Lu Ying leisurely wiped away the kiss mark with a handkerchief.
Back then, when the Shen Guogong Mansion was implicated in rebellion, the Emperor once suspected that he was the mastermind behind the scenes. Ultimately, due to lack of evidence, he was left helpless, but despite this, he was still implicated. His several brothers were eager to use this matter to make trouble, and calls to depose the Crown Prince once spread through the court.
It wasn't until he suppressed the southern rebellion with a thunderous hand and arranged a powerful marriage alliance with the new Duke, Shen Yan, that these voices were subdued.
He didn't explain anything to Shen Yunxi, only coldly said, "I have other important matters to attend to, Crown Princess Consort, make yourself comfortable."
After he left, Shen Yunxi overturned the table in a fit of rage, letting out a series of sharp screams.
Her face was red, her neck bulging with veins, as she panted and shouted, "Investigate! I must immediately know who that bitch is! How dare she seduce the Crown Prince behind my back! I want to ruin her face and make her die a horrible death, being cut a thousand times!"
The palace maid, Lian Ye, advised, "Your Highness, do not be angry. This matter must be carefully considered. Do you remember Fu'er from last year? The Crown Prince only glanced at her hand, and you ordered her hands to be cut off. Upon knowing this, His Highness said you were vicious-hearted and punished you with two months of confinement."
Lianxin added, "And Miss Fang Rui, last time at the Eastern Palace's night banquet, she came to dance. Others only praised her skin as white as snow and smooth as cream, and you thought she would steal His Highness, ordering her skin to be peeled and replaced with a black dog's skin that night. It made His Highness very displeased."
"What do you understand?" Shen Yunxi gnashed her teeth. "No matter how those sluts in the Eastern Palace entice His Highness, they are just acting under my nose and can't make any big waves. But today, this vixen dared to run outside the palace to seduce His Highness, not taking me into account at all! What are you waiting for, hurry and find out who this bitch is!"
Amidst Shen Yunxi's screams, Shen Yinning had quietly returned to the residence in Lotus Flower Alley.
She had bathed, just in time for dinner.
When Gao Zheng came over, he saw Shen Yinning sitting in front of the dressing table.
This was his nominal wife.
She was extremely beautiful, and even after living under the same roof for three years, her beauty still dazzled, stirring a man's heart.
Gao Zheng suddenly noticed the red marks on her neck.
He knew what that was and also knew where Shen Yinning had been in the afternoon and whom she had seen.
Thinking of that person's identity, Gao Zheng dared not look any further, only lowered his gaze, and respectfully said, "Miss Shen, Mother invites you to the main hall for dinner."
Shen Yinning lazily combed her hair, "I've said it before, I won't eat with your family. Gao Zheng, have you forgotten that we are only in a sham marriage?"
Of course, Gao Zheng had not forgotten.
Three years ago, a confidant of the Crown Prince approached him, asking him to marry the daughter of a criminal minister.
As a reward, the Crown Prince promised to promote him to a Capital Official in three years.
He agreed without hesitation.
After all, he was of low birth, and without the help of important figures, he would have spent his life as a County Magistrate in that small frontier town.
At first glance at Shen Yinning, he guessed the relationship between the Crown Prince and this woman and knew that even if he married Shen Yinning, he absolutely couldn't touch her.
He cautiously responded, "Mother said it's been a long time since we've had a family meal together. Now that I've been reassigned to the capital, we should celebrate a little. I know you're unwilling, Miss Shen, but you also don't want to arouse suspicion, do you?"
His mother was a chatterbox.
Therefore, his deal with the Crown Prince and Shen Yinning's relationship with the Crown Prince, he dared not tell his mother.
To this day, Mother believed Shen Yinning was just an ordinary orphan girl, and that he was so captivated by her beauty that he insisted on marrying her. Moreover, for the past three years, Shen Yinning's belly had no sign of life, which made Mother very dissatisfied with her.
But he didn't want Mother to be dissatisfied with Shen Yinning.
Faced with his humble plea, Shen Yinning rested her jade-like hand on her cheek, her red-dyed fingertips tapping the rouge box, before lazily agreeing, "Alright then."
When Shen Yinning and Gao Zheng arrived, a large table of dishes had already been prepared in the main hall.
Gao's mother was diligently serving food to a young woman, "Shanshan, thanks to your brother's help, Brother Zheng could be reassigned as a Capital Official so smoothly. You are the great contributor to our family, you must eat more!"
Yin Shanshan's face glowed, "Mother, my brother is a staff officer in the Eastern Palace and is well-regarded by the Crown Prince. Reassigning Brother Zheng to a Capital Official position was only a matter of words for him!"
"Poor you, such a good lady, only to be a concubine to Brother Zheng. Don't worry, Mother will make sure Brother Zheng sends away that barren hen and make you the main wife!"
"Mother, whether I'm the main wife or not doesn't matter, it's just that Hong and Hui are already three years old. In a few years, they will be of school age. If the teacher knows they are children born of a concubine, he might look down on them and be unwilling to teach them properly."
Hearing this conversation between his mother-in-law and sister-in-law, Gao Zheng couldn't help but secretly glance at Shen Yinning.
Seeing no change in her expression, he coughed lightly, "Mother, Shanshan."
Gao's mother glanced over and saw the brand new golden hairpin in Shen Yinning's hair bun, instantly enraged, "Brother Zheng, you are really too much! This time you were reassigned to a Capital Official all because of Shanshan's efforts. If it weren't for her asking her brother to say good things about you to the Crown Prince, you'd still be stuck in Gan State! You didn't buy any jewelry for Shanshan but bought a golden hairpin for this seductive woman! Tell me honestly, did she pester you to buy it?!"
Gao Zheng felt a headache.
How could he afford a golden hairpin? Surely this hairpin was a gift from the Crown Prince to Shen Yinning.
Even the mansion in Lotus Flower Alley, the maids, and servants, all daily expenses were made with the gold given by the Crown Prince back then. So what if Shen Yinning used money from home to buy jewelry?!
That money originally was given to her by the Crown Prince!
However, these words couldn't be spoken outright.
Not knowing what to do, Shen Yinning intentionally stirred the pot, "Old Lady, you're really stingy. What's wrong with me spending your son's salary on some jewelry? I'm so beautiful, isn't it a pity not to dress up nicely?"
"You—"
Gao's mother was almost angered to faint.
Yin Shanshan quickly stood up to calm her, "Mother's health is poor, Sister, please don't anger her. This time, Brother Zheng relied on my brother to be reassigned as a Capital Official. Just starting out, he hasn't established himself yet, and in the future, everything will need real gold and silver. Sister is from the countryside of Gan State and doesn't understand the ins and outs of the Capital, so it's understandable. Just try not to be too extravagant in spending going forward."
Shen Yinning, amused, said, "You're saying Gao Zheng was reassigned as a Capital Official because of your brother?"