It took Xu Silin a moment to come to his senses.
It's soft, which means his feeling last time wasn't wrong...
Suddenly, he remembered the bamboo slips Qingchen had buried on the Double Ninth Festival, which bore the inscription "Be a good official." Was she disguised as a man because she wanted to become an official?
Thinking of this, Xu Silin cupped his younger sister's face and instructed her, "Zhen'er, I have something to tell you, and you must listen carefully. That Lord Shen just now was your brother, not your sister, because women are not allowed to hold official positions, but look at her, she was wearing official robes. Usually, only men like Father and Brother can wear official robes; women like Mother are not allowed to wear them. You are still young and made a mistake. You must not tell anyone about this today, or people will laugh at you, and your brother will be unhappy. If your brother is unhappy, he will not give you candy or play with you anymore. Do you understand?"
The little girl blinked, nodded, and her round little face jiggled a couple of times. "Brother, Zhen'er understands. Zhen'er won't tell anyone. Brother, please don't stop giving me candy, and please don't stop playing with me."
He smiled slightly, patted her head and said, "Zhen'er is such a good girl. Come here, let your brother peel some candy for you."
He peeled the candy and put it in the little girl's mouth. The little girl was very satisfied and gave her brother a sweet smile.
After settling his younger sister in, Xu Silin went out.
For some reason, after hearing his sister's words, he suddenly felt much more relaxed and better.
These past few days, after realizing his feelings for Qingchen, the question of whether she was male or female has been troubling him. Although his feelings transcend gender, the issues of continuing the family line and gossip still exist. He loves her and doesn't intend to abandon her because of her gender, so he's thought a lot about it, but still hasn't figured out the best way to resolve these problems.
Now, his sister's words "soft" suddenly enlightened him, and all the problems that had been troubling him vanished in an instant.
As for her dream of becoming an official, that's not a problem. If she wants to, then let her continue to do it well. She is, after all, a woman, and will get married sooner or later. And he can let her withdraw unscathed from the court, or rather, since the Ming Dynasty is in his father's hands, no one dares to question Xu Silin's woman.
So what if she disguised herself as a man? So what if she deceived the emperor? This issue, which would cost others their lives, was utterly insignificant in front of her father.
Once he marries her, he will make her his principal wife. She will be the undisputed matriarch of the Xu family, showered with love and living the best life. She will have a harmonious family, lovely children with him, and enjoy wealth and luxury for the rest of her life.
As long as she agrees to marry him.
They'd been through so much together, and they'd developed a tacit understanding; he could sense it. Now, with this little secret added to the mix, it would surely bring them closer.
As he was thinking this, Xu Silin happened to pass by a pine tree. Seeing the snow hanging on the branches, he couldn't help but jump up and pat it. The snow was shaken and scattered, the fine snowflakes shimmering with iridescent light in the sunlight.
Upon landing, he suddenly felt an immense sense of ease and joy, as if he had returned to his former carefree, unrestrained, and reckless self.
There were no other obstacles; all he needed to do now was make her fall in love with him.
Before today, he wasn't sure of her gender, and he acted on instinct in many ways. Although his heart was sincere, he always seemed disorganized and clumsy. Now that he knew she was a woman, he could think of ways to please her in advance.
As Xu Silin passed by the pond, he looked down at his reflection. The person in the pond was tall and handsome, so radiant and spirited.
...
Qingchen waited in the same spot for a while before seeing Xu Silin return.
She watched him walk towards her, and sensed that his expression was somewhat different from before, as if... something good had suddenly happened. His gaze was also different; there was a certain gleam in his excitement, giving her an indescribable feeling.
"Come on, let's have a meal." He walked over, took her wrist, and the movement was simple, efficient, and incredibly natural.
Qingchen was stunned for a moment.
She could understand that the pull he gave her in the room earlier was because he didn't want to hear her refuse, but also didn't want to disturb her second uncle. But now he's pulling her hand again…
“I can walk by myself,” she said after a slight struggle.
He turned his head to the side and said, "I didn't say you couldn't walk. I didn't hold your foot."
"...Then let me go."
"I won't let you go. The mansion is too big; I'm afraid you'll get lost."
Qingchen slightly parted his lips and said, "Then I'll just go with you. There's no need for this. We're both officials of the Ming Dynasty. Isn't this...?"
Xu Silin abruptly released her hand, then leaned close to her ear and whispered, "I understand, Lord Shen. Why do you have so much to say?" With that, he turned and left.
The figure was tall and sturdy, with a straight spine, and the hem of his dark green robe fluttered in the wind.
His sudden closeness and then his sudden distance caused her cheeks to flush hot and then cool abruptly.
Qingchen was momentarily stunned. As she pondered this, he turned towards the corridor behind the house, and she quickened her pace to catch up.
Upon arriving at the dining hall, the two sat down facing each other. Xu Silin glanced at the dishes on the table and then went out again.
After a while, the kitchen brought out some new dishes: honey pear, white fungus, and bird's nest soup; red date, longan, and glutinous rice porridge; snow lotus and water chestnut cake… Each dish was exquisitely made, and the bowls and plates were decorated with different flower petals. The vibrant colors were dazzling and eye-catching in the cold winter, and just looking at them made one feel refreshed.
Most importantly, each one is extremely nutritious.
He placed all the dishes in front of her and served them into small bowls for her, saying, "Eat up."
Qingchen looked at the food, then at him, "Did you ask the kitchen to add these?"
"Hmm." He nodded as he ate.
"Why?"
He put down his spoon and looked at her. "Would you believe me if I said it was all made especially for you?"
Before she could answer, he continued, "Lord Shen, let's eat. Why ask such strange questions? The reason you had the cook prepare it is because it's delicious, and I want to eat it."
Qingchen blinked, then lowered her head somewhat awkwardly. "...Oh."
"Hey, why don't you stay at my place tonight?" he suddenly said after taking a couple of bites of food.
Meanwhile, Zhao Qiran finally met Song Yue outside the cabinet.
"You're finally out," Zhao Qiran said anxiously and guiltily. "Shen Qian went to jail yesterday and was tortured all night. You knew that, right?"
Song Yue nodded. "Let's talk as we walk."
The setting sun cast long shadows on the gray stone pavement, making the two figures appear very long.
Zhao Qiran sighed, "He did it for me and Lan Tan. I was still hoping that Xu's faction wouldn't find out that he was the one who leaked the information, but I didn't expect that Xu's faction was more cunning than we thought. I heard from people from Dali Temple that he was seriously injured and is currently lying in Xu's residence, and we don't know what damage he has done to his body."
“Speaking of this, I’m a bit confused. This was clearly Xu Yan’s scheme to retaliate against him, so how did Xu Silin step in and rescue him? I don’t know what’s going on with this father and son… I don’t understand, and I don’t know what to do, which is why I came to you.” Zhao Qiran said, glancing at Song Yue, “Do you know the specifics of the situation?”
Song Yue shook his head. "I know about the same amount as you do. But I guess, given Xu Yan's style, he won't do anything he's not sure of. Xu Silin is still young and acts quite steadily. If Xu Yan has any plans, he probably wouldn't conspire with him. Xu Yan is cunning and calculating; this matter might not be as simple as revenge."
"It's not just revenge? Then what else is there?" Zhao Qiran asked疑惑地, "And what about Xu Silin? Why did he save Shen Qian?"
After a moment of silence, Song Yue said, "Win over Shen Qingchen."
Zhao Qiran's eyes widened. "You mean, Xu Yan wants Shen Qingchen to join the Xu faction?... Sigh, it's not surprising. After the horse race incident, your student has become even more sought-after, with a bright future ahead. He's only been promoted for less than a month, and he's probably going to be promoted again soon. It's understandable that the Xu faction wants to win him over. But after slapping him, they also gave him a treat. Shen Qian is a shrewd man. He just told your student the whole story, and Xu Yan's conspiracy was exposed, wasn't it?"
“He won’t tell,” Song Yue said slowly. “If the Xu faction treated you like this, would you tell Lan Tan?”
Zhao Qiran thought for a moment, then shook his head helplessly. "I can't say. Lan Tan is so impulsive. If he knows that Xu Dang plotted against me because of him, he'll definitely fight them to the death... It's just that I feel really bad about Shen Qian and your student. So, what do you think we should do about this?"
After a moment of silence, Song Yue said, "This matter involves Shuntian Prefecture and Dali Temple. Even if we find evidence to prove Shen Qian's innocence, the blame won't fall on Xu Yan. Naturally, someone will take the fall for him. These people who take the fall are just pawns he's using, and they might just be pitiful people who have been coerced."
“Over the years, there have been countless instances of framing, persecution, officials protecting each other, and covering up for each other. It’s not that we can’t see the darkness, but that there’s only one way to get the light out.”
Zhao Qiran continued, "Bring down Xu Yan."
Song Yue looked into the distance and nodded.
“Shen Qingchen is your student, so you must be even more anxious and upset than I am.”
Zhao Qiran is right.
He was naturally anxious, watching helplessly as Qingchen walked into Xu Yan's trap, but like Shen Qian, he couldn't say anything to her.
“Indeed, all those who have been close to Xu Yan over the years, go to the Censorate and bring out their files for me, I want to take another look…” As he spoke, he shook his head again, “all the officials who have had dealings with him.”
Xu Yan has been extremely cautious in his actions in recent years and hasn't made any major mistakes. He's getting impatient waiting for Xu Yan to make a mistake before dealing with him.
Zhao Qiran nodded, "You've already seen the ones you're close to several times. But there are just too many officials you've interacted with... You have so many official duties to attend to every day..."
"I'm fine, go get it for me."
The Northern Garrison Command Office.
Deputy Commander Huang Yu received a report of a crime.
Someone poured several buckets of sheep's blood at the gate of a fourth-rank official at night, and even drew a pattern on the ground outside the gate with sheep's blood.
When Lu Shenyun returned to the Zhenfu Division, Huang Yu was carefully examining the paper with the drawing on it.
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