Time Travel: Pampered by the Aloof Prince-Chapter 351: Is She from Tuyun Village?

Qi Yu knew that Li Tianze had already walked into the trap she had set.

She raised her eyebrows slightly at Shi Zhou, then said to Li Tianze, "Father is right, but how would the Duke know that Shi Zhou is your niece? If he forms a bad impression of her first, that would be troublesome."

Li Tianze frowned, dissatisfied, "I haven’t even picked on them yet, and they want to look down on my niece?"

With a grand wave of his hand, he summoned Zhou Fu into the hall, and in front of them all, he conferred upon Shi Zhou the title of Princess Qinghe, with all the entitlements of a Princess, and also awarded her a separate residence in the capital city, along with some gold and silver jewelry.

In an instant, Shi Zhou transformed from the daughter of a bandit to a noble Commandery Princess.

Seeing her goal achieved, Qi Yu curled her lips, drew back to one side, and faded into obscurity.

Shen Xiheng glanced at Shi Zhou, who was still stunned, and whispered in her ear, "You should thank him now."

Shi Zhou looked at the person sitting on the Dragon Chair, performed a courtesy, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Li Tianze was a bit disappointed not to hear her call him uncle, but he knew better than to rush these things, so he suppressed the sentimental feelings within him and said to her, "Rise."

In the end, he didn’t manage to keep the person in the palace for a meal; only Qi Yu and Li Mingjue kept him company.

And Shen Xiheng had already spirited Shi Zhou away.

As she stepped off the carriage, Shi Zhou stared at the characters spelling out "Duke Residence" and suddenly felt apprehensive.

She gripped Shen Xiheng’s hand tightly and said uneasily, "Maybe I should visit the Duke and Madam another time." freewebnøvel.coɱ

Now that they were at the doorstep, Shen Xiheng was not about to let her escape. He chuckled, "Isn’t that superfluous?"

Without further ado, he unceremoniously took her into the residence.

In the front hall, the Duke and Madam Shen were anxiously awaiting news.

"Several hours have passed, why hasn’t he returned? It’s already dark!" Madam Shen, glancing at the sky, said anxiously.

The Duke wanted to reassure her, but he too was at a loss for words.

Right now, only upon seeing their son could they truly relax.

As they fretted, suddenly they heard Ali, pointing ahead with an excited tone, exclaim, "The young master has returned!"

The Duke and Madam Shen immediately looked, and indeed, they saw Shen Xiheng standing before them, neat and proper.

But they also noticed a slightly smaller woman standing beside him, and all three were taken aback.

Madam Shen, clutching the Duke’s sleeve, trembled as she spoke, "Did...did he bring someone back?"

The Duke appeared more composed as he pondered, "It seems so."

Ali was observant; noticing the young master returning with a lady, he quickly stepped aside.

As he ran off, he thought to himself, the young master certainly has good taste—the woman he fancies is quite beautiful.

"Father, Mother, I’m back," Shen Xiheng first greeted his own parents, then added, "And I’ve brought your daughter-in-law back as well."

Upon hearing the last part, Shi Zhou shot him a glare, but the two patches of red on her face made it far from convincing.

Madam Shen also quietly glared at her mischievous son, then turned to the young girl with a gentle smile, "You must be Shi Zhou, right? I heard from Xihe that you are from Jiangnan?"

Shi Zhou felt a bit guilty; Tuyun Village was still a distance away from the true Jiangnan and happened to be right on the boundary between Jiangnan and Jiangbei.

Therefore, she couldn’t be considered a genuine Jiangnan woman.

But she certainly couldn’t say that she came from a bandit’s nest, although that was the truth. Revealing such explosive news at their first meeting might result in her being beaten and thrown out.

In the end, she could only nod and accept the statement that had been made.

Looking at the shy and timid girl with a pretty little face, Madam Shen’s eyes brimmed with affection, almost spilling over. She had always wanted a daughter, but unfortunately, she only had a no-good scamp of a son.

Therefore, her satisfaction with Shi Zhou was beyond measure. If it weren’t for the fear of scaring the young girl, she would have loved to take her by the hand and have a heartfelt talk.

Seeing that his wife was satisfied, Duke Shen had no objections either.

He didn’t have high demands for a daughter-in-law; good character was enough. As for family background and appearance, as long as his son was pleased, he had nothing to say.

But Shi Zhou indeed had a face that was pure and ethereal. If it weren’t for a certain heroic spirit in her brows, she would truly resemble a fairy from the heavens.

She now seemed a bit like a female knight, with a temperament that was neither frail nor weak, far stronger than those ladies from prominent families who would be out of breath after taking a few steps.

Shen Xiheng had been attentively observing his parents’ expressions, and seeing the approval in their eyes, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

After dinner, Madam Shen took Shi Zhou for a stroll in the garden.

Shen Xiheng, on the other hand, was called to the study by Duke Shen for questioning.

"Tell me, what’s the background of this young girl?" Duke Shen had sensed something earlier and now finally found the right moment to ask.

Shen Xiheng knew what was coming sooner or later and had no intention of hiding it, but he didn’t directly reveal that Shi Zhou was the daughter of Shi Fuyou. Instead, he started with the Empress, Xue Hongwen, and Princess Zhaoyang.

Duke Shen was quite shocked when he learned of this, "I never would have imagined the Empress and Xue Hongwen would commit such unconscionable acts."

Seeing him distressed, Shen Xiheng continued, "His Majesty was also extremely furious upon learning of this matter and will soon have the Empress and Xue Hongwen beheaded."

"That’s only right. Those two evildoers; executing them is the only way to quell public anger!" Duke Shen nodded repeatedly, adding, "It’s just a pity for this child, who lost her mother at a young age!"

Shen Xiheng echoed his sentiment a couple of times, then brought up how Li Tianze had granted Shi Zhou the title of Princess Qinghe earlier in the Yangxin Hall.

After hearing this, Duke Shen fell silent for a while before saying, "It seems you’ve picked up quite the bargain."

Shen Xiheng raised an eyebrow, "I exchanged my charm for this."

Duke Shen gave him an annoyed glare, "I don’t know how your mother and I ever produced such a thick-skinned son!"

Shen Xiheng touched his nose and said nothing.

He was still waiting for his father to make the connection between Shi Zhou and Tuyun Village, but his father was too engrossed in the story, emotionally expressing his sentiments before summarizing, "Good and evil will come to an end in due course!"

"Father, isn’t there anything else you’re considering?" Shen Xiheng couldn’t help reminding him.

Duke Shen lifted his eyelids and gave him an indifferent glance, "Speak plainly."

What’s he being mysterious about!

Shen Xiheng coughed and, instead of coming straight to the point, gently probed, "Father, do you remember whom Princess Zhaoyang married back then?"

After all, it had been a long time ago. Duke Shen thought for a while before it dawned on him – his eyes widened in astonishment, "Is she from Tuyun Village?"

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