Jiang Wang's face immediately darkened. He looked at Shen Mingzhuang on the bed and reached out to touch the side of his face that she had hit.

The pain on his face was nothing compared to the pain in his heart. He squatted down, for the first time adopting the posture of an emperor before a woman.

In a daze, Shen Mingzhuang felt her hands being gently massaged in someone's palms, but she couldn't hear the chaotic noise around her.

"Don't do it yourself next time. If you don't like someone, I'll have my assassins take care of them for you."

As Jiang Wang spoke, a smile played on his lips, and the doting affection in his eyes was impossible to hide.

*

After catching up with her mother, Shen Pinzhen greeted all her sisters-in-law and then called her two children, who had come to the capital with her, to come forward and pay their respects to the old lady and her aunts, cousins, and other relatives.

At fifteen, a boy should tie his hair up. Hu Boyan has just reached the age of tying his hair up. He has sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes, and his demeanor is upright and honest. His temperament is no less than that of a well-read scion of a famous family in the capital.

Hu Xianglian is seventeen years old this year, only one month younger than Shen Mingshu. She had visited before when she went back to Beijing with her mother to visit her relatives, and she knew all the sisters.

The Hu family had many sisters, and Hu Xianglian was cheerful. Among the Shen family's cousins, her favorite was Shen Mingrong, the daughter of her second aunt.

Shen Mingrong was frail and quiet from childhood, and rarely argued with others, unlike Shen Mingshu, who was flamboyant and always spoke of how the Shen family was better than the Hu family.

One was her maternal family, and the other was the family she grew up in; both were very important to her, so she disliked Shen Mingshu's words.

After greeting Shen Mingshu, she started talking to Shen Mingrong. Suddenly, she realized that someone seemed to be missing. Without thinking much about it, she asked, "Where is my cousin Mingxi?"

Shen Pinzhen knew that Shen Mingxi had gone to the palace. Upon hearing this, she looked at her mother. Seeing this, the old lady explained, "Your seventh cousin went to the palace to accompany Princess Jiayuan to serve the Empress Dowager. She usually stays in the palace."

Then he smiled and said, "Your ninth cousin, who came back from Jiangzhou, isn't feeling well and isn't here either. You'll see her later."

Hu Xianglian frowned as she listened. Her ninth cousin who had returned from Jiangzhou? She had no recollection of her at all.

But then I thought about it again, and since this cousin had been in Jiangzhou since she was a child, it was normal that I had never met her before, so I felt relieved.

However, Shen Pinzhen had doubts in her heart. Her mother had always been a person who seemed kind and gentle, but in fact, she was very particular about rules. Since all the young ladies of the Shen family were in Meishou Hall at the moment, how could this Ninth Miss not have to come because she was not feeling well? This was contrary to the way her mother behaved in her memory.

"When you came back this time, your three sisters-in-law started decorating the courtyard where you used to live half a month in advance. As for me, your mother, I didn't have to do much!"

The old lady chuckled and teased, her gaze lingering on Lin's face for a moment longer.

Zhao smiled without saying a word, while Gu waved her hand and said a few modest words. If it were in the past, she would definitely have said a few good words for Lin, but now there was no need for that!

Shen Mingzhuang didn't know how long he had rested in the warm pavilion of Meishou Hall. He only knew that when he woke up, there was no more noise or commotion outside.

The sound of a broom scraping the ground came from the courtyard, and the laughter of young maids playing around in the corner could be heard, but it quickly quieted down, with only the sound of sweeping still echoing in the courtyard.

A somewhat unfamiliar voice came from outside: "Mother, Ninth Miss is still only born out of wedlock. You don't need to treat her so intimately, do you?"

Very few people get to sleep in the mother's warm chamber. Even Shen Mingrong, as the old lady's own granddaughter, has never received such special treatment. It is evident that the old lady really cares about Shen Mingzhuang.

"There are some things you don't understand, so there's no need to ask. I have my own reasons for doing this."

Then he asked, "Now that you're back, you should also make a trip to the Rongguo Duke's Mansion. Although your maternal grandparents are no longer here, your maternal uncles are still alive, and you shouldn't neglect the proper etiquette."

As the footsteps faded into the distance, Shen Mingzhuang finally let out a long sigh of relief.

The fourth aunt of the Shen family, Shen Pinzhen, married into the Hu family of Weizhou. Her husband was the second son in the family. He was originally the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review in the capital. Later, he returned home to observe the mourning period. After the three-year mourning period, he was assigned to a post outside the capital and moved the whole family to Mingsheng Lake, where they stayed for three years.

Everyone has selfish motives. Although Shen Pinzhen is the great-aunt of the Shen family, once a daughter is married, she is like water spilled from a cup. No matter how close she is to her maternal family, once she is married, she will be single-mindedly scheming for her husband's family.

Although Shen Pinzhen's return to the capital was to visit her family, her more important purpose was to find a good marriage for her seventeen-year-old daughter, Xianglian, who was still unmarried.

Therefore, when the old lady asked how long her daughter would stay in Kyoto, Shen Pinzhen took her mother's hand and said, "This time, my daughter can stay at home for a few more days. My son-in-law wants to ask my mother to help find a good match for Xianglian. If there are any good families, it would be better for her to stay in Kyoto than outside."

The old lady had lived a long life, and although she was getting on in years, she was still very sharp-minded! When she saw her daughter bringing her granddaughter back this time, she guessed what her daughter was up to.

But marriage is not so easy to arrange. If it weren't for wanting to find a good match, my daughter wouldn't have brought her granddaughter all the way back. This is not a good matter!

"As you saw today, your third sister-in-law's daughter, Ming Shu, is of marriageable age. Because of Lin's background, no respectable family in the capital is willing to arrange a marriage with her. I've pretended not to know about it these days, but if I were to arrange a marriage for Xiang Lian, I'm afraid the first person I would offend would be your third sister-in-law."

Hearing this, Shen Pinzhen also looked troubled. She knew her mother was in a difficult position, but she was unwilling to delay her daughter like this.

Caught in a dilemma, the room fell silent.

She took a sip of tea and noticed Granny Tian peeking into the room several times from the doorway. Her heart stirred slightly, and as soon as her daughter left, she quickly called Granny Tian in.

Granny Tian glanced around again, making sure no one was eavesdropping, before whispering to the old lady, "Someone went to the warm pavilion just now. This old servant saw a man in a black brocade robe with an extraordinary air lingering there for a long time. Since you were talking to the young lady here, I didn't come to disturb you."

Upon hearing this, the old lady's expression changed drastically. The only person who could freely come and go without disturbing others, and who was involved with Shen Mingzhuang, was probably none other than that person.

Thinking that such things could happen again and again, and worried that Granny Tian might not know her place and spread the word if she encountered this once, she spoke in a deep voice and gave a few instructions.

Seeing the horrified look on Granny Tian's face, the old lady sighed, leaned on her cane, and went into the inner room. Whether this matter was a blessing or a curse for the Shen family, she herself couldn't say.

Jiang Wang felt a burning heat within him, an uncontrollable restlessness surging towards a certain area. Damn it, it was only one meeting. And he couldn't control himself like this. If he were to spend every day with her in the future, he was afraid he would make her suffer.