Xie Jingxing stayed in the room alone. He pointed the hairpin in his hand at the dancing light in the candle and looked at it thoughtfully, his mind packed with the image of the girl in the secret room with her eyes wide open and crying silently.

He was not a person who had compassion for women, nor did he have any other thoughts about Shen Miao. However, at that moment, he felt an inexplicable sense of pity. This sense of pity eventually made him do something even he himself couldn’t imagine. Now that he thought about it, he felt a little regretful. The wound on his arm after applying the medicine was a little numb and painful. When Shen Miao attacked him, she did not show any mercy. If he did not dodge quickly, the hairpin might have gone through his throat.

In fact, Shen Miao’s crying might just be an act. Xie Jingxing knew very well that the girl was extremely cunning and smart. It was probably her desire to survive that made her reveal her vulnerability.

Xie Jingxing spread out his hand. The silver hairpin shone brightly in his palm, but it reminded him of the furry touch on this hand when it was covering Shen Miao’s eyes. The feeling resembled a butterfly dancing in his palm, and it was precisely that feeling that caused Xie Jingxing to have shown a compassion he was not supposed to have.

“Little vicious woman.” Xie Jingxing suddenly smiled. Under the light, the young man’s handsome eyes were dazzling. The smile on his lips was playful as he muttered, “I shouldn’t be soft-hearted.”

…

At this moment, the east courtyard of the Shen family was in chaos.

In Rongjing Hall, Old Madam Shen’s expression was dark. She looked at Shen Gui and said, “In that case, there is no way to get Qing out of there?”

Shen Gui shook his head. “Prince Yu and his mansion were wiped out overnight, and Qing was the only survivor. It’s only natural for people to take her as the most likely suspect. However, this case still remains to be investigated.”

“With such a horrendous incident happening, I wonder if His Majesty will pin the blame on us.” Old Madam Shen said worriedly, “What exactly is going on with Qing? Is this really unrelated to her?” Her tone suggested that she believed that Shen Qing was involved.

Ren Wanyun exploded when she heard that. She immediately threw herself in front of Old Madam Shen and knelt down, which startled Old Madam Shen. Ren Wanyun cried and said, “Old Madam, you watched Qing grow up. Don’t you know what kind of person she is? How could she do such a thing? Moreover, why would Qing risk her life and ours to get involved with these murderers? It’s clearly a revenge taken by Prince Yu’s enemies. Qing was just lucky enough to have survived. We’ve already let her down. We can’t give up on her.”

Ren Wanyun and Old Madam Shen had been in-laws for so many years, so she knew Old Madam Shen’s temper very well. Old Madam Shen was extremely selfish to the core and was very much a fence-sitter. Even if she had feelings for Shen Qing, when it was time to protect herself, she would not hesitate to abandon Shen Qing. Sometimes, Ren Wanyun felt that Shen Gui was a heartless person because he inherited it from Old Madam Shen.

After hearing Ren Wanyun’s words, Old Madam Shen was even more furious. She said, “Eldest Daughter-in-law, I don’t understand what you are saying. When did we let Qing down? Did I force her to have an affair with Prince Yu? Or did I force her to get pregnant before marriage? I don’t remember ever having taught her to do that!”

Ren Wanyun was angered by Old Madam Shen’s ugly remark. She said, “Mother! How can you say that about Qing? She’s your granddaughter!”

Chen Ruoqiu advised, “Second Sister-in-law, stop talking back to Mother. She’s worried about Qing too. Everyone knows that among the three daughters, she likes Qing the most.”