“System! System!” As the others walked away, Shen Qingyao suddenly called out urgently for her system.
[What’s wrong, Host?]
“Don’t you think we forgot something?” Shen Qingyao’s eyes sparkled as she eagerly spoke.
[What… what do you mean?] The system was puzzled. It hadn’t noticed anything.
“Don’t you feel like it’s been a while since we drew a card? How about changing my persona setting? Let’s do it now!” Shen Qingyao clenched her small fist tightly, full of fighting spirit. “I think the cool and beautiful elder sister just now was pretty good! What do you think?”
[…I think not.]
At this moment, the system really wished it could find a mirror for its host to see herself properly. Just based on her delicate and soft appearance, she barely managed to pass off as charming and alluring last time without receiving a yellow card warning! And now she wants to be a cool beauty?
The system felt that its Host had a serious misunderstanding.
“Hmm? How about it?” Shen Qingyao was very expectant.
It’s not about how. The system rarely rolled its eyes and said, [Host, I have something to say, I’m not sure if I should…]
Shen Qingyao paused, feeling it probably wasn’t going to be something good. “Then don’t say it.”
[Okay, then I’ll say it.]
“…”
[Host, objective facts are unchangeable, you know? So we must respect objective laws, respect facts, and be realistic. Can you understand?]
“…” What on earth?
“Can you say something in human language?” Shen Qingyao had black lines all over her face, her excitement dampened by half.
[It means, can you really play the role of a cool elder sister? Do you have the objective conditions for that? Can you pull off the cool vibe? How can a cool elder sister be 1.5 meters tall? Would you stand on a small stool to act cool?]
“…” A small stool? Shen Qingyao’s fists tightened.
A man may die, but not his words! Why did it say she was only 1.5 meters tall!
“You’re only 1.5 meters tall!” Shen Qingyao stomped her foot in anger. Though she wasn’t tall, she definitely wasn’t short! If the system had a physical form now, she would probably have dragged it out and beaten it up long ago.
“Complain! I want to complain! This system still suspected of personal attacks!!”
[…] If you’re going to complain after being found out, can you handle this game?
The incident in the silver jewelry shop quickly reached Lu Zhao. When he returned that evening, his face was dark, almost as if he had written “I’m very angry” on it.
He rarely brought home negative emotions, so when Shen Qingyao saw him like this, her small heart skipped a beat.
“Elder Brother Lu Zhao…” She cautiously called out. Lu Zhao just made a noncommittal sound, not like usual where he would immediately embrace her when he came home. It seemed he was truly very angry.
Shen Qingyao paused for a moment, then took the initiative to grab his sleeve pitifully and said softly, “Elder Brother Lu Zhao, I was wrong…”
At these words, Lu Zhao finally looked at her, lowering his head to look at her. “What?”
Seeing that he finally responded, Shen Qingyao quickly started listing her ‘crimes,’ like shouldn’t have gone out, shouldn’t have run around, shouldn’t have meddled, and so on, listing everything she could think of.
Lu Zhao had indeed been somewhat angry before, but not because of what she was saying. He watched as the little girl earnestly listed off one by one, lowering her head with each point, looking like a dejected little rabbit with drooping ears.
Lu Zhao watched her for a while, and the anger that wasn’t originally directed at her suddenly subsided quite a bit.
He reached out, pulled the distressed young girl into his arms, sighed, and softly said, “I’m not angry at you.”
“Hmm?” Shen Qingyao lifted her head from his embrace. So he’s angry at that bully!
Shen Qingyao immediately stopped pretending to be pitiful. She leaned against Lu Zhao’s chest and recounted what happened during the day once again. Although Lu Zhao already knew, he continued to listen, his eyes growing colder and colder.
Especially when he heard that Secretary Huang dared to think about touching Shen Qingyao, the chill in his eyes almost materialized.
He gently patted Shen Qingyao’s back to comfort her, but his eyes narrowed dangerously. He had originally planned to give that person more time, but now that person seemed determined to court his own death, and Lu Zhao could fulfill that wish…
A few days later, Shen Qingyao suddenly heard that Secretary Huang and the former Governor of Lingnan, Lord Qi, were caught by Lu Zhao for embezzling silver, seizing land, and attempting to assassinate imperial officials. When they went to arrest them, Secretary Huang was still frolicking with his lover in a brothel. When the officers burst in, they nearly scared him to death.
After hearing this, Shen Qingyao burst into laughter in Lu Zhao’s arms for quite a while. In the end, Lu Zhao had to forcibly stop her laughter for fear that she would hurt herself.
After pulling out the radishes and bringing out the mud, after Secretary Huang and Qi Yunchuan were captured, Lu Zhao did not forget that behind the assassination attempt, there was still Xiao Jing. Taking advantage of this case, Lu Zhao also bit off several ministers in the court who seemed neutral but were secretly leaning towards Xiao Jing, angering Xiao Jing to the point where he smashed many precious porcelain vases in the King’s Mansion in the capital…
Later, the several criminals were escorted back to the capital, and the incident of Shen Qingyao’s assassination on the river could no longer be concealed. It truly frightened the Shen Qingli couple who had not yet departed from the capital. For a while, letters inquiring about Shen Qingyao’s condition flooded in from the Shen family, the Fifth Prince’s Mansion, and the Duke’s Mansion, urgently delivered over the eight hundred li, with horses whipped to their limits, to Lingnan.
After Shen Qingyao opened another batch of condolences that came with her Eldest Brother’s letter, she sighed deeply and looked at the boxes on the ground. Unexpectedly, in her lifetime, she could experience once again the joy of unpacking packages after a Double Eleven frenzy1.
Well, it wasn’t entirely joyous.
Because apart from Shen Qingli occasionally remembering to send her some little trinkets, almost everything else sent by others were medicinal herbs.
Shen Qingyao shed bitter tears over the jars of medicine.
“How much more do I have left to read?” Shen Qingyao’s eyes were lifeless, no longer filled with the excitement she had upon hearing that gifts had arrived from the capital. She just wanted to end this pain as soon as possible.
Cui Qiao covered her mouth and laughed secretly. After seriously recalling for a moment, she said, “Today’s deliveries are all here. As for the rest…”
She paused, carefully checking Shen Qingyao’s expression. Seeing Shen Qingyao’s look of ‘tell me, I can handle it,’ she couldn’t help but laugh even more joyfully, then continued, “There are several carts left. They are all gifts from Master, Madam, and the Princess Consort. Those items are bulky, so they are arriving slower than this batch. They should arrive in a few more days.”
Several carts…
Shen Qingyao looked miserable.
When Lu Zhao entered the door, he happened to see the little girl’s tearful expression, unable to cry. He couldn’t help but ask in confusion, “What’s wrong?”
—Wasn’t she happily preparing to open the gifts from the capital this morning? Are the gifts not to her liking?
Lu Zhao discreetly glanced at the various boxes that had already been opened, and upon seeing the contents inside, he understood.
“Husband…”
As soon as Shen Qingyao saw him, she pouted and crawled up from the ground into his arms, wrapping her arms tightly around Lu Zhao’s waist.
Lu Zhao raised an eyebrow. Since she had taken the initiative to call him ‘Husband,’ it seemed she was feeling very wronged. He couldn’t help but smile.
“Look at them! They’re treating our home like a warehouse!! What is all this stuff!”
The little girl pouted with her head down, clearly dissatisfied.
Lu Zhao patted her gently and smiled, “You don’t know how long your Eldest Brother has saved up to gather all these spirit medicines. Ordinary people couldn’t even dream of obtaining them, yet you’re complaining…”
“Who needs all these useless things! If I eat all of these, I’ll either die from overeating or burst from too much nourishment! Ah…”
Before finishing her sentence, Shen Qingyao was lightly tapped on the head by Lu Zhao, causing her to cry out in pain and cover her forehead. She knew she had upset him again by talking about death, so she stuck out her tongue and changed the subject immediately.
Though her expression showed defiance, she actually understood well enough. Knowing that all these things were sent by Shen Yushu, she complained that her Eldest Brother was too insensitive to understand what his little sister really wanted!
But she knew her family in the capital cared for her, fearing she might be frightened, hence they sent so many things to Lingnan in a frenzy. It was all just talk; deep down, she was happy to receive such care.
She slouched back into Lu Zhao’s arms, her voice muffled as she asked, “Elder Brother Lu Zhao, why did you come back so early today? Are you finished with work?”
During this period, in order to quickly settle things with Qi Yunchuan and Secretary Huang while also dealing a blow to Xiao Jing, Lu Zhao had been leaving early and returning late, losing weight from exhaustion. One day, Shen Qingyao touched the stubble he had grown due to fatigue and felt intense heartache. With the matters settled, he could finally rest properly for a few days.
Lu Zhao nodded, but it wasn’t as relaxed as Shen Qingyao had imagined.
“Elder Brother Lu Zhao? Has something happened again?” Shen Qingyao became nervous.
“Why are you so tense?” Lu Zhao smiled again, leading her towards the house as he explained, “A month ago, Nanzhao submitted a marriage proposal. The Emperor has now approved it. The Princess from Nanzhao for the marriage will arrive in a few days, and the envoy from Nanzhao is already on their way.”
“So soon?” Shen Qingyao was surprised but then quickly understood. The timing was just right. When Nanzhao sent their proposal, they were still in Ningcheng. By the time they reached Lingnan, everything regarding the marriage would have been finalized, making it reasonable for them to arrive in these next few days.
Lingnan was at the border of the two countries, so both parties would have to enter the city for the marriage arrangements. The marriage between the two countries concerned their diplomatic relations, and it just so happened that Lu Zhao encountered it, which was indeed quite tiring.
Sighing, Shen Qingyao felt sorry that Lu Zhao would be too busy to accompany her again, but suddenly she thought of something…
“Wait, a Princess for marriage? There are no suitable princesses left in Great Liang!”
“In the royal family, among the nobles and ministers, there will always be someone suitable to be appointed as a Princess,” Lu Zhao explained softly. “Moreover, this time the candidate for marriage was specified by the King of Nanzhao…”
Lu Zhao’s expression turned somewhat complicated as he spoke.
Shen Qingyao hesitated for a moment and asked in confusion, “Do I know that person…?”
Otherwise, why would he have such an expression?
She became alert, then thought again. Her Eldest Sister was already married. It wouldn’t matter who the new princess was, as long as it wasn’t her Eldest Sister. She relaxed, thinking that she knew hardly any noblewomen in the capital…
…Hardly any?
Shen Qingyao suddenly gasped, realizing something unbelievable. “It can’t be Princess Yonghe, can it?”
Was she the one specified by the King of Nanzhao? How could this be?
Lu Zhao nodded, confirming it.
“Indeed, Princess Yonghe.”
Shen Qingyao’s expression was surreal. She couldn’t quite understand how the King of Nanzhao was connected to Princess Yonghe. Moreover…
“Doesn’t Princess Yonghe like Xiao Jing?”
- November 11 is celebrated as Single’s Day in China. It can also be said to be Online Shopping Day, as usually there are huge promotions and discounts on online shopping platforms. Double Eleven frenzy should be referring to buying things online in a frenzy, which means she would receive packages on the next few days. ↩︎
Thanks for the chapter!!!!