Translator – Xiao He Lian
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Chapter 123
Note from Author – (Third Young Lady Xu is not Empress Xu.)
The moment Third Young Lady Xu raised her eyes, she met Shen Yao’s gaze.
She stopped, her face gradually turned pale, and as if she suddenly remembered something. She took Xu Yiqing’s hand and left.
Shen Yao’s eyes became darker and darker.
Even if she didn’t meet her at the Lantern Festival, she would have gone to find her. It would be great if she could meet her this way.
Third Young Lady Xu walked hurriedly, pushing the people who were walking slowly to admire the lanterns with her arm. Shen Yao took the short bow from behind her, loaded the arrow in full view of everyone, pulled the bow, closed her left eye slightly, and flicked the bow with her fingertips.
With a sound of “tsk”——
The arrow pierced through Third Young Lady Xu’s hair and, with a “thump”, hit a wooden stake.
Xu Yiqing’s eyes widened, “Third sister, what’s going on!”
Not only Xu Yiqing, Shen Zhen was also terrified. She whispered, “Second sister, what are you doing?”
Shen Yao said to Miao Qi and Miao Li, “Look after Hong’er.”
Third Young Lady Xu wanted to leave again, but Shen Yao shouted at her in the middle of the street: “Stop!”
Shen Shu and Shen Zhen followed Shen Yao and walked towards Third Young Lady Xu.
Third Young Lady Xu said with trembling fingertips: “Shen Yao.”
Shen Yao looked at her and smiled, “Do you think you can call me by my name?” No matter whether she was a real princess or a fake one, the title of Princess Yonghe was bestowed by the Emperor himself.
Seeing that there were many people around, Third Young Lady Xu clenched her fists and pretended to be calm, “Your Highness, you are holding a bow in the street. This is not putting the government in the least bit in your eyes?”
Hearing the whispers, Third Young Lady Xu glanced at Shen Zhen again and said slowly, “No wonder. I almost forgot that today the chief patrol officers of the streets are from Jingzhao Prefecture.”
This was a way of hinting to everyone to think about the relationship between Shen Zhen and Lu Yan.
Shen Yao said word by word: “Xu Yining, was it you who sent someone to push my sister into the Qujiang River that year?”
Third Young Lady Xu subconsciously denied: “What does this have to do with me?”
Shen Yao asked again: “What about the female interpreter who was personally sent to the Marquis’ Mansion?”
Third Young Lady Xu avoided her gaze and said, “I don’t know what Your Highness is talking about.”
Shen Yao sneered, drew the bow again, and pointed the cold arrow directly at Xu Yining’s forehead, just like how Lehman had pointed at her forehead on the grassland many years ago.
Xu Yining’s heart was pounding, but she was sure that Shen Yao would not dare to do anything, so she raised her neck and said, “If you want to accuse someone of a crime, you can always find a pretext. Princess Yonghe wants my life, so you can take it away.”
Shen Yao said calmly: “Why do I want your life?”
Xu Yining’s pupils trembled slightly, “Then why do you still do this? Just to humiliate me?”
The hard arrow pressed tightly against the girl’s flesh. Shen Yao smiled and said, “Xu Yining, I’ll give you a choice.”
Xu Yining made a swallowing motion.
Shen Yao at this moment was completely different from Shen Yao four years ago.
Xu Yining had no idea what she was thinking.
Shen Yao said calmly, “Tonight is the Lantern Festival. The city gates and the town gates are all open. I’ll give you one night to run and leave Chang’an.”
Xu Yining’s lips trembled slightly, and she asked again, “Or else what?”
Shen Yao said: “If you don’t run away, I will take you back to the grassland and present you to the Uighur man.”
Upon hearing that it was the grassland, Third Young Lady Xu was a little overwhelmed, and said in despair: “Yao Yao, I am also innocent. I had no choice. You shouldn’t put this account on me.”
“Innocent?” Shen Yao suddenly shouted at the top of her lungs: “Then tell me, who in our Shen family is not innocent?”
Shen Yao looked into Third Young Lady Xu’s eyes and smiled softly, saying: “I will take you to the grassland to have a look. I have to let you know that the Xu family has gone too far. As for whether you can survive or not, it all depends on your own abilities.”
Xu Yiqing’s eyes also turned red as she said, “What kind of choice is this? This is clearly forcing her into a dead end.”
Shen Yao looked at Yiqing and said slowly: “I remember you just turned sixteen this year, very good.”
When Shen Zhen was desperate, she was the same age as her.
Everyone said that the third daughter of the Shen family was lucky to have won the favor of the young master of Zhenguo Duke Mansion. But who knew how helpless the daughter of the marquis, who had been raised in the palm of his hand, felt when she was taken in as a mistress by a strange man and lived in that world to please him.
Wasn’t she afraid?
Wasn’t she desperate?
Shen Yao raised her arm back, collected the arrow, and said to the two of them: “Come on, start running.”
Xu Yining and Xu Yiqing did not move for a long time.
“If you don’t run, I’ll take it as your consent to follow me to the north.”
Their eyes met, and Shen Yao’s serious and earnest eyes aroused Xu Yiqing’s fear. She pulled Xu yiqing, turned around and ran towards the direction of Xu Mansion.
When Shen Yao returned to the stall, her eyes suddenly turned red, and it seemed as if all her strength had been drained from her body.
Did she feel any pleasure when she used an arrow to point at the forehead of Third Young Lady Xu?
She did.
But the happiness was fleeting, and what overcame more was a feeling of powerlessness that surged from every part of my body.
The disaster that happened in the 16th year of Yuanqing made everyone in the Shen family feel suffocated.
Shen Wenqi felt guilty day and night, blaming himself for participating in party disputes and bringing harm to his family.
But was he wrong?
He had served as the Crown Prince’s Assistant and the Crown Prince’s Secretary. With such a background, even if he didn’t want to get involved in party struggles, could he stay away from it?
Shen Shu also blamed herself, blaming herself for not judging people well enough and letting a wolf into the house.
But how could the seventeen-year-old Shen Shu guess that Empress Xu had made such a big move behind her back?
Even Shen Zhen was blaming himself.
She blamed herself for not being able to think of any other solution except giving up her dignity.
It was only when the sixteen-year-old Shen Zhen’s family fell into poverty that she realized that music, chess, calligraphy and painting could not save the Shen family, and that propriety, righteousness, integrity and shame could not even save her younger brother’s life.
However, the revenge has been avenged.
But at what cost?
After everything returned to silence, the crowd of onlookers dispersed, egrets in the sky turned into flowers, dragons spit water, and the long street became lively again.
Shen Hong looked at Shen Yao who had not moved in a long time and said, “Second sister, won’t you buy a peace lantern for second brother-in-law?”
Hearing this, Shen Yao nodded dully, “Okay, then buy one.”
After a while, Shen Shu looked at the lantern in Shen Zhen’s hand and said, “Send it over when you’re done.”
Shen Zhen glanced at Shen Yao, took her arm and said, “I want to stay here with my second sister.”
Shen Yao snorted and laughed, “Stop it, stop using me as an excuse, go quickly and come back early, Miao Li, Miao Qi, you go with her.”
Shen Zhen hesitated to leave, so Shen Shu said, “Come on, go quickly. If you have anything to say, we can talk about it when you get back home.”
One has to say that Lu Yan was really miserable tonight. All officials had a day off during the Lantern Festival, but the Jingzhao Prefecture and the Jinwu Guards were extremely busy. “
There are a total of 109 squares in Chang’an. Today, all four gates were open all night long. He doesn’t know how many troubles will arise. Minor incidents will be fine, the Jinwu Guards can step forward to mediate.
But the difficulty lies in that sometimes those who caused trouble were princes, princesses, powerful people and wealthy people. If one doesn’t have any background, even the officials dare not say anything.
This is why the Emperor was unwilling to transfer Lu Yan away from Jingzhao Prefecture.
As soon as Shen Zhen left, Shen Yao bought a lantern and whispered, “Sister, she will get married in two months.”
“Yes.” The evening breeze blew by, Shen Shu smiled and looked up, only to see several men walking towards her from the opposite direction…
Shen Shu frowned and looked at Shen Yao who was standing opposite her in panic.
Shen Yao didn’t understand what was going on. Just as she was about to turn around to look, Shen Shu grabbed her hand and said, “Yaoyao.”
Instinctively, Shen Yao froze and called out helplessly, “Sister…”
She vaguely guessed that the person might be standing behind her.
Shen Yao held her breath.
Then, a male voice came from behind, “Master Sui?”
“Little Brother Yu, are the lanterns that good?”
“Hey, why are you in a daze, what are you looking at?”
