Chapter 11: Plaque Hitting the Head

　　As the night deepened, a drizzle covered the capital and evening mist gradually rose.

　　Jiang Feng had just seen the palm print on Shen Yuan's face.

　　Her beautiful face, as bright as a lotus, is only the size of a palm. Although her eyebrows and eyes are delicate, there is always a certain slender, soft and fragile feeling in her.

　　Shen Yuan's skin was as delicate as fresh snow, thin and translucent. If one looked at her face a little closer, one would feel as if it would break if touched lightly with one's fingertips.

　　Such a delicate beauty should be held in the palm of her hand and pampered.

　　Who on earth is so cruel that he could do such a thing to this face?

　　Not to mention, women dress up to please themselves.

　　What girls care about most is their face.

　　Being scolded by his father was an embarrassing thing to talk about, and Shen Yuan couldn't come up with a suitable reason at the moment.

　　After Lu Zhiyun asked, she lowered her eyes slightly, her hand still on her cheek, not moving down.

　　Seeing that Shen Yuan didn't say anything, Lu Zhiyun glanced coldly at Bi Wu beside her.

　　Biwu shuddered suddenly.

　　Anyone who sees Lu Zhiyun will be scared to death.

　　So Bi Wu told everything under Lu Zhiyun's gaze -

　　"The Marquis may have misunderstood our girl. He thought that every time she left the house, she was meeting the widower secretly... That's why... That's why he slapped our girl."

　　As soon as Bi Wu opened her mouth, Shen Yuan looked at her with a frown, signaling her not to continue.

　　But once the conversation starts, there is no way to take it back.

　　Shen Yuan thought again and realized that there was actually nothing to hide from Lu Zhiyun.

　　"widower?"

　　Lu Zhiyun read the word again, his stern eyes slightly mocking, but he sneered: "Shen Hongliang is a good family manager."

　　Lu Zhiyun did not call Shen Hongliang "Marquis of Yong'an", and his tone was full of irony.

　　Hearing what he said, Shen Yuan suddenly remembered that in her previous life, Lu Zhiyun married her spirit tablet.

　　This kind of marriage with a spirit tablet can also be considered a ghost marriage.

　　She had died by then, so if you really count it, Lu Zhiyun was really a widower in his previous life.

　　Although she and Lu Chen had been husband and wife for more than half a year, they were only in name only. And ever since Lu Chen left Shen Yuan alone in the empty room, she no longer considered Lu Chen as her husband.

　　However, after knowing that Lu Zhiyun married her spirit tablet, Shen Yuan began to regard the man as the official who had been her husband and wife.

　　Thinking of this, Shen Yuan finally moved his slender hand from his right cheek.

　　Even though she applied a thick layer of powder, that half of her face was still swollen, and now it looked like it was turning purple.

　　Shen Yuan could clearly feel that Lu Zhiyun seemed to want to raise his hand and touch her cheek at this moment.

　　But the man raised his hand slightly and then put it down.

　　Recently, when she was teaching Liao Ge'er, she had not had the chance to see Lu Zhiyun.

　　Shen Yuan even thought that maybe in this life, because of her various proactive actions, Lu Zhiyun might no longer have any feelings for her.

　　However, after seeing his actions just now, Shen Yuan felt vaguely in her heart that he might still like her a little.

　　Shen Yuan's eyes were still slightly red, and it was obvious that he had been crying.

　　But now she has regained her former peace and gentleness.

　　Although her expression was weak, there was no trace of resentment in her.

　　Her parents have not been around since she was born.

　　In addition to her cousin Tang Yulin, Luo also has a son and a daughter.

　　Shen Yuan was not Luo's biological son, so when he was raised in Yangzhou, he naturally had his own set of survival skills.

　　She has never had the right to throw tantrums with adults.

　　Even if she really got angry, no one would comfort her or care about her.

　　After returning to normal, Shen Yuan asked softly, "Sir, where is Brother Liao? Doesn't he want to see me?"

　　Jiang Feng then added, "The lantern festival during the Qiqiao Festival is the most lively, with flower and grass competitions, lotus lanterns and hanging balls, there are too many things to do. Brother Liao must be pestering my brother Jiang Zhuo again, I wonder where he is having fun."

　　After hearing this, Shen Yuan was surprised.

　　Lu Zhiyun said in a deep voice: "Naughty."

　　Jiang Feng looked at his master's serious face and the corner of his mouth twitched.

　　Then he said to the two of them, "Master, Miss Shen, why don't you two go on a pleasure boat together first, along the river, maybe you can find Brother Liao."

　　Lu Zhiyun was still holding the umbrella for Shen Yuan. He looked down at Shen Yuan calmly.

　　Shen Yuan hesitated slightly, but finally nodded under the man's gaze.

　　Beside the river, the market was filled with carriages and horses, and the streets were filled with gorgeous silks.

　　Under the warm orange light of the light trees, the water surface shimmered and a spacious pleasure boat slowly sailed over.

　　Lu Zhiyun was the first to enter the houseboat.

　　Shen Yuan followed behind him. She saw that the pleasure boat was still some distance away from the shore and she didn't know how deep the river was, so she showed a little fear on her face.

　　The boatman was a man without good taste. Just as he was about to help the fragile beauty, Jiang Feng gave him a cold look.

　　The boatman had no choice but to withdraw his hand in disappointment.

　　When Shen Yuan was lifting her skirt slightly and was about to board the pleasure boat by herself, she saw Lu Zhiyun coming out of the pleasure boat again and extending his hand to her.

　　Lu Zhiyun didn't say a word, but Shen Yuan could see that he wanted to help her onto the boat himself.

　　Shen Yuan hesitated for a moment, but still stretched out his hand as if exploring.

　　Before she could react, the man's large hand with distinct finger bones had already grasped her hand.

　　Shen Yuan learned to play the pipa in Yangzhou and claimed to have slender hands, but Lu Zhiyun's hands were still much bigger than hers.

　　The man's palm is broad, rough and warm to the touch.

　　Shen Yuan could also feel that there was a deep scar at the base of Lu Zhiyun's palm, and the scar should have extended to his arm.

　　As soon as Lu Zhiyun held Shen Yuan's hand, the throbbing feeling in her heart disappeared.

　　She let Lu Zhiyun lead her into the houseboat.

　　——

　　The drizzle stopped for a while, and the moist air was still filled with the fragrance of hibiscus and jasmine.

　　Lu Chen was strolling around the night market with Shen Yu in a listless manner, but Shen Yu looked very excited. She stopped at various shops along the street and bought a lot of things.

　　A waiter from a nearby tavern set up a ladder and was repairing his own signboard on the street.

　　Shen Yu finally came out of the cosmetics shop nearby. Seeing Lu Chen's cold expression, she smiled and held the man's arm, and asked softly, "Chen Lang, you seem to be unhappy recently. What's wrong?"

　　Lu Chen shook his head and did not respond to Shen Yu's question.

　　Seeing him like this again, Shen Yu curled his lips.

　　Lu Chen had an excellent appearance, with a tall figure, beautiful eyes, and a cold and noble demeanor.

　　Those phoenix eyes were very gentle and had a hint of melancholy.

　　Young girls would like men with his looks the most.

　　Lu Chen passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi in his first attempt.

　　Among the children of noble families in the capital, few are as outstanding as him.

　　Shen Yu's liking for Lu Chen was naturally based on Lu Chen's appearance, family background, title, and talent.

　　When Lu Chen looked at Shen Yu, his expression was indifferent.

　　He always felt that since she returned home safely, she was no longer as bright and lovely as before.

　　And his feelings towards her had quietly changed at some point.

　　——"Young Master, be careful!"

　　Before Lu Chen and Shen Yu could react, they heard a loud "boom".

　　Then, the huge plaque was seen flying towards Lu Chen.

　　But even though Lu Chen successfully dodged it, the corner of the archway still hit his back.

　　"ah!"

　　After Shen Yu let out a sharp scream, Lu Chen fainted on the ground in front of her.

　　——

　　Earl's Palace.

　　The room was filled with the bitter smell of medicine and blood. Mrs. Lu was lying on the head of the bed, looking at her unconscious only son, still crying.

　　Lu Chen was his only child, and his father died on the battlefield, so their line was awarded a title by the court.

　　Therefore, since Lu Chen was young, Mrs. Lu never allowed him to wield swords or guns. Anyway, the Qi Dynasty was relatively peaceful now, so Mrs. Lu thought that it would be good for Lu Chen to be a civil servant.

　　"Yuan'er...Yuan'er..."

　　Hearing Lu Chen finally make a sound, Lu immediately raised her head and looked at him with concern: "Brother Chen, you finally woke up. Mother was so worried!"

　　But Lu Chen still had his eyes closed, his lips were pale, and he showed no signs of waking up.

　　He only murmured: "Yuan'er... I was wrong, I wrongly blamed you... I failed to protect you..."

　　After hearing this, Mrs. Lu's expression suddenly changed.

　　Could it be that her brother Chen was hit by the archway and became stupid?

　　——

　　Taihua Palace.

　　The buildings in the Palace are solemn and majestic, and the palace buildings with double-eaved hipped roofs are neat and compact, which makes people feel fearful when they are inside.

　　After the court session, Shen Hongliang had just passed through the Meridian Gate with his colleagues when an unfamiliar eunuch came up to him and whispered something in his ear.

　　After hearing the eunuch's words, Shen Hongliang's expression suddenly changed.

　　He immediately exchanged greetings with his colleagues, and then headed to the intermediate hall in fear.

　　Lu Zhiyun himself is the chief minister of the cabinet and also the grand secretary of the intermediate palace.

　　The emperor was still young, and Lu Zhiyun, as the regent, would often stay in the intermediate hall after court to review memorials.

　　This is also where he usually convenes cabinet ministers for meetings.

　　The sun was shining brightly that day, and it could be described as extremely hot.

　　When Shen Hongliang arrived at the intermediate hall, he was sweating profusely under the scorching sun. He didn't know how long he had been waiting, nor could he guess what Lu Zhiyun wanted to do with him.

　　As he was wiping the sweat off his face, he caught a glimpse of a group of officials walking towards the intermediate hall.

　　When Shen Hongliang followed his gaze, he saw Lu Zhiyun standing not far from him.

　　The man was dressed in a dignified and majestic scarlet official robe. He was tall and straight, and his cold and majestic eyes gave off an invisible sense of oppression when he looked at people.

　　Shen Hongliang's heart skipped a few beats, and he hurriedly said respectfully, "Gentleman...Gentleman."

　　Even though Lu Zhiyun's face is still young and handsome, his actual age is more than ten years younger than Shen Hongliang.

　　But every time Shen Hongliang saw Lu Zhiyun, he would inexplicably feel like he was someone's grandson.

　　Something was finally going to be wrong with him.

　　The reason why Lu Zhiyun left him alone for so long was actually to warn him.

　　Shen Hongliang was confused.

　　He really couldn't figure out what he had done to offend Lu Zhiyun?