Chapter 36 Now you know how to be shy?

Chapter 36

He Hansheng carried Shen Suining through two long streets from Lanjiangfang. Along the way, crowds thronged, and passersby frequently glanced at them.

Shen Suining felt a little embarrassed and lowered the umbrella to cover their faces.

He Hansheng couldn't help but chuckle, "Now you know how to be shy."

“Shame on you,” Shen Suining retorted. “I’m thick-skinned. I’m just afraid you’ll feel embarrassed.”

What's shameful about me?

Shen Suining thought for a moment, then leaned close to his ear and began to speak in a serious tone: "On a rainy night on Qixi Festival, Young Master He was actually seen enjoying the lanterns with a strange young master in Lanjiangfang..."

A warm, intimate breath sprayed behind He Hansheng's ear, making him feel a little ticklish. He couldn't help but turn his head away slightly. "Lift it up higher, you can't see the road clearly."

Shen Suining laughed heartily, having succeeded in his plan.

The two walked through the rainy night, just like any ordinary couple in the world.

After returning home, He Hansheng placed Shen Suining on the bamboo couch in the outer room. Both of them were wet, so he told Shen Suining to take a bath first, and then asked Xiangye to bring some wound medicine.

When Shen Suining came out after taking a bath, He Hansheng was already asleep on the bamboo couch, his breathing slightly heavy, and he was still holding the wound medicine bottle in his hand.

Shen Suining was taken aback, recalling what Ming Ke had said.

He hadn't slept for two whole days, and he had just carried her such a long way. He was probably exhausted and couldn't hold on any longer. He could fall asleep even if he just sat there for a short while.

Shen Suining sighed, originally intending to go with him.

What if He Hansheng catches a cold after lying in such soaked clothes all night?

After much hesitation, Shen Suining examined her conscience and decided that she couldn't just let things go like this. So she went to He Hansheng's closet and found a clean undergarment, and brought over a thin quilt, intending to change him into it.

Shen Suining climbed onto the bamboo couch, moved the small table, books, and other miscellaneous items aside, and with great effort, finally managed to move He Hansheng onto the couch.

Then she encountered a problem, because He Hansheng was sleeping so soundly that it was too difficult for her to move him, and it was simply impossible for her to complete such a difficult task as changing his clothes.

After pondering for a moment, Shen Suining decided not to waste time on internal conflicts. She then fetched another quilt, layering the thin one with the thick one, and wrapped He Hansheng tightly in it, making sure it was snug.

That should keep me from catching a cold, right?

Shen Suining thought she was a thoughtful little genius. After completing her task, she went to bed and slept soundly.

Early the next morning.

Shen Suining stretched and opened her eyes to find He Hansheng, who should have been sleeping in the outer room, lying next to her, which startled her.

He Hansheng had already taken off his outer garment, and was wearing the clean inner garment that Shen Suining had found. The collar was slightly open, and his strong chest was faintly visible. If you took a closer sniff, you could smell a clean and refreshing fragrance.

Shen Suining had just woken up and was still a little confused. After a moment of bewilderment, she suddenly realized that her right hand was wrapped up like a rice dumpling. She looked down and smelled her palm; it was full of the scent of wound medicine.

She chafed her skin while practicing swordplay the day before yesterday, and got caught in a light rain yesterday, so it became a little inflamed, but not to the point where it needed to be bandaged.

Shen Suining found it somewhat amusing. Thinking of the bottle of wound medicine that He Hansheng had been clutching tightly even while asleep yesterday, she couldn't help but mutter, "You think I'm too delicate."

He Hansheng turned over in his sleep, facing Shen Suining, his eyes closed, as if he were still fast asleep.

He sleeps very quietly and doesn't move much. He can usually stay in one sleeping position until dawn. According to Xiangye and Mingke, this habit was forced on him by the Eldest Princess and Marquis Yong'an since he was a child. His posture and every word and action were completely cultivated according to the noble young master of a noble family. He looks gentle and refined, humble and polite, and his every move is extremely elegant. He always maintains a just-right sense of propriety with others.

Shen Suining lay on the bed staring at He Hansheng's face, a strange joy welling up inside her.

Putting everything else aside, just considering He Hansheng's appearance, he was indeed one of the most handsome men Shen Suining had ever seen. Although his skin wasn't fair, his features were extremely strong, with sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes. He wasn't as aggressive as ordinary martial artists, probably because his temperament came from within. His features were much gentler than those of ordinary people.

Shen Suining's gaze moved down from his brow, along his nose, to his lips. There were a few cuts on his lower lip, her handiwork. Shen Suining couldn't help but think of the tender and lingering kiss from last night.

She thought that He Hansheng was indeed a very patient person, but when necessary, he also had the decisiveness and ruthlessness that Shen Suining admired most. If she stood on the opposite side of him, she would probably be devoured by him until there was not even a bone left.

Perhaps sensing her gaze, He Hansheng frowned slightly and opened his sleepy eyes.

When their eyes met, Shen Suining swallowed nervously, as if she had been caught doing something wrong, and asked, trying to make conversation, "Aren't you going to court today?"

He Hansheng seemed very sleepy. He closed his eyes, turned over, and said in a hoarse voice, "There was a lot of arguing at the morning court yesterday. His Majesty has granted me a day off today, so I don't need to go."

"About the city garrison?"

"Um."

Thinking of the emperor's words, Shen Suining couldn't help but ask, "The city defense army... is it under your control now?"

"Um."

"That's good." Shen Suining breathed a sigh of relief. The dog emperor hadn't lied to her after all; the city defense army had indeed been successfully handed over to He Hansheng.

After a long silence, Shen Suining assumed He Hansheng had fallen asleep again. She decided not to disturb him and prepared to get up and tidy up.

Just as she sat up, He Hansheng suddenly said, "Thank you."

"What?" Shen Suining's heart tightened. Did he know that she was the one who killed Zhou Fu?

He Hansheng opened his eyes, his gaze finally clearing considerably. He turned to look at Shen Suining, his face devoid of any emotional fluctuation. "Last night, I almost suffocated."

Shen Suining: "..."

So, he woke up from the heat last night, took a shower before going to bed, and also applied some medicine to her hand.

Shen Suining felt somewhat embarrassed. Although she had meant well yesterday, it seemed that the result had not achieved the effect she had expected.

He Hansheng noticed her embarrassment and raised his hand to press his temples. "What's wrong with you today?"

"Uh... my mother-in-law said she's taking me out for a bit, and we'll probably be back around noon," Shen Suining said honestly. "What? You have plans?"

He Hansheng was silent for a moment, then said, "I'm going to Pu She this afternoon. I have a few questions I'd like to ask my father-in-law."

"Military?"

"Um."

Shen Suining guessed that He Hansheng was probably having some trouble with the city's defense forces. Shen Yan was, after all, a veteran general who had led troops in battle, and perhaps he could be of help.

So she replied, "I will send someone to tell Father that I will go with you then."

"good."

...

After breakfast, the eldest princess took Shen Suining to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.

Madam Xu, the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo, received the visiting card and, along with Gao Lanxin and a group of concubines, greeted the princess in the front courtyard early in the morning. After the princess entered, she half-squatted down, not daring to raise her head, and said, "Greetings, Your Highness the Princess."

After the princess stood on the steps and received everyone's bows, she finally spoke up and questioned Madam Xu: "My son's marriage has already been decided by His Majesty. I wonder what Madam Xu is dissatisfied with?"

Madam Xu knelt down with a thud, "This humble woman dares not! This humble woman dares not! The young marquis's marriage... how could this humble woman have the audacity to have any dissatisfaction?"

"Then why did you allow the princess to trespass into my Yong'an Marquis's residence and insult my daughter-in-law?"

Madam Xu was shocked and almost doubted whether she had heard something wrong. She hoped that Lan Xin would marry into a good family so that she could hold her head high in the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion. But even if she had eight hundred times the courage, she would not dare to let Lan Xin go to the Marquis of Yong'an's mansion to insult the wife that the Emperor had personally assigned to the young marquis!

Seeing that Madam Xu remained silent, the Eldest Princess looked at Gao Lanxin, who was kneeling behind her, and asked, "Lanxin, tell me, who instructed you to do this?"

"I..." Gao Lanxin stammered, probably not expecting the usually oblivious Princess to come and question her personally. She was so frightened that she blurted out everything, "It was... Aunt Yun who said it. She... she said that Marquis Pinghuai and Princess Tangxi's origins are unclear, and they must have slandered them to the Emperor, that's why..."

"Xin'er! How could you slander me like this?" Aunt Yun immediately interrupted Gao Lanxin, crying with tears streaming down her face. "Your Highness, I have never said such a thing to Xin'er. It was Madam who told Master that the Empress Dowager wanted to betroth Xin'er to the young marquis. She boasted to us sisters every day, saying that if Xin'er married into a noble family, we would all suffer... Madam must have been angry and usurped Xin'er's place to cause trouble at the marquis's mansion."

"You're talking nonsense! How could I let Xin'er do such a thing? It must be you, you shameless vixen! Not only did you deceive the master, but you also ordered Xin'er to do it!"

Madam Xu and Aunt Yun each held their own version of events and argued fiercely.

The unrest in the Duke of Zhenguo's harem was no secret in Huadu. The Princess had heard about it to some extent, but seeing it for herself was far better than hearing about it. She was quite shocked, and then felt some sympathy and helplessness.

"Alright! I don't want to get involved in your family affairs," the eldest princess stopped the argument. "I've come here for two reasons. First, I want Princess Lanxin to apologize to Ningning. This matter has been disgraceful and has made outsiders look down on the Yong'an Marquis's Mansion. Second, I don't want to hear anyone else say anything about the Yong'an Marquis's Mansion or the young marquis, as Madam Xu can handle those irrelevant rumors!"

After leaving the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, Shen Suining's mood was not as cheerful as she had imagined.

The eldest princess noticed that Ningning was in low spirits and asked, "What's wrong, Ningning? Are you still feeling wronged?"

Shen Suining shook her head. "It's not that I feel wronged. It's just that Gao Lanxin seems to be a pitiful person. Her father's domestic affairs are not peaceful, which has caused her to have a bad reputation. Madam Xu seems to love the child, but she only uses her own daughter as a tool to turn her life around. There is not a trace of a mother's love for her child in her eyes when she looks at Gao Lanxin."

“Ningning is a good child. I am both happy and heartbroken that you are so sensible,” the Princess said, holding Shen Suining’s hand and sighing softly. “No woman in this inner palace has an easy life. Their husbands are their heaven, but they have to share the same world with many other people, fighting and vying for power. It is precisely because of this that I have been so strict with Asheng. It is also a way for me to accumulate good karma and seek peace of mind.”

“His mother-in-law raised him very well.” Shen Suining spoke from the heart. Even if they weren’t husband and wife, she would probably think He Hansheng was a pretty good person.

“I’m happiest that you think this way,” the princess smiled and patted Shen Suining’s hand. “Ah Sheng really cares about you, and even came to ask me for help. Actually, even if he hadn’t said anything, I would have come to seek justice for you myself.”