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Chapter 115.2




On this day, Shen Yuan Qi had just left the imperial court when he saw one of Yu Pin Yan’s attendants waiting for him by the door. He brought the man inside and asked softly, “What are the Marquis’ orders?”
The personal attendant bowed and replied, “The Marquis asks Lord Shen to acknowledge Third Young Miss as your family member immediately.” Yu Pin Yan was on his way to the West at the moment, so it was impossible for him to send a letter back. However, he said before he left that if the Old Madam wished to betroth the Third Young Miss, quickly ask Lord Shen to recognise her as soon as possible. Yu Pin Yan had eyes and ears all over the Marquis manor. How could the Old Madam’s surreptitious movements get by him? Even if he was not there, he had left numerous alternative courses of actions for his younger sister.
Shen Yuan Qi got up hastily, bringing the chair behind him to topple, and said incoherently, “He is finally willing to? Why is that so? No, no, no, I am going to change my clothes. Wait for a moment.”
As he changed out of his official robes, he finally calmed down and asked, “Why has your Marquis agreed to let me recognise Xiang’er as my family member? Has something happened at the Marquis manor?”
“Replying to Lord Shen, the Old Madam intends to betroth Third Young Miss.”
“Who is she being betrothed to?” Shen Yuan Qi was feeling uncomfortable when her own sister’s marriage was at the mercy of the Yu family.
“To Sun Ming Jie, the eldest di son of Lord Sun of the Ministry of Works.”
Although young in age, Sun Ming Jie had a reputation for his talent. In addition, his outstanding looks and high moral character will make him a popular figure in a few years’ time. Shen Yuan Qi did not expect that the Yu family would find such a good husband for his sister, so he gazed at the personal attendant with a puzzled expression. At this juncture, he was asked to go acknowledge his younger sister as a family member, which would affect his sister’s marriage. Even though he had not been promoted to the fourth rank of Vice Minister[1] of Court of Judicial Review[2], and used his connection to find another marriage for his younger sister. The fact remained was he could not find a better candidate than Sun Ming Jie.
Even though the Old Madam had overstepped her boundaries, he had to admit that it was a good marriage. The Old Madam did love his younger sister as her own granddaughter.
The personal attendant did not respond and he took out red and white silk fabric[3] from his sleeve pocket.
Shen Yuan Qi opened the silk and saw that it was a letter in blood. Due to its age, the colour of the blood had turned brown and smelled fishy. It was a suicide note from a woman who was once Sun Ming Jie’s personal maidservant. She was unable to endure his various humiliations, so she took her own life and hoped that her family would take the bloody letter to the court to seek justice for her.
Shen Yuan Qi’s fingertips trembled after reading it, and he asked in a solemn voice, “Where did you find this? The tortures described on the silk were so appalling that even the Dragon Scale Guards would have to bow down when they saw them. He couldn’t imagine that Sun Ming Jie had such a malevolent facade underneath his beautiful appearance. He was nothing more than this so-called ‘wolf in sheep’s clothing.’[4]
If Xiang’er were to marry him, there was no telling what torture she would have to suffer.
“The Marquis has his own connection, so Lord Shen doesn’t need to doubt it. This case has been suppressed by Madam Sun. Even Lord Sun has not heard of it, and there is no way for the outside world to know about it, so it is a fluke that this bloody letter was found. This is a matter of life and death for the Third Young Miss, so I would like to ask Lord Shen to help. This servant thanks Lord Shen on behalf of the Marquis for your assistance!” The personal attendant gave a deep bow, looking very anxious.
Shen Yuan Qi hurriedly helped him up and said, “Xiang’er is my family member. Saving her is also saving myself, so I should thank your Marquis. Let’s go, I am going to fetch Xiang’er back.”
The two of them hurriedly arrived at the Marquis manor, and the personal attendant went through the back corner door to avoid suspicion, while Shen Yuan Qi was led by a servant to the main hall.
“This humble self[5] greets Old Madam. I have not seen you recently, is your health still in good health?”
“Everything is fine. Please sit down, Lord Shen. What is the reason for your visit?”
“It’s about Xiang’er returning to her original lineage.”
As these words were spoken, the smile plastered on Old Madam’s face could no longer be maintained. She put down her teacup with a clang and said in a deep voice, “Lord Shen, do you happen to be muddled? What does my family’s Xiang’er have any relations with you?”
Shen Yuan Qi spoke without being condescending, “This humble self is not muddled. The person that is muddled is the Old Madam. If the Old Madam had not insisted on marrying Xiang’er to such a person, This humble self would never have rashly visited and disturbed Xiang’er’s peace.”
“Marry a man like that? Tell me, Lord Shen, what kind of man is Sun Ming Jie and why isn’t he worthy of Xiang’er? I know that you, as Xianger’s elder brother, are uncomfortable about being unable to intervene in her marriage. However, I love Xiang’er no less than you do, and the best husband for her is the one I found.” The Old Madam’s words echoed.
Yu Xiang, who had rushed here upon hearing the news, questioned loudly, “Marry Sun Ming Jie? Since when am I going to be betrothed to Sun Ming Jie?” 　
The faces of all the people in the hall changed. The Old Madam hastily dismissed all the servants, leaving one Ma Momo to attend to her. While she was still considering how to calm her granddaughter, Yu Xiang sneered, “I was wondering why Grandmother has been gazing at me oddly lately and had become more silent with me. Yet, it turned out that she was already aware of the matter between my elder brother and I.”
She waved her hand and ordered Tao Hong and Liu Lu to push herself into the hall, enunciating each word slowly, “Since the Old Madam already knows, I will tell you candidly here- I will not marry anyone but my elder brother! You can convey that to Sun Ming Jie or whoever for me post haste.”
“Shut up!” The Old Madam slammed the table in anger, causing all the tea sets to shake and shattering to pieces.
Shen Yuan Qi was completely stupefied. He repeatedly pondered over the words ‘I won’t marry anyone but my elder brother’, and then he felt a thunderbolt had descended from above his head, striking him to his senses. No wonder Yu Pin Yan stated that he would let him acknowledge Yu Xiang as a family member when she came of age. No wonder he was so concerned about her marriage because he had such an intent.
In an instant, Shen Yuan Qi had already cursed Yu Pin Yan in his heart.
[1] 民捿(shĂ o qÄ«ng)-Vice Minister, common title for 2nd-tier executive officials of central government agencies headed by Chief Ministers. Credits: Projects.iq.harvard
[2] 性理ćŻș(dĂ lǐ sĂŹ)-Court of Judicial Review, an important central government agency, considered one the Nine Courts and one of the Three Judicial Offices. It was a reliable and large agency responsible for reviewing reports of judicial proceedings at all levels of territorial administration, recommending to the Emperor what cases involving major punishments should be returned for retrial, submitted to a gathering of court dignitaries for deliberation, or decided by the Emperor himself, and participating in important judicial proceedings at court along with the Censorate and the Ministry of Justice. Credits: Projects.iq.harvard
[3] 锩澛(jǐn bó)- It is a form of tool that writes words and painting on silk fabrics. Before the invention of paper, this was a form of book used at the same time as bamboo slips. Credits: Baidu
[4] èĄŁć† çŠœć…œ(yÄ«guānqĂ­nshĂČu)- wolf in sheep’s clothing’/’beast in human clothes’/‘clothed beast would refer to an Immoral and despicable person.
[5] æČˆæŸ(Shěn mǒu)- I (humble, by itself)/ This humble self. It could also be used in place of a person’s given name, for anonymity purposes. E.g. a person with the surname of Shen.