Old Madam Shen resided in the most secluded courtyard of the Marquis Zhenbei's mansion, a place of notable desolation.
Even before the Shen family was granted a noble title, when Shen Yi had piled up countless military achievements, Emperor Jing—though he tried to pretend otherwise—had occasionally bestowed gifts upon them.
But Old Madam Shen had never moved from that humble corner of the Marquis Zhenbei's mansion. From mistress of the family, to prisoner, to the Old Madam of the Marquis Zhenbei's mansion—she seemed to have grown accustomed to this ascetic life.
As he approached her courtyard, the air was thick with the smell of burning incense.
An old serving woman at the door, spotting Shen Nian, quickly lifted the curtain and smiled. "My Lord, the Old Madam is waiting for you inside."
Shen Nian acknowledged her with a grunt and stepped in.
Old Madam Shen sat with her eyes closed, turning her prayer beads. She was dressed plainly, nothing like a woman of noble rank. Her hair was silver-white, her features dignified and lined with age. She sat straight as a ramrod, exuding a quiet authority.
At the sound of Shen Nian's arrival, she slowly opened her eyes.
For a moment, as she watched him approach, her gaze grew distant.
It was as if she saw Shen Yi walking in from outside. Before the family's fall, Shen Yi had been a man of scholarly grace—refined as polished jade, noble and composed.
But after he went north, Old Madam Shen had seen him only a handful of times.
Shen Yi returned to the capital rarely, and whenever he did, the mother and son would sit together in silence, with nothing to say.
Now, in the blink of an eye, Shen Yi had passed away on the northern frontier, and Old Madam Shen had not even been able to see him one last time.
Seeing his grandmother staring blankly at him, Shen Nian stepped closer and called out, "Grandmother."
She snapped back to the present, the melancholy in her eyes vanishing in an instant.
"Sit," she said, her tone gentle.
Shen Nian acknowledged her and sat down. He knew she was seeing his father through him. He also knew that the dead could not be brought back—but before an elder, some things could not be soothed with words; one could only look past them.
Old Madam Shen turned her beads a few times, then let out a helpless sigh. "I will not hide it from you. I called you here today to speak of Shen Qing. Your mother has come to me weeping more than once, and her tears have worn on my nerves. Shen Qing has learned his lesson—he understands his mistakes now. As for his studies... do you think you could plead with the Emperor for a bit of leniency?"
Shen Nian knew exactly what kind of life Shen Qing was living. To say he was "walking through fire and water" would be putting it mildly.
The tutor Shen Nian had hired was the strictest one he could find—and with the Emperor's authority backing him, he kept Shen Qing on an iron leash. Every moment of reading, writing, even trips to the latrine—all were timed. If Shen Qing disobeyed, the punishment was the ruler across his palms.
These days, Shen Qing had grown thin and frail. He dared not raise his voice at Shen Nian—if he so much as complained, his daily reading and writing assignments would double. If he could not finish, he was forbidden to sleep. Pushed to the breaking point, his head spinning and his nerves shot, the boy had even thought about poisoning himself.
Shen Nian had never intended to drive him to madness—that would only make Wen shi demand his life in return. He had simply wanted to teach Shen Qing a lesson he would never forget. Now that Old Madam Shen had raised the matter, Shen Nian saw an opportunity, "Since Grandmother has spoken, I will petition the Emperor for leniency. But whether it is granted will depend on His Majesty's will."
Old Madam Shen lowered her gaze and let out a quiet "Mm."
Silence fell between them. Grandmother and grandson were separated by over a decade of distance—the closeness they'd shared in his early years had long since faded away.
Shen Nian could not act coy or coax a smile from Old Madam Shen the way Shen Qing could. Between them, there was respect in abundance, but little intimacy.
Old Madam Shen understood this well. Had Shen Nian grown up at her side, they might have been the closest of kin. But in the years he was away, someone else had taken his place.
Still, they remained grandmother and grandson—even if the bond was not what it might have been.
She did not wish to make Shen Nian uncomfortable, she said, "You may go now."
Shen Nian stood up and took his leave with proper deference.
He had taken only two steps when she called him back.
He turned around. His grandmother's expression was hesitant, but her gaze was sharp. "You are now the Marquis Zhenbei," she said. "You hold great power now, and no one dares to slight you. But the Emperor's favor and trust—those are nothing but illusions. Stay on your guard against him. When you have time, think carefully about how your father lived his life."
Shen Nian did not know why she said this, nor did he ask. He merely gave a slight nod. "Grandmother's words, your grandson will remember."
Old Madam Shen closed her eyes and waved him away.
As Shen Nian stepped out of her courtyard, he glanced up and noticed pale green buds pushing through the branches above the wall. It struck him suddenly—spring had already arrived.
He walked slowly back to his own courtyard. Years on the frontier had made him uncomfortable with attendants hovering nearby; he could not shake the suspicion that they might have hidden motives.
When he had first returned, a maidservant had tried to help him change his robes, and he had nearly broken her neck, mistaking her for an assassin. After that, no one dared come near him. His courtyard was perpetually quiet.
But today, that quiet was shattered—a flood of imperial gifts came pouring in like a tidal wave.
Gold, silver, treasures beyond counting—and most conspicuous of all, a box containing six luminous pearls the size of a fist.
The eunuch delivering the gifts was Ruan Jiqing. Privately, he knew full well that there had originally been eight pearls. The Emperor had casually plucked two back before sending him off, saying he might like to toy with them in his spare time.
Ruan Jiqing couldn't figure out what the Emperor really intended with Shen Nian.
But one thing he knew for certain—whatever the Emperor was playing at, he himself needed to be very careful around Shen Nian. At least for now, Shen Nian sat first in the Emperor's heart.
Ruan Jiqing beamed at Shen Nian. "My Lord Marquis, His Majesty instructed me to pass along a message: do not be late for the palace tomorrow. These past few days without you, the Emperor hasn't been able to sleep well."
Shen Nian's face remained impassive, but inwardly, he felt that Old Madam Shen had spoken truly—the Emperor's favor was a poisoned cup. And Qi Junmu was the deadliest poison of all.
He was already set to return to the palace tomorrow anyway, so there was no need for such a grand display of gifts today, or for Ruan Jiqing to deliver those loaded words in front of everyone. All it did was tell the whole world that in this quarrel, the Emperor had yielded and the Marquis had prevailed.
In the eyes of many, he was now truly being cast as the treacherous minister who bullied his sovereign.
With these thoughts, Shen Nian slowly turned his gaze to Ruan Jiqing's face, offering a smile that did not reach his eyes. "Thank you for making the trip, Eunuch Ruan. This humble subject will keep His Majesty's words close to heart."
Ruan Jiqing drew out a knowing "Oh." He could tell the Marquis was not pleased.
He began to wonder—could the rumors be true after all? Had the Marquis and the Emperor truly fallen out?
The officials who had been waiting to see Shen Nian humiliated now cursed under their breath at this turn of events.
This was no fall from grace—this was the Marquis taking flight to the heavens!
Of course, a handful of righteous officials fumed behind closed doors, cursing Shen Nian as a wolf-hearted traitor and swearing to impeach him at the first opportunity.
The rest, however, kept quiet. They understood perfectly well—the more lavish the Emperor's favor seemed today, the harsher the downfall he was storing up for Shen Nian tomorrow.
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