Chapter 118: Deepening Affection (1)

By the time Shen Xiling woke up the next day, Qi Yin had already left.

She drifted out of sleep groggily. At first, finding herself in an unfamiliar room left her disoriented, but as her awareness returned, memories of the previous night gradually resurfaced.

They… were together now.

The memory of their intimacy made Shen Xiling blush deeply, as if she had applied rouge to her cheeks. She curled up in his blanket, hiding her face with her hands, and lingered lazily for a while before slowly getting out of bed.

As soon as she sat upright, she noticed the empty teacup on the small table beside the bed—the same one he had used to feed her water the night before. This brought back even clearer memories of all his gentle actions and words, intensifying her longing for him.

Sighing inwardly, she thought, Why is that man always so busy?

… She missed him so much.

But after the sweet memories faded, the unpleasant events began to resurface. Shen Xiling couldn’t help but think about Manager Feng’s death, which left her feeling low and troubled. Though Qi Yin had told her to rest for a few days and stop worrying about business matters, she couldn’t truly relax. She decided she should visit Manager Feng’s widow and orphan again—even if they didn’t want to see her, she should still send them some compensation.

After pondering for a while, Shen Xiling sat quietly on his bed, lost in thought, occasionally kicking the blanket. It wasn’t until she noticed the sun had risen high in the sky that she finally got up.

Hearing movement inside, the maids waiting outside entered to assist Shen Xiling with her grooming. However, the servants who came in were unfamiliar—they weren’t Shui Pei, Feng Chang, or the others. When asked, the maids explained that Shui Pei, Feng Chang, and Liu Zi were kneeling at the entrance of Woyu Courtyard as punishment, following Master Qi’s orders. They had been kneeling for over an hour already.

Shen Xiling was startled upon hearing this. After hastily freshening up, she hurried out of the room.

The stormy night had given way to a bright, sunny morning. The warm spring sun shone brilliantly against a cloudless blue sky. The flowers and plants in Fenghe Garden glistened with dew, creating a rare and beautiful scene.

Shen Xiling rushed back from Qi Yin’s Huaijin Courtyard to her own Woyu Courtyard. From afar, she saw Shui Pei and the others kneeling at the entrance, heads bowed in dejection.

They had all worked tirelessly the previous night, and Shen Xiling already felt guilty about it. Seeing them punished like this only added to her unease. She quickly urged them to stand up and stop kneeling.

However, none of them complied. Liu Zi, sniffling, said, “Young Miss is kind and doesn’t blame us, but as servants, we must accept our punishment when we’ve erred. Master Qi’s decision is just—we won’t rise.”

Their determination was evident, showing no intention of relenting.

Though Qi Yin was usually cold and stern, he wasn’t cruel or unkind. He rarely punished servants and had never interfered with those under Shen Xiling’s care, even during minor incidents in the past. Yet, this time, he had broken his usual pattern and punished the four of them.

Liu Zi and the others vividly remembered how stern Master Qi’s expression had been that morning, instilling fear deep within them. His words carried immense weight: “She has a gentle nature—does that mean you can make decisions for her?”

They understood clearly: Master Qi was blaming them for concealing Manager Feng’s visit.

They had indeed overstepped their bounds. Though their intentions were good, their actions ultimately caused her greater trouble. If Master Qi hadn’t arrived in time yesterday, the consequences could have been dire.

“Never make decisions for her,” Master Qi had concluded gravely, “unless you’re prepared to bear all the consequences.”

Kneeling for three hours wasn’t a severe punishment by any means. It seemed Master Qi intended it as a mild deterrent, already quite merciful.

Still, Shen Xiling felt deeply uneasy.

Though they had made mistakes, they had also done their best to protect her yesterday—especially Shui Pei, who had accompanied her into Yang Dong’s southeastern residence and later been dragged out by the servants, leaving bruises on her arms. Shen Xiling also knew she had unfairly lashed out at Shui Pei in her emotional state last night, making her feel even guiltier. She insisted they stand up.

But they remained stubborn, refusing to rise. Shui Pei, her eyes wet with tears, said to Shen Xiling, “Young Miss, please let us kneel. Even for the sake of that manager, we deserve this…”

This stopped Shen Xiling in her tracks.

Indeed… Manager Feng had lost his life. If he had met with her and heard her advice, perhaps he wouldn’t have taken his own life out of despair. What Shui Pei and the others had done was wrong, but how could she excuse their actions with someone else’s suffering?

Shen Xiling abandoned her attempts to persuade them further, suppressing her discomfort and allowing them to complete their three-hour penance.

By the afternoon, they finally rose, their faces pale and knees swollen. Liu Zi fared slightly better, but the maids could barely walk straight.

Naturally, Shen Xiling felt great pity for them. She arranged for them to receive treatment and rest. However, these maids, ever playful, joked through their pain, winking and teasing her with mischievous grins. “Congratulations, Young Miss, for finally having your wish fulfilled!”

As they spoke, they glanced cheekily toward Huaijin Courtyard, causing Shen Xiling’s face to flush crimson.

She wanted to scold them but couldn’t suppress her laughter. Eventually, she playfully tossed the ointment at them to apply themselves.

Her wish fulfilled…

Shen Xiling’s cheeks burned red.

Sigh… why hasn’t he come back yet?

Meanwhile, Qi Yin was at the Hanlin Academy, overwhelmed with work.

Unlike the Chancellery, the Hanlin Academy was located within the imperial palace. Jiangzuo had always valued literary governance, and the academy attracted the brightest talents. Only the top few scholars from each imperial examination were eligible to join.

Before Mr. Wang Qing retired, he served as a senior scholar at the Hanlin Academy. When Qi Yin became a junior official after passing the exams, he briefly served at the academy as well, though he was soon transferred to more influential positions and hadn’t been involved with the academy since.

This time, as the chief examiner of the spring examinations, he returned to the old office to finalize the results with the other examiners.

The deputy examiners were much older than Qi Yin. Though they didn’t outright oppose him, each had their own temperament. Given the scholarly nature of debates, they nitpicked every detail of the exam papers, arguing endlessly. As a younger official, Qi Yin couldn’t simply impose his will. Instead, he patiently endured their bickering, waiting until the elders grew tired before offering compromises to settle the matter.

Once that was resolved, news arrived from the Chancellery: another rebellion had erupted in Gao Wei. Spies embedded in the north had exacerbated the situation, alarming the court. Gao Mian intended to send the Gu family to quell the unrest.

Upon hearing this, Qi Yin grew pensive. After giving brief instructions at the Hanlin Academy, he quickly left the palace and returned to the Chancellery.

Without pausing for a meal, he convened with officials for several hours. By the time discussions concluded, it was already late evening.

After the officials dispersed, Qi Yin sat alone in his office, lost in thought.

He sensed something was off about himself today.

He… couldn’t stop thinking about Shen Xiling.

In the past, during busy periods, he occasionally thought of her, but those thoughts were fleeting and easily suppressed. Today, however, was different—he kept recalling her over and over.

On the way to the palace, during the morning court session, while listening to the elders argue at the Hanlin Academy, and even earlier, when the twelve divisions discussed the severity of the northern turmoil, his mind kept wandering to her.

He thought of her curled up in the blanket the previous night, the faint, indescribable fragrance of her skin, and the way her eyelashes trembled when they kissed…

Everything about her.

Though he didn’t want to be distracted by personal feelings while handling official matters, thoughts of her kept intruding. If he tried to suppress them, he found himself stuck in that effort, unable to focus on anything else.

Thus, he ended up alternating between thinking of her and listening to the reports. Sometimes, when he lost track of the discussion, he had to ask for clarification—a pattern that caught Xu Zhengning’s attention, prompting concern about whether Qi Yin was overworked.

Qi Yin, aware of being observed, felt awkward internally but maintained a composed exterior. With a simple “It’s fine,” he reassured everyone, inadvertently deepening their perception of his dedication and self-sacrifice.

Now that the day’s official duties were over, Qi Yin showed no sign of leaving the office. After collecting his thoughts, he instructed Qing Zhu to summon an official from the Chancellery. He personally wrote a note and handed it to the official, instructing, “Go to the Ministry of Justice and request Lord Lu to meet me personally.”

The Ministry of Justice handled cases of imperial imprisonment and legal revisions, wielding significant influence. The “Lord Lu” Qi Yin referred to was Lu Zheng, the head of the ministry, a third-rank official responsible for resolving complex legal disputes. Incidentally, Lu Zheng had a connection to Shen Xiling: he had overseen the case of Chancellor Shen and issued the arrest warrant when Shen Xiling and her mother escaped prison years ago.

The official dutifully departed. About half an hour later, Lu Zheng arrived.

Technically, there was no hierarchical relationship between the Chancellery and the Ministry of Justice. Though Qi Yin outranked Lu Zheng by one rank, they rarely interacted professionally. Lu Zheng wasn’t obligated to heed Qi Yin’s summons.

However, the Chancellery’s power was immense. Offending Qi Yin could result in accusations of treason, a serious matter not to be taken lightly. Moreover, Qi Yin’s influential Qi family added to his clout. Despite Lu Zheng’s high rank, he dared not disregard Qi Yin’s summons. Thus, he hurriedly changed into his official attire and rushed to the Chancellery.

Lu Zheng was considered fortunate in his career. At thirty-nine, he was relatively young for his position, though his appearance aged him, and his stooped posture and beard made him seem unremarkable.

Upon entering, he greeted his superior. Qi Yin waived formalities and invited him to sit.

Lu Zheng, sweating from his rushed arrival despite the spring chill, didn’t bother wiping his brow. Instead, he nervously asked, “Y-Your Excellency summoned me so urgently… may I ask what it concerns?”