Chapter 174 Everything Goes Well
Listening to the nearly insane words of Shen Ruyi, Song Qingming spoke smugly:
"Fake? Shen Yiqiu, you can take a gamble and kill me right now. See if my people outside will immediately hand this token directly to the Censorate, or even... deliver it to the envoy from Longnan!"
"At that time, not only will your Shen family's title of Marquis of Yongjia be stripped, but the execution of your entire family would not be an exaggeration. More importantly... the position of the Crown Prince next to you will probably also be affected."
"After all, it was the late Consort Jia and the court officials who supported her who protected Shen Runian's reputation for loyalty and suppressed all criticism back then. If the Shen family falls, Your Highness... can you remain unscathed?"
The veins on the back of Shen Yiqiu's hand, which was gripping the sword, bulged. She could disregard her own life and death, but she could not drag the Shen family's reputation and Xiao Yongjing into this abyss.
"Let them go!"
Shen Yiqiu gritted her teeth and spoke.
Shen Yiqiu stood frozen in place.
My grandmother was an upright and honest woman, yet she was framed and misunderstood in such a way, while I, with my enemy right in front of me, am unable to kill him because of some obstacle.
Song Qingming looked at Shen Yiqiu provocatively:
"Heh...cough cough...that's right, my...good, daughter. Knowing when to yield...cough cough...that's what makes a hero."
“Sang Yu, let’s go…to your brother Lang Xing’s Earl’s mansion. It’s…safe there.”
Fu Langxing's face was ashen, his emotions in turmoil.
He looked at Shen Yiqiu, realizing he had misunderstood her again, and felt a pang of guilt.
Looking at the pregnant and pitiful Song Sangyu, he was filled with a sense of responsibility. He couldn't abandon Song Sangyu, but Shen Yiqiu...
He rubbed his hair irritably and stood there, stunned.
Supporting Song Qingming, Song Sangyu staggered towards the door. Fu Langxing instinctively stepped forward, standing beside Shen Yiqiu, and opened his mouth, wanting to say something to comfort her.
“Yiqiu…I…”
Before he could finish speaking, a hand reached out even faster and slapped away his arm that was close to Shen Yiqiu.
Xiao Yongjing gently pulled Shen Yiqiu to his side, took off his outer robe, and draped it over Shen Yiqiu's shoulders.
"Young Master Fu, you seem to have come to the wrong person. The one who needs your comfort and reassurance is the pregnant Miss Song. As for my Crown Princess..."
He lowered his head, his gaze falling with pity on Shen Yiqiu's profile.
"No need for you to worry."
“Your Highness… I… I know Sangyu is pregnant, that’s why… But I…”
Xiao Yongjing interrupted him without any politeness:
"Your feelings are none of my business or the Crown Princess's. Since you've chosen to take responsibility, stop putting on this pretentious act of being caught in the middle, lest you become a laughingstock."
He looked at Song Sangyu and Song Qingming, who were standing there stunned, and spoke coldly:
"Aren't you leaving yet? Are you waiting for me to change my mind and invite you to the East Palace?"
Upon hearing this, Song Sangyu half-dragged and half-pulled Song Qingming along.
Just as she was about to step out of the hall, she suddenly turned back and looked at the distraught Shen Ruyi with resentment.
"Madam Song, for the sake of the many years you raised me, I'll tell you another secret. Do you know why I hate you so much?"
Without waiting for a reply, she continued talking to herself.
“My maternal grandfather was also Zhao Wusi. He was your mother Shen Zhaohua’s first husband, whom she married through proper channels.”
"Hahahaha, there's no such thing as a predestined match. The so-called hero saving the beauty back then was just a play orchestrated by the Zhao family to make Shen Zhaohua fall in love with him!"
"It's a pity that after the marriage, Shen Zhaohua was stubborn and self-willed, and never sincerely tried to help my grandfather get a job in the court, which made him suffer ridicule from his son-in-law! In his distress, my grandfather met my grandmother, the courtesan Liu Huixin."
“Only with her did my grandfather act like a real man. They had two sons and a daughter. The daughter is my mother, Zhao Xuan.”
"But that vicious woman, Shen Zhaohua, when she returned from pacifying the border, she stumbled upon my maternal grandparents together and discovered that their two sons were bullying the younger siblings she had asked you to take care of. Without saying a word, she directly drew her sword and killed my two young uncles!"
"Then, she killed my maternal grandparents. My mother was young at the time and hid under the bed, witnessing the whole thing. Shen Zhaohua was her mortal enemy who killed her parents!"
She stared at the tottering Shen Ruyi, her smile cruel.
"So, my mother used the same method to get close to your husband, Song Qingming. And you, Shen Ruyi, you're just as stupid as your mother! You were easily fooled your whole life! Hahahaha!"
After saying that, she helped the laughing Song Qingming up and walked away.
Under the successive blows, the dazed Song Shenshi laughed foolishly, staring blankly at Shen Yiqiu, and murmured:
"Retribution...it's all retribution...she killed someone's parents, and now they're here to destroy her daughter and granddaughter...Shen Zhaohua, do you see this? This is the karma you've created..."
"Enough!"
Shen Yiqiu interrupted Song Shenshi's words with a sharp shout.
She walked step by step to Song Shenshi, looking down at her:
“What wrong did Grandmother do? She spent her life on the battlefield, protecting the country and safeguarding the land of the Great Jin. Was she wrong for being too upright and disdaining the private affairs of the inner quarters? Was she wrong for being too powerful, making that incompetent man feel ashamed in her presence?”
She crouched down, staring intently into Song Shenshi's dazed eyes.
"The one who is truly wrong is that man named Zhao Wusi. It was he who was wicked and plotted to get close to her; it was he who was unambitious and resented his grandmother for not allowing him to rise through the ranks."
"It was him who, for the sake of that ridiculous male pride, betrayed his wife, had an affair with his mistress, and even allowed his mistress's son to bully the children that his grandmother had entrusted to his care. His grandmother killed them to cleanse the family and to avenge the children who died unjustly. What was wrong with that?"
Song Shen stubbornly curled up, pretending not to hear.
Shen Yiqiu laughed, a desolate and sorrowful laugh:
“Shen Ruyi, look at yourself. For the sake of such a heartless man who poisoned you for decades, you hated your own mother who truly planned for you for the rest of your life.”
"You're stupid, you're blind, you're heartless!"
She stood up, and even looking at Song Shenshi once more felt like torture.
"You are not worthy to be my mother, much less worthy to be Shen Zhaohua's daughter!"
Song Shenshi looked away, as if trying to convince herself:
"...Was it really...my mistake? But...if she really loved me...why...why make me face all this...why didn't she tell me Zhao Wusi's true colors sooner..."
Shen Yiqiu closed her eyes, then opened them again.
"Why didn't she tell you? Because she was afraid you'd be heartbroken! Afraid you wouldn't be able to bear the truth that the person you loved was a deception from the very beginning. Shen Ruyi—!"
"May everything go as you wish... This is your grandmother's only hope for you. She hopes that you will have a smooth and carefree life."
"So she clears the obstacles in your path, even if those obstacles come from your blind love. She would rather bear your resentment herself than shatter your false dream with her own hands."
"This is the love your heartless, venomous mother, whom you hated your whole life, gave you!"
She stood frozen in place, the life in the mansion had made her forget her own name, her name was... Shen Ruyi.
The memories of my past interactions with my mother, the care she deliberately ignored... all came flooding into my mind as vivid images.
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