Shang Shaoyan looked at Yan Xuening with a half-smile: "I say, you're really a coward. You're being bullied by these two and you don't even know how to fight back? It seems I wasted my time teaching you all this time."
Yan Xuening snapped out of her daze and quickly walked towards Shang Shaoyan: "Cousin, what are you doing here?"
cousin?
Yan Erniang and Ding Yiniang exchanged a glance, somewhat bewildered—they had never heard of such a relative in the Yan family.
……etc.
Cheng has an older sister who is the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo, but this young lady is arrogant and domineering, and doesn't look like the elegant and proud noble ladies in Shengjing at all!
Not to mention how slovenly his clothes were.
Shang Shaoyan glanced at the bewildered mother and daughter, a slight smile playing on his lips, and instead of answering, asked, "Tell me, what's going on with this mother and daughter?"
Yan Xuening gave Yan Erniang and Ding Yiniang a cold look, and the two immediately shrank back. It wasn't because Yan Xuening was more favored than them, but because Yan Xuening was ruthless and had a high-ranking fiancé.
What made them even more jealous and upset was that Yan Xuening's marriage was not obtained through Lord Yan's connections, but through the Cheng family. They couldn't even get a piece of the pie.
Yan Xuening turned to Shang Shaoyan, her face immediately displaying a fawning smile: "Cousin, why did you hit them for no reason? It just dirtied your hands. Look at their faces, if you touched them, they probably wouldn't be able to eat for three days straight."
Second Aunt Yan and Aunt Ding: "..."
Shang Shaoyan wouldn't be fooled by Yan Xuening's sweet talk. Yan Xuening wasn't Qiao Xiuyu, someone who could make her forget her name after just one glance: "Don't change the subject. Before you left Shengjing, I specifically told you to keep those good-for-nothing kids in your family in check, lest the marriage go wrong and Yongle Marquis and I have to clean up the mess for your family. Why didn't you listen?"
Yan Xuening immediately felt wronged: "Cousin, this... I can't keep following them around. They're so well-behaved when they're under my nose, who would have thought they'd be like this once they're out here!"
The sisters' words implied that this must be the Princess of Heyang County.
The younger sister of the current Duke of Zhenguo, a county princess personally appointed by the late emperor, although she has no fief or estate, her family is extremely powerful and wealthy, and she is one of the most noble ladies in Shengjing.
Yan Erniang and Dingxiang stood silently to the side. The former remained relatively calm, but Dingxiang's hands were trembling.
Yan Erniang was still young and didn't understand many things, but Dingxiang was always good at scheming and had already learned a lot about the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion; she even tried to push Yan Erniang there when Yan Xuening was going to stay at the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, so that she could marry a powerful man.
Therefore, she knew all too well how powerful the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion was, and she also knew that this Princess Heyang used to be a very unruly and ruthless person, but she had become more restrained because of the passing of the old Duke and Duchess.
Looking at it now, this is hardly a sign of restraint.
She's clearly becoming more and more unreasonable!
Shang Shaoyan narrowed his eyes, looked at Yan Xuening, and then spoke in the silence around him: "You're getting married soon, and you need to establish yourself as the head of the household. I can't help you every time. You need to handle this matter yourself. I'm in a hurry to go back to Shengjing."
Then, she stood up, pulled Lin Jing away, and said, "A few shrewish women have come and made this place dirty for no reason. Wuchen, let's hurry on our way."
Lin Jing nodded, adding, "Let's go quickly, I hate getting dirty, sigh."
Dingxiang and Yan Erniang: "..."
Yan Erniang glared hatefully at Shang Shaoyan's back, as if she wanted to stare a hole through her, but Yan Xuening blocked her view.
Yan Xuening looked at Yan Erniang with a half-smile, her expression almost identical to Shang Shaoyan's arrogance: "What are you standing there for? Haven't you embarrassed yourself enough? Come back to the manor with me, hurry up."
...
Shang Shaoyan and Lin Jing left the inn, feeling it was better not to stay in Hangzhou. After all, Hangzhou was Lord Yan's territory, and even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake. Besides, Shang Shaoyan had never really liked this uncle, so they wanted to avoid causing any extra trouble.
Hangzhou and Shengjing are close to each other, so the two men rode at full speed and entered Shengjing before the city gates were locked.
Shang Yunlan was already waiting at the city gate. He had many spies and had just learned about what had happened in Hangzhou. When he saw his sister, who had come all this way, he held her hand with a pained expression and said, "An'an, you must have had a hard journey."
Afterwards, Lin Jing and Shang Yunlan exchanged greetings, and the three of them boarded a carriage and headed towards the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.
The brother and sister had been separated for many days, which was not a common occurrence even in their previous lives. Shang Shaoyan missed Shang Yunlan very much, and his eyes immediately reddened as he looked at her, saying in a coquettish tone, "Brother, you don't know how much I suffered on my way back—just now, that illegitimate daughter of my uncle dared to be so presumptuous in front of me! How could that be allowed!"
Although Shang Shaoyan didn't suffer any loss, encountering this kind of thing was disgusting. Shang Yunlan frowned: "If it weren't for my aunt's sake, do you think he could have stayed in the position of prefect until now?"
Shang Shaoyan wholeheartedly agreed: "Yes, I've disliked him for a long time."
Shang Yunlan has been working very hard lately, keeping an eye on news from all over Shengjing, doing business, and dealing with Emperor Chen. None of these things are conducive to his recovery. It's just that it's getting dark now and Shang Shaoyan can't see his face clearly, otherwise he would have been quite startled.
Lin Jing, who had been sitting quietly to the side, noticed the weakness in Shang Yunlan's voice and spoke gently, "May I have your hand, my lord, so I can take your pulse?"
Shang Yunlan was stunned for a moment, then reached out her hand to the table and lowered her eyes, saying, "Thank you, divine doctor."
Shang Shaoyan smiled and raised an eyebrow: "What miracle doctor? This is clearly a painter I brought back from Shu Prefecture to teach me how to paint."
Shang Yunlan: "..."
Got it, another gigolo.
This identity was arranged by Shang Shaoyan and Lin Jing. Shang Shaoyan originally wanted to say that Lin Jing was his savior, but Lin Jing thought about it and felt that she had been enjoying painting recently, so it would be better to say that she was an artist invited by Shang Shaoyan.
Shang Shaoyan: "..."
She was actually a little embarrassed at the time. Lin Jing was a very simple person, and he probably didn't realize that being her painter would be misunderstood. So she said tactfully, "Doctor Lin, do you remember that Seventh Master? He used to be my zither player."
Lin Jing didn't understand Shang Shaoyan's meaning. After thinking for a moment, she tentatively asked, "...Then he must be highly skilled in playing the zither?"
Shang Shaoyan: "..."
She had no choice but to explain, "Well, he used to be my male concubine. If you say you are the painter I hired, I'm afraid many people will misunderstand."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
