Chapter 221

Shi Junhe glanced at Shi Qingxue, to find that she was still playing dumb, so he was annoyed but felt laughable.

He didn’t rebuke her but turned to Mo Junyang, joking. “Does she act shamelessly in this way in front of you?”

Mo Junyang got astonished as he was asked suddenly. Then he finally understood the hidden meaning in Shi Junhe’s words.

He stood straight and nodded at Shi Junhe seriously. Then he smiled. “She is nice, great.”

It seemed that Shi Qingxue should act so shamelessly in front of them.

Shi Junhe was silent for a long while and finally couldn’t help but laugh. “Only you can endure her.”

He shook his head and sighed. “Well. Let’s go back first.”

While speaking, he led the two back to his study.

As soon as Shi Qingxue entered the study, she asked Shi Junhe about what happened in the Shou’an Hall.

“What can she say? She just said something like, I am Juncai’s brother and can’t leave him alone anyway.” Shi Junhe sat in the chair and rubbed his forehead in pain while sighing helplessly.

Shi Qingxue understood but soon looked at Shi Junhe cautiously. “Father, what do you plan to do?”

Shi Junhe shook his head with a hesitant expression. Obviously, he had no way for now.

“Do you plan to help Uncle get away with it?” Shi Qingxue asked with displeasure.

“The evidence of his crime is solid. How can he get away with it?” Shi Junhe stated coldly, in a resentful tone.

Although Shi Junhe was not close to Shi Juncai, after all, they were brothers and blood was thicker than water, so they had the ties of kinship.

Moreover, he once hoped that his brother could be promising.

But so many years had passed, and Shi Juncai was just an official at the imperial court all the time because of the ancestors. He didn’t finish anything by himself. No matter how Shi Junhe pinned his hopes on him in the past, he was disappointed after a long time.

Now Shi Junhe just hoped that his brother could do his own job and live a life honestly without ruining their father’s fame.

Unexpectedly, Shi Juncai couldn’t even do such a simple job.

He disobeyed the orders on the battlefield and escaped. It was a serious crime, and even if Shi Junhe committed it, he couldn’t pay for it with his life.

Shi Juncai didn’t have military exploits or outstanding achievements, so he didn’t have a chance to be dealt with leniently.

More importantly, on the battlefield, the Shi Army was brave and battlewise.

Shi Juncai’s behavior humiliated the Shi family.

Even Shi Junhe couldn’t forgive Shi Juncai’s disgusting conduct, let alone asking for mercy for him.

Hearing Shi Junhe’s words, Shi Qingxue raised her brows and glanced at Mo Junyang, seeming to say, “See, I have said that my father won’t ask for mercy for my uncle.”

“But in this case, Princess Royal might not give up, right?” Mo Junyang changed his attitude as an onlooker and asked.

He hit the nail on the head.

Shi Junhe’s face stiffened and he sighed with frustration after quite a while. “Right. My mother insisted on telling me to ask His Majesty for mercy and said that I should protect my brother anyway.”

Shi Qingxue was quite clear that Mo Shujun was partial to Shi Juncai, and she pouted unhappily. “What if no?”

Shi Junhe stayed silent again.

After a long while, Shi Qingxue even thought that he wouldn’t say anything.

Then Shi Junhe whispered, “If I don’t agree, she won’t take me as her son!”

And she would spread the news in the capital and let all people know that Shi Junhe was unfriendly to his brother and folded his hands while seeing his brother die.

Shi Junhe didn’t speak out the last words.

But only what he said was enough to make Shi Qingxue explode.

“She has gone too far! How can she do that?” Shi Qingxue shouted angrily.

Shi Qingxue didn’t care about Mo Shujun’s insincere kinship, but Mo Shujun even said that she would disown Shi Junhe. If the news spread, others wouldn’t say that Mo Shujun was not kind but would just say that Shi Junhe didn’t respect his mother so she didn’t want to take him as her son.

The Mo Country paid attention to respecting the elders. Mo Shujun just wanted to ruin Shi Junhe.

Shi Qingxue trembled with anger and shouted “It’s too much” several times successively, but under Shi Junhe’s silent and serious expression, she couldn’t say something more excessive.

But if she didn’t say, she felt absolutely suffocated.

She was too furious.

Mo Junyang patted her shoulder from behind and comforted her quietly. Then he turned to Shi Junhe and asked, “Since Princess Royal said that, she was sure that you can save Third Master Shi. But His Majesty is in a rage and it would only make things worse if you enter the palace now to ask for mercy. It is impossible for Princess Royal not to think of this possibility.

“So what’s her route of retreat as she prepared?”

Shi Junhe was stunned and didn’t say anything for a long time.

He was convinced by Mo Junyang’s logical argument indeed and admired him to a higher level.

He just said a few words, but this young man had guessed what he wanted to conceal, which made General Shi have nowhere to hide.

He was embarrassed but relieved.

He didn’t hide it anymore but turned to look at Shi Qingxue with his sad eyes. “Juncai committed a serious crime this time. Even if he won’t implicate our family, he may escape from death but can’t go unpunished.”

Shi Qingxue was confused as her father gazed at her. “He can stay alive. Isn’t it great? What else do they want?”

Shi Junhe remained silent.

Mo Junyang laughed playfully and helped Shi Junhe answer her. “What do they want? Of course he wants to be released and regain his official position.”

“Are you joking?” Shi Qingxue opened her eyes wide in astonishment and could hardly believe what she had heard.

But the two men’s expressions told her that she didn’t mishear it.

She was more speechless and thought those people were so greedy.

But on second thought, she believed it was impossible.

“The evidence of Uncle’s crime is obvious, and it’s difficult to save his life. How can you make it as you said?”

Mo Junyang shrugged and laughed meaningfully. “We can’t make it, but you can.”

Shi Qingxue frowned and subconsciously wanted to tell Mo Junyang not to joke, but she thought that he wouldn’t be so bored as to joke like this.

She had to ask, “What do you mean?”

“The token granted by Emperor.”

Five words revealed everything.

Shi Qingxue finally realized that Mo Shujun didn’t hope Shi Junhe to ask for mercy but coveted the token granted by Emperor in her hands.

She didn’t think much and refused directly. “No way. I won’t give out the token granted by Emperor.”

In fact, Shi Junhe had expected that Shi Qingxue would have such a reaction, and he didn’t look surprised. He just felt exhausted, like a cornered beast.

Shi Qingxue couldn’t bear to see that, and she was not as firm as before instantly.

She bit her lower lip and asked with difficulty, “Father, what do you think? Do you hope that I can give out the thing which stands for Grandpa’s exploits for a lifetime and then make the Shi family have a worse name?”

A person from the Shi family was guilty but didn’t admit it. Instead, he wanted to go unpunished depending on the privilege.

If the news spread, the honor of the Shi family for one hundred years would be ruined.

At the thought of this possibility, Shi Qingxue couldn’t help but have tears in her eyes. She almost cried.

She was unwilling to give out the token granted by Emperor to save Shi Juncai’s life not because she coveted it.

The token granted by Emperor was the only thing left to her by her grandpa.

She didn’t want to waste such a treasure.

“Father…”

Seeing that Shi Qingxue was hesitant and sad, Shi Junhe kept silent for a while and finally chose to tell her the truth.

“Back then, when your grandpa gave you the token granted by Emperor which should be kept by the family master, he didn’t plan to let you inherit it.”

Shi Qingxue was stunned and didn’t understand why Shi Junhe mentioned the old story all of a sudden.

Shi Junhe continued, “Your grandpa just simply loved his little granddaughter, so he gave you the thing which represents his honor and exploits for a lifetime. And he told me and your grandma that no matter when, even if the Shi family is in a hopeless situation, we can’t force you to give out the token granted by Emperor.”

“Father…” Shi Qingxue expressed in a daze and felt that she seemed to find some secret.

Love was shown on Shi Junhe’s face, and he stared at Shi Qingxue deeply, stressing each word. “So the token granted by Emperor in your hands doesn’t belong to the Shi family, but it belongs to you only. Anybody else can’t covet it.”

So from the beginning, Shi Junhe didn’t want to mention this matter because he didn’t plan to let Qingxue give out the token granted by Emperor.

Shi Qingxue displayed a bright smile instantly and asked with joy, “Really?”

Shi Junhe nodded seriously.

Qingxue’s smile was sweeter.

However, soon her smile faded and she looked worried. She murmured, “But how would you explain to Grandma?”

Shi Junhe’s face darkened, too, but after a pause, he waved his hand. “Don’t need to worry about it. I will figure out a way.”

Shi Qingxue pouted and didn’t believe Shi Junhe’s words.

However, before she spoke, Mo Junyang stated first, “General Shi, since you have a solution, Qingxue and I won’t ask about it.”

Shi Qingxue glared at Mo Junyang in a rage, as if her eyes could eat him.

When did she agree not to ask about this matter?

Why did Mo Junyang make decisions for her?

However, Shi Junhe took Mo Junyang’s words seriously and expressed joyfully that the young man was smart.

Then he changed the subject. “By the way, what else do you want from me?”

Shi Qingxue was unhappy as the two men ignored her and made decisions for her, but when it came to dealing with Shi Juncai’s case, the two men thought alike and didn’t give her a chance to cut in.

It annoyed her a lot.

She didn’t want to answer Shi Junhe’s question and just knocked Mo Junyang’s arm with her elbow, hinting with her eyes, “Didn’t you want to see my father? Why not say something?”

Mo Junyang smiled at her to comfort her. “No hurry. I will tell him.”

Shi Qingxue rolled her eyes in secret. “Who is in a hurry? I don’t like to talk with you.”

Mo Junyang accepted it calmly and looked at her with love. “If you don’t want to speak, I will speak for you.”

Shi Junhe watched the young couple’s eye contacts, and it seemed that there was love around.

It gave this old man goose pimples.

But he didn’t say anything to disturb them. He just watched quietly and showed a relieved smile automatically.

Till this young couple finally ended their “conversation”, he showed them that he had watched a good play.

He joked kindly, “Have you finished? Can you tell me now?”

“Father!” Shi Qingxue blushed because of his joke and stamped her foot, wanting to find a hole to hide herself.

Mo Junyang kept calm all the time and answered seriously, “No, we haven’t finished, but we can continue later.”

Shi Junhe was speechless.

Probably only such a man as Mo Junyang was so bold as to flirt with the daughter in front of the father.

However, Shi Junhe couldn’t get mad at Mo Junyang seemingly.

He stayed silent for a while and then asked peacefully, “What do you want to tell me?”

Mo Junyang answered, “When the rebellion started, His Majesty promised to grant the marriage of me and Qingxue as long as I settled down the rebellion.”