Young widow in her boudoir

After returning to her room, Xie Rutang tidied up the grievances she had accumulated throughout the day, changed into a dignified and appropriate outfit, and instructed her maid to prepare a dinner.

Shen Shuming will be staying at Cuiwu Courtyard tonight, so she should have dinner with him.

Xie Rutang also prepared a pot of warm wine to bolster his courage.

Shen Shuming lived in a side room in the outer courtyard on the west side of the Shen residence. After the sun began to set, he studied in the room for a while until Xie Rutang's maid came to invite him. Only then did the tips of his ears suddenly turn a light red, and he quickly put down his book and got up.

In the dead of night, he walked along a quiet path, avoiding attention and servants, and entered the backyard, until he reached the gate of the Cuiwu Courtyard.

When he entered the room, Xie Rutang had already stood up at the dining table and bowed to him with a lady's greeting. Her beautiful eyes were full of affection as she said, "Young Master Shen, you've arrived."

Upon seeing the beautiful figure under the lamp, Shen Shuming's heart skipped a beat.

To ensure a pleasant night for the two of them and to be considerate of Shen Shuming's feelings, Xie Rutang specially removed her hairpin and let her hair down, knowing full well what men liked about her.

As expected, when Shen Shuming looked up, he saw her jet-black hair, like flowing silk, loosely draped over her chest. She had lost her dignified demeanor and looked even more beautiful and soft than before.

Shen Shuming felt his blood rush to his face, his cheeks burning hot. He subconsciously looked away, not daring to look her in the eye.

Seeing this, Xie Rutang gave him a charming smile. Since she had decided to borrow a seed, there was no need for her to be reserved.

"Young Master Shen probably hasn't had dinner yet."

After Shen Shuming sat down, Xie Rutang picked up her silver chopsticks and calmly laid out the vegetables for him. Under the light, her eyebrows and eyes were gentle and calm, and she even had a hint of the tenderness of a woman taking care of her husband.

The heat still lingered on Shen Shuming's ears. He caught a glimpse of her outstretched, pale wrist, and his heart skipped a beat. He could only reply in a low voice, "Thank you for your trouble, Madam."

The candlelight flickered, and soon the two finished their dinner. Jin Yue and her maid cleared away the leftovers.

Xie Rutang sat and drank a few cups of warm wine. As the night deepened, he decided to muster his courage and go to the bedside to unbutton his clothes.

Just then, a commotion came from the courtyard.

It was Hongyao, dressed in a green shirt and pink skirt, who came carrying ointment.

She came over and gently knocked on the main door.

Thinking that Jin Yue had returned because of something, Xie Rutang didn't think much of it and went to open the door.

She then saw Hongyao, who was standing at the door, curtsy to her, her smile more attentive than usual, "Madam Shen."

Xie Rutang never expected that the person who came was her, Pei Zhiheng's maid, and she immediately froze on the spot.

At this moment, Hongyao saw Shen Shuming standing in front of the screen in the room. Her gaze froze and then fell on Xie Rutang.

Then I saw that she was wearing a grass-colored silk dress. In the presence of a man, the woman's long hair was not tied up, but was just left loose over her shoulders, which was really not proper in the mansion of a noble family.

Hongyao snapped back to reality. She knew some of the secrets of the Shen family, including that Old Madam Shen had secretly asked her daughter-in-law, Xie Rutang, to find a relative to conceive a child. But she never expected that she would stumble upon such a coincidence.

So she immediately thought of avoiding the situation, and Hongyao carefully chose her words, "Madam Shen, did I come at the wrong time?"

"Perhaps I should come again tomorrow."

After saying that, he turned around and left, giving Xie Rutang plenty of face.

Although Xie Rutang felt embarrassed and ashamed, she quickly composed herself and pushed open the door. "No need, Miss Hongyao, please come in."

The other party was the head maid of the Pei family. In terms of appearance and poise, this maid, Hongyao, was more glamorous and eye-catching than her, the rightful mistress of the Shen family. How could she dare to offend her?

Xie Rutang felt a pang of sadness.

Shen Shuming also quietly left through the side door.

Tonight, the attempt to borrow seed failed again. Xie Rutang stood on the windswept corridor, silently covering her clothes with her soft fingers.

Hongyao snapped out of her daze and smiled, saying, "This servant was instructed by Second Master to bring you Jade Skin Cream, Madam. He said he saw you busy in the kitchen all day, and your hands were blistered. Madam is a delicate young lady, how could she withstand such rough work? So he specially ordered me to bring you Jade Skin Cream. Please remember to apply it."

Xie Rutang's nails dug fiercely into her palms, her eyes reddened, and her cheeks flushed with shame, leaving her bewildered and helpless.

She stared at the brocade box in Hongyao's hand, but did not take it immediately; instead, she remained silent.

A bloody scratch appeared on my palm from her fingernails.

Pei Zhiheng knew perfectly well that she would be staying overnight with Shen Shuming, yet he still sent Hongyao over to deliver something at this exact moment.

She was even wondering if he was deliberately trying to humiliate her.

Xie Rutang was filled with mixed feelings, wondering whether the man's actions were intentional or unintentional.

Seeing her displeasure, Hongyao pushed the brocade box forward, saying, "Please accept it, Madam, otherwise I won't be able to explain it to the Second Master when I get back."

Once Hongyao leaves.

Xie Rutang stood by the door, her ears still ringing, and a taut string in her mind seemed to be being plucked, seemingly about the girl named Hongyao.

But as waves of dull pain spread, no matter how hard she tried to recall, she couldn't grasp any clues.

Xie Rutang simply gave up.

However, tonight's incident still managed to hurt her pride.

Xie Rutang was so angry that she cried inside the house. She had to completely sever ties with Pei Zhiheng, leaving him with absolutely no connection! From now on, she would not want to have anything to do with him in the Shen family.

Two days later, she took Pei Zhiheng's outer robe and went to Su Xue Residence during the hottest part of the day when there were few people around.

Xie Rutang felt a pang of sadness on the way. She was a sheltered woman, and last time she mustered up the courage to give Pei Zhiheng such an expensive, fine purple-tipped writing brush, asking him to help her with the case at the Dali Temple.

But after so much time had passed, the man still hadn't responded at all, and Xie Rutang's heart sank completely.

As expected, Pei Zhiheng, a powerful minister in a high position, had only shown any interest in her in the past, which was nothing more than playing with her, a widow who depended on others in the Shen family.

Thankfully... she didn't take it seriously in the past.

Su Xueju sat in the southeast corner of the mansion. As Xie Rutang walked along the way, he saw deep bamboo forests, craggy rockeries, and the sound of the wind rustling through the treetops like broken jade. Even the man's residence exuded elegance and nobility.

Arriving at the heavy, solid red lacquered wooden door of Su Xue Ju, Xie Rutang's knuckles clenched slightly. Finally, she took a deep breath and stepped forward to knock on the door.

A moment later, footsteps approached from inside the courtyard, and a maidservant stepped forward and slowly opened the door.