Chapter 35

A middle-aged man walked over from afar. He did not sit with the officials and young men, but sat far away in a specially arranged seat. This man was about forty years old, and his face was dark, thin, and sinister. He was wearing a pine-colored long brocade dress that was extremely luxurious. Unfortunately, he only had one leg.

This was the brother of the current emperor, Prince Yu.

When he was young, he saved the emperor’s life under the hands of an assassin. As a result, his left leg was injured and he had to amputate it. From then on, he became a cripple and his personality changed drastically. He was cruel, fierce, and had a violent personality. He even took in a room full of concubines. This Prince Yu was very dirty and eccentric. He had caused countless women to die.

Princess Consort Yu died seven years ago, and her death was very strange. However, the emperor and the empress dowager both protected Prince Yu, so the Princess Consort Yu’s family couldn’t do anything. Recently, there was suddenly news from Prince Yu’s mansion that he wanted to marry again.

For a moment, everyone in the capital was discussing. Prince Yu had a high status and was protected by the emperor and the empress dowager, so the princess consort naturally had to be from a good family. But people from rich and powerful families wouldn’t want their daughters to be with that kind of a cripple.

Shen Miao’s gaze swept past Prince Yu and then landed on Ren Wanyun.

As expected, Ren Wanyun’s face lit up. She said to Mrs. Yi, “His Majesty really treats Prince Yu very well.”

Mrs. Yi immediately understood what Ren Wanyun was up to. Although she despised Ren Wanyun for being too ruthless, her husband was on the same side as Shen Gui, so she naturally had to help her. She smiled and said, “That’s right. Although he’s a little old, he treats his wife quite well.”

At the side, Chen Ruoqiu lowered her head, eating the pastries. The smile on her lips was a little strange. No one would want their daughter to marry a cripple, no matter how powerful he was. It was no different from pushing their daughter into the fire. At this thought, she turned to look at Shen Miao.

Shen Miao was focused on playing chess, as if everyone else was invisible. Chen Ruoqiu suddenly felt a little uncertain. Ever since Shen Miao fell into the water, she seemed to have changed into a different person. If Shen Miao knew what Ren Wanyun was planning, would she obediently accept it?

As she was thinking, she saw that Shen Miao seemed to have sensed her gaze. She looked up at her with a cold gaze that made Chen Ruoqiu’s heart skip a beat.

Shen Miao then lowered her head to look at the chessboard.

In her previous life, she made a fool of herself at the Chrysanthemum Banquet. When she returned to the house, Ren Wanyun mentioned marrying Shen Miao to Prince Yu to Old Madam Shen. Ren Wanyun said, “Not only is Miao not good at anything, but she also embarrassed the Shen family. No rich family will be willing to marry a girl like her. Now, Prince Yu is looking for a wife. After Miao is married, she will be the princess consort. With His Majesty and the Empress Dowager taking care of her, she will have a rich life. Although his legs are not good and he is a little old, Shen Miao is not outstanding either. I think it’s quite a good match.”

......

Shen Miao only found out about it after she spent a lot of money to bribe the maid in Rongjing Hall. Old Madam Shen hated the first branch from the bottom of her heart. Shen Xin was the son of the first wife of Old Master Shen. When Old Master Shen was alive, he was intimate with Shen Xin, which made Old Madam Shen jealous. She couldn’t deal with Shen Xin, but she could at least deal with his daughter.

Old Madam Shen and Ren Wanyun hit it off immediately and then sent someone to Prince Yu’s mansion to talk about the matter. Shen Miao was angry and afraid. At that time, she was in love with Fu Xiuyi, so she made up her mind and went to Prince Ding’s mansion with a package that night to ask him to take her in. She also deliberately got people to spread the news to ruin her own reputation. She’d rather be a concubine for Prince Ding than to be a princess consort for Prince Yu.

At that time, Old Madam Shen was so angry that she lost her temper. Although Fu Xiuyi was angry, he did not treat Shen Miao badly. Perhaps he saw the value of the Shen family’s military power to him. Later, when Shen Xin returned to the capital at the end of the year, he was shocked and angry with what his daughter did, but Shen Miao did not hesitate to protest with a hunger strike. In the end, Shen Xin had no choice but beg Prince Ding to marry her.

However, no one expected that that was the beginning of the real nightmare.

Shen Miao closed her eyes. Everything in her previous life seemed to have started from today, and today was destined to be the turning point of her life. Now, she would start to make those people who owed her pay their debts.

“Hey, what’s the point of playing alone?” A voice suddenly sounded in her ear. Feng Anning walked up to her and sat down opposite her with an awkward expression. “Why don’t you play a game with me? But do you know how to play chess?”

Feng Anning lowered her head to look at the chessboard. When she looked at it, she became interested. After a while, she asked with confusion, “What is strategy? I’ve never seen it before.”

“I’m playing chess.” Shen Miao said with a smile, “I’m fighting a war.”

“What?”

“The war has just begun,” Shen Miao said indifferently.

Feng Anning shuddered. “What are you talking about? It’s creepy.” She looked at the men’s section and her eyes suddenly lit up. She glanced at Shen Miao and smiled mischievously. “Look, Prince Ding is here.”

In the men’s section, Prince Ding, Fu Xiuyi, was dressed in a long robe embroidered with golden pine. He was very handsome and had a cold aura. However, his actions were amiable instead of condescending.

Shen Miao lowered her head and clenched her fists.

She had been with him for ten years and supported him with all her hearts. In exchange, not only did she get asked to kill herself, but her entire family was also slaughtered.

This person looked kind on the outside, but was actually very vicious inside.

In this life, Shen Miao swore she would make him pay double! No, triple!

Fu Xiuyi, I’m back! She thought to herself.