Chapter 35: Bearing a Grudge Against You, Do You Deserve It?

Yan Zheng was not at ease, so she personally followed Shen Ning as they walked towards the front courtyard.

A middle-aged eunuch with a pale face and no beard waited in the front courtyard, holding a feather duster, his figure slightly plump, and his eyes, which gleamed with a sharp light, narrowed, making him appear not to be a kind person.

Seeing Shen Ning approaching from afar, he piled on a smile, about to speak, when suddenly a figure emerged from behind the moon gate without warning, blocking Shen Ning’s path.

He was greatly startled and, upon closer inspection, realized it was Qin Yanshu. His brows furrowed involuntarily, why was Young Master Qin here?

“Ning.” Qin Yanshu, who had arrived at some unknown time and had been hiding behind the moon gate for who knows how long, looked at Shen Ning with a face full of exhaustion, “Have you been well these days? Has the Regent treated you harshly?”

“Young Master Qin, why are you here?” Yan Zheng looked at him in surprise, then turned her head to look around, “My brother is not at home today, and I have only invited female guests. How could you enter the Prime Minister’s residence without permission?”

Qin Yanshu apologized to Yan Zheng, then turned to Shen Ning: “Ning, I am here for you.”

Shen Ning stopped in her tracks and looked at Qin Yanshu coldly: “Step aside.”

“Ning—”

“Previously, the Regent had ordered that all members of the Duke of the State’s residence must bow to me when they see me. Young Master Qin’s status should not be much higher than those of the Duke of the State’s residence.” Shen Ning looked at him, her eyes piercingly cold, “So at this moment, you should be kneeling to speak to me.”

Qin Yanshu was taken aback, looking at her in disbelief, his face pale as paper, the pain in his eyes no longer concealable.

Seeing this, the middle-aged eunuch quickly walked over and bowed slightly to Shen Ning: “Consort of the Regent, His Majesty requests your presence in the palace.”

Shen Ning turned her head, her expression indifferent: “Is it the Empress Dowager who invites, or His Majesty?”

“His Majesty.” The eunuch smiled slightly, his answer very certain, “But please rest assured, Consort of the Regent, His Majesty’s summons is not to blame you, but to have the consort handle something on his behalf.”

“What is the matter?”

“The Regent has had a toxic outbreak, and this should be the most painful time for him.” The eunuch’s tone was indifferent, as if he had long been accustomed to such matters, “Because the Regent publicly embarrassed the Empress Dowager and His Majesty a few days ago, this month’s antidote was delayed by a day. However, His Majesty is well aware that the antidote can be delayed by a day or two, but it cannot be withheld, otherwise the Regent’s life would be in danger. Therefore, His Majesty requests the Consort of the Regent to enter the palace to retrieve the antidote for the Regent.”

Shen Ning stared at the middle-aged eunuch’s falsely kind smile, not asking him why he didn’t directly send the antidote to the Regent’s residence, nor why she had to personally enter the palace to retrieve it.

She simply nodded slowly: “I will go and get it.”

The middle-aged eunuch smiled: “The consort is a wise person.”

“Consort.” Shi Qin frowned and spoke up, ” The Regent has instructed that you should not enter the palace to see anyone unless he is with you.”

“Without the antidote, the Regent may not survive the night.” The middle-aged eunuch sighed, “The consort should decide for herself.”

“Ning, I will accompany you.” Qin Yanshu spoke urgently, “If the Empress Dowager or His Majesty gives you a hard time, I will definitely plead for you. Ning—”

“Brother.” Qin Zhilan hurried over, her face full of anger as she looked at Qin Yanshu, “How can you be so foolish? The Consort of the Regent is a noblewoman of the imperial family. As a man, how can you be close to her? Don’t speak nonsense. Quickly come home with me.”

“I will go to the palace with you.” Qin Yanshu ignored his sister’s obstruction, his gaze fixated on Shen Ning, “It was I who wronged you. I apologize to you, and only ask that Ning, considering our friendship of over a decade, not bear a grudge against me.”

“Bear a grudge against you?” Shen Ning sneered, “Qin Yanshu, do you deserve it?”

Qin Yanshu swayed, as if he had received a massive blow.

“Consort of the Regent.” The eunuch who had delivered the message could not bear to watch and took the initiative to speak up for Qin Yanshu, “Young Master Qin is the Empress Dowager’s nephew. In principle, his status is noble and not inferior to that of the consort…”

“Oh?” Shen Ning turned her head indifferently, as if in question, “Because he is noble, he deserves to be resented by me?”

This sentence sounded a bit strange.

Does one need to ask if the other person deserves it when harboring a grudge against someone?

The middle-aged eunuch paused, his expression indifferent: “It’s getting late. It would be better for the Consort of the Regent to enter the palace sooner.”

Shen Ning took a step to leave, but Qin Yanshu, as if possessed, reached out to grab her: “Ning—”

Slap!

Shen Ning raised her hand and gave him a resounding slap, the sound crisp and loud, the force heavy.

“Consort!” Qin Zhilan rushed in front of her, her expression a mix of shock and anger, “How can you hit someone so casually?”

“As the consort, I slapped an insolent ruffian. What’s wrong with that?” Shen Ning’s voice was icy, her gaze at Qin Yanshu indifferent and disdainful, “Even if you are the Empress Dowager’s nephew, you have no right to be frivolous with a woman, let alone offend the Consort of the Regent. If an ordinary man dared to do such a thing, his family would be destroyed without question. Why should you be an exception?”

These words silenced everyone present.

Qin Zhilan was annoyed that her brother had no sense of propriety, and she felt a surge of anger that she couldn’t express, because it was indeed her brother who had been rash first.

She was about to apologize on behalf of her brother when she heard Shen Ning say coldly: “Qin Yanshu, you want to apologize, don’t you? Since that’s the case, you will kneel here for an hour, and then I will believe your sincerity.”

With that, she turned and walked away.

“Your Highness, this is absolutely not acceptable, absolutely not!” The eunuch who had delivered the message changed his expression, his face suddenly turning gloomy, “Even if Young Master Qin’s status is not as noble as the Regent’s, he is still the son of an important minister and a relative of the imperial family. How can the consort humiliate him like this—”

“It was his choice to atone for his sins.” Shen Ning looked at him expressionlessly, “Is your hearing bad, or is there something wrong with your brain?”

The eunuch’s face changed, his expression instantly turning grim: “Does the consort think that by marrying the Regent, she can act lawlessly in the future and not even put the Empress Dowager in her eyes?”

“So what if I do?” Shen Ning’s voice was as cold as ice, “You, a eunuch servant, dare to lecture me, the consort?”

“Servant—”

“Slap yourself.”

The eunuch who had delivered the message turned a ghastly shade of green, “Consort—”

“If you don’t listen, I won’t go.” Shen Ning stood still, “You can go back and report on your own.”

The eunuch’s face alternated between shades of green and white, probably never expecting that someone would dare to be so arrogant, even threatening the eunuch who had delivered the message.

His expression changed repeatedly, and he thought grimly to himself, wait until you enter the palace and see how the Empress Dowager will deal with you.

He took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and slapped himself in the face. Worried that Shen Ning might not be satisfied and delay the time to enter the palace, he deliberately increased the force: “Your Highness, this servant was wrong. This servant does not dare to disrespect the consort. Please forgive this servant’s transgression. Your Highness is magnanimous and should not stoop to the level of a servant.”

Yan Zheng, Gu Yanran, and Shen Yan were dumbfounded, their expressions a mix of shock, unable to speak.

They had never seen someone so disregarding of the rules, and they even couldn’t help but wonder if Shen Ning was either out of her mind or truly blindly confident that the Regent could protect her for life.

“As long as I kneel for a full hour, will you forgive me?” Qin Yanshu was indifferent to other matters, at this moment, his eyes only had Shen Ning in them, “As long as you are willing to forgive me, even if you ask me to kneel for a day, I would be willing.”

Shen Ning said indifferently: “After kneeling for a full hour, I will forgive you. From then on, we will owe each other nothing and go our separate ways.”

Owe each other nothing and go our separate ways?

Qin Yanshu shook his head repeatedly, no, he did not want to owe her nothing.

He owed her, he knew he was wrong, and he was destined to be entangled with her for the rest of his life.

He would never give up.

“Consort of the Regent.” The eunuch who had delivered the message lowered his eyes, concealing the cold glint in them, “Can we leave now?”