Chapter 13: Learn to be alone
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When Shen Anan returned home, she happened to meet Shen Wen coming back from outside. She stepped forward and knelt down to pay her respects, "Father."
"Yeah." Shen Wen looked at her and said, "I heard from your mother that you have been in charge of distributing porridge recently and even helped out in person."
"I have nothing to do, so I just try to do my best."
A smile appeared on Shen Wen's upright face. "It's good that you have this intention. This is what a son of my Shen family should do."
"That's what my father said." Shen Anan smiled.
My father served in two dynasties, and what enabled him to hold the position of Grand Marshal was not his support for his stance, but his intelligence and loyalty. Otherwise, he would not have resigned out of shame in his previous life.
Shen Wen looked at his daughter and was very satisfied.
"Did father just come back from the palace?" Shen Anan asked, glancing at his official uniform which he had not yet changed out of.
"Well, there are some things to discuss in the court." The father and daughter walked forward together along the Nine-Turn Corridor.
"Is it because of the flood in the south?" Shen Anan suddenly asked.
Shen Wen paused, tilted his head and looked at his daughter, his eyes full of surprise, "How did you know?"
Shen Anan also stood still and said softly, "A group of refugees poured into Nanhua Street the day before yesterday. Some of them were disabled, some were old, some were weak, and some were women and children. Later, a group of soldiers came and drove them away. The housekeeper said that it was a tacit understanding among the officials in the capital. My daughter guessed..."
Before he could finish his words, Shen Wen suddenly interrupted him and said, "Let's go to the study and talk about it."
Shen Anan pursed her lips and followed Shen Wen, who looked solemn, to the study in the front yard.
The servants brought tea, and Shen Wen sent everyone out. He sat behind his desk, carefully looking at his daughter, whom he had been separated from for several years.
"An An, there are some things that you should keep to yourself even if you understand them. When you are powerless to change the situation, you should learn to take care of yourself."
Shen Anan was stunned. Her father's words and her eldest brother's instructions were surprisingly consistent.
But she was a little surprised to hear such words coming from her upright father.
Shen Wen lowered his head as if in shame. "Dad is not teaching you to be cold-blooded and heartless, but when you are powerless, you must first know how to protect yourself and do what you can."
Shen Anan looked at him for a long time before asking softly, "Is the person behind this very powerful, so powerful that even my father is afraid of him?"
Her father was not the kind of person who would watch such a terrible thing happen before his eyes and remain indifferent.
Unless the person behind him is extremely powerful, he can only avoid his edge.
Shen Wen was silent for a while, then exhaled a breath of turbid air, "You and your son are still in the mansion, Dad has to consider the overall situation."
He rested his arms on the chair, head slightly lowered, looking extremely helpless and distressed.
Shen Anan immediately understood that the man was most likely a member of the royal family. Even his father, as the Grand Marshal, could do nothing about it, so he definitely could not be from an ordinary family.
My father is upright, but he has been honed to be smooth after years of experience in the officialdom. He knows that while he has to stand up for the injustice, he also has to consider the safety of his family.
"Even... the prince can't do anything?" Shen Anan said in a deep voice, "Although the fourth prince is cold-hearted, he is still kind to the people. Can even he sit back and do nothing?"
Although he was reluctant to admit it, Xiao Yuan was indeed a very good prince. Born into an imperial family, he enjoyed the luxury of fine clothes and delicious food. At least he fulfilled his responsibilities.
Shen Wen opened his mouth and finally sighed softly, "An An, the royal family is complicated, not as simple as you think. Although the emperor loves the fourth prince, he is still a man of flesh and blood. He values the country of Daliang more."
"There is no king who is not suspicious. What the emperor hates most is brothers fighting against each other. The fourth prince cannot intervene and provoke this dispute."
So, the person behind the scenes was actually the prince.
Shen Anan's palms were soaked with cold sweat. No wonder those officials were so unscrupulous and arrogant, not taking officials seriously. There was actually a prince backing them up.
The emperor hates brothers fighting each other, so if Xiao Yuan intervenes, it will definitely arouse the emperor's suspicion and dissatisfaction.
Why, the more powerful one is, the more he likes to watch drama, Shen Anan sneered, "Even the common people know that the royal family is fiercely competitive. Does the emperor think that if he doesn't show it in front of him, his princes will be able to be friendly and respectful to each other."
Shen Wen frowned and glanced at his daughter, "You are so disrespectful. Once you leave the study, you are not allowed to say a word about this again. Do you remember?"
"Yes." Shen Anan bowed perfunctorily.
"As a girl, you should just be happy and carefree, and don't worry about these political affairs."
Shen Anan nodded, and was very well-behaved at this moment.
"By the way, your aunt mentioned your marriage again today. I need to know what you really think so that I can make the decision for you."
"I don't want to." Shen Anan said directly.
Shen Wen was stunned, even a little bit incredulous, "The Fourth Prince is a man of talent, both civil and military, and he may become even richer in the future. He is the husband that all the ladies in the capital are vying to marry. Are you sure you don't want to marry him?"
This is the first time I heard that a noble lady was unwilling to marry Xiao Yuan.
"Didn't father just say that the royal family is complicated? Do you want me to marry into the royal family and compete with a bunch of other women?"
"Of course not." Shen Wen said.
Except for those ministers who wanted to curry favor with the royal family, which other family who loved their daughters would be willing to let them marry into a wolf's den and suffer? He was just a little surprised that his daughter would refuse the Fourth Prince's marriage.
"Father knows. As long as you don't want to, no one can force you. I will talk to your aunt."
"Thank you, father." Shen Anan smiled.
Thinking back to my confusion in my previous life, I once again wondered how I could have been so stupid.
Shen Wen saw that she was smiling, but his expression gradually became strange.
This girl, could it be that she has a lover after living in Jiangnan for several years? I wanted to ask her, but I swallowed the words back when they reached my lips.
Forget it. My daughter is grown up now. It’s not appropriate for him to ask. I should go back and tell my wife to ask.
"If you have nothing else, go back to the yard and rest."
"My daughter is gone." Shen Anan bowed, turned and left, closing the door lightly.
Walking in the courtyard, she looked up at the blue sky and exhaled deeply.
Her father was right. When one is powerless, one can only take care of oneself. Even the Grand Marshal is helpless. As a woman in the harem, all she can worry about is the fate of the rest of her life.
"Miss, you're back?" Mo Ran was packing his things and turned around to see Shen Anan, and was very surprised.
"Madam has just sent over several sets of dresses and jewelry for tomorrow's banquet. The girl is back now, so she can pick some."
Shen Anan's eyes swept over the dazzling array of jewelry and dresses, her expression calm, "You can choose whatever you like, as long as it's something decent."
Mo Ran was stunned and lowered his eyes to look at the brocade box.
Aren't girls supposed to like clothes and jewelry very much? Why does my girl look so uninterested?
"I'm a little tired and want to take a nap first. You all can leave now."
"Yes." Mo Ran sorted the things, put them away and walked out.
Shen Anan lay on the couch, not sleeping, but trying to recall what happened at the chrysanthemum viewing banquet in the previous life.
She really couldn't bear to argue with those ladies anymore and thought about how to avoid it as much as possible tomorrow.
After a while, her eyelids began to twitch and she fell asleep uncontrollably.
The next morning, Madam Shen sent someone around to help, "Madam said that this was the first time the young lady attended a banquet, and she was afraid that Mo Xiang and Mo Ran might be negligent in some places and lose their manners outside, so she specially asked the old servant to help."
"Um."
With Mrs. Shen as her dowry, Shen Anan no longer had to worry about anything and could just let them do whatever they wanted. She didn't have any requirements for their dressing up anyway, as long as they were decent.
Nanny Zhang, however, wished she could dress her up like a fairy from heaven and wear the most expensive head ornament to highlight her status.
Shen Anan twisted her neck uncomfortably, "Madam Zhang, it's just a banquet, no need to be so exaggerated, just be casual."
"Young lady, you don't understand." Aunt Zhang said with a smile, "Young lady, you just came back from Jiangnan. You can't guarantee that those girls who are too picky won't find fault with you. This headdress was given to you by the late queen. It represents nobility and honor. So they will think twice before speaking."
Shen Anan looked through the bronze mirror at the set of gilded peony headgear on her head. It was luxurious, noble, very dazzling and beautiful. The only bad thing was that it was a bit heavy.
In her previous life, her mother did not agree to her attending the banquet, so she had never seen this set of headgear.
Nanny Zhang took out a box of rouge from the box, lightly touched a little vermilion with her fingertips, and applied it on Shen Anan's lips.
The already gorgeous face in the scene suddenly became more eye-catching.
"It's beautiful. The girl is in her prime, so it should be like this."
Aunt Zhang couldn't help but sigh that a girl with such beauty was fortunate to be born in a powerful family. If she were from an ordinary family, she would probably be the source of disaster.
Shen Anan stood up and looked in the mirror, and Zhu Dan's red lips curled up slightly.
Aunt Zhang has great skills in matching clothes. She pairs the flamboyant and luxurious hair accessories with the slightly plain peach-colored long skirt, which exudes nobility in her gentleness and generosity, without any vulgarity of piling up gold and jade.
Shen Anan was a little dazed for a moment, forgetting how long it had been since she had been so bright and flamboyant.
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