Shen Muyu lived in fear and trembling for several days in the Banana Garden.
After the Prince of Qin's men took Shen Youying away that day, they soon heard that the Prince of Chen was injured, and the mansion was in chaos, with no one paying attention to her.
After a few days of relative peace, she learned that Prince Chen had been imprisoned, and she knew that the truth had most likely come out.
In the past few days, Princess Chen and Zhou Zhenrong had both sent people to inquire about what exactly happened that day, but since even the imperial edict of punishment did not mention Prince Chen's crime, she insisted on not revealing a single detail.
But thinking of Chen Wang's methods, my heart was always on edge.
Now she understood Prince Chen's temperament very well. He had suffered so much at the hands of Prince Qin and Shen Youying, and was now confined to his residence with nowhere to go. If Prince Chen didn't remember her, all would be well; but if he did, she feared she would have no good days ahead.
She counted down the days with bated breath, and when she finally saw Prince Chen appear outside the Banana Garden, she felt a sense of relief, as if the guillotine that had been hanging over her head had finally fallen.
When Prince Chen entered, she didn't even go out to greet him.
He leaned back listlessly on the chaise longue, turning half his face to look at the doorway: "What brings Your Highness here?"
Prince Chen dismissed the servants, walked up to her, and looked her down at him. Seeing her listless expression, he sneered, lifted her chin, and said, "Your sister is smarter and luckier than you."
Shen Muyu tightened her grip, her eyes crinkling with laughter as she looked at her: "Yes, if I weren't so stupid, how could I have become the prince's concubine?"
She had lost a lot of weight, and the wide-sleeved shirt hung loosely on her, making her look frail and pitiful, but she also seemed to have more charm than before.
It's just that the words that come out of that mouth are unpleasant to hear.
Prince Chen narrowed his eyes and tightened his grip: "What, you went to great lengths to get into my bed, practically begging to become my concubine, and now you regret it?"
Shen Muyu pursed her lips and did not answer, but her expression was certain.
She regretted it; she had regretted it for a long time.
Chen Wang smiled, pinching her face and looking her up and down: "It's too late to regret it now."
Looking at her tearful face, he found it somewhat resembling Shen Youying. Since her external injuries had healed, he wanted to test how well she was recovering, so he roughly pushed her onto the bed and started to tear at her clothes.
Shen Muyu struggled weakly, but was slapped across the face.
Prince Chen pressed her face down onto the chaise longue, grabbed her neck from behind and laughed, "What, you've seen your sister gain the favor of the Prince of Qin and you've grown wings? Too bad, no matter how well your sister lives, you're still just a dog I keep in my backyard."
As he spoke, he roughly tore open Shen Muyu's belt.
Shen Muyu stiffened, buried her face in her arms, and frowned as she waited for the long, painful ordeal to end.
But after a long while, Chen Wang struggled behind him, yet the familiar pain never came.
Shen Muyu turned around and saw Chen Wang with bloodshot eyes, hurriedly pulling up his pants and striding out.
She breathed a sigh of relief, not bothering to tidy her disheveled clothes, and just lay on the chaise longue laughing. As she laughed, she recalled the soft, yielding touch when he rubbed against her... She was no longer an innocent girl, and naturally knew what that touch felt like.
—King Chen is dying.
With this guess in mind, she recalled the details more carefully... She remembered that it had been said before that the King of Qin's guards had injured the King of Chen.
No one knew the exact location or severity of his injury; all that was known was that he was confined to the courtyard for two or three days to recover before being summoned to the palace. During this time, Princess Chen, who went to visit him, along with her concubines, were kept outside.
Moreover, a group of servants in the front yard were recently dealt with.
The more Shen Muyu thought about it, the more convinced she was that her guess was correct: Chen Wang had injured his manhood and was beyond saving.
She couldn't help but laugh, but as she laughed, tears streamed down her face, and she sat on the chaise longue, her face ashen.
Chen Wang is finished, and so is her life.
*
Shen Youying eventually learned about Shen Muyu's situation from Xue Shen.
Perhaps because Shen Muyu was her elder sister, the secret letters from the spies monitoring the Chen Prince's mansion would always mention Shen Muyu in a few words. But even just a few words were shocking.
When she last visited Prince Chen's residence, she saw that Shen Muyu was so thin that her dress could barely be filled out. She thought it was just because she was being tormented by the Prince in the struggle for his favor. But now, after reading these secret letters, she realized what a beast Prince Chen was.
She sighed softly, recalling the day Shen Muyu chased after her, grabbed her arm, and gave her instructions; a strange tightness gripped her heart.
"I'm going to my parents' home today," she said to Xue Shen.
Xue Shen said, "I'll go back with you."
Shen Youying was a little confused, not understanding why he was following her back.
"We've been married for so long, it's time to meet your father-in-law." Xue Shen held her hand and played with it. "We can't wait until we have a child to meet your father-in-law."
Shen Youying forcefully pulled her hand back, blushing as she glared at him.
...
Xue Shen instructed Wang Deshun to prepare gifts, and then he and Shen Youying set off back to the Shen family.
News from the estate had not reached the capital. When Shen Youying returned, judging from Fang's expression, she was clearly unaware of the situation.
Shen Youying sighed, and after taking her seat, she slowly recounted the changes that had occurred at the Chen Prince's Mansion.
"How could Prince Chen be imprisoned when he was perfectly fine?" Madam Fang's mouth dropped open in disbelief. Then, thinking of her daughter, she grasped Shen Youying's hand with worry and said, "What about your sister? Prince Chen is imprisoned, what will become of her..."
Shen Youying lowered her eyes and remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.
Shen Mingjiang's gaze swept over his youngest daughter, then turned to Xue Shen sitting beside her, and he vaguely sensed that things were not so simple.
If it were simply a matter of King Chen being imprisoned, sending someone back with a message would have sufficed; there was no need to go to such lengths, even bringing the King of Qin along.
Moreover, Shen Mingjiang, having been a seasoned warrior, thinks more deeply. There has always been a rift between the Prince of Chen and the Prince of Qin. Could the Prince of Chen's current predicament be related to the Prince of Qin?
"What did Prince Chen do to be imprisoned?" Shen Mingjiang gazed thoughtfully at his youngest daughter.
Shen Youying looked up, pinched her handkerchief, but didn't know how to speak gently.
After all, no parent could tolerate their eldest daughter helping her husband set a trap to imprison and rape her younger sister.
Shen Youying hesitated for a long time but couldn't bring herself to speak. Xue Shen, on the other hand, saw this and said without hesitation, "Prince Chen had ulterior motives towards the Princess and intended to imprison her in Prince Chen's residence. I discovered his plot and reported it to the Emperor, and he was punished for it."
"How dare you, you brat!" Upon hearing this, Shen Mingjiang was so enraged that he couldn't help but slam his teacup heavily onto the table.
Fang also looked as if she had seen a ghost, muttering, "How could this be... how could this be..."
Xue Shen shook his head and continued, "The person who invited the Princess to the Chen Prince's residence was Shen Muyu."
Shen Mingjiang and Fang were both shocked.
Shen Mingjiang fell silent, his face ashen, while Madam Fang was even more flustered: "Is there some mistake? Yu'er wouldn't..."
Xue Shen, however, was not one to consider the feelings of others, and said frankly, "Since the Princess Consort was too embarrassed to say it, I spoke on her behalf. I came back this time to ask my father-in-law and mother-in-law what they thought and how they planned to deal with Shen Muyu."
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