Chapter 55: Let Me Blow on It for You

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Shen Ruojin was quick to rise and rushed forward, her speed so great that although her eyes were still too tired to open fully, she was already at the bedside, nearly losing control and about to fall onto it.

“What’s the rush?” Qin Lang caught her firmly, speaking softly, “Be careful.”

Back in the capital, Shen Ruojin always appeared calm and composed in public. But now, returning to the Western Frontier and facing her grandfather, a trace of youthful anxiety finally showed through.

“Xiao Shi…”

Seeing Shen Ruojin rush over, Shen Yi struggled to sit up as well.

“Grandpa, lie still. Your leg is badly injured. Don’t move recklessly.”

Shen Ruojin quickly reached out to steady him.

“All right, Grandpa won’t move.”

Shen Yi slowly lay back down, gazing at his long-absent granddaughter as if he could never get enough of her.

The old general never dared dream he would live to see Xiao Shi again.

During the fierce battle at Luoyue Pass, when he saw Shen Ruojin appear amidst the slaughter and desperately dragged him out of the Western Chang army’s encirclement, it felt like a hallucination before death.

The first thing he saw upon waking was a young man by his side calling him “Grandpa,” making him think he had descended to the underworld.

The old general had countless things to say to Xiao Shi, but only managed, “Grandpa is fine, don’t be sad, Xiao Shi.”

With such grievous wounds, the army doctors had nearly told her to accept fate.

Yet, after finally waking, he insisted he was all right.

Shen Ruojin’s phoenix eyes were reddened deeply. He was her only remaining family, and she had almost lost him.

How could she not be heartbroken?

She knew she should tell Grandpa she was well, but before her dearest, she couldn’t pretend. Sitting by the bedside, she turned away, rubbing her dry, stinging eyes.

“Did something get in your eye?”

Qin Lang stepped closer as she averted her gaze.

Shen Ruojin nearly stumbled into the young prince’s arms.

His question was so sudden, she felt inexplicably flustered.

Then Qin Lang cupped her face gently and leaned down, “Let me blow on it for you.”

Warm breath brushed her skin.

He really was going to blow on her eyes.

Shen Ruojin blinked, watching Qin Lang’s handsome face draw ever nearer.

Almost pressed against her now.

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Where could there be any dust or sand indoors?

This man was truly an expert at lying with his eyes wide open.

Though Shen Ruojin was filled with tears, Qin Lang’s interruption had driven them away.

“All right, all right.”

She could hardly resist his tender care and hastily rubbed her face, preferring to turn back and face Grandpa with red eyes.

Seeing the young couple’s closeness, the old general felt more certain that this young man was truly his granddaughter’s husband. As an elder, he must consider the new son-in-law, not just his little ten.

After a long pause, his voice hoarse, he said, “That… is it Pei Jing?”

As soon as he spoke, Qin Lang stiffened.

Had Grandpa mistaken him for someone else?

Pei Jing?

That blind, heartless scoundrel? How could he compare?

“No,” Shen Ruojin quickly explained, “Grandpa, he’s not Pei Jing. He is the young prince of the Northern Town, Prince Qin Lang, my… newlywed husband.”

Within the same day, she had twice introduced Qin Lang as her husband.

It seemed less awkward the second time.

It was the truth, after all; there was no reason to hide it.

The old general was shocked, “Young Prince? Weren’t you betrothed to Pei Jing? How did Qin Lang become your new husband?”

Sending Xiao Shi back to the capital to await marriage had been Shen Yi’s reluctant decision.

For a whole year, he had regretted it, but there was no other way.

The Shen family had granted her freedoms unattainable by other women—education, martial training, guarding the borders with the men of the family, and traveling through various cities. She was no longer a caged bird in a courtyard.

She had once soared freely but, after her uncle and brothers died in battle, she became obsessed with vengeance, reckless with her own life.

He had only this one younger kin left; he could not allow her to die on the Western Frontier.

After sending Shen Ruojin back to the capital, Shen Yi had people monitor the Linyang Marquis’s household daily, knowing she disliked going out, was obedient, and was betrothed to the top scholar Pei Jing.

The old general could not return himself, so he sent wedding gifts, only to find out that before the gifts returned, Xiao Shi had come back ahead.

By calculation, her wedding was only seven or eight days ago—how was it that she had come to the Western Frontier with her new husband?

Moreover, this Prince Qin Lang was the legitimate second son of the Northern Town King. The emperor was suspicious and would never allow an alliance between two powerful military families...

How had Xiao Shi’s marriage to Qin Lang come about?

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The old general was filled with questions, unsure where to begin. Anxious, he struggled to sit up to see the young man standing at the bedside clearly.

“Grandpa, don’t rush. Lie back down first.”

Qin Lang stepped forward to help the old general lie down properly, positioning himself so the elder could see him well.

Appearance-wise, Qin Lang had never lost out.

Since childhood, no elder had ever disliked his looks.

Shen Ruojin said, “It’s a long story…”

“I’ll keep it brief,” Qin Lang told Grandpa, “On our wedding day, Pei Jing and Mu Yunwei were both absent. The scene was chaotic, and the guests were mocking. To preserve the occasion, the lady married me instead.”

The old general had heard news of the Linyang Marquis’s two daughters marrying on the same day, but the affairs of the Marquis’s main branch were none of the Shen family’s concern.

Besides, when the Marquis’s family wished to strengthen ties, who could prevent it?

“To preserve the occasion? Just swapped the groom at the last minute?”

Hearing this, Shen Yi’s face turned even paler as he looked at Shen Ruojin.

The steadfast general’s heart ached for his granddaughter, tears welling up as he pulled her close, “My Xiao Shi.”

In his heart, no one in the world deserved Xiao Shi.

Pei Jing, the top scholar, was barely a match.

And yet this reluctant, forced marriage had suddenly changed on the wedding day.

Qin Lang’s brief explanation belied the truth.

What did it mean that Pei Jing and Mu Yunwei were both absent?

How humiliating that day must have been, how wronged Xiao Shi felt, to have the groom changed at the last moment.

Those people of the Linyang Marquis’s household had taken advantage of his absence to mistreat his Xiao Shi!

Leaning against her grandfather’s chest, careful not to strain his wounds, Shen Ruojin whispered, “Grandpa, don’t be sad. The Northern Town King’s household is very good. The prince and princess treated me kindly. Marrying Qin Lang was my own choice, not forced.”

But no matter how she sounded, the old general felt she was comforting him.

If the marriage was invalid, why did the groom not appear at the wedding banquet?

There must be more to this story.

That wretched Pei Jing—if he ever met him, he would never let him off easily!