Shen Ning was delirious from her illness, and there were many outsiders in the house, so Liu Ying and the others dared not relax their vigilance in the slightest.
Mo Lin personally stood guard outside, while several maids took turns keeping watch inside the house.
Liu Ying then called everyone in the courtyard to a stern address: "These are extraordinary times, and Miss is ill again. I hope you all remember clearly that the only mistress of this household is the eldest young lady. Only when the eldest young lady is well can you all have good days. These next few days, everyone must work hard, stay alert, and be wary of outsiders. Don't give any evil people an opportunity to take advantage of you. If we can get through this crisis safely, everyone's monthly salary will double. If anything goes wrong, don't blame me for being ruthless. Do you all understand?"
Everyone nodded repeatedly: "We understand."
Half of the servants in the Shen family had indentures, and the other half were long-term laborers with signed contracts. All of these contracts were held by the young lady.
Of course, the contract was one reason, but another reason was that the young lady was kind, fair in her reward and punishment, and generous with her pay. Compared to other demanding and complicated families, they were really lucky to be able to work for the Shen family.
The eldest young lady and the other branches of the Shen family are enemies. Now that the eldest young lady is ill, they are afraid that those people will harm her. It is only right that they protect her. Moreover, her monthly salary has been doubled. Who would turn down money?
Shen Xia and his wife lived in the second house, while Shen Sui and her two companions lived in the side room in the front yard of the main house, separated from Shen Ning's place by a small garden.
Seeing the patrolling people coming and going, all vigilant and on guard, Shen Sui was furious.
Is she trying to protect herself from thieves?
"It's just a cold, why are you so paranoid? We're all relatives, do you think I'm going to eat her?"
Gao Junyu frowned and pondered, "Her vigilance is indeed a bit excessive, but given that Zhao said those things without thinking, it's good that she's on guard."
Shen Sui mocked, "Zhao Shi? She wouldn't even dare to kill a chicken, so what would she dare to do to Shen Ning? She'd just be making a fuss by the coffin, trying to borrow some courage from the ghost."
Gao Junyu: "Stay away from her from now on."
Shen Sui: "I don't care to pay any attention to her."
After saying that, she sighed again: "Shen Ning has fallen ill, and it looks like she won't get better for a day or two. I'll have to take care of this family and keep it going."
Knowing his wife's character well, Gao Junyu quickly said, "You should ask Shen Ning first, and don't provoke her."
Shen Sui slammed her hand on the table in anger: "You think I'm afraid of her? I'm her aunt. She's sick and I wanted to help her. Am I wrong? If you ask me, someone needs to teach her a lesson. She's so domineering and intolerant. What man would dare to marry her?"
This is getting way off track.
Gao Junyu: "Alright, alright, we still have to go keep vigil later, so stop making noise."
-----
A dozen or so people were keeping watch over the mourning hall in the front yard. Although they were afraid, they could not resist the overwhelming sleepiness.
A black figure climbed over the side wall without alerting anyone.
Upon arriving at Qiutang Pavilion, he appeared and walked under the lamplight.
Mo Lin, who was holding a knife and guarding the door, suddenly opened his eyes and stood up after seeing who it was.
Qin Zhuo didn't look to the side and went straight in. Soon after, Liu Ying came out as well.
Mo Lin frowned: "Aren't you going to keep watch inside?"
Liu Ying: "Young Master Qin let me come out."
You come out just because someone tells you to? Who's your master anyway?
Mo Lin felt that it was inappropriate for Liu Ying to let Qin Zhuo in so casually, but that was the Empress's brother and the young lady's savior. Could he really just jump out and criticize him?
Qin Zhuo came to the bedside and, looking at Shen Ning's face, which was flushed red from the fever, couldn't help but pinch it.
Shen Ning lay there obediently, but her brows were furrowed in discomfort. When she felt someone touching her, she turned her head to try to avoid it. Her long, butterfly-like eyelashes trembled slightly, but she couldn't wake up no matter what she did.
"Even at a time like this, you can't be a little more obedient."
He took off his cloak, walked to the bedside, sat down, took out a medicine bottle from his pocket, opened it, and took out a pill the size of a peanut.
He pried open her mouth and put the medicine in, but as soon as he pulled his hand away, she frowned and spat out the pill.
Qin Zhuo reacted quickly and fed the medicine back to her. Seeing that she seemed to want to vomit, he suddenly lowered his head and kissed her, stopping her from doing so.
A bitter taste suddenly spread in his mouth, and he held her head tightly with both hands, deepening the kiss.
Shen Ning is sick, not dead.
Her head was spinning, but the unbearable bitterness and strange feeling forced her to open her eyes.
The first thing you see is a pair of closed eyes, and the slight trembling of the eyelashes betrays the unease in the owner's heart.
She didn't panic, but a beat later realized that this person was Qin Zhuo, and he was still kissing her!?
She's sick!! What a beast!
Shen Ning reached out to pat him, the force negligible, but it still caught his attention.
Finally, he slowly stopped moving, but did not leave. His hot breath mingled with hers, and his lips were still intimately pressed against hers.
As if afraid of frightening him, she opened her eyes after a short while. Even so, the lust in her eyes was so intense that it made one's heart pound.
Shen Ning was stunned and for a long time forgot to speak, but soon the bitter taste in her mouth brought her back to her senses.
She turned her head away from his kiss: "What did you give me to eat?"
Her voice was slightly hoarse, but perhaps because of the medication, her throat, which had been blocked, didn't feel so uncomfortable.
Qin Zhuo looked down at her, his gaze burning as if he wanted to devour her. Hearing her words, he placed a kiss on her ear: "Poison."
Shen Ning: ...Naive!
Although she didn't say it aloud, her eyes clearly showed it. Qin Zhuo laughed angrily and lowered his head to bite her ear.
"I came here out of kindness to deliver medicine, and you can't even give me a friendly face?"
Her ears hurt slightly, but this was quickly followed by a tingling, piercing itchiness. Shen Ning couldn't bear it any longer: "No, don't do this...it's so uncomfortable..."
It was incredibly painful, yet I couldn't escape it. My blood rushed to my head, and tears welled up in my eyes.
Little did she know that Qin Zhuo, that beast, didn't realize he had gone too far and only wanted to bully her even more.
With those sparkling eyes and rosy cheeks, she looked so easy to bully. Even her fierce glare seemed harmless, as if she had a hook that could steal his heart.
Seeing the look in his eyes, Shen Ning: "..."
"You...you...don't go too far!!"
"I'm still sick."
Is it really necessary to be so eager? She's not some kind of rare beauty, why are you acting like a dog seeing a bone and drooling over her?
Qin Zhuo showed her through his actions that it was useful.
However, he only pecked at her twice before letting go, and thoughtfully poured her a glass of warm water: "Don't choke."
"Cough cough cough!" He choked.
Qin Zhuo patted her back gently with a helpless expression, then pulled her into his arms.
Shen Ning struggled but couldn't break free, so she finally gave up. This man was too shameless and strong; she couldn't overpower him.
Besides, they've already kissed, so what's one more hug?
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