Because they had to wait for the "alignment of five planets" in half a month, Shen Youying and Xue Shen stayed at Chuyun Temple during this period and did not go out again.
During this period, she exchanged letters with Chen Yaoniang twice. Once, Xue Shen asked Chen Yaoniang to help polish and compile the story after he revised and blurred the information about what happened back then. The other time, Chen Yaoniang wrote to him after divorcing Yao Feng, saying that she was preparing to go to the capital.
Although Qingyan Town is not far from the capital, Chen Yaoniang is a woman traveling alone with her seriously ill father, so Shen Youying sent a guard to help her get to the capital to settle down.
When the guards returned to report after settling Chen Yaoniang in, Wang Deshun, who had come with the guards to deliver the good news, also returned with them.
Shen Youying was surprised to receive good news so quickly, and her worries were relieved: "Father went to war before the New Year, so it's been almost two months."
The winter was freezing cold, and the army's long march was very time-consuming. In addition, the transmission of information on the battlefield was difficult, so Shen Youying thought that she would not receive the battle report until February.
Xue Shen said, "Father-in-law, your skills are still sharp. At this rate, we may soon be able to defeat the Northern Rong and return to the capital in triumph."
If we're talking about which general in the court could pacify the Northern Rong, if we count them on our fingers, there's only one: Shen Mingjiang.
Before Shen Xiuyi got into trouble, he could perhaps be considered a Shen Xiuyi.
Shen Youying smiled and said, "I just hope the war goes smoothly." She touched her lower abdomen and said, "That way, Father can also see his grandson in time."
Xue Shen gently stroked her head: "There are still eight or nine months left. As long as the war goes smoothly, we will definitely be able to catch up."
Shen Youying nodded, yawned slightly, and Xue Shen coaxed her to take a nap. After she fell asleep, he gave Wang Deshun a look and led his men to the study.
"What happened?"
If it weren't for important business, Wang Deshun would have been stationed at the Prince of Qin's residence and wouldn't have needed to come in person to report the victory.
Wang Deshun bowed and said, "The day before yesterday, the Crown Prince came to the manor. He didn't say why, but just stood in the pavilion where he often drank with the Prince for a long time before leaving without saying a word. I was suspicious, so I asked my spies about His Highness's recent movements. I learned that the people the Crown Prince sent to Jiangnan the day before yesterday had returned. Just then, Madam Yu's letter arrived. In the letter, she said that the Crown Prince's people found her and asked some strange questions that had nothing to do with the death of Prince Chen. She thought about it and felt that something was wrong, so after the spies left, she sent a letter."
After the death of Prince Chen, Emperor Cheng'an, wanting to avenge his son, ordered the Crown Prince to thoroughly investigate the murderer and bring him to justice.
But the Crown Prince was far more perceptive than the Emperor. Everyone else overlooked Shen Muyu, who had been taken away with Prince Chen. After Prince Chen's death, they naturally assumed that Shen Muyu must also be dead. Only the Crown Prince specifically sent people to search for Shen Muyu's whereabouts.
Xue Shen did not deliberately conceal Shen Muyu's whereabouts. The Crown Prince's men followed the trail to Jiangnan and, unsurprisingly, discovered Shen Muyu, who had changed her name and identity.
Xue Shen had anticipated this. After a moment of silence, he asked, "What is the situation in the capital recently?"
Wang Deshun said, "His Majesty's condition has improved a lot and he is able to attend court. But he is not as good as before. Apart from showing up at court, most of the government affairs are handled by the Crown Prince. The officials in the court have seen that His Majesty intends to delegate power to the Crown Prince and have begun to side with the Crown Prince. The only problem is that the Crown Princess died early, and the Crown Prince's harem is empty without any children. A few days ago, the Empress took the initiative to suggest that she should choose another Crown Princess for the Crown Prince, but the Crown Prince refused because he was in mourning for his wife."
Upon hearing this, Xue Shen paused for a long while before saying, "In the end, I can't avoid this game with him."
Wang Deshun guessed that he was probably not in a good mood at the moment, so he could only ask more carefully, "What about the Crown Prince...?"
"There's no need to do anything more," Xue Shen said. "He should have already guessed it. Let's remain unchanged and see what happens next."
Wang Deshun responded with an "Eh," and seeing that he had no further instructions, he took his leave.
After leaving the study, Xue Shen returned to his room. Shen Youying was still napping and hadn't woken up. Xue Shen didn't disturb her. He dismissed the servants, took a book, sat down by the couch, and quietly began to read.
He didn't know when it started, but as long as Shen Youying was by his side, no matter how many disappointments he had, he could regain his peace.
Between reading sessions, Xue Shen gently stroked her long hair that fell beside the couch with his fingers. He twirled a strand of hair around his fingertip and stared at it for a long time before getting up to get scissors. He then gently cut off a small strand from the end of her hair, tied it with a red string, and placed it in the purse she wore close to her body.
*
Xue Shen had assumed that Xue Heng would not come looking for him.
The struggle for the throne was just like that; even the best of brothers would eventually turn against each other for the sake of interests. His parents only had him as their son, so there shouldn't have been such a conflict, but unfortunately, fate played a cruel trick on him, and he and Xue Heng were ultimately forced to stand on opposite sides.
He has his deep-seated hatred to avenge, and Xue Heng also has his own things to protect.
The two brothers grew up together, studying literature and martial arts, supporting each other. Now that they have gone their separate ways, they should tacitly abandon the past and no longer mention those bygone days that have faded into ashes.
Unexpectedly, Xue Heng came to Chuyun Temple.
On this day, Master Huodong finally confirmed that three days later would be the once-in-a-century phenomenon of "five planets aligning." On the same day, Xue Heng visited Chuyun Temple.
When Shen Youying heard the news, she was very surprised: "Why is Big Brother here?"
Xue Shen squeezed her hand, his face bearing his usual gentle smile, but a hint of heaviness lurked in his eyes: "Perhaps there are some things I need to tell you."
Shen Youying keenly noticed this. She grasped Xue Shen's hand in return, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "Then I'll have someone prepare some drinks for you."
Xue Shen nodded and went to the pavilion on the mountaintop to meet Xue Heng.
Xue Heng had already been led to the pavilion by the young Taoist boy. A moment later, he saw Xue Shen sitting in a wheelchair, being pushed over by a guard.
As the wheelchair reached the steps in front of the pavilion, two guards were about to lift it up when Xue Shen raised his hand to stop them and looked up to meet Xue Heng's gaze.
He nodded and called out "Big Brother" before standing up and walking steadily and calmly towards Xue Heng. He sat down opposite him, poured him a cup of wine, and asked as if it were a casual conversation, "Big Brother, what brings you here? Aren't you busy with court affairs?"
Xue Heng stared at him, his usually calm face now filled with surprise.
But soon he understood and calmly asked him, "When was your leg injury cured?"
Xue Shen said, "The Fire Cave Immortal has mastered immortal arts and refined pills for me. After taking them, I recovered."
This was obviously not the truth; both brothers knew perfectly well that it was just a perfunctory statement.
As Xue Heng thought of the news his subordinates brought back from Jiangnan, his heart grew heavier. He picked up his wine cup and drank it all in one gulp, then refilled it for himself and silently drank three more cups.
Xue Shen looked at him without saying much.
It wasn't until Xue Heng had drunk half a pot of wine by himself that he finally spoke in a hoarse voice, "We're brothers, does it have to be like this?"
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