A line of male guests also saw the female guests not far ahead.
It was precisely because they were wearing gorgeous attire, adorned with pearl hairpins, and exuded a fragrant aura that they were very conspicuous.
Prince Ning, leading the way, glanced ahead, fearing that the male guests he had brought might collide with the female guests in front.
He made everyone stop abruptly.
They would proceed only after the female guests had passed.
Shen Yun was among them.
With his sharp eyes, he had already spotted his wife and mother.
His wife stood leaning against his mother. Being far away, he couldn't discern the expression on her face.
But he clearly saw her dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief.
He was certain that his young wife had been wronged.
He recalled that just yesterday he had vowed he would never allow his Shen wife to suffer any injustice.
To his dismay, on the very first day, he had been proven wrong.
An inexplicable anger surged within him.
Pointing ahead, he said, "Your Highness, my wife has been wronged for some unknown reason. Please excuse me for a moment."
Prince Ning was about to lead them on a different path when he saw Shen Yun stride forward.
The female guests in front all turned away, as a gesture of avoiding impropriety.
In reality, Shen Yun hadn't even glanced at them.
He walked directly to Su Xiaoqi, first paid his respects to his mother, and then looked at Su Xiaoqi.
Although Su Xiaoqi's emotions had been feigned, her tears were real.
Her eyes were slightly red, her lashes glistening with tears, and her small face was flushed, making her appear pitiful.
"My wife!"
Su Xiaoqi looked up, startled, at Shen Yun approaching.
She had wanted to counter the Princess of Ning, but she didn't want Shen Yun to worry. She immediately turned her head away, discreetly wiping her eyes.
This action, in Shen Yun's eyes, made him feel even more distressed.
His wife, in order not to worry him, was enduring grievances without daring to let him know.
His anger flared, and he raised his voice, "My wife, if you are unhappy here, I will take you away. If the host does not welcome us, then we shall not attend the banquet."
As Shen Yun spoke, he discreetly glanced at Zhang Yu, thinking to himself why Zhang Feng, who had been guarding in the shadows, hadn't been notified by Zhang Yu when his wife had suffered such a great wrong.
Su Xiaoqi lowered her head and remained silent, displaying the perfect demeanor of a young wife obeying her husband.
Zhang Yu also lowered her head, her eyes focused on her nose, and her nose on her heart.
She thought that Madam had not truly suffered any grievances, so why would she notify Zhang Feng?
Shen Yun was not merely speaking; he took Su Xiaoqi and Madam Zhao and walked to the side.
This was a genuine intention to leave.
Prince Ning, watching from not far away, was startled.
He already knew that Shen Yun was his biological son—his father, the Old Prince Ning, had told him this.
But he himself had no recollection of anything.
However, the Old Prince Ning had not only told him this one thing but had also provided ample evidence.
Therefore, this matter was absolutely true.
He just couldn't remember.
His father had told him that it was because he had suffered a head injury in his youth, which caused him to forget some things.
The reason they hadn't told him earlier was that they themselves didn't know.
After all, he had lost his memory and inexplicably returned to the capital.
He hadn't informed them that he had married and had a child in Bashu.
So they had always believed that he was merely traveling abroad and had returned once he had his fill.
No one knew about his affairs outside.
The Old Prince Ning had been investigating.
Initially, he hadn't found any information. But in the past year, upon seeing Shen Yun in the capital, he felt that he resembled their Shen family members too much, and thus began investigating his background.
The results of the investigation confirmed it.
He was indeed of the old Shen family lineage.
Therefore, they now intended to acknowledge him.
The banquet held today, although it had invited many court officials,
was more importantly meant to inform him of the father-son relationship between him and Shen Yun.
However, to this day, this matter had not been openly declared.
Shen Zhongwen had intended to find a suitable moment to speak to him about it.
But as soon as they started chatting, Shen Yun changed the topic, seemingly intentionally avoiding the subject.
This left him in an awkward, unbearable state.
Especially when Shen Yun, without a word, threatened to leave, it made him even more anxious.
If Shen Yun were to leave with his wife like this, wouldn't all their preparations for this spring banquet be in vain?
This would not be good.
In his anxiety, he stepped forward to block Shen Yun and his wife, glared at the Princess of Ning with displeasure, and said sternly:
"County Princess, what is going on here?"
The Princess of Ning attempted to explain, "Your Highness..."
Su Xiaoqi quickly interjected, "Replying to Your Highness, it is I who spoke improperly and displeased the Princess, so we shall leave. We would never dare to confront the Princess directly."
Su Xiaoqi, with her delicate features and a smile that usually preceded her words,
now looked as though she were on the verge of tears. Coupled with her reddened eyes, anyone could see that she had been wronged.
Considering the Princess of Ning's strong will and overbearing demeanor, Shen Zhongwen believed Su Xiaoqi's words without much thought.
He said with great displeasure, "County Princess, what is the meaning of this?
Xuzhi and Xiaoqi are guests specially invited by the former Prince. How could you be so neglectful?"
The Princess of Ning felt wronged.
She wanted to say that she had never neglected anyone.
It was this little vixen who was too good at acting.
Putting on a show of having been greatly wronged, really, who was she acting for!
The Princess of Ning was furious.
But her own Prince had always disliked her, and even her truthful words were only given a thirty percent trust.
She was now unable to explain herself, no matter how much she spoke.
She could only swallow her pride and accept the situation for the moment.
She would remember this, she definitely would!
The Princess of Ning clenched her handkerchief, and unknowingly, her slender fingernails dug deeply into her palm.
The pain made her bite her lip fiercely.
Seeing that she remained silent, Prince Ning did not berate her further in front of everyone.
After all, the Prince Ning's manor had no other mistress, and she was needed to host the female guests.
After the little drama, everyone began to disperse.
With Prince Ning's persuasion, Shen Yun and Su Xiaoqi ultimately did not leave.
Everyone returned to their respective courtyards where the banquet was held.
Su Xiaoqi found Shen Mingzhu, who was conversing with the young ladies, and briefly recounted what had happened, cautioning her to be careful lest she be caught in the crossfire.
Shen Mingzhu nodded and quietly said that she understood.
After speaking with Shen Mingzhu, Su Xiaoqi turned around and realized something was missing.
Madam Zhao, who had been following her like an invisible person, was gone.
She broke out in a cold sweat.
She quickly turned back to search for her.
However, she had no sense of direction, and the Prince's manor had a vast garden filled with various rockeries, strange stones, and numerous branching pebble paths.
She truly didn't know which way to go.
Zhang Yu, seeing her looking around, immediately understood and whispered to her, "The Old Madam just took Zi Cao to relieve herself while you were talking to Miss Mingzhu."
Hearing that it was to relieve herself, Su Xiaoqi breathed a sigh of relief.
But she was still somewhat uneasy and insisted on taking Zhang Yu to find her.
Fortunately, Zhang Yu had a good memory for directions, and she led Su Xiaoqi back along the path they had taken.
The place for relief was somewhat hidden. To avoid too many people seeing them, Zhang Yu led the way through inconspicuous paths.
Deep within the garden's foliage, Su Xiaoqi's sharp ears picked up Madam Zhao's voice.
"It's you. It's been a long time. I never expected to meet again."
Su Xiaoqi quickly pulled Zhang Yu, who was walking ahead with her head down, and they stopped by a rockery.
Peering through the ancient pines on the rockery, she looked towards an octagonal pavilion not far away.
There was a peach tree there, currently in full bloom. Two people stood beneath the tree.
One man and one woman.
The two maintained a relatively safe distance.
Each also had their own maidservants and pages.
It wasn't exactly an inappropriate situation of a man and woman alone.
But it still didn't look good.
Therefore, guards were stationed around the pavilion to prevent any unauthorized entry.
This was also the reason Su Xiaoqi had stopped Zhang Yu.
If they ventured further, they would be caught.
Zhang Yu observed closely and whispered, "It's the Old Madam and the Prince!"
Su Xiaoqi nodded, she had seen them, and with her hearing, she had also overheard their conversation.