Chapter 29 Be Thicker-Skinned

Shen You gave him a series of instructions, but didn't hear a response, so she subconsciously looked at him.

When I looked up, I was met with a pair of deep, intensely piercing black eyes.

Her eyelashes fluttered, she looked away and stood up. "Are you hungry? There's porridge here."

But before she could take a few steps, her wrist was grabbed.

The man's fever had just subsided, and the temperature of his palms was even hotter than usual.

Shen You struggled, but failed to break free from his restraints.

"Shen You, you're worried about me."

His tone was firm.

Those eyes seemed to see right through her, their fervent desire undisguised.

This was something the two of them had never experienced during their two years in Qingxi Town.

Shen You suddenly calmed down. She let him hold her hand and didn't pull away. Her voice was very soft.

“You got injured while saving me, so it’s only natural that I’m worried about you.”

"I would be worried if it were anyone else."

Chu Xiao's hand froze instantly as he stared intently at her, as if trying to find even a trace of past affection in her eyes.

But no.

She simply stood by the bed, turned around, and looked at him.

Those beautiful almond-shaped eyes remained completely still.

The room was deathly silent. Shen You withdrew her gaze from him and looked at the porcelain bowl on the wooden table. She asked calmly, "Are you hungry? There's porridge here."

The long fingers that had been gripping her wrist loosened one by one, and the invisible force that had been tightly holding her heart disappeared.

She heard him say, "I'm not hungry."

Shen You pursed her lips, wanting to persuade him again, when a flurry of footsteps came from outside.

Then, the room door was pushed open urgently.

"Chu Xiao".

Qi Jincheng strode in, and the eunuch behind him followed anxiously, almost tripping on the steps.

"Your Majesty, please slow down..."

Upon entering, the group stared at each other.

"Miss Shen, it's good that you're alright."

Qi Jincheng breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that she was standing unharmed.

Behind him were Shen Yao, Shen Xiangning, and others. "Youyou."

"Eldest sister..."

Shen You stepped forward and nodded slightly to Shen Yao, "Father."

Shen Yao finally breathed a sigh of relief and said repeatedly, "It's good that you're alright, it's good that you're alright."

However, Chen Xiangning noticed the gauze on her hand with her sharp eyes, and her cool eyes were full of worry.

Shen You raised her hand, a gentle smile playing on her lips. "It's nothing, just a superficial wound."

“By the way,” she asked, “how are the wisteria and pothos doing?”

"Don't worry, they only had minor injuries and got a fever from being caught in the rain, which is why they didn't come along."

Hearing that the wisteria and the green ivy were alright, Shen You finally felt relieved.

"Chu Xiao".

Inside the room, Qi Jincheng strode to the bedside. "How are your injuries?"

Chu Xiao's expression was natural, as if he wasn't the one who was injured at all. "It's nothing, I'll be fine after a period of rest."

Qi Jincheng didn't believe him. He lifted the blanket and saw the bandaged wound on his right leg.

The medicine smell is strong.

Judging from Chu Xiao and Shen You's expressions, and combining what Zi Teng and Lu Luo said, Qi Jincheng could roughly guess that Chu Xiao's injury was caused by saving Shen You.

He paused for a moment, then said, "The others have already packed up. Once we leave this valley, we'll get on the carriage and head straight back to Lin'an City."

Only by returning to Lin'an can Chu Xiao better recover from his injuries.

"Hmm," Chu Xiao replied in a deep voice, then asked, "What's the matter with the carriage?"

Upon hearing this, Qi Jincheng's expression instantly turned frighteningly cold.

"It's Li Cheng."

"Li Cheng?"

Shen You also heard his words and was very surprised.

“According to his confession,” Qi Jincheng nodded, looking at Shen You, “he wanted to change your opinion of him by playing the ‘hero saves the beauty’ role.”

"What?" Shen You found it utterly absurd. "Then the broken reins and the broken wheels, he did it all?"

"yes."

"But I didn't see him that day..."

"It was raining heavily when he was about to go out... so he felt it wasn't a good time and didn't go out."

Besides Shen You, Chu Xiao, and Qi Jincheng, there were several members of the Shen family in the room, and at the door were members of the Imperial Guard and several old officials.

Chu Xiao knew Qi Jincheng well enough that, upon hearing his tone, he subconsciously looked up at him.

The two exchanged a glance and nodded to each other.

Chu Xiao confirmed his thoughts.

This matter is probably not that simple.

Qi Jincheng pieced together the whole story by following Li Cheng's words, which also had his own ulterior motives.

"Miss Shen has suffered an undeserved calamity. I have ordered Li Cheng to be arrested, and the Marquis of Mingyi and his wife have also been detained for failing to properly educate their son."

"Once we return to Lin'an City, Li Cheng will be handed over to the Criminal Investigation Department for processing."

"Rest assured, I will definitely give you justice."

Shen You felt that Li Cheng's actions were utterly absurd.

But Qi Jincheng investigated the matter personally, so it's impossible for him to be wrong.

She curtsied and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Chu Xiao leaned against the headboard, his gaze sweeping over the people standing inside and outside the room, before asking Qi Jincheng, "Where's Mu Geng?"

“Oh,” Qi Jincheng said, “He and Doctor Lin have gone to prepare a wheelchair for you.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than an anxious voice came from outside.

"Lord!"

Mu Geng pushed through the crowd and ran in. When he saw Chu Xiao lying on the bed, his face fell, and he almost cried.

Chu Xiao gave him a cold, sidelong glance, and he shut up.

Lin Gu pushed the wheelchair in.

Qi Jincheng gave the order, "Alright, now that everything is ready, let's set off back to Lin'an."

“Yes,” the Jinwu Guard general and the eunuch outside bowed and responded.

With Lin Gu leading the way, the journey out of the valley was much more relaxed and faster.

On Yuhuashan Avenue, the convoy was already lined up in a grand and orderly fashion.

Unlike when they arrived, the carriage of the Marquis of Mingyi's residence was placed at the very end of the procession, and was guarded by soldiers of the Imperial Guard.

Shen You's gaze subconsciously swept to that side, then he looked away.

When the two maids, Wisteria and Green Ivy, saw her, they burst into tears of joy.

However, their fevers had just subsided, so both of them covered their faces with gauze, afraid of passing on their illness to Shen You, and dared not get too close.

But Shen You didn't care about any of that. He held their hands and only felt relieved after confirming that they had only suffered some minor injuries.

"Young lady, please get in the carriage."

The carriage was specially prepared by Qi Jincheng; it was luxurious and spacious, and all the furnishings inside were of the highest quality.

Shen You nodded and was about to step onto the horse stool when he felt a gaze coming from in front of him.

It fell directly and unabashedly upon her.

She knew who it was without even turning around.

Shen You subconsciously gripped Zi Teng's hand, pursed his lips, lowered his head and bent over, and got directly into the carriage.

She didn't even glance at him.

——

Inside the carriage of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.

Only then did Qi Jincheng relax a little. He glanced at Chu Xiao, who was already sitting back on the cushion, and teased, "I never thought that Li Cheng's 'hero saves the beauty' act would end up benefiting the Duke of Zhenguo."

He laughed, "What? Has Miss Shen changed her opinion of you now?"

Chu Xiao did not answer, but glanced at him sideways, his voice cold, "This humble subject has difficulty walking, so I will not see Your Majesty off."

"Tsk," Qi Jincheng scoffed, "Why are you getting so worked up?"

But seeing Chu Xiao's expression, he understood everything.

With a look of utter disappointment, he said, "My Duke Zhenguo..."

"You, who are adept at military campaigns and court trials, how come you are so inflexible when it comes to matters of love and sex?"

Chu Xiao remained silent. Qi Jincheng poured himself a cup of tea and continued, "The injuries on your back and legs are all because of her. She already felt guilty..."

"Showing weakness at the right time will only make her worry and feel sorry for you more."

Upon hearing this, Chu Xiao finally looked up at him. Qi Jincheng smiled, as if recalling his daily interactions with Ye Mingyu.

With an air of knowing wisdom, he said, "A man doesn't have to be cold and hard around the woman he loves. Sometimes, he can be a little thick-skinned."

"Otherwise, the Duke of Zhenguo will probably be a bachelor for life."

Chu Xiao has a cold exterior but a warm interior, and he speaks and acts with a rigid and inflexible style.

Shen You appears gentle and courteous, but in reality, he is somewhat stubborn, and once he makes up his mind, it is difficult for him to change it.

If neither of them takes the initiative to change their way of getting along, their relationship will likely remain stagnant.

Qi Jincheng knew all too well Chu Xiao's feelings for Shen You.

During those days when they fought side by side, amidst the sea of ​​corpses and blood, Chu Xiao never forgot Shen You.

On several occasions when the battle was not so intense, he would come out of his tent in the middle of the night and see Chu Xiao sitting by the fire, holding an embroidered handkerchief, deep in thought.

Even when he was seriously injured and on the verge of death, all he murmured was Shen You's name.

After he finished speaking, Chu Xiao still did not respond, but his eyes were shrouded in darkness.

Qi Jincheng knew that he had taken everything to heart.

He then flicked his sleeves, got up, and got off the carriage.

Before long, the voice of the Jinwu Guard general could be heard from outside.

The carriage wheels rolled, and the caravan moved forward.

Banners fluttered in the breeze, and the sun shone brightly.

Unlike the leisurely mood they had when they arrived, the journey was interrupted by several injuries among the group.

The journey took three or four hours. Shen You lay back on the soft blanket inside the carriage, fast asleep with her eyes closed.

The past few days had left her exhausted, and only now that she was back with the team did she feel much more at ease.

Therefore, Chen Xiangning did not disturb her along the way, but only covered her with the blanket that fell off when she turned over from time to time.

The convoy returned to Lin'an City in a grand procession, arriving late in the late afternoon.

It was summer, and it got dark late, so it still looked bright.

After everyone disembarked from the carriage, they respectfully escorted the Emperor and Empress back to the palace before ordering their servants to drive the carriages back to their respective residences.

Shen You had slept the whole way, but now she was fully awake and looked much better.

She stood beside the carriage and heard a deep, cold male voice coming from not far away.

"Li Cheng is to be imprisoned in the Criminal Investigation Department prison. The Li couple are to be taken back to the Mingyi Marquis's residence and are not to leave the residence without permission."

"Lord Duke, my son didn't mean it, please have mercy..." Wang Hui pleaded, wiping away her tears.

She never expected that Li Cheng would do such a thing.

Ultimately, this resulted in Shen You and Chu Xiao being injured.

But how could Chu Xiao let Li Cheng go?

He ignored the pleas of the Li couple, his expression cold and stern, and waved for his subordinates from the Criminal Investigation Department to take the people away.

Just as I turned around, I met that clear and pure gaze.

A warmth spread through him, and the coldness between his brows dissipated somewhat as he recalled what Qi Jincheng had said in the carriage earlier.

Mu Geng pushed the wheelchair to the Shen family's carriage.

After all, he had just saved her life yesterday, so Shen You couldn't just turn around and leave like that.

She nodded slightly and bowed to him, "Lord Duke."

The next moment, she heard him say to Shen Yao, "I've heard that the Marquis of Chengde's mansion is spacious, magnificent, and tastefully decorated."

"My new residence is newly built, which is not conducive to recuperating from my injuries. I wonder if I could have the honor of borrowing the Marquis's residence to recuperate for a period of time?"