Chapter 72: with translation of chapter title

Madam Liu saw the dragon-patterned jade pendant in Shen Shuangning's hand, startled, snatched it up, examined it closely, and exclaimed in shock, "Could it really be a gift from the Emperor?"

Shen Shuangning leaned against her mother's shoulder and smiled, "Yes, the Emperor saw how hard I worked and gave me this."

Madam Liu instantly burst with joy, her smile becoming radiant, and half of her worries dissipated.

To be honest, ever since Shen Shuangning entered the palace as a companion reader, she has slept uneasily, fearing she might stir up trouble again.

Speaking of which, Ningning used to be well-behaved, only occasionally playing around with Shen Er, but at some point she became as fearless as if she had eaten a bear's gallbladder, seeming afraid of nothing.

Earlier, during the ladies' etiquette contest, she publicly embarrassed Senior Official Song; later she went straight to the Directorate of Ceremonies without a word... What worried Madam Liu even more was that it seemed more and more influential figures were taking notice of Ningning.

Now the Emperor has personally bestowed the jade pendant; Madam Liu feels both delighted and apprehensive, overwhelmed by the favor.

"Are you happier now, Mother?" Shen Shuangning asked, gazing at her mother with a bright smile.

Madam Liu sighed, lifted her hand to stroke her daughter's head, and whispered softly, "My Ningning doesn't need to suffer so much."

Shen Shuangning lowered her gaze and heard her mother's gentle voice: "All I want is for you to marry well, live a smooth life; the glory of the Duke's manor will be upheld by your father and brothers. As a daughter, you need only stay at home modestly until marriage—should the sky fall, your family will bear it; you need not run about."

Shen Shuangning's eyes grew moist, her rims reddening.

Mother is always this kind.

But Mother doesn't realize that if she does nothing, the Duke's manor will repeat its past mistakes, and even if the court overturns, everyone will be helpless.

Madam Liu was unaware of what Shen Shuangning thought; she cupped her daughter's face, seeing her red-rimmed eyes, and felt a pang of sorrow:

"Look, in just half a month you've grown so thin. Tell Mother honestly, have you been suffering in the palace? How does the Princess treat you? Don't follow your father's habit of reporting only good news, not the bad."

Shen Shuangning's eyes flickered, she coquettishly replied, "No, the Princess treats me well, Mother, don't worry."

After sharing some amusing palace anecdotes with her mother, Madam Liu finally felt at ease.

Soon after, she returned to the manor, paid her respects to the grandmother, chatted with the elderly lady for a while, then went to her own Orchid Garden to rest.

In her absence, Ah Zhao kept the Orchid Garden tidy, the beds made soft; she sank into the plush pillow and finally relaxed.

Thus she fell asleep without realizing it.

When Shen Xiuci came to look for her, she was still asleep.

Ah Heng noticed the Eldest Young Master's expression seemed somewhat solemn and asked, "Eldest Young Master, is there something? Should I have the servant call the young lady?"

Shen Xiuci hesitated a moment: "Never mind, it's not urgent; she rarely gets to rest, let her sleep."

Shen Xiuci then left.

Ah Heng was puzzled.

Ah Zhao, however, had heard some rumors; the Eldest Young Master's visit must be about Third Uncle Zhao Lian'an.

Just two days ago, Second Young Master Shen Er and Zhao Lian'an came to blows at the Inkstone Cloud Pavilion.

Shen Er angrily accused Zhao Lian'an of philandering, bringing shame upon his wife; Zhao Lian'an retorted, blaming Shen Er for his own licentiousness, claiming that's why he sees everyone as impure.

The Inkstone Cloud Pavilion is a place in Jingcheng where literati and scholars like to gather for poetry; Zhao Lian'an is a regular there, his circle full of like-minded souls, while someone as flirtatious and frivolous as Shen Er is naturally unwelcome.

Thus at the time, no one listened to Shen Er's words; they had him thrown out, and moreover, a group of people mocked and humiliated him without using vulgar language.

Under normal circumstances, those people would naturally be wary of the Duke's manor and dare not speak insolently to Shen Er,

The next day after the incident, the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery's mansion sent representatives— the Marchioness and Shen Miaoyun—while Zhao Lian'an did not come.

At that moment everyone assumed they had come to apologize, but who would have thought the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery's mansion demanded that Shen Er apologize to Zhao Lian'an!

The Marchioness dotes on her son; upon learning that Zhao Lian'an had been struck outside by a bastard son of the Duke's manor, she could not bear it and came to the Duke's manor in a fury to demand an explanation.

And Shen Miaoyun, because her husband's face was injured and Shen Er had slandered him, came pregnant to seek justice for her husband.

Madam Liu, as Shen Er's nominal mother, stepped in to settle the matter.

The members of the second branch were naturally stirred as well, but because the first branch had recently saved the second branch's life, this time the second branch acted as mediator.

Although they were mediating, their words leaned toward Zhao Lian'an, feeling Shen Er had gone too far, and they urged Madam Liu to discipline him properly.

Ah Zhao knew that although Shen Er was flirtatious outside, his household was clean, with no concubines, so when he returned injured there was no one to attend to him; Ah Zhao kindly went to apply medicine for him.

Ah Zhao didn't know how seriously Zhao Lian'an was injured, but she saw bruises all over Second Young Master Shen Er's back, indicating he had been beaten badly.

Shen Er, however, seemed indifferent, still cursing Zhao Lian'an under his breath.

"Zhao Lian'an, that hypocrite, pretends to be affectionate toward his wife in public, then turns around to link arms with prostitutes in the Pleasure Quarter, doing filthy deeds while hiding his involvement—truly disgusting! He dares to act but not to own up; he's nothing but scum!"

"I will surely expose his false face so everyone can see!"

Ah Zhao was shocked, finally realizing that Third Uncle was such a hypocrite.

Ah Zhao thought that given Shen Er's temper, he would never bow to the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery, but when Shen Er saw the pregnant Shen Miaoyun, he ultimately softened.

Although Shen Er did not go to the marquis's mansion to apologize to Zhao Lian'an in person, he expressed his regret to the Marchioness.

To Shen Miaoyun, he merely said he had been muddle-headed, momentarily mistaken the person, and thus wrongly blamed Zhao Lian'an.

The Marchioness, too, was not one to insist on vengeance; considering the Duke's lady's face, she pardoned Shen Er and dropped the matter.

Shen Miaoyun then said nothing more.

The incident ended there, and no one brought it up again.

But Ah Zhao always felt that something major was about to happen.

Dark clouds, blown in by the wind at some point, had by evening covered the sky in deep gray, making it gloomy.

The impending wind and rain amplified Ah Zhao's inner unease.

At mealtime, Ah Zhao walked toward the young lady's bed, bent over, and gently pushed Shen Shuangning.

Perhaps because she was clutching the waist sash given by Xie Ling, Shen Shuangning no longer had nightmares like before and slept especially soundly.

Shen Shuangning, having slept enough, glanced out the window and saw the sky had darkened, only then realizing she had slept that long.

The servants had already laid out the dishes on the table; the aroma drifted on the breeze, and Shen Shuangning's appetite stirred, so she rose to eat.

Midway through her meal, Ah Heng mentioned that Shen Xiuci had come looking for her.

Since Shen Shuangning's coming-of-age, Shen Xiuci has rarely set foot in the Orchid Garden; thus, upon reflection, she knew her elder brother had come for a reason.

As for what it was, Shen Shuangning had a vague guess: it likely concerned a resolution regarding Zhao Lian'an.

Shen Shuangning was still in the palace earlier and unaware that Shen Er had already fallen out with Zhao Lian'an over this matter; Lady Liu also didn't want to trouble her, so she hadn't mentioned it.

Shen Shuangning was worried about it, had barely eaten, and set out for Shen Xiuci's bamboo pavilion to look for him.

Who knew Shen Xiuci wasn't there.

"The eldest son took some men out through the northeast gate at the shen hour," the servant in Shen Xiuci's room replied.

Shen Shuangning startled—Shen Xiuci always behaved openly, so how could he sneak people out?

What is he up to?

Shen Shuangning's right eyelid kept twitching, an inexplicable unease.

"Do you know what he's up to?" Though she didn't hold much hope, Shen Shuangning still asked.

The servant hesitated, scratched his head, and said, "I was delivering fresh ink to the eldest son and happened to overhear something; all I know is he went to Sanhua Street in the west city, apparently in connection with the Zhongyong Marquis's heir."

Shen Shuangning sensed trouble, and after leaving the bamboo pavilion she ordered a carriage prepared.

At that moment Shen Ling came looking for her, saw she had just returned and was about to leave again, and asked curiously, "Elder sister, where are you going?"

Shen Shuangning didn't want to involve her, didn't say where she was going, and only asked, "While I'm away, has anything happened in the household?"

Shen Ling then told her about the dispute between Shen Er and Zhao Lian'an; as she spoke she grew indignant for Shen Er, tightly wringing her handkerchief.

"Elder sister, you don't know—my cousin has changed; she now thinks only of her husband's family and even pressures our own kin with outsiders. She's not the elder sister she used to be."

Shen Shuangning found it hard to believe, couldn't believe that Shen Miaoyun would actually do this; even if Shen Er had misunderstood Zhao Lian'an, wouldn't he have acted so rashly for her sake?

Shen Ling was both angry and heartbroken; she had witnessed everything that day, but she couldn't speak, and Lady Yang wouldn't let her interject.

Others didn't believe Shen Er's words, but Shen Ling did.

Because that day Shen Er had gone on an outing with Shen Ling; across a river they both saw Zhao Lian'an embracing a woman in purple robes.

Even though they were far away and couldn't see clearly, they knew that woman was certainly not Shen Miaoyun.

Afterwards the unmarried man and woman boarded a boat; the water was calm but the boat rocked violently—clearly they were up to something improper.

Later Shen Er inquired and learned that the woman was a respectable courtesan from the Ruyi Workshop named Miao Miao, which led to what followed.

Shen Ling also told Shen Shuangning all of this, and finally advised, "Elder sister, you'd better not get involved, lest you bring trouble upon yourself."

Shen Shuangning also felt some dissatisfaction with her cousin's conduct, but then she understood: Shen Miaoyun is now a wife of the Zhao family before being a daughter of the Shen family, and not everyone puts their natal family first as she does.

Shen Shuangning felt she shouldn't blame her elder sister but Zhao Lian'an, for that wicked man is the root of all evil.

Thus, looking at Shen Ling still wearing a displeased expression, she said, "My cousin too was kept in the dark and deceived by Zhao Lian'an; ultimately, the fault lies entirely with him."

Upon hearing this, Shen Ling nodded vigorously: "Exactly, it's all his fault! If it weren't for him, my cousin wouldn't have fallen out with us."

Shen Shuangning said: "Moreover, Zhao Lian'an's conduct is trampling on the prestige of the Rongguo Duke's mansion."

Shen Shuangning's face already showed anger; Zhao Lian'an is simply going too far.

She had thought that after her elder brother's warning he would restrain himself.

But he actually got entangled with a courtesan in public, was seen by his second brother, caused a scene and still didn't mend his ways; now the eldest brother has taken men to the west city—perhaps Zhao Lian'an intends to hide that woman and keep her as a concubine!

At this moment Shen Shuangning's heart filled with rage, and then a wave of nausea rose.

What she had just eaten churned in her stomach; she recalled how in her previous life she too had been bullied by her husband, but back then no one could stand up for her.

Shen Shuangning did not wish her cousin to end up in prison as well.

The daughters of the Shen family are all proud and high‑spirited; her cousin must have discovered Zhao Lian'an keeping a concubine who is a courtesan, which provoked her to the point of a miscarriage from fury.

She couldn't ignore it.

Shen Shuangning immediately set out for the west city.

However, the carriage hadn't yet reached there when it was stopped midway.

"Miss Ning, I advise you not to go."