Wine-scented Beauty

Chapter 338: Powerless

Chapter 338: Helplessness

After tucking Shen Bin in, Zhao Ning'er went to the kitchen to brew his medicine. She didn't know how much time had passed, but the smell of the medicine slowly spread. The cook in the kitchen, unable to bear the smell, went outside for some fresh air, while Zhao Ning'er looked at him apologetically. Zhao Ning'er had also smelled the medicine and knew it would be very bitter; she was glad she had bought candied fruit, so that Young Master Shen wouldn't be afraid of the bitterness.

After preparing the medicine, Zhao Ning'er took it to the back hall. She helped Shen Bin, who was lying on the bed, sit up and brought the medicine to his lips. Although Shen Bin had his eyes closed, he frowned when he smelled the medicine.

Zhao Ning'er was a little anxious. The medicine was too bitter, and he refused to drink it. She leaned close to Shen Bin's ear and said, "Be good, drink your medicine. If you don't cry, I'll give you some candied fruit later."

Zhao Ning'er tried again to bring the medicine to his lips. This time, he actually leaned close to the bowl and drank it himself. After drinking it, he looked pained and frowned. Zhao Ning'er quickly put the prepared candied fruit into his mouth, and Shen Bin chewed the candied fruit and then quietly fell asleep again.

Zhao Ning'er gazed at Shen Bin's sleeping face, somewhat mesmerized. She thought back to when Shen Bin had promised to marry her, and now she truly looked forward to their wedding. Reluctantly, she left the back hall. Zhao Lei appeared before her, saying, "Sister, where did you go yesterday? I heard from others that something happened to you."

As Zhao Lei spoke, he looked at Zhao Ning'er with a face full of grievance. Zhao Ning'er stepped forward to comfort him and said, "Sister was just doing some business with Young Master Shen, so I came back late. I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you."

Zhao Lei wasn't angry, but pretended to be angry and said, "Hmph! You must have forgotten about your younger brother now that you have Young Master Shen." Zhao Ning'er lowered her head somewhat embarrassed after Zhao Lei said that, and said, "No way, I value you more than anyone else."

Zhao Lei, unconvinced, looked at Zhao Ning'er and said with a smile, "Hmph, sister values ​​romance over brother, don't think I don't know." Zhao Ning'er didn't know how to explain, her face turning bright red. Seeing Zhao Ning'er's reaction, Zhao Lei found it amusing and stopped teasing her. This left Zhao Ning'er so angry that she stomped her feet, unable to speak.

Shen Bin recovered quickly under Zhao Ning'er's meticulous care. After waking up, he was inseparable from her all day long. Occasionally, Ji Meixin would visit him in the back hall, but seeing their intimate behavior made her uncomfortable, so she would quickly leave, her face looking very unpleasant. Lu Yu saw her come out of the back hall with a dark expression and found it strange.

"What's wrong?" Lu Yu asked with concern, still glancing towards the back hall. Ji Meiqing, however, seemed a little unhappy and pulled Lu Yu back to the inn.

"Oh dear, Brother Lu, I really can't stand it anymore. They're all lovey-dovey there, and I'm just standing here all alone. It's so awkward," Ji Meiqing said, puffing out her cheeks in anger. Lu Yu found it amusing and, without warning, pinned Ji Meiqing down, saying in a low, husky voice, "Since you're so angry, we can have our own lovey-dovey moments too."

Faced with Lu Yu suddenly pressing down on her, Ji Meiqing blushed and tried desperately to push him away, but she was too weak, and Lu Yu wouldn't give in, so she could only obediently let him press her down and not be able to move.

"Hey, get up, we're talking business." Ji Meiqing suddenly remembered something and pushed Lu Yu away. Lu Yu didn't force her and released Ji Meiqing from beneath him. Ji Meiqing, now free, moved far away. Lu Yu, however, was eyeing her with ill intent.

Ji Meiqing scolded playfully, "What are you looking at? How's the matter I asked you to investigate going?" As soon as Ji Meiqing spoke, Lu Yu's expression changed slightly, and Ji Meiqing also sensed something was wrong, so she asked, "Tell me!"

Lu Yu sighed and said, "This time, I'm afraid we can't help Young Master Shen and the others. Even if we could, it would be beyond our power." Upon hearing this, Ji Meiqing, though not understanding, was very puzzled as to why Lu Yu said he couldn't help Shen Bin. Shen Bin was lying peacefully in the back hall; what could have happened to him? And who were they? Besides Young Master Shen, who else could have suffered such an accident?

A barrage of questions exploded in her mind, one after another. Seeing her deep in thought, Lu Yu couldn't bear it and said, "Alright, stop thinking about it. Let me explain it to you slowly." As he spoke, he hugged Ji Meiqing tightly.

"I don't know how long this has been going on. Not long ago, the Emperor issued an imperial decree betrothing Princess Xiangping to Young Master Shen. However, Young Master Shen didn't tell anyone." Just as he finished speaking, Ji Meiqing, lying in his arms, looked up at Lu Yu in disbelief. She never expected that Shen Bin would keep such a big matter a secret from all of them. She couldn't help but feel indignant.

"A few days ago, Young Master Shen took Miss Ning'er to the palace. I don't know why, but both Miss Ning'er and Young Master Shen fell into the water that day. Miss Ning'er woke up in the Emperor's palace, while Young Master Shen woke up in Princess Xiangping's palace." He stopped talking, and Ji Meiqing in his arms listened intently, looking puzzled by Lu Yu's sudden stop.

Looking up, she said, "What's wrong? What else? Didn't they come back? How could something have happened?" Hearing Ji Meiqing say this, Shen Bin chuckled and hugged her tightly, making Ji Meiqing realize that she had oversimplified everything.

"Princess Xiangping's arrogance stems from her mother's death. Very few people know about this, and it caused quite a stir in the palace at the time. Princess Xiangping was very young then, but she never forgot her mother's death and harbored hatred for the Emperor for over a decade. That's why the Emperor doted on her and almost never interfered in her affairs." Ji Meiqing initially didn't think much of it, but upon hearing Lu Yu's last sentence, she became somewhat nervous.

"If that's the case, wouldn't Princess Xiangping just keep going until she marries Shen Bin?" Ji Meiqing said anxiously.