Chapter 92 The world is like paper
Human relationships are as thin as paper, worldly affairs are like new chess games, and emperors are suspicious. Who could have imagined that a family as powerful as the Shen family would lose power so easily and be in danger of losing their future at any moment?
"Come here, send the young lady back to her boudoir. Do not let her out again without my permission."
"Father," Lin Yurou could hardly believe it, "You are so upright and clear-minded, are you going to be like those officials who violate the law for the sake of profit? The Shen family has not fallen yet."
Lord Lin watched his daughter being led out of the study room, then he exhaled a breath and murmured softly, "If we wait until the Shen family collapses, it will be too late. Even a behemoth like the Shen family can't do anything. If my Lin family steps in, we won't even be qualified to sharpen knives."
Shen Anan tried her best to remain calm in front of Lin Yurou, but she was extremely anxious in her heart. No one knew what was happening better than her.
Even Lin Yurou heard about it, and who knows what chaos the palace was in.
"Miss, it's cold, you should put on a cloak." Mo Xiang put a coat on Shen Anan in front of the window, and was also worried.
"The master and the young master are both important officials in the court. Don't worry, they will be fine."
Shen Anan pursed her red lips. At this time, the sky was gradually getting dark. Three hours had passed since her father and elder brother entered the palace, and the servants who were sent out to inquire about the news had not returned yet.
At three quarters past midnight, without the illumination of the glass lamp, it was pitch dark in the courtyard. The pitch-black night was accompanied by a fierce cold wind, which made people feel nervous and breathless.
"Has the lady rested?"
"I just asked someone to go there and they said the Madam is still sitting in the main hall, waiting for the Master and Young Master to come back."
Shen Anan said nothing, raised her hand to close the window, turned around and walked out, and Mo Xiang immediately followed with a lamp.
The wind tonight is particularly biting, it hurts like a needle when it blows on your face, and it penetrates into the cracks between your bones.
Shen Anan gathered her cloak tightly around her, and by the time she reached Longxiang Pavilion, her hands and feet were so cold that she had lost all feeling.
"An'an, why are you here at this time?" Mrs. Shen forced herself to cheer up, pulled Shen An'an to sit beside her, and held her cold hand to warm her.
"I'm the only one waiting for them, you don't have to worry."
Shen Anan looked at Madam Shen's red eyes from crying, and her heart ached.
It is hard to imagine how desperate and sad her mother must have felt sitting at home in her previous life when the Shen family was implicated by her.
"I can't sleep. I'll wait with mom."
Mrs. Shen's eyes turned red uncontrollably, she tried to suppress them and said, "Okay."
The maid added a few more stoves into the room to keep it away from the cold outside.
"I don't know if it's cold in the palace. I asked someone to prepare a heater and hand warmer for them in the carriage. The servants should be able to use them."
Shen Anan clenched Madam Shen's palm, "Don't worry, mother, father is the Grand Marshal, he can't be easily shaken."
The emperor would not act rashly if he was a little afraid of him as the Grand Marshal.
"You're right, you're right." Mrs. Shen repeated it several times, but tears suddenly fell.
"How can your aunt be so cruel? They are her brother and nephew. Your father has been lobbying for her all these years. What do you think she wants?"
Of course, the intention is to force the Shen family into the camp of the Fourth Prince. Now the Shen family is on the verge of collapse, and only by combining with the power of the Fourth Prince can they be feared by the Emperor and ensure temporary safety.
The eldest brother had already secretly nominated the fourth prince, and Shen Anan was worried that his father's stubborn temper would cause him to suffer.
If this is true, Xiao Yuan is the choice the Shen family has to make.
The sharp pain began to spread in her heart again, and Shen Anan's hands and feet, which had just warmed up, became cold again, as if she was in a world of ice and snow.
After all, the trajectory of fate cannot be avoided or changed.
Mrs. Shen leaned on Shen Anan's arms, trying to suppress her sobs.
Not necessarily. At least she protected the Shen family, and she was the only one who suffered the tragedy.
The mother and daughter waited in the hall until the daylight gradually brightened, watching the last trace of haze and darkness being completely swept away, but the person they had waited for all night still did not come back.
Unable to hold her heartstrings any longer, Madam Shen stood up and told the maid to dress and change, "An An, mother is going out for a while, be good, go back to the Begonia Garden to rest first, and when mother, your father, and eldest brother wake up, they will be back."
Shen Anan was spoken to by Mrs. Shen in a coaxing tone and expression, and the bitterness spread in her heart, "I'm not sleepy, I'll accompany my mother."
Madam Shen shook her head and refused, refusing to take her no matter what she said, "Be obedient and go back quickly."
"Mom, are you going to find someone with better connections to get information and plead for Dad and Big Brother?" Shen Anan pursed her cracked lips.
"Mom, I'm afraid those people won't see you at this critical moment."
"Yes, mother knows." Madam Shen's brows were tired, "But we have to give it a try, otherwise we will always feel uneasy."
"I'll accompany my mother." No matter what Mrs. Shen said, Shen Anan insisted on following, and Mrs. Shen had no choice but to take her with her.
When the mother and daughter left the Shen Mansion, it was not yet time for breakfast.
When they returned home, it was noon. Madam Shen was supported by Shen Anan and returned to Longxiang Pavilion. She asked the maid to serve tea and warm Madam Shen up.
Madam Shen held the teacup, her cold fingertips trembling slightly, her expression dazed, "In the past, I enjoyed the glory brought back by your father and your elder brother in the mansion. I knew that officials would violate the law and seek benefits, but I didn't know that human feelings could be so thin."
Shen An quietly stroked her back without saying a word, just silently accompanying her.
After a long while, he said softly, "Mom, our Shen family hasn't collapsed yet."
"Yes." Madam Shen let out a long sigh, "Our Shen family has not fallen yet. Those people are so shallow that we can't be friends with them in the future."
Shen Anan knew the result long ago and was not surprised at all. Flattering the powerful and trampling the weak, and changing one's stance according to the situation, are necessary skills for court officials. No family who got wind of this dared to let their mother and daughter enter the mansion.
"It's been almost a day, why is there still no news? I sent someone to deliver a letter to the imperial concubine, but there was no news. What on earth is she doing?"
Madam Shen was a little embarrassed, her eyes were red with anxiety.
"Don't worry, mother. No news is good news. It means that father and elder brother are safe. I'll have someone make some food. You can eat some so that you can continue to wait for them."
"Mother has no appetite." Madam Shen shook her head, and seeing her daughter's tiredness and red eyes, she said, "It's better to eat something. Let's all eat something. Don't wait until she comes back, or we will get sick."
Shen Anan gave Mo Xiang a look, and Mo Xiang went out immediately. Half an hour later, she led a few maids to set out a few appetizers and helped Madam Shen sit down.
Mrs. Shen didn't have much appetite, but she still accompanied Shen Anan and reluctantly ate a few bites.
The maid took away the leftovers, and the mother and daughter continued to wait. Perhaps because she was too tired, Mrs. Shen couldn't help closing her eyelids and leaned on Shen Anan.
"Mom must be exhausted, help her back to her room and get some sleep."
The old woman immediately came forward and helped Madam Shen to lie down in the inner room. Shen Anan made sure that everyone was asleep before leaving Longxiang Pavilion.
"Mo Xiang, ask Uncle Zhong to prepare the carriage."
"Where are you going, young lady?" Mo Xiang was shocked. She had seen the faces and attitudes of those officials today. Could it be that young lady still has someone to ask for help?
"Go to the Fourth Prince's Mansion." Shen Anan pursed her red lips tightly, her face pale but with a tenacious determination to give it her all.
Qingfeng had just returned from his mission when he encountered the carriage of the Shen Mansion. He waited for a while and saw the beautiful girl getting off it. He was in shock for a long time.
"Miss Shen...Miss Shen?"
"I'm looking for your master." Shen Anan said as he walked up the steps of the prince's mansion.
"Oh, okay, okay, okay, Miss Shen, please come this way." He stuttered for a long time, then immediately made a gesture of invitation and led the way.
"The master was in the study all night last night."
"Yeah." Shen Anan responded indifferently, not really listening to Qingfeng's words.
"Wait a moment, young lady. I will go and report to you."
Shen Anan stopped in the yard and nodded.
After Qingfeng left, she began to scan the yard. Many memories came flooding back to her. Her sharp, desperate roar and Xiao Yuan's indifferent and impatient voice intertwined in her ears.
Shen Anan's face began to turn pale inch by inch.
The study door suddenly opened, and a tall figure walked out, dressed in a dark suit, without losing any style. He stood in the corridor, staring at her quietly, with a complexity in his eyes that Shen Anan could not understand.
"Fourth Prince." Shen Anan saluted him properly for the first time.
The sunlight slanted between the two of them, shining on the corner of the yard, and the floating dust could be vaguely seen.
"Have you eaten? I'll ask someone to prepare some food." Xiao Yuan walked down the stairs and walked towards her.
Shen Anan lowered her eyes, staring at the pair of auspicious patterned boots as they walked in little by little, and finally stopped in front of her, their tall and majestic figure completely enveloping her.
Looking up, she smiled slightly, "Thank you very much, Fourth Prince."
Xiao Yuan pursed his lips slightly, "Qingfeng, go and tell the kitchen to make some Jiangnan dishes."
"No need, ordinary dishes are fine. Jiangnan dishes are only unique when made by local chefs. The capital can't make them taste that way, and it will take away their flavor."
"It's okay." Xiao Yuan looked at her eyes and said softly, "The cook in the mansion is from Jiangnan."
But Shen Anan clearly remembered that what he hated most was Jiangnan cuisine. In her previous life, it was extremely difficult to get him to eat with her once.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Yuan raised his hand, Shen Anan subconsciously took a step back, and Xiao Yuan slowly withdrew his hand.
"I'm not going to hit you."
"Yeah." She suppressed her extreme awkwardness and emotions and forced a very faint smile.
"Go in and wait. It's cold today."
She did not refuse and followed Xiao Yuan into the study.
It was still the same arrangement, the only difference was that the things she had broken in her previous life were still there, neatly placed in various places.
Shen Anan just glanced at it and then closed her eyes without looking around.
She knew that many important documents and palace secrets were hidden in Xiao Yuan's study.
He was a martial artist, and even in the cold winter, there was only a thin quilt on the couch, so there was no heater in the study, and even the window frames were half open. Shen Anan stood in the room with wind blowing in from all sides, and his hands and feet felt numb.
Xiao Yuan glanced at her head, which she wished she could hide in her cloak, and whispered, "If it's cold, go close the window."
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