Half an hour later, the carriage arrived at Xuanyuan Teahouse. Shen Lixue looked at the sleeping Dongfang Heng and was about to quietly pull his arm away so that the driver could take him back to the Holy King's Mansion to rest.
Unexpectedly, he opened his eyes, which were somewhat tired, but his eyes were like obsidian, deep and bright. He pulled Shen Lixue down from the carriage and into the Xuanyuan Teahouse. They sat by the window in a private room on the second floor, drinking tea and watching the people coming and going on the street.
"The person you invited has arrived!" Dongfang Heng said calmly, his eyelids darkening.
Shen Lixue looked in the direction he was pointing and saw two familiar figures walking towards the end of the street. The one wearing a white straw hat and dressed in white was Qin Ruoyan, and the tall man behind her, holding a beautiful oil-paper umbrella, was Mu Zhengnan.
On the other side, Shen Yingxue also arrived at this street in a sedan chair. As Shen Lixue said, the Prime Minister's mansion was sealed off and the Grand Commandant's mansion was confiscated. She became an orphan with no relatives or friends. The five hundred taels of silver in her hand was all her possessions, enough for her to marry into a good family, provided that she aborted the bastard child in her womb.
"Miss, we've arrived at Zuixianlou!" The sedan chair came to a stop, and the sedan bearer's gentle voice came from outside.
Shen Yingxue lifted the gauze curtain and walked out. She paid for the sedan chair, dismissed the sedan bearers, and looked at the bustling Zuixianlou. A faint smile appeared on her lips. Young men from noble families often liked to dine here. In the past, many noble young men had admired her. She was waiting nearby and was not worried about not finding a man of noble status who was interested in her.
"Princess, be careful!" A familiar male voice rang out. Shen Yingxue was startled and turned around to see a man in blue robes holding an oil-paper umbrella. His smile was radiant, and his handsome face was so striking that it was impossible to look away.
Shen Yingxue's gaze sharpened. He was Mu Zhengnan?
Mu Zhengnan was well-educated and handsome. His good looks were originally hidden by the coarse cloth clothes he wore, but now, dressed in these noble and gorgeous clothes, his good manners and scholarly air were immediately revealed. As he walked down the street, many young girls stopped to watch and whispered among themselves with blushing faces.
Shen Yingxue was also stunned for a moment. After regaining her senses, she thought to herself, "Judging from Mu Zhengnan's clothes and appearance, he must be rich and noble. With his current appearance as a rich young master, he is a good match for me. Why don't I start with him and test him out first?"
"Zheng Nan!" Shen Yingxue put on what she thought was a charming smile and walked towards Mu Zheng Nan with deep affection.
Mu Zhengnan was comforting Qin Ruoyan when he heard someone call him, and he subconsciously turned around.
When Shen Yingxue was in the sedan chair, she had already done her makeup. Her hair was styled in an exquisite bun, and she wore no accessories, yet she possessed an indescribable natural beauty. Her green dress swayed gently in the wind, fluttering in the sunlight, mesmerizing everyone's eyes. He was instantly amazed.
Shen Yingxue smiled smugly to herself. No one could resist someone as beautiful as her. Standing before Mu Zhengnan with her petite figure, she said shyly, "Zhengnan, I have nothing left. From now on, you'll be responsible for supporting me!"
Mu Zhengnan snapped back to reality. Qin Ruoyan was wearing a bamboo hat, so he couldn't see the expression on her face, but he could feel the coldness in her eyes as she looked at him. Panicked, he forced a smile and said, "Miss Chen, what are you doing? We're just ordinary friends, nothing more!"
Shen Yingxue's beautiful face immediately darkened. She secretly pondered that Mu Zhengnan's clothes were made of excellent fabric. It seemed that he had climbed up to some high-ranking official, so noble that he didn't even care about her. Even if she couldn't climb up to him, she would still extort him.
"Mu Zhengnan, I'm pregnant with your child, how can you say we have no relationship?" Shen Yingxue's eyes were filled with tears, heartbroken and desperate. She looked frail and weak, as if she might fall at any moment. Her pitiful appearance made people want to hold her in their arms and take care of her.
Mu Zhengnan was startled and said urgently, "Miss Chen, I know perfectly well that the child is not mine!" A ball of anger was burning in his chest. He had originally thought of adopting a son to fulfill his dream of wealth and status, but he never expected that lie would lead him into this embarrassing situation.
"Mu Zhengnan, how could you be so heartless, abandoning even your own child!" Shen Yingxue cried bitterly and desperately, secretly touching the silver in her sleeve. If things got out of hand, Mu Zhengnan would definitely take her away to settle things privately. She was determined to take this opportunity to extort money from him to prepare for their future happiness: "That day at the Grand Commandant's mansion, you clearly admitted in public that the child in my womb was yours!"
Mu Zhengnan gritted his teeth, wishing he could scratch Shen Yingxue's hypocritical face. This woman was actually pushing her luck, clinging to him tightly. He couldn't reveal his true purpose from that day, so he could only try to persuade her gently:
“Miss Shen, the situation was special at the time. I only said that to protect you. Prime Minister Shen knows the real reason. Why don’t we let him be the judge?”
"Waaaaah, my father has been dismissed from his post and become a commoner. He is no longer the Prime Minister of Qingyan. You see, I no longer have a high and mighty status, so he doesn't want me anymore..." Shen Yingxue cried miserably, which saddened all who saw her and brought tears to their eyes. Even Mu Zhengnan almost felt that he had truly let Shen Yingxue down.
"Miss Shen..."
"Mu Zhengnan, you actually kept a woman outside behind my back!" Qin Ruoyan roared angrily, lashing her whip hard across Mu Zhengnan's shoulder, sending him flying three or four meters away.
Mu Zhengnan staggered to his feet, his lips pale, and explained urgently, "Princess, please listen to me..."
"Still dare to argue!" Qin Ruoyan lashed out with her whip again, striking him in the chest and knocking him to the ground. His bones felt like they were falling apart, and he was in excruciating pain. He tried to get up several times but couldn't.
Shen Yingxue looked up in a daze, only then realizing that Mu Zhengnan and Qin Ruoyan were together: "You two..."
"He is the man I have set my sights on, and you dare to seduce him? You're courting death!" Qin Ruoyan roared, lashing her long whip across Shen Yingxue, sending her flying three or four meters away. Her thin clothes were torn, revealing faint bloodstains, and the wounds stung with pain...
---Aside---
(*^__^*) Hehe... Tomorrow, things at the Duke of Wen's mansion will begin...
Chapter 132: Execution of the Entire Family
Shen Yingxue's clothes were disheveled, her hair was messy, her chest was churning with blood, and a metallic taste rose in her throat. She forced herself not to vomit blood.
A sharp gust of wind swept in again. She looked up and saw that Qin Ruoyan's whip was almost within reach. Even from that distance, she could clearly feel the intense anger mixed with a chilling aura emanating from the whip, quickly seeping into her skin and instantly reaching her limbs. If the whip were to strike her, it would definitely cause serious injury.
Shen Yingxue's eyes were filled with terror as she tried to dodge, but her body was in so much pain that she couldn't move an inch. She watched helplessly as the whip drew closer and closer to her, and regret and despair welled up in her heart. If only she hadn't provoked Mu Zhengnan.
"Crack!" The whip struck her heavily, tearing her clothes to shreds once more. It felt as if all the bones in her body had been broken. Shen Yingxue felt dizzy, and the scenery before her eyes became slightly blurry.
"Qin Ruoyan, this is Qingyan. Shen Yingxue is pregnant. You beat her to death in broad daylight. You'll be in trouble!" Just as Qin Ruoyan raised her whip, intending to strike Shen Yingxue again, a figure in fragrant purple descended from the sky with a soft sigh.
Qin Ruoyan glanced at the dying Shen Yingxue, then looked around. Sure enough, many pedestrians stopped and whispered among themselves, pointing and whispering. She angrily pulled back her whip. She was right. This was Qingyan. She had to consider many things and couldn't just do whatever she wanted.
Turning back to look at the person who had come, Qin Ruoyan said proudly, "She's incredibly audacious to try and steal my man. I won't let her off easily."
Her interest in Mu Zhengnan was just a passing fancy, and she didn't really care about him. But now that he was still her male concubine, he had to respect her above all else and couldn't have any other women in his eyes or heart, especially a beautiful woman like Shen Yingxue. She hated every single one of them and wished she could tear them to pieces immediately.
"Take her back to your inn. You can torture her however you want without anyone seeing. Her life or death is entirely up to you. Why kill her so blatantly and cause yourself trouble?" Shen Lixue lowered her voice and gave her advice mysteriously.
Qin Ruoyan's eyes lit up: "That's a great idea!" Why didn't she think of that before?
Turning to look at Mu Zhengnan, the icy gaze emanating from beneath her bamboo hat sent a chill down his spine, causing him to tremble uncontrollably. Before he could even plead for mercy, her stern command rang in his ears: "Take her with you and bring her back to the post station!"
"Fine!" Mu Zhengnan looked at Shen Yingxue, who was seriously injured and about to faint, and forced a bitter smile. This troublesome woman had finally stuck with him.
"Shen Lixue, I have some family matters to attend to today. I'll have tea with you another day when I have time!" Qin Ruoyan turned around and said goodbye to Shen Lixue.
Shen Lixue smiled slightly: "Princess, please do as you please!" She invited Qin Ruoyan out not for tea at all. Her purpose had been achieved, and she didn't care whether Qin Ruoyan stayed or left.
Qin Ruoyan put away her whip and walked forward with an air of nonchalance.
Mu Zhengnan stood up unsteadily and saw Shen Lixue. Her long purple dress accentuated her exquisite figure, and her jet-black hair was simply tied up with a hairpin. She looked noble and fresh, and her beautiful face was bathed in a soft glow under the sunlight, making it impossible to look away once you saw her.
He sighed inwardly. If he had discovered Shen Lixue's beauty and charm back in Qingzhou and made use of her, he would have risen to prominence long ago. Instead, he was being bossed around by the capricious Qin Ruoyan, without any dignity befitting a man.
"Mu Zhengnan, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and follow me!" Qin Ruoyan's angry shout rang out. Mu Zhengnan instantly snapped back to his senses, quickly averted his gaze, staggered to Shen Yingxue, grabbed her arm, and hoisted her onto his shoulder. His movements were rough and showed no tenderness towards her.