Cui Niang has been in poor health and timid, and now she is ill again.

What if she gets scared?

Shen Changshan just hurriedly covered himself, and then stretched out his hand to the front: "Come here!"

"㫧清!"

Cui Niang's eyes turned red and she stumbled towards him.

"Oh my God, what happened to you? Why are you soaked all over?"

Cui Niang checked him up and down. Just now, she didn't let anyone touch Shen Changshan, but now he obediently let Cui Niang do whatever she wanted.

His heart was already dry, but seeing Cui Niang's caring attitude, he felt it gradually soften.

"I'm fine, I just felt uneasy on the way back." This was the gentlest sentence Shen Changshan had said since he returned home.

Even the look in his eyes when he looked at Cui Niang was so gentle that it seemed as if water could drip out of it.

: "Mrs. Cui, there is no need to be afraid."

"With Ma Qing here, Aunt Cui has nothing to fear." Aunt Cui rested her face on Shen Changshan's knees.

Her fingertips touched his palm: "I heard that His Majesty allowed you to enter the palace today."

Aunt Cui closed her eyes and asked tentatively, "Did something happen?"

Shen Changshan stopped fiddling with Aunt Cui's hand.

He looked down.

My mind is empty.

His Majesty demoted him from his official position.

The Shen family has been officials for generations, but they were all minor officials in the past, and their ancestors had made no achievements.

By his generation, Shen Changshan had passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi, which was how he gained a foothold in Kyoto.

But now he never expected that the Emperor would demote him from his official position just because of a small matter.

From now on, the Shen family will be commoners in Kyoto.

Just now in the imperial study, Shen Changshan hadn’t noticed anything.

But when he returned home and to Cui Niang, Shen Changshan was frightened.

If people knew about this, what would happen to the entire Shen family? What would happen to his mother Cui Niang in the future?

Shen Changshan clenched his fingers tightly, and the hall was silent for a long time.

"Why doesn't Yuqing come back?" Aunt Cui waited for a long time, but there was no sound above her head.

She raised her face, the candlelight in the room shone on her face, and Aunt Cui's eyes were slightly curled up.

There was a hint of amorous feelings in her eyes.

"Could it be that His Majesty really has some instructions?"

Shen Changshan felt dazed for a moment, then lowered his head and met Cui Niang's eyes.

The words rolled in his throat, and he swallowed them slowly.

He was a little afraid to speak.

“Nothing.” Shen Changshan was silent for a while, and finally shook his head.

I'm afraid there may be a chance for this incident to turn around today.

His Majesty has not issued the decree yet.

I'm afraid there's still a glimmer of hope.

Shen Changshan clenched his fingers, then loosened them.

The most important thing is that he didn't dare to say to Cui Niang: "I'm fine, did you take the medicine today?"

Aunt Cui's eyes were filled with doubt. After looking at Shen Changshan's expression, she swallowed something.

"I just drank."

"Please invite the imperial physician to see Cui Niang. Cui Niang will recover faster."

Aunt Cui sighed and went into Shen Changshan's arms.

*****

Although Shen Changshan didn't say anything after returning home last night, the entire Shen family was in a panic because of this matter.

Shen Changshan was so abnormal that Old Madam Shen had already noticed that something was wrong with Shen Changshan.

She asked Shen Changshan indirectly, but Shen Changshan refused to reveal a single word.

But early this morning, when it was time to go to court, Shen Changshan was still at home and did not go to court.

Only then did Mrs. Shen start to panic.

She asked around and even sent someone to find Aunt Cui.

"You serve the master every day, so you should know best what happened in Changshan last night."

Aunt Cui lowered her head and told Old Madam Shen everything that happened last night: "Master said it's nothing."

She had served in this mansion for so many years, so she knew that Old Madam Shen valued this son very much.

Aunt Cui was able to stand firm in the Shen family.

The most important thing is to be able to grasp Mrs. Shen’s thoughts.

"If the master has any problem, Cui Niang will definitely come and report to you."

Aunt Cui said this and lowered her head.

Her condition had been in remission, and after taking medicine, she no longer mistakenly recognized people.

Seeing this, Old Madam Shen nodded in satisfaction: "You should pay more attention to the master. I think there was something wrong with his expression last night."

Aunt Cui held Old Lady Shen's hand and shook her head: "I asked last night, but the master didn't say a word."

"This is really rare." Old Mrs. Shen was leaning on her crutches, pressing so hard that they made crackling sounds.

I was thinking of going out to ask around.

After a while, a servant came to report that someone had come from the palace and that the Emperor's imperial edict had arrived.

"Hurry, hurry up and come back, Master." Old Mrs. Shen called out hurriedly.

Everyone in the mansion followed him to the front hall. Aunt Cui held Old Lady Shen's hand and followed her across the hall.

After a while, Shen Changshan finally arrived.

"Master." Upon seeing this, Aunt Cui hurried forward to Shen Changshan's side.

"What exactly happened?" Why would His Majesty issue an edict to the Shen family?

Thinking back to the last time, the imperial edict from the palace said that Shen Qingru died in Yuquan Mountain.

Whenever she thought of this, Aunt Cui felt that she was infected with bad news.

"Master, Aunt Cui is scared." Aunt Cui's face turned pale.

But Shen Changshan couldn't comfort her at all at this time.

He didn't sleep all night last night and his eyes were cloudy.

I thought that since His Majesty had not issued an edict last night, there was still a glimmer of hope for this matter.

But early in the morning, just after the court session, the imperial edict arrived impatiently.

I'm afraid there is no room for maneuver in this matter.

"Minister, accept the order." Shen Changshan lifted the hem of his clothes and knelt on the ground.

After a while, a group of people kneeled down behind him.

"The Emperor, by the Will of Heaven, proclaims..."

As soon as the young eunuch who delivered the imperial edict finished speaking, Mrs. Shen realized what had happened and how catastrophic it was.

"What did you say?" Old Mrs. Shen had been thinking hard about her son's affairs the whole night.

But this morning, after hearing the sad news, he closed his eyes and almost fainted.

"How is this possible?" Old Madam Shen knelt on the ground, looking at the young eunuch in front of her.

"Father-in-law, did you pass the wrong message?" Old Mrs. Shen no longer needed anyone to support her.

He struggled to get up from the ground, and looked at the young eunuch opposite with cloudy eyes: "We are in Lichen Mansion."

"The palace...the home of Concubine Zhao's mother in the palace." Old Mrs. Shen knelt on the ground, trembling as she held the hand of the person beside her.

"Did it get sent in the wrong way?"

"How could this be a wrong message?" The young eunuch smiled and said, "I know this is the Shen family."

"The Emperor himself delivered the imperial edict, so there can be no mistake."

Old Mrs. Shen's vision went dark and she felt like she was going to faint again.

"But...but, Concubine Zhao is so favored. How could His Majesty, how could this happen?"

Shen Changshan is Empress Zhaofei's relative.

Doesn’t His Majesty care about Concubine Zhao?

The young eunuch seemed to know what Madam Shen was going to say, and lowered his head and said calmly, "Madam Shen, Concubine Zhao is Concubine Zhao."

"The Shen family is the Shen family."

"Empress Zhao is favored by our Emperor. But...what does this have to do with the Shen family?"

The young eunuch raised his hand and smiled gently.

"I...I..." Old Madam Shen was already holding her breath, and she couldn't breathe anymore when she saw this.

His eyes rolled back and he fainted completely.

The Shen family was instantly thrown into chaos, with everyone in turmoil.

The person who delivered the imperial edict happened to be Xiao Baozi.

He looked at the chaos around him, then looked at Shen Changshan in front of him, who already looked ashen. He raised his head and smiled at Shen Changshan: "Master Shen. Accept the order."

Shen Changshan was stabbed hard by the words "Master Shen".

But when he looked up at the young eunuch in front of him, he knew that this man was from the Qianqing Palace and must not be offended.

He knelt on the ground, took a deep breath, and still shouted: "I accept your order."

Shen Changshan took the imperial edict with both hands and turned his head.

His eyes caught sight of Cui Niang who was looking at him from behind: "Yue Qing."

Aunt Cui looked at the person in front of her, and then at the imperial edict in his hand.

Thinking of what she had just heard, Aunt Cui closed her eyes and fainted.

"Mrs. Cui!"

Shen Changshan didn't even have time to put down the imperial edict before he hurried forward to help the person.

The Shen family was in chaos!