Xu Silin said, "This is good, not because of the high-ranking officials, but because of the good people."

Luo Yuanhao was right to be scolded; he truly didn't understand. He not only didn't understand Shen Qingchen's thoughts, but he also didn't understand why Xu Silin understood Shen Qingchen's thoughts so well.

Wasn't Young Master Xu always the one to bully Shen Qingchen? He treated her like a little chick, catching her and letting her go, then catching her again. How come he's suddenly become her caring older brother?

Lin Mo had been there before. He had recently suffered a lot because of Shen Qingchen, and now he didn't dare to mention the words "Shen" or "Qing" in front of Xu Silin. He could only vaguely sense some inexplicable change in his boss, which was gradually and imperceptibly changing him.

The sky was ablaze with the colors of sunset, and golden light shone through the clouds, falling on the lush foliage and the glazed green tiles.

Xu Silin held Shen Qingchen's bamboo slip, staring at it blankly for a while, a faint halo forming on his handsome face. His mind was filled with Shen Qingchen's image: slender shoulders, delicate features, slender wrists holding the book, and fair face bathed in the shadows of the trees.

There's also the focused expression when he's engrossed in writing, the gentle yet reasoned explanations during their discussions, the sincerity in his words when returning the name card, and the phrase "be a good official."

"...This is really inexplicable," Xu Silin wondered. "That person is just an ordinary man, why does he keep thinking about him?"

When Shen Qingchen returned home, it was still early. He was about to take his father to Cheng Yi's clinic when he ran into Ming Xiang.

Mingxiang was wearing a light green floral coarse cloth dress, carrying a basket of fresh vegetable leaves on her head and in her hands, and was walking towards her house.

"Brother Qingchen, are you going to take Uncle out? The weather is nice today, and the sun won't set for a while. I was just saying I'd come over and take Uncle for a walk in the yard," she said with a smile, her smile as bright as the azaleas on the branches in early spring.

Qingchen nodded. "Yes, I'll take my father to Dr. Cheng's clinic. Thank you for looking after him while I'm away. My dad... he's not feeling well sometimes, so I'm sorry to trouble you."

Mingxiang looked at the scholar-official dressed in a light gray zizi robe, his clothes fluttering, handsome and dignified, and her heart began to race. She lowered her head slightly and said gently, "Brother Qingchen, don't say that. It's just a small thing, and it doesn't take much effort. Besides, the old man can recognize me now, and sometimes he even smiles when he sees me. I'm not tired at all from keeping him company. I like talking to him, and sometimes what he says is quite interesting."

Qingchen was well aware of her father's condition. He didn't even recognize his own daughter, so how could he possibly know her? Her father's behavior was abnormal; sometimes his limbs were out of his control and he would hurt people. Mingxiang was willing to come and stay with him, but she didn't know how much she had suffered.

This girl is so kind. Qingchen thinks she's the closest person to an angel among all the people she knows.

Mingxiang then said, "Brother Qingchen, these are vegetables I grew in the field. They were just harvested today. I brought some over for you to try."

"Thank you. Please don't send me so much food anymore. There are only two of us, my father and I, and we can't possibly finish it all." Qingchen felt a little guilty. Every time Mingxiang brought her food, she would offer her money, but Mingxiang would refuse. "Sometimes it goes bad, which is such a waste of food. Please listen to me, okay?" Qingchen had no choice but to lie.

Mingxiang nodded, "Yes, I understand, Brother Qingchen."

As she nodded, Qingchen noticed a vegetable leaf stuck to her hair and promptly removed it. Mingxiang, seeing this, felt a little embarrassed. "Brother Qingchen, did I look... really ugly just now?"

Qingchen shook her head honestly: "It's just a vegetable leaf, it's not ugly. You've always been beautiful."

"Always..." Qingchen said "always," which meant he had been paying attention to her all along. Mingxiang's heart immediately surged with joy.

Actually, she had fallen for him ever since they rented her house a year ago. Although he was a tenant from a poor family, he was a scholar who had passed the imperial examination and was a great talent who had pushed countless other scholars to the bottom of the list, while she herself could barely read.

At first, he was somewhat distant towards her, as if he had some secret and was unwilling to let anyone into his life, which made her feel quite disappointed. But now it's much better; he talks to her more and often helps her chop wood.

After spending more than a year together, Mingxiang discovered that what attracted her to him was not only his talent, but also his clean and refreshing demeanor, and his gentle and considerate manner. Furthermore, he was a filial son.

After saying goodbye to Mingxiang, Shen Qingchen helped her father continue towards the clinic. After walking for a while, she turned around and saw Mingxiang standing far away by the roadside, holding a bamboo basket and watching them.

As night fell, Qingchen returned home from the clinic.

Cheng Yi's clinic was quite lively today; besides Shen Qingchen, there were two other customers. While administering acupuncture, he talked to Qingchen, recounting the incident of Qingchen cutting flesh to remove the arrow, and showered the patient with praise. The patient, however, looked uncomfortable and asked, "Doctor, after all that, are you suggesting he perform acupuncture on me?"

As she left, she slipped two taels of silver under Cheng Yi's pillow when he wasn't looking, as usual. One could imagine that next time Cheng Yi would be grumbling and shoving pork into her pocket again.

Back in the courtyard, Qingchen immediately spotted the basket of fresh vegetables Mingxiang had left behind. She picked up the basket and was about to go inside when she was startled to find a note underneath.

Shen Qingchen unfolded the note and glanced at it; cold sweat immediately poured down his back.

Mingxiang has been arrested!

The note was unsigned, with only one sentence: "Take the letter to exchange for the person."

They are the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Since being followed last time, the Imperial Guards had not appeared again. Qingchen thought they had realized their mistake and stopped looking for her. Unexpectedly, they came again today, still demanding this fictitious letter, and arrested Mingxiang without any explanation.

The night sky overhead was low and the starlight was dim.

Just an hour ago, Mingxiang was chatting and laughing with her in this courtyard, as radiant as a camellia in a secluded valley. In the blink of an eye, only her smiling face and voice remained in the courtyard.

Shen Qingchen looked at the basket of vegetables on the table, feeling her heart clench, panicked and irritable, with a sense of powerlessness in the face of powerlessness.

Why Mingxiang! She would rather be the one arrested.

She helped her father into the house, then went back to the yard and stood there, facing the cold night wind. She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.

From the moment she saved that resolute yet ruthless commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, all the way to being followed, and then to everything before leaving home today... the more Qingchen thought about it, the more something seemed off.

If they wanted to threaten her, they should have kidnapped her father; he was her closest relative than Mingxiang. Besides, she was at the Hanlin Academy during the day, and her father was alone at home, suffering from hysteria; taking him away would have been effortless.

This is completely unreasonable.

Qingchen thought about it and suddenly felt a chill run down her spine. Unless, of course, their purpose wasn't a threat at all. They knew she didn't actually have a letter in her possession.

So how do we explain the current situation?

With curfew approaching, Qingchen had no time to think it over; only one thought remained in her mind.

She wanted to see Teacher Song...