Zhen Yan blushed slightly and turned her face away without saying a word.
Jiang Shishi immediately understood that Sheng Songyan must have been staying in the Zhen Mansion these days. She took Zhen Yan's hand and continued to ask, "A Yan, have you thought it through?"
Zhen Yan hung her head. After a long while, she sighed and said, "Sister Jiang, I'm in such a mess."
Jiang Shishi said, "It's normal to be in a mess. It means you like him."
Zhen Yan shook her head. "I don't think I should like him. But when he came to plead with me, although I seemed cold on the surface, I actually softened my heart. I still... wanted to help him. Before he got into trouble, he told me to trust him. I drove him away, but actually I still believed in him in my heart. However, when I heard that he had molested the beauties in the palace, even though I believed he wouldn't do such a thing, I still felt uncomfortable. I even wanted to beat him up, and at the same time, I didn't want him to die."
The more she talked, the sadder she became. She had always been unrestrained and carefree, but now this sentimental look didn't seem like her at all.
Jiang Shishi sighed. "They say even heroes have a hard time resisting the charm of beauties. But aren't women the same? Love doesn't depend on whether it should be. Once you like someone, you just like them."
Zhen Yan went on. "I didn't want to wait for him, so I forced myself to leave the capital early and planned to return to Daihe. Unexpectedly, not long after I left the capital, I was captured by the Imperial Guards. They said I was going out to pass on information..."
Lu Wanning didn't know about this. She quickly asked, "What did you say? You were captured by the Imperial Guards? You're the daughter of a fourth - rank general, and your father and brother are both in Daihe. It's normal for you to go back to Daihe. Why did they arrest you?"
Zhen Yan didn't know either. She just frowned and said, "I also argued with them on the basis of reason, saying that my father and brother hadn't sent any letters back for over a month and I was worried, so I wanted to go to Daihe. But they arrested me without any discrimination. Although I knew some martial arts, I was no match for so many people, so I had no choice but to submit."
General Zhen hadn't sent any letters back for over a month?
Zhen Yan propped her face up. "I didn't understand at that time, but later I found that something was fishy everywhere. My father and brother were used to sending a letter every half - month without interruption. Even if there was something, even if it was just a few words, even if the mountain roads were blocked by heavy snow and the letter was a bit late, it wouldn't be over a month late. Now I know that someone deliberately blocked the communication between my father and the capital."
Lu Wanning thought that it seemed Sheng Chenyi had really made full preparations. He was probably guarding against not only General Zhen but also other generals, just in case they would suddenly return to the capital to rescue the emperor.
If the emperor hadn't made preparations in advance, he would really have fallen into Sheng Chenyi's trap.
Jiang Shishi wasn't very interested in these things. She just asked, "So they sent you back? Were you injured?"
Zhen Yan's face turned even redder. She turned her face away and after a while said, "Their treatment of me was not what a young lady should be treated like. They seemed to think I wouldn't survive, and their words to me were not very respectful. I was so angry that I killed two Imperial Guards. Then someone decided that I was going to resist and wanted to arrest me. Later... I don't know where he came from. He also killed several people and took all the blame on himself, asking those people to arrest him."
Jiang Shishi could also understand what kind of dirty words Zhen Yan had heard at that time. If she had really been captured by those people, no one knew what would have happened to her. So it was really thanks to Sheng Songyan's rescue.
Zhen Yan said, "He told me that it was all what he owed me. Actually, I don't think he owes me anything. He used me before, but I was willing to be used by him."
She stretched out her hand and pinched off a newly - bloomed flower of the hanging orchid in front of her.
Jiang Shishi felt so heart - broken. She glared at her and said, "I understand now. You don't really like these flowers. Otherwise, how could you bear to hurt them? Did he send them?"
Zhen Yan nodded shyly. "Yes. He said he couldn't see me, but to relieve his lovesickness, he would send a pot of flowers here every day. He also asked someone to tell me what kind of flowers they were. Actually, I don't understand these things at all."
Lu Wanning took a look. This greenhouse was very big, and there were more than a hundred pots of flowers in it. So it seemed that Sheng Songyan had started sending flowers to Zhen Yan as soon as he returned to the capital.
Unexpectedly, just like modern people, the ancients also used flowers to express their love.
Jiang Shishi was truly happy for Zhen Yan. "So, have you made up your mind?"
Zhen Yan still shook her head. "I... I'm used to being free. He will be the heir apparent in the future. We're not the same kind of people."
Jiang Shishi knew that Zhen Yan had been used to following the rules since childhood and had no other ideas. In the past, because of her poor health, she just wanted to marry someone of equal status and live a peaceful life. Now that things had developed to this point, her health had improved a lot, and she could stand side by side with him and be a qualified mistress of the family.
But Zhen Yan was stubborn and liked to have fun. How could she bear the hardships of being the head woman of the clan? It would be okay if Sheng Songyan wasn't the heir apparent, but judging from the current situation, after everything was settled, the King of Qishan might still ask for the title of heir apparent for him.
Lu Wanning didn't like the sad atmosphere. She pulled her two friends and said, "I heard that there are many new things in the Western Market. Let's go and have a look together."
After the palace coup, the people in the capital had been in a state of panic for a few days. Now they were getting back to normal, and the city was getting livelier day by day. It was not as cold as in previous winters at all.
The sun was shining today. Although they were wearing thick fur coats, they didn't feel cold.
The Western Market was really bustling. There were all kinds of delicious and interesting things. The three young ladies walked casually, bought a lot of small gadgets on the street, and played and laughed with each other. They were very happy.
Jiang Shishi was sentimental. She sighed and said, "I don't know how long such happy days will last. After we get married next year, we won't be able to wander around like little girls anymore."
Zhen Yan was the most carefree. She immediately threw her worries behind her and said playfully, "Sister Jiang, they say enjoy yourself while you can. Why worry about next year? Isn't it good that we're happy now?"
They spent the whole day shopping. They had a simple meal in a nearby restaurant at noon and bought hot snacks from various snack shops in the afternoon.
Jiang Shishi had never eaten snacks outside before. She suddenly got an appetite and wanted to eat more, but Zhen Yan stopped her.
"Sister Jiang, I'm used to eating outside since childhood. You're different. If you eat too much of the food you've never eaten before, you'll have a stomachache later."
Jiang Shishi had no choice but to put down her chopsticks. She said with a lingering desire, "Then I'll go back and rest for a few days. If I'm free, shall we come again?"
Lu Wanning leaned on the window sill and looked out. Looking at the crowd not far away, her eyes lit up. "Sister Jiang, Sister Zhen, come quickly. There are so many people over there. I don't know what they're looking at. There must be something interesting. Let's go and join in the fun."
Rarely having such a happy time, the three girls chattered and squeezed into the crowd. They found that this was a place where slaves were sold publicly. A row of people were kneeling there. After half of them were sold, another row came up.
Lu Wanning finally squeezed to the front. At a glance, she saw that the one with a straw tag on her back in the middle was He Chan.