The entry of the Marquis of Dingbei into Lige City had been a grand event for half a day. The common people lined the streets to celebrate. Well, to be more precise, he was surrounded by numerous women in Lige City and escorted into the Bian Palace.
Hardly anyone in the Shen Mansion knew about Shen Qingfeng's sneaky visit to Lu Yan. Apart from A Man, only Butler Zhong of the Shen Mansion was aware of it. But Butler Zhong always favored Shen Qingfeng. Seeing that Shen Qingfeng went out despite his sickly body, he only nagged a few words and didn't report it to alarm the master.
Shen Yu finally finished all the sacrificial matters, big and small. Without even taking off his sacrificial robe, he left the Divination Hall and rushed home. Along the way, he ignored the greetings of countless officials. As soon as he returned to the Shen Mansion, he directly went into Shen Qingfeng's room.
The good elder brother of the Shen family pushed the door open without a word. Inside the room, Shen Qingfeng was sipping the hot pear soup prepared by A Man. He was startled by the sudden opening of the door, and a little of the pear soup in his hand spilled out. The scalding soup splashed on Shen Qingfeng's fair fingers, instantly turning them red.
This made Shen Yu extremely distressed. He took a quick step forward. Before A Man could offer him a seat, he sat directly on the head of Shen Qingfeng's bed, took the porcelain bowl from his hand and placed it aside. Then he nervously held Shen Qingfeng's hand and blew on it. "Does it hurt, little brother?"
Shen Qingfeng was stunned for a moment. Seeing his hand held in his elder brother's palm, a long - buried memory flashed through his mind. The smell of blood instantly filled his nostrils, making it a bit difficult for him to breathe.
In a daze, he seemed to see that when the Shen family was ordered to be executed to the last man by Xia Chuli, Shen Yu, with his strong martial arts, was covered in wounds. Relying on a broken sword, he fought his way through all obstacles, trying to rescue himself who was tied up high. Finally, a long sword pierced through his back and was buried in the soil, pinning him down completely. In the end, he knelt and shed his last drop of blood.
Shen Qingfeng's face turned pale. He trembled as he opened his lips and gasped for air. The pain in his chest made him speechless for a moment.
Shen Qingfeng's reaction really frightened the other two. A Man covered her mouth and stood aside, not daring to say a word. It was Shen Yu who spoke first. He slapped his head. "Oh! The pear soup scalded your hand, and now your chest feels stuffy? Could it be that some of it spilled on your chest?"
After saying that, Shen Yu was about to reach out to check the clothes on Shen Qingfeng's chest. But unexpectedly, Shen Qingfeng gently blocked his out - stretched hand. He took a breath and sighed. "Big brother, don't worry. I just had a momentary difficulty in breathing."
Having difficulty breathing? Could it cause such pain?
Shen Yu frowned. Anyway, he didn't believe it. Shen Yu didn't know all the complex emotions in Shen Qingfeng's heart. Seeing Shen Qingfeng like this, the first thing he thought of was Lu Yan. Not to mention that Shen Qingfeng had made a big scene in front of the Mountain and River Hall in the snow yesterday. Now that Lu Yan had entered the city and he himself had just presided over the sacrificial ceremony for the Marquis of Dingbei, it was no wonder his younger brother felt uncomfortable in his heart. Seeing his unchanged sacrificial robe, it would be strange if he didn't feel bad.
Only then did Shen Yu realize what was going on. He quickly took off his sacrificial robe and threw it aside. Seeing this, A Man quickly and sensibly picked up the robe and ran out.
Shen Yu didn't have a good impression of either the Marquis of Dingbei or Xia Chuli. After all, they were both after his younger brother. If he had to make a distinction, one had already made a move, and the other was about to. Shen Qingfeng had been in poor health since childhood, and the mistress of the Shen family had passed away early. Usually, Shen Shiqiu was extremely busy. As an elder brother, Shen Yu had to be both a father and a mother. Although he didn't take care of every little detail, he had more or less brought Shen Qingfeng up. But he never expected that his younger brother was completely infatuated with Xia Chuli. Not only that, he even chased after Xia Chuli into the Eastern Palace. Now that he was back, he had unexpectedly gotten involved with Lu Yan.
One was a nominal crown prince, and the other was a prince of the northern state. No matter which side it was, it was a big mess. Shen Yu could only swallow his tears. He had his sufferings but couldn't express them. He just hoped that one day his younger brother would come to his senses and turn back from the precipice.
"Sigh—" Shen Yu let out a long sigh and advised Shen Qingfeng. "That puppet crown prince is just a good - looking shell. Why do you torture yourself like this?"
Shen Qingfeng lowered his head and said nothing. He just stared at the hand that Shen Yu was holding, with an indescribable look in his eyes.
Shen Yu scratched his head. Usually, every time he advised Shen Qingfeng like this, Shen Qingfeng would immediately refute him. But today, Shen Qingfeng didn't seem to want to say anything. Shen Yu was a little happy. Just as he was about to say something, he saw Shen Qingfeng suddenly look up at him and hesitantly ask. "Big brother, did your sacrificial ceremony today send the Marquis of Dingbei to the Bian Palace?"
Shen Yu was stunned. He didn't know what Shen Qingfeng meant, so he answered honestly. "Yes, I did. The king specifically asked me to take him to the Mountain and River Hall. The treatment was quite high - level."
"Then..." Shen Qingfeng thought for a while, as if hesitating about something. Then he asked. "Did he say anything when he entered the Mountain and River Hall? Or did he seem to be in a strange mood?"
The reason why Shen Qingfeng asked this was that although he had made a scene about refusing the marriage in his previous life, after he had caused the commotion, Lu Yan had locked the imperial eunuch who came with the edict outside the door and refused to see anyone. The engagement between the two had finally fallen through because both of them disagreed. That is to say, according to the development of the previous life, Lu Yan should go to the Mountain and River Hall to bring up this matter now.
"Strange?" Shen Yu thought for a while. "No, he didn't seem strange at all. He seemed quite... happy? Oh, right. That chatterbox beside him secretly told others that it was because he had just seen a beautiful person."
Shen Qingfeng coughed awkwardly and said no more.
... Lu Yan's state didn't seem like he was going to propose to call off the engagement at all.
Shen Qingfeng was stunned. Suddenly, he seemed to figure out the key point.
That's right. Why would Lu Yan call off the engagement? If he really wanted to call it off, why did he rebel after his death and cry bitterly while holding his body? So, the reason why Lu Yan didn't want to marry him later... was it because he had made a scene about refusing the marriage first?
Unable to get him, so he just let it go...
Shen Qingfeng's heart tightened, and a complex mix of emotions welled up in his heart.
In his previous life, Shen Qingfeng actually wasn't familiar with Lu Yan at all. Even though King Xia Jie had bestowed the engagement on them, they had never met each other from beginning to end. Because after Shen Qingfeng made a scene in the Mountain and River Hall, he went home to recuperate. After just a few days, he followed Xia Chuli back to the Eastern Palace and continued to make a fuss about calling off the engagement. Then the matter got bigger and bigger. Under pressure, Shen Shiqiu, using the prestige of the prime minister's mansion and with a bit of a threat, asked King Xia Jie to cancel the engagement. Not long after that, the Dingbei Marquis Mansion also expressed its stance, and the engagement was called off. From start to finish, they hadn't even met once.
And now, Lu Yan didn't directly mention calling off the engagement to King Xia Jie. Was it really because... he had taken a look at himself on Wutong Street?