Unexpectedly, Qin Rong lunged forward right in front of Shen Hong, covering her face with both hands to shield him as the hot tea splashed fully across the back of her hands, drawing a gasp of "Ah" from her.
"Honglang, it hurts so much," Qin Rong cried out with a pitiful and delicate air.
Shen Hong blew on the back of her hand and shouted for the steward to immediately fetch a physician. Pointing at Shen Xuejin, his chest heaving with rage, he yelled, "Have you lost your mind!"
Shen Xuejin looked coldly at Shen Hong: "I am taking my mother away today."
"In your dreams!" Shen Hong flatly refused. "Pei Lian is my wife. If I refuse to let go, let's see how you plan to take her!"
"If you don't let her go, I will go straight to Dali Temple and accuse the honorable Lord Shen of wife abuse!" Shen Xuejin met Shen Hong's gaze without a shred of fear.
If her mother were left here any longer, it would only spell certain death!
"What good does it do you to ruin my reputation and the Shen family's name?" Shen Hong said through gritted teeth, lowering his voice. "Now that you've seen her, if you know what's good for you, find a way to dismiss the Second Young Master Huo."
"I have only one family member who is my mother, and what happens to anyone else is of no concern to me." Shen Xuejin stepped back and raised her voice slightly, saying deliberately, "Besides, before I came here, I already asked Madam Huo's permission to invite my mother to be a guest at the Huo Residence for a few days."
Shen Hong's expression shifted in shock, and he instinctively looked toward Huo Nanchi. Seeing his inscrutable, half-smiling expression, Shen Hong could not figure out what Huo Nanchi really meant, and the questions he wanted to ask died in his throat.
If Huo Nanchi said yes, he would not dare refuse to release her.
Yet if Huo Nanchi said no, given the temperament of this little wretch Shen Xuejin, she really might go to Dali Temple, which would bring him countless harms and not a single benefit.
It would be better to go with the flow and let Shen Xuejin take her mother to the Huo Residence for a short stay. That way, he could test the Huo family's current attitude toward the marriage alliance with Shen Xuejin, while avoiding a scandal at Dali Temple that would affect him.
Most importantly, Pei Lian was his wife; no matter where she went, he had a justified and proper reason to bring her back.
Shen Xuejin curtsied slightly to Huo Nanchi to express her gratitude: "Thank you to the Huo family and the Second Young Master for inviting my mother and me to be guests at your esteemed manor."
Huo Nanchi looked at Shen Xuejin, whose hair was disheveled and clothes half-soaked, and merely lowered his brow in silence.
Yet in Shen Hong's eyes, this silence meant consent, leaving him no choice but to instruct the steward to have Pei Lian carried out to the carriage at the entrance.
"Lord Shen, Huo still has matters to attend to, so I will take my leave." Huo Nanchi offered a slight salute and strode away.
Shen Xuejin quickly followed after him.
"Father!" Shen Wan ya stamped her feet in rage. "How could you just let this bitch walk away like this? The Vice Minister Zhang family is pressing us so hard. If she doesn't come back, does Father really expect me to marry that good-for-nothing from the Zhang family?"
Shen Hong frowned slightly.
Qin Rong quickly chimed in, "How could your father love you so much and still bear to see you marry into the Zhang family? Besides, only by marrying into a prestigious, high-ranking household like the Huo family can you wholeheartedly plan and work for your father and the Shen family. That Shen Xuejin was even brazen enough to threaten to accuse your father at Dali Temple; if she marries into the Huo family, we will never know another peaceful day."
Shen Hong's face grew increasingly grim.
Right, he absolutely could not let Shen Xuejin marry into the Huo family!
If the Huo family were truly blind enough to let Shen Xuejin fulfill this engagement, he would definitely find a way to ruin it!
Huo Nanchi rode on ahead while Shen Xuejin and Pei Lian sat inside the carriage as it slowly moved forward.
She checked Pei Lian's pulse and treated her, her eyes turning red.
If she had delayed going by even two more days, her mother might very well have perished!
Pei Lian slowly opened her eyes and, upon seeing Shen Xuejin, looked immensely surprised. She struggled to sit up, but her entire body lacked strength.
She did not ask how Shen Xuejin had managed to get her out, but she knew her daughter must have suffered a great deal.
Pei Lian stroked Shen Xuejin's face and choked out weakly, "You've suffered."
"As long as Mother is fine, it's nothing." Shen Xuejin pressed her mother's hand against her own cheek.
Pei Lian closed her eyes, her face filled with despair: "In the past, Mother always told you to yield and let things go to keep the peace, but now, simply backing down will not keep us safe."
Opening her eyes once more, the despair and timidity had vanished from her face: "From now on, Mother will no longer interfere in how you choose to handle things. Whatever you decide to do, Mother stands with you."
Shen Xuejin tearfully hugged her mother: "Don't worry, Mother, I will cure your illness."
As the sun set, the carriage arrived at the gates of the Huo Residence, where stout servant women were already waiting with a stretcher.
Seeing Pei Lian being placed onto the stretcher and carried inside, the heart that Shen Xuejin had been holding in suspense finally relaxed completely, and everything went black as she fell backward.
Huo Nanchi leaped down from his horse just in time to hear a maid's startled cry: "Miss Shen!"
He turned his head to see Shen Xuejin collapsing.
Huo Nanchi took a swift stride forward and caught her steadily. The voice was identical to the one in his dreams, yet the tone carried a sense of aloof detachment: "Is younger sister Xuejin feeling unwell?"
Shen Xuejin's head was dizzy and devoid of strength; she tried to speak, but no words came out.
"Fetch a wheelchair," Huo Nanchi commanded coldly.
However, unable to hold on any longer, Shen Xuejin had already fainted.
When she woke up again, she was already on the bed in her own room. After a brief moment of dazed confusion, she hurried to get out of bed.
Just then, Bizhu walked in carrying a bowl of medicine: "Miss Shen, now that you're awake, drink your medicine first."
Shen Xuejin wore only a white undergarment, her face devoid of powder, which added a touch of frail sickness that made her striking features appear even more delicately beautiful.
"Where is my mother?" Shen Xuejin asked anxiously.
"She is staying in the small room right behind this courtyard, Miss Shen can rest easy. Madam has already invited a physician to examine your mother, and not only instructed the physician to prescribe top-quality medicine, but also assigned two attentive maids to go over and wait on her."
Bizhu brought the medicine to Shen Xuejin: "During your stay at the Huo Residence, this servant will attend to you."
The medicine smelled of restorative and qi-tonifying herbs, so Shen Xuejin drank it all in one breath. Anxious to see her mother, she tried to get up, only to be stopped by Bizhu.
"Miss Shen, Madam requests your presence."
Ranfeng Courtyard.
The Zhenping Marquis had spent the past half-year and more stationed at the border, and Huo Nanchi spent most of his time at Dali Temple, so Madam Huo generally spent her evenings in the Buddhist shrine chanting scriptures.
After Shen Xuejin waited for roughly a little over two hours, Madam Huo finally emerged from the shrine.
With a smile, she said, "With both the Marquis and my eldest son away from the estate, I worry day and night, chanting scriptures daily to pray for peace for the whole family so that my own heart may be at ease."
"Madam's heartfelt devotion is a blessing for the Zhenping Marquis Manor." Shen Xuejin lowered her gaze slightly.
Everything that had happened at the Shen Residence today had undoubtedly reached Madam Huo's ears down to the last detail.
"Your boundless filial piety is truly touching," Madam Huo remarked. "The Zhenping Marquis Manor is a household of vast wealth and influence; even if you both remain guests here for a lifetime, we can easily afford to support you."
Shen Xuejin rose and bowed in salute: "Madam Huo's kindness is immense, and Xuejin is endlessly grateful. Once Xuejin cures Imperial Concubine Mei's psoriasis, I will take my mother and leave."