Your Highness, your wife has had her virginity mark applied and married someone else.

Wei Ziye lowered his eyes, his gaze fixed on the twisted spot on Shen Mingshu's middle finger, and the blood churning in his body froze instantly.

The image of her hands wrapped in gauze, as Wei Yuan described, flashed through her mind, and her voice trembled almost imperceptibly.

"How did you get hurt?"

Shen Mingshu was calming her breathing when she heard this and turned to look.

Seeing that Wei Ziye was staring intently at the twisted knuckle, Shen Mingshu didn't hesitate and immediately withdrew her hand and stood up.

"I'm leaving now."

Shen Mingshu overestimated herself. She had just stood up when her legs gave way and she slumped back onto the wooden stool.

Sitting on her like that made her wince in pain: "You're not going to tear my pants, are you?!"

Shen Mingshu quickly turned her head to check, and thankfully, Wei Ziye knew how to hit a cow from a distance.

She pulled out the cushion, and it was so tattered it was almost unrecognizable.

Tiny specks of blood clung to the soft, tattered cushion, and upon closer inspection, there were also some unidentified, ambiguous marks.

Shen Mingshu quickly stuffed the cushion into her arms to prevent others from seeing it and misunderstanding that she was doing something perverted.

"Shen Mingshu".

As they approached the door, Wei Ziye called out from behind them, neither too loud nor too soft.

"If you don't tell me, then I'll pretend it's none of my business."

Shen Mingshu twitched the corners of her mouth, her smile tinged with sarcasm: "It has nothing to do with you."

She turned to Wei Ziye and said, "Your Highness, there's no need to worry. I won't rely on you anymore."

"..."

*

night.

"Little Ah Ye~ Wake up~ Teacher Shen is here to check your homework~" came a sweet and gentle murmur in her ear.

Wei Ziye closed his eyes, smiled, and pulled the girl into his arms, giving her a familiar kiss on the cheek: "Whatever Master Shen wants to investigate, feel free to investigate in bed."

"Really, you can just check anything..." A warm little hand mischievously slipped into his chest: "Then, check here first!"

"Wow! It's softer than yesterday!"

Wei Ziye chuckled, guiding her hand to his arm. "Master Shen, would you like to examine this again?"

"Hmm—it's too big, I can't hold it with one hand."

After a brief moment of disdain, Wei Ziye's eyelids were gently brushed by cool fingertips.

"Wei Zi, why don't you open your eyes and look at me?"

Instantly, the surrounding temperature changed drastically!

A biting river wind, carrying a sense of danger, rushed towards him. Wei Ziye's mind sharpened, and he immediately drew his sword to attack.

The moment he opened his eyes, the sword blade was pointed directly at Shen Mingshu.

"Ah Shu—!"

Wei Ziye's pupils trembled violently. He tried to withdraw his sword in a panic, but in the blink of an eye, the blade pierced Shen Mingshu's abdomen.

The charming and gentle smile on Shen Mingshu's face instantly turned into resentment and unwillingness.

With bloodshot eyes, she stared intently at Wei Ziye, then plunged into the dark river with intense hatred.

"No!" Wei Ziye roared and jumped down.

In the pitch black, he saw a woman with her back to him, holding a baby in her arms, gently lulling a lullaby.

Wei Ziye swam with all his might, but he could never reach the woman's back.

In her final moments before suffocating and losing all strength, the woman turned around, clutching a mass of blood. The gauze wrapped around her hands was already soaked with blood.

Shen Mingshu cried helplessly and sorrowfully, screaming her heart out!

"You don't believe me!"

"You've never believed me!"

"Ah Shu!"

Wei Ziye woke up from a nightmare and sat on the bed, breathing heavily.

Overwhelmed by grief, he clutched his head in anguish, the gnarled veins on his neck spreading as he suppressed his pain. He forced himself to smash the jade pendant at his waist.

The guards rushed in, and upon seeing this scene, immediately shouted!

"Quickly! Get Dr. Liu admitted to the hospital! Hurry!"

"..."

*

Shen Mingshu and Wei Yuan were both woken up from their sleep.

Frustrated, Shen Mingshu shrank into Wei Yuan's arms and covered her ears with his hand.

Wei Yuan affectionately pulled her into his arms and called out, "What is it?"

The guard also lowered his voice: "Second Young Master, it's the young master's side that's making noise. An Qi has already gone to investigate."

Hearing that Wei Ziye was up to something in the middle of the night, Shen Mingshu opened her eyes groggily; "What's wrong?"

Anqi returned and reported: "The young master's old illness has relapsed, and Physician Liu has entered the academy to treat him."

Shen Mingshu asked, puzzled, "What kind of old injury could he have? Did he strain a muscle when he hit me?"

Wei Yuan's eyes flickered slightly: "Big brother did it himself?"

"..." Oops, I forgot to mention it.

Shen Mingshu was still a bit dazed and buried herself in his arms, saying in a muffled voice, "I felt so ashamed that I didn't say anything. He deserved it, though, for breaking all the cushions."

Wei Yuan's heart tightened: "Let me check if you're injured?"

"No, no, no!"

Shen Mingshu dared not recall it at all, and dared not show the slightest sign of pain in front of the guards and Wei Yuan.

"He at least had a conscience; he hit just the right amount, it was all just for show."

"Go to sleep now. Make sure to wake me up tomorrow; we absolutely can't be late again!"

Wei Yuan nodded with a smile: "I'll do my best."

……

The next day.

The two were late again, but fortunately Wei Ziye was on vacation and not there.

The two attended classes as usual, but Shen Mingshu was still in great pain.

For her, the early morning martial arts classes were a torment to her already fragile body.

The afternoon's lessons, which she had already studied, caused her immense mental anguish once again.

The thought of these tense days, with a full sixty days to go, made her consider going to stay with Old Madam Wei to rest and "nourish" her pregnancy.

But the next moment, she immediately slapped herself.

She constantly reminded herself not to let the comfort of the moment cloud her judgment, for she was still walking a tightrope!

"Singing bamboo?"

A crisp sound rang out, and Shen Mingshu snapped out of her reverie and looked over.

Lu Youyou blinked her innocent, large eyes, her jawline soft and delicate, exuding a mischievous and lively charm.

He whispered, "Give me Brother Yuan's change of clothes, and I'll take them in later."

"..."

Lu Youyou's boldness exceeded Shen Mingshu's comprehension. She opened her mouth, wanting to advise her that it was inappropriate.

Noticing her hesitation, Lu Youyou immediately and arrogantly revealed her identity: "If you are truly Brother Yuan's close friend, you should know who his fiancée is!"

Shen Mingshu wanted to laugh for a moment.

But looking into Lu Youyou's innocent and naive eyes, she felt envious—the Lu family had really protected her very well.

"Miss Lu, I just wanted to remind you that Qingyun Academy has strict rules. Your behavior is unreasonable. If others see this, they will definitely use it as an excuse to cause trouble, and then—"

"You're so long-winded!" Lu Youyou frowned, impatiently interrupting her, and held out her hand: "I don't need you to tell me what to do, just give it to me!"

Perhaps the Lu family has the confidence to protect her unconditionally.

Shen Mingshu sighed softly and handed the package to her.

Lu Youyou relaxed her brow in satisfaction, and before leaving, she glanced at her sideways and reminded her, "Next time, just do what I tell you to do. Don't waste my time with these nonsense, you hear me!"

She was clearly helping Wei Yuan acknowledge her status as a close friend just yesterday.

Today, he treats her like a slave, bossing her around.

Sure enough, a spoiled young lady's temper varies from person to person.

Shen Mingshu lowered her eyes, paused for two seconds, and then nodded.

Lu Youyou left satisfied.

As Shen Mingshu watched her retreating figure, for a fleeting moment, she seemed to see Zhang Yu in her eyes.

Both of them are essentially the kind of people who push their desire for control to the extreme when it comes to a particular thing or person.

Fortunately, she had this experience three years ago.