So what if she's my sister-in-law? You seduced me first.

After an unknown amount of time, the light and shadows before her eyes turned dim and yellow. Ning Yu felt herself being picked up and placed on a table covered with a tiger skin.

She struggled to open her eyes and found herself in a sentry post by the city wall. Fireworks were still exploding outside the window. She took off the crane cloak she was wearing, and found that her clothes underneath were torn and disheveled.

A charcoal fire burned in the sentry post, and her body gradually warmed up. Her face flushed as she looked at the man on top of her, and she was so angry that she was about to slap him across the face.

Xie Xun grabbed her wrist, pulled her into his arms with force.

His cheek bumped into her sweaty, firm chest, and Ning Yu scratched at his muscles in a fit of anger.

Xie Xun ignored her resentment, gripping her waist tightly and tossing her around, kissing and sucking her lips.

An irresistible current surged up her tailbone, causing her body to arch violently. In the instant their eyes met, there was an inexplicable, unspoken understanding between them. He lowered his head and laughed like a madman.

"Bastard." Ning Yu's voice was hoarse as she cursed him, filled with the rage of conquering chaos.

Xie Xun stopped, his eyes filled with lust as he looked down at her, as if he wanted her to beg him.

Ning Yu bit her lip in anger and twisted her waist, trying to get down.

"Should I take it or not?"

Whether she was struggling to refuse or yearning, her legs, which she kicked, felt weak and powerless. Xie Xun, his eyes bloodshot, pinched the soft flesh of her waist, wishing he could break her bones.

"ah---"

Fireworks lit up the sky above the roof beams, and the maidservant who served Shen Qingge excitedly pulled her out of the house.

"What beautiful fireworks! Who put on such a grand show? They've been going on for almost half an hour."

The ever-burning lamps that spewed fire illuminated the entire sky, and from her small courtyard, one could see a magnificent spectacle of fiery horses and beasts filling the air.

"That's a fox, isn't it? It's so beautiful."

Shen Qingge, dressed in a beautiful silk dress, looked expectantly at the dazzling lights in the sky and smiled.

Ah Zhi finally breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that she had finally shown some smile.

From the moment her concubine entered the mansion, she was assigned by the nanny to serve her. Every year during the New Year, the two of them would spend the holiday alone in the Begonia Pavilion.

Third Master is very busy. He has to spend time with his family and go to the palace to offer congratulations. He can only visit his aunt and take her out to play when he has some free time on the second day of the Lunar New Year.

"Just now, Tieyi had someone deliver a huge table of New Year's Eve dishes, saying that if Auntie doesn't want to stay in the house, she can go out and stroll around the streets and buy whatever she wants."

Shen Qingge looked at the brilliant fireworks overhead, glanced at her own courtyard which lacked any lively atmosphere, and shook her head.

She didn't have anything she wanted to buy; her closet was already overflowing with clothes and jewelry.

Seeing that she wasn't in high spirits, Azhi comforted her, "Third Master has already been very good to you, Auntie. If you get pregnant again next spring, Madam won't dare to make things difficult for you when she comes to the mansion."

child?!

Shen Qingge's face suddenly paled, and she lost all interest in watching the fireworks, turning around and going back inside.

The room was warm but quiet, a stark contrast to the lively laughter and chatter in the main courtyard of the Xiao family's front hall. She leaned back on the soft couch, picked up the kettle on the tea table, poured herself a cup of tea, and gulped it down.

Ah Zhi didn't know what was wrong with her. She glanced at the paper-cuttings on the table and scratched her head.

On this traditionally joyous day, Shen Qingge couldn't help but think of the child she was pregnant with when she first entered the manor.

That year was her first year in the Xiao family. As the year drew to a close, Xiao Zhiliu went to Xianyang to handle a case, leaving her alone in the mansion. During her meal, she vomited until her face turned pale. Azhi hurriedly went to call the family physician, only to discover that she was pregnant.

At that moment, she was both scared and almost imperceptibly happy. She didn't know what to do. She wanted to write to Xiao Zhiliu, but she didn't know where he was. So she thought she would wait until he came back.

But the matter could not be kept secret from the Xiao family, and Madam Xiao came to her secluded little courtyard the very next day.

The maids closed the door, and the courtyard was guarded from all sides. Madam Xiao sat gracefully on a high chair, looking down at her with a sidelong glance and questioning her.

Knowing she couldn't hide it any longer, she told the truth. The Xiao family did not allow women to have a son before marrying the matriarch. Madam Xiao was furious and ordered someone to give her a potent abortion potion.

She was forced to drink abortion soup by the nannies, her stomach felt like it was being stabbed, and her legs were full of blood.

But no one came to save her. She struggled in pain all night on the cold ground. When she finally woke up, it was Ah Zhi who went out of town to find a doctor who prescribed medicine for her and fed her the medicine, which helped her recover.

My body developed health problems from that time, making it very difficult for me to conceive again.

As her thoughts were peeled away layer by layer, her cooled mind clashed violently in her head. Shen Qingge stroked her belly and couldn't help but recall the indifferent look in his eyes as he sat in front of her bed.

Xiao Zhiliu returned the day before New Year's Eve. When he came to see her, he noticed her unusual behavior. Someone told him the whole story.

He remained silent for the entire afternoon, neither questioning his mother nor saying anything else, but simply instructing the royal physician to use the finest medicinal herbs to nourish her body.

She was in so much pain then. Her time in the Xiao family was even more miserable than the years she and A-Jun had spent together. She begged him to let her leave the capital and return to Xianyang, but he refused, saying that they could have more children and forcing her to stay in the Xiao family.

Two years passed, and she never became pregnant again. The two of them continued to live in silence and confusion.

"Aunt, a letter for you has arrived at the post station."

A surprised voice came from outside the door, interrupting Shen Qingge's thoughts. She raised her beautiful eyes to look.

Azhi lifted the beaded curtain and came in with the letter, smiling, "The servant at the courtyard gate just brought it in. He said it was a letter from home in Xianyang City. It must be that Young Master Shen misses you."

As expected, it was a letter from Shen Huijun.

Shen Qingge gently opened the envelope with her plump, rounded fingers. Looking at Shen Huijun's comforting words on the letter, her heart burned with warmth, and a sincere smile appeared on her face.

"Every time Young Master Shen wrote a letter home to his aunt, she would be happy for several days."

"He'll be going to the capital for the imperial examination in a few months. It's almost here, finally almost here---"

Ah Zhi was genuinely happy for her, and ignoring what she was muttering behind her back, she smiled and echoed her sentiments.

The sound of firecrackers was still going off outside. After burning the letter, Shen Qingge was about to walk to her desk to write a reply when she heard Azhi's delighted voice.

"Why did Third Master come here?"

Shen Qingge frowned, quickly glanced at the ashes in the brazier, waved her handkerchief, and lit the incense.

The heavy curtain was lifted by a servant, and Xiao Zhiliu walked in, bringing with her a chill. Seeing her dressed in thin clothes and bending over by the incense burner, he went over to her.

"Come with me to a family dinner later, and change your clothes."

She had never eaten with the Xiao family since she entered the mansion. During the New Year, the Xiao family would surely eat her alive if they saw a concubine eating at their family banquet.

Shen Qingge concealed the expression in her eyes, looked up at him, and asked, "What brings you here?"

In previous years, he would have spent this time with his family.

Xiao Zhiliu chuckled, "What, you don't want me to come back and keep you company?"

Of course he didn't have time to come and keep her company. It's because this woman has been acting strangely these past two months, almost ignoring him, and she seems to be thinking about nothing all day.