Spoiled and mad critic of powerful ministers

Shen Qiongju did not struggle, but simply watched him quietly.

"Looks like you're not doing so well in the Pei family." His hand moved up her wrist, his fingers icy cold, like a venomous snake, about to touch her neck.

Shen Qiongju suddenly smiled.

Her smile caused Wen Xiujie to stop moving.

Wen Xiujie's face grew even more gloomy.

He could clearly sense that this woman was no longer afraid of him.

She wasn't afraid of him.

This realization fueled the nameless anger burning within him even more intensely.

"You and the Pei family, how cunning you are!" He withdrew his hand, instead gripping her chin and forcing her to look up. "You dare to try and fool me with a fake blueprint!"

"These dozens of lashes I've received are all thanks to you!"

His breath, carrying the nauseating smell of alcohol, wafted onto her face.

Shen Qiongju was forced to look up, but her gaze did not waver at all. Instead, she saw the madness and resentment in his eyes even more clearly.

She could even clearly see that beneath the collar of his centurion's uniform, white cloth was faintly visible, suggesting that he was seriously injured.

She suddenly laughed again, this time with a deeper smile that reached her eyes.

"Commander Wen," she paused deliberately, then clearly pronounced the words, "oh no, now I'm Commander Baihu."

"Does the baton wound on your back still hurt?"

Wen Xiujie's eyes were gloomy.

"You're asking for it!" he roared, slamming his other fist into the carriage.

The smile in Shen Qiongju's eyes vanished instantly, leaving only a chilling coldness.

"Wen Xiujie," she called him by his full name, her voice soft but clear, "Your wife will be returning from her parents' home tomorrow, won't she?"

Wen Xiujie's outstretched hand froze in mid-air.

Seeing his sudden change in expression, Shen Qiongju continued unhurriedly, "Your wife comes from a noble family and has a fiery temper."

"If she found out that her husband wasn't doing his duty properly on the street, but instead was flirting with another woman in an alley..."

"Do you think she might go to your boss and add another 'affair' to your list?"

"You're only a centurion now, which is already a disgrace to your in-laws. If you were to cause another scandal like this... Lord Wen, do you think you'd be able to live your life afterward?"

Every word struck Wen Xiujie's Achilles' heel.

His wife, the legitimate daughter of General Hu, was both the stepping stone to his meteoric rise and a tight rein on him.

This Hu Yuzhen is jealous and spoiled, and she takes her anger out on him at the slightest provocation, yet Wen Xiujie is willing to be subservient and endure it.

In her previous life, Shen Qiongju was tormented to the point of near death by that woman as soon as she entered the Wen family. In the end, the woman even found a pretext to send her far away to the estate, so that she would not have to see her anymore.

However, she was quite content living alone on the estate and even made a close friend, Du Hengniang.

Wen Xiujie's face turned ashen, but he slightly loosened his grip on her chin.

He stared intently at her, the murderous intent in his eyes almost tangible.

But he dared not take the risk; he couldn't afford to offend his wife for the time being.

Shen Qiongju calmly met his gaze.

Just then, Shen Song came running back, panting, carrying a bag of steaming plum blossom cakes.

He called out loudly outside the carriage, "Miss, the plum blossom cakes are all bought. Li's shop up ahead is very popular; even Officer Li is queuing up to buy some for his wife."

Upon hearing this, Wen Xiujie abruptly released his grip and leaned heavily against the car wall.

"You... are very good." He squeezed out the three words through gritted teeth, turned around and jumped off the carriage in a disheveled manner, disappearing into the alley without looking back.

The nauseating smell in the carriage finally dissipated as he left.

Shen Qiongju leaned against the carriage wall, slowly wiping the cold sweat from her palms with a handkerchief. Being stuck in the carriage like this, she was still a little flustered.

Although Wen Xiujie was a despicable person, he cared a great deal about his reputation and career advancement, and it was very easy for him to find fault with Wen Xiujie.

Moreover, he valued his power extremely highly, and once his power was weakened, he was like a tiger with its teeth pulled, his momentum clearly diminished.

The common people cannot fight against the officials. Although Wen Xiujie is an unfavored illegitimate son from a collateral branch of the Wen family, the Wen family is, after all, a family of military generals with a history of over a hundred years. He has now gained the appreciation of General Wen.

Although she couldn't avenge her father's severed finger, the ruthless and powerful future minister Pei Zhihui was still waiting for her.

They're just grasshoppers in autumn, not worth getting angry about.

"Sister Qiongju! Are you alright? That person..." Shen Song asked anxiously.

"fine."

Shen Qiongju interrupted him, took the oil paper package, picked up a delicate plum blossom cake from it, and put it in her mouth.

The sweet and glutinous aroma melts in your mouth.

She squinted, and her upset stomach was instantly soothed.

"Let's go," she said, lowering the carriage curtain, her voice returning to its usual gentle tone, "to the winery."

The mule cart was parked on the rather desolate long street in the west of the city.

Shen Qiongju lifted the curtain, and what came into view was a mottled signboard—"Shen's Old Wine." The wind blew, and the signboard made a teeth-grinding creaking sound.

She got out of the car and walked inside with Shen Song.

The store was unusually deserted.

The counter was spotless and quiet, but a shop assistant was dozing off on the table. Hearing footsteps, he groggily looked up.

Upon seeing that it was their young mistress, she was startled and quickly stood up straight.

"Young Miss, what brings you here?" The shopkeeper, an honest man surnamed Wang, quickly stepped forward to greet Shen Qiongju as she entered.

"This... they didn't even inform us beforehand, and the store didn't prepare anything."

Shen Qiongju's gaze swept over the shelves. The wine jars were arranged neatly, and the damaged parts had been repaired. Compared to before her exile, they were much better.

However, the seals on these wine jars were old and worn, indicating that they hadn't been touched for a long time.

"How's business these days?" She picked up an account book and flipped through a couple of pages.

Shopkeeper Wang sighed with a bitter face, "As you can see, since the young master's accident, our Shen family has also been implicated. Although the storm has passed, our regular customers are afraid of getting into trouble and dare not come to our store openly. In the past two days, we have only sold a few pounds of loose wine."

Shen Qiongju's fingertip traced across the ledger, stopping at the last line.

There was a strange account recorded there: a deposit of fifty taels for three hundred catties of "first-grade roasted meat", which has not been collected.

"Who made this decision?" Shen Qiongju frowned slightly.

"First distillation liquor" refers to the first distillate to flow out during the distillation process. It has an extremely high alcohol content, tastes like swallowing a knife, and is very easy to get drunk on.

Ordinary drinkers simply cannot handle it; it is mostly used to dilute alcohol content, and very few people buy this much directly.

Shopkeeper Wang slapped his forehead, as if he had just remembered: "Oh, this order was placed by a strange man. He came yesterday evening, he's incredibly burly, and speaks in a deep, booming voice. He claims to be a doctor and says he needs this strong liquor in his medicine."

"Doctor?" A glint of light flashed in Shen Qiongju's eyes.

"Yes, I'm wondering the same thing. What kind of doctor soaks medicine in such strong liquor? Wouldn't the medicinal properties be completely destroyed by the alcohol?" Manager Wang shook his head. "But he paid readily, in cash, so I accepted. He said he'd come in a cart to pick it up in a couple of days."

Shen Qiongju closed the ledger, a meaningful smile curving her lips.

doctor?

Could he be a military doctor?