Meng Qingluan turned her head and saw that Chen Yan hadn't had time to change his clothes yet; he was still wearing the undergarment he wore while sleeping.
"Why didn't you change your clothes before coming out? Go put on some clothes quickly, or you'll catch a cold."
Meng Qingluan frowned and urged him, then explained, "I saw that it was still early so I didn't wake you. His fever hadn't gone down yet, so I fed him something."
Shen Yan glanced at the obedient-looking boy lying on the bed, then casually looked away.
"good."
He turned around, said nothing, and went back to his room to change his clothes.
Zhu Qing'an's slightly lowered eyelashes trembled, and she lifted her eyelids to eat the porridge that was fed to her.
He asked, "Sister, won't brother-in-law be angry?"
Meng Qingluan looked at him suspiciously, "Why would you think that? Your sister-in-law is kind and generous, why would she hold a grudge against a child like you?"
Zhu Qing'an felt a tightness in her chest, but her smile relaxed, and she said with a sigh of relief.
"That's good."
Are they children?
A short while later, Shen Yan washed up, changed his clothes, and went straight into the room.
The porridge was almost empty. After feeding him the last bite, Meng Qingluan put down the bowl and asked him a question.
"Aren't you going to sleep? It's barely dawn."
Shen Yan shook his head. "I'm not sleepy anymore. You woke up so early, go and rest for a while longer."
Meng Qingluan yawned and waved her hand, saying, "I've told the waiter to brew the medicine. It'll be about time after I give you the medicine. Let's get in the carriage and rest."
As the two were talking, the waiter came in carrying the medicine.
Shen Yan pressed down on Meng Qingluan's shoulder to make her sit down, then took the medicine bowl with one hand and gave some loose silver to the waiter.
Thank you.
The waiter was flattered and accepted the silver coins, thanking him repeatedly before turning to leave.
Shen Yan held the bowl of medicine and said, "Go back to your room and rest. I can take care of things here."
Meng Qingluan was a little worried. "Let me do it."
"Don't you trust me?" Shen Yan looked at her, his lips pursed, and said in a muffled voice, "Are you afraid I'll mess things up, or worried that I'll hurt him?"
"I'm not that kind of person."
Meng Qingluan's heart skipped a beat, seeing the grievances almost overflowing in his voice, and she explained.
"How could that be? You're not Li Zhanjue. I was just worried you were too tired after a long day yesterday."
"Don't worry, Luanluan, I'm not tired at all."
Zhu Qing'an, who was lying on the bed serving as a backdrop, also took the opportunity to offer some advice.
"Sister, go and rest. Your brother-in-law will take care of me, so nothing will happen."
Seeing this, Meng Qingluan had no choice but to hand over the task of feeding the medicine to Shen Yan, as she herself was also feeling sleepy.
Since Shen Yan always took care of me when I was sick, taking care of Zhu Qing'an shouldn't be too difficult for me.
At least he's more reliable than me.
Before leaving, she reminded me, "Remember to eat breakfast after you finish giving me the medicine. Don't wake me up; I want to sleep."
"Okay, go quickly."
"..."
As soon as Meng Qingluan left, the room fell silent.
Zhu Qing'an sat on the bed, leaning back without saying a word.
Shen Yan didn't speak either. He sat on the chair by the bed, scooping up the dark, murky medicine with a spoon and then pouring it back in.
He repeated this action about four or five times before scooping up the medicine and bringing it to Zhu Qing'an's lips.
Zhu Qing'an obediently opened his mouth and drank it.
The two mechanically repeated the actions of feeding and drinking the medicine until all the medicine in the bowl was finished, leaving only black dregs at the bottom of the bowl.
Shen Yan casually placed the bowl on the bedside table and remained seated.
Zhu Qing'an lifted her lowered head, turned her head, and spoke with a serene smile.
"Is there anything else, Lord Shen?"
Chen Yan leaned back in his chair. "Is it wrong for me to care about my wife's younger brother, my brother-in-law?"
"..."
Zhu Qing'an didn't speak; the smile on her face vanished, replaced by a cold expression.
Shen Yan glanced at him sideways, her tone equally cold.
"Why aren't you pretending anymore? I thought you'd keep pretending forever. Is that all you're capable of?"
Zhu Qing'an glanced at him lightly and chuckled softly.
"What is Lord Shen saying? I don't understand."
"Zhu Qing'an, if a person can't pretend forever, his mask will be torn off sooner or later."
Chen Yan chuckled lightly, giving an irrelevant answer.
I wish you peace and tranquility, and I am completely unconcerned.
"Tear me apart? If everything I did was a pretense, perhaps you could tear me apart, but everything I did was real. What can you use to threaten me?"
"..."
"Shen Yan, you should know one thing: you usurped my place. If you hadn't seized the opportunity and used your seductive tricks to get my sister to marry you, do you think you'd still have the right to speak now?"
Shen Yan remained silent, coldly watching him.
"What right do you have?"
"Qualifications? My qualifications are that we met earlier than you, and she promised to stay with me and protect me, much earlier than your wedding ceremony."
"..."
Zhu Qing'an's eyes darkened.
"I know she likes you very much, and my goal has never been to make you divorce."
"...So what do you want?"
Shen Yan looked at him warily.
“I’m not a greedy person who would seek to possess her entirely for my own sake. Since she loves you, she can’t leave you to marry me, so…”
"..."
Shen Yan's heart was in his throat.
Zhu Qing'an said so much, but his words didn't imply that he would just watch and not interfere in their relationship. Nor did they suggest he was trying to steal her away from him.
Zhu Qing'an spoke with sharp eyes, each word carefully enunciated.
"I'm willing to be a mistress."
"What did you say?"
Shen Yan was struck dumb, unable to believe what he had just heard. He asked again uncertainly.
“I said, I’m willing to be a mistress.”
Zhu Qing'an remained serious and firmly repeated what she had just said.
"Since making you divorce will make her hate me, then I won't break you up. As long as I can stay by my sister's side, I can be her concubine."
"...What the hell are you spouting?"
Unable to bear it any longer, Shen Yan grabbed Zhu Qing'an by the collar in a fit of rage, pulling his upper body right in front of him with such force.
"I'm not asking for your opinion, I'm just informing you."
He will do everything in his power to achieve what he desires.
Besides, he had been waiting for more than a decade.
This time, he will not let go easily.
"Who do you think you are?" Shen Yan was furious, the veins on the back of his hand gripping his collar bulging. "And what do you take her for? A shared wife? You have no shame, but she does."
To everyone's surprise, Zhu Qing'an answered directly.
"I don't need a title."
He just wanted to stay by his sister's side, even if it meant being kept as a mistress outside the home, living in darkness in the backyard.
Nameless and faceless, deprived of freedom.
He was willing to do anything; his sister was everything to him, and he could lose everything to stay by her side.
Upon hearing his shameless words, Shen Yan raised his fist and brought it down with the force of a thunderbolt.
Zhu Qing'an didn't dodge; in fact, she leaned her face forward a little.
The inkstone brushed past Zhu Qing'an at the last second, barely catching her ear.
Not quite right.
He let that vile woman get her way.
Zhu Qing'an frowned in disappointment when he saw that the fist hadn't hit her face, and shook off the hand that was grabbing her collar.
"You don't dare?"
"You bitch, you should die."
Shen Yan's reason was almost completely consumed by anger, and she cursed him with red eyes.
Zhu Qing'an chuckled, sickly rolled up his sleeve, lightly ran his fingers over the wound, and then pressed his fingertips against his heart.
“Good! That suits me perfectly. If I die, my sister will die too. Then we can truly pull the deer cart together, and no other vile people will bother us anymore.”
Shen Yan clenched his fists and glared at him fiercely.
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