Chapter 240: Chapter 183: Chunyu Che Visits the Shen Family for Memorial Offerings

Shen Ruoxi was startled by Xia Lian’s words and anxiously asked, “Xia Lian, what on earth happened to the Shen Mansion?”

Xia Lian hurriedly said, “A servant from the Shen Mansion came to report that this morning Chunyu Che actually went to the Shen Mansion, claiming he wanted to pay his respects to the Old Marquis, the madam, and several young masters.

When the two madams heard this, they nearly fainted on the spot. They tried their best to stop Chunyu Che from entering the mansion, but in the end, they couldn’t block him.

The servant told me to convey this message to you at all costs, saying that no matter how late it is, you must return to the Shen Mansion once.”

At this moment, the lights were just coming on, and the autumn night quickly descended, casting a shadowy light that highlighted Shen Ruoxi’s gritted expression.

Her hands were tightly clenched, her knuckles turning white, filled with deep regret.

At this moment, she deeply regretted not killing that bastard Chunyu Che back then!

He probably thought this action could lessen his guilt, but little did he know, this was like rubbing salt into the bloody wounds of the Shen family.

“Don’t worry, my dear, let’s quickly go and see.” Jun Moling gently comforted her.

Shen Ruoxi nodded coldly, and the two of them quickly arrived at the Shen Mansion.

As soon as she entered the mansion gate, Shen Ruoxi anxiously asked where her two sisters-in-law were.

The servant reported that they were in the Shen Family Ancestral Hall, and Shen Ruoxi hurried there with Jun Moling.

Before approaching the ancestral hall, through the doors and windows, she could see the flickering lights inside. She reached out and pushed the door open, stepping inside.

Sure enough, Yang Family Madam and Zou Family Madam were dressed in plain clothes, kneeling on the ground, burning paper money for the Shen family’s ancestors and deceased loved ones.

They were sobbing softly, their voices full of grief, and the entire ancestral hall was filled with a solemn and sorrowful atmosphere.

“Elder sister-in-law, fifth sister-in-law.” Shen Ruoxi’s voice was extremely dry.

“Ruoxi, you’ve come, it’s our incompetence.” Yang Family Madam’s voice was low, the tear marks on her face still visible, filled with sadness and self-blame.

Shen Ruoxi knelt down reverently and kowtowed to the ancestors, then got up to help the two of them, but they insisted on not getting up.

Shen Ruoxi lowered her voice, her tone firm: “Elder sister-in-law, fifth sister-in-law, please stand up for a moment and listen to me. The deceased are gone, and although we cannot forget, those who are alive are the most important.

Your sorrow will not punish Chunyu Che, and my parents and brothers cannot come back to life.

Stand up, and tell me what that bastard Chunyu Che did, so we can figure out how to respond together.”

Perhaps feeling that Shen Ruoxi’s words made sense, Yang Family Madam and Zou Family Madam threw the last of the paper money into the brazier, and then, with the help of the maids, they slowly stood up and followed Shen Ruoxi back to the hall.

Shen Ruoxi looked solemn and quickly ordered the maids to serve steaming hot tea to the two in front of her.

After seeing them drink the hot tea, she lowered her voice and asked, “When Chunyu Che came to the mansion, did you get hurt?”

Her eyes were filled with deep concern, as after all, Chunyu Che had someone like Sword Shadow Residual Wind with him, and she was genuinely worried that her two sisters-in-law might suffer.

Zou Family Madam’s eyes reddened, tears welled up, and with a sob, she said, “We weren’t hurt. We did our best to block him from entering, but that bastard rudely barged in.

I was so angry, I slapped him, but that old man by his side instantly immobilized my sister-in-law and me.”

At this point, Zou Family Madam was trembling with rage, her fists clenched tightly.

“Even though he kept apologizing, he still entered the ancestral hall. When he came out, he bowed to my sister-in-law and me before leaving arrogantly.

This bastard, it was blatant humiliation, unforgivable!” Racked with emotion, Zou Family Madam could no longer hold back her tears.

She was full of resentment, and bitterly lamented, “Back in the day, both of us were daughters of military generals. I believed I wasn’t weak in martial arts, yet now I can’t even resist and was so easily immobilized.

Moreover, the house guards couldn’t even get close to Chunyu Che; they just watched helplessly as he swaggered into the ancestral hall, bringing disgrace to the loyal souls of the Shen family. I am truly ashamed!”

Shen Ruoxi frowned deeply and immediately asked, “Did he damage anything in the ancestral hall? After you slapped him, did he fight back? Did any of the servants get hurt?”

Zou Family Madam shook her head vigorously, still sobbing: “The ancestral hall wasn’t damaged, only the three sticks of incense he lit were taken out and thrown away by us.

I slapped him, but he not only did not retaliate, he kept apologizing to me. The servants in the house weren’t hurt either; they couldn’t even get close to that bastard.”

Zou Family Madam grew more furious as she spoke, gritting her teeth and shouting, “Who would want his apology! That’s just a wolf’s tears! This is clearly provocation, it’s an insult! I must kill him, I must tear him to pieces!”

Shen Ruoxi cast her eyes down slightly, deep in thought.

Her sister-in-laws weren’t hurt, which allowed her to breathe a small sigh of relief.

Whether Chunyu Che’s apology was genuine or had other purposes, his actions might garner some sympathy in the eyes of outsiders.

After all, some people who commit heinous deeds try their best to conceal the truth and come up with various excuses.

Yet Chunyu Che, when his father the Emperor died, openly stated he should be executed. The crimes of the former emperor of Beichang could have easily been pinned entirely on the former emperor, but he chose to take responsibility himself.

The slap from the fifth sister-in-law, he must have voluntarily taken it; after all, with Sword Shadow Residual Wind protecting him, no one could harm Chunyu Che.

However, even if he apologized, can he be easily forgiven?

The misery and disaster that Beichang brought to Dayi, those painful pasts, how could a mere apology erase them?

But peace truly is hard-won; the suffering brought by war plunged the people of both countries into desperation.

“Elder sister-in-law, fifth sister-in-law, I will deal with Chunyu Che myself, don’t act rashly.” Shen Ruoxi said, expression grave and eyes firm.

Zou Family Madam’s eyes burned with fiery anger as she loudly said, “Ruoxi, you’ve just gotten married, stay out of this matter.

That villain Chunyu Che dared to come to our doorstep, it’s an utter defilement of the Shen family, I simply can’t endure it.

Not having spilled his blood to honor the heroic souls is my shame as Zou Family!”

Shen Ruoxi pressed on her brow, helplessly said, “I’ve said my piece already, don’t think of dumping the responsibility of three children onto me, I will handle this matter. Elder sister-in-law, fifth sister-in-law, please rest and don’t think too much.”

“Ruoxi, even if he came to apologize to our fathers, husbands, and brother-in-law, how could we forgive? That is a blood feud! Next time, the Shen family ancestral hall will be honored with his head!” Zou Family Madam was furious, seemingly suspecting that Shen Ruoxi lacked the resolve to seek revenge.

“Fifth sister-in-law, think carefully, how will you kill him? Don’t forget, he has top-notch protectors by his side, you can’t even get close enough, wouldn’t that just cost your own life?” Shen Ruoxi frowned and said.

At this moment, Yang Family Madam calmed down first and advised, “Fifth sister-in-law, Ruoxi is right, we can’t act impulsively.

There’s a clear line here…though the old man protects Chunyu Che, he seems to be an acquaintance from Ruoxi’s master’s past, surely we can’t stop them from speaking.”

Zou Family Madam bit her lip and said no more, but her face was still full of anger and defiance.

Shen Ruoxi’s lips curled slightly in a concerned smile, “Exactly! It is a blood feud, but have you thought, in the battles between the two countries, how many died?

Several millions! Our fathers and brothers died in battle, and what for? Wasn’t it to protect the people, to prevent further loss of life? They’ve already used their deaths to trade for peace.

Now Chunyu Che is the emperor of Beichang Country, if he dies in our country, the two nations will definitely reignite hostilities, and there will be no day of peace again.

Is that the scenario that our fathers and brothers would wish to see?

We cannot let their sacrifices become meaningless, nor let thousands of people again be plunged into the abyss of war.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep