Chарtеr 376: Тhе Соppеr Sраrrоw Сries in Chang'аn 30
Zhu Мojie еncountеrеd Zhu Кuо rushing hоmе outside thе door, his face full of glооm. When Zhu Мojiе аskеd, hе was stunnеd оn thе sроt.
It turned оut that Zhu Kuo, uроn seеing Zhu Yan sent baсk with a high fevеr, was so аngrу thаt hе wеnt tо thе Shen residеnсe tо sеttlе scоres with Shеn Du. Вut it seemеd tо havе had little effеct.
"Father, аrе wе reаlly going to lеt thеm divоrcе?" Zhu Моjiе аskеd hesitаntlу.
Zhu Kuо fumed, "Whаt else? Shоuld I beg Shеn Du tо tаke bасk thе divоrce lettеr?"
He hadn’t even sеen Shen Du at thе Shen residеncе—likе punсhing cotton. Having mustered courage for the first time in his life, Zhu Kuo couldn’t help but feel frustrated.
Thinking of Zhu Yan, Zhu Kuo hurriedly adjusted his emotions, patted his clothes, and prepared to go inside. "I’ll go check on Liu Niang."
"Don’t!" Zhu Mojie stopped him. Seeing Zhu Kuo’s confusion, he quickly explained, "Concubine Jin is helping Xiao Liu change clothes. Her clothes were soaked with sweat from the fever."
With this explanation, Zhu Kuo naturally understood, and his rationality returned. He frowned, "What do you think His Majesty means? Why haven’t I understood the recent court situation at all?"
First, after returning from the Yingzhou trip, Shen Du and Zhu Yan were rewarded. But within days, Shen Du was imprisoned in the Judicial Affairs Bureau. Thinking he was surely doomed, Zhu Kuo had even begged Prime Minister Zhang to protect his daughter. Yet, within days, Shen Du was released from the Judicial Affairs Bureau, though demoted, and the cabinet was handed over to Lai Luozhi.
Two equally powerful departments, previously checking each other, were now under the same person. The key was that Crown Prince Li Chong was still imprisoned.
The Crown Prince hadn’t been released, but Shen Du was out. Since when had the Judicial Affairs Bureau become so easy to enter and leave?
"I also find it strange. First, members of the Jin clan were released from the Judicial Affairs Bureau, and now Shen Du. That place was always a one-way street—since when did it become like a backyard garden?" Zhu Mojie scratched his head. At the Hongwen Academy, he had heard plenty about such matters. As scholars preparing for the imperial examinations, they naturally paid attention to court developments.
The situation was as tangled as a mess of threads—too complicated to unravel, so he simply ignored it.
Zhu Kuo called Zhu Mojie over and walked away, saying, "Forget about these things. Since Shen Du took the initiative to propose divorce, it shows he genuinely considered Liu Niang’s well-being. For that alone, we shouldn’t stoop to slandering him behind his back."
Speaking of this, Zhu Kuo opened his somewhat blurry eyes, remembering something. "When they got married, Shen Du said Liu Niang wouldn’t live past three months. Look, as soon as he gained freedom from this incident, he sent Liu Niang the divorce letter."
Zhu Mojie didn’t understand. "It does show some conscience, but writing a divorce letter is too hurtful—it ruins Liu Niang’s reputation."
"What do you know?" Zhu Kuo chuckled a few times, smugly saying, "In the end, it’s our Liu Niang’s cleverness and charm that firmly captured Shen Du’s heart."
Zhu Mojie: ...Isn’t your focus a bit off?
Zhu Yan, inside the room, overheard most of the conversation. Her initially unsettled heart gradually calmed. Beside her, Concubine Jin helped her change clothes while chattering:
"You have no idea. When you were sent back yesterday, you were burning with fever and unconscious. Your father hurriedly went with your fifth brother to fetch a doctor. In his panic, your father almost tripped and fell."
Thinking of Zhu Kuo’s plump body tumbling at the doorstep, Zhu Yan wanted to laugh but couldn’t. Her father was good-hearted, but sometimes muddle-headed and lacking influence. Sending his daughter off as a substitute bride probably didn’t sit well with him either.
"I was so scared at the time. With your mother and Manzhu’s help, we placed you in a bathtub to soak. Your master said this could help reduce the fever."Zhu Yan was well-versed in pharmacology and naturally understood this method was feasible. "What about my master?"
Chen Wen had actually come?
"Your father saw him as soon as he stepped out. He came to check on you, performed acupuncture and took your pulse, confirmed you were fine, and then left."
Zhu Yan: "Did he say anything?"
Concubine Jin was surprised. "What could he say?" Then she remembered something. "Oh, he said he’d come to see you again in a few days."
With a barely audible "Mm," Zhu Yan was distracted. Seeing this, Concubine Jin said no more, tucked her in, and urged her to rest.
Zhu Yan grabbed Concubine Jin’s wrist. "Mother, has my dowry been returned?"
Concubine Jin shook her head, advising Zhu Yan, "Don’t think too much about it. Consider it a loss to ward off misfortune. Think of it this way—perhaps that person encountered some sudden trouble and forgot about these things."
Concubine Jin meant to let it go, to cut ties cleanly with Shen Du. But Zhu Yan shook her head, her eyes firm. "How can we not want it back? That dowry was prepared with all your family’s resources. It must be returned."
"Ah?" Concubine Jin opened her mouth, seeing Zhu Yan’s clear reasoning and much-improved complexion, she felt happy. "Actually, it’s not that bad. It wasn’t exactly all our family’s resources, after all, you still have three older brothers and two older sisters. We had to save something for them."
Having said this, she seemed to realize she had spoken too much and gave an awkward, dry laugh. Zhu Yan didn’t notice, her mind elsewhere.
That night, Shen Du, draped in a black cloak, slipped into Zhu Yan’s room under cover of darkness. He stayed with her for a long time, leaving only when the sky began to lighten.
——
On the sixteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, Zhu Yan, having recovered from her illness, personally returned to the Shen residence to demand her dowry. She saw Shen Du wearing a mask, but behind it, the nape of his neck was covered in scabbed whip marks. He was still as thin as ever, his clothes billowing in the wind, giving an impression of ill fit—yet these were the casual clothes he had worn before.
Zhu Yan’s heart raced wildly. Her fingers curled and uncurled unconsciously, clenching tightly as she suppressed the urge to embrace Shen Du. Lifting her head angrily, she said:
"Since we are divorced, return the dowry. I—"
"Steward!" Shen Du’s voice was hoarse as he gave the order. The steward understood and had people drag the dowry out from the storeroom, arranging it at the entrance.
Zhu Yan: …
The steward stepped forward. "Madam…"
"Hmm?"
Ignoring Shen Du’s warning, the steward continued, "Madam, please check if the count is correct."
What could be wrong? From the day she married, that dowry had been locked away in the storeroom gathering dust. Besides, retrieving the dowry wasn’t her main purpose for coming here.
Seeing no one else around, Zhu Yan stepped closer and whispered, "Shen Du, what exactly happened?"
Shen Du shifted slightly, keeping an arm’s length between them, his tone cold and mocking. "Since we are already divorced, why come to pester me? Could it be that Miss Zhu still can’t bear to part with this humble Shen?"
Seeing Zhu Yan’s face turn deathly pale, her post-illness complexion still lacking vitality, Shen Du’s cold eyes behind the mask narrowed slightly, but his words remained heartless.
"I have no habit of picking up discarded old shoes. Please conduct yourself with dignity, Miss Zhu."
The phrase "conduct yourself with dignity, Miss Zhu" made their past affection sound utterly wretched.
Zhu Yan was not without temper. She grew furious. "Shen Du, you coward! No matter how many difficulties there are, they aren’t reasons for divorce. What couldn’t we face together?"
The more she looked at Shen Du, the angrier she became. Her shoulders trembled with rage, so thin they seemed as if they could snap with a single twist.
"Shen Du, don’t forget what you said today. Someday, I will repay you twofold."Shen Du narrowed his eyes, his hands clenched tightly behind his back. Another day? If he had another day, why would he have sent her away in the first place?
Zhu Mojie and Zhu Manshu didn’t know what the two had whispered to each other, but it was clear that Shen Du had angered Zhu Yan. They rushed forward, ready to stand up for her, but Zhu Yan stopped them. She shot Shen Du a sidelong glance.
“Let’s go.”
“Little Six!” Zhu Mojie protested.
Zhu Yan didn’t look back.
Zhu Mojie stomped his foot, but still remembered to throw a fierce warning at Shen Du: “I’m telling you, no one gets to bully Little Six.”
Zhu Manshu, unusually calm, glanced at Shen Du from a distance. Noticing his spirits were far from what they used to be and that he wore a mask, she felt puzzled. She nudged Zhu Mojie and urged him to leave.
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