Chapter 74: The Jade Is Blameless

Pei Zhi's thin lips slightly opened, as if he wanted to say something.

But shortly after, a woman's urgent voice came from not far away.

"Ningning!"

Shen Shuangning heard this call, looked over blankly, and thus saw Shen Miaoyun holding an umbrella, standing in the rain.

Shen Shuangning froze for a moment.

"Older sister, how did you come here?"

"Could it be that you just happened to come to catch Zhao Lian'an?"

Shen Shuangning's face paled a little, the hand hanging at her side suddenly clenched the hem of her skirt; she didn't have time to ponder Pei Zhi's identity, her mind filled with one thought: she must not let her older sister see that woman!

In the midst of her thoughts, Shen Miaoyun hurried over to her, the maid beside her following step for step, saying, "Young mistress, walk slowly."

Shen Miaoyun now dressed as a noble lady, wearing a deep purple woven brocade outfit that gave her a dignified, noble air, naturally possessing a steady composure.

Yet now, rushing through the rain, her skirt hem stained with mud, her face showing panic and urgency, her previously composed and steady demeanor was somewhat washed away by this rain.

"Ningning, why are you here, and you're out in the rain? Where did A Heng go? Don't you have a servant following you?"

Shen Miaoyun directly ignored Pei Zhi, looking at Shen Shuangning with a worried expression, her words full of deep concern.

Seeing her older sister so worried about her, Shen Shuangning felt even more upset inside, but she forced a smile: "A Heng is right behind me; I didn't let her come over. Older sister, do you remember when we played in the water together in the rain as children? I just feel a bit nostalgic, so I wanted to relive it."

"Utter nonsense, you're already grown, yet you act like a child playing in the rain, not afraid of being recognized and becoming a laughingstock."

Shen Miaoyun lightly rebuked, saying as she reached out to touch Shen Shuangning's arm, the chill making her fingertips shrink back.

"Look, you're soaked through; you'll probably fall ill soon."

When Shen Miaoyun lifted her gaze, she had already hidden her emotions deep inside.

Shen Shuangning, unaware, half-coquettishly said: "Then older sister, quickly take me back, to the Duke's Residence; will you stay the night and sleep with me?"

One night is enough for Zhao Lian'an to wrap things up.

Shen Miaoyun's eyes softened; she lifted her hand to brush the wet hair from her sister's cheek, then softly replied, "Okay."

Shen Shuangning breathed a sigh of relief; before leaving, she turned to glance at Pei Zhi, seeing him still gazing at her gently, her heart inexplicably steadied a bit.

Since Pei Zhi always likes to help her take care of things, why wouldn't she use him?

"Young Master Pei, I left a book in that shop just now; could you please keep it safe for me, so no one sees it?"

Pei Zhi nodded.

"Thank you."

Shen Shuangning then felt relieved; she knew he would understand her meaning—the courtesan from Ruyi Workshop must leave the capital tonight.

She couldn't leave, her older brother was busy, and Zhao Lian'an habitually said one thing but did another, so she had to ask Pei Zhi to help keep an eye on things.

Anyway, she owed him more than just a favor or two.

The rain slanted in; Pei Zhi blocked most of the cold rain for Shen Shuangning, his back already soaked, yet he seemed unaware, merely watching her go in silence.

Watching Shen Shuangning board the Marquis's carriage, Shen Miaoyun stood outside for a moment, holding her umbrella, looking across the long street and rain toward Pei Zhi, her gaze complex.

No one knew that two days earlier, after leaving the Duke's Residence, she had gone to meet this Pei Sanlang.

And he was quite direct, letting her witness Zhao Lian'an entering and exiting the Treasure Pavilion with a woman, the woman wearing a veil, behaving intimately with her husband.

Shen Miaoyun could hardly believe her own eyes.

Zhao Lian'an spent lavishly at the Treasure Pavilion for that woman, buying many expensive ornaments.

Thinking that he had just taken a sum of money from her not long ago, claiming it was for social engagements—hmph, turns out he was using it to please someone else!

Shen Miaoyun then wanted to rush over and tear apart Zhao Lian'an's hypocritical face, but she forced herself to hold back; after returning, she kept silent and investigated secretly.

Before, she trusted Zhao Lian'an too much, always able to cover up any oddness for him, but when the blade of reality sliced through her fog of illusion, she understood everything.

Following the clues, Shen Miaoyun found the place where Zhao Lian'an kept his hidden lover.

However, as she hurried to go in and catch the affair, to see the truth, she once again encountered Pei Sanlang.

Shen Miaoyun really couldn't read him; she didn't know what he ultimately wanted, since he let her see her husband's infidelity, why then did he block her at the crucial moment?

Driven by immense curiosity, she temporarily set aside the plan to catch the affair, and, suppressing her impatience, followed Pei Zhi to a nearby teahouse.

Anyway, that woman couldn't escape.

"The other day I heard something: in a family west of the city, a piece of warm jade has been passed down for three generations, so translucent it can reflect a person's shadow. When a daughter marries, her mother gives the jade to the eldest daughter, telling her to keep it well, saying this jade is spiritually perceptive and can protect sisterly harmony."

Pei Zhi picked up the teacup, his fingertips rubbing the warm rim, his tone calm as if relating an ordinary old story.

"The eldest daughter doted on her younger sister, often taking the jade to show her. Later, the eldest son-in-law saw it and kept saying the jade ought to be placed in a finer box, borrowing it repeatedly under the pretense of 'polishing'; who would have thought he privately had someone appraise it, intending to secretly exchange it for silver?"

"When the incident came to light, the neighbors gossiped—some said the younger daughter shouldn't always covet her sister's things, some said the eldest daughter shouldn't trust outsiders so lightly, others blamed the jade for being too eye‑catching. And thus the two sisters grew estranged."

Pei Zhi lifted his eyes to look at Shen Miaoyun, his tone shifting: "Madam, what do you think?"

Shen Miaoyun is not a very patient person, let alone at such a special moment.

But hearing Young Master Pei's voice, warm and gentle like a spring breeze, her impatient heart inexplicably calmed; she didn't ponder long, her brows slightly furrowed, and she said:

"The fault lies not with the jade, nor with the two sisters, but with that son‑in‑law's corrupt heart."

Pei Zhi then smiled, his smile conveying a sense of relief, saying: "The jade itself is blameless; the fault lies with the one harboring evil thoughts—he betrayed his wife's trust and reached for what he shouldn't, ultimately causing the two pieces of jade that once lay close together to both be dusted."

Shen Miaoyun deeply agreed.

Pei Zhi gently set the teacup on the table, producing a soft sound.

"My story is finished; madam, you may now do what you wish."

Shen Miaoyun couldn't help but say: "Young Master Pei, did you specially pull me aside just to tell a story?"

Pei Zhi, however, said nothing more.

As Shen Miaoyun walked back, she happened to see Zhao Lian'an emerging from that residence, at the same time a purple‑clad woman linking arms with him, walking out together, the two intimate as husband and wife.

This time the woman was not wearing a veil.

Shen Miaoyun hid behind a tree to look; not looking, she wouldn't know, but upon looking she jumped in fright!

She almost thought that woman was Shen Shuangning!

Shen Miaoyun was both startled and angry, grief and hatred intertwined, her ten fingers digging into the tree, she exerted so much force that her nails bled.

It was only then that she finally understood Young Master Pei's intention.

West City, Warm Jade, the two sisters, and that son-in-law with ulterior motives... clearly referring to them.

And that piece of Warm Jade is none other than her Ningning!!

If not for Young Master Pei's prior warning, she might really have become like the story's "eldest daughter," developing a rift with her sister.

At that time, Shen Miaoyun ultimately did not go expose Zhao Lian'an's disgusting "crime" on the spot; she didn't know what to do, so she returned to the manor to consider her options.

Jade itself is blameless.

But if Zhao Lian'an's actions were seen by someone with ill intent, they would surely make a big deal out of it, and Ningning would be ruined.

Shen Miaoyun had already made up her mind, but before she could deal with Zhao Lian'an, someone came to report that Shen Shuangning had already gone to West City.

She dared not imagine how Ningning would react to that scene, so she rushed out in the rain.

She thought she had arrived in time, but upon seeing Shen Shuangning's forlorn figure in the rain, she knew it was already too late.

At that moment she wished she could kill Zhao Lian'an.

But she restrained herself, hid it from Ningning, pretended to know nothing, so as to lessen the harm to her.

The rain poured down; at this very moment, the emotions welling up in Shen Miaoyun's eyes almost got out of control.

She gripped the umbrella handle tightly, gave Pei Zhi a slight nod, then withdrew her gaze, lifted the curtain, and slipped into the carriage.

Shen Shuangning was wrapped in a thin blanket, her gorgeous face as pale as paper, shivering from the cold.

Before she could fully conceal the worry in her eyes, she forced a bright smile and called out, "Older sister!"

Shen Miaoyun tightly grasped her hand and gently said, "Let's go home."

The carriage rolled over the wet blue‑stone slab road.

Shen Miaoyun lifted a corner of the carriage curtain and glanced again at the figure in the rain.

In the misty rain, Pei Zhi still stood there holding an umbrella, white‑clad with hair bound, wide sleeves, like a mountain hermit—transcendent and unworldly, hard to read.

After the carriage drove off, Pei Zhi barely withdrew his gaze.

As he turned his head, he seemed to notice something and lifted his gaze.

After the heavy rain had fallen for a while, the long street was empty of pedestrians; on the building facing the street, Xiao Jingyuan stood in the corridor, hands behind his back, directing a hostile gaze at him.

Pei Zhi was startled only briefly, then kept his composure, nodded at him, and turned to leave.

"A guy who came out of nowhere, painstakingly scheming, just to get close to Miss Shen the Fourth…" Su Chen stroked his chin, "I don't really believe that."

"This person must have a greater plot!" Su Chen stared fixedly in the direction where that figure disappeared.

Xiao Jingyuan's face sank, a pensive look flickering in his eyes.

Long ago, Mu Yu told them that Shen Shuangning had been secretly contacting Pei Zhi.

Later Shen Shuangning entered the palace, Pei Zhi went to Zhengding; after that, the Duke of Rongguo, Shen Lang, stepped down as commander of the Capital Garrison, and Zhang Zhong took his place.

Zhang Zhong's background was clean, uninvolved in factional struggles, but a careful investigation revealed that he had met Pei Zhi face to face two months earlier.

Also, the Censor Yao who impeached Shen Lang had close ties with the Duke Zhen‑guo's Pei family.

If that were all, it would not be enough to raise Xiao Jingyuan's alarm, but he knew the emperor had already nominated Pei Zhi as Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince!

Pei Zhi's "transformation" is astonishing—just a month ago he was an official‑less, harmless scion of a noble family, yet in the blink of an eye he wielded a power capable of shaking the existing order!

When did Pei Zhi start setting up his scheme?

Was it his first secret meeting with Zhang Zhong, or his first rise to prominence at the Wanghe Tower? Was Shen Shuangning's entry into the palace as a companion reader also one of his moves?

Xiao Jingyuan rubbed the bridge of his nose, suddenly finding the situation thorny.

Recalling the past, Pei Zhi had deliberately shown friendliness toward Shen Shuangning in front of him, making him think Pei Zhi merely wanted to get close to Shen Shuangning, so he let his guard down.

Little did he know, Pei Zhi had already spread a net of heaven and earth, yet made others think he was merely catching a sparrow.

Xiao Jingyuan drew a deep breath—even he had misjudged!

But now, what Xiao Jingyuan cannot shake from his mind is the forlorn, disheveled figure of Shen Shuangning in the rain, a pang in his chest.

The fearless Miss Shen the Fourth—what blow could have reduced her to this?

At that moment, a man wearing a straw hat appeared, his raincoat dripping with water.

It was Qingfeng.

Qingfeng reported everything he had seen; after a moment's hesitation, he uttered an astonishing remark:

"The concubine kept by the Zhao heir looks very much like the Fourth Miss!"