The night gradually darkened, and winter nights were always extraordinarily cold. If you walked outside, the north wind seemed to be able to blow into the cracks of one's bones, causing people to feel pain even if they moved.
In the gloomy prison, at the narrow window, the limelight poured in, and the people in the prison shrank into a ball. She wrapped the torn quilt tightly around her body, with only one head exposed. He struggled to get up and tried to close the window that was blowing in.
However, even if she stood on tiptoe, she couldn't reach. After a while, she gave up this plan, for fear that using too much strength would only make herself weaker.
When the guards who came to patrol saw this scene, they just smiled and watched this scene, but did not step forward to help. People have been in such a gloomy place for a long time, and they will be somewhat distorted. It is probably a pleasure to watch the prisoners suffer, at least for now.
Shen Qing glanced at the jailer and quickly lowered his head, covering up the hatred in his eyes. After being here for a few days, she had eaten all the hardships she deserved, and she didn't know if Shen Yuan and Shen Gui didn't take care of it or what. If there is something deliberately taking care of her, it is probably that she was not like other female prisoners, and her innocence was ruined by these jailers. However, this may not be the credit of the Shen family. After all, she still has the flesh and blood of Prince Yu in her stomach. No matter how glorious her origins are, she still has a bit of royal blood.
Shen Qing carefully caressed her lower abdomen, now this is the only thing she can rely on. For some unknown reason, what Shen Miao said to her in the afternoon made her faintly feel an extreme fear. This was something that had never happened before. Even when she was brought to prison at first, she never had such an idea, because she knew that someone would always come to save her, and her relatives would not let her suffer in vain.
However, Shen Miao analyzed for her word by word, shattering her hopes one by one, allowing Shen Qing to see clearly how vulnerable she was relying on. It also made Shen Qing doubt whether she could escape completely this time.
The jailer glanced at her, and was about to walk outside again, when Shen Qing suddenly opened his mouth and said, "Big brother."
The other party stopped and walked in front of her, probably because he was a little bit unbearable because of the odor on Shen Qing's body, he waved his hand in disgust, and said, "What's the matter?"
"Have my family visited me in the past few days? Or gave me a message?" She held back her anger, and a little jailer dared to look at her with such disgusting eyes. She was too late. These flamboyant villains!
The jailer laughed: "What are you thinking, Miss Shen, who would dare to come to see you if the case has not been investigated. Besides, your family has never asked about you except for your sister." The jailer said here, The tone was somewhat mocking. After all, if something like this happened to Shen Qing, even if he were to be cleared of the crime in the future, he would bear a lot of rumours and put the Shen family into such a situation. I'm afraid that life would be difficult. Presumably the Shen family was also planning to give up this daughter. Thinking of this, the jailer's attitude towards Shen Qing became even more rude.
Shen Qing couldn't tell in her heart whether she was disappointed or relaxed, she hesitated for a while, then she looked at the jailer and said, "Big brother, if my brother comes to see me... You say that I have a heavy heart and don't want to see people, so it's okay not to let him come to see me. Alright." After speaking, he took off a bracelet from his wrist and handed it over through the iron fence.
When she was in prison, all the jewelry on her body had been looted. This bracelet was worn by Ren Wanyun on her wedding day, and it was also very precious. Shen Qing kept it selfish and never took it out. , I was forced to do nothing today, so I sent the bracelet out.
When the jailer saw the bracelet, his eyes lit up, he snatched the bracelet away, took a closer look at the light, and saw that it was in good condition, so he smiled a little, and said, "Since you say that, I will Just help you. But it's a good thing for your brother to come to see you, why are you pushing him out?"
Shen Qing reluctantly smiled and said, "Because of my reasons, I have troubles in the palace, I'm really sorry, I don't have the face to see them."
The jailer nodded, but his eyes were somewhat contemptuous. If she is really such a self-respecting woman, how could she commit adultery behind her family's back, get pregnant before marriage, and now she is a bit pretentious to say that she is sorry and shameless. However, being soft-handed, the jailer had no reason to refuse, and left after agreeing to the matter.
After the jailer walked away, Shen Qing squatted down, hugged his shoulders helplessly, and buried his head in his knees. Now she often does this action, because she doesn't know whether what she's doing is right or wrong, and she doesn't know where the road ahead is. When the eldest lady of the Shen family.
She slept in such a stupor for a long time, until she heard the sound of someone knocking on the iron fence, and she raised her head in a daze.
In the flickering lights, a familiar face was reflected. If she had seen this face before, she would have been extremely happy, but after Shen Miao's remarks, when she looked at this face again, Shen Qing was so frightened that she suddenly fell down. On the ground, he looked at the person in front of him in panic.
Shen Yuan said, "Is your little sister doing okay?"
"Second brother, why are you here?" Shen Qing asked, taking a step back calmly.
Seeing her action, Shen Yuan frowned slightly, but didn't say anything. He took out a key from his sleeve and opened the prison door. Seeing this, Shen Qing was stunned for a moment, then he showed joy, and stood up all of a sudden: "Second brother, are you here to rescue me?"
Shen Yuan shook his head: "I can't save you for the time being." He took out a packet of snacks from his arms and handed it to Shen Qing: "Come and see you and get you something to eat."
Shen Qing was a little disappointed. Shen Yuan had already walked in. It seemed that he felt that the prison was really dirty, showing a look of disgust. Shen Qing saw it in his eyes and felt a little sad in his heart. She subconsciously took the oil-paper bag in Shen Yuan's hand and opened it. In the oil-paper bag, the pastry was fragrant and steamy. It was her favorite chestnut cake in the past.
"You've suffered these days," Shen Yuan said with a rare tenderness, "I know you love this one the most, and I will bring you relief."
Shen Qing's nose was sore, and she almost burst into tears. These days she was in prison eating all the spoiled food, and she couldn't get enough to eat. She lived in fear every day. Around him, the grievances in his heart all poured out.
"Don't cry, after eating, wait a few more days, and I will rescue you." Shen Yuan gently advised.
Shen Qing took out a piece of cake with some embarrassment and was about to put it in his mouth, and saw Shen Yuan's gentle smile at a glance, his hand suddenly trembled as if a basin of cold water was poured over his head, inexplicably, Shen Miao's words in the afternoon echoed in her ears again side.
"He could have a good career and a promising future, but because you are in constant trouble, do you really think that he will want to save you?"
The pastry was close to his mouth, but Shen Qing couldn't take it any longer.
In the relationship between people, the most important thing is trust. If it was in the past, Shen Qing would definitely choose to trust Shen Yuan without hesitation. But since the incident with Prince Yu, Shen Qing also witnessed the coldness of the Shen family. Is this second brother really willing to give up her great career for himself, willing to take such a big risk to rescue her? If it were Shen Qing himself, I'm afraid there would be some hesitation. Shen Qing suddenly remembered the jade bracelet that was used for guarding the jailer before, and said at that time that if Shen Yuan came to see him, he would definitely stop him. But what happened to Shen Yuan's appearance now? Was it the jailer who took her things but didn't do anything, or was it that Shen Yuan simply used another method to get in.
It was only at this time that Shen Qing suddenly realized that none of the guards patrolling the prison had appeared. In the cell where she was being held, there were no other prisoners in it, that is to say, there were only her and Shen Yuan here at the moment. Originally the closest siblings, she instantly felt a chill down her spine.
"Why don't you eat?" Shen Yuan asked him.
Shen Qing smiled reluctantly, and said anxiously and wisely: "I-I can't bear it, I will save it and eat it later."
"It won't taste good when it's cold." Shen Yuan smiled and said, "I'll bring it to you in a few days."
"No..." Shen Qing declined, "I-I don't want to eat it now."
"Aren't you very hungry just now?" Shen Yuan looked at her: "Why don't you want to eat all of a sudden."
Shen Qing waved his hands in a panic: "I just don't want to eat it, I suddenly feel a little uncomfortable, probably because I have a body, and the food is occasionally a little strange." She wrapped the snack in paper and put it aside, saying : "I will eat it later when I feel comfortable."
Shen Yuan watched her movements silently, his eyes were bright and dark, and he finally laughed and said, "My sister has been in prison for a few days, and it seems that she has become wiser." His voice was no longer gentle, but kind of Inexplicably cruel, Shen Yuan said: "It seems that you already know, it's a pity, I originally wanted to let my sister go easily."
Shen Qing's body trembled all of a sudden, she looked at Shen Yuan: "Second brother, what do you mean by that?"
"My sister is so defensive about me, I thought you already understood what I meant. It's okay if you don't want to eat that cake. Although you have failed your brother's hard work, for the sake of your pregnancy now, the second brother doesn't either. I will compare with you."
Shen Yuan's words were very calm, with his slightly refined face, but there was a kind of frightening power, Shen Qing realized something, and suddenly shook his head frantically and was about to shout, but unfortunately she was not able to make a sound yet, was strangled by the throat.
People who look at Svensman on weekdays have such great strength. What is even more frightening is that his subordinate is his own sister, but he has no hesitation or pity at all, as if he is looking at a passerby. .
Shen Qing's eyes widened, staring at the person in front of him, but Shen Yuan smiled softly and said, "Younger sister, don't blame the second brother for being cruel, now that you have caused such a big disaster, you will be careless. Involve the entire Shen family. Do you have to make parents and Yuan Bo lose their lives for the sake of my sister alone? Sister, you can't be too selfish."
Shen Qing struggled hard, but she was originally a woman, a woman who was pregnant, not to mention that she was dying from torture these days, how could she be stronger than a man of her proper age. She could only kick her legs hard in vain, and even the straw on the ground was kicked all over the place by her.
"I know my sister is not reconciled." Shen Yuan said softly: "My sister had nothing to do with this matter, but now she has to lose her life because of it. I am your second brother, and I will definitely avenge you. You promise that the eldest of the Shen family and Shen Miao will end up a thousand times more tragically than you. So the younger sister should not resent the second brother, as long as you are dead, the second room will not be implicated, and the second brother will be proud of his career. Get your revenge, understand?"
Shen Qing's body gradually softened, and his eyes began to lose their vigour, as if a fish on the verge of death was gradually drying on the dry shore.
Shen Yuan let go of his hand, and his body fell to the ground softly with a "thump", but in a short period of time, he went from being alive to being silent, and Shen Qing's life was explained in prison.
Shen Yuan looked at Shen Qing's corpse indifferently, and after a while, he punctured Shen Qing's fingertips with the tip of a needle, grabbed Shen Qing's hand and wrote a line of blood on the stone wall of the cell. Immediately afterwards, he pulled out Shen Qing's belt, tied a knot on the fence, and put Shen Qing's head in.
After everything was over, he stood up, picked up the oil-paper bag that Shen Qing had placed on the ground, and finally glanced at the slightly swaying figure on the iron fence.
"Sister, you won't die in vain, the second brother will definitely avenge you." He whispered.
…
This winter in the Ding capital seems to be an eventful autumn, with one after another, the massacre of Prince Yu’s residence has caused everyone to know, although the people secretly applaud, but they also know the danger. And the only surviving bride, the eldest young lady of the Shen family, was thrown into prison. Because of her inextricable relationship with this case, everyone was poking their heads to find out the result.
As a result, on this day, there was a sudden news from outside that the eldest lady of the Shen family committed suicide by hanging from the beam with her belt in prison. Before she died, she left a blood letter, only to say that she had nothing to do with this matter, plus her husband's family was dead, and she did not want to live in the world, so she had to die to make it clear.
It's weird that people are always a lot more lenient with the dead. If Shen Qing had been called a slut before marrying Prince Yu because she was pregnant before marriage, and she didn't keep the woman's way, now this death would have attracted a lot of sighs. They all praised her for her integrity and strength, but she was killed by Prince Yu for the rest of her life.
The previous rumors seemed to be self-defeating overnight. Thinking about it, if a pregnant woman can make her death clear, it must be a huge grievance. Besides, those rumors were baseless. According to it, Shen Qing and Prince Yu have no grievances or enmity, and since Prince Yu is dead, she still has to be a widow, and she can't commit any crimes.
So it seemed that with Shen Qing's death, the suspicions of the Shen residence and Shen Qing were cleared away. Even Emperor Hui of Gong Wenwen didn't say anything, but he still couldn't find out who the murderer was, and the case was about to become unsolved.
In the Shen residence, everything seemed to be the same as before.
Shen Qing had already married into Prince Yu's mansion, and the corpse would also be buried with Prince Yu in the name of Prince Yu's concubine. Old Shen Furen felt a little comforted by this, no matter whether she was alive or dead, the Shen family finally had a princess, at least she had a good reputation.
Shen Wan and Chen Rouqiu looked very sad, Shen Yue couldn't help crying, but even though they were so sad, they had never even gone to see Shen Qing in prison before that, so it was not known whether they were acting or being sincere.
In comparison, Shen Gui, a father, looks much cooler. He does things as usual without showing any sadness on his face, and even when he visits occasionally, he can see the fleeting eyes in his eyes. Rejoice. Perhaps for Shen Gui, Shen Qing's suicide like this saved him a lot of trouble, and he was naturally happy in his heart. As for Shen Yuan, the entire burden of the second room of the Shen family now rests on him. He runs around every day, and there is hardly anyone in the house, and he doesn't know what the situation is.
If it is said that the most admirable one is Ren Wanyun. After Ren Wanyun learned the news that Shen Qing had committed suicide in prison, she fainted at the time. After waking up, he was a little confused, and he took Xianglan's hand and said that he wanted to see Shen Qing go back to the door. Obviously, this matter had a great impact on Ren Wanyun. With such a confused situation, it was natural that he could not be the owner of the second room. Shen Gui asked Wan Yiniang to temporarily take charge of the affairs of the second room, and the people of Caiyun Garden all muttered to themselves, I'm afraid that in the second room of the Shen family, Wan Yiniang is about to get out of the way, and even Shen Dongling, who has been sick and weak for many years, is afraid that she will have to do it in one fell swoop. roll over. Fortunately, Mrs. Shen felt distressed for Shen Yuanbo, so she did not ask Concubine Wan to bring her grandson, but brought Shen Yuanbai to Rongjingtang and raised her by herself.
The mess of the second and third rooms of the Shen family had nothing to do with the big room. When Shen Xin and Luo Xueyan came back this time, they were already quite critical of the people in the other two rooms, so naturally they wouldn't rush to help. Every day I practice swordsmanship in the mansion, or go out to visit old friends, it is a pleasant life. Shen Qiu was also led by Shen Xin to gradually get in touch with people in the officialdom. As Shen Qiu's military achievements became more and more abundant, one day, Shen Xin's position would also be Shen Qiu's turn.
But Shen Miao went to Guangwen Hall again after resting for a while.
As the New Year is approaching, Mr. Guangwentang has also slackened a lot of homework. The gentlemen also knew that at this time, the students were not interested in studying, so they sold it well. Shen Miao did not go for many days, so she did not miss too much homework. On the contrary, those students saw her coming and talked a lot.
There was a lot of rumors about Shen Qing, but the Shen family had never heard anything about it. Long after the accident at Prince Yu's mansion, Chen Yue was ordered by Chen Rouqiu to stay in the mansion and not go to the school, so as not to make any mistakes. Therefore, when Shen Miao came, everyone was interested in asking.
Yi Peilan said, "Yo, Shen Miao, you actually came? Why don't you wear plain clothes?" She deliberately said loudly, "Hey, it's no wonder, there were many frictions between Shen Qing and your sisters, only I'm afraid you're not too sad."
Yi Peilan and Shen Qing were close friends, and they wanted to vent their anger for Shen Qing, so what they said was naturally malicious. Everyone looked towards the door and saw that Shen Miao was wearing a dark daisy dress and her jewelry was only a simple jade bracelet, which made her look a little deserted. In fact, it's not an exaggeration to dress like this, but compared to Shen Yue's long plain white dress, she looks slightly inferior.
"Ming Qi decrees that there is a mourning in the family, the elders are all wearing white robes, the rest can be dark. Miss Yi is not able to calculate the seniority, the eldest sister is my sister, but not my elder." Shen Miao said no. He replied, walking to his seat and sitting down.
When Feng An Ning saw her, she also seemed very excited, as if she had something to ask her. Yi Peilan was so stabbed by Shen Miao that she was instantly furious and said without thinking, "Shen Miao, don't be a good person because you were at odds with Shen Qing in the beginning, thinking about Shen Qing's suffering, you are still secretly having fun in your heart, Otherwise, why is Shen Qing imprisoned, your father and your mother are Shen Qing's uncle and aunt, but they didn't help?"
As soon as these words came out, everyone's eyes turned to Shen Miao again, as if they were waiting for her to answer this difficult question. Yes, when Shen Qing was imprisoned, Shen Xin did not help, otherwise, with Shen Xin's merits, he would still be able to speak in front of the emperor, at least he could help Shen Qing buy some time, and he wouldn't let Shen Qing be in prison. Feeling hopeless and helpless, he committed suicide by hanging.
Shen Miao's eyes turned cold and she suddenly turned her head to stare at Yi Peilan. Yi Peilan was stared at by her, and unexpectedly felt a little chill, before she could speak again, she heard Shen Miao's sarcastic voice, "Miss Yi and my elder sister Zilai have a deep relationship, it is very important to think about it. The eldest sister was angry. But my second aunt wanted to rescue the eldest sister, and I came to the Yi residence to ask Mrs. Yi to talk about it. I hope that Mrs. Yi can persuade Mr. Yi to help me. I remember that at that time, Mrs. Yi said that the illness was gone. "
Yi Peilan was stunned for a moment, then her face turned red, and the students around her looked at her with deep meaning. She stammered: "Then, that's because my mother is indeed sick!"
"Since Madam Yi can call her illness at this juncture, why can't my parents call her sick at this juncture?" Shen Miao didn't care, there was no swear word in her words, but she severely humiliated Yi Peilan and Shen Miao did not care. Miao continued: "Since Mrs. Yi can't do things, why does Miss Yi make it difficult for my parents to do it? My eldest sister is in prison, and even my second uncle and second brother, who are close relatives, can't do anything. It was very easy for her to be rescued. Miss Yi, people only have two mouths. It's easier to say than to do. Don't do what you don't want to others. "
As soon as Pei Lang entered the hall, he heard Shen Miao's repeated words, he looked into the hall, Shen Miao stood up straight and spoke indifferently, but he brought Yi Peilan to the entire Yi residence. The humiliation was so clean, Yi Peilan was speechless and only bit her lower lip and stared at Shen Miao.
That's right, don't do to others what you don't want to do to others. The Yi Fu himself is such a master who sees the wind and steers the rudder, and he also accuses others from the highest point of morality. It really makes people laugh.
“Shen Miao!” Feeling more and more annoyed, Yi Peilan was about to rush up to fight Shen Miao, but when she heard a light cough, Pei Lang walked in from outside.
Seeing Mr., everyone immediately fell silent. Yi Peilan's anger remained undisturbed, only to hear Pei Lang indifferently say: "There is no quarrel in the school." After saying the warning, he glanced at Yi Peilan.
Everyone knew that in the Guangwen Hall, although Pei Lang was only a scholar with a gentle temperament, he was respected. Rao is Yi Peilan's arrogant temperament, and he doesn't dare to swear at him. Shen Miao sat down in the seat, Feng An Ning rubbed her arm and whispered, "Mr. Pei is helping you out, Yi Peilan is too much, even Mr. Pei can't see it."
Shen Miao raised her eyes and met Pei Lang's gaze. In her gentle expression, there was a little more inquiry, as if she wanted to see what she was thinking.
She met Pei Lang's gaze, the corners of her lips twitched indiscernibly, and she smiled slowly.
Pei Lang was stunned for a moment, the girl was originally a pretty face, she was more dignified and dignified, but the smile just now seemed to have the charm of an adult woman, and there was a hint of temptation in it, which made people unable to bear it. I want to explore the secrets.
However, at that moment, Shen Miao lowered her head and the short-lived smile seemed to be just an illusion.
…
Fengxian pawnshop naturally knows all about these rumors and rumors in Ding capital, big and small matters.
Ji Yushu buried his head in the abacus, and said to the two of them: "The sale of the Jiangnan Chen family is really worth it. With such a large amount of money, this pawnshop won't have to open for three years."
"You ate all the money and didn't leave any of it for Fifth Young Miss Shen?" Gao Yang jokingly said, "Anyway, they are the ones who sell news."
Ji Yushu curled his lips: "She said herself that all the money belongs to me, and I took such a big risk to make news for her, or else could the matter of Prince Yu's Mansion be handled so cleanly without future troubles?" He Said: "Besides, if he hadn't told Chen Yueshan that he didn't want the money, and the deal was finished, I could have kept it open for 30 years. Thanks to her, I've earned so much less, if it wasn't for her being a woman, I-I have to make her look good!"
"If you really make her look good, I will definitely give you a coffin." Gao Yang shook his folding fan lightly, his smile was gentle and elegant, but what he said made one's teeth itch: "Prince Yu wanted to harm her, but she ended up being killed by her. After destroying the whole family, her sisters plotted against her, and she would take her own life. Such a ruthless girl, I bet you will die in three moves in her hands. "
"Don't come." Ji Yushu was dissatisfied: "My lord, am I that weak? Besides, no matter how powerful she is, she is a woman, and women have weaknesses." Ji Yushu looked at Xie Jing Xing who was drinking tea indifferently. , said: "Let's put it this way, if the fifth young miss Shen falls in love with our third brother Xie, it will definitely be called a coquettish jealousy, and she will not be able to match the softness of our third brother's fingers. Even if Third Brother Xie points his sword at her, she probably won't frown."
"Haha," Gao Yang looked at him coldly, "At that time, she must first cut Xie San into eight pieces and then chop them into puree and feed them to the dog."
"Brother Xie, Gao Yang called you a dog." Ji Yushu immediately complained.
Xie Jing Xing played with the hairpin in his hands and gave them both a blank look with a rare awe on his face.
"They are here."