banquet
However, Shen Yao kept this matter to herself for the time being, only saying that she would continue to keep an eye on Shen Zan to prevent him from being mistaken for a prophetic god or monster.
The three continued to eat in harmony, occasionally chatting about topics related to women.
Princess Jing would always intentionally or unintentionally steer the conversation toward Shen Zan, trying to get him to speak. Shen Yao knew her intentions and encouraged Shen Zan to say something with her eyes, but Shen Zan was not very supportive and remained silent from beginning to end.
Princess Jing gradually gave up.
Towards the end of the meal, Shen Yao and Princess Jing chatted about Shen Zan's marriage again. Shen Yao looked at Shen Zan, stopped her, and said, "...I really hope that you can marry the person you admire, and I hope even more that the person you admire is someone worthy."
Princess Jing smiled and tugged at Chen Zan: "Why don't you thank the princess?"
Shen Yao took a sip of tea indifferently, thinking that the banquet was over, but unexpectedly, Shen Zan, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up: "What right does the princess have to lecture like this?"
Shen Yao raised an eyebrow and turned to meet Shen Zan's eyes, which were brimming with tears.
Shen Yao's words were merely a pure blessing, so she couldn't understand why Shen Zan reacted so strongly. But she quickly realized that as the princess who had actively dumped Zhao Chong to marry into the general's mansion, her words clearly had a derogatory connotation towards Zhao Chong...
Shen Zan continued, "You yourself were unfaithful to your wife first, and then you treated human life like dirt. Your willful and abusive behavior will surely lead to..."
Princess Jing finally came to her senses and stopped her, saying, "Zan'er! What nonsense are you spouting!"
After speaking, Princess Jing looked at Shen Yao, lifted her skirt and was about to kneel down when Shen Zan grabbed his mother and glared at Shen Yao: "Mother, we will not kneel to such villains who disregard human life!"
"Zan'er, you're so foolish!" Princess Jing said, tears welling up in her eyes as she faced Shen Yao.
Shen Yao watched coldly, neither helping Princess Jing nor getting angry at Shen Zan, and said, "I am a princess because I disregard human life."
Shen Zan sneered and said viciously, "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?"
Upon hearing this, Shen Yao's hand holding the teacup trembled. At this moment, she wished she could dig Zhao Chong out of the underworld and slap him twice.
The book never states Zhao Chong's age, but based on later plot developments and the fact that the original owner called him "brother," Zhao Chong is over 25 years old.
That old bastard, what kind of nonsense is he teaching Zan'er every day?
But Shen Yao didn't show it on her face, she just smiled and said, "You can say that to me after you become a Lady of the Imperial Decree. Go back now."
Princess Jing was being held by Xia Guo's other arm, forced to kneel before Shen Yao, looking utterly disheveled.
Shen Yao turned her back to them and waved for them to leave immediately. Princess Jing, with tears still on her face, bowed repeatedly in Shen Yao's direction as Xia Guo ushered her out of the courtyard.
Even without turning around, Shen Yao could feel the intense, venomous gaze from Shen Zan behind her.
She had originally planned to wait for Princess Jing and her daughter to leave before turning back into the house, so that Shen Zan could experience the humiliation more deeply. However, upon further reflection, she felt it was unnecessary, and Princess Jing's humble appearance was too unbearable to bear, so Shen Yao suddenly got up and followed her.
"Princess." Princess Jing saw her and quickly came forward. She grabbed Shen Yao's hand and said with a flattering look, "Princess, please go back quickly, we'll leave now."
Shen Yao smiled and said, "I'll see you and my cousin off."
Princess Jing added, "Princess, please don't take Zan'er's words to heart."
Shen Yao laughed: "It's just a child's joke, how could I take it seriously?"
Shen Zan gritted his teeth and said, "Princess, there's no need for you to put on such an act."
Shen Yao smiled and looked at her: "That's how I want it to be."
Shen Zan glared at her with resentment, and at this moment he had a bit of the fighting spirit of a young man.
Shen Yao found this interesting, gave Shen Zan a deep look, smiled, and left.
...
After lunch break, A-Yuan came to inform her that the Princess's residence had been renovated.
Accompanied by Xia Guo and A Yuan, Shen Yao toured the new princess's residence and then decided to hold a banquet there in a couple of days, inviting Prince Jing and local officials.
She sent A Yuan to deliver the letter. A Yuan had just agreed when she heard Shen Yao say to Xia Guo behind her back, "Come with me to Lingshan Temple and bring some gifts to visit Master Chengxin."
A-Yuan paused, then turned his gaze sadly to Shen Yao behind him. Shen Yao, however, had already turned her back to him and headed towards the stables.
She had just sent a secret letter to the emperor the day before yesterday, and the process of waiting for the result was extremely agonizing. Shen Yao did not want to be consumed by her emotions, so she tried her best to keep herself busy.
She discussed some details about setting up the school with Chengxin, and planned to invite wealthy people and famous doctors from Xiliang City to visit the Princess's residence in a while. Chengxin, who had been away from the public eye for a long time, would also visit at that time.
Shen Yao readily agreed, overjoyed.
Chengxin smiled, staring at her with her fox-like eyes for a while, before suddenly asking, "Princess, did you come to worship Buddha empty-handed today?"
Shen Yao understood and smiled, "Of course not."
As she spoke, Shen Yao asked someone to call Xia Guo over, told them where the carriage was parked, and then had them unload the boxes of gold ingots for worshipping Buddha from the carriage.
The scene resembled Shen Yao rewarding Lingshan Temple, but in reality, it was money Shen Yao specifically allocated to Chengxin to buy medicine and make teaching aids. The extra money was the reward for Lingshan Temple, a payment for Chengxin's appearance.
She knew that her behavior was a bit high-profile, and that she would inevitably be criticized for "having an unclear relationship with Chengxin" in the future. However, deep down, Shen Yao did have the idea of using this matter to expand the school's influence, so she decided to be high-profile.
As for Lan Yunyi's reputation—even if Shen Yao didn't do this, there would always be people who think Shen Yao is promiscuous. They know the truth about her and Lan Yunyi behind closed doors.
Perhaps the next banquet could be held when Lan Yunyi is in Xiliang City, and Shen Yao could bring Lan Yunyi to make an appearance, which would calm the rumors down.
After weighing the pros and cons, Shen Yao discussed school matters further with Cheng Xin, but ultimately she was too exhausted and soon began to lose focus.
As Chengxin was talking, Shen Yao suddenly started to space out. He noticed her unusual behavior and reached out to grasp her pulse.
Shen Yao was startled and instinctively tried to pull her hand back, but it was held firmly down.
Chengxin closed her eyes and frowned, her fingers moving up and down on Shen Yao's pulse. Finally, she opened her eyes and asked, "Was the princess frightened yesterday?"
"Ah...ah?" Shen Yao recalled what happened last night. She and Lan Yunyi were both very honest, and just as they were about to speak, they suddenly realized that Chengxin had no reason to suddenly say this. Then, their minds quickly returned to the right track, realizing that this "being startled" was not the same as that "being startled". Thinking of all the messy and ambiguous thoughts she had just had, Shen Yao blushed instantly.
Chengxin raised an eyebrow again, and the two exchanged a knowing glance the instant their eyes met. Chengxin raised her chin, closed her eyes, and began chanting, appearing to be in a meditative state. Shen Yao coughed twice to cover her embarrassment.
Xia Guo was stunned for a moment, then knelt down and held Shen Yao's shoulders: "Princess..."
Shen Yao pushed her away: "No, I'm fine."
Chengxin lowered her eyes to look at Shen Yao, then closed them again and continued, "I will prescribe a medicine for the princess, mainly to calm her nerves. The princess should also take good care of her health these few days and avoid overexertion."
Shen Yao nodded.
The scene became awkward. Shen Yao felt embarrassed to stay any longer, so after a while, she made an excuse to leave Lingshan Temple.
Upon returning home, I heard A-Yuan say, "The letter has been sent to all the officials as the princess wished. Except for one person, they have all agreed to attend the banquet at the princess's residence in three days."
When Shen Yao read the original novel, she always felt that the civil officials in Xiliang City had a distant relationship with Lan Yunyi and seemed to be a separate faction. She did not expect things to develop so smoothly.
Judging from this, Lan Yunyi seems to be quite popular.
As for the remaining person, he must be Lan Yunyi's enemy. Shen Yao guessed this, and then asked, "Who is that person?"
A Yuan glanced at her: "Chen Ming, the magistrate of Xiliang County."
Shen Yao frowned. The name sounded familiar to her. Could it be Lan Yunyi's mortal enemy?
Shen Yao hurriedly asked, "What is your relationship with the general?"
"...like brothers."
Shen Yao was a little confused. If they were like sisters, why didn't they give her face?
"Then why didn't he come?"
A Yuan said, "Magistrate Chen said that if I were to make a name for myself at the banquet and catch the princess's eye, it would put the general in a difficult position."
Shen Yao: "...This Magistrate Chen must be even more handsome than the Prince Consort."
A Yuan glanced at Shen Yao again, probably trying to figure out the meaning behind Shen Yao's words, and then said, "This man is over fifty years old and has several grandchildren."
Upon hearing this, Shen Yao slammed her cup on the table. A Yuan hurriedly knelt down, pleading, "Princess, please calm down!" Shen Yao sneered, "How arrogant!"
A Yuan quickly agreed, not daring to refute in the slightest. However, his skills were clearly inferior; when he complimented Shen Yao, there was no smile on his face at all, and his composure was far inferior to Lan Yunyi's.
Thinking of this, Shen Yao even felt a pang of longing for Lan Yunyi at the border.
Seeing that Shen Yao's expression had softened and that she didn't seem angry because of Chen Ming's disrespect, A Yuan breathed a sigh of relief and her attitude towards Shen Yao changed somewhat.
This morning, when Lan Yunyi left, she instructed him that Shen Yao was not as stupid as rumored, and told him to be careful. At first, he didn't take it seriously, thinking that the princess was just all bark and no bite. But as soon as the consort left, the princess was going to hold a grand banquet in Xiliang City, which seemed to be a power struggle with Lan Yunyi.
It seems that the royal family members are indeed all wolves in sheep's clothing. Upon closer inspection, Shen Yao is imposing and unpredictable just by sitting there. How could she be as easygoing as rumored?
He became increasingly hesitant to speak, knowing that the relationship between Lan Yunyi and Shen Yao wasn't as loving as it appeared. He feared that a slight misstep could give Shen Yao leverage over him. He knew too many of Lan Yunyi's secrets, any one of which could be fatal. In that case, not only would he lose his life, but Lan Yunyi would also be embroiled in trouble.
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