Chapter 72 Domestic Violence
Shen Qingtan quickly calmed down and watched the man in the carriage come out.
He was wearing a straight suit with a gold-woven cloud-patterned shoulder-length sleeves and knee-length cuffs, and in his arms was a red fox with soft fur, which made him look noble and dignified.
Shen Qingtan's gaze lingered on the red fox for a moment. It lay obediently and docilely in the man's arms, with its eyelids half closed.
She calmly withdrew her gaze and saluted calmly: "May your Majesty be well."
Jiang Chao and Liu Yue followed suit and bowed.
"No need to be so polite." Prince Yu slowly walked down the wooden stairs and stood a few steps away from Shen Qingtan. He raised his lips slightly and said, "Are you going out to meet friends?"
Shen Qingtan was stunned and looked up at Prince Yu. His smile was warm, elegant and friendly. He held the red fox gently and carefully, without any airs of a prince.
But she knew that beneath this skin, there was a twisted and cruel face.
What surprised her at this moment was Prince Yu's attitude towards her. He did not have that kind of arrogance that came from his bones, but instead exuded a subtle sense of politeness.
Because Zhao Jue had taken her on outings and autumn tours before, and they had met Prince Yu. He seemed friendly, but she could feel his arrogance even more.
Shen Qingtan knew that the source of Prince Yu's politeness to her came from Zhao Yi.
The emperor's favor towards Zhao Yi made Prince Yu feel wary.
She said calmly, "That's right."
"I thought you were worried about Master Xiao Zhao and wanted to visit him in the palace." Prince Yu gently pinched the back of Chihu's neck and casually said, "As soon as he entered the palace today, my father summoned Chen Yuanshi to treat him, and it alarmed almost half of the Imperial Hospital."
Shen Qingtan's heart sank, but she remained calm and said, "All the famous doctors and sages of the Great Zhou are gathered in the Imperial Hospital. With the imperial doctors treating my illness and the emperor watching over me, I am naturally relieved."
She pursed her lips, worry in her eyes: "I am a woman, and if I go there, I will just cause more trouble."
"I see." Prince Yu waved his hand and said calmly, "Go meet your friends. I won't keep you any longer."
Shen Qingtan bowed and stepped down, then got on the carriage next to him.
She lifted the car window curtain a little and saw Prince Yu rubbing his cheek against the red fox's head. The smile on his face became more gentle and bright.
Shen Qingtan felt no fear in his heart, only a strong feeling of nausea in his stomach.
During the autumn outing last year, Prince Yu also went along. The young masters and daughters of each mansion ordered the servants to prepare the ingredients and barbecue together.
Prince Yu took out a piece of fresh and tender meat and ordered his men to cut it into slices and then put them on bamboo sticks. Two thin slices of meat were strung on one bamboo stick, and each person was given a small skewer to try.
The others ate it first, but the meat tasted sour and fishy that they all vomited it out.
Seeing this, she did not touch the skewer of meat, but could not help but look at Prince Yu.
I saw him holding the bamboo skewers with his slender fingers and eating the skewers with relish, with a hint of joy between his eyebrows, as if he was tasting the delicacies of the world.
She heard people discussing what kind of meat Prince Yu had given.
Some people speculate that it is horse meat, because horse meat is sour and fishy and particularly unpalatable.
She didn't have many guesses, because she had lost one of her earrings and had taken her maid to look for it, which delayed her descent. When she found the earring and was about to descend the mountain, she ran into the guard handing a red fox to Prince Yu.
She noticed with her sharp eyes that the red fox had an abdominal injury. It lay listlessly in Prince Yu's arms, making sounds similar to a baby crying, as if it was acting coquettishly to its master.
Her heart was filled with tenderness, and she thought the red fox was very cute.
It is said that this red fox was the first prey hunted by Prince Yu during his first winter hunting trip, so it has a very special meaning to Prince Yu. In addition, the red fox is very beautiful, so he kept it by his side.
He never asked anyone else to help him, but took care of the red fox himself. He even ate at the same table and slept on the same bed, and carried it wherever he went, which showed how much he doted on it.
Now that the red fox is injured, Prince Yu must be very sad.
As she was thinking this, she saw Prince Yu meticulously applying medicine to the red fox and then carefully bandaging it.
Perhaps the scene of this collision left a deep impression on her. When she met Prince Yu again afterwards, her attention was all on the red fox. She gradually discovered that something was wrong. Its wound seemed to have never healed.
Sometimes he lay in Prince Yu's arms. When Prince Yu was bored, he would touch his wound and he would cry out in pain. Prince Yu's expression did not show any distress, but rather a strange excitement.
Although she felt it was strange, she had no clue what was going on.
Until one day, Boss Qin said that the flesh and blood of the silver fox could be used as medicine and was more valuable than gold.
She suddenly realized that the red fox's wound would never heal, because Prince Yu would wait until its wound healed and new tender flesh grew, then cut off the flesh and eat it, then apply medicine to the fox to heal its wound, and then cut off the flesh again, repeating this cycle over and over again.
Her scalp tingled when she thought about it, and she felt that he was too twisted and cruel.
Shen Qingtan pulled herself away from her memories and lowered the car window curtains. After she guessed the truth in her previous life, she prepared for her wedding in the Marquis' Mansion and never saw him again.
That's why she lost her composure for a moment when she first saw him today.
She knew what kind of person Prince Yu was, so she wasn't afraid of him, but she just had to be careful and cautious.
What she feared was that she couldn't tell whether the people around her were human or ghost.
"Second Madam, what are you thinking about?" Liu Yue asked in confusion, "Prince Yu is fine, why is he here at the Duke's Mansion?"
He also said some incomprehensible words to the master. Could it be that he was testing the master's attitude towards the second master?
"No one comes to visit you for no reason." Shen Qingtan said thoughtfully, "During the battle for the throne, Empress Yuanrong was in danger, and Concubine Ling saved her life. The Duke's Mansion remembers Concubine Ling's kindness, but Concubine Ling doesn't take advantage of it easily. She rarely interacts with the Duke's Mansion, let alone Prince Yu. If she doesn't have matters at court to consult the Duke, she won't come to visit."
There has been no trouble in the court recently, and there has been no rumor of appointing a crown prince. However, the second branch of the Duke's Mansion has been causing unrest in the family for the title.
Shen Qingtan's heart moved. Could it be that he came here for the title of Duke?
The master and servant looked at each other and saw deep meaning in each other's eyes.
The carriage slowly stopped at the Qin Mansion. The doorman knew Shen Qingtan, and Boss Qin had instructed him not to go and inform someone. He directly invited the person to sit in the front hall. While instructing someone to inform the master, he served Shen Qingtan hot tea.
Liu Yue was waiting on the left of Shen Qingtan.
Jiang Chao stood on the right, his mind absent-minded, worried about his master's illness.
"Qin, stop right there!"
A roar sounded.
The master, servant, and three others looked up at the door, only to see Boss Qin suddenly appear out of nowhere, covering his face with one hand and pointing at a noble lady with the other, angrily shouting, "Liu Yuci, have some sense. If I don't run away, am I going to stand here and let you beat me?"
"Speaking of reason?" Madam Qin sneered as if she had heard a joke, "I've convinced you. What I say is reasonable."
Boss Qin choked with anger and glared at her, "You...you bitch!"
Mrs. Qin rushed over and stood on tiptoe to twist Boss Qin's ear.
Boss Qin tilted his head in pain, and then met three pairs of wide-open eyes.
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