Silent Lover - Chapter 85

Chapter 85 Summoned

For nearly a month, the palace seemed to have lost the presence of the Imperial Concubine, and instead gained a more obscure mute servant, who toiled tirelessly from dawn till dusk, taking on half of the palace’s dirty work. He was thin as a reed, frail to the touch, yet seemed to possess an endless reservoir of strength…

On this day, after neatly folding the clothes delivered by the Li Qing Courtyard, Shen Yu began to pack his belongings…

“Here you are.”

Hong Lian entered the woodshed, followed by a man. Shen Yu recognized him as the one in charge of the Nuanquan Manor, named Sun Lao Liu…

“Imperial Concubine.”

Sun Lao Liu bowed his head respectfully, his square face showing honesty and sincerity…

Shen Yu, unaccustomed, tilted his head slightly. He probably wouldn’t hear that title “Imperial Concubine” again in the future…

“The Prince requests the servant to accompany you to the manor. He awaits you there.”

Awaits me? Shen Yu thought of the secluded manor, shrouded in mist, where he had confessed everything to The Prince, giving himself entirely to him, engaging in passionate intimacy in the water… Though it had only been a few months, Shen Yu felt as if it were a decade ago…

Did The Prince suddenly want to meet him at the Nuanquan Manor because he recalled the delightful moments they shared?

Perfect, Shen Yu also wanted to see The Prince…

“You lead the way.”

Shen Yu gestured, noticing that Sun Lao Liu wasn’t looking at him. With Song Qing absent, he had to rely on Hong Lian…

…

Hong Lian lingered in the woodshed for a moment, then, impatiently, waved his hand, saying, “He said hurry up, let’s go.”

“Yes.”

Sun Lao Liu bowed and led the way…

Shen Yu picked up his belongings and held them to his chest, following Sun Lao Liu out of the back door of the palace. He wondered why they were taking the back door. Was it a shortcut? Or did The Prince specifically instruct not to let him encounter outsiders?

Sun Lao Liu had prepared a carriage at the back door of the palace. After respectfully inviting Shen Yu into the carriage, he whipped the horse and hurried away…

Shen Yu had only left the palace once before, in The Prince’s carriage, and it was late at night. He couldn’t tell that this route didn’t lead to the Nuanquan Manor…

…

Hong Lian stayed in the woodshed for only a moment, then wandered into the main hall of the Shao Hua Courtyard. The room had already been emptied, with only Shen Yu’s former bedroom remaining. Hong Lian had never been there before, and he clumsily walked around, looking here and there, but didn’t find anything valuable…

“The Prince has favored Shen Yu for some time now, yet there are hardly any valuable items here? No silver or jewelry?”

Hong Lian’s gaze fell on the wardrobe Shen Yu had used…

“Right here…”

As expected, all of Shen Yu’s precious items were in this wardrobe, but Shen Yu hadn’t taken a single thing. Hong Lian’s eyes widened in disbelief…

“There really are fools in this world who don’t love money. Lucky me, haha…”

Hong Lian grabbed handfuls of pearl necklaces, jade hairpins, gold hair ornaments, and stuffed them all into his clothes, while anxiously worrying about being discovered by the Prince. Of course, the mute servant Shen Yu wouldn’t tell on him…

“So many… Enough for me to open three Qinhuai brothels!”

As Hong Lian indulged in his fantasy of becoming a brothel madam, leading a group of courtesans and young attendants to entertain clients with lavish spending, he noticed an object buried under the wardrobe…

It was a jade statue. With his sharp eyes, Hong Lian immediately recognized it as rare Hetian jade, and the carving wasn’t of a Buddha or Guanyin, but… a beautiful woman…

Hong Lian’s mouth fell open. He didn’t dare touch this item; if he did, no one in the world would dare to accept it. He might even lose his head…

Hong Lian felt envy almost to the point of drooling, feeling a flush of shame on his cheeks…

That day, the Prince had given Hong Lian a jade finger ring, which he flaunted in front of Shen Yu. But little did he know that Shen Yu had such a large Hetian jade statue!

Compared to this statue, his jade finger ring was like a beggar’s iron hoop! He had been so proud in front of Shen Yu…

“Song Qing… Not only does the mute servant not care, it turns out you’re not anything special either. You must be delighted behind our backs, right?”

The more Hong Lian thought about it, the more embarrassed and angry he became…

“What are you doing?!”

Suddenly, a voice from behind startled Hong Lian, causing him to fall off the wardrobe, nearly dropping the jade statue…

Seeing him stuffing his clothes with valuables, Song Qing knew exactly what he was up to. A segment of a blood pearl necklace was still outside. Disgusted, he realized he was dealing with a money-grubber…

“Do you think you can manage me?” Hong Lian retorted, feeling embarrassed at being caught red-handed…

“Hmph, I oversee security in the palace. Do you want to try the taste of being thrown into the palace dungeon?” Under Song Qing’s threat, Hong Lian reluctantly took out the items from his clothes and put them back, planning to come back another day…

“Where’s the Imperial Concubine?” Song Qing asked.

“How would I know? Aren’t all your eyes on him? What’s wrong? Did your little lover disappear?” Hong Lian rolled his eyes…

“Are you going to tell me or not?”

Hong Lian had given Song Qing a handle, and he grabbed his clothes…

“Did you lead him here?!”

“Master Song, even if you want to play the benefactor for me, there’s no need to be so eager…” Hong Lian shrank back, feeling a chill run down his spine as he met Song Qing’s murderous gaze. He dared not provoke him with teasing words…

“I just happened to meet him on the way to the woodshed…”

Song Qing released Hong Lian and rushed out of the Shao Hua Courtyard anxiously. Why would the Prince summon Shen Yu to the manor so late?