To save his own skin, Shen Yunfeng pretended to be ill assiduously. He only dared to get out of bed and move around in the dead of night. Every time he heard the slightest sound, he would quickly lie back in bed and continue feigning illness.
Xiang Yunrou had once imagined what it would be like to be with Shen Yunfeng. They would be in perfect harmony, either traveling around scenic mountains and rivers, or expressing their love and writing poems, or playing the zither and practicing swordsmanship. However, the current situation was unacceptable to her. All the amorous feelings had vanished, leaving only a heart full of impatience.
Xiang Yunrou even thought about killing her poisonous scorpion to stop Shen Yunfeng from pretending to be ill. But after thinking it over for a long time, she just couldn't bring herself to do it.
She sat by the bedside and tentatively asked, "Yunfeng, how long are you going to keep up this pretense?"
Shen Yunfeng understood Xiang Yunrou's bitterness. He sighed helplessly and patiently explained, "General Mu didn't take action against me because he needs you to keep the ministers of the Xiangyun Kingdom in line. I suspect that the ghost encounter that day was deliberately arranged by General Mu. If I act too ostentatiously, he won't be lenient with me."
"Rou'er, we've endured for so many years. Can't we hold on for just a few more days?"
Persuaded by Shen Yunfeng, Xiang Yunrou nodded reluctantly.
Time flew by quickly. Soon it was the day for General Mu to leave the capital of the Xiangyun Kingdom. Except for a few generals who stayed behind to keep an eye on the Xiangyun Kingdom, the rest were all excited and set off on their journey back home.
Shen Danqing returned home with the army, while Shen Heqing left the Xiangyun Kingdom a few days earlier to look for his teacher. After all, he had come out for a study tour and it was time for him to go back.
...
On the day the army returned to the capital, it happened to be the first snow of winter.
Shen Baozhu scurried around wrapped in the cloak sewn by Concubine Yun herself, leaving footprints on the thin layer of snow.
With her leading the way, Qiuqiu also scurried out.
Only the Fourth Prince hid in the house, sitting by the warm stove to keep warm and watching the kids in the yard.
Suddenly, a hot hot-water bag was stuffed into the Fourth Prince's arms, making him startled.
Yan Mingli motioned for the Fourth Prince to look at the hot-water bag in his hand and said confidently, "Go and play at ease. As long as I'm here, I won't let you freeze."
"So the Fourth Prince is afraid of the cold? It's okay. We have Wuwu. Wuwu!" Shen Baozhu came into the house to call the Fourth Prince. Hearing Yan Mingli's words, she shouted outside.
The little phoenix flew in from outside. It had read a lot of books these days and said awkwardly, "Master, don't call me by my nickname in front of others. It doesn't sound nice."
Then it blew a breath on the Fourth Prince. The Fourth Prince felt a warm current flowing through his body and didn't feel cold at all.
Shen Baozhu took the hot-water bag from the Fourth Prince's hand and returned it to Yan Mingli. Then she pulled the Fourth Prince out to play, saying, "It will be even colder when the snow melts in a few days. We can use the hot-water bag then."
Yan Mingli stood there holding two hot-water bags, staring blankly at their backs. It wasn't until his hand was burned that he shouted, "Baozhu, ask Wuwu to blow a breath on Miao Chun too. Her hands are going to get chilblains again!"
When Chen Miao Chun was still in the Wang family, she had suffered a lot. Chilblains were one of the consequences. Even with the plaster on, her hands were often swollen and red, which made Yan Mingli feel extremely heartache.
In the yard, the Fourth Prince stood there blankly. He stretched out his hand and his fingers touched the cold snowflakes. The winter that used to bring him so much pain didn't seem so scary anymore.
"Pop!"
A tiny snowball hit the Fourth Prince. Qiuqiu burst into laughter and then threw another one at Shen Baozhu.
Shen Baozhu was a bit slower in making snowballs and was at a disadvantage against Qiuqiu. The Fourth Prince quickly helped her throw snowballs at Qiuqiu.
When Shen Haiyan led General Mu into the house, they saw such a scene.
Seeing Shen Baozhu and the Fourth Prince ganging up on Qiuqiu, General Mu quickly stood beside Qiuqiu and said, "Well, you're two against one. Qiuqiu, don't be afraid. I'm here to help you."
On the battlefield, General Mu could fight off five enemies by himself. Let alone in a small snowball fight.
With General Mu's help, Qiuqiu, who was originally at a disadvantage, instantly gained the upper hand.
Shen Haiyan wasn't happy. He couldn't bear to see Shen Baozhu lose, so he also joined the battle and helped Shen Baozhu throw snowballs at General Mu.
The yard was in a complete mess, but Yan Mingli was sitting by the stove, sipping hot tea and eating pastries.
The golden dragon clone flew out from Shen Baozhu's wrist. It loved to watch the fun and egged Yan Mingli on, saying, "Aren't you Qiuqiu's brother-in-law? Are you just going to watch them three against two?"
After thinking it over carefully, Yan Mingli realized that it made sense. He put down the teacup in his hand and also joined the battle.
While the snowball fight was in full swing here, on the other side, Shen Yunfeng wanted to take Xiang Yunrou back to the Shen Mansion so that his wife could meet her in-laws earlier.
However, someone stopped him. Ping Hai smiled and said, "His Majesty has specially prepared a mansion for Princess Rou. I hope the two of you will do me the honor of moving there."
Recognizing Ping Hai as the eunuch standing beside the emperor, Shen Yunfeng had no choice but to suppress his impatience and follow Ping Hai to a mansion.
In the mansion, Shen Heqing, who had returned early, was waiting for them.
From afar, Xiang Yunrou thought it was Shen Danqing. When she got closer and took a look, she said impatiently, "What are you doing here?"
Shen Yunfeng, on the other hand, was extremely excited. He thought Shen Heqing had come to visit him and wanted to pull him aside to have a detailed talk after Ping Hai left.
Shen Heqing smiled and dodged Shen Yunfeng's hand, only saying, "Father was bedridden in the Xiangyun Kingdom, but as soon as he arrived in the capital, he became full of energy. This is really a rare miracle!"
General Mu and his entourage arrived in the capital in the afternoon, and Shen Yunfeng "happened" to recover normal at noon.
Shen Yunfeng had a thick skin and calmly accepted this, saying, "Father was also very surprised. Maybe it's because I missed my hometown so much."
This thick-skinned attitude left Shen Heqing and Ping Hai in awe.
Shen Heqing didn't forget the main business of the day. He clapped his hands three times, and a veiled woman in a simple dress slowly walked over.
The woman was wearing a simple outfit. The white veil covered most of her face, revealing a pair of sad eyes that made Shen Yunfeng feel pity for her.
Xiang Yunrou became vigilant and was about to say something when Shen Heqing interrupted her.
Shen Heqing said gently, "Father, Baozhu really likes the clothes made by Concubine Yun. I dare to ask if I can exchange this woman for Concubine Yun. I wonder if Father would be willing?"
Both Xiang Yunrou and Shen Yunfeng were stunned, and they started to calculate in their hearts.
The former thought that Concubine Yun had been with Shen Yunfeng for more than ten years and was Shen Danqing's biological mother. If Concubine Yun stayed, she would surely be a strong competitor to her!
Xiang Yunrou was so busy calculating that she didn't notice the almost affectionate look in Shen Yunfeng's eyes as he looked at the veiled woman.
After Shen Heqing got Concubine Yun's deed of sale and walked out of the mansion, Shen Danqing, who was waiting at the door, rushed forward and asked, "How about it? Did you convince Shen Yunfeng? How did you convince him?"
Shen Heqing slapped the deed of sale on Shen Danqing and said, "Here's Concubine Yun's deed of sale. Take it."
Shen Danqing took it with trembling hands. He was extremely excited and said, "Great, great. How did you convince Shen Yunfeng?"
"Well, I gave him a beauty." Shen Heqing said with a calm smile.
Shen Danqing still couldn't believe it and said, "It's that simple? It's a pity for that beauty. His Majesty will surely deal with Shen Yunfeng and Xiang Yunrou sooner or later."
Shen Heqing patted Shen Danqing on the shoulder and said, "Let's go. We'll go to the government office to change Concubine Yun's household registration. It's not a pity. That beauty is Bai Xinrou. I returned to the capital a few days earlier and got her out of jail. I also asked Baozhu for some plaster to help her remove the scars."
"For Shen Yunfeng, it's a great thing to be able to exchange Concubine Yun for Bai Xinrou."
If Xiang Yunrou was the white moonlight in Shen Yunfeng's heart, then Bai Xinrou was the cinnabar mole who accompanied him. The fact that Shen Yunfeng was willing to spend 50,000 taels of silver to save her was enough to show their deep affection.
According to the crimes Bai Xinrou had committed, the lightest punishment would be exile to the border. But before the judgment, Shen Heqing saw Shen Yunfeng's letter and learned that he had a white moonlight. So he asked his friend Sun Tingyun, the youngest son of the Chief Magistrate of the Capital, to help manage things and let Bai Xinrou serve her sentence near the capital.
Now that Shen Yunfeng had brought back his white moonlight, as a considerate son, Shen Heqing naturally had to give him his beloved cinnabar mole.
Shen Danqing looked at Shen Heqing in shock and admired his methods. Xiang Yunrou was cruel and ruthless, and Bai Xinrou was no less so!
With these two women by his side, Shen Yunfeng would surely be very happy.
And the result was just as Shen Danqing had expected. In less than half a month, even before the emperor had time to deal with Shen Yunfeng, Shen Yunfeng got into trouble!
In less than a day, Xiang Yunrou discovered Shen Yunfeng's past with Bai Xinrou. She began to scold Bai Xinrou and even wanted to stab her with her poisonous scorpion.
Bai Xinrou wasn't someone to be trifled with. On the surface, she pleaded for mercy and acted submissively. Taking advantage of Xiang Yunrou's sleep at night, she set fire to the house. Although there were no casualties, Xiang Yunrou's poisonous scorpion was burned to death.
Xiang Yunrou was so angry that she wanted to kill Bai Xinrou, but Shen Yunfeng felt guilty and protected Bai Xinrou.
The two of them fought back and forth like this. In the end, Xiang Yunrou couldn't stand it anymore and directly poisoned Bai Xinrou. Unexpectedly, Shen Yunfeng accidentally ate the poisoned food.
Shen Yunfeng's pretense of illness became real. He was really paralyzed in bed and couldn't move.
Although Xiang Yunrou was a princess of the Xiangyun Kingdom, she had poisoned Shen Yunfeng. Although she could be spared the death penalty, she couldn't escape punishment. She was imprisoned in the mansion and had to take care of Shen Yunfeng personally without any help from others.
Bai Xinrou had defied her superior and was disrespectful to Princess Rou. She would be beheaded on a chosen day.
...
In the wood shed of the Princess Mansion.
Ziwan handed two packets of antidote to the butler and Nanny Sun and said, "This is the antidote. It can cure the poison on you. If anyone asks about you..."
Nanny Sun took the antidote first and quickly replied, "We are all loyal to our master. Princess Rou is the apple of the master's eye. He has been thinking about her for twenty years. This old servant is on Princess Rou's side."
Then it was the butler's turn. He hesitated for a moment and then took the antidote, saying, "Princess Rou resents me for tricking the master back then. She has always targeted me. So I sided with Miss Bai. I didn't expect the two of them to involve the master."
Ziwan was very satisfied with their explanations and rewarded them each. Nanny Sun got a gold bracelet, and the butler got a jade pendant.
After the two of them left, Ziwan returned to the main courtyard. She said happily, "Princess, I didn't expect that testing these two people with the medicine back then would bring such unexpected benefits!"
"However, these two people are not good people. It was them who caused the little princess to fall into the water!"
Princess Jingning poured a cup of hot tea for Ziwan and said softly, "After Shen Yunfeng dies, you go to the government office and say that a gold bracelet and a jade pendant are missing from the mansion. Suspect that it was stolen by a servant with dirty hands."
Ziwan nodded and replied, "Your Highness is wise and valiant."