Duke Jing's younger sister

There was a buzzing sound in Shen Li's ears, and the whole person was stunned for a moment.

"What did Sister Yun Ning say?" Shen Zhiyan, who was sitting next to Shen Li, asked, thinking she had misheard, "Who wants to perform the betrothal ceremony?"

Han Yunning was somewhat puzzled. "Just now I heard Aunt Shen say that Third Sister will be going to present her marriage gift in a few days. Did I hear it wrongly?"

Shen Zhiyan was a little angry. It would have been fine if they had kept it from her, but when she saw Shen Li's dazed look, she knew that even the person involved was kept in the dark.

My mother is really going too far!

She stood up and wanted to find her mother to ask for clarification, but Shen Li grabbed her sleeve.

Shen Zhiyan turned her head and Shen Li shook her head slightly at her.

This is in the Prince Rui's Mansion, Shen Zhiyan's future husband's home, and she cannot be disrespectful in front of others.

Shen Zhiyan bit her lower lip lightly and had to sit back down, looking indignant.

Shen Li took the wine glass from Han Yunning, raised her head and drank it in one gulp, and said with a smile, "Thank you, sister. I hope you will do me the honor of coming to drink a glass of wedding wine when the time comes."

The doubts in Han Yunning's eyes disappeared, and he drank the wine in the glass, "Don't worry, sister, I will definitely go."

Han Yunning returned to his seat, and Shen Li sat down in a daze, unable to even hear what Shen Zhiyan was saying beside him.

She could willingly marry into the Gu family, but she just didn't want to do it so quickly.

Can't you give her more time? Let her stay in the Shen family for another half a year.

No, five months or three months is fine!

It has been less than ten days since he met Madam Gu, and yet he has to perform the betrothal ceremony. Does this mean he wants to marry her off before his brother gets married?

She left the side hall on the pretext of changing clothes. Shen Zhiyan was worried and followed her out, and happened to run into Xiao Wenyuan and Luo Cheng.

While Shen Zhiyan was talking to the two of them, she turned around and couldn't find Shen Li.

Shen Li was in a daze, walking forward along the winding path in the garden with his head down.

Until there was no road left and she came to a circular open space surrounded by dense forest, she stopped and let her tears flow.

The wind blew the green bamboo and the leaves rustled.

Luo Cheng hurriedly caught up with her. The girl in the apricot skirt was hidden in the shadow of a bamboo forest. She seemed to be shrouded in gloom, with her shoulders drooping weakly. Her back looked bleak and desolate.

He paused slightly, not knowing what had happened. When he turned to Shen Li and saw her tear-stained face, his heart sank.

"Why are you crying again? Tell me who always bullies you, and I'll avenge you, okay?"

For once, his tone was not as frivolous as usual, but became gentle and soft, with worry in his narrow eyes.

Perhaps it was because the concern in his tone was too obvious that Shen Li could no longer hold it in. The confusion about the future and the reluctance to let go of the past made her burst into tears, with big tears falling down her face.

Luo Cheng had never seen such a scene before, and he hurriedly wiped her tears with his sleeves, "Hey hey... don't cry... don't cry, can't we just talk it out nicely!"

He couldn't wipe his tears fast enough to catch up with the speed of others crying, so he simply stopped wiping them and held Shen Li in his arms, gently stroking her back.

"Don't cry, don't cry, well...I'll take you to Xing'anfang to watch the opera, okay?"

The crying of the person in his arms has not subsided. "That...that's not possible. Going to the lake? Going to cockfighting? That's not possible?"

Shen Li only felt someone grabbing and pulling her shoulders, and her body leaned back due to inertia. As her skirt spun, she fell into a dark blue embrace.

Shen Beiqi had a gloomy look on his face and attacked with a palm. Luo Rong tried to block it with his palm, but was forced back by the fierce palm wind and staggered back a few steps.

Luo Cheng was not convinced and was about to step forward again, but his brother Luo Jue quickly stood between them and said, "Alright, that's enough!"

Luo Cheng stopped and thought about how he had hugged someone else's sister just now. It was indeed rude of him. He snorted coldly and left.

Luo Jue was helpless. The three of them were talking behind the bamboo forest just now. Shen Li couldn't find them, but they could see everything clearly.

Shen Li didn't know why she was sad. Her brother was just coaxing her, not molesting her!

But looking at Shen Beiqi's face, which was as gloomy as a thunderstorm in June, Luo Jue didn't want to say more. He left quietly, leaving the two of them where they were.

Shen Li hurriedly got out of his arms, not even bothering to take out a handkerchief. She turned sideways and wiped her tears with the back of her hand.

Shen Beiqi's eyes darkened, and he reached out to turn her around. While she was stunned, his large, warm palm had already touched her tear-stained cheek.

The last time I saw her crying so miserably was in the winter when she was ten years old.

During that period, epidemics were rampant in Jiangdu City. If infected, people would break out in rashes all over their bodies and have high fevers.

She and Zhiyan fell ill one after another, and their mother was extremely anxious. The lights in Yanyu Pavilion were kept on all night, and the servants and nannies were guarding the entire yard.

In her Qinghui Courtyard, there was no one else except Ziyuan and Xingping, two young servants.

When he arrived, her face was abnormally flushed, and her small body was curled up in the quilt, shivering.

He wiped her face with a handkerchief. She opened her eyes half asleep and threw herself into his arms, crying loudly, her little hands tightly clutching his clothes.

"Brother, I'm so scared..."

"With me here, don't be afraid."

"Will I die? Will I never wake up again?"

"No," he adjusted the little person in his arms to make her lean more comfortably, "Brother promises you that our little A-li will grow up safely and healthily."

"If I die, will I be able to see my mother?"

"Maybe, but you won't die, because brother can't bear to leave our little A-Li."

"Brother...will you always be this good to Ari?"

He lowered his head and looked into her misty eyes. "Of course, even if you grow up and get married, as long as someone dares to bully you, I will definitely help you get justice!"

That night, Shen Beiqi did not sleep all night.

Shen Li always lay on him, like a kitten that had just left its mother and lacked a sense of security. She found a warm harbor in him.

Only by relying on him can she feel at ease and sleep peacefully.

The breeze blows gently, and the bamboo shadows dance.

The young man's figure was as tall and straight as a bamboo, and his dark blue robe made him look even more slender in the shadow of the backlight.

"why cry?"

After wiping the tears from her face, he withdrew his hand and looked down at her.

Shen Li pursed her lips and shook her head without answering.

Shen Beiqi laughed in anger, "Ah Li, how many days have you known Luo Cheng? You can talk to him, but not to me?"

That's right, she could tell anyone about this except him.

Yang hid the fact of her marriage proposal, probably because she was not protecting herself or Shen Zhiyan, but Shen Beiqi.

Because Yang knew very well that after Shen Beiqi found out about this, he would definitely not agree to her marrying into the Gu family, so she resorted to this desperate measure.

How could she tell him, and where should she start?

Her silence made Shen Beiqi feel confused. Facing Shen Li, he felt at a loss for the first time.

He even clearly sensed that there was an untouchable gap between the two of them.