Chapter 155: Mother and Son Reunited

Shen Qingyun forced down the tension in her heart at this moment, pretending to breathe steadily as a myriad of thoughts raced through her mind.

How could this be? They had actually mistaken her for Princess Zhenyang.

The voice of the man in black rang out again: "What should we do with this so-called princess? The master didn't say anything about capturing two."

"Then just take Shen Qingyun and leave the other princess here. She's useless anyway."

"Useless? Then let's just kill her with one sword!"

Hearing this exchange, Shen Qingyun felt a shock in her heart and frantically searched for a countermeasure.

Fortunately, another man stopped him: "She is a princess after all, and the matter has already blown up. There's no benefit in killing her. Let's leave her here; there's a temple not far away. Whether she lives depends entirely on her luck—she might just be mauled to death by wild beasts tonight."

"Fine, take Shen Qingyun first."

She felt someone step onto the carriage and then roughly pull Princess Zhenyang up from beside her.

Princess Zhenyang let out a soft moan and unexpectedly woke up amidst the tugging. Catching sight of the men in black ahead, she was frightened into a piercing scream.

Shen Qingyun silently muttered that it was bad.

Princess Zhenyang struggled violently, and the man in black hurriedly shouted, "Don't move! Shut up!"

"Who are you people? Have you lost your minds? How dare you kidnap me!" Princess Zhenyang screamed while shouting at the top of her lungs, "Let me go right now! Do you know who I am..."

With the swift chop of a hand, Princess Zhenyang lost her voice, seemingly knocked unconscious.

"Making her yell like that—what if she draws someone over?" the man who struck her said in a deep voice.

"Alright, hurry up and dump the one inside the carriage. We need to leave."

Rustling sounds came from outside, and then someone stepped back into the carriage.

Shen Qingyun felt herself being lifted horizontally and then carefully placed onto the grassy patch on the side. She wanted to squint her eyes to survey the situation, but her hair had tumbled all over her face, forcing her to keep her eyes closed and continue feigning unconsciousness.

Immediately afterward, the sound of horse hooves and wheels crushing the earth rang out beside her. Not until the noises faded far into the distance did Shen Qingyun dare to slowly open her eyes again.

Yet she did not rush to move. Instead, she lay in the same position for a little while longer, carefully listening for any remaining movement in the surroundings. Concluding that no one was about, she immediately scrambled to her feet and found that the ropes on her wrists had also loosened.

The surroundings were pitch black. In the distance, the temple mentioned by the men in black flickered with dim light through the dark night.

Shen Qingyun's heart was caught in a tangle of conflicting thoughts.

If those men in black realized later that they had grabbed the wrong person, they would inevitably turn back to look for her. If they found her missing from this spot, they would most likely head toward the temple as well.

However, if she did not go to the temple and there genuinely prowled wild beasts in the deep mountains at night, that would be no laughing matter.

After pondering, realizing they probably wouldn't discover their mistake until dawn anyway, she decided she had better head toward the temple.

Her limbs felt somewhat weak, and walking through the pitch-black forest was extraordinarily difficult. She had to constantly be on guard for any rustling behind her. Unaware of how long she had walked, she finally reached the vicinity of the temple, utterly exhausted.

To guard against the men in black returning to search for her, she did not immediately seek help from the monks inside. Instead, taking advantage of the night, she slipped into an empty room to hide and ponder her next move.

Indeed, her worries were well-founded. Those men in black discovered they had seized the wrong person much earlier than she had anticipated.

When they hurried back and found Shen Qingyun gone, they had no choice but to head toward the temple, pretending to be servants of the Duke's Estate and inquiring whether a young lady had been taken in.

The monks questioned one another all around, and all of them denied seeing any lone young mistress.

"How could you mess up the person? If we can't find her, just wait to receive your punishment!"

"The colors of their dresses were too similar, I remembered wrong."

"You... sigh..."

Gritting their teeth in frustration yet utterly helpless, the men in black had no choice but to search the perimeter of the monastery grounds, never imagining that Shen Qingyun was hiding in one of the guest rooms right then and there.

Naturally, until dawn broke, this group of men failed to find Shen Qingyun and even began to suspect she might have been dragged away by wild beasts—yet they found no traces of blood or torn fabric.

Left with no other options and fearing that further delay would eventually expose them, they could only dump Princess Zhenyang near the temple as well and return empty-handed.

Back in the capital, the Prince's Estate kept its lanterns lit all through the night.

Simo Li wore a chilling expression: "It has been an entire night, and you still haven't found her?"

The guard knelt on one knee with lowered head, sweat beading on his temples: "Your Highness, her trail has been discovered in the southern outskirts of the capital."

"Prepare the horses and take me there."

"Yes."

......

As the sky gradually brightened, another carriage headed toward the southern outskirts of the capital as well.

The Old Madame sat inside the carriage, her excitement impossible to suppress. The mere thought that Shen Zhifeng was still alive brought tears welling up in her eyes.

Nanny Liu reassuringly grasped her hand: "Old Madame, we will be able to see the Lord Duke shortly."

The Old Madame nodded. Closing her eyes and reflecting on the torment of these past few days, she felt that everything finally held hope.

When the two of them arrived at the temple, they had a monk send word and waited inside a room.

Before long, a knock sounded at the door.

Nanny Liu opened it to reveal the young man from earlier standing before them.

Shi Shaohua smiled slightly: "I wonder if the Old Madame is inside?"

Nanny Liu nodded, making way for Shi Shaohua to enter.

The Old Madame stared intently as a figure slowly emerged behind Shi Shaohua—none other than Shen Zhifeng.

Mother and son met, the eyes of both brimming with tears.

"My child..." The Old Madame's voice choked with emotion, her eye rims already reddening.

Shen Zhifeng walked over cradling an infant in his arms: "Mother, take a look. This is your own flesh and blood, your grandson."

The Old Madame received the child. Gazing at the rosy-cheeked infant in her arms, her heart melted into a pool of tenderness: "This is truly my very own grandson."

Shen Zhifeng tickled the baby playfully, then, thinking of Concubine Wang's distended belly, could not help asking: "Mother, did Qingrui also conceive my child?"

Hearing this, the Old Madame's expression shifted drastically: "That vile woman! What she carries is not your child at all. She found a man who looks remarkably like you, and she is carrying his child instead—this is all her scheme!"

Nanny Liu sighed. Looking at Shen Zhifeng before her, she recounted everything that had transpired during this period, including Shen Zhifeng's supposed death and the Old Madame falling ill and losing consciousness.

Shen Zhifeng never expected that even Concubine Wang would betray him, leaving him profoundly shocked for a moment. He chugged a cup of tea to calm the churning emotions within: "Mother, it's not like that! It is all Shen Qingyun stirring up trouble behind the scenes!"

When the Old Madame finished listening to what Shen Zhifeng had to say, her eyes likewise revealed an expression of utter disbelief: "We should never have brought her back in the first place. Since that's the case, my son, return to the Duke's Estate with me. Even if she manages to return alive, we will firmly put her in her place!"

Meanwhile, right in the adjoining room, Shen Qingyun quietly listened to everything.