The Rebirth of a Farm Girl from a Military Family and a Cannon Fodder Princess

Chapter 212 Full Moon

Old Master Shen was speechless. After a long silence, he finally said, "Alright, since that's the case, let's get a divorce!"

Prince Duan placed the divorce papers on the table: "My sister has already signed these divorce papers. I would also like to ask the old man to have Shen Jian sign them, and also to have the head of the Shen family sign them. There are four copies. Please give me two copies when the time comes, so I can personally take them to the yamen for filing!"

Old Master Shen sighed helplessly, "Very well, I'll have someone bring that unfilial son back tomorrow! The day after tomorrow, I'll have a suitable person deliver the divorce papers to the Prince's residence. But what about Yun'er? Yun'er is my Shen family's granddaughter, shouldn't she return to the Shen family?"

Prince Duan: "That's impossible! If you want to compete with Jiahe for Yun'er, I'm not afraid to take you to the yamen and accuse Shen Jian of trampling on the royal family. At that time, what awaits the Shen family is the stripping of their title! Shen Jian will never be able to recover in this lifetime! As for the issue of Yun'er's ownership, I have already made it clear in the divorce agreement that she will be raised by my sister."

From this day forward, she will have absolutely no connection with the Shen family! Of course, once she grows up, if she wishes to acknowledge her ancestors and return to the family, that is her own business, and I will not interfere! However, before she turns eighteen, I will not allow her to have any association with the Shen family!

Old Master Shen was heartbroken and even more furious with his unfilial son, Shen Jian. Having no other choice, he had to give in: "Very well, then we'll wait until the child grows up. If she is willing to acknowledge her ancestors, I will certainly grant her wish."

If she didn't want to acknowledge the Shen family, he had nothing to say. Alas, who told the Shen family to have such a muddle-headed fool as Shen Jian? How dare he treat and humiliate the Prince Duan's sister? The Shen family has no choice but to swallow this bitter pill for such a foolish person.

Three days later, the divorce papers were delivered to Prince Duan. He personally went to the government office, and the matter of Princess Jiahe's divorce was officially concluded.

Princess Jiahe wept bitterly, for herself and for her poor daughter. From this day forward, her daughter would be fatherless.

Zisu wrote a letter to Shangguan Yi, asking him to organize the comic books he had drawn as a child and give them to Yun'er. Those comic books were all drawn by Zisu herself and were illustrated primers for children.

Shangguan Yi was reluctant to part with them; they were books his eldest sister had made for him personally. How could he bear to part with them? He wanted to keep these books as a keepsake. So he said to Niba, "I can't bear to give these comic books away. Make a new set based on these comic books and give the new one to that little girl named Yun'er!"

"Yes, young master, Mud will finish making it as soon as possible!" the young pageboy Mud replied respectfully.

Having served the young master for several years, Niba has become quite accomplished in both academics and martial arts. He can read and draw, and his martial arts skills are also decent. Dealing with three or five children of average age is no problem at all, and dealing with an adult is also not a big issue.

A few days later, Zisu received a brand-new comic book from her younger brother, delivered by a guard. She couldn't help but shake her head and smile. This child, it's just a comic book set, yet he's unwilling to give it up and goes to the trouble of remaking it. At the same time, her heart was warmed. Her brother cherished the early childhood education book she had given him so much; it showed that she, his older sister, still held a very important place in his heart.

On this day, Yun'er recovered from her illness, and the poison in her body was also eliminated. Accompanied by her mother, she came to Rongrui Hall to visit Zisu.

"Aunt, are you feeling better?" Yun'er asked with concern, looking at Zisu who was leaning against the railing.

She had met this aunt three times, and she had always been very impressed with her. Her warmth, kindness, and enthusiasm gave her a very cozy and welcoming feeling.

Zisu smiled and nodded: "Thank you for your concern, Yun'er. I'm much better! Good child, come here. Your aunt will give you a set of illustrated primers!"

Yun'er quickly stepped forward, took the four-book set of primers with both hands, and couldn't help but smile as she looked at the beautiful covers: "Thank you, Auntie, Yun'er likes it very much!"

Zisu: "I'm glad you like it. Once your aunt finishes her postpartum confinement, I'll make you two more storybooks!"

Actually, both Shangguan Yi and Yu Han had storybooks. She hadn't asked Shangguan Yi for any, so he hadn't brought any. Oh well, she'd make new ones after her confinement period. That boy has to study and practice martial arts; he probably doesn't have that much time to make storybooks.

Princess Jiahe opened it and immediately took a liking to it: "Sister-in-law, did you make this comic book?"

Zisu: "Well, I should say that I created the original book, and this set was created by my younger brother's pageboy based on my set."

"What a wonderful book! Sister-in-law, you are so clever! With this set of comic books, Yun'er will have no trouble reading and recognizing characters, and her interest will increase greatly!" Princess Jiahe was overjoyed and praised sincerely.

Zisu: "This set of comic books contains more than 300 commonly used characters. Don't be impatient. Let Yun'er read one story a day. Each story contains at least 20 simple commonly used characters. Tell her the stories repeatedly and have her copy down the simpler commonly used characters from the storybook."

Princess Jiahe: "Yes, I know. I will personally give her her early education."

Her voice was filled with joy and delight.

Zisu smiled slightly and said, "That's right. Focus your attention on your child's studies. I have a prescription for conditioning your body here. Take it and follow it. There's also a small kitchen in the cherry orchard. If you follow the diet instructions in the prescription every day, I believe your complexion will improve soon!"

Princess Jiahe looked extremely haggard, her skin dry and sallow, like a woman from a poor family who lacked food and drink. Zisu, seeing this, couldn't help but feel sympathy and pity. Just how unreliable was that Shen Jian to have made Fang'er like this?

Zisu was still angry, so after Prince Duan returned, she said to him, "Your sister looks terribly haggard. I don't know what methods Shen Jian used to torment her, but I felt so sorry for her. Why don't we find someone to beat him up?"

Prince Duan was taken aback, then smiled slightly: "Alright, I understand. I'll leave this matter to Liqiu! However, to do it discreetly, we need to scout out the location beforehand and find out his activity patterns!"

Three days later, Liqiu came to report: "Your Highness, Shen Jian has a mistress, which he has had for three years. These past few days, he has been spending the night at his mistress's place. Because he is worried about being found out by the concubines in the mansion, he goes there secretly. He always goes to his mistress's place after dark, taking shortcuts through alleys."

Prince Duan: "Very good. Take a sack and secretly wait in the alley. After you put the sack over his head, give him a good beating, preferably so badly that even his own parents won't recognize him! Remember to change into night clothes and wear a mask so he doesn't recognize you!"

Li Qiu: "Your Highness, please rest assured, it's just beating up a fool, no one will recognize us!"

That evening, after dinner, Shen Jian wiped his mouth as usual and told his favorite concubine, "I have an appointment for tea and may not be back tonight, so don't wait for me!"

The concubine asked warily, "Who did you meet? Where are you going for tea?"

Shen Jian was furious: "Even Princess Jiahe can't control me, and you're just a lowly concubine, yet you dare to meddle?!"

A sharp shout immediately silenced the concubine's arrogance, and she dared not utter another word. Although she had doubts, she could only watch helplessly as he left.

Li Qiu, with the two others, waited in the alley. One person kept watch on the rooftop, while the other two chatted idly in the shadows of the alley, pretending to have run into acquaintances.

Li Dong, who was keeping watch, whistled to signal to the two that their target had appeared. Li Qiu and Li Ming quickly looked towards the alley entrance and, sure enough, saw Shen Jian walking hurriedly towards them.

Li Qiu quickly opened the sack, and as soon as Shen Jian approached, he immediately stepped forward, put the sack over Shen Jian's head, and then threw Shen Jian to the ground with an over-the-shoulder throw.

Li Ming stepped forward and began punching and kicking Shen Jian's lower body, while Li Qiu slapped Shen Jian's face. One punch after another, each punch using five-tenths of her strength, until she had delivered ten punches before Li Qiu stopped.

Both men were skilled fighters; if they had used their full strength, it could have been fatal. There was no other way but to take it easy. Throughout the exchange, Shen Jian cried out in pain, tears streaming down his face. Unfortunately, the alley was deserted and pitch black, and Li Qiu and Li Ming were incredibly fast. After delivering ten punches, the two quickly retreated. Until the three of them left, the alley remained deserted.

The next day, rumors spread throughout the streets and alleys, and throughout the court and the country, that the dignified prefect had gone to a brothel, gotten into a fight with someone over a woman, and was beaten up by his enemy.

The emperor was furious and immediately dismissed Shen Jian from his post.

Shen Jian was furious and spat out a large mouthful of blood.

This time, not only did he not get a promotion, he was actually dismissed from his post! Who the hell did this to him, not only hitting him but also ruining his career?

He cried and shouted as he returned to his hometown in Yulin County, kneeling before his grandfather: "Grandfather, you must do justice for me!"

Old Master Shen kicked him away: "Who told you to go to such a brothel?! Now that you've been caught red-handed, you have only yourself to blame!"

Shen Jian said aggrievedly, "Grandfather, I didn't go to any brothels! I went to my mistress's place! I'm innocent! I'm so innocent!"

Old Master Shen snorted coldly: "A mistress? So, you had this mistress three years ago?" Three years ago, how long had this grandson been married to Princess Jiahe? And he already had a mistress? Or perhaps, he had a mistress even before the marriage?

Shen Jian: "Yes, I've been keeping this mistress for a long time, since shortly after we got married. With a mistress, why would I go to those brothels? I'm so wronged, so utterly wronged!"

Old Master Shen: "Do you have any enemies?"

Shen Jian: "I'm an honest and straightforward person, how could I have any enemies?"

Old Master Shen couldn't help but sigh: "Your enemies may be Prince Duan or Princess Jiahe."

Upon hearing this, Shen Jian flew into a rage: "What? That bitch Xiao Rufang actually dared to treat me so cruelly! I'm going to find her, I'm going to settle the score with her!"

As he spoke, he was about to rush out.

Old Master Shen angrily rebuked, "Right now, it's just my speculation, and there's not a single piece of evidence to prove that Prince Duan was behind it. Besides, even if he was, what right do you have to hold him accountable? Back then, you had a mistress right after your marriage, and you showed such disrespect to Princess Jiahe and trampled on the dignity of the royal family. Prince Duan only had you beaten up and spread rumors to make you lose your official position, which was already too lenient!"

If it were me, if I were Prince Duan, I would have beaten you half to death, left you barely alive! Not only that, I would have also taken my anger out on the entire Shen family and uprooted them! Now, Prince Duan is so magnanimous, not taking his anger out on the Shen family, which must be thanks to Princess Yulin. She has always been kind and benevolent; it must have been she who persuaded Prince Duan. Otherwise, you wouldn't even have a place to stay now, and might already be on the road to exile!

Shen Jian was stunned for a long time before he finally said, "Grandfather, no, it can't be that bad, can it? It's just keeping a mistress, right? Princess Jiahe and I have been husband and wife for many years, she shouldn't just stand by and do nothing!"

Old Master Shen was furious. He smashed a teacup at his feet and shouted, "So what if you kept a mistress? How dare you! It seems you still have no remorse for the divorce. Whether you keep a mistress or not, the important thing is that you treat Princess Jiahe well."

I heard that when she returned this time, she was extremely haggard, sallow and thin, looking as old as a forty-year-old! A royal princess, reduced to this state by you—no wonder Prince Duan is furious! Prince Duan hasn't taken his anger out on the Shen family, probably because of Yun'er; otherwise, how could you have the energy to fool around with your mistress?!