Chapter 33 You're deliberately seducing me, aren't you?

Despite feeling disgusted and resistant, Shen Qingci let Huo Yunzhan carry her into her courtyard, and immediately struggled to get Huo Yunzhan to put her down.

"What's wrong? It's just a few steps." Huo Yunzhan asked, somewhat puzzled.

Shen Qingci shook her head and took a deep breath: "I feel like it doesn't hurt as much as when I twisted my ankle. I should be able to walk now."

"The most important thing is..."

Shen Qingci bit her lip, her eyelashes trembling slightly: "The Marquis and Yun Zhan are really too similar."

"I even feel that the Marquis and Yun Zhan have almost the same aura."

"Whenever I get close to the Marquis, I can't help but think of Yun Zhan."

"I miss him, yet I hate him. This complex mix of emotions is tormenting me; it's so painful."

"So, my lord, I am truly sorry."

Huo Yunzhan's fingers twitched slightly. He was Huo Yunzhan, so naturally he was the same.

Previously, he thought that his identical appearance to Huo Yunting was an advantage, which might allow Shen Qingci to easily transfer her feelings for Huo Yunzhan to him after he changed his identity.

But now that Shen Qingci hates him because of Yue Niang, their identical appearance has become a disadvantage.

Huo Yunzhan's hands tightened and loosened repeatedly inside his sleeve.

He originally didn't intend to expose Yue Niang's affair; it's all Liu Ruolan's fault...

Huo Yunzhan took a deep breath. For now, the only option was to wait and see; he couldn't rush things.

It doesn't matter. As long as Shen Qingci doesn't remarry, he'll have plenty of opportunities.

"Alright, then I'll watch the maid help you inside, and then I'll leave."

Wanqing quickly stepped forward, helped Shen Qingci up, and helped her limp into the house.

As soon as Shen Qingci sat down inside, Wan Qing, who was standing at the door, hurriedly informed her, "He's gone, the Marquis has left."

Wanqing quickly took out the medicine from the shelf: "Miss, is it this foot that's injured? Let me apply the medicine for you."

Shen Qingci shook her head: "I'm not injured, I was just faking it."

"Pretending?"

Shen Qingci nodded and sneered, "If I hadn't pretended and interrupted him, he probably would have brought up the matter of inheriting two branches of the family."

"That's disgusting."

Shen Qingci stood up and took off her outer garment: "I'll change my clothes. He just touched this one, and it's dirty."

Wanqing quickly brought Shen Qingci another set of clothes and helped her put them on. Shen Qingci then continued, "If he really tells me, I'll have to find a way to refuse."

"Why not just stop him from speaking, and then express your resistance to him by saying that you think he looks too much like Huo Yunzhan?"

“Moreover, and most importantly…” Shen Qingci’s lips curled slightly, his eyes gleaming coldly: “I saw Liu Ruolan just now.”

"Just as I was pretending to twist my ankle, I saw her looking this way from the main courtyard."

"She must have seen it."

"It was somewhat unexpected. I thought she would rush over, slap me, and yell at me for being shameless and seducing her own uncle."

"Unexpectedly, she managed to hold back and didn't show up at all from beginning to end."

Wanqing's eyes widened. Just now, her attention was all on her young lady, and she really didn't notice that Liu Ruolan was looking at them.

"Could it be because something happened to the Liu family, and she's afraid that if something goes wrong at this time, no one will clean up her mess?"

Shen Qingci pondered for a moment: "Perhaps."

She said maybe, but in her heart she felt that someone as spoiled as Liu Ruolan was unlikely to be able to control herself.

After all, Prime Minister Liu was only cooperating with the investigation; they were already looking for a way out, weren't they?

Although this way out was that Prime Minister Liu voluntarily resigned from his post.

However, Prime Minister Liu was deeply entrenched in the court, so even if he resigned, it wouldn't have much of an impact.

He can still keep track of every move in the court, and because he is not in the court, he can be even more discreet.

Shen Qingci pondered for a long time, still unsure why Liu Ruolan was being so forbearing today.

But it doesn't matter. She is almost certain that Liu Ruolan was the mastermind behind the killing of her and her unborn child in her past life, and Huo Yunzhan was an accomplice because he still needed to rely on Liu Ruolan.

She won't let either of them get away.

But Liu Ruolan is definitely the breakthrough point.

Liu Ruolan has a rather volatile temper; she can easily become enraged and act rashly if provoked even slightly.

If today's stimulation isn't enough, she can wait a little longer.

Liu Ruolan is currently menstruating and has no idea that Huo Yunzhan is impotent.

Wait until the sunflower season is over.

If Huo Yunzhan still shows no desire for her by then, she will definitely become suspicious.

She wants a child so badly, she'll definitely... be restless.

Shen Qingci guessed that Liu Ruolan would be restless, but he did not expect that Liu Ruolan would not even wait until her period ended, nor until she realized that Huo Yunzhan no longer had any desire for her.

Two days after Shen Qingci pretended to sprain her ankle and had Huo Yunzhan carry her back to the courtyard, Shen Qingci was feeding the fish by the lake in the backyard when she heard Wanqing's voice behind her greeting: "Greetings to the Lady of the Marquis."

Shen Qingci turned her head and looked at Liu Ruolan, who was clearly walking towards her: "Sister-in-law."

Liu Ruolan walked step by step to Shen Qingci: "Is there any more fish food?"

Shen Qingci nodded and gave some of his own to Liu Ruolan.

Liu Ruolan slowly and methodically picked up the fish food and threw it into the lake one by one.

“I saw everything that happened that day,” Liu Ruolan suddenly said.

Shen Qingci looked bewildered: "What?"

Liu Ruolan scoffed, turned to look at Shen Qingci, her eyes filled with malice: "Stop pretending. Remember that day when you pretended to sprain your ankle and had the Marquis carry you back to your courtyard?"

"You were deliberately trying to seduce the Marquis, weren't you?"

Shen Qingci's eyes widened, her face full of surprise: "I didn't."

"I really... just twisted my ankle."

"I didn't expect the Marquis to suddenly pick me up. I was quite startled."

Liu Ruolan's face immediately turned cold: "Still putting on an act in front of me? Shen Qingci, I know exactly what you're up to!"

"I heard that Lady Wang, the wife of the Vice Minister of War, came to propose marriage to you, but you refused?"

"You have no intention of leaving the Marquis's mansion at all; you're just after the Marquis, aren't you?"

Shen Qingci frowned: "I already said, I didn't."

Liu Ruolan grew impatient: "Whether you have it or not doesn't matter. I just want you to face reality. I will never let you have designs on the Marquis!"

“I am the only Lady of the Yongning Marquis’s Mansion. Without my permission, he can’t even have a concubine or maid.”

“I’m not like you, who couldn’t even control her own man. You only found out he had a mistress after he died!”

As Liu Ruolan was speaking, her maid's voice came from the side: "The Marquis has arrived!"

Shen Qingci didn't understand what the maid's words meant. She subconsciously looked up into the distance, and at that moment, someone suddenly lunged at her, causing her to plunge straight into the lake...