CHAPTER 547: CHAPTER 536: NATURALLY, IT’S FOR YOUR... SISTER

Shen Zhi shuddered, feeling a chill rise from his feet, engulfing him like falling into an ice cellar; a sense of absurdity welled up and swallowed him whole, not dissipating even as he left.

The wheels rolled over the ground, the clamor outside unceasing.

"Why?"

In his eyes, Shen Wei was different from other fathers. His family was wealthy, yet the inner household was clean—it had only Mama and Aunt Liu.

And now reality had slapped him in the face.

Setting everything else aside, at the very least, Chun Yun never forbade Shen Wei from taking concubines, did she?

Yet he had kept a concubine, even placing her in the secondary house.

If even he couldn’t accept it, for Chun Yun it must be an unimaginable humiliation.

Cui Yun lowered her gaze and poured tea: "Years ago, Xue Mouyan had a betrothal with your father, but he later married your mother."

"Three years ago, they met again."

One sought connection, the other delighted in her tender affections and reminiscing the past.

"Shen Zhi, what you should be thinking about now is what kind of man the Shen Wei you have called father since childhood really is."

His voice was exceptionally indifferent.

Cui Yun didn’t look at Shen Zhi’s bloodshot eyes as she passed him a cup of tea.

Shen Zhi was on guard: "First it was Ni Kang, and now today’s matter, what exactly are your intentions?"

He couldn’t believe these were mere coincidences.

Facing his questioning, Cui Yun was unfazed, her tone indifferent as if she looked down upon and cared for nothing.

"Of course, it’s for you."

Your sister.

Shen Zhi almost thought he and Cui Yun were good friends of many years. He was in disarray, no longer caring to discern the truth or falsity of her words, but his animosity towards Cui Yun lessened somewhat. Yet he still couldn’t face it.

However, Cui Yun wouldn’t let him play dumb, insisting on laying bare the Shen Residence’s dirty laundry, piece by piece, right before his eyes.

"What I’m telling you now, you probably won’t take in a single word. You have to see it to believe it."

"What’s your purpose?"

"What’s the rush?"

Cui Yun glanced at the hourglass placed inside the carriage.

"There’s still a quarter of an hour before we return to the Shen Residence."

"Why not consider whether Shen Wei has so meticulously concealed his liaison with the secondary house as a play for your mother to see?"

"Within a year, he has visited Shen He Wen countless times—is it all for the sake of that concubine? Besides that, when he claims to travel afar for business, how many times has he lied when he was actually still in Fengzhou?"

"And,"

Cui Yun tugged the corner of her lips.

"how many more secrets does he carry with him?"

This sentence felt both like a reminder and a torture.

Shen Zhi returned to the residence in a daze, and Cui Yun tossed over the spices from Shen Hua’s room.

Divided into two portions, one was the previously used majority, and the other was freshly brought back by Shen Wei.

"It has been confirmed, this is the cause of Miss Shen’s illness."

Shen Zhi suddenly turned pale: "Impossible!"

"Considering the medicine Miss Shen took previously, you need no reminder from me, you must have already learned the prescriptions by heart."

"There are many pharmacies in the city, you can take the spices to a clinic and have a doctor distinguish their components. But I feel it’s unnecessary; for years, no physician in Fengzhou has cured her, apparently they’re all half-competent quacks."

"Taken out separately, indeed, they are treasures, yet over time applied to the body, they become a chronic poison. It’s fortunate she consumed tonics like running water to survive till today. If you do not believe me, rather than seeking unreliable doctors, you might as well test it on mice and sparrows. Using stronger doses of the medicine, results should appear in a few days. You can see with your own eyes how long they survive."

Shen Zhi’s gaze was scattered.

Cui Yun pointed to the new batch: "I suggest using this batch."

She sneered: "It contains lethal ingredients twice as much as the previous one. It seems he is quite ruthless."

"You are a smart man."

With that, Cui Yun concluded: "I’ve helped you this far along the path, now it’s up to you to choose how to walk it."

Unable to contain himself, Shen Zhi stood up: "I should never have believed in such slanderous rumors you spread. Destroying the peace of my family home!"

"Daddy is so fond of Yangyang, how could he possibly harm her!"

As he spoke, he walked away, but as he crossed the threshold, his back curved, his hand clutched at the doorframe, gripping it tightly, knuckles turning white.

He began to recall every little detail leading up to now. But upon closer thought, it all seemed riddled with holes.

Did Shen Wei truly cherish Shen Hua?

But clearly, the girl had fallen ill in earlier years, and when in pain, she called for Daddy. Yet, Shen Wei was often absent.

So much so that later, it turned into calling for brother.

Because every time she called, Shen Zhi was always there.

Not to mention Shen Hua.

Even the last time, on the eve of the Imperial Examination, he caught a chill. The coughing was relentless.

Mama was heartbroken, seeing him burning with fever, she firmly pointed out his youth and that he shouldn’t risk his health by participating, that he could always take the exam next time without any harm.

But what about Shen Wei? At first, he was heartbroken for Shen Zhi for a moment. Then he sighed with sorrow.

——"The next chance to take the exam will be in three years; it’s not as simple as you make it out to be."

In the end, he finished the exam papers despite his sickly state, stumbling out of the examination hall, dizzy and with blurred vision; Mama rushed over and hugged him tenderly, placing her hand on his forehead.

"It’s even hotter than before, quick, Dr. Zhou, please have a look."

What about Shen Wei, then? He walked over with a smile and patted his shoulder.

"Well done, how do you think you did? Are you confident?"

Take Chun Yun, for example.

Shen Wei was very considerate towards his wife.

When Shen Zhi was young, the embroidery workshop struggled to get by, surviving only because of Mama’s skills. During those times, the most common phrase from father to Mama was.

——"To have such a wife, what more could a husband ask for?"

But now?

The phrase father says the most has become.

——"You take care of Yangyang at home, as for things outside, there’s always me."

Some things just don’t stand up to scrutiny.

Clearly, Shen Wei was the man he had called Daddy for more than ten years, supposedly the closest person, whereas he had only known Cui Yun for a few days.

But he—knew.

How greedy human nature can be.

Shen Zhi closed his eyes deeply, yet he still turned back. He grabbed a handful of spices. Without leaving a single word, he hurried away.

After he left, Ji Qing then came closer.

"Sir, do you think Mr. Shen would go as far as to sever familial ties for justice?"

"Sever familial ties for justice?"

Cui Yun said lazily: "That’s not how the phrase is used."

Shen Zhi had his own set of scales in his heart.

Which was closer, there was no need to say more.

From the moment he took the spices, suspicion towards Shen Wei had already arisen.

Using the clean water in the copper basin, Cui Yun scooped some to splash on his face to refresh himself, and as he was about to reach for the cotton cloth, he noticed a mud-covered stone added to the table.

Cui Yun’s head throbbed a couple of times.

Following Cui Yun’s line of sight, Ji Qing cried out in surprise.

"Where did the master’s folding fan go?"

"Fetch Ni Kang!"

Ji Qing hurried off to call someone.

Before Ni Kang arrived, his voice of explanation preceded him.

"This has nothing to do with me."

Their courtyards were separated by only a wall. Cui Yun didn’t believe Ni Kang was completely unaware of what was happening on this side.

"Explain yourself."

With his hair all white, Ni Kang couldn’t help but laugh out loud: "Don’t underestimate this stone, it looks ordinary."

"This was specially prepared by the little girl, such a delicate person, surprisingly not minding the dirt. She deliberately rolled it in mud, just to trade for your folding fan."