“…”
Shen Fengzhi was perhaps the most insurmountable chasm between Jiang Yin and Shen Shouyu.
Whenever he was mentioned, Jiang Yin felt utterly uncomfortable from head to toe.
She bit her lip and whispered softly, “A Yin and Prince Qi only exchanged a few flirtatious words. Beyond that, there was no other interaction.”
“…Is that so?”
“…Yes.”
“Extend your hand.”
“…”
Jiang Yin didn’t understand why, but with no other choice at the moment, she complied.
Her hand stretched out, with nothing to support it, feeling empty as if reaching into a void—unnerving.
After a long while, a cool sensation touched her palm.
Then, that sensation gradually settled into her hand.
It was Shen Shouyu’s fingertip.
He moved gently, stroke by stroke, writing her name in Jiang Yin’s palm.
…Jiang.
…Yin.
A tingling itch shot from her palm straight to the crown of her head, making Jiang Yin’s scalp tingle and causing her to shiver involuntarily.
Yet she dared not withdraw her hand, enduring it silently.
After finishing the two characters, Shen Shouyu pressed his fingertip against her palm, pushing her hand down.
Amid the silence, he asked, “A Yin, think carefully. In the past, did you ever flirt with someone else in this manner?”
“…!”
The incident had happened so long ago that, had Shen Shouyu not brought it up, Jiang Yin would have almost forgotten it entirely.
It occurred when she had just met Shen Fengzhi.
It was a dark and windy night. Shen Fengzhi had climbed the wall to see Li Zhixin but accidentally slipped and sprained his ankle.
Jiang Yin, who had been lying in wait nearby, saw him limping and took the initiative to reveal herself and offer help.
At that time, Shen Fengzhi had already seen Jiang Yin by Li Zhixin’s side and held no guard against her.
After kindly fetching medicinal water and bandages to dress his wound, Jiang Yin stopped at just that and withdrew from the room.
Only after Shen Fengzhi had bandaged his injured ankle and come out did she step forward to point him toward the small courtyard where Li Zhixin was confined.
But Shen Fengzhi did not go.
He only asked Jiang Yin, “What is your name?”
Adhering to the principle of seizing every opportunity to flirt, Jiang Yin said to him, “Please extend your hand, Your Highness.”
As a member of the imperial nobility, Shen Fengzhi had never been commanded like this by a mere maid before, finding it novel for a moment.
Thus, he did not refuse Jiang Yin and extended his hand before her.
And Jiang Yin, without hesitation, took his fingertip and wrote her name, stroke by stroke, in his palm.
In the dim night, shadows of trees swayed.
The girl’s voice was as clear as spring water: “Jiang Yin… My name is Jiang Yin.”
…
The memory came to an abrupt halt.
But the current situation grew increasingly worse.
Knowing she was in the wrong and unsure how Shen Shouyu had learned of this matter, Jiang Yin couldn’t help but ask, “Did Prince Qi tell you?”
Shen Shouyu’s voice remained impassive: “No.”
“…”
No?
Then who was it?
Could there have been someone else near her and Shen Fengzhi that night?
Jiang Yin was bewildered.
Seeing her lost in thought and silent for a long while, Shen Shouyu spoke again: “A Yin, just answer me whether this matter is true or not. There’s no need to ask further.”
“…”
Since the matter had already been exposed, after some internal struggle, Jiang Yin admitted: “It is true.”
Shen Shouyu pressed further: “If so, why did you say that you and Shen Fengzhi only exchanged flirtatious words?”
“I…”
“You lied to me again.”
“…”
Jiang Yin had nothing to say and remained silent.
Shen Shouyu also fell silent for a moment before asking again, “Apart from this, does A Yin have any other matters to confess to me?”
“…Yes.”
Although she didn’t know how much Shen Shouyu knew about the things she had done while following the plot, it was certainly more than just this one incident.
Persistently denying would only make him increasingly displeased.
It would be better to be honest for a few sentences, mixing truth with falsehood to muddle through.
Thinking this, Jiang Yin said, “Prince Qi fears the barking of dogs, and there is a concubine in the Li Residence who keeps a puppy… One night, he happened to encounter that puppy and was cornered by it. I stepped in to rescue him.”
Unable to see Shen Shouyu’s expression, Jiang Yin had no idea how he was reacting and could only continue, “I don’t know if it was due to excessive fright, but His Highness fainted. Afterward, I took him to my room and took care of him…”
Worried that Shen Shouyu might misunderstand, she added an explanation, “It was just ordinary care, with no improper actions. I hope the young master will investigate clearly.”
“…Alright.”
Shen Shouyu’s voice still sounded calm, but he didn’t let her off, asking again, “What else?”
“What else…”
Jiang Yin felt nervous, her mind in disarray. She thought and thought but couldn’t come up with anything else for the moment.
She fell silent, secretly gripping the fabric of her clothes on her knees.
The already quiet room grew even more deathly silent, with only the faint crackling of the burning candle reminding Jiang Yin of her current predicament.
After another long while, the rustling sound of fabric shifting came from in front of her.
Before Jiang Yin could react, her chin was abruptly lifted.
Without a word, Shen Shouyu poured half a bottle of cool, sweet water with a peculiar fragrance into her mouth.
After a crisp clinking sound, his clear and indifferent voice sounded beside Jiang Yin, “…Don’t be afraid, it’s not poison.”
The water was poured too quickly, and Jiang Yin, caught off guard, choked and coughed, unable to stop. The coughing made her throat burn with pain.
Once she finally caught her breath, she endured the scorching, hoarse sensation in her throat and asked him, “What is this?”
With her eyes covered, she couldn’t see Shen Shouyu’s expression, but she could detect a hint of subtle lightness in his tone, “Immortal medicine, non-toxic. It only makes people…”
He paused briefly before continuing, “…unable to tell lies.”
“…What?”
Shen Shouyu didn’t answer further. Instead, he asked her, “Shouldn’t A Yin first ask why I made you kneel today?”
Earlier, she had coughed until her chest ached, and breathing felt like fire scorching her lungs. Jiang Yin endured it repeatedly before answering hoarsely, “Why?”
The other party’s tone remained calm, “Because you deserve punishment.”
…Punishment?
Why?
She had clearly done as he said…
Jiang Yin swallowed, trying to suppress the anxiety in her heart, “Why punish A Yin? A Yin doesn’t know what she did wrong. Please enlighten me, young master.”
After a brief silence, cool fingertips traced Jiang Yin’s forehead, slowly moving down and brushing aside the stray hairs by her cheek.
Shen Shouyu’s voice deepened slightly, “Today’s punishment is to remind you not to overstep your bounds.”
“…”
Before Jiang Yin could figure out where the phrase “overstep your bounds” came from, he continued, “Regarding Shen Fengzhi’s matter, I may not hold it against you, but that doesn’t mean I will let it go unchecked. Today’s punishment is to make you remember. In the future, if you put me in such an embarrassing situation again, the punishment you’ll face will be even more unbearable than today’s… Do you understand?”
“…”
In the afternoon when she left Caixing Pavilion, Jiang Yin had thought the matter was already over. She never expected Shen Shouyu to have held back until now to settle accounts with her.
In Jiang Yin’s view, there were reasons and circumstances behind this matter; it wasn’t her fault. But upon second thought, Shen Shouyu had indeed suffered an unjust humiliation from Shen Fengzhi because of it.
Feeling guilty at heart, Jiang Yin struggled to explain, “A Yin and Shen Fengzhi are completely innocent. We’ve only had some contact, nothing beyond propriety… Young master, please see clearly.”
“I don’t care whether you and he are innocent or not, A Yin.”