But thinking of her uncontrollable emotional fluctuations when she left the palace yesterday, he couldn't help but feel a little lost. Are some things really impossible to change?

He defied the heavens and has yet to disturb the vast wilderness, proving that she is indeed his destined one.

He had been lonely for many years, yet he found love with a mere mortal, which showed that it was ordained by heaven that she was destined to be his.

The Shen family.

Shen Bochun was like an ant on a hot pan, pacing around Shou'an Hall in a panic several times.

Madam Shen coughed twice before calling out, "Take a break. What good will it do if you're in such a hurry?"

Seeing his mother so calm, Shen Bochun felt ashamed, but couldn't help but sigh and say, "Mother, are you really not worried at all?"

Madam Shen chuckled and said, "What's the rush? Your uncle's title has been secured, and the world is becoming more peaceful. Soon, peace and tranquility will prevail. Shen Mingzhuang is not of our bloodline. She doesn't take us seriously. Perhaps she already knew this all along."

She gently put down her teacup and continued, "Now that she's gone, there's still Wenxin. I think we should let the third son make Liu Shi his second wife and adopt Liu Wenxin as his goddaughter. In the future, she can also be considered one of our family members, and we can help her out if anything happens."

Shen Bochun sighed again, "Mother, will this work?"

He always felt that Liu Wenxin was unreliable. He had met her twice in the mansion and thought she was an unremarkable person. He never expected that she would catch the emperor's eye and that the emperor would make exceptions for her one after another.

Nowadays, people in the court say that the Shen family has bewitched the emperor, that the Shen family instigated Liu Wenxin to corrupt the emperor's heart, that she is a femme fatale, and that the Shen family has rebellious intentions!

He felt a tightness in his chest whenever he thought about it.

“Mother, I don’t want to live with people talking behind my back. This Liu Wenxin is a troublemaker now. If we do this, wouldn’t we be going against the tide and defying the world?”

Hearing this, Madam Shen did not immediately answer her son's question. Instead, she gently turned the incense burner with the silver spoon and began to press down the incense ash. Watching the uneven incense ash gradually become compacted and smooth, Madam Shen sighed and said, "There are only two kinds of officials in this world: one is the treacherous official, who is thoroughly wicked, and the other is the honest official, who is wholeheartedly devoted to the country and has no selfish motives, and is willing to sacrifice his life for the country. As for those who waver in the middle, most of them do not live long."

As Shen Bochun listened, his hands clenched tighter involuntarily. Shen Zhongchun, sitting to the side, felt a sense of shock. He had always been a quiet and unassuming person at home, serving as a sinecure in the Hanlin Academy. His mother had always consulted with his elder brother on important family matters, and he knew nothing about these things!

Now that he has learned the truth, a storm of emotions surged within him.

If Shen Mingzhuang isn't the real Jiu Niang, then who is the real Jiu Niang?

She was horrified when she thought of His Majesty's ruthless methods!

"Mother, did you never think about the consequences of doing this?"

The more Shen Zhongchun thought about it, the more alarmed he became, and he couldn't help but ask aloud.

Madam Shen called her second son over simply to let him know about the family's situation. After all, she was getting old and didn't know when she would pass away. She wanted her second son to know some things so that the two brothers could help each other when she passed away. However, she did not expect her second son to react like this.

"Consequences? What consequences?" Old Madam Shen asked coldly. "What are you trying to say?"

Seeing his mother's solemn expression, Shen Zhongchun was unsure whether to speak or remain silent.

After thinking for a moment, he mustered his courage and said, "Aren't you just aiding and abetting a tyrant...?"

"Second Brother!" Shen Bochun's expression changed drastically upon hearing this, and he rebuked in a deep voice, "Watch your words!"

Shen Shuchun knew that such words were treasonous, but he felt a sense of unease, as if the relatives he had always respected and the family reputation he had always upheld were not what he had imagined.

"You've reached this age and are still in the Hanlin Academy. Sometimes you should think more about why, and stop speaking without thinking. If the emperor wants his subject to die, the subject has no choice but to die. Thunder and rain are both forms of imperial favor. Some things are not up to you to choose!"

Shen Zhongchun listened, slowly lowered his head, his lips trembling, but ultimately said nothing.

After Shen Mingzhuang left completely and after her life-or-death struggle with the Emperor, Liu Wenxin's life actually became better.

"Your Highness, Consort Shu..." Tan'er stepped forward and gently placed a cup of chrysanthemum water on the small chicken-wing wood table next to the chaise lounge.

Liu Wenxin turned her gaze blankly back from the window. "Winter will be over soon, spring shouldn't be far away, right?"

Tan'er didn't respond, only nodding in agreement.

Liu Wenxin knew that some of these people didn't take her seriously, while others were jealous of her and didn't want to talk to her. She found the palace servants in the Hehuan Palace extremely inconvenient to use.

After taking a sip of tea, Liu Wenxin's brows furrowed, and she threw the teacup to the ground, instantly spreading a dark patch across the scarlet carpet.

"You lowly servant, what kind of tea is this?!"

Tan'er hurriedly knelt on the ground, letting Liu Wenxin scold her.

Perhaps because she had been suppressing her emotions for too long, when she discovered the joy of such a straightforward outburst, she could no longer control her temper. Whenever she was unhappy, she couldn't help but vent her frustrations on the palace servants.

Seeing the look of surprise and fear on Tan'er's face, she felt much more at ease.

Just two days later, Madam Shen sent a message, saying that she would go to the palace to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager, and then also to pay her respects to Consort Shu.

Liu Wenxin was annoyed. She didn't want to see anyone from the Shen family. How come Old Madam Shen was still alive and even had the strength to enter the palace? What was her mother doing?

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