Chapter 34 What I Owe You

Ye Ting observed the two men's ever-changing expressions, then gave a wink to the side.

Nian'an hesitated for a moment, "Ye, Ye Ting, are you really sure we should leave now?"

Ye Ting nodded. "Let's go. It's best if we don't get involved in the affairs of the Princess and the Master. Besides, I have some gossip I want to share with you two."

Nian Ning, who had been silent the whole time, lit up when she heard the word "gossip." "Are you telling the truth?"

Ye Ting was taken aback for a moment. "Would I, Ye Ting, lie to the two of you?"

Nian An looked at Chen Pingjin in the distance, her expression still somewhat hesitant. But before she could come to her senses, Nian Ning grabbed her hand and pulled her to the side.

"Nian'an, let's go."

Shen Pingjin was still arguing with Yan Jue and had no idea that her two maids had been kidnapped by Ye Ting.

Shen Pingjin was never a petty person.

She did this simply to tease Yan Jue and see just how irresponsible he really was.

When the two arrived at the mansion, night had fallen. The lights on both sides of the Regent's Palace had already been turned on. The bright crescent moon hanging high in the sky was obscured by thick clouds. Shen Pingjin suddenly remembered a night in her previous life.

At that time, she had just been imprisoned by Su Xuanmao and Shen Ruixue, and she still held onto hope for the two of them.

She was covered in whip marks, and blood gushed from the wounds into the water-soaked moss.

The intense pain from her missing fingernails kept stimulating her brain, preventing her from falling asleep.

It was already the dead of winter, and the cold wind howled outside the window. The cold air seeped in little by little through the narrow gap and then spread throughout her body.

She had not eaten for three days.

She cried, tears streaming down her face, mingling with blood, soaking her murky silk skirt.

Even so, she still believed that Shen Ruixue and Su Xuanmao would let her go.

But after a long, long time, just when she thought she was about to starve to death, a bowl of fragrant rice and several plates of delicious home-style dishes suddenly appeared before her eyes.

She looked up in disbelief and saw it: the person who had given her her last good meal was Uncle Chen.

Tears welled up in her eyes and soaked her clothes. As she looked at the crescent moon in the sky, the string that had been taut in her heart suddenly snapped.

Yan Jue, who was still engrossed in his bickering with Shen Pingjin, looked to the side in disbelief when he heard the sobbing. When he saw that it was Shen Pingjin crying, he panicked.

"Why...why did you suddenly start crying?"

Shen Pingjin didn't speak. Tears streamed down her face as she asked in broken sentences, "Yan Jue, where is Uncle Chen now?"

Yan Jue was taken aback. He was somewhat puzzled. "He's currently locked up in a room in the backyard. You... want to see him?"

Shen Pingjin nodded heavily. She didn't know what was wrong with her; she had suddenly remembered this matter at this moment.

Yan Jue didn't ask why. He looked at Shen Pingjin's red and swollen eyes and sighed, "Shen Pingjin."

Chen Pingjin was taken aback, "Yan Jue?"

Yan Jue's eyes were full of helplessness. "Although I don't know why you suddenly want to marry me, now that you've married me, I won't let you suffer any grievances."

He spoke each word carefully and solemnly, "Is it because Uncle Chen was instructed by someone to make you marry the wrong person, and you harbor resentment towards him?"

Shen Pingjin looked at the man in front of her and noticed the fleeting loneliness and disappointment in his eyes. She shook her head and said firmly, "Yan Jue, no. Every word I, Shen Pingjin, spoke that day in the high hall before the Emperor came from the bottom of my heart."

"But why..."

Shen Pingjin shook her head. "There's no reason. Yan Jue, let me go see Uncle Chen."

Yan Jue hesitated again, "Then are you angry with me because of what I just said?"

Shen Pingjin was taken aback, then smiled and said, "Yan Jue, in your heart, am I such a petty and narrow-minded person?"

Yan Jue stared blankly, "Then..."

A bitter smile appeared on Shen Pingjin's lips. "You don't need to say anything, I understand."

Yan Jue hesitated, then watched Shen Pingjin's departing figure before finally letting out an angry sigh.

She is the girl he loves, but why did he...!

Yan Jue didn't say anything in the end. He walked forward, following Shen Pingjin's steps, intending to open the door to the room where Uncle Chen was being held for Shen Pingjin.

Although Yan Jue may seem carefree and irresponsible, his methods of dealing with and punishing people are anything but.

Seeing that Yan Jue seemed to want to come in, Shen Pingjin raised her hand and stopped him at the door. "Yan Jue, just let me go in alone."

The person she had been bickering with not long ago now had slightly red eyes, looking pitiful and heartbreaking.

Yan Jue wanted to refuse, but the words wouldn't come out. Finally, he nodded solemnly, "Okay."

He started walking back, step by step.

After seeing Yan Jue leave, Shen Pingjin finally opened the door in front of her.

Uncle Chen lay weakly on the bed, looking as if he hadn't eaten a proper meal for several days. When he heard the door open, he struggled to open his eyes and glanced in the direction of the door.

"Who...is it..."

Uncle Chen managed to squeeze out a sentence, propped himself up, and struggled to get out of bed. When he saw that the person who came was Shen Pingjin, a mocking look appeared in his cloudy eyes.

But Shen Pingjin clearly saw a fleeting hint of guilt in Uncle Chen's eyes.

She spoke slowly, "Uncle Chen, Pingjin has come to see you."

When he confirmed that the person standing in front of him was indeed Shen Pingjin, Uncle Chen finally couldn't hold back anymore, and the body he had managed to support collapsed back down.

His cloudy eyes stared blankly at the pillar covered in cobwebs above him. "Miss, you..."

Chen Pingjin's voice was cold and indifferent, revealing no hidden meaning, "Uncle Chen, do you regret it?"

Upon hearing this, Uncle Chen forced a smile and made a hoarse sound, "Miss... could you... could you give this old servant... a glass of water?"

His voice was unusually hoarse, as if a cup of poison had been poured into his throat.

Upon hearing this, Chen Pingjin slowly walked to the tea table, picked up the teapot, and poured a cup of water into a teacup.

Upon hearing the sound of water, Uncle Chen reacted as if he had heard something terrifying. His previously calm expression cracked, and he began to tremble uncontrollably, his rough hands waving wildly in the air.

"No, no..."

Upon hearing this, Shen Pingjin, who was walking over with her teacup in hand, paused slightly.

She put down the teacup, then opened the door and went out.

About half an incense stick's time later, Chen Pingjin opened the door, carrying a pot of tea and a box of food from the kitchen.

She looked at Uncle Chen lying in bed, unable to take care of himself, and steadily placed the things in her hands on the table.

She spoke softly, "Uncle Chen, this is what Pingjin owes you."