The Double

The soldiers spoke in an extremely discourteous manner. In fact, Shen Yurong had a good reputation in Yanjing City and there were few officials who did not know of him. For such a gentle and amiable good man to be suddenly accused of such terrible crimes was shocking in itself. Added to this morning’s incident with Jiang Youyao, it made everyone feel a chill to the bone. The sting of a hornet comes from its tail, and a woman’s heart is the most venomous of all. Princess Yongning’s methods were cruel beyond belief. That Shen Yurong could have an affair with such a woman in private, and even kill his own wife and children for her, meant he was no better than vermin, and everyone despised him.

Princess Yongning said, "...you mentioned a private prison?" Her heart skipped a beat and she immediately realized that something was terribly wrong. The private prison in the Princess’s Mansion was unknown to Shen Yurong, and even Prince Cheng was unaware she possessed such a place. Over the years, those who had offended her had all paid the price. Initially, there were only a few, but the number of prisoners grew. The imperial court did not permit private prisons, and if discovered, it was a crime punishable by death. Moreover, there were many imperial court officials in that prison, and even if they were minor officials, having two or three of them would be enough to ensure her execution.

Seeing Princess Yongning’s face abruptly change color, Shen Yurong suddenly had a foreboding feeling and asked her, "What private prison?"

"No, nothing," replied Princess Yongning with a forced smile, settling her nerves, "Mr. Shen, there’s no need to worry. The charges Xue Huaiyuan is facing are utter nonsense. What Xue Fangfei, what Xue Zhao, I have no idea about any of this. They think they can smear us so easily? And what of Jiang Yuanbai? My elder brother and Imperial Consort Liu will surely find a way to come back and save us. Mr. Shen, you must believe me!"

She babbled on, and a trace of disgust flashed in Shen Yurong’s eyes, unwilling to talk to her any further. The soldiers shoved them towards the exit of the mansion, and as Mother Shen, who had rushed over upon hearing the news, sobbed, "What are you doing? Why are you taking my son away? This is a private residence; you can’t just barge in here, I can sue you all!"

The marching soldiers, suddenly confronted by a defiant woman blocking the way, became impatient and pushed Mother Shen aside, causing her to stumble and fall to the ground. Losing all composure, she pointed at Princess Yongning and wailed, "It’s her! She’s the cause of all this! It’s this woman who seduced Yurong, it’s her who used her status as a princess to threaten my son, Yurong knows nothing, everything is caused by this woman. Your heart is so vicious, you have ruined our Shen family, you with such a black heart, you will surely go to hell after you die..."

Her scolding reached Princess Yongning’s ears without a word missed. Shocked, Princess Yongning perhaps did not expect that this formerly gentle, cheerful, loving woman, who always looked at her with ingratiating flattery, would one day heap such vulgar and venomous abuse upon her. Before she could even reply, the soldiers continued to push her forward, and the woman’s scolding gradually grew distant. Princess Yongning suddenly came to her senses; she was insulted like this, and Shen Yurong didn’t utter a word in her defense? There was no need to reprimand his mother for her, but why was he so stingy even in offering a word of comfort?

She turned to look at Shen Yurong.