Chapter 69

Ning Zhen and Sheng Changyu sat in the small reception room at the Governor’s Mansion, drinking wine. 

On the table was a brass stove, simmering braised beef in a rich broth. 

“Have some food, Governor,” Ning Zhen said, offering him a piece. 

Outside, the snow was falling harder, light and fluffy, quickly covering the black-tiled eaves and stone paths in a shimmering layer of white. 

Ning Zhen had only drunk two cups of wine but helped herself to half a bowl of braised beef. 

“You like this?” Sheng Changyu asked. 

“In winter, eating hot beef and lamb is very nourishing,” Ning Zhen replied. 

“You women, always thinking about nourishing yourselves. After all that, you’re still skinny,” Sheng Changyu commented. 

Ning Zhen was speechless. 

He’s just making small talk. 

“Being too fat isn’t good.” 

The food today was to her taste, so Ning Zhen was eating happily, her mood light and her responses casual. Her focus was mostly on the food. 

“What’s wrong with being fat?” Sheng Changyu asked. “A plump woman is considered lucky. I think it’s nice.” 

“If you’re too fat, making clothes costs more fabric. One outfit could make two for someone else. It’s wasteful,” Ning Zhen replied. 

“Have you ever been poor? Worrying about the cost of fabric for clothes?” Sheng Changyu teased. 

“Not at home, no. But when I studied abroad, I had to take care of everything myself, including managing my money. So I got used to keeping track of my spending,” Ning Zhen explained. 

Sheng Changyu, now warm with food and wine, felt a bit restless but was in a good mood. “Tell me about studying abroad.” 

“…It’s not much different from studying in schools here,” Ning Zhen said, not eager to discuss it. 

“What was school like?” Sheng Changyu asked again. 

Surprised, Ning Zhen looked up at him. 

He wasn’t far from her, and now he seemed to exude a warm presence again. 

His eyes were dark and deep, gazing at her intently. 

“School is the same everywhere. I went to a girls’ school, not much different,” she replied. 

Sheng Changyu fished out a ladleful of beef from the brass pot, picked out two tender pieces, and placed them in Ning Zhen’s bowl before saying, “I never went to one of those modern schools.” 

Ning Zhen was surprised. “You never went?” 

Her brothers had all attended middle school, and afterward, all three went abroad to study in military academies—her oldest and second brothers to Japan, and her third brother to Germany. 

Sheng Changyu was the same age as her second brother, so he should have gone to school. 

“I was homeschooled when I was young and learned how to read. After that, I joined the military,” Sheng Changyu explained. 

“Was it that you didn’t want to go, or you couldn’t?” Ning Zhen asked. 

“I didn’t want to,” Sheng Changyu said. “Even when I was young, I was more unruly than others. I hated feeling powerless. Going to school, obeying elders and teachers, I would rather die than endure that.” 

Ning Zhen remained silent. 

So, you’ve always disliked being restrained. 

“Maybe because of that personality, my parents never really liked me. I didn’t listen to them,” Sheng Changyu added. 

Ning Zhen felt a pang in her heart. 

She remembered what Cheng Baisheng had told her about Sheng Changyu’s past. 

The feelings Sheng Changyu had offered to others had been either unreciprocated or exploited. 

“It’s true, elders tend to favor obedient children,” Ning Zhen said. “But elders aren’t saints either. When a child is too rebellious or misbehaves, the elders worry they won’t be able to control them, and they fear they won’t be able to support the child in the future. 

“So, they’d rather be strict than let the child get too out of hand. Naturally, disobedient children give elders more headaches.” 

Sheng Changyu frowned slightly. “You sound just like your father.” 

“Well, I am his daughter,” Ning Zhen replied, looking Sheng Changyu straight in the eye. “His precious jewel!” 

She was feeling a bit defiant, thinking: If you dare insult my father again, I’ll have to fight you. 

Sheng Changyu looked back at her and suddenly said, “You’ve got rice on your mouth.” 

Startled, Ning Zhen’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she reached up to wipe her mouth, only to realize she hadn’t even eaten any rice. 

Sheng Changyu casually added, “Must’ve seen wrong.” 

Ning Zhen:  

The atmosphere inexplicably became much more relaxed. 

After finishing her meal, Ning Zhen absentmindedly played with her chopsticks. “Governor, I’m actually quite afraid of hearing you talk about your past.” 

Sheng Changyu: “Afraid?” 

“Because I haven’t experienced anything like what you have. ‘A summer insect cannot discuss ice,’” Ning Zhen said. “I’m like a summer insect. I don’t know how cold the winter snow and ice can be.” 

She added, “For example, what I just said about ‘elders being helpless at times’—to you, that probably sounded like a shallow observation.” 

Sheng Changyu: “I didn’t blame you.” 

He wasn’t even angry. 

In the past, hearing similar remarks would have immediately sparked his temper. 

But not now. 

Maybe it was because he was well-fed and in a calm mood, or because his circumstances had changed, giving him more freedom, or maybe he had already vented his anger at the family home. 

“Thank you,” Ning Zhen said. 

After they finished eating, Sheng Changyu was a bit tipsy. 

He instructed the adjutant, “Prepare a guest room; Madam will stay for a few days.” 

He then told Ning Zhen, “Don’t go back for now. Wait until the chaos at the family home settles down. If you need anything, have someone bring it, but don’t show up yourself.” 

With him backing her, Ning Zhen didn’t have to face the Old lady’s anger, which she was more than happy about. 

She wasn’t going to rush back and get scolded by the Old lady. The less she had to return, the better. 

“I’ll just call Cao Ma and have her quietly bring over a couple of changes of clothes,” Ning Zhen said. 

Sheng Changyu nodded. 

Ning Zhen temporarily stayed in the guest room at the Governor’s Mansion, looked after by the same maid as before. 

On the second night, the snow had stopped, leaving everything covered in white. 

The bedding in the guest room was soft and plush, the stove was warm, and there was a cozy warmth flowing through the room. 

As she read a book before bed, Ning Zhen’s thoughts wandered. So even when the third concubine came to the Governor’s Mansion, she only stayed in the guest room? 

Ning Zhen didn’t feel embarrassed that Sheng Changyu didn’t touch her. If it didn’t happen, it didn’t happen—forcing it wouldn’t work anyway. 

But the third concubine, Xu Fangdu, didn’t see it that way. 

She misled others, even faking a miscarriage to deceive the Old lady. 

Ning Zhen had said at the time that her “pregnancy” ended too early to be real. 

But the Old lady, eager for a grandchild, believed her. 

“The Old lady must be furious,” Ning Zhen thought. 

She stayed at the Governor’s Mansion for three days and called Cao Ma. 

Cao Ma told her that the Old lady had calmed down and asked if Ning Zhen had returned yet. 

Ning Zhen then went to Sheng Changyu to take her leave. “Governor, I’m heading back now. If I don’t, Mother might think I’m being disrespectful.” 

Sheng Changyu nodded. 

“Be sharp in all matters. If anyone bullies you, fight back. I gave you a gun last time. Use my gun—whether you injure or kill, I’ll take responsibility.” 

Ning Zhen: “Thank you, Governor.” 

Sheng Changyu nodded again. 

After Ning Zhen returned to the family home, Sheng Changyin came to see her and brought her a box of cream cakes. 

“I’m sorry, Sister-in-law. My wet nurse’s actions nearly got you involved,” Sheng Changyin sincerely apologized. 

Ning Zhen replied, “You were a victim too.” 

The two of them were open with each other and shared a good understanding. 

“My mother has confined the third concubine. She won’t be allowed out of her room for three months. The keys and control tokens she held have been taken away,” Sheng Changyin informed Ning Zhen. 

She no longer referred to Xu Fangdu as “Sister Adu.” 

Ning Zhen asked, “Mother was very angry, wasn’t she?” 

“It was the fake miscarriage that upset her. She felt deceived,” Sheng Changyin explained. 

Ning Zhen:  

The Old lady wasn’t angry that Xu Fangdu had bribed her wet nurse, causing upheaval in her own daughter’s household and nearly implicating her. 

Nor was she angry that Xu Fangdu had schemed against Ning Zhen, the daughter-in-law she had personally chosen for the Governor. 

She was only upset about being lied to. 

Ning Zhen had nothing to say to that.