After Shen Miao's words, Xiao Hanzhi felt even more guilty towards her. He wished he could give her everything he had to make up for his mistakes.
"I still have a manor in the outskirts of the capital. You can stay there first. I'll pick you up after I've dealt with the matters at hand. I can't let you show up for now. You'll have to bear with it for a while, but rest assured, the position of my wife will always be yours." Xiao Hanzhi promised solemnly. His serious look didn't seem like he was lying.
Only then did Shen Miao agree, "Brother Hanzhi has considered everything thoroughly. If elder sister sees me in the city, she might try to capture me again."
At the mention of Shen Li's name, Xiao Hanzhi frowned and asked angrily, "What did that shrew do to you again?"
Suddenly, Shen Miao let out a surprised cry and quickly shook her head and waved her hands in denial, "No, no. It's all my fault."
The more Shen Miao took the blame on herself, the more Xiao Hanzhi thought Shen Li was extremely vicious. He felt even more disgusted with Shen Li and threw all the words his mother and he had said to the back of his mind.
"Don't be afraid, Miao'er. I'll assign some secret guards to you. She won't be so vicious to you anymore."
Shen Miao let out a sigh of relief. A relieved look appeared on her face as she murmured, "Now I can go and see elder sister."
Xiao Hanzhi reached out to tuck Shen Miao's hair behind her ear and wiped the tear - streaked face with his sleeve. Looking at her still red eyes, she looked like a little white rabbit.
Just like this, Shen Miao successfully moved into Xiao Hanzhi's manor in the outskirts of the capital. Afraid that Shen Miao wouldn't be used to the simple life there, he specially assigned two maids to serve her.
Looking at the somewhat plain manor, Shen Miao still nodded in satisfaction. The wood and the teacups were all of the best quality, much better than those in the Shen family before.
"Sure enough, men are easy to deceive." Looking at all this, the corners of Shen Miao's mouth involuntarily curled up slightly.
Then she ordered the two maids beside her, "Dress this young lady up properly. I've made an appointment with elder sister tonight!" Her eyes were shining with a malicious light.
Since Xiao Hanzhi wasn't here, Shen Miao's arrogant and spoiled nature came out again.
...
It was late at night. The whistling night wind made people feel cold. Shen Li wrapped herself in a cloak and came to the place Shen Miao had mentioned.
Although she was very confused about receiving Shen Miao's invitation, after their last parting, Shen Li had just thrown her to the border of the Dongling Kingdom. She didn't expect that Shen Miao had managed to return to the capital on her own.
But it just suited her. After all, she had spared Shen Miao's life for a reason.
Since she came on her own, there was no need to send someone to look for her.
Shen Li frowned. Shen Miao had clearly made an appointment to meet her here, but why wasn't she here yet? Just as Shen Li felt something was wrong and wanted to leave, Shen Miao appeared.
Shen Miao was wearing very thin clothes. Her thin body made her look even more pitiful.
"What do you want from me? Why did you invite me at night? If you're asking about the Shen family, then I..."
Before she could finish her words, Shen Miao suddenly rushed forward and stabbed at Shen Li with a dagger. Shen Li tried to dodge but found that it was too late. She felt weak all over and didn't even have the strength to move a single step!
Just as Shen Miao was about to succeed, Shen Li used all her willpower to move, but she only managed to take a few steps. This speed was still not enough compared to Shen Miao's.
The dagger stabbed into the flesh and blood flowed out.
Shen Li looked at the person who suddenly appeared in front of her in disbelief.
"Han Yue???"
Ignoring her wound, Han Yue pulled Shen Li back continuously and gave her several pills.
"Miss, don't underestimate her. It was her who set the sleeping incense where you were standing. I saw it all. It seems that she has been practicing martial arts for this day for a long time."
Shen Miao couldn't believe that it was Han Yue in front of her!
She couldn't stop backing away, "How is that possible... Didn't you leave the Dongling Kingdom? Why are you here?"
Han Yue held her sword coldly. She had just roughly treated her wound to stop the bleeding.
"It's none of your business. I'm here to protect her life after all."
Shen Miao pointed at Shen Li and Han Yue, looking at them with hatred in her eyes. Suddenly, she sneered, "I just remembered. You must be doing this for Shen Yi. If I hadn't seen you coveting your mistress that day, you'd still be trying to show your deep affection for your mistress today. Shen Li, you've ruined my Shen family. I must take your life today!"
At the sudden mention of Shen Yi's name, Han Yue's face changed. This name seemed to come from a long - long time ago. Shen Yi? He was her former lover, the one buried deep in her heart...
After taking the antidote, Shen Li felt a little better from the stiffness. She took two steps forward, "The Shen family ended up like this because of their own faults. How can you say that I ruined the Shen family!"
Shen Miao didn't believe the truth, "You're lying! It was you who informed the emperor. I know all about it! It's all your fault! Otherwise, our Shen family would still be fine and I could still live a life as a young lady. Shen Li, I'm asking you, where did the Shen family ever treat you badly? You were an orphan since childhood. If it weren't for us taking you in, you and Shen Yi wouldn't even know where you'd be living in a corner."
Shen Li couldn't help but sneer, "Humph? How can you say such things?"
A chill ran down Shen Miao's back. She had just been too excited and had spoken without considering the truth. In order to convince Han Yue, she decided to go all the way and continue to smear Shen Li.
Shen Miao knew how powerful Han Yue was, so she didn't dare to confront Han Yue head - on. She could only try to make Han Yue think that what she was doing was right from a psychological point of view.
"Shen Yi must have wanted the Shen family to be good! He was so kind to you, but you tried to ruin the Shen family. How could you be so selfish? For your own interests, you ruined the family that raised you!"
The more Shen Miao talked, the more energetic she became. She began to make up some things that never happened, as if Shen Li was really an ungrateful person. Suddenly, Han Yue drew her sword. The tip of the sword was only one centimeter away from Shen Miao's throat, "That's enough. Shut up!"
Shen Miao had always been a spoiled young lady. Being shouted at like this, she suddenly felt extremely wronged. She didn't dare to say a word. Big drops of tears rolled down her face. She bit her lips tightly, but her eyes were sinister and vicious.
Taking advantage of the moment when the two were distracted, she rushed towards them with the dagger in her hand.
But obviously, Shen Miao overestimated her own ability. Even Shen Li, who had just regained her strength, could easily subdue Shen Miao.
Seeing the danger approaching, Shen Li directly took out the whip from her waist and whipped it at Shen Miao. Considering that Shen Miao couldn't be killed yet, Shen Li still held back some strength in this whip.