This was the first conversation between Shen Yingluo and Shen Yueshan as father and daughter. She had imagined how he would regard her if she ever stood before him one day—whether he would be cold and indifferent, or look upon her with disgust and disdain.
But there was none of that—no coldness, no disgust. Instead, there was earnest sincerity, perhaps his first and possibly last guidance to her as a father—cruel, blunt, yet undeniably truthful.
It was clearly much better than she had anticipated, so why did her heart feel shattered and broken? She didn’t know how to respond, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably. The more she cried, the more sorrowful she became, until she abandoned all restraint and wept without inhibition, as if pouring out a lifetime of grievances.
Shen Yueshan sat above, silently watching her cry—neither speaking, comforting, scolding, nor showing anger.
Gradually, Shen Yingluo’s sobs subsided. Dizzy and disoriented, it took her a while to calm down. Shen Yueshan instructed the servant outside, “Prepare washing supplies for the Second Young Lady.”
The servant immediately went to prepare. Shen Yueshan said nothing more. After tidying her appearance with the help of her maid, Shen Yingluo stepped forward and bowed gracefully to Shen Yueshan. “It’s getting late. A’Luo takes her leave.”
“Mm,” Shen Yueshan acknowledged.
Shen Yingluo cast one last, deeply longing glance at Shen Yueshan before turning to leave.
Shen Yueshan watched her figure disappear into the gradually deepening night. He sat alone in the room for a while before rising and heading toward Shen Xihe’s courtyard. There, he saw Shen Xihe playing with Duanming. Raising a finger to signal the servant guarding the door to remain silent, he leaned against the doorframe and cautiously peered at Shen Xihe’s expression. Only when he saw no trace of displeasure did he breathe a sigh of relief.
“Your Highness?” Ziyu, who had brought tea, called out upon seeing Shen Yueshan.
The call made Shen Xihe look up, spotting Shen Yueshan immediately straightening up and pretending to adjust his collar. A faint smile touched her lips. “Ziyu, serve the tea to Father.”
Shen Yueshan’s face lit up with delight. He looked at Shen Xihe and pointed at himself. “Prepared especially for me?”
“Sobering tea,” Shen Xihe replied.
Shen Yueshan’s expression stiffened. “I never get drunk, no matter how much I drink! I won’t drink this!”
Did he need something like that?
“Won’t drink?” Shen Xihe drawled.
Shen Yueshan retorted stubbornly, “Won’t drink!”
“Biyu, send all the Pi bamboo wine gifted to me by Worldly Son Bu to the Northwest for Brother. Have it dispatched first thing tomorrow morning,” Shen Xihe called out.
Biyu rushed in but was stopped by Shen Yueshan’s loud command before she could even bow. “Don’t you dare!”
With that, he strode over to Shen Xihe. “You always treat your brother better than your own father!”
“Brother listens to me in everything. Whatever I ask him to eat, he eats without question or refusal,” Shen Xihe sniffed lightly.
Shen Yueshan widened his eyes. “I’m your father, your elder! How can it be the same?”
Shen Xihe fixed him with a piercing gaze. “So Father means that as an elder, you shouldn’t listen to me, lest it damage your dignity.”
With that, Shen Xihe stood up and bowed formally to Shen Yueshan. “Father, please forgive this child’s earlier impertinence. From now on, I will remember the distinctions of seniority and status and never overstep again…”"No, no, no! I misspoke! I've had too much wine and I'm a bit drunk. Youyou, don't take it to heart." Shen Yueshan couldn't bear his daughter acting like this. Just imagining her greeting him morning and night with perfect etiquette, following every rule in her actions—wouldn't that drive him mad?
"Since you're drunk..." Shen Xihe glanced at the hangover soup Ziyu was holding.
Shen Yueshan took a deep breath, grabbed the bowl with one hand, and tilted his head back to gulp it down as if drinking poison. After finishing, his face scrunched up like a steamed bun: "Bitter."
Shen Xihe had already stepped before him and beckoned with her finger. Shen Yueshan immediately bent down, and Shen Xihe fed him a piece of preserved fruit from her hand: "I candied these myself with plum blossoms. Are they good? I made a jar for you—they keep well. You can take them back to the northwest and enjoy them for a long time. Later, I'll make more to send to the northwest."
A subtle plum fragrance spread across his taste buds, completely masking the bitterness of the medicinal tea without being overly sweet. Shen Yueshan's expression relaxed entirely: "Only for Father?"
"Only for Father." Shen Xihe was truly exasperated by this father-son pair. Whenever she made something, she either had to prepare two different versions exclusively for each of them or make identical ones. Otherwise, she'd have to endure the resentful glares and sarcastic complaints from these two grown men.
Only then did Shen Yueshan break into a wide grin. But his cheerful expression faded as he thought of Shen Yingluo. He placed his palm on Shen Xihe's head and said solemnly, "Youyou, you are Father's only daughter."
Shen Xihe suddenly felt her eyes sting: "Father, Youyou has grown up. I'm no longer the ignorant little girl I once was."
It was around the age of six that she accidentally learned of Shen Yingluo's existence. At the time, she was so enraged she could barely breathe, nearly dying from the shock—giving Shen Yueshan such a fright that he developed a lasting fear of the topic. Since then, no one was allowed to mention Shen Yingluo in front of Shen Xihe.
Back then, she was young and naive, having always believed herself to be her father's only daughter. After hearing about the conflicts of the previous generation, she even grew to resent Shen Yueshan, refusing to speak a word to him for half a year.
Later, when she fell seriously ill, Shen Yueshan carried her and knelt to beg for medical treatment. In her dazed state, she saw the revered Shen Yueshan—who never bowed to anyone—kneeling and pleading with others for her sake. Only then did she realize how deeply her father cherished her. Thinking she might not survive, she deeply regretted spending the last part of her life sulking at her father.
Fortunately, she pulled through that time. Afterward, she never sulked at Shen Yueshan again, and he became even more cautious around her.
"Father, Youyou has grown up," Shen Xihe repeated. "I understand things now. She is also an innocent child."
"You are both innocent children," Shen Yueshan said softly. "Father cannot take your understanding and generosity for granted. I also don't know how to treat her. When it comes to raising young ladies, even you had a female tutor. I couldn't raise you properly, and I can't raise her either. To feign affection for her—wouldn't that be deception?"
"Father..." Thinking of Shen Yueshan's dilemma, Shen Xihe suggested, "You'll be in the capital for quite some time. Why not bring her here? Perhaps after spending more time together, you'll figure out how to treat her."
It wasn't that she was magnanimous or willing to share her father's love—but what could she do? That child was her father's own flesh and blood, an unchangeable fact.
She always had to consider Shen Yueshan's feelings."Why bother?" Shen Yueshan said. "Why make everyone unhappy? Father doesn't need you to sacrifice yourself to preserve Father's reputation. Nor does she need Father's hypocritical arrangements. Besides, since Father is seldom in the capital, keeping her at a distance might actually be a form of protection."
At least it reduces the number of people who might scheme against her.
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