Chapter 5

Shen Yuanyu was shocked, terrified, and furious all at once. Her whole body trembled, and because her legs were weak, it took her a long time to scramble up from the ground. It wasn't until this moment that the Shen family members reacted; Luan Niang rushed forward to support her.

Just now, she had thrown herself forward recklessly to protect Shen Yuanyu, only to be knocked to the ground by Qin Qiaoqiao's elbow, leaving her unable to get up for a long time. While supporting Shen Yuanyu, she anxiously checked her body. "Third Young Lady, are you alright? Are you injured anywhere?"

Aside from being grazed by Qin Qiaoqiao's short sword when she broke free from her grip—which left a welt on her neck—Shen Yuanyu had no other injuries whatsoever. "I'm fine! I'm fine!"

Holding onto Luan Niang's arm, her body finally stopped shaking so violently. Manager Zhu and a large crowd of people swarmed around, anxiously asking if she was hurt.

At this moment, the Imperial Guards brought by the young man were cleaning up the battlefield, rolling up Qin Qiaoqiao's corpse and placing it on a horse. Regardless of how one looked at it, the leading young man had saved her life. Although she felt a hint of resentment toward his ruthlessness, Shen Yuanyu still followed etiquette, having Luan Niang help her step forward to bow and thank the young man for saving her life.

She bent her knees in a formal salute and said, "Thank you, Young Master, for saving my life. This humble girl is eternally grateful! May I ask your honorable name? Once I have reported this to my father and ancestors, I shall certainly visit your home to express my gratitude!"

In such a life-and-death moment, to be able to grasp his intentions and cooperate so perfectly by rolling to the right—she was quite clever! Even after such a great fright, she knew to thank him for saving her life, speaking with clarity and poise, neither humble nor arrogant. Her courage was vastly different from that of an ordinary woman.

Only then did the youth in black cast a few glances at Yuanyu. She had a small, delicate melon-seed face, willow-leaf eyebrows, and almond eyes. Her skin was fair, and her temperament was elegant. Even if her charm did not yet match the recently deceased Qin Qiaoqiao, once she matured in a few years, she would surely be no inferior to her.

Thinking of how the four great clans—Shen, Wang, Xie, and Huan—not only produced famous scholars and ministers but also boasted generations of handsome men and beautiful women, he found it unsurprising.

"You have no need to know who I am!" The man tilted his chin slightly, his expression appearing quite arrogant. "And you have no need to call your father or brothers to thank me! I merely happened to be there to save you. If it weren't for you, how else would Qin Qiaoqiao have died like this! Wasting more than half a month of my arrangements and preparations for nothing!" He truly felt a sense of lingering frustration.

*He almost took my life just now, and now he's putting on airs for me?* Shen Yuanyu's thanks were merely out of politeness; she felt no sincere gratitude toward him. Seeing his arrogance, she couldn't help but feel angry.

Shen Yuanyu said indifferently, "Does the Young Master mean to say that because I ruined your great plans, you hold a grudge against me?" Although this man was of the imperial clan, the current political situation was one where the imperial family relied on the support and consolidation of the four great clans to maintain power. At that time, lineage was highly esteemed; compared to the four great clans, the imperial family was not necessarily more noble. Seeing the man looking down his nose at her, even Manager Zhu felt a sense of indignation.

Hearing her say this, the man in black couldn't help but let out a "Hmph," taking it as a tacit admission. Shen Yuanyu smiled faintly and said calmly, "I have a question I wish to pose to the Young Master."

The man in black raised an eyebrow and said coldly, "Ask!"

"If I had failed to grasp your intentions just now, would you have prepared to shoot me dead along with that Qin Qiaoqiao?"

The man's expression remained unchanged. "If you could not grasp my intentions, then even if you died, you could only blame your own stupidity!"

Shen Yuanyu's chest ached with anger. Her voice turned cold as well. "In the years past, the four families of Wang, Xie, Shen, and Huan supported Emperor Zhao's move to the east, sustaining the imperial line in Jiankang. The four immigrant clans have rendered immense service. Emperor Zhao once said he would share wealth and honor with the four clans, and that the descendants of these families would hold status equal to the imperial clan, possessing a dignity that must not be slighted. Yet, for the sake of a mere spy from the State of Yan, you disregard the direct branch of the illustrious Lanling Shen clan. Do you look down upon our Shen clan, or do you simply not take the late Emperor's words to heart!"

The youth in black did not expect such a young woman to be so silver-tongued. Caught off guard by her logic, he found himself unable to retort. He was a proud person; how could he endure such sarcasm? He couldn't help but say, "Fine, fine, fine! I have long heard that Shen Hui, a direct descendant of the Lanling Shen clan, is the foremost master of metaphysical discourse of this age, most skilled at twisting words. I did not expect a mere girl like you to be so sharp-tongued. Truly, it is a family legacy!"

Shen Hui was Shen Yuanyu's second uncle, her father's younger half-brother. The youth in black's sarcasm was not lost on Shen Yuanyu.

The politics of the Great Jin were not like the later imperial examinations; to become an official, one relied entirely on lineage. Discussing metaphysics was the fashion of society, and the great families were obsessed with the abstractions of Laozi and Zhuangzi. The scions of these clans often lacked practical knowledge and any talent for administration—the so-called "holding office without performing official duties, handling affairs without the heart for affairs." Yet, they attained high positions without effort, a fact that deeply worried men of vision.

Shen Hui was famous for his metaphysical discussions, but his political achievements were mediocre, with little to show for his tenure. It was no wonder the youth in black spoke that way.

However, such was the social atmosphere of the time. Confucianism had flourished for three hundred years but was gradually being replaced by Metaphysics. If the great clans wished to maintain their footing among the high nobility, they had to transition from Confucianism to Metaphysics to align with the social trends. Only when a family held status could they command a dominant role in the distribution of political resources.

Hearing the boy's mockery, Shen Yuanyu did not argue. In truth... she shared similar views with him.

The two stared at each other, each finding the other more and more eyesore. For a moment, the atmosphere grew heavy. Seeing that the two were not getting along, Manager Zhu hurriedly stepped forward to smooth things over. "Third Young Lady, it is getting late; we must set off! If we delay any longer, I fear we won't make it into the city before the gates close."

Shen Yuanyu happened to not want to bicker with the youth any longer. She took the opportunity to step down. She bowed once more to the youth in black. "This humble girl bows again, thanking the Young Master for saving my life."

The youth in black gave a faint "Hmph" and waved his hand to the dozen or so Imperial Guards following him. "Let us go!" He didn't even spare Shen Yuanyu a glance.

With that, he mounted his warhorse with fluid grace and galloped away, leaving only a cloud of dust.

Shen Yuanyu felt a surge of exasperation. She had seen arrogant people, but never one this arrogant.

Luan Niang helped Shen Yuanyu into the carriage, and she called out to Manager Zhu to ask, "That Young Master just now—do you know him?"

Manager Zhu said, "If this lowly one guesses correctly, he should be Yu Jingnian, the second son of the Prince of Langya! This lowly one has not met this Second Young Master before, so I dare not be entirely certain!" It was said that Yu Jingnian was close friends with Xi Jie, the Third Young Lady's fiancé. Manager Zhu had just blurted out that sentence.

Shen Yuanyu thought for a moment and instructed, "Then help me investigate who he is." She then added with a self-deprecating smile, "I can't exactly remain ignorant of who my savior is, can I?"

Manager Zhu hesitated. He was a capable manager serving the Great Master; normally, the ladies of the inner household had no authority over him. However, investigating who this youth was was a simple task, and he could use this opportunity to do a favor for the Third Young Lady. Thus, he agreed, "Yes!"

Shen Yuanyu said, "In that case, let us depart!"

Inside the swaying carriage, Shen Yuanyu was still thinking about the youth in black. His series of arrangements to save her just now proved his extraordinary intellect. It was just a pity that she truly looked down upon his attitude of treating human life as if it were grass...

The Shen clan's residence was located in Wuyi Lane on the south bank of the Qinhuai River. Because this lane gathered a vast number of prestigious clans, it was quite renowned in Jiankang. Because the Shen clan was so prosperous and the old ancestral home in Wuyi Lane was not large enough, those who could live here were nothing less than the direct descendants of the direct line.

The Shen clan consisted of five internal branches and eighteen external branches. Including the tenant farmers and retainers attached to the Shen clan, they numbered in the thousands, a massive clan that reflected the strength of the Shen lineage. At this time, the power of the clan was immense; only with sufficient population resources could the Lanling Shen clan continuously produce famous ministers and scholars, allowing the family's glory to be passed down through generations.

Shen Yuanyu entered the gates of the East Mansion. The head of the East Mansion was the current patriarch of the Shen clan, the Great Grandfather Shen Hong. Shen Hong was one of the foremost great scholars of the Great Jin, highly skilled in music and profound in metaphysical principles. He was a renowned master of both music and metaphysics, wielding immense influence in both the court and the common areas. The imperial court had repeatedly issued decrees for him to enter officialdom, but he had declined time and again, being absorbed in metaphysical truths and literature and art.

For most of the year, he was either visiting relatives and friends or composing poetry and painting. He usually resided in the East Mountain Villa in Kuaiji Commandery and rarely stayed in Jiankang. In Wuyi Lane, the highest-ranking official in the Shen family was Shen Yuanyu's grand-uncle, who lived in the West Mansion, the Second Grandfather Shen Zhong, who now held the position of Zhongshu Ling (Vice Chancellor) at the third rank. Although there was still a gap between him and the first-rank Three Excellencies, he held key positions and participated in the formulation and execution of major national policies, wielding great power.

As the carriage drove into the second gate of the Shen residence, Shen Yuanyu held Luan Niang's hand and stepped down from the carriage by stepping on a servant's back. Because Shen Yuanyu's mother, the First Madam, had been bedridden with illness, the household was managed by the Second Madam, the Princess of Huyang. The Princess of Huyang had always disliked the people of the first branch, so Shen Yuanyu did not expect her to send anyone to meet her.

By now, it was pitch black. By the dim moonlight, she saw two young girls walking toward them from a distance, surrounded by a crowd of maidservants and elderly women. The girl in front wore a long, silver-red jacket with gold trim and embroidered peacock patterns, paired with a honey-colored pleated skirt. Her hair was meticulously styled in a cloud-like bun, adorned with pearls and jade; a very precious Eastern pearl was set upon her golden hairpin. This girl was dressed quite magnificently and brilliantly, and her features were even more striking. Not only were her features exquisite and her skin fair, but she was also tall, looking radiant and soul-stirring. She instantly captured all of Shen Yuanyu's attention.

Compared to her, the girl beside her, wearing a moon-white jacket with wave borders and a white striped skirt, had soft and delicate features that made her seem much less prominent.

Shen Yuanyu sighed. She never imagined that the ones coming to the second gate to meet her would be these two rivals.

The girl walking in front, the Fourth Young Lady Shen Yuanzhen, was the only legitimate daughter born to the Princess of Huyang and was the most beautiful girl of this generation in the Shen family. Her beauty was famous even in Jiankang. Pampered like the apple of the Old Madam's and the Princess's eyes, she was exceptionally arrogant and domineering.

The other girl was her half-sister, the Seventh Young Lady Shen Yuanbi. Her own biological sister, the Eighth Young Lady Shen Yuanshu, did not appear at the second gate.

At this moment, Shen Yuanzhen was looking down at Shen Yuanyu with an arrogant expression. "Shen Yuanyu, you shameless wench! You actually have the face to come back?" Before she could finish her sentence, she swung her arm to slap Shen Yuanyu's face.