Chapter 89 - Shen Mansion Had a New Owner

After the Spring Festival, the capital that had been quiet for a long time was once again bustling with life. Three months had passed since the end of the Jiangnan plague, and the people seemed to have walked out of the plague’s haze. They no longer mentioned it from time to time.

At this time, the entrance to the Shen Mansion in the southeast of the capital was filled with people who commented in the crowd from time to time.

Above the vermilion carved door, there was a golden-red plaque inscribed with the words Shen Mansion Built at Imperial Command. The plaque was tied with a rope, and after a shout, it was forcefully pulled down.

The heavy plaque fell to the ground, stirring up dust and causing people to exclaim in alarm. The guards at the entrance did not care, and two of them casually pulled away the broken plaque.

Very quickly, six people came over with solemn expressions, carrying a plaque covered in red silk. The guards at the door hurriedly cleaned up the entrance and carefully put up the plaque.

People stared at the red cloth on the plaque with wide eyes. They were extremely curious. Three months ago, the Shen family were demoted to commoners and their property was confiscated. The mansion built at imperial command was also taken back by the royal family. At that time, many people came to watch the process of confiscation. It took three days to move out all the gold, silver, and jewelry, which surprised everyone. Three years of being a clean magistrate can reap a hundred thousand taels of silver, let alone the Shen family, whose owner Shen Dong had been the Prime Minister for six years.

After putting up the plaque, someone immediately stepped forward and hung up a long string of firecrackers. After the sound of gong as a signal for people to remain quiet, a loud voice announced, “Here is His Majesty’s oral edict: Prefectural Princess Zhaohua is filial and misses the place of her birth. I hereby bestow the former residence of the Shen family on her as her mansion.”

The sound of firecrackers was immediately heard, almost deafening the people who had knelt on the ground listening to His Majesty’s oral edict.

Now Prefectural Princess Zhaohua had become a household name in the capital. She was not only beautiful, but also kind-hearted and helped so many people in Jiangnan. A few days ago, the people in Jiangnan had even specially sent the Myriad People Umbrella over. The umbrella covered the sky and even the sun, and its surface was filled with words of gratitude.

In an inconspicuous corner of the street, a girl dressed in a veil stared at the plaque covered in silk. The hatred and anger in her eyes seemed to set the plaque on fire. She was Shen Linghan. Previously, she received twenty strokes in the Palace. Her injuries were very serious, and she had to rest for three months before she was able to move freely. However, there were still scars on her legs and back. Every time she looked at those scars, she wished she could crush Shen Ninghua’s bones into ashes.

A large escort troop walked over, and the people hurriedly dodged to both sides of the street. Shen Linghan’s foot was stepped on. She angrily cursed and pushed that person away. When she raised her head again, she happened to see Shen Ninghua getting off the luxurious carriage.

After the elapse of three months, Shen Ninghua’s appearance became more beautiful. She did not wear the Prefectural Princess’s official attire, but a simple aqua blue dress embroidered with peony. The decoration on her hair was even simpler. She only used a white carved jade hairpin to pull up her long hair, and six exquisite jade buttons to fix her hair into an elegant Liuyun bun.

The decoration was extremely simple, but against her peerlessly gorgeous complexion, it revealed unparalleled resplendence, elegance and nobleness.

Shen Linghan’s eyes were burning with resentment as she hid behind the crowd, and her heart was filled with hatred. Shen Ninghua was a bad medicine. If it weren’t for her, the Shen family would not end up like this!

The guards at the entrance stood in two rows and bowed respectfully to Shen Ninghua. “Greetings, Prefectural Princess Zhaohua.”

“As you were.” Shen Ninghua said in a gentle voice. Perhaps because she was relieved of the Shen family, her voice became a little more relaxed. “Thank you for your hard work.”

The guards hurriedly answered, “Our honor.”

Shen Ninghua stepped forward and grabbed the rope hanging from the red silk cloth on the plaque. She exerted some strength, and the red silk was uncovered, revealing the magnificent words on the plaque: Mansion of Prefectural Princess Zhaohua.

Shen Ninghua smiled happily. “Although I didn’t prepare many things, they are all rare stuff. Bi Zhu, please send them to the people around us and let them share my joy together.”

Bi Zhu hurriedly answered, “Yes, Your Highness.”

The people did not expect that watching the show here would earn them some gifts. They were already happy before they saw the gifts from Shen Ninghua.

The guards brought up six large boxes and placed them on the ground with a dull sound. Bi Zhu opened the boxes, and each box was neatly stacked with medium-sized boxes. Bi Zhu asked the guards to maintain order and distribute the gifts among people one by one.

Shen Ninghua entered the mansion after lifting the silk. When she heard the cheers from behind her, a smile flashed in her eyes.

Beside her, Bai Ruo looked at the surrounding scenery and said happily, “His Majesty knew that Miss wanted to live here. He issued a decree to redecorate the courtyard three months ago. The scenery is much more exquisite than before.”

“It’s much more pleasing than before.” Shen Ninghua sat down in the pavilion beside the water. Immediately, someone brought up a charcoal basin and a curtain to block the wind. Not long after, the pavilion became warm. “Have you heard about my father recently?”

Bai Ruo paused slightly. “I heard that after Master was demoted to a commoner, he used the only money he had to rent a house in the suburb. Now he’s living there with Shen Xuanye, Shen Linghan, Shen Xuanlin, and other old members of the Shen family.”

Bai Ruo said tentatively, “Miss, I heard that because Young Master Xuanlin used to be close to you, Miss Linghan is very angry with him. She often finds an excuse and beats him. A few days ago, she even used wood to break his forehead. Fortunately, Liu Yun found it in time, and treated him with medicine and bandage. Now he is fine.”

Shen Ninghua frowned and the light in her eyes gradually dimmed. “In the end, Shen Dong is my biological father. No matter what, I can’t disregard filial piety. Go prepare some silver and gifts. We’ll go over to see him and Xuanlin by the way. If Xuanlin is willing to follow me, let Liu Yun continue to be his master and teach him.”

“Yes, Miss.” Bai Ruo was delighted. At first, she didn’t like Shen Xuanlin very much, but later on, when she came into contact with him, she felt a bit more affection for him. That child was stubborn, but if he liked you, he would wholeheartedly treat you, unlike others who tended to hide needles in silk floss.

At this time, in a courtyard on the outskirts of the city, Shen Linghan was forcefully pinching Shen Xuanlin in the arm. Her face was fierce and twisted, and she wished she could pinch a piece of meat off his body. “Humph, I thought Shen Ninghua would recognize you as her younger brother, but you’re just a cheap object that no one wants. How dare you have a tantrum? Do you believe that I would directly beat you to death here?”

Shen Xuanlin tightly pursed his lips, and his eyes glowed with anger. “Eldest Sister will recognize me. She said that as long as I am willing to follow her, she will recognize me as her younger brother!”

“Haha, she was just lying to you. Believe me, Shen Ninghua is a vicious bitch. In order to win over the hearts of people, she would say anything. Such a person should be pulled out and cut into thousands of pieces.” As Shen Linghan spoke, she kicked Shen Xuanlin in the chest, sending him to the ground.

Shen Xuanlin covered his chest and slowly got up. A piece of skin on his cheek was scratched. Blood quickly seeped out, but he did not yield. He continued to argue, “Eldest Sister is the kindest person in the world. Only you have evil intentions. It’s your own fault that made you end up like this. It was you who kept framing her. You’d better beat me to death today. If not, I will definitely kill you when I grow up and vent anger for Eldest Sister!”

Shen Linghan gritted her teeth and said, “Alright, alright, a little beast borne by a concubine dared to talk to me like this. Today, I will break your legs, smash your bones, and throw you onto the street. I would like to see how you will grow up and kill me!”

Shen Xuanlin tightened his grip on the clothes on his chest, and his eyes were filled with hatred.

Shen Linghan picked up the stick supporting the door and smashed it at Shen Xuanlin, who was now unable to get up on the ground.

Shen Xuanlin could hear the howling of wind. He gritted his teeth tightly and was prepared to endure the intense pain that ensued. But unexpectedly, he heard a tinkling sound that was followed by Shen Linghan’s painful cry.

He opened his eyes and saw Qing Que standing in front of him. His eyes were immediately filled with a resplendent light. He turned to look at the figure walking in from the door and shouted in surprise, “Eldest Sister!”

Shen Ninghua looked at Shen Xuanlin and her heart softened. This child was stubborn, but he trusted her wholeheartedly. Therefore, she would not disappoint him.

Seeing his Eldest Sister whom he had missed for a long time, Shen Xuanlin immediately ceased to care about the pain in his body. He quickly ran to Shen Ninghua and said, “Eldest Sister, I know you would come to pick me up. I haven’t heard from you for a long time. I’m so worried about you.”

Shen Ninghua grabbed his wrist and checked his pulse. Seeing that he didn’t suffer any internal injuries, she felt relieved. “Shen Linghan is crazy. You can just listen to whatever she says. Why are you so stubborn? You must have suffered a lot, right?”

Shen Xuanlin’s expression froze. “I can’t let her damage your reputation. Master Liu Yun said that a girl’s reputation is the most important thing for her. Besides, you are my Eldest Sister, so I naturally must protect you.”

Shen Ninghua touched his head. Just as she was about to say something, she heard hurried footsteps coming from the door.

Shen Dong strode over and suddenly stopped when he saw Shen Ninghua in the room. A complicated expression appeared in his eyes. “Ninghua, why are you here?”

In just three months, Shen Dong seemed to be ten years older than before, and his entire body carried a sense of senescence. “Father, I heard that you live here, so I came here specifically to visit you. I also brought some things for grandmother.”

When Old Lady Xiao heard that the Shen Mansion was confiscated, she could not stand the blow and fainted. After waking up, she was paralyzed. Now, she needed someone to feed her three meals a day.

Shen Linghan covered her wrist that was injured by Qing Que and angrily walked over to Shen Ninghua. “Shen Ninghua, it’s all because of you. Why are you still pretending to be kind? Oh, I forgot. You’re the noble Prefectural Princess. Have you come here to laugh at us?”

Without her beautiful clothes and jewelry, Shen Linghan’s original beauty was reduced by thirty percent. In addition, she now had a ferocious expression and a venomous hatred in her eyes, which almost dimmed all of her beauty.

Shen Ninghua ignored her words and turned around to tell Qing Que, “Take Xuanlin down to wash up. Also, see if he has anything to pack. Take them to the carriage and wait for me. After my visit to grandmother, we’ll go back.”

“Shen Ninghua, you bitch!” Shen Linghan was so angry that her chest was about to explode. She raised her palm and tried to slap Shen Ninghua.

Shen Ninghua grabbed her wrist and said coldly, “I don’t want to argue with you, so stay by the side obediently. Otherwise, it would be delusion to you to continue your current life in the future!” She was not a morally perfect person. After suffering what Shen Linghan did to her, even if she devoured Shen Linghan alive, it was hard to dispel the hatred in her heart. Now, she had been benevolent enough to let Shen Linghan live.

Shen Linghan abruptly pulled back her arm, turned around and ran out. “Shen Ninghua, don’t be complacent. I won’t accept it. Even if there is a sliver of hope, I will make your life worse than death!”