Staring intently at Shen Qing's pregnant belly, he asked, "Have you remarried?"

Shen Qing told the truth: "No, I did not remarry."

Gao Liu then pointed to her stomach: "Then what's going on with this bastard child in your belly?"

Shen Qing lowered her eyes to look at her pregnant belly and bit her lip: "This is not a bastard, this is my child."

"How can this be your child alone? You haven't remarried, yet you're heavily pregnant. What else could it be but the child of some other man?!"

Before Shen Qing could explain, Madam Gao glanced at the crowd, her old face flushed with shame. She stamped her foot and asked in a low voice, "You're pregnant with an illegitimate child now, how can I let you into the Gao family?!"