Translator – Xiao He Lian
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Chapter 141 Zhou Shu’an x Shen Shu 4
The autumn wind was bleak, the forest trees rustled, and fallen yellow leaves scattered over the bluestone road, layered upon layer.
Shen Wenqi placed Zhou Shu’an’s household registration record into his sleeve and walked out of the Court of Judicial Review, his mood complex along the way.
After dinner, Shen Wenqi knocked on Shen Shu’s door.
“Shu Shu.”
The door slowly opened.
“Father, is there something you need?”
Shen Wenqi nodded, entered the room, sat down, and gestured for the nearby maids to leave, “You may all go for now.”
Qingli bowed and led the others out.
Once the room was empty, Shen Wenqi sighed.
“I never knew you were hiding so much in your heart.”
Shen Shu froze and waited for him to continue.
After a pause, Shen Wenqi said, “After court today, I first visited the Ministry of Justice, then made a trip to the Dali Temple”
He looked closely at Shen Shu, “No wonder you rejected him so decisively. So this is the truth…”
Upon hearing this, Shen Shu felt her forehead throb.
She thought to herself: This is exactly what makes that man so infuriating.
Everything he said yesterday could’ve been lies, yet the evidence is all there. As long as someone digs, it all checks out.
Facing her father’s deeply pained expression, Shen Shu felt a wave of helplessness, as if nothing she said could clear herself.
Shen Wenqi pulled the registration record from his sleeve and handed it to her, “Take a look.”
Shen Shu opened it, her heart tightening involuntarily.
She could almost hear Li Di’s voice in her ears: “Shu Shu, you investigated me?”
“She’s called He Wanru, isn’t she? Your cousin?”
“Yes, she was my first wife.”
Some memories are like old wounds—no longer painful on the surface, yet once touched, they still remind you of what it felt like to be stabbed.
Thinking of this, Shen Shu clutched the record and said with a trembling voice, “What if this has been tampered with too?”
“This time, I will have someone investigate thoroughly,” Shen Wenqi said gently, noticing her furrowed brow. “Shu Shu, no one will force you. I can see his feelings for you run deep. It’s definitely not…”
He nearly said Li Di, but swallowed the words.
When Shen Shu fell into the water years ago, the incident was known throughout the city by the very next day. Those so-called scholars even wrote countless poems about it.
Li Di wandered outside the gates of the Yunyang Marquis Estate every day, looking all pitiful and passionate—but in Shen Wenqi’s eyes, it was just pressure to force a marriage. Compared to that, Zhou Shu’an’s words from yesterday—
“I know she is constrained by public opinion and propriety. I cannot bear to pressure her. After much thought, I returned the betrothal gifts to the storeroom.”
No wonder Shen Wenqi would say his feelings ran deep.
He coughed lightly into his fist. “Shu Shu, it’s easy to meet morning and evening, but mutual affection is rare. Consider it carefully. Whatever you decide, I’ll support you.”
With that, he patted her shoulder and walked out.
“Feelings run deep; mutual affection is rare.”
Staring at the household registration on her desk, Shen Shu was momentarily speechless.
She could only reach one conclusion: Her father really had earned his place as Minister of Works through sheer capability.
Qingli, seeing her mistress sigh and press her forehead, whispered, “Now that things have reached this point, do you have a plan, Miss?”
Shen Shu turned her gaze to the paper window.
She knew clearly—Zhou Shu’an had gone this far, meaning he was determined to marry her.
But she…
Suddenly, she stood up, “Qingli, prepare the horses. Come with me—we’re going out.”
Qingli asked, “Where are we going, Miss?”
Shen Shu replied, “To the Zhou Residence.”
Rather than overthinking without conclusion, she decided to go and speak directly.
Qingli opened her mouth in shock. “Miss, you’re going personally? That… that’s improper.”
Shen Shu curved her lips slightly and murmured so faintly it was barely audible: “There’s nothing proper between me and him anymore.”
Qingli didn’t hear clearly, “Miss, what did you say?”
“Nothing. Let’s go.”
The autumn wind picked up, and soon, the rain began to fall in a fine drizzle.
The carriage passed through narrow alleys as the rain intensified. Hooves splashed against the bluestone path. The driver tugged the reins, “We’ve arrived.”
Not far away, the plaque read Zhou Residence.
Qingli held an oil-paper umbrella over Shen Shu’s head and whispered, “I’ll go knock on the door.”
Shen Shu pulled her cloak tighter. “We’re not using the main entrance.”
The two of them circled around to a side door. Shen Shu knocked. After a long pause, someone opened it.
Steward Yu saw it was a woman and was startled, “Miss, you are…”
“I am Shen Shu, daughter of Shen Wenqi, Minister of Works. I need to speak with Lord Zhou. Please announce me.”
The steward quickly stepped aside, “Please come in.”
He dared not stop her—after all, the betrothal gifts meant for the Shen family were still locked in the East Garden storeroom of the Zhou residence.
As they passed through the veranda, Qingxi whispered, “Why is it so empty here? Aside from the steward, there’s no one around.”
Shen Shu was puzzled as well.
How could the residence of a third-rank official be so quiet? Sparse decor was one thing, but why was there not even a maid to sweep the floor on a rainy day?
Soon, they arrived at the study.
Steward Yu turned and said, “Please wait a moment, Miss.”
He entered the room and whispered something.
Zhou Shu’an frowned, “Are you certain?”
“Absolutely.”
Zhou Shu’an rose and opened the door.
There stood Shen Shu, truly standing in his courtyard.
Rain struck the umbrella above her, creating ripples.
Zhou Shu’an was stunned, “Come in quickly.”
The door creaked shut behind them. Zhou Shu’an looked at her and asked gently, “Why come at this hour?”
“I have something to say to you.” Shen Shu replied.
Zhou Shu’an instinctively avoided her gaze.
He had countless ways to make her marry him and didn’t mind trying repeatedly—but hearing her personally reject him still stung.
“Speak,” he said in a low voice.
“Does Lord Zhou wish to marry me out of a fleeting impulse, or has this been long in the making?”
Zhou Shu’an looked directly at her, “Long in the making.”
His directness relieved some of the frustration in her chest, “Lord Zhou is over thirty, yet has no wife or child. May I ask why?”
Zhou Shuan said, “I was born in a humble family, and my ancestors had no support. My grandfather raised me alone. The laws of my dynasty stipulate that civilians without official positions must perform corvée or military service. My grandfather didn’t want me to wield a gun or a stick, and he always told me that if I excel in education, I will become an official, and if I don’t have an official position, I can’t start a family, so I studied hard for more than ten years.”
Shen Shu continued, “You were appointed as Zhuangyuan[mfn] (top imperial scholar)[/mfn] by the emperor and soon became the MInister of the Dali Temple. Isn’t a third-rank official sufficient to start a family?”
“All scholars dream of purple sashes and golden robes, of glory and honor for their wife and children,” Zhou Shu’an said.
“Marriage and career—I did think about it. But this is Chang’an. Even a random person on the street could be from a powerful family. I must always be mindful of why I was chosen.”
“In my first year as the MInister of the Dali Temple, I survived seven assassination attempts. People broke into prisons, escaped from them… Any mistake, and someone would report me to the emperor.”
Shen Shu was stunned.
She knew Zhou Shu’an’s rise was never easy.
Her heart trembled—then stilled.
But she had caught the words she needed to hear: “glory and honor for one’s wife and children.”
“Thank you, Lord Zhou, for your honesty.”
Zhou Shu’an raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to go on.
“Your power is no longer what it once was. The day you bring glory to your wife and family is not far off,” she said calmly, raising her eyes.
“But I… do not have the fortune to be your wife.”
“Why not?”
Shen Shu spoke slowly and clearly: “Though Li Di and I long severed our marital bond, we were once loving spouses, harmonious in all ways. I always wanted a child—but never conceived.”
She admitted: the talk of affection and wanting a child—those were deliberate.
But that was her life—a life she couldn’t change.
She thought today’s words would be enough to make Zhou Shu’an give up.
What she didn’t expect was for that tall, upright figure to take a step toward her.
He wrapped her in his arms.
And gently said, “It doesn’t matter.
