The day after Mingxiang was humiliated, she came to Qingchen and said that she had made up her mind to go to the Xu residence.
She didn't say why, but tears streamed down her face as she spoke, her eyes already red and swollen from crying all night.
When Shen Qingchen heard these words, she felt as if she had been struck hard in the heart. She could tell that Ming Xiang didn't seem entirely willing; she was struggling internally, and this struggle ultimately succumbed to fate.
Later, on an auspicious day for marriage, a red sedan chair carried her into the Xu residence through a side gate.
Fortunately, Xu Silin treated her fairly well. He specially prepared an elegant courtyard for her and arranged for several obedient and considerate maids to serve her. He was taking a concubine, not marrying her; conventionally, once the sales contract for her was signed, she was his. But he wanted to treat her as he would a wife.
He ordered his men to decorate the mansion a little, to give it a festive feel, hoping to make her feel valued by the Xu family. This way, the servants wouldn't dare to slight this concubine of unknown origin with no background.
On the night of taking a concubine, Xu Silin went to Mingxiang's courtyard and dined with her.
Mingxiang's room was fully furnished, all of it newly acquired. Various precious vases and utensils gleamed with a soft sheen on the antique shelves, the bed curtains were a pale green, and a wisp of lily incense burned in a small incense burner.
The candlelight flickered and burned, casting the silhouettes of the two people on the window.
Mingxiang donned the most luxurious clothes she had ever worn in her life: a honey-colored, begonia-trimmed, narrow-sleeved blouse and a primrose-green, embroidered silk skirt, which her maids had skillfully styled. Under the lamplight, she appeared charming, gentle, and radiantly beautiful. Although, her eyes still lacked sparkle.
The two sat down at a round table. Xu Silin sat opposite her, wearing a dark blue silk robe. He was tall, handsome, and exceptionally dashing. With his extraordinary status and appearance, he was truly the ideal husband in the eyes of many women.
Tonight is the first time he has faced a woman who is his wife or concubine, yet she is a complete stranger to him.
"I didn't know what you liked to eat, so I asked the kitchen to make a little bit of everything. See if it suits your taste." As he spoke, he ladled a bowl of soup for her and placed it in front of her.
Mingxiang blinked slightly, but didn't say anything, looking somewhat nervous.
The table was laden with a dazzling array of dishes, more abundant than Mingxiang had ever seen before. Besides the meticulously prepared cold and hot dishes, even the desserts and tea cakes were exquisitely carved and decorated with gold leaf. Among them were seafood such as sea cucumber, shad, and shark tendons, as well as delicacies from the mountains like dragon whiskers, deer antlers, daylilies, and phoenix tail oranges—all ingredients so precious they could grace the imperial court, whose names Mingxiang couldn't even recall.
Under his gaze, she picked up her chopsticks and took the dish closest to her.
After she swallowed, Xu Silin asked, "Was it good?"
She looked at him and nodded. "Mm."
"That's good." A smile appeared on his lips, and he scooped a spoonful of steamed custard with sugar for her. "Tomorrow, I'll have someone invite two opera troupes to perform a few plays for you. My mother also likes watching operas, so you can watch them together. Do you like watching operas?"
Mingxiang came from an ordinary family and had only seen some street performances at the market, rarely watching plays. However, she knew that wealthy families often hired opera troupes to perform, and the actors wore bright and gorgeous costumes, performing very exciting and interesting stories. In the past, although she had longed for such performances, she dared not even dream of them.
Unexpectedly, fate played a cruel trick on her, and she was able to see these things as well.
"Thank you. I like it," she said softly.
Xu Silin continued, "My mother has a very good nature and will treat you well. She doesn't know... about the bad things you've done."
Upon hearing this, Mingxiang's heart suddenly skipped a beat.
An unforgettable ugly experience can never be covered up by beautiful scenery.
"Now that I've been promoted, I may not have as much time to visit you, but I'll try to come over often when I have time. If you need anything, just tell the servants."
He barely ate anything; the lavish feast seemed to have been prepared solely for her. They sat facing each other, talking like an ordinary couple, yet they weren't truly husband and wife.
"good."
"Oh, right, and here's some silver." With that, Xu Silin placed a bag of silver on the table. "This is for you. The mansion has everything you need, and the public funds will also give you money. This is something I'm giving you myself. I haven't married yet, so you're practically half the master of the house now, and the servants will all respect you."
Xu Silin explained and comforted Ming Xiang one by one, trying to make her feel comfortable in no way; this was all he could do.
Actually, there was something else he wanted to say: that one day he would marry Qingchen, and then the two sisters could be reunited. However, he was still some distance away from that goal, and after thinking about it, he ultimately didn't say it.
"Um."
"Well... I'll be going now. You just arrived today, so please get some rest after your meal."
Mingxiang looked up at him and nodded. He hadn't eaten a single thing from the table.
Before leaving, Xu Silin said again, "Tomorrow morning, I will take you to serve tea to Father and Mother... These formalities must be done, otherwise I am afraid the servants will have something to say about you."
Looking at the dazzling array of food that had barely been touched, she replied, "Okay."
Immediately, tears streamed down her face.
After the servants finished helping her with her washing and dressing, Mingxiang went to bed, and the maid lowered the curtains for her.
She lay on the bed and took out one of the few items she had brought into the Xu residence from her sleeve—a dagger.
After looking at it for a while, she put it under her pillow.
Accompanied by Lu Shenyun, Qingchen finally selected another house and set a date for the transaction.
Unexpectedly, on this morning, Qingchen arrived at the Imperial Household Department early, just as he was preparing for the Crown Prince's lecture at the Wenhua Hall later that evening, when Lu Shenyun arrived.
The night before, he secretly met with the person selling the house and paid for it without his knowledge.
He delivered the property deed early in the morning.
Qingchen was slightly surprised, "Why did you..."
"I was afraid there might still be danger, so I went ahead by myself yesterday. Here, take this."
"I don't want it." This isn't a piece of paper; it's fifty taels of silver, enough for an ordinary family to live on for two years.
He blinked and whispered, "I bought them all..."
"I don't have that much silver on me right now. Either you give it to me when I have some, or you can take it back."
Lu Shenyun frowned slightly.
Aside from obeying his parents' orders to give Xie Huiying a hairpin, he had never in his life ever proactively given a gift to a woman. This first time, he gave her a house, but she refused it, and he had absolutely no experience in dealing with that.
He was unwilling to accept either of the two choices Qingchen gave him. After thinking for a moment, he simply pressed the house deed onto her desk and left without saying a word.
He was already agile, and this series of movements was even more swift and decisive, with his cloak billowing behind him and making a rustling sound. Qingchen stared at his back for a long while, dumbfounded.
“Lu Shenyun…” she called to him from behind.
He didn't stop or turn around.
This reminded her of the last time he offered to cook for her, he also ignored her words and simply went about his own business.
Once outside, Lu Shenyun thought to himself that he was probably the only one who had delivered a gift so haphazardly. If Huang Yu knew, she would laugh at him for three years.
But he really had no choice; Qingchen was too stubborn.
How could he possibly want her money?
After Lu Shenyun left, Qingchen sat blankly in the office for a long time. Looking at the freshly stamped property deed, she suddenly thought of Xie Huiying's evaluation of him: an ice cube, a barbarian.
This person is really... It's not like they'll never see each other again.
She can give him the money again next time they meet!
Shaking his head, Qingchen continued to bury himself in his official duties.
At the same time, Zhao Qiran went to Song Yue's official residence to find him.
"Lan Tan replied, saying that you can rest assured and that Gu Shaoheng and the others are in his care. He will definitely take good care of them, and he will make sure they come back within three years."
Song Yue nodded and picked up his pen to write on the document drafted by the cabinet. The tea beside him had already gone cold.
"Are you fully recovered?" Zhao Qiran asked.
"alright."
"It seems like you've become less talkative and less smiling since you got sick."
Song Yue slowly raised her eyelids and looked at him. "Really?"
Zhao Qiran pursed his lips. "Yes."
Suddenly remembering something, he asked, "By the way, I haven't seen you with Qingchen lately. Is there some kind of rift between you two, master and disciple?"
"No," he replied casually.
“He’s a capable, intelligent, and courageous man, you know that better than I do. I’m telling you, you’re not a petty person either. If he has offended you in any way, please forgive him. For the sake of the bigger picture, you should try to win this student’s heart.”
As he spoke, Zhao Qiran slapped his forehead, "I almost forgot, I heard yesterday that Shen Qingchen almost got into trouble."
Song Yue asked calmly, "What is it?"
“Recently, a group of people has appeared in the city, specializing in luring people to make transactions under the pretense of selling houses, and then ambushing and robbing them of their money. Your student wanted to buy a house and almost got scammed by this group.”
Almost.
"How did you know?" Song Yue asked without stopping writing or looking up.
"It's all over the Imperial Guards. They say that group of people were quite ruthless, carrying clubs and knives. Luckily, he was rescued by the Imperial Guards, otherwise he probably would have been in grave danger." Zhao Qiran said, then suddenly remembered something and added, "I heard that the house she wants to buy is near your house. Haven't you heard?"
After a moment of silence, Song Yue said calmly, "No."
Do you know who saved her?
"who?"
"Lu Shenyun. Luckily, she ran into Lu Shenyun. I heard there were at least four people robbing the silver. It's fortunate that Lu Shenyun is so skilled. If it were anyone else, they probably wouldn't have been able to save her and would have gotten themselves killed."
Lu Shenyun.
Song Yue paused for a moment. He couldn't help but recall the scene from last winter when Lu Shenyun was drunk and passed out on the street. At that time, he only murmured two words: Qingchen.
“Even someone like Lu Shenyun was injured, with a long gash on his arm that bled a lot,” Zhao Qiran said, gesturing as he spoke. “But thankfully Qingchen is alright. Since you’re Qingchen’s teacher, you should thank him when you see him.”
"Moreover, Lu Shenyun has never colluded with Xu's faction. I think it's time to make a move and bring him to our side as well."
Song Yue didn't answer him, but only said, "Go ahead and get busy."
"...What's wrong? We were just having a good talk."
"I have other things to take care of. Go ahead. I'll call you if I need anything."
"Alright, alright." Zhao Qiran stood up, straightened his robes, and glanced at him, saying, "Anyway, I can't see through you. I always feel like you're hiding something, and you're a bit different from before."
At the same time, Mingxiang got up, and the maids quickly helped her with her washing and dressing.
After she finished washing up, they gave her a proper makeover and made her look beautiful.
After seeing that Xu Silin's parents had finished their preparations, she returned to her own bedside and, when the maids were not paying attention, took out the dagger from under her pillow and hid it in her sleeve.
This was her sole purpose in entering the Xu household—she wanted Xu Yan dead.
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