Chapter 104: Auction of Virginity

"You go and do it. What are you going to do?"

Jiang Susu's teeth chattered, as if she understood Shen Xiunian's intention, and she stepped forward and held his hand tightly.

"Are you going to Beijing?" she asked.

Chen Xiunian didn't say yes, but the determination in his eyes revealed his thoughts.

"I'll go with you."

Shen Xiunian smiled, exhaled slowly and said: "If you leave, who will take care of Huaijun? Do you think you can send him to the Shen family and let Liu Fuying take care of him for you?"

"I……"

"Don't be silly. Even if she is willing, how can Uncle Pei be willing to take care of the son of his enemy? Just stay here and wait for my news."

He gently brushed away Jiang Susu's hand that was holding him, then took out a stack of banknotes from his arms and handed it to Jiang Susu.

"You once said you wanted to open an umbrella shop. This money is enough for you and Huaijun to live a carefree life for the rest of your life."

"I don't want it."

Jiang Susu stepped back and refused to take it, her eyes already filled with tears.

"Back then, what I wanted was to open an umbrella shop with you. I wanted to make umbrellas with you and live a simple life. After you left me, I never thought about opening an umbrella shop again. All I wanted from the beginning to the end was to be with you."

Shen Xiunian held back his sobs and grabbed Jiang Susu's hand, stuffed the banknote into her hand, and turned to leave.

“Shen Xiunian!”

Jiang Susu rushed over and hugged him tightly.

"I ruined you. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I should be the one to atone for my sins. I'm the one who let you down."

Chen Xiunian held Jiang Susu's hand around his waist, and tears began to well up in his eyes unconsciously.

"Susu."

He became much softer, and his tone was filled with an undetectable attachment to the past.

"In those days, I was really happy. I don't regret loving you. If there is an afterlife, let's just be ordinary people. Why should we bear so much?"

"Xiu Nian, Xiu Nian!"

Jiang Susu looked at the empty hand that had been thrown away as if she had woken up from a dream. When she looked up again, Shen Xiunian had disappeared through the wide-open door.

"Mother." Shen Huaijun rushed in.

"Mother, why are you crying? Father will come back. Mother, please get up."

“…”

Jiang Susu fell to the ground, her vision blurred by tears, and she could hardly see Chen Xiunian gradually walking out of the courtyard gate.

He won't be coming back.

He will never come back!

At the gate of the courtyard, Zhang Ke had been waiting outside. When he saw Shen Xiunian coming out, he immediately went to greet him.

"General, I've checked everything. The poison is not hard to buy, but the antidote is hard to find. Or rather, there is no antidote at all. To cure it, we need a kind of Xiushi grass that grows in Yingdong. However, Xiushi grass only grows on the top of Tianshan Mountain once every ten years. It was secretly bought by someone in Shangjing City two years ago. I guess it was Prime Minister Jiang."

After getting on the carriage, Zhang Ke continued to speak.

"Young Master, you can't wait eight years for the Xiushi grass to grow."

In other words, the trip to Beijing is a must.

"General..."

"No need to say more, I have made up my mind, and this trip is not entirely for you."

Also known as Pei Zhouwu and Liu Fuying.

When I returned to Shen's house, I happened to meet Liu Fuying who was about to go out at the door.

There was a prepared carriage parked at the door. It seemed that she was not going to look for Pei Zhouwu across the street.

Thinking of this, Shen Xiunian secretly ridiculed himself for being ridiculous.

At this point, who cares where she goes or who she finds?

Liu Fuying just glanced at him indifferently, just like before, even when they met face to face, they did not greet each other. But for some reason, the look in Chen Xiunian's eyes today seemed as if he had a lot to say to her.

When he came down the steps and was about to get on the carriage, Liu Fuying stopped.

Thinking about what happened last night, she was always worried about what Pei Zhouwu and Shen Xiunian said.

Turning back, she took the initiative to ask Shen Xiunian, "General, do you have anything to say?"

Shen Xiunian was somewhat surprised or delighted that she turned around and looked at him again, but facing her inquiring gaze, he couldn't say anything at all.

He has a lot to say.

But after holding it in for a long time, he finally shook his head.

Liu Fuying calmed down, ignored him, turned around and got on the carriage.

The carriage set off quickly, leaving Shen Xiunian far behind. Soon, the shadow of the carriage disappeared from his sight.

"General."

Before Shen Xiunian could do anything, Zhang Ke's eyes turned red first.

He hoped more than Shen Xiunian that Shen Xiunian could live a peaceful life, but there were many things in this world that were beyond his control.

Shen Xiunian walked in, his bleak figure seemed to disappear in the wind.

That night, he set out quietly.

He only took Zhang Ke with him, and told the servants in the mansion that he was going into the mountains for recuperation. He must recover within three months, otherwise he would miss the chance to go to the capital as summoned.

Yunnan was so far away from the capital that it would take almost a month to get there even if one rode at full speed.

The two men disguised themselves and rented a house in Shangjing City.

For several days, they kept a close eye on what was happening in the Prime Minister's Mansion.

"General."

Zhang Ke pushed the door open hastily. Even though there was no one around, he dared to whisper in Shen Xiunian's ear: "I have contacted the father-in-law's residence. They got the news that the new courtesan at Qianchun Tower is auctioning her virginity tonight. Jiang Huai, the only son of Jiang Yan in the Prime Minister's residence, has long threatened to spend a fortune on her. He will definitely go tonight."

"knew."

"The Pei family may have also made a move. In the past few days, someone in the court has brought up the case of the Zhaoxi city break-in, and asked the emperor to thoroughly investigate the incident. So Prime Minister Jiang is having a headache over this matter and is busy investigating it, so he can't take care of his dissolute son."

After many days, the opportunity finally came.

"Let's go to Qianchun Tower tonight."

"Yes, General."

Shangjing is the imperial capital, prosperous and wealthy, far from being comparable to Yuquan City in Yunnan.

Shen Xiunian walked on the streets of Shangjing with a beard, recalling the time when he moved his family away from Shangjing. Now when he recalled it again, it seemed like something that happened in his previous life.

Shangjing City is also where willow trees grow.

But he never even asked her if she was willing to leave.

Thinking back to her resentful look back then, he felt an unbearable bitterness in his heart. It was reasonable that Liu Fuying looked down on him.

If he were a woman, killing him and becoming a real widow would be better than facing him.

"Sir?"

Seeing that Chen Xiunian was distracted, Zhang Ke reminded him quietly.

"The Qianchun Tower is in front of us. I will accompany you inside."

"No, we need someone to pick us up outside Qianchun Tower."

"Okay, I will go and wait outside the backyard of Qianchun Tower, and prepare two fast horses to pick you up."

"Go ahead."

The two parted on the noisy street, leaving Chen Xiunian alone.

He had a beard under his nose and his eyebrows were deliberately covered with fine hairs, making him look rough. He seemed to be walking casually past the door of Qianchun Tower. The girls soliciting customers outside soon surrounded him, and with sweet smiles, they invited him to come in and sit down, saying that the courtesan Yuxiang, who was a stunning beauty, was auctioning her virginity tonight.

When Shen Xiunian heard this, he pretended to be interested.