Zhao Qian was completely stumped by the question. He turned to look at Yan Xiao, who was sitting to the side and whose expression was not much better than his own, trying to find some kind of wound on her.

But clearly, there wasn't even a trace of mosquito bites, let alone a wound.

Seeing that Zhao Qian didn't reply to him and kept glancing at Yan Xiao, Shen Muzhi became even angrier.

"I'm asking you a question, why are you looking at my wife? Do you think you can get her to plead for you?"

Zhao Qian was almost in tears. He really didn't know what he had done wrong, and in the end, he could only lower his head and boldly tell the truth:

"Replying to the General, I am ignorant and do not understand what you mean. Please enlighten me."

"You don't know?"

Chen Mu slammed his hand on the wooden stool beneath him, trying to suppress his anger and whisper, worried about frightening Yan Xiao again:

"When Madam first arrived in Jiangbei, I asked you to follow her so that you could protect her safety and prevent her from suffering. In that case, she is your mistress."

"But Madam has only been in Jiangbei for a day, and you've already subjected her to ridicule and humiliation, leaving her feeling utterly wronged. Now she's even being pressured to consider a divorce, and you dare tell me you didn't know?"

Zhao Qian was truly dumbfounded.

What's going on here? Who's mocking or ridiculing whom? Who's been wronged?

If he heard correctly, his general seemed to be talking about his wife.

But how could that be? Are you kidding me?

Although he had only been with his wife for a day, he dared to say that, given his wife's way of doing things, she was the kind of person who would devour someone without spitting out the bones. Who would dare to make her suffer any injustice?

Zhao Qian had no way to express his bitterness and seriously suspected that his general was facing a saga of his wife's demands for a divorce and, unable to do anything else, was using him, an innocent person, as a scapegoat.

He hesitated for a long time, then gritted his teeth, looked at Shen Muzhi with a wronged expression, and lowered his head, deciding to take the blame for his general. After all, the general was his master.

"I am guilty, and I am willing to accept the punishment."

Yan Xiao, sitting to the side, watched the situation unfold with a blank expression, her sleeves almost twisted into a pretzel.

She just wanted to find a reason to divorce, but she didn't want to lose Shen Muzhi, her golden thigh. But why is Shen Muzhi's thought process so different from that of ordinary people?

She lowered her head slightly, glancing sympathetically at the aggrieved Zhao Qian. Noticing that Shen Muzhi was about to say something more, she quickly interrupted him:

"General, is there some misunderstanding? Guard Zhao was very responsible, and I did not suffer any injustice."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Qian looked at Yan Xiao with great gratitude, feeling that his loyalty had not been misplaced, while Shen Muzhi seemed half-believing and half-doubting.

"You don't need to make excuses for him. You've done so much for me, you must care about me, otherwise how could you have persevered under such difficult conditions?"

"If you hadn't suffered any injustices or heard any hurtful words, why would you be willing to divorce me?"

Yanxiao:......

Take a deep breath, keep smiling, don't get angry, stay calm!

After preparing herself mentally, Yan Xiao gestured for Zhao Qian to go out and continue on her way.

After receiving instructions, Zhao Qian tentatively looked at Shen Muzhi. Seeing Shen Muzhi nod in agreement, he slipped out as if he had been granted a pardon.

After Zhao Qian left, Yan Xiao suppressed her feelings of utter despair and tried her best to come up with the excuse she had made up.

"General, although we have gone through the wedding ceremony, we have not consummated our marriage. Your current status puts a lot of pressure on me. I am just a country woman with limited knowledge and experience, and I am not good enough to be a general's wife."

So I was thinking, could we just pretend this marriage didn't exist, and treat me like my mother's adopted daughter, like her adopted sister, and like July?

That way we're still a family, which is better than becoming a miserable couple and growing to hate each other.

Shen Muzhi listened patiently to Yan Xiao's words with a dark face, his expression as sour as if someone owed him money, and his tone even more stern:

"Marriage is a serious matter, how can it be treated so lightly? What kind of absurd thing is it to recognize one's wife as one's sister? What kind of person do you take me for?"

Yan Xiao wanted to say that it wasn't absurd at all, but when faced with Shen Muzhi's stern expression, she inexplicably chickened out.

She cursed herself inwardly for being spineless, but steadied herself and tried to fight back. Then, Zhao Qian's voice came from outside:

"General, Madam, we have arrived."

Shen Muzhi gave Yan Xiao a deep look, then pursed his lips and got off the carriage. He strode towards the mansion without waiting for Yan Xiao at all.

Judging from his expression, he was clearly angry.

Yan Xiao jumped off the carriage and glanced at Shen Muzhi's departing figure, her teeth practically grinding to powder.

She just thought this guy was incredibly inflexible. He was even giving her the cold shoulder. Did he think she would try to coax him?

He can dream on; she's still angry.

She stood there, tugging at her sleeves which she had twisted into a pretzel, and then took Chiaki and Bandai, who had shrunk to the size of quails, back to her residence.

Zhao Qian glanced at the direction Yan Xiao had left, then at the direction Shen Muzhi had left. After hesitating for a moment, he gave a bitter look and chased after Shen Muzhi in the direction he had left.

As if knowing Zhao Qian would come, Shen Muzhi spoke coldly as soon as Zhao Qian arrived at the door of his study in the courtyard, before he could even knock:

"Get in here!"

Zhao Qian was on the verge of tears, but had no choice but to obediently go inside.

"General, your subordinate has come to apologize."

Shen Muzhi sat at his desk, tapping lightly on the desk in front of him, making Zhao Qian's heart pound with anxiety.

Just as Zhao Qian was feeling a little weak in the knees, he heard Shen Muzhi say:

"Tell me in detail everything that happened to Madam today, especially whether anyone made her unhappy."

Zhao Qian dared not hide anything and quickly recounted everything that had happened that day to Shen Muzhi.

This naturally included Yan Xiao healing Ma Youcai, not allowing her identity to be explicitly revealed, and some other miscellaneous details, all of which she told Shen Muzhi.

From the moment he finished listening, Shen Muzhi's brows remained furrowed. After a while, he finally spoke:

"So, she's living a pretty good life, then why is she thinking of divorcing me?"

How could Zhao Qian know? In the end, he was just a military man, no different from his general. How could he understand a woman's thoughts?

But now that the general has questioned him, if he doesn't give a proper answer, things might not end well today.