Lin Qingzhu's entire dowry was in the War King's mansion, including countless hairpins and earrings. However, since the War King was a man, it was not appropriate for him to wear such things. It would be best for him to wear something small and elegant.
Before she knew it, Shen Lixue arrived at the Duke of Wu's mansion: "Is Cousin Yan here?"
Chapter 134: The Truth About Marriage, Beating Up Scumbag Ruan and Scumbag Su
What was that sound? Shen Lixue suddenly sat up, her cold gaze quickly sweeping across the entire inner room before landing on the open hidden compartment.
The hidden compartment, half a meter long and half a meter wide, is embedded in the wall. A small white door opens outwards, and an object resembling a book lies quietly there.
What is that?
Shen Lixue frowned, slowly walked to the hidden compartment, took out the 'book', and casually closed the hidden compartment door. The entire wall was tightly sealed, a pure white expanse, with no trace of the door.
No wonder no one discovered this hidden compartment; it was really well hidden.
Shen Lixue looked down at the book. The cover was exquisitely bound, with two neat characters written on it: Diary! The signature below was Lin Qingzhu.
Shen Lixue was taken aback. This was Lin Qingzhu's diary. She hadn't expected that people in ancient times also had the habit of keeping diaries. It was hidden so well. What was recorded inside?
Lin Qingzhu has already passed away, so Shen Lixue's reading of her diary is not considered an invasion of privacy. She quickly flipped to the first page, and upon seeing the contents, Shen Lixue felt a buzzing in her brain. Her slender hands trembled a few times, and the diary almost fell to the ground.
Shocked, she quickly flipped through the diary, her gaze growing increasingly intense as she read the entries. Her brows furrowed deeper and deeper until finally, her brows were tightly knit, her eyes flashing with intense shock, disbelief, and a fierce aura.
With a "snap!" the journal was slammed shut, and a layer of gloom seemed to veil Shen Lixue's dark eyes, chillingly cold.
She casually tucked the log into her sleeve, stood up, and strode out, her gaze terrifyingly gloomy, her body enveloped in an invisible aura of ice.
"Miss." A servant carrying tea entered the courtyard and met Shen Lixue, who was about to leave.
"Has Cousin Yan returned yet?" The cold glint in Shen Lixue's clear eyes sent chills down one's spine.
"Not yet!" The servant curtsied, unconsciously tightening his clothes, and lowered his head, not daring to look into Shen Lixue's eyes. He wondered to himself, why was Miss Shen's gaze so cold and frightening, like a snowstorm.
"I'm going back to the manor now. I'll come see him another day!" Shen Lixue turned around and strode out. Her small hand, hidden in her sleeve, tightly gripped the diary. So that's how it is. So that's how it is.
As Shen Lixue stepped out of the gates of the Duke of Wu's mansion and prepared to return to the Prince of Zhan's mansion, a familiar voice called out, "Lixue!"
Shen Lixue paused, stopped, and looked up. Shen Minghui, dressed in rough, wrinkled cloth, stood ten meters away from her. His tall frame was somewhat hunched, his eyes were tired, his face was haggard, and he had grown a bluish beard on his chin. He looked extremely disheveled.
"Master Shen, is there something you need?" Shen Lixue's voice was icy, keeping everyone at arm's length.
"I...I have something I'd like to ask you for help with!" Shen Minghui forced a smile, his eyes filled with bitterness.
Shen Lixue's gaze sharpened, and she took out two silver ingots from her sleeve: "These are all I brought with me today!" Shen Minghui is in such a sorry state that he needs money the most. One hundred taels is not a lot, but it is not a small amount either.
"I don't want money." Shen Minghui's smile froze, and he glanced considerately at the Duke of Wu's residence. "It's a bit inconvenient here. Could we talk in private for a moment?"
Shen Lixue stared coldly at Shen Minghui, her small hand clenching the diary beneath her sleeve. Suddenly, she smiled and said, "Fine!"
"Come with me!" Shen Minghui looked around, turned around, and strode off in one direction.
Shen Lixue's dark eyes were icy cold, like the snow that never melts on the northern plateau. A meaningful smile appeared on her lips as she slowly followed.
Shen Minghui was poisoned by a Gu, making him weak, but he walked quite fast. He led Shen Lixue through many twists and turns, choosing narrow alleys. A quarter of an hour later, the two entered a deserted alley with a wall at the end; it was a dead end.
Shen Lixue raised an eyebrow and looked at Shen Minghui: "Is Mr. Shen's house in this alley?"
"No!" Shen Minghui suddenly stopped and turned around. His gaze towards Shen Lixue was cold and vicious, showing no trace of his previous dejected and pitiful state.
"Chen Lixue, today is your death day!" Accompanied by arrogant laughter, a slender figure instantly appeared behind her, and a powerful palm strike was aimed at her back.
Shen Lixue suddenly turned around and exchanged a palm strike with the newcomer. With a loud "bang!", the two palms collided, and the powerful aftershock forced Shen Lixue back three or four steps, causing her to crash heavily into the wall. A surge of blood welled up in her chest, and a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of her mouth.
Looking at the other person, who stood calmly and unperturbed, as if nothing had happened: "Ruan Chuqing!"
"It's me, Shen Lixue. You must be feeling terrible being seriously injured!" Ruan Chuqing smiled cruelly, her gaze like sharp blades.
Shen Lixue's gaze sharpened, her lips moved slightly, and she quickly uttered a few coded words: "Whoosh!" Four black-clad guards instantly appeared beside Shen Lixue, surrounding her tightly: "Kill Ruan Chuqing!"
"Yes!" the guards replied in unison, and a long sword that gleamed coldly appeared out of thin air in their hands, which they quickly thrust at Ruan Chuqing.
Ruan Chuqing stood there quietly, neither dodging nor avoiding, a beautiful smile curving her lips as she looked at Shen Lixue.
"Whoosh!" The four longswords suddenly changed direction the instant they were about to pierce Ruan Chuqing, and their chilling light pierced fiercely towards Shen Lixue.
Shen Lixue was startled. She lightly touched the ground with her feet, and her slender figure instantly flew four or five meters away, barely avoiding the attack of the guards. A strand of black hair that she hadn't had time to dodge was cut off by the long sword and fell lightly to the ground.
"You actually betrayed your master!" Shen Lixue steadied herself and looked coldly at the four guards.
"They weren't your bodyguards to begin with, so how can you say they betrayed you!" Ruan Chuqing casually crossed her arms and looked at Shen Lixue with a half-smile.
Shen Lixue's gaze sharpened: "What do you mean?"
Ruan Chuqing smiled and said softly, "Your bodyguards have all been killed. These are my bodyguards!"
“The secret guards of the War King’s Mansion cannot be killed so easily!” Shen Lixue said in a low voice, her tone unusually firm.
Ruan Chuqing snorted and said casually, "Under normal circumstances, the Zhanwang Mansion's secret guards would not be killed silently. But just now, Shen Minghui led you through four big turns. With each turn, one of your secret guards disappeared. The reason you didn't notice is because Shen Minghui was carrying a colorless and odorless drug that confused you and your secret guards!"
"So it was you!" Shen Lixue's cold gaze shot towards Shen Minghui like sharp swords. He had exposed Lei Taiwei, which was considered a small merit. She was thinking about whether to give him some money to live out his old age in peace, but what he wanted was not her money, but her life.
Shen Minghui's eyes flickered, and he sighed softly, "Li Xue, don't blame your father, I had no choice!"
Shen Lixue curled her lips into a cold smile. For his own sake, he wanted to kill her without asking any questions. Shen Minghui was still as selfish as before: "Kill me, and neither the War King nor the Prince of An will let you go. You won't live much longer either!"
"You don't need to worry about that. We'll arrange everything perfectly. No one will know that you were killed by us." Ruan Chuqing smiled sinisterly, full of confidence, just like their flawless plan back then, which, even after sixteen years, remains undetected.
"Why must you kill me?" Shen Lixue took a few deep breaths, looking at the azure sky with a somewhat hazy gaze.