Translator – Xiao He Lian
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Chapter 81
“Who did this?”
After a long silence, Shen Shu raised her eyes to look at him and said softly, “What does this have to do with you, My Lord?”
“Did he hit you?”
“If you have nothing else to say, My Lord, I will go back home first.” To be honest, Shen Shu really didn’t want to discuss this issue with him.
However, just as she was about to turn around, she was stopped by Zhou Shu’an.
“Here are some documents. It won’t be too late for Madam Li to take a look before leaving.”
After saying that, Zhou Shu’an took a step to the left, then pulled out three documents from the table behind him and placed them on the desk.
Shen Shu looked at him suspiciously, walked over and opened the first volume.
From the eighth rank Zuo Shiyi1(Zuo Shiyi is an ancient official position, whose main function is to pick up things that the emperor missed (policy decision-making errors),) to the eighth rank Supervisory Imperial Censor.
He was promoted from the fifth rank Crown Prince Zhongyun2(The Crown Prince Zhongyun is the name of an official in the Eastern Palace.) to the fourth rank Shao Zhanshi 3((shàozhānshì) is an ancient official title. In the Qin and Han dynasties, the Zhanshi was established, with a rank of 2,000 stones, in charge of the household affairs of the empress and the crown prince.).
From the fourth rank assistant minister of works to the third rank minister of works.
Shen Yu frowned.
This is not…
Looking closely, there were three words written in the lower right corner – Shen Wenqi.
It not only records her father’s official career, but also clearly records what he did on which day of each month and year, who he was friends with, and who he had grudges against.
Shen Shu’s heart sank and she quickly opened the document beside her. The other two documents were one of Lu Si and the other of Li Di.
Her eyes froze.
Zhou Shu’an stretched out his slender hand with distinct knuckles, curled up his index finger, and tapped the time when Li Si resigned from office and then tapped the time when Li Di passed the imperial examination.
“This is the third time.” This is the third time I saved you.
The moment Shen Shu raised her eyes, she quickly concealed all her astonishment under her charming eyes and opened her lips slightly: “My Lord, why are you showing me these?”
A gentle smile suddenly appeared in the man’s cold and dark pupils. “Do you want me to tell you word by word?”
Hearing this, Shen Shu looked at him in confusion and said softly, “I really don’t understand what you mean, My Lord.” In fact, Shen Shu also knew that she was just hoping for a lucky shot.
Zhou Shu’an chuckled, walked around behind her again, picked up the oil lamp, and extinguished it with a whoosh.
The surroundings fell into darkness and fell silent again.
Shen Shu’s heart trembled slightly where Zhou Shuan couldn’t see.
She knew very well what the consequences would be if she was caught seeking personal gain during the imperial examination…
After a moment, a voice with distinct tone rang in her ears, “If I were Li Di, I would probably threaten you with the fact that Li Si resigning and returning to his ancestral home, your father’s life and the lives of Shen Hong and Shen Zhen, and ask you to be a quiet wife of the Li family.”
Shen Shu held her breath, said nothing, and gripped the edge of the table with her slender fingers.
Zhou Shu’an paused for a moment, then continued in a deep voice: “If I were you, if I wanted to divorce, I would probably have to use my life in exchange for his, or in other words, to exchange for everyone’s safety.”
As soon as the words fell, Shen Shu could no longer pretend to be stupid. He knew everything from the beginning to the end.
Her eyes narrowed, “Your Excellency’s ability to judge reason and emotions is beyond my reach.”
The dark surrounding infinitely magnifies people’s senses. For example, now, she can clearly feel the man’s thin lips close to her cheek.
As a loyal minister of the emperor and a powerful Minister of the Dali Temple, if he wanted to report the Shen family, he would not have to waste his breath on her. Besides, Shen Shu could see that he knew about this matter for a long time.
Thinking of this, Shen Shu calmed down and said slowly: “If you want something from me, you might as well tell me directly.”
Zhou Shuan’s Adam’s apple rolled and he said in a deep voice: “You.”
This direct and short word immediately brought a self-deprecating smile to the corners of Shen Shu’s lips.
Sure enough.
It turned out that the man who looked tall, strong and upright could be so evil to his core. She was already a married woman, so how could he have such forbidden thoughts?
Shen Shu clenched her hands, looked at him and said, “I am the wife of an official appointed by the imperial court.”
“I know.”
At this moment, Shen Shu suddenly felt as if someone was grabbing her throat. She was about to suffocate, but she couldn’t break free. “What is this? A threat?”
Zhou Shu’an listened to her almost inaudible sobbing voice and his hands trembling slightly. Having come to this point, he really didn’t want to give her the chance to beg for herself.
With a determined heart, he pulled the person into his arms, “Shen Shu.”
“Promise me three things and I will protect your Shen family.”
She was stunned, “ Pardon?”
“First, you are not allowed to enter the Taoist temple.”
Shen Shu opened her eyes wide.
“Second, don’t let him touch you again.”
Shen Shu asked again: “What about the third one?”
“It’s what you want, but I won’t force you to do it.”
Shen Shu was not an inexperienced girl, she knew what the man’s eyes meant. She also knew what he meant by his words…
However, what puzzled her was what kind of benefit these three things could bring to him?
In Shen Shu’s opinion, Zhou Shu’an approached her undoubtedly for some excitement and for her status as the main wife.
This matter in the wind and moon4(Love) is not in favor of him at all…
Zhou Shu’an didn’t give her time to think, he bent down and kissed her.
The moment their lips touched, he knew that there was no turning back in this life.
The movement was a little too big and they collided with a nearby shelf, causing several case files to fall down in a flurry. But he was holding onto her tightly.
In the darkness, uncontrollable gasps came one after another.
When Zhou Shu’an lowered his head again, Shen Shu suddenly stretched out her index finger, pressed it against his Adam’s apple and shouted, “Stop.”
Zhou Shu’an paused.
In the darkness, she couldn’t see his appearance clearly, she could only see a cold and hard outline. This man actually looked like a serious character to the bone.
Shen Shu protected her chest with one arm, “Lord Zhou is well-dressed and upright, but in the end, he is just…”
“A shameless guy?” Zhou Shu’an raised the corner of his mouth and said, “I admit it.”
……
After coming out of the Dali Temple, Shen Shu got on the carriage and whispered, “Qingli, give me some water.”
Qingli nodded and handed over a kettle. Shen Yu took it and drank several sips in a row.
“Madam, please drink slowly. Don’t choke.”
Shen Shu leaned against the cushion, her heart beating faster. If she hadn’t called for a stop, they might have really reached that point…
She opened the curtain and saw that the weather outside had suddenly changed.
The sound of heavy rain was rustling and the cool air slowly filled her nose. Shen Shu stared blankly at the raindrops hitting the bluestone land, unable to recover for a long time.
Crazy, she must be crazy.
When she returned to Li’s house, it was already evening and Li Di was sitting in the house waiting for her.
“Where did you go?” Li Di asked indifferently.
Shen Shu said nonchalantly, “I went to the East Market for a stroll.”
Li Di nodded and said, “The doctor came today and said that he may not be able to save the child in He Wenru’s belly.”
Shen Shu glanced sideways: “Why is that?”
Li Di rubbed his temple and said, “It’s because of overthinking.”
“Then you should go spend more time with her.” Shen Shu pretended to be a good person for once, “Don’t go to Concubine Qiao’s place for the next two days.”
Li Di looked at her indifferent expression and narrowed his eyes, “When did you become so virtuous?”
Shen Shu sat down in front of the dressing table, turned her head and took off her earrings, “What can I do? Can I kick them both out?”
Li Di walked behind her, looked at the purple mark on her neck, put his hand on it, and rubbed it slowly, “It seems to be darker than yesterday.”
Shen Yu’s breath choked and after a long while she managed to suppress her heart that was about to burst out of her throat and said, “How about you ask mother to be gentler next time?”
“There won’t be a next time.” Li Di pinched her earlobe, “Shen Shu, I want a child.”
The earrings in Shen Shu ‘s hands fell straight to the ground.
——
In the blink of an eye, it was June 20th and Lu Yan went to the Imperial Medical Bureau as usual.
The director shook his head and said, “Lord Lu, we have followed your instructions and sent people to check each pharmacy regularly. But as you can see, there are people with fever, but they are just common colds. As for the plague, I really haven’t seen any.”
Lu Yan lowered his eyes, his brows were stern and his face was solemn.
Recently, the attitude of these people in the Imperial Medical Bureau towards Lu Yan can be described as being angry but not saying anything. In their opinion, there is no need to go to so much trouble for a Heavenly Master.
Everyone knows that the plague spreads very quickly, but it is already June 20th and there is not a single patient. It is obvious that they have been deceived by the Taoist priest.
Lu Yan frowned and said, “It’s better to prepare the medicine packs to avoid the plague in advance.”
The imperial physician shook his head repeatedly. “Lord Lu, do you know how expensive the medicinal materials in the capital are now? Just the realgar, pepper, agarwood, sandalwood, mulberry root, and mugwort, how much silver would it cost to prepare them all?”
“As for the method of burning incense that you mentioned last time, frankincense, southern atractylodes, northern asarum and other items are even harder to find. Go check the inventory of the Imperial Medical Bureau. Where are the medicinal herbs you said are?”
Lu Yan turned the ring on his finger, knowing that it was useless to embarrass the Imperial Medical Bureau, so he said, “I will go to His Majesty to resolve this matter.”
After Lu Yan left, the imperial physician shook his head repeatedly, “Why does Lord Lu insist that there will be a plague in Chang’an?”
Another physician narrowed his eyes and sneered, “I think he is possessed by a demon. Don’t worry about him.”
T/N
Translator while translating the Shen Shu and Zhou Shu’an’s part………….
