Hearing the door close, Xiang'er turned over and saw that the room was empty. She sat up, buried her head in her knees, and sobbed softly.
Fukang'an emerged from behind the screen, sat down next to Xiang'er, and pulled her into his arms. Xiang'er looked up in astonishment at Fukang'an, who was embracing her, and was at a loss for what to do.
"What's wrong? Are you upset that I didn't come to see you right away? Delin's illness had just improved when I came, but you turned me away!" Fukang'an said gently.
"Sister Yan Ning?" Xiang'er guessed that Fukang'an probably didn't know about Yan Ning.
Fukang'an smiled slightly and said, "Yan Ning is still young. When she was in the military camp, I didn't have time to tell her about things in the manor. She did something wrong in a moment of impulse. You and Xi Ying entered the manor earlier than her and know the old lady's temper. Why didn't you help persuade her?"
Seeing that Xiang'er remained silent, Fukang'an released her and continued, "Now that the old lady has punished her, I think she should know she was wrong. Later, I will go and bring Yan Ning to stay at the Fu residence first, so as not to anger the old lady. You should rest now!"
After Fukang'an finished speaking, he didn't give Xiang'er a chance to speak before getting up, putting his hands behind his back, and leaving.
"Go and tell your master that General Fukang'an has come to visit!" Zhao Xing said to the servant guarding the gate. He had come secretly so many times, and finally he could enter openly. Thinking of this, Zhao Xing could not hide the joy on his face.
"Mingxin..." Yan Ning rubbed her temples with both hands, her head throbbing as if it were splitting open. "My head hurts so much!"
When Mingxin heard Yan Ning call her name, she quickly helped her up and called to the servants to bring a basin over for Yan Ning to wash up.
After washing up, Yan Ning was much more awake and asked Ming Xin, "How did I get back?" She only remembered that she said she wanted to drink, so Liu Quan took her to a tavern called "Feng Ke Lai" (meaning "Come, Guest Come"). This tavern had no signboard, only a rusty red wine banner with three large black characters written on it: "Feng Ke Lai." As the saying goes, good wine needs no bush; the famous restaurants in the capital all bought their wine from here before selling it to their customers. Those who came to drink here were mostly servants of officials like Liu Quan, who had a little money but no power.
Liu Quan often comes here for a drink when he has nothing to do. He thought Yan Ning was just joking, so he brought her here to amuse her. Unexpectedly, Yan Ning actually sat down and started drinking.
Neither Liu Quan nor Mingxin could stop him, so Liu Quan went to invite Heshen.
"You mean, it was Lord He who brought me back? And then what happened?" Yan Ning lay on the bed looking at her changed clothes, and fear began to rise in her heart. She didn't remember anything about what happened with He Shen last night.
"Later, you did indeed listen to the master and return to the manor." Mingxin did not understand Yan Ning's meaning.
"And then what?" Yan Ning asked anxiously as she sat up.
"After that, you talked to the master until you fell asleep, and then the master left, leaving me here to serve him," Mingxin answered honestly.
"Then what about my clothes?" Yan Ning had no recollection of what happened yesterday.
"Miss, your clothes smelled of alcohol yesterday. I'll change them for you so you can sleep more comfortably."
Yan Ning breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. It turned out that Heshen wasn't as shameless as she had thought. "Mingxin, come with me to find Lord Heshen!"
Heshen, who was practicing calligraphy in his study, saw Yan Ning enter. He handed his brush to Liu Quan, went to greet her, and asked Yan Ning to sit down. "Miss Yan Ning, are you sober from your hangover?"
"My head still hurts a little, but I'm fine." After sitting down, Yan Ning asked, "Lord He, did I say anything I shouldn't have yesterday?"
"No!" Heshen shook his head calmly, looking at Yan Ning, "Yesterday, you only spoke of the one person in your heart."
Yan Ning lowered her head and stopped speaking.
"My lord, General Fukang'an from the Fucha Prefecture has come to visit!" the servant reported.
After listening, Heshen remained silent, waiting for Yan Ning's decision. Yan Ning felt a pang of pain in her heart, closed her eyes, and said, "I don't want to see him. You can make your own arrangements, Lord Heshen! I'll go back now!" With that, Yan Ning fled from Heshen's study as if she were escaping.
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