The others couldn't help but click their tongues twice. Should they say that the third brother is oblivious to the danger when playing against the eldest brother, or should they just repeat that he is oblivious to the danger?
Seeing that Shen Qing seemed a bit confused, Ning Yang whispered an explanation beside her, "The eldest brother used to be the best at chess among us. But after he went to the Hanlin Academy, he rarely played with us anymore."
"The third brother is like this."
Ning Yang made a gesture with his thumb pointing down.
Shen Qing understood. "I see."
What they learned today was quite difficult for Shen Yan. Old Chen told the fifth brother to take Shen Yan aside and set up another chessboard to teach him the basics separately.
Ning Yang still wanted to say a few more words to Shen Qing. Suddenly, he felt a chilling gaze on his back.
He looked over in confusion, but the gaze was gone, as if it had never existed.
Could it be his imagination?
Anyway, this interruption made Ning Yang forget what he originally wanted to say to Shen Qing.
As the rule goes, one should remain silent while watching a chess game. Shen Qing was intently watching the game when suddenly she felt something tickling the back of her hand.
She thought it was some kind of bug and moved her hand to drive it away. But soon, the back of her hand was tickled again.
When Shen Qing looked, it wasn't any bug at all. It was that rascal, Ji Junye!
That hand reached out again. Taking advantage of everyone's attention being on the chessboard, Shen Qing slapped it with a loud "pop".
Ji Junye winced in pain and withdrew his hand. He really didn't dare to move it again.
Old Chen was puzzled. "What was that sound?"
Shen Qing said casually, "It's okay. There was a mosquito."
"There are still mosquitoes at this time..." Old Chen murmured, but didn't take it to heart and turned to look elsewhere.
Ning Yang, who wanted to talk to Shen Qing and happened to witness the whole thing, was dumbfounded.
He weakly asked, was that "mosquito" referring to His Majesty?
Sensing the familiar cold gaze, Ning Yang looked up and met Ji Junye's slightly squinted eyes and his cold expression.
Frightened, Ning Yang quickly made a zipping motion over his mouth.
Ning Yang suddenly remembered the legend about the Phoenix Fate. Before today, he wasn't fully convinced. But now, he was sure that there must be something going on between these two!
His Majesty was really worried about Junior Sister. He even came to accompany her to class in person. Well, it was understandable, since Junior Sister was pregnant. One should be more careful.
Wait a minute. Wasn't Junior Sister's husband the Marquis of Guangping?
After Junior Sister gave birth to the child, what title would His Majesty give her?
If the Marquis of Guangping found out that his wife had been taken away and the child wasn't his, would he be so angry that he would die?
Neither Ji Junye nor Shen Qing knew that Ning Yang's mind was so full of thoughts.
Playing chess took a long time. At noon, Ji Junye simply stayed for lunch. Shen Qing didn't dare to get close to him and just focused on talking to Shen Yan. She didn't want to expose their relationship on her first day of class.
Since being glared at, Ning Yang had been feeling uncomfortable the whole morning and didn't dare to talk to Shen Qing. He felt that the deathly gaze would follow him as soon as he got close to Shen Qing.
His Majesty was really jealous.
During lunch, Ning Yang finally got a chance to breathe. But at a corner, he ran into Ji Junye.
"Greetings to Your Majesty." Ning Yang quickly bowed.
Ji Junye didn't tell him to rise. "You should know what you should and shouldn't say about what you saw today. Otherwise, I'm not sure what will happen to the Ning family."
Ji Junye's words directly admitted his relationship with Shen Qing.
Ning Yang's skin tightened immediately. "Your servant understands. I will never let a third person know about today's matter."
Ji Junye came here just to warn Ning Yang. After the warning, he was about to leave.
At this time, Ning Yang said, "Your servant dares to ask. Is Your Majesty truly sincere towards Junior Sister?"
Bracing himself under the numbing pressure, Ning Yang continued, "Junior Sister is still a married woman. Once this matter is exposed, only she will get hurt."
After a long time, Ji Junye's mocking voice came. "Although my business with her doesn't need outsiders' concern, if I can't even protect my beloved, wouldn't I be unworthy of being a ruler?"
"Your servant... understands."
Ning Yang thought that His Majesty must have read the memorial his father submitted. Coupled with the fact that Shen Qing had the Phoenix Fate, as a newly - recognized senior brother, it would be inappropriate for him to say anything more.
Moreover, he didn't dare to say anything anymore. His Majesty's imposing manner was really overwhelming...
Ning Yang couldn't help but worry about Shen Qing. They said that serving the king was like being with a tiger. Even he, a grown man, was afraid of His Majesty. Junior Sister looked so delicate. Would she really not be scared to cry by His Majesty?
Ning Yang began to wonder how they got together. What if His Majesty took a fancy to Junior Sister and forced her to betray her husband, just like threatening him today, and threatened her and her family...
Ning Yang's wild imagination would have even made Qin Ye feel inferior.
After lunch, Old Chen took Shen Yan to show off his chrysanthemums. Why did he take Shen Yan? Because Shen Yan knew how to grow flowers.
So it became a scene where Old Chen stood on one side giving instructions, and Shen Yan was busy pruning the withered flower branches with a big pair of scissors. The senior brothers were watching the fun and not minding the trouble, commenting from time to time.
Seeing this from the corridor, Shen Qing twitched the corner of her mouth. She finally understood why Old Chen's flowers looked so unruly. It turned out that he was too lazy to prune them.
However, the fact that Old Chen allowed Shen Yan to prune his precious flowers showed his recognition of Shen Yan.
A shadow fell on the ground beside her. It was Ji Junye who had come to her side.
Shen Qing forced a smile. "Your Majesty has court sessions, doesn't he? Why did you come earlier than me?"
Ji Junye said casually, "There wasn't anything important, so the court session was dismissed."
It was really not important. At most, those ministers had heard the rumors outside and just wanted to see if he was still alive.
In fact, it was because he had just punished Imperial Censor Wang. Now no one dared to provoke him. If it wasn't an urgent matter, it was better to go back and write memorials. At least they wouldn't be scolded mercilessly to their faces.
Shen Qing looked at him suspiciously. "When did you become so familiar with Old Chen?"
"I was once fortunate enough to ask Old Chen for advice on the way to govern the country."
When he was in the palace school, he, his elder brother, and their study companions were often bullied. Once, he came up with a plan to make those who bullied him fight among themselves. Old Chen happened to see it and even perjured for him. In the end, the Emperor beat those people up. If it weren't for Old Chen, he probably wouldn't have escaped.
As Ji Junye said, he looked at Shen Qing. "Old Chen once said that if I weren't from the royal family, he would definitely take me as his disciple. So, I can be considered half of your senior brother, Qingqing."
Shen Qing muttered softly, "Who wants you as a senior brother."
Ji Junye pretended not to hear. He had a closer identity than a senior brother, and this senior - brother identity wasn't necessary.
Ji Junye left in the afternoon because he had to go back to review memorials.
After school, Shen Qing and Shen Yan went back together. After a day, the news that Shen Qing had become Old Chen's last disciple had spread among the high - ranking families in the capital. People had different opinions about it.
That night, Ji Junye received memorials impeaching Shen Qing. They said that since she was already married, she should stay at home to support her husband and educate her children instead of showing off in public all day long. She was not a good example for women, and they requested him to revoke the title of First - Rank Imperial Lady bestowed on Shen Qing.
Li Quan tidied them up. There was more than one memorial. Besides the one in Ji Junye's hand, there were several others, all with similar meanings.
Ji Junye tapped on the piled - up impeachment memorials. "Send these memorials to Old Chen and let him see how outsiders slander his little disciple."
"Yes."
Li Quan knew that His Majesty was really angry this time. He couldn't help but light a virtual candle for these people. You could be jealous, but impeaching Miss Shen was like provoking the most powerful person.
It was just that His Majesty was not convenient to step forward. Otherwise, would he have given this good opportunity to show off to Old Chen?