CHAPTER 104: CHAPTER 102 SHEN YINNING DID IT ON PURPOSE TO CURSE HIM

Shen Yunxi rolled her eyes.

She invited Shen Yinning?!

She didn’t even know she had returned to the Capital, so how could she have invited her?!

This wench must be dreaming!

She denied it without hesitation, "Sister, did you hurt your brain in Gan State? Whether I invited you or not, do you think I wouldn’t know?!"

Seeing the unpleasant expressions on the faces of the Shen Family, Gao Zheng felt a storm brewing in his heart.

Judging by the looks of it, Shen Yinning did not get along with the Shen Guogong Mansion, nor with the Crown Princess Consort.

As her nominal husband, would her actions implicate him?

If she angered the Duke or the Crown Princess Consort, wouldn’t his official career hang by a thread?!

At that thought, Gao Zheng secretly resented Shen Yinning for recklessly showing up at the banquet and decisively stepped forward, his face stern as he scolded, "Shen, what do you think you’re doing?! Why are you not staying put in the backyard but coming to such a place?! Do you think this is somewhere you’re allowed to be?! Claiming the Crown Princess Consort invited you—she doesn’t even know you’ve returned to the Capital, so how could she have invited you?! I’ll make the decision for you—kneel immediately, apologize to the Duke and the Crown Princess Consort, and then return home with me!"

Shen Yinning raised her eyebrows.

Just as he reached out to grab her, Lu Jiazhe stepped forward in time to shield Shen Yinning, saying sharply, "Back off!"

Gao Zheng froze for a moment, realizing that Lu Jiazhe was ordering him to back off, his cheeks instantly burning with anger.

He was her husband—what gave Lu Jiazhe the right to order him to stay away?

Even if Lu Jiazhe bore the noble title of the Princely Heir of Suwang Mansion, he shouldn’t treat him like this!

Shen Yinning truly was a fickle, shameless woman—flirting with the Crown Prince, and now seducing the Princely Heir of Suwang Mansion too!

Fury surged within him, but he dared not throw a tantrum at Lu Jiazhe. Instead, he turned to Shen Yan and Shen Yunxi, forcing a smile as he said, "My low-born wife has no sense of propriety or etiquette, and rashly barged into the birthday banquet. I beg the Duke and the Crown Princess Consort’s forgiveness! Tomorrow at dawn, I will personally bring her to the Shen Guogong Mansion to offer our formal apologies!"

Shen Yunxi looked at his groveling figure and couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

So much for Shen Yinning’s pride all these years—hadn’t it all come to this in the end? Marrying such a useless man?

Even her husband had to bow and scrape in front of her, let alone Shen Yinning!

Their positions had completely flipped. She had utterly trampled Shen Yinning beneath her feet!

Suppressing the smug curl at her lips, she assumed an air of condescension and said, "I am not a petty person. Since Lord Gao says so, I will not pursue Sister’s missteps today. But Sister must keep in mind that things have changed—today is not what it once was. You are no longer the Shen Yinning of old. From now on, you should watch your words and actions, and never make such mistakes again."

Gao Zheng secretly let out a sigh of relief, frantically throwing Shen Yinning warning looks, "What are you still standing there for? Quickly thank the Crown Princess Consort for her grace!"

To his dismay, Shen Yinning suddenly laughed: "What wrong have I committed?"

Shen Yunxi’s mood darkened. "Coming uninvited—is that not wrong?!"

"I already said, I came because my younger sister invited me." Shen Yinning took an invitation card from Lu Jiazhe’s hand. "You personally visited multiple times to invite me. Have you forgotten?"

Shen Yunxi scanned the contents of the invitation card carefully, her anger rising as she raised her voice, "What nonsense are you spouting?! This is clearly an invitation sent to Lady Shen—you’re Lady Shen—"

Before the word "aren’t" left her lips, Shen Yunxi froze.

Shen Yinning. Lady Shen...

Could it be...

They were the same person?!

But how could that be possible?!

Lady Shen’s calligraphy was renowned, celebrated by poets and scholars, deeply adored by the Empress Dowager. It was said that she had once discussed Buddhism with the Empress Dowager herself at Xiaokan Temple. From what she had heard, Lady Shen must have been a well-experienced, middle-aged woman. How could she possibly be Shen Yinning?!

After all, she herself, as the dignified Crown Princess Consort, couldn’t even gain the Empress Dowager’s favor—what right did Shen Yinning have?!

Shen Yinning spoke gently, "Sister personally came to invite me to compose a birthday blessing for Uncle. Look, I brought it with me. Aze."

Lu Jiazhe, understanding her signal, immediately unfurled the scroll in his arms.

Everyone gazed at it—a stunningly elegant calligraphy piece of the word "Longevity," identical in style to Lady Shen’s renowned penmanship: half sacred, half demonic, masterfully intricate, with a haunting and majestic aura, making it extremely valuable as a collectible.

However...

Madam Chen, an expert in calligraphy, frowned as she evaluated, "As expected of a calligraphy artist esteemed by the Empress Dowager—what an extraordinary piece! However, according to the traditions of this dynasty, the word for ’Longevity’ in birthday blessings must be composed in a single stroke. But Lady Shen’s ’Longevity’..."

Everyone looked closer and found that the ’Longevity’ character, which was supposed to be written in one continuous stroke, was abruptly broken in the middle!

Shen Yan’s expression became exceedingly grim.

A broken-stroke ’Longevity’ was a grave omen, implying a life cut short, a bitter end!

Shen Yinning was clearly cursing him!

Shen Xinglei couldn’t hold back his temper and roared instantly, "Shen Yinning, what do you mean by this?! Are you so resentful that you can’t bear to see my father well?! Guards, throw this vile woman out!"

"Wait a moment." Madam Chen raised her hand to interject, "The art of calligraphy contains boundless mysteries. Let’s hear Lady Shen’s explanation first."

Shen Yinning executed a graceful bow. "Uncle, the break within this ’Longevity’ character does not symbolize an ill-fate. Rather, it signifies the transformation between two phases of Uncle’s life. You began as a concubine’s son within the Shen Family, but today, you stand as the esteemed Duke. This represents a life completely reborn. It was with this thought in mind that I deliberately incorporated the break within the character—to symbolize Uncle’s rebirth and fulfillment in your later years."

The hall fell into silence.

Few believed Shen Yinning’s explanation.

After all, everyone in the Capital knew that her father and elder brother had died by Shen Yan’s hand.

Who would believe that she bore no hatred for Shen Yan?

And yet, her explanation was so perfectly reasonable, so eloquently stated, that no fault could be found.

Shen Yan narrowed his eyes.

What did she mean by "fulfillment in his later years"?

It made it sound as if he had coveted the Duke’s title all along!

This eldest niece of his, so sharp-tongued and quick-witted, seemed entirely unlike the kind-hearted characters of her late parents!

But what of it? No matter how sharp she was, no matter how much the Empress Dowager supported her, she was still merely a woman.

Even if she bore the determination to seek revenge, she lacked the means. All she could do was play petty games like this—to vex him.

A cold laughter echoed within him as he dismissed her entirely.

His voice reverberated loud and authoritative, "Zhaozhao’s intentions are duly noted. Someone, take this ’Longevity’ piece and hang it in my study at the mansion—I wish to have it as a constant reminder of her filial piety."

After all, how could a mere piece of calligraphy bring harm to him?

On the day his elder brother was granted poisoned wine in prison, the Capital had been besieged by a torrential rainstorm. White lightning had slashed the sky like writhing serpents. He had sat alone inside the ancestral hall, raising his glass in celebration toward the plaques of over a hundred ancestors, rejoicing at having finally achieved his ambitions.

If he had not feared those plaques back then, why would he now be afraid of a broken-stroked character for Longevity?

The only thing that had carried him to his current status was unparalleled courage and resolve!

Shen Yinning met his gaze—like a young cub daring to challenge the beast guarding its territory.

Their eyes, locked together, emanated an endless icy chill.

"Enough," Shen Xinghan suddenly interjected, shattering the mounting tension and attempting to steer the occasion back on course. "Today is Father’s birthday. Xi’er, what’s the second gift you’ve prepared? Quickly present it to lift Father’s spirits!"

Shen Yunxi made a gesture of command. "Bring it out."

Several guards soon emerged carrying a wooden chest.

Shen Yunxi was visibly delighted. "Father, I know you are a devout Buddhist with a compassionate heart. This is a White Jade Buddha Statue commissioned from the most renowned jade artisan in Jiangnan. It took three months of painstaking work, rushed just to make it in time."

She spoke as she lifted the lid of the wooden chest.

Everyone leaned in for a closer look.

But instead of a White Jade Buddha Statue, out sprang a deranged, hysterical woman, shrieking, "It wasn’t me! It wasn’t me! I didn’t kill the Madam! It was Granny Zhang! Granny Zhang forced me to lie that the Madam and her eldest daughter had died. It was Granny Zhang who drove them to their deaths!"