Chapter 229
Shen Qingnian shook her head, somewhat helplessly: "If it weren't for Shen Zheng, I wouldn't have met His Majesty, and even if we had, there wouldn't have been any entanglement between us."
She came from a humble background, and before being favored by Shen Zheng, she knew nothing of the things a young lady of the house should know, let alone poetry and literature—that was absolutely impossible for her.
If she hadn't deliberately seduced him, the other party would never have noticed her...
She always felt that the person she was three years ago was fake, and that His Majesty had fallen in love with a fake version of her, while the real her would never be liked by him.
Having experienced the bandit incident, Song Xuan could guess Shen Qingnian's worries. He simply said, "The you of three years ago and the you of Jiangnan are both you."
Three years ago, she could make my heart flutter, and when I saw her kill the bandits in Jiangnan, I was amazed.
Song Xuan's blunt words ignited sparks in Shen Qingnian's heart. Though they were just scattered sparks, they were able to grow into a red flame, enough to engulf all darkness.
Her voice trembled slightly: "Me too."
During her time at the Shen residence, she was repressed and calculating. Her own wishes and feelings were never important. After going through many hardships to leave the capital, she was finally able to be herself again, but she buried her feelings even deeper.
She was afraid her family would worry, and she didn't want them to worry.
After getting the answer he had thought of, Song Xuan felt a surge of joy, and even his expression became somewhat jubilant. However, his mood soared again after thinking of Chen Zheng.
That Chen Zheng is truly a stumbling block.
He assured the woman before him, "Qing Nian, after dealing with the Shen family father and son, I will restore your status and reveal your true identity."
The Empress's position can only belong to Qing Nian!
Upon hearing this, Shen Qingnian smiled and said, "Right now, all I want is to bring Shen Zheng to justice. If he were around, Mother would always be worried. Even with Xiao Xi and Yan Qing around, I still can't rest easy."
Given Shen Zheng's viciousness, and now with Shen Zheng's assistance, she wouldn't be surprised by anything he did. As for the man's talk of restoring her status, she had never considered it, nor was it time for her to...
Song Xuan nodded, his expression unusually gentle: "That's what I think too."
At this moment, Xia Zi from the doorway walked in and carefully reported, "Your Majesty, Lord Liu from the previous dynasty is requesting an audience in the Imperial Study, saying he has important matters to discuss."
The precious warmth in the hall was interrupted. Song Xuan frowned, his gentle expression turning cold. His gaze towards Xia Zi was chillingly cold.
Xia Zi secretly groaned, burying his head even lower: "Your Majesty, Lord Liu seems very anxious, it seems to be about matters at the border..."
“Your Majesty, matters of state are of utmost importance,” Shen Qingnian reminded him.
Upon hearing this, Song Xuan averted his gaze and headed towards the imperial study.
Xiazi secretly breathed a sigh of relief and quickly followed.
He sighed inwardly, thinking that even after the Empress had been gone for three years, His Majesty still cared for her so much upon her return; their affection was truly profound.
After Song Xuan left, Xiao Ju led the palace servants to remove the food.
Xiaoju asked Shen Qingnian, "Miss, shall we burn incense?"
After the masters in the palace finished their meals, they would usually burn incense to dispel the smell of the food in the palace.
Shen Qingnian said calmly, "Just use jasmine fragrance as usual."
Jasmine is delicate and has a lingering fragrance. Putting aside the scheming three years ago, she actually quite likes it. Now that things are out in the open, she no longer hides her feelings.
After Xiaoju agreed, she went to the incense burner. Soon, a light and elegant fragrance filled the hall, refreshing and pleasant.
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