Robe blanche - Chapitre 130
"Don't worry, if you don't want to, you will always be my concubine in name only. If you want to leave, I will help you leave when the time is right," Shen Tingxuan said.
She bit her lower lip, holding back the tears that were about to spill from her eyes. "Brother Ting, when I was little, I only approached you with ulterior motives. What have I done to deserve your affection until now? And why, you are his son?"
Such a father and such a son put me in such a difficult position. I finally said, "Brother Ting, you don't need to treat me like this. I once said I didn't hate your father, but now I hate him to the bone. If you continue to treat me like this, it will only make things difficult for you and make me uneasy!"
Shen Tingxuan shook his head, closed his eyes, and said with some sorrow, "Huai'en, I can understand your hatred for my father, and I will not blame you. Father did indeed do many things that hurt you. Just consider it as me atoning for Father's sins. Don't feel uneasy."
After hearing his words, what else could I say? I could only blame fate for playing tricks on me.
Do not lean against the west railing to lock in the clear autumn. Chapter 113
Chapter word count: 4223 Update time: 09-09-11 11:34
Less than half a month before the sixth day of the eleventh month, the imperial decree of marriage had already been issued to all places, and I was arranged to live in Qiyun Villa, where Mu Hanyan was once waiting to be married. In no time, everyone knew that the Second Prince would marry the long-lost second daughter of the Marquis of Qiyun. The fact that the two daughters of the Marquis of Qiyun would serve the Second Prince together became a popular topic of conversation and was talked about by everyone.
In Qiyun Villa, there were a few maids who took care of my daily life, and many more guards. Only a small portion of them were arranged by Shen Tingxuan to protect me, while the rest were sent by the emperor to watch over me.
It's just a prince marrying a concubine, yet the emperor insists on making an exception and holding a grand ceremony, even saying he'll personally preside over the ceremony. You could say he values Marquis Qiyun, but this time he didn't invite Marquis Qiyun to the capital for the wedding. So, his real intentions aren't what they seem; he just wants to use my and Shen Tingxuan's wedding to attract certain people he wants.
Shen Zexuan's residence is right next door. I haven't seen him since the day he was taken away by the Imperial Guards. Now that things have developed like this, I wonder what he's thinking.
Shen Tingxuan practically moved into the villa and didn't return to the Second Prince's residence for several days. In his words, he was afraid that someone would try to harm me during this time. I also knew that my life was always hanging by a thread, so I didn't say anything about Shen Tingxuan living here. Anyway, he wouldn't harm me, and we weren't really married.
That afternoon, I was drinking flower tea with Shen Tingxuan in the pavilion, listening to him play some tunes from time to time. Many of them were simple pieces that my teacher taught me when I first started learning the zither as a child. Listening to them now, I realized that so many years had passed. Looking at Shen Tingxuan's handsome face, I remembered how I used to take advantage of him when we were kids, and I couldn't help but chuckle softly.
Shen Tingxuan gently stroked the strings, then stopped, looking at me with a smile: "What's so funny?"
I smiled and shook my head. Could I tell him that I was thinking about how I used to always want to kiss him? We were young then, so it didn't matter. Bringing it up now would only make things more awkward.
Seeing that I did not answer, Shen Tingxuan could only shake his head helplessly.
Suddenly remembering the purpose of her trip to the capital, she hesitated for a while before finally asking Shen Tingxuan, "Brother Ting, do you know about the Fengyue Tower that was shut down?"
"Fengyue Tower? Isn't that a brothel?" Shen Tingxuan looked at me with some confusion.
"Do you know how the people who were arrested and thrown into prison are doing now?" I only stayed in the prison for three days before I collapsed. I don't know how Aunt Yun is doing now, whether she is still locked up or has been dealt with in another way.
"What does that have to do with you?" Shen Tingxuan asked.
Looking at Shen Tingxuan, she knew there was no point in hiding these secrets from him. Telling him would allow her to inquire about Aunt Yun, so she said, "My mother's younger sister, my aunt, is there. We only found her two years ago." She then recounted the story of how she recognized Aunt Yun to Shen Tingxuan, concealing the things Aunt Yun and her aunt had done in secret.
After I finished speaking, Shen Tingxuan's face was filled with shock and pain: "You said your mother was the daughter of the richest man in the capital back then?"
I nodded, but Shen Tingxuan shook his head and said, "I always thought your mother was just an ordinary maid that my father bought from outside. I never expected that there would be so many other things." Yes, the evil deeds committed by the emperor and Marquis Qiyun have been added to this list. How can we bear this situation?
After a long silence, Shen Tingxuan finally spoke again: "According to you, the people with those flowers behind them are all your clansmen?"
"Okay!" I nodded in response.
Shen Tingxuan pondered for a moment and said, "If that's the case, perhaps I can help you find a few more members of your clan."
"Huh?" I looked at him in surprise, but he slowly said, "When I had power, I secretly sent people to look for women with romantic relationships. I found a few, but none of them were your age, so I stopped looking."
"When did you know there was a flower on my back?" If it weren't for Aunt Yun, I wouldn't even know myself.
Shen Tingxuan blushed slightly, glanced at me, and said, "Didn't you fall from a tree when you were little? Your clothes were torn by the branches, and your back was scratched..."
I sighed inwardly, realizing it was that time...
"I'll send someone to look again; maybe we can find a few more. I'll also have someone inquire about your Aunt Yun's matter." With that, he got up and left the pavilion to give instructions to his men. Watching Shen Tingxuan's departing figure, I sighed inwardly. I hadn't known he'd done so much behind the scenes, and now I was still troubling him. But now, who else could I turn to besides him?
Aunt Yun's news came quickly. The next day, Shen Tingxuan told me that there was indeed a woman named Feng Jie in the prison who was still being held and it was unclear when she would be released.
"Why exactly was Fengyue Tower shut down?" Prince Qing's answer to me was vague; he just wanted me to leave quickly.
Shen Tingxuan said, "It was just a wanted criminal who hid there. He was later found out and implicated. It will be fine in a while."
Is it really that simple? Wasn't the emperor using this as an excuse to target Aunt Yun and the others? Yet, he couldn't bring himself to ask.
On the fifth day, Shen Tingxuan returned from court and stayed in the villa for a short while before going out again. When he returned, he appeared before me with a little girl of about ten years old and a middle-aged woman holding an infant.
Looking at the rather pretty little girl, suppressing her surprise, she turned her questioning gaze to Shen Tingxuan. Shen Tingxuan pointed to the little girl and the baby, nodded and smiled slightly, "They are your clansmen, and that is the wet nurse they found for the child."
The little girl was very shy. She looked at Shen Tingxuan, then at me, and then lowered her head again.
He walked up to her and asked in the gentlest voice he had ever used, "My name is Mo Huaien. Perhaps I am your relative. What is your name?" Aunt Yun had told me the same thing before.
The little girl then raised her head again and whispered, "Mo Xiaowan."
I pointed to the baby in the wet nurse's arms: "Is that your younger brother or sister?"
The little girl shook her head quickly and said, "No. My parents only have me as their child. They died a long time ago. I don't have any younger brothers or sisters."
Looking up at Shen Tingxuan, Shen Tingxuan explained, "The mother of this baby boy was a widow. She had a difficult childbirth and passed away a few days later. The neighbors took pity on him and helped raise him for a while. I found him the day before yesterday."
Two more poor children. The Mo family has fallen to such a state.
I summoned someone to take Xiao Wan and the others to rest. After inquiring about Shen Tingxuan's search, I learned that all the people he had looked for years ago were gone, leaving only these two helpless children. The infant was somewhat better off; when they found Xiao Wan, she was a young maid washing clothes for a wealthy family. Even at such a young age, her hands were swollen and swollen from being constantly immersed in water. Compared to that, my days at the Prince Qing's mansion were truly like paradise.
It's a mystery how much effort Shen Tingxuan put in to find these two people in just a few days. What puzzles me even more is that if Shen Tingxuan could find the descendants of the Mo family, why couldn't Aunt Yun find them all these years? Or was it that those behind the scenes simply didn't try their best to help Aunt Yun search?
However, the arrival of these two children is ultimately a joyous occasion. Shen Tingxuan has done me a great favor again; I owe him more and more.
On the first day of the eleventh lunar month, the weather was fine. Teaching Xiao Wan to read in the courtyard was something I did every day these past few days, making me feel less lonely. Xiao Wan's hands had already been treated with medicine and wrapped in thick gauze; after a while, she should be able to hold a pen and write. The baby boy didn't have a name, so I named him Chu Chen, taking it upon myself to make him Xiao Wan's younger brother. Xiao Wan happily agreed, and every day after finishing her lessons, she would go to the wet nurse to play with her little brother.
Shen Tingxuan arrived with a smile on his lips. He sat down opposite us and, watching Xiao Wan diligently studying the characters, suddenly said, "Actually, this is already a great happiness."
I looked up at him. The scene was indeed very heartwarming, but even such a simple life can be easily ruined by some people.