"Master is back!" Lian'er heard the noise and hurried to greet him.
Shen Yuanhao glanced silently at the person who came to greet him, then walked past her.
Lian'er froze, and the good complexion she had painstakingly cultivated instantly turned even paler.
"My lord, I have asked the kitchen to prepare some hot soup. It's cold and the dew is heavy outside. Please have a bowl to warm yourself up."
Lian'er had always used gentleness and care to win over men's hearts, and it always worked. But today, she was met with a cold shoulder.
"Pack your things and take the child to the inn to stay first!"
The hot soup crashed to the ground with a clatter, shattering into several pieces.
"My lord, did Lian'er do something wrong?" Lian'er hurriedly knelt down beside Shen Yuanhao, her hands climbing up his trouser legs.
Shen Yuanhao pinched his forehead, his annoyance deepening.
“I misunderstood before. We are currently without a betrothal ceremony or marriage proposal, and it is not proper for you to be living in the Shen family with the child. After the New Year, I will have someone send a betrothal letter to formally marry you. At that time, you can stay in the Shen family openly and legitimately.”
So that's how it is. Lian'er thought to herself that it was a false alarm.
However, despite the thoroughness of the explanation, there are simply too many variables involved.
"My lord, what did His Majesty say?"
Shen Yuanhao's eyes held a hint of regret as he began to ponder the Emperor's words.
His Majesty said that the Shen family can take concubines in the future, and that his marriage will be decided by his elders. Is he blaming him?
He ignored the warnings and took Lian'er as his concubine, so does His Majesty no longer care about the sons of the Shen family?
Although no one else in the family said anything, he could clearly sense that Yuan Xu and Yuan Jing were looking at him with more distance.
Was he wrong?
"How dare you inquire about His Majesty?" For the first time, Shen Yuanhao used a cold and hard tone with the woman beside him.
Lian'er froze, her face turning even paler.
"Go pack your things, we'll leave the Shen residence tonight."
Lian'er glanced at the sky outside, then thought of her two children, and her eyes instantly welled up with tears.
"My lord, I'm willing to go anywhere, but the two children are too young and can't withstand any hardship. Besides, they're already asleep. What if they catch a cold from the cold wind?"
Just as Shen Yuanhao was about to give in, a sound came from outside.
"Father, Grandparents asked me to call you over."
Shen Yuanhao was a little stunned. Outside was his eldest son, An'er.
Thinking about the debts he had owed his eldest son over the years, Shen Yuanhao's heart hardened again.
"If you catch a cold, please see a doctor. If you are still here when I return, don't blame me for sending you back to the border."
The more Shen Yuanhao thought about it, the more feasible the idea seemed. He gave Lian'er a deep look, the thought of "women ruin things" popped into his mind, and then he left without looking back.
After Shen Yuanhao left, Lian'er finally couldn't support herself and collapsed to the ground.
They were treated so well by the adults when they were at the border, so why did things change as soon as they returned to the capital?
Because of this warning, which wasn't exactly a formality, the Shen family kept the New Year as low-key as possible. During the New Year's Eve dinner, no one even dared to mention the word "palace."
The elders in the family kept quiet about it, and the younger generation, because of the fact that Shen Emei and Shen Chengfeng were confined to their homes, were all as quiet as mutes.
Before we knew it, the New Year had arrived. Perhaps the sound of firecrackers made people forget many things, as if a new chapter would begin next year.
Officials in the capital who were supposed to associate with the Shen family have started doing so again.
The three younger men of the Shen family, along with the younger members of the family, also began to travel between various residences.
"Lord Liu, it's been a long time." Although Shen Yuanxu and the others had been back for some time, they hadn't met up with their old friends because they needed to settle their families and wait for news from the palace.
Liu Yan smiled warmly: "Even if you hadn't come, I would still have visited your residence today."
After exchanging a few polite words, Liu Yanhui welcomed the two inside.
"I heard from my children that they are in the same academy as your two children. They even asked us to bring them gifts." Shen Yuanxu started by mentioning the children.
Liu Yan smiled and said, "My mother took my wife and children back to our hometown for the New Year, so I'm the only one in Beijing this year."
Shen Yuanjing: "Wouldn't you be very lonely? Why don't you come to my house for the New Year?"
Liu Yan waved her hand: "You've finally come back and reunited with your family, how could I possibly disturb you? Besides, His Majesty will be making a southern tour after the New Year, and as the Minister of Revenue, I will be on duty at the Ministry of Revenue starting tomorrow."
Shen Yuanhao looked surprised; "So early?" Tomorrow is only the third day of the Lunar New Year.
Liu Yan replied: "To receive the emperor's bounty and share his burdens are what we, as subjects, should do."
During the years they were away from the capital, they still corresponded with their old friends there. But letters are inanimate objects; how could they compare to the emotional connection of face-to-face meetings?
It doesn't matter if they're distant now; once they've spent more time in the capital, their relationship will naturally return to normal.
Shen Yuanxu was trying to win over Liu Yanhui, and his words were full of references to the past.
"Do you still remember Liu Laohu?" he asked, keeping everyone in suspense.
Liu Yanhui naturally remembered.
"You mean Liu Laohu, the one who escorted us to Dongchuan for exile?"
Shen Yuanxu smiled when he saw that Liu Yanhui remembered it so clearly.
“You have a good memory. I saw him when I went to the capital this time. He’s on duty at the Imperial Guard now.”
Liu Yan asked, "Did you greet him?"
Shen Yuanxu shook his head: "No, so much time has passed, he probably forgot who I am long ago."
Shen Yuanjing sighed, "So many years have passed in the blink of an eye. Time really flies."
Shen Yuanhao: "We were all young back then, and now the kids are all taller than us."
Liu Yan replied, "We were so grateful for your care back then, otherwise my family would probably have died on the road to exile long ago."
Shen Yuanjing: "If you want to thank someone, you should thank His Majesty. If it weren't for His Majesty, how could we be sitting here leisurely chatting and drinking tea?"
"Time really flies..."
...
The three of them had lunch at Liu Yanhui's home, where Liu Yanhui showed them all the treasures he had collected since his exile.
In just one morning, it felt like they were back in the days when they fought side by side.
On the way back, Shen Yuanxu thought that Shen Yuanjun was Liu Yanhui's brother-in-law. Since they had all returned, Shen Yuanjun would probably return with his wife and children soon.
And what about Yuan Qing, Yuan Kun, and Yuan Peng? Once they know that the others have returned to the capital, will they still be able to sit still?
Shen Lanxi always thought that after she declared the abolition of the rule that the sons of the Shen family could not take concubines, the first person to stand up and agree to this rule would be someone who already held power. She never expected that it would be the next generation of young men.
Just two days after the Lantern Festival, Hu Jinyu found two beautiful concubines for her son. In the other rooms, it was like flowers blooming, with beautiful maids being placed in the rooms of her grown children one after another. The purpose of this was self-evident.
The Shen family mansion was no longer stagnant; vibrant colors filled the entire courtyard, as if it had been infused with new life and vitality. (End of Chapter)
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