Spoiled and mad critic of powerful ministers

Several Imperial Guards rushed in from outside the door.

"By order of the Prime Minister, immediately surround the Wen residence, confiscate its property, and exterminate the entire clan! Wen Xiujie shall be executed by slow slicing, and his family members shall be sent to the brothels!"

After issuing the order, he turned around and looked at his former sister-in-law, who was once nominally his sister-in-law, through the golden cage. His eyes were as cold as ice and as hot as fire.

"Sister-in-law, do you want to die?"

He reached out and pulled off the blindfold, revealing her empty, tear-streaked eyes. "Dreaming."

"You haven't paid your debt to your brother yet, I want you alive."

"I want you to suffer humiliation in this hell every day, to atone for the sins of my Pei family."

He straightened up and waved to the two stern-faced old women who walked in, "Take them away and lock them in the water dungeon."

"Remember, keep an eye on her, don't let her get hurt."

"Yes."

Pei Zhihui suddenly sat up in bed, his chest heaving violently as he gasped for breath.

Cold sweat rolled down his forehead, instantly soaking his undergarment.

He stared intently ahead, his pupils contracting sharply, his eyes still lingering with the violence and malice of his dream.

There was no golden cage, nor that nauseating yet intoxicating sound of bells.

What comes into view is the green bamboo-colored curtains, the orchid quietly blooming on the windowsill, and the faint fragrance of styrax floating in the air.

This is Tianzhuang.

Pei Zhihui lowered his head and looked at his hands.

There was no purple robe that symbolized power, only a pair of pale, thin hands, even with thin calluses from years of holding a pen.

But the slippery touch in his dream, the thrill of controlling her life and death, made him feel a sense of unease.

"brute……"

He gritted his teeth, cursed under his breath, scratched his sweat-soaked hair, and slapped himself hard.

How could he have such a dream?

That's his sister-in-law!

He actually humiliated her like that in his dream, and even... developed that filthy desire for her.

"Zhihui?"

A soft voice came from outside the door, tinged with a hint of probing and concern, "Are you awake? I heard some noises inside."

It is Shen Qiongju.

Pei Zhihui's body suddenly stiffened.

Dreams and reality intertwine and overlap at this moment.

Her broken cries in his dream, and the gentle tone outside the door now, were like two saws, pulling back and forth in his mind.

"go out!"

He blurted it out, his voice terribly hoarse.

The footsteps outside the door stopped.

A moment later, the door was gently pushed open a crack.

Shen Qiongju carefully poked her head in, holding a bowl of hangover soup.

She changed into a moon-white casual padded jacket and skirt, her hair was simply tied up, and her face was free of makeup, as clean as a handful of snow.

She was startled when she saw Pei Zhihui's bloodshot eyes.

"Zhihui, are you feeling unwell? You've only had a few glasses of fruit wine, and you're already this drunk."

Shen Qiongju wasn't angry about the word "get lost," but instead strode in.

This man was clearly drunk, completely different from his state during the day; there was no need for her to argue with him.

After placing the soup bowl on the table, Shen Qiongju reached out to touch his forehead.

"You're sweating a lot, do you have a fever...?"

"Don't touch me!"

He leaned against the headboard, covering his body, which felt strange due to the dream, with the blanket, and turned his head away from Shen Qiongju.

Just as her fingertips were about to touch his forehead, Pei Zhihui jerked his hand away as if he had been burned.

A crisp "snap" sound.

Shen Qiongju's hand was slapped until it turned bright red, and she staggered from the force of the blow, bumping into the bedpost.

She stared at him in astonishment, her clear, moist eyes suddenly seeming to well up with tears; those eyes were exactly like the woman locked in the cage in her dream.

Pei Zhihui's heart clenched painfully. He wanted to apologize and say that he didn't mean it.

But the words that came out of his mouth turned into cold sarcasm.

"What, you think that showing me concern and care will make up for your mistakes?"

Pei Zhihui regretted saying this as soon as he finished speaking. He actually believed that his sister-in-law stole the blueprints because she really wanted to save her brother, but his emotions seemed to have been influenced by the dream.

His dream was so real that he even felt that the person in the dream was himself.

Shen Qiongju covered the back of her hand, her eyes growing cold, but her voice remained gentle, "I just wanted to make you more comfortable."

"If you don't like it, I'll have someone remove it."

Pei Zhihui turned his head slowly when he heard the coldness in her tone, his gaze lingering for a moment on her exposed fair wrist.

In my dream, there was a silver bell locked there, worn red and swollen from his rubbing.

The moment the thought crossed his mind, he immediately suppressed it and buried the image deep within his heart.

After calming down, he raised his head and said in a hoarse voice, "No, I don't dislike it. I just drank too much, sister-in-law."

Shen Qiongju had a deep understanding of Pei Zhihui's capricious nature in her previous life, but she never expected that he was like this when he was young. He just pretended to be too good at it.

.

The morning light is dim.

Last night's absurd standoff seemed to melt away along with the accumulated snow, as if bathed in the winter sun.

Yesterday's housewarming party went on until quite late, and when they arrived at the dining hall, only she and Pei Zhihui were there.

Knowing that Shen Qiongju had to get up early to rush back to the county town, Aunt Liu from the kitchen immediately brought over breakfast for the two of them. "Young Madam, Second Master, please have breakfast."

At the dinner table, Pei Zhihui changed into a clean bamboo-green robe and his hair was neatly combed.

He sat upright, holding a porcelain spoon in his hand, stirring the red date and millet porridge in the bowl with elegant movements.

If it weren't for the dark circles under his eyes that couldn't be concealed, no one would be able to tell what kind of nightmare he had experienced last night.

Shen Qiongju sat opposite him, peeling a salted duck egg with her head down. Her fingertips were stained with a little red oil, which made her fingers look even whiter.

"Sister-in-law."

Pei Zhihui suddenly spoke.

Shen Qiongju's hand trembled, and the freshly peeled duck egg almost rolled off.

She quickly composed herself, looked up, and wore an impeccable, gentle smile.

"What's wrong? Is the porridge not to your liking?"

"no."

Pei Zhihui put down his spoon and glanced at the well-organized courtyard outside the window.

There were quite a few unfamiliar faces in the courtyard.

Four maids dressed in coarse cloth were sweeping snow. Their movements were not very nimble, but they were diligent.

In the kitchen, two robust female cooks were washing vegetables, chatting and laughing loudly.

At the entrance, Pei Zhong's two sons were directing four newly hired male servants to move firewood.

Aside from lacking luxurious clothes and food, she managed to keep the expenses on the estate at a level that the Pei family had when they were in Wu County.

Although the women no longer had their personal head maids, they had to share the four cleaning maids.

Several former servants even wanted to come back, but were turned away because they complained about the halved monthly pay.

But the Pei family survived.

In this harsh and cold place, life has come.

Pei Zhihui withdrew his gaze, his eyes landing on Shen Qiongju's face with a complex expression.

"Thank you for your trouble, sister-in-law."

Only four words, spoken in a stiff tone, as if squeezed out from between his teeth with great difficulty.

But this was a rare instance of the future prime minister bowing his head; he was trying to curry favor.

It's also an attempt to salvage some dignity for the nonsense I uttered last night.

Shen Qiongju placed the peeled duck eggs on his plate with a calm expression.

"Zhihui has spoken too harshly."

"I am the eldest daughter-in-law of the Pei family, this is all within my duty."

She wasn't flattered, and didn't even give him a second glance, instead focusing on eating her breakfast.

Pei Zhihui tightened his grip on the chopsticks.

"but……"