Madam Xiahou collapsed into her husband’s arms, tears streaming down her face in anguish. Shen Wangshu knelt on the floor with her head lowered, saying nothing. When the old master saw her trembling body and lips bitten until they bled, he let out a long, heavy sigh.
Xiahou Fu was already frightened out of her wits.
She had no idea that her fate had met a major turning point. Confused and helpless, she looked at her mother who had been accusing Shen Wangshu, then slowly edged closer and whispered, “Mother… what’s wrong?”
Was being granted in marriage to that general… something terrible?
Looking at her innocent daughter who knew nothing, Madam Xiahou’s tears fell even harder. She glared resentfully at Shen Wangshu, but because the old master was present, she did not dare say anything more.
All the servants were silent with fear. Eventually, the old master waved his hand. As he rose, his back hunched, as though he had suddenly aged ten years.
He dismissed everyone—including Shen Wangshu and Xiahou Fu—leaving only the eldest couple to discuss matters in the study.
“I will never let my daughter marry that General of the State!” Madam Xiahou shouted, her voice choked with tears. “She’s only sixteen, still just a child… How can I watch her march to her death? She is a piece of flesh from my own body!”
Xiahou Jin held his nearly collapsing wife and murmured gently, “Enough, Yuanniang. You were far too emotional outside earlier… And refusing an imperial decree is a capital offense.”
The old master stood with his hands clasped behind his back. After a long silence, he spoke hoarsely, “But Nian Nian is also her mother’s precious child. Before her mother died, she entrusted her to me. I promised I would raise her well.”
Madam Xiahou flared up instantly. “Father-in-law, I know you care for your granddaughter, and I also pity that she lost her parents. But she is the daughter of a criminal! Can you really say the emperor has no ulterior motives in granting this marriage?”
“If not for Shen Wangshu, His Majesty wouldn’t have even looked our way. She brought this misfortune upon us!”
“Fu-niang is also your granddaughter—don’t you feel any pain for her? Look at the fates of the girls who married Chen Ting—did any of them meet a good end? Why must my Fu-niang suffer this? She did nothing wrong. What crime has she committed?”
Her questions left the old master speechless. She wasn’t wrong. Shen Wangshu’s presence was indeed a variable. By sheltering her, the Xiahou family had to be prepared for trouble—yet he hadn’t expected it to come so quickly…
Fu-niang had done nothing wrong.
But had Nian Nian done anything wrong?
The old master closed his eyes in pain.
“All of this was brought by that Shen Wangshu—she should be the one to marry!” Madam Xiahou suddenly brightened. “Yes! The imperial decree only said ‘a daughter of the Xiahou family.’ It didn’t specify Fu-niang’s name. Since Shen Wangshu is presented as a daughter of the Xiahou family to outsiders anyway, letting her marry instead solves everything!”
The old master’s expression darkened instantly. “You want Nian Nian to marry in Fu-niang’s place?!”
Madam Xiahou shrank visibly. Faced with her father-in-law’s imposing anger, she couldn’t bring herself to repeat the idea.
“We have one month. I will see if there is any room to change this matter.” The old master cast her a stern warning. “Before that, if I hear of anyone in this household acting recklessly or speaking nonsense…”
Xiahou Jin hurriedly pulled his wife to kneel. “Rest assured, Father—we know our limits.”
The Xiahou household still followed the old prefect’s word. With his authority pressing down, Madam Xiahou dared not behave rashly. She had no choice but to lower her head and murmur that she understood.
Ever since the decree arrived, Shen Wangshu had not stepped out of Luoying Courtyard for several days. First, she did not wish to appear before others; second, with her limited acting skills, she couldn’t maintain a pitiful expression for long. Showing her stance once was enough—too much risked exposing flaws.
After that day, everyone in the Xiahou household began looking at her differently.
Perhaps Madam Xiahou’s outburst made them suspect something. Only Taohong continued to serve her as usual, her attitude unchanged.
Even Xiahou Fu—who had clung to Shen Wangshu throughout the Dragon Boat Festival banquet—did not return to Luoying Courtyard. For a while, the little courtyard seemed forgotten by the entire household.
Shen Wangshu, however, lived comfortably and untroubled. No matter how much Madam Xiahou hated her, as long as the old master was keeping watch, she would not dare act openly.
After days of such cold distance, Xiahou Fu finally couldn’t stand it anymore and took the initiative to come over.
As always, steady and calm Aunt Jiang accompanied her. When they entered the courtyard, they saw Shen Wangshu tending to her own medicine. The beauty wore a simple white silk dress, her long hair hanging loose behind her. No ornate hairpins, no powder on her face—her slim waist delicate enough to encircle with one hand.
All the questions Xiahou Fu had prepared instantly lodged in her throat. She hurried over and crouched down beside her, mumbling, “Why aren’t you having the servants make this? If word gets out, people will say my Xiahou family mistreats our own.”
Shen Wangshu adjusted the flame beneath the medicine pot, fanning it lightly. “I had nothing to do, so I decided to watch it myself.”
Xiahou Fu stared at her for a moment, then said, “My mother said… the emperor wants me to marry into the Duke of Rong’s estate—to that old general who killed seven brides.”
Shen Wangshu couldn’t help chuckling at the words “old general.”
Chen Ting was twenty-eight—hardly old. The original body she now occupied was seventeen, but she herself was already twenty-four or twenty-five when she arrived in this world. In modern times, a man of twenty-eight was in his prime. Naturally, she didn’t think the “old general” sounded old at all.
“What are you laughing at? Are you gloating?” Xiahou Fu grumbled, rubbing her face. “Why am I so unlucky? I haven’t lived enough yet…”
Shen Wangshu stifled her amusement and shook her head. “Why would I gloat?”
She looked at the girl gently and said softly, “You won’t die. I promise.”
“With what promise? Everyone who married him died.”
“I always thought my ideal husband would be a dashing young man dressed in bright robes… or maybe a refined gentleman. I never expected…” Xiahou Fu muttered. She still had a lot she wanted to say, but seeing the calmness in Shen Wangshu’s eyes, the words died in her throat.
She simply stayed to finish brewing the medicine with her, then left with Aunt Jiang.
Before leaving, Aunt Jiang gave Shen Wangshu a long, meaningful look—but said nothing.
Watching their departing figures, Shen Wangshu was genuinely surprised. She had expected at least one of them to say something to her, especially after how Madam Xiahou cried that day.
And yet, their emotions had been calm. Shen Wangshu heard no angry or accusing inner voices toward her.
After taking a deep breath, she drank the bitter medicine in one gulp. Dusting off her skirt, she stood up.
“Taohong, take me to see Grandfather.”