After that night, Shen Yao Xing hardly returned to the Shen mansion. When Shen’s mother asked, she was unwilling to say anything and simply found an inn in the capital to stay.

The events of that night gave Shen Yao Xing an indescribable sense of absurdity. She had always treated Song Si Nian as her own elder brother, and could never have imagined that he would develop those kinds of feelings for her.

To the extent that now she didn’t know how to face him.

Although Shen Yao Xing hadn’t been at the Shen mansion these past few days, the betrothal arrangements hadn’t been delayed at all. In just one day, news of her engagement spread throughout the capital again.

Only this time, the other party had changed.

“What luck this Miss Shen of the Shen family has. Last time she was just engaged to that Young Master Yin, and now even that Ming Yue Gongzi has fallen at her feet. That’s the Ming Yue Gongzi known as the number one beauty in the jianghu!”

“Tsk tsk, this Miss Shen is truly blessed with male attention.” A woman said enviously.

“If you had that ability, you wouldn’t be envious. I heard that in the recent turmoil in the capital, Shen Yao Xing took the lead in merits. Now the Shen family’s position is even more stable. Being able to marry into the Shen family is also Ming Yue Gongzi’s good fortune.”

“Hey, you shouldn’t say it like that. Ming Yue Gongzi still has the Chang Sheng Pavilion behind him. I heard that the Chang Sheng Pavilion has changed owners, and Ming Yue Gongzi as the master of Chang Sheng Pavilion, no matter how you look at it, it’s the Shen family that’s marrying up.”

“What marrying up or down, the jianghu and the court can’t be mixed together. In my opinion, having status in the court and backing in the jianghu, why can’t both sides be satisfied?”

“That’s true… If these two really get together, I’m afraid they could walk sideways in both these paths.”

“Anyway, when we see them in the future, we should avoid them. Otherwise, we might not even know how we died.”

The lively gossip continued in the inn’s lobby. Shen Yao Xing, who was originally about to go out, heard these words and a cold sweat dripped down her forehead.

It’s just an engagement, why are they talking as if we’re going to unify the world?

After standing at the door for a while, Shen Yao Xing still closed the door and walked downstairs.

The originally bustling lobby fell silent the moment she appeared. Surprised, admiring, curious, and envious gazes all focused on her. Shen Yao Xing pretended not to notice and quickly walked out of the inn.

Low gossip could be heard again from behind.

“Is that the Miss Shen? She does look quite good, but is her martial arts really as formidable as the rumors say with that physique?”

“Hehe, if you didn’t say, I would have thought it was some young master.”

“Don’t pampered young ladies and young masters from noble families all look like this?” Someone said in a contemptuous tone.

“Are you perhaps just jealous?”

“……”

Shen Yao Xing walked quickly. The inn she was staying at wasn’t far from the Yin mansion, just a few minutes’ walk.

Since the engagement was set, Jiang Ming Yue had been seeking her out more frequently. He would stay at the Yin mansion for a whole day, his mood rarely high, always asking her to look at this piece of clothing or that piece of jewelry.

It was fine in the past few days, but today Shen Yao Xing seemed particularly disinterested. She only glanced absent-mindedly at the things he brought over.

Jiang Ming Yue soon noticed her unusual behavior, “What’s wrong?”

Shen Yao Xing shook her head without speaking, her gaze fixed blankly on a small waterfall in the distance.

The young woman’s appearance of having something on her mind but unwilling to share with him made Jiang Ming Yue feel annoyed. The small ceramic figurine he was holding cracked, but he carelessly tossed it aside. Jiang Ming Yue walked over and sat down beside the young woman.

Looking down at the person lying on the ground, his voice was several degrees softer than before: “Is there something you can’t even tell me?”

Shen Yao Xing didn’t notice his expression, turning her back to him and still shaking her head.

How could she tell him? Words like her own elder brother being in love with her were impossible to say.

These past few days, she hadn’t returned to the Shen family, just to avoid the awkwardness of meeting. But on the other hand, she was also a bit worried about Song Si Nian’s physical condition. That night, his complexion had looked very bad.

Behind the young woman, Jiang Ming Yue expressionlessly looked at the back of her black head, his fingers lightly brushing over a nearby seven-stringed zither. As if self-punishing, he forcefully rubbed back and forth on one thin string. In an instant, blood drops eagerly fell from his fingertips onto the zither body, and that string was covered in red.

The smell of blood wafted through the air. Shen Yao Xing came to her senses and suddenly looked up at the man’s bloodied hand, sitting up in shock, “What are you doing!?”

Jiang Ming Yue lowered his gaze and calmly examined his hand covered in bright red, his expression cold, “It’s nothing, just an accident.”

“You can make yourself bleed just by touching a zither, how careless can you be!”

Shen Yao Xing’s tone was reproachful, but her hands began to treat his wound. However, just as she grasped his wrist, he shook her off. Jiang Ming Yue turned his face away as if throwing a tantrum, “Weren’t you unwilling to pay attention to me? Why bother with me now?”

Blood droplets splattered onto the hem of Shen Yao Xing’s clothes as he shook his hand, but she paid no mind to it. She forcefully pulled his hand back to help him wipe away the blood and bandage the wound, “I wasn’t ignoring you, I was just thinking about something.”

Jiang Ming Yue pressed his lips together and said no more.

If she didn’t want to tell him, so be it. As long as her gaze could always be on him, it was enough.

By the time Shen Yao Xing left Jiang Ming Yue’s residence, the sun was already setting. She looked in the direction of the Shen mansion for a while, but still decided to go back and check. There shouldn’t be any problems, otherwise someone would have come to find her earlier.

However, she never expected to receive such news upon returning to the Shen mansion.

“You’re saying that elder brother left the Shen mansion for a temple outside the capital a few days ago!?”

“Yes…” Qing Shu shrank her neck, her voice timid. Standing beside her were Hei Sha and Bai Sha, their heads bowed low, not daring to look at the young lady’s expression.

Shen Yao Xing’s face turned red with anger, gritting her teeth: “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

“This was the master’s order… He said this was the young master’s own choice, and since Miss has joyous events recently, the master told this servant not to disturb you…”

Shen Yao Xing closed her eyes in restraint, then turned and leapt onto the roof, rushing towards the city gate.

Now she could only pray to the heavens that Song Si Nian had just gone to that broken temple to burn some incense.

Author’s words: Actually, in my outline, the elder brother was supposed to die, shielding the female lead from a sword, and successfully making the female lead remember him forever. Later, I thought it was too tragic! So I changed the ending _(:_」∠)_

Finding a new CP for the elder brother is really difficult. The elder brother is not like Lan Er; at least Lan Er still has Kai Xia as a childhood sweetheart. But the elder brother is different; from the beginning, he gave his heart completely to the female lead.

There are about two chapters left until the male and female leads get married.