Volume 1 Chapter 112: Falling Ill

  The words were like a lament, enough to melt even iron and stone. Xiao Yu was young when he became the Grand Minister, and his path was marked by ruthless killings. He was cruel enough, but not made of iron and stone. Upon hearing these words, he recalled what Dr. Wen had said about her only having one year left to live, and the fingers clasped behind his back trembled slightly.

  Her demands are not high, can be said to be very humble.

  This is just a dying mother's ordinary wish to be with her child, hoping that the child will grow up safely after she dies. Maybe Zhen Shiniang was a bit exaggerated, but such selfless and desperate maternal love was laid bare in front of him, how could he bear to refuse?

  The sunlight was somewhat piercing, and Xiao Yu suddenly closed his eyes.

  Shen Zhongge had mentioned to him that the old lady would rather die than allow Zhen Shiniang to return to the General's Manor, but since he knew about the existence of these two children, he must inform Shen Zhongge. No need to guess, Shen Zhongge was filial and wouldn't dare go against the old lady. In the end, he could only bring the child back to the manor and leave the mother outside, at most giving her more compensation to comfort her...

  She has less than two years left, can he really bear to see her and her son separated again?

  If he personally took the lead, using the child to coerce Old Lady Shen into agreeing to bring her back to General's Manor... Xiang Ye couldn't help but glance at Zhen Shi Niang, directly facing a pale and weak face that seemed like it might shatter. Xiang Ye's heart involuntarily trembled slightly... Forcibly bringing her into General's Manor, aside from letting Shen Zhong Jie be stuck in the middle, being bullied by his mother, she would be worried and anxious every day, and would probably die even faster?

  Two years.

  Two years later, those two children will be around six or seven years old. At that time, returning to the General's mansion won't be too late... Thinking back and forth in his mind, Xiao Yu let out a low sigh, "Old Lady Shen can't tolerate you, and it would be inconvenient for the General if I were to bring you back to the mansion now, so I'll temporarily keep this matter hidden from them..." He changed the subject, "After the General, you must take care of yourself, don't let them suffer. And don't teach them to harbor resentment towards the General and Old Lady... Two years later, if...” he swallowed hard, not saying "if you pass away", "I will tell the General to bring them back to the General's mansion, rest assured, with the General around, they absolutely won't be bullied by anyone."

  Joke! Shen Zhongjie is a ruthless and decisive general, how could he let his own flesh and blood be harmed in the General's Mansion?

  No wonder the ancients said, a woman's hair is long but her insight is short. Just this delicate and meticulous mind that is full of doubts and suspicions is enough to give people a headache. His brother Feng was born without a mother, all these years he has been fine, who in the Zhong Tang Fu dared to hurt Brother Feng's hair?

  What I fear most is a woman's tearful plea. Afraid that his heart would soften again, Xiao Yu's words fell to the ground, and he turned to leave immediately.

  He could barely agree to help her keep those two children by her side for two years, which was already his bottom line.

  He still disagrees after all!

  Zhen Shining suddenly collapsed to the ground, and it took her a long time to come back to her senses. When she lifted her head to continue begging, Xiao Ye's figure had already disappeared outside the Moon Gate.

  Zhen Shiniang felt a chill in her heart and burst out laughing coldly.

  She is a modern person. She humbled herself to the point of kneeling and kowtowing, an act that disrespects human rights, yet it didn't move him in the slightest.

  Brothers are like hands and feet; sisters are like clothing.

  This is an ancient person. How can he be so stubborn and unenlightened?!

  The evil old society!

  Dazed, Zhen Shiniang sat on the cold snowy ground with a sense of despair that had drained her energy. After all her efforts, everything was back to square one, leaving her feeling as if all the blood in her body had been sucked out, her entire being icy cold, and the whole world seemed just as frigid. Zhen Shiniang vaguely stretched out her hand to press against the vast expanse of snow, trying to get up, but her body was so weak that she couldn't muster a single ounce of strength. She simply closed her eyes, letting her body slowly lean back.

  She's lost her strength, she's stopped struggling...

  It's great to just lie down quietly like this, with the warm sunshine right above my head. If I fall asleep like this and never wake up again, I won't have to see this chaotic world anymore, and I'll definitely be happy... She had only had a nightmare after crossing over into this place.

  "Madam, madam..." Amidst her daze, she heard Qiuju's anxious voice.

  Zhen Shining suddenly opened her eyes, only to find herself lying on the snowy ground. With a great effort, she tried to get up, but her body only moved slightly.

  At a glance, Zhen Shiniang was lying on the ground. Qiu Ju let out a sharp cry and ran over, "Milady, what's wrong?" Seeing the pale fatigue that Zhen Shiniang couldn't hide between her eyebrows, Qiu Ju suddenly remembered the time she fainted from exhaustion while making donkey-hide gelatin. Her nose turned sour, and tears fell down in a rush.

  "Shh..." Zhen Shi Niang waved her hand at her, signaling her to be quiet. "Don't speak, help me up first."

  Fu leaned on Qiu Ju's shoulder for a long time before Zhen Shi Niang felt like she was back in the world of the living. "Let's go," she said softly, pushing Qiu Ju gently.

  It wasn't until she arrived at the corridor that Zhen Shining finally calmed down completely. She asked Qiu Ju in a low voice, "How did you know I was there?"

  Qiuju looked at the busy palace maids and eunuchs around her, lowered her voice, "The slave just met Master Xiao, she asked me to go there to pick you up." Thinking of Zhen Shiniang treating Xiao Ye's mother's illness, Qiuju's face turned pale, "Master Xiao..."

  Before she could ask, Zhen Shiniang nodded, "He knows."

  "Will he...?" Qiujie suddenly stood up.

  "...He promised not to reveal Wen Ge and Wu Ge's matters within two years." Zhen Shi Niang supported her to continue walking, but Qiu Ju pulled her back, "...What about after those two years?"

  Before, she would fantasize that they would have a good life after entering the general's mansion. After witnessing the cruelty of the slaves in the general's mansion and the cunning of the old lady, Qiuju had completely understood why her mistress was determined to keep Jianwu and Jianwen's affair a secret.

  That's a fire pit, she's just a little maid who doesn't even want to come back for the second time, how can she watch Jian Wu and Jian Wen jump in with her eyes open!

  She agreed to two years, that is to say, two years later, Jian Wu and Jian Wen would still be taken into the General's Mansion, no wonder her mother had lain down in despair on the snowy ground just now.

  Chrysanthemum's tearful face turned pale in an instant.

  “……Don't worry, we still have two years to plan this matter.” Zhen Shi Niang's smile was faint, “If the general asks you how you know Mr. Xiao, just say that I and the late Mrs. Xiao were close friends, and previously, you had followed my orders to visit the Zhong Tang Fu, where you met Mr. Xiao and his wife.”

  In front of the Taihe Hall, she had already determined that Shen Zhongge had guessed that she and Xiao Ye had known each other before, or perhaps, he had already guessed that the agate hand warmer with a crane pattern was a gift from Xiao Ye.

  But with his pride, he would never take the initiative to ask her and Xiao Yu.

  Qian Shiniang's confident and peaceful gaze was as calm as ever, which comforted Qiu Ju a lot. She also knew that this wasn't the place to talk, so she quickly wiped away her tears and supported Qian Shiniang as they continued walking forward. "Just now, Master Xiao also instructed me similarly."

  Zhen Shiniang pursed her lips and remained silent.

  Entering Linhua Hall, everyone had already brought their families and sat in an orderly manner according to their official ranks. Fortunately, the emperor hadn't arrived yet, and the banquet hadn't started.

  Shen Zhongge was anxiously searching everywhere, and when he saw Zhen Shiniang supporting Qiuju entering from the side door, his face immediately fell. When the eunuch led her to his front, Shen Zhongge asked bluntly, "Where did you go again?" His deliberately lowered voice had a hint of unconcealed anger.

  This woman can't save some trouble and still has to run around everywhere after opening a banquet.

  This is the imperial court, it's different from other places.

  He had just lost her and thought something was wrong again, his heart has been hanging all along.

  I had expected him to get angry, Zhen Shining's expression was extremely obedient, "The hall is too stuffy, I'll go out for some fresh air." Her voice was soft and gentle, like the chirping of an oriole.

  Shen Zhong's impatience suddenly dissipated by more than half, he sat down with a straight face, and saw that he didn't greet her, Zhen Shiniang didn't complain, and obediently sat down beside him. She raised her head to see Cao Xiangye at the first table opposite them staring at them, so she curtsied to him, Cao Xiangye smiled and nodded slightly, his gaze shifting elsewhere.

  Eunuchs came out and shouted, "The emperor has arrived!"

  The entire hall fell silent at once, with over a hundred people holding their breath in unison.

  There was a Wan Sui, the palace feast did not have the lively atmosphere that Zhen Shiniang had imagined. Although there were cups and dishes clinking together, even the military generals deliberately lowered their voices when toasting. The palace maids and eunuchs coming and going through the banquet hall were tiptoeing around, making no sound at all. She felt like she was having a Western-style meal.

  Zhen Shining discovered another advantage of Shen Zhongge.

  Although he sat there with a cold face, ignoring her and not asking about her, he had a deep and bitter look on his face. However, when it came to the wine that was offered to toast her, he uniformly blocked it for her, showing a hint of being a good husband.

  Others drink one cup, he wants to drink two cups... Zhen Shining suspected that if this continues, the banquet won't be over yet and Shen Zhongjie will be the first to fall down.

  I don't know how good his wine is?

  Would you make a scene in front of Wan Si and all the officials?

  Always her backstage boss and protector, seeing him cover for herself like this, Zhen Shiniang couldn't help but secretly sweat a little for him. Unfortunately, her physical condition really couldn't handle wine, she wanted to show off but couldn't, so she could only hold on to the principle of "dead friends don't die in poverty" and let him go.

  Just as he was about to take a sip, there was a loud crash of the cup shattering, followed by a shrill and sharp cry, "Lord Xiang, Lord Xiang..." piercing through the entire great hall.

  All sounds suddenly disappeared, and everyone looked up to see Shen Zhongjie already standing up and running over.

  What's wrong with Lord Cao?

  Zhen Shiniang's body tensed up all of a sudden, and she also looked up.

  It was as if Anqing Hou had just offered a toast to Cao Xiangye, his body blocking the view in front of him. Zhen Shiniang couldn't see Cao Xiangye's face clearly, but vaguely saw that he was clutching his chest with one hand and convulsing violently, being supported by Mrs. Cao, who had just let out a shrill cry.

  Acute myocardial infarction!

  People with heart disease are most afraid of drinking, looking like this, thinking back to what the insiders discussed before, Cao Shangye had heart disease, Zhen Shi Niang immediately came to the conclusion that it was 80% likely that Cao Shangye's heart disease had relapsed.

  Anqing Hou had already thrown away his wine cup, and came forward to support Cao Xiang Ye on the other side, shouting loudly, "......Cao Xiang Ye's heart disease has relapsed, hurry, quickly support him to the side hall!"

  "That imperial doctor also loudly ordered, 'Summon Taizhen!'"

  Don't move him!

  Zhen Shining's whole body tensed up suddenly.

  Acute myocardial infarction is the sudden closure of the coronary artery, interruption of blood flow. When an attack occurs, it's best to let the patient lie down on the spot and remain still. Absolutely do not move them, especially do not support the patient in walking.

  Any movement will increase the burden on the heart and endanger life.

  Anqing Hou's words have committed a major taboo in the medical community!