Chapter 12

Sheng Changyu dropped Ning Zhen off at the Ning family’s doorstep. 

Once the car came to a stop, he said to his adjutant, “You get out first.” 

“Yes, sir,” the adjutant replied. 

Ning Zhen sat there, feeling overwhelmingly guilty, unsure of how to explain herself. She had almost lost control of her emotions earlier, barely holding herself together by clinging desperately to Sheng Changyu, preventing herself from slipping into a delusion. 

But her actions had also angered Sheng Changyu. 

Sheng Changyu rolled down the window and lit a cigarette. The smoke curled up, and in the dim light, his expression was hard to read, only briefly illuminated by the cigarette’s glow. 

Indifference, annoyance—mixed with a bit of anger. 

“Ning Zhen,” he called her name as if addressing a subordinate. 

Ning Zhen almost felt compelled to salute him, sitting up straight. “Yes, Governor.” 

“Just because you have a bit of beauty doesn’t mean you can aspire to be my woman. Others may not know why I married you, but you do.” Sheng Changyu’s voice was cold. 

Ning Zhen clenched her fingers. “Governor, I never had such aspirations.” 

“Your words and actions don’t match. You’re hypocritical to the extreme—just like Ning Zhoutong’s daughter would be.” His tone was full of contempt. 

Ning Zhen bit her lip. She was to blame. It was all her fault, and now even her father was being insulted. 

“Play the role of the ‘Governor’s wife’ and stay in your place. The old family estate will give you all the treatment you’re entitled to; you won’t be shorted a penny. As for the face of the Governor’s wife in public, as long as you behave and the Ning family knows its place, I’ll uphold your dignity.  

But Ning Zhen, if you’re still not satisfied, don’t blame me for being heartless. With your looks, you dare to be so arrogant?” Sheng Changyu’s final words were harsh, each one like a needle piercing Ning Zhen’s flesh. 

She felt embarrassed and humiliated. She knew Sheng Changyu could be cruel, but she hadn’t expected to face it so soon. Her face burned, as if she had been slapped repeatedly. 

But she was in the wrong. 

After a moment, she managed to steady her emotions, her voice calm. “I understand, Governor.” 

“Get out of the car.” 

The tone was as if he were discarding a piece of trash. 

Ning Zhen immediately opened the car door, hurried up the steps without looking back, and knocked forcefully on the door. The night watchman rushed to open it for her. 

Ning Zhen slipped inside, returning to her courtyard, filled with a sense of defeat, humiliation, and exhaustion. 

Sheng Changyu finished his cigarette, called for the adjutant to get back in the car, and returned to the Governor’s Mansion. 

Cheng Baisheng was dozing off on the sofa in the study. 

“It was someone from the Hongmen Society, a minor leader under Meng Xinliang. I’ve already sent him back to Meng Xinliang. He’ll give you an explanation,” Cheng Baisheng said, shaking off his drowsiness. 

He took a couple of sips of water and noticed Sheng Changyu sitting down heavily in a grand chair, looking displeased. Puzzled, he asked, “Still angry?” 

Hadn’t he already dealt with the matter? 

Normally, Sheng Changyu wasn’t one to hold grudges—once the confrontation was over, the anger usually dissipated. 

“It’s not that,” Sheng Changyu signaled for Cheng Baisheng to pour him a drink. 

Cheng Baisheng opened the liquor cabinet, took out some whiskey, poured two glasses, and handed one to Sheng Changyu, taking a sip of the other himself. 

He had barely swallowed his drink when Sheng Changyu said, “When you’re around, Ning Zhen seems so dignified; when you’re not, she acts more flirtatiously than a socialite. Her behavior is disgusting.” 

Cheng Baisheng almost choked on his drink. 

Ning Zhen? 

The last time Cheng Baisheng saw Ning Zhen was at Sheng Changyu’s wedding. Back then, she was heavily made-up, and Cheng Baisheng didn’t even know what she really looked like. She had seemed calm and composed, very wise. 

Tonight, during the card game, she had exuded elegance and displayed remarkable ability. 

He had only been away for a short while, and Changyu’s opinion of Ning Zhen had already plummeted to rock bottom. 

“The Ning family, huh.” Sheng Changyu let out a cold laugh. “I was never wrong about them.” 

Cheng Baisheng took another sip of wine before saying, “Is there some sort of misunderstanding?” 

“What do you mean? Do you think I’m not worthy of the Ning family’s daughter scrambling to curry favor with me?” 

Cheng Baisheng: “That’s not exactly it…” 

After a pause, he still said, “Changyu, you have a deep prejudice against Ning Zhoutong. To be honest, he’s quite capable.” 

“He’s ambitious,” Sheng Changyu replied. 

Cheng Baisheng: “You’re young, and all your senior advisors are ambitious. Compared to them, Ning Zhoutong is a rather smart man.” 

“A smart man would want to rebel?” 

Cheng Baisheng: Wasn’t it you who forced him into that position? 

You’ve already slapped him in the face, and now you’re not even allowing him to resist? Ning Zhoutong is your subordinate, not your servant. 

Even emperors, when dealing with powerful old ministers, plead poverty and try to win them over, rather than resorting to head-on confrontation. 

“Minister” and “servant” are not the same. 

If a ruler has nothing but servants under him, the empire will not remain stable. 

Cheng Baisheng wanted to persuade him, but Sheng Changyu, sleep-deprived and enraged by Ning Zhen, wasn’t in the mood to listen to anything. 

After finishing his wine, Cheng Baisheng put down his glass and took his leave. 

When Ning Zhen returned home, she buried her head in her pillow and didn’t fall asleep until nearly dawn. 

In her dream, it was still Sheng Changyu chasing after her, scolding her. 

She woke up suddenly and couldn’t fall back asleep. The summer heat was stifling, and Ning Zhen felt completely drained, without any appetite. It took her two days to recover. 

But she hadn’t dreamed of Wen Liangyu. 

After Wen Liangyu’s death, Ning Zhen was in a slump for more than half a year. Eventually, she gathered her strength and moved on, accepting the fact that he was gone. 

She wanted to dream of him, but he never appeared again. 

It seemed as if Wen Liangyu had made up his mind to have Ning Zhen forget him and live her own new life, refusing even to visit her in dreams. 

Ning Zhen stayed at her parents’ house for nearly half a month. As the Zhongyuan Festival approached, the Sheng family’s old residence prepared for a sacrificial ritual, and the old lady sent someone to invite Ning Zhen back. 

“Will the Governor come for the ceremony?” Ning Zhen asked one of her attendants upon returning. 

Cao Ma: “He should. After all, he is the head of the family.” 

Ning Zhen:  

Cao Ma asked again, “Should I go and inquire about it, madam?” 

Ning Zhen quickly replied, “No need!” 

Her influence at the Sheng family’s old residence wasn’t strong, and if her people went snooping around for information, others would know. 

If it got back to Sheng Changyu, he might think that Ning Zhen was deliberately trying to find out his whereabouts, that she still hadn’t given up on him, and there would be no explaining herself out of it. 

Ning Zhen conducted herself with propriety and a clear conscience, unafraid of judgment, no matter what Sheng Changyu thought or said. 

Before long, the Zhongyuan Festival arrived, and the Sheng family’s old residence had prepared paper offerings. 

To Ning Zhen’s relief, Sheng Changyu did not show up for the ritual. 

Instead, it was Sheng Changyu’s second uncle who presided over the ancestral ceremony. 

Ning Zhen breathed a sigh of relief. 

Cao Ma told Ning Zhen, “The Governor should have been the one to lead the ceremony, but the servants say he always goes to pay his respects to Miss Su during holidays.” 

Ning Zhen: “Did you go inquire about this, or just overhear it?” 

“I overheard it.” 

Ning Zhen let out a breath. “From now on, if it’s about the Governor, unless I ask, you must not go digging for information. If you hear something by chance, you can tell me, but don’t gossip about it outside.” 

Cao Ma agreed. 

Ning Zhen didn’t care about Miss Su; all she cared about was having avoided an encounter with Sheng Changyu. 

Yet fate always seemed to have other plans for her.