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Marriage of the Di Daughter

Chapter 170 Part 4: The Real Culprit

Shen Ruyun talked with Mother Shen for a while before getting on the carriage to return home.

The Ningyuan Marquisate did not interfere with her, not because she was Shen Yurong’s sister that they didn’t dare to discipline her, but because Ningyuan Marquis’s heir, Zhou Yan Bang, her husband, didn’t care about her existence at all. Therefore, no one cared whether she went out during the day or went back to her parents’ home at night.

This time when she returned to the Shen family, aside from persuading Shen Yurong to reconcile with Princess Yongning, Shen Ruyun also poured out her bitter complaint to Mother Shen.

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After marrying into the Ningyuan Marquis’s Mansion, Shen Ruyun did not have an easy life. Zhou Yan Bang spent his days lingering in brothels, drinking and having fun, and only came back drunk at night. Shen Ruyun got angry whenever she saw him, but Zhou Yan Bang regarded her as a stranger, not as his wife. He even treated Jiang Yu’e, the concubine from the Shen family, better than Shen Ruyun.

Jiang Yu’e would be humble and considerate to Zhou Yan Bang, and she also had countless despicable means to always keep Zhou Yan Bang in her courtyard. Shen Ruyun wanted to attack her, but she could never find any handle against Jiang Yu’e, and she would slip away from her hands like a loach.

Only then did Shen Ruyun realize that she had no means at all in the inner backyard. Perhaps because the Shen family had few female members and a simple population, and the only outsider, Xue Fang Fei, had a gentle and docile temper, Shen Ruyun had no rivals in the Shen family and naturally did not need to learn anything. In the unfamiliar battlefield of Ningyuan Marquis’s Mansion, she became a defenseless person. The only thing she could rely on was her status as the heir’s wife. However, Zhou Yan Bang did not put this status in his eyes at all. As if it didn’t matter who became the heir’s wife.

Perhaps it was because among all the beauties Zhou Yan Bang knew, Shen Ruyun was just too ordinary. Until the prior incident at the palace banquet, Zhou Yan Bang had no impression of Shen Ruyun at all. It was obvious that Zhou Yan Bang did not like Shen Ruyun, and did not even have a good impression of her.

Shen Ruyun failed to seek Zhou Yan Bang’s love, and her teacher was tricked by Jiang Yu’e. She was anxious and angry, so she had to seek help from the wife of Ningyuan Marquis, her mother-in-law.

The Marchioness appeared kind and comforted her, but in fact she was indirectly asking Shen Ruyun’s elder brother Shen Yurong if he could speak well of Zhou Yan Bang in front of the emperor so that Zhou Yan Bang could return to his official career.

Shen Ruyun had mentioned this matter to Shen Yurong, but was refused by Shen Yurong. This elder brother of hers, once he had made a decision, he would not change it even if pulled by nine bulls, so Shen Ruyun had no other means. After several attempts, Shen Ruyun kept stalling, and the Marchioness also became too lazy to care about these matters. The next time Shen Ruyun came to complain, the Marchioness said she was not feeling well and was too lazy to come out.

Come to think of it, Zhou Yan Bang has no future in his career anyway, so he can have fun however he wants. Others would just talk about him behind his back, a few words wouldn’t hurt him. Why hurt the relationship between mother and son over such trivial matters?

Shen Ruyun was truly helpless. She had originally wanted to seek help from Princess Yongning. If Shen Yurong refused to help, Princess Yongning would certainly help. However, Princess Yongning married into the Li family at this juncture. Shen Ruyun panicked. If Princess Yongning married into the Li family and severed ties with Shen Yurong, how far could their Shen family go? Was it the end of their good days? Therefore, she hurried back to the Shen Mansion to persuade Shen Yurong not to draw a clear line with Princess Yongning even if she was married.

Unfortunately, her ideas seemed to be contrary to those of her elder brother.

Shen Ruyun couldn’t please either side. She had no way to resolve her predicament in Ningyuan Marquis Mansion, and Shen Yurong had this attitude. Shen Ruyun suddenly felt that it would be great if Xue Fang Fei was still here. At least she would think of a solution for her. She was so smart, she was certainly able to find a way to let her gain a firm foothold in Ningyuan Marquis Mansion.

The carriage sped away in the night, and Shen Ruyun pressed her forehead.

Xue Fang Fei was already dead, and she shouldn’t reminisce about a dead person. Moreover, it was precisely due to Xue Fang Fei’s death that the Shen family had the current prosperity.

She was just a little confused from her recent troubles, and she just couldn’t understand Shen Yurong anymore, that’s all.

……

One day and one night, these four words sounded short, but for Princess Yongning, it felt exceptionally long.

Last night, Mei Xiang dug up the medicinal residue under a willow tree and wrapped it in paper. This afternoon, while the household went to purchase things, she took the opportunity to leave the mansion and went to the pharmacy to check if there was anything wrong with the residue. Princess Yongning stayed alone in her room. She had a servant girl by her side, but without Mei Xiang, she always felt like she was missing a pillar of support. Especially after learning that the Li family might be harboring a conspiracy, Princess Yongning sat alone, feeling a constant sense of danger.

She no longer had any trust in the Li family.

She waited from daybreak until dusk, until Li Xian and his father returned, and until Princess Yongning had her own private dinner, and until the lanterns in the house were lit.

Li Xian visited her once in the afternoon, and Princess Yongning guessed that Li Xian had gone to his own courtyard to rest. Just as she was losing her patience, she heard the voices of Mei Xiang talking to the servant girls outside. Princess Yongning perked up, sat up from the couch, and got off the couch just as Mei Xiang entered.

Princess Yongning waved her hand to dismiss the servants around her and asked Mei Xiang to close the door. Mei Xiang closed the door and made sure that no one was around before she took out the paper bag containing the medicine residue from her bosom.

“Today, this servant went out and in order to avoid any mistakes, this servant went to several pharmacies and had people smell what was in the medicine residue.”

Princess Yongning asked anxiously, “Is there any discovery?”

Mei Xiang glanced at Princess Yongning and said in a heavy voice, “This medicine residue does contain a drug that can cause miscarriage. There won’t be any problem at the beginning, but if it’s taken continuously for more than a month, the body will become extremely weak. Even a small movement could easily lead to a miscarriage. Pregnant women are unlikely to notice these changes in their bodies.”

“What those two people said was true. Eldest Young Master Li really wants to murder the young prince!” Mei Xiang said.

Princess Yongning staggered back a step, leaning against the bedpost. Suddenly, she clenched her fists, her eyes blazing with fire. She spoke through gritted teeth, pausing over each word, “Li Xian, this princess wants your dog life!”

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