Chapter 90: “Shut-in” Ye Liyan

A figure in white robes, with unbound black hair falling loosely over their shoulders, exuded an aura of languidness.

Ye Liyan stared blankly at the back for two seconds, then leaned gently against Shen Yian’s arm and shook her head. “Liyan hasn’t seen this person before…”

Both the silhouette and aura were unfamiliar to her.

Shen Yian paused, suddenly realizing that Ye Liyan indeed hadn’t met this person.

“It’s my mistake. You indeed haven’t met him, though he has sort of seen you.”

“Husband, who is he?” Ye Liyan’s curiosity grew.

“The number one shut-in of Great Qing.”

As soon as Shen Yian said it, he felt the title wasn’t quite right. By that measure, Ye Liyan could also be called a shut-in.

“The number one shut-in of Great Qing?” 

Ye Liyan inwardly chuckled. Her husband was using unfamiliar terms again.

“He’s my elder brother, the current Crown Prince of Great Qing.”

Shen Yian stopped speaking in riddles and revealed the identity of the person before them. The man ahead was indeed Shen Muchen. He went on to explain the meaning of “shut-in.”

During their wedding, although Shen Muchen was present, Ye Liyan had worn a red veil. Strictly speaking, they hadn’t actually met face to face.

“Husband, would the previous Liyan be considered a shut-in?” 

Ye Liyan was slightly surprised by the man’s identity, but after hearing the explanation of “shut-in,” her eyes gleamed mischievously as she spoke, her tone teasing.

“Hmm… why wouldn’t you be?” Shen Yian pretended to ponder before answering with a smile.

He enjoyed this feeling, reminiscent of couples playfully bantering in his previous life.

If a married couple always maintained formal respect, behaving properly every day, he might as well have married a mechanical puppet.

“Hus…band, Liyan is no longer a shut-in.” Ye Liyan’s voice was soft and whiny, as if trying to cajole her way out of the “shut-in” label.

Realizing she might have lost her composure, her cheeks reddened imperceptibly behind the mask.

“I didn’t say you are now, did I?” Shen Yian’s eyes sparkled with amusement.

The implication was that she had admitted to being a shut-in before.

“Husband always teases Liyan like this.” Ye Liyan turned her head away, seemingly upset.

What to do when your wife is “angry”? One word: coax!

It’s worth noting that some of the jokes and cheesy pick-up lines from his previous life, when adapted to this world, were no less effective than “love poems.”

Ye Liyan wasn’t really angry, and after Shen Yian’s sincere coaxing, she felt her resolve melting away, almost wanting to apologize herself.

While the two were flirting and bantering, Shen Muchen had already walked far away and disappeared from view.

Shen Yian didn’t deliberately try to find him. His eldest brother suddenly taking a stroll outside the palace was indeed a rare occurrence, but not extremely rare. The legs belong to him, so who are you to dictate where he goes?

Earlier, it seemed there was a female companion beside Shen Muchen. Since they didn’t bump into each other face-to-face, there was no need to go out of their way to greet him. After a set of polite small talk, it might just end up being awkward for everyone.

“Big brother seems to have gone far. Shall we go check out that fur shop over there?”

In this world, under the operation of the Northern Commercial Association, “cotton clothes and quilts” had already appeared. However, due to the short time since cotton was introduced to the Great Qing and its low yield, it hadn’t been fully popularized. Winter clothing for keeping warm in the north was still mainly made from fur and other fabrics.

Arriving at the fur shop, it reminded Shen Yian of a black tiger skin still in the prince’s mansion, skinned from the black giant tiger that E Lai had killed. It was so large it could be used as a blanket. He wondered what to do with it.

Ye Liyan browsed but wasn’t satisfied. Many furs had rotted due to poor processing, not only emitting strange odors but also having holes. The quality was really worrying.

“Let’s go check out Thousand Gold Pavilion,” Shen Yian suggested. The furs at Thousand Gold Pavilion might be a bit more expensive than ordinary fur shops, but the quality and appearance would be much better.

“Thousand Gold Pavilion?” Ye Liyan had heard Qiu Lanlan and Lu Lingxue mention it but had never been there. She’d heard that the items sold there were all-encompassing. You might find anything you want to buy there, and even many novel, unheard-of things.

Come to think of it, there were also many things in the prince’s mansion that she had never seen or heard of before, like the Chinese chess set and the luminous glass ball that emitted light when infused with true qi.

Thinking of that luminous glass ball, Ye Liyan couldn’t help but laugh inwardly.

When she asked her husband what this object was called, he said it was called “True Qi Electric Light,” but clearly engraved on the bottom were the large characters “The Shining Prince.”

Shen Yian never imagined that Shen Jun would brazenly engrave such an embarrassing name on it, and he only discovered it when he was showing it off.

If possible, he wanted to turn back time. Even if he had discovered it just ten seconds earlier, he would have had time to erase the name engraved on it.

Shen Yian stood there and couldn’t help but shiver, wondering if it was his imagination, but he felt as if someone was recalling his embarrassing moments.

Arriving at Thousand Gold Pavilion, since it was Ye Liyan’s first time, she curiously looked at every counter. Shen Yian wasn’t in a hurry either, and the two held hands, slowly browsing stage by stage.

Um?

I thought we would never meet again, but I didn’t expect to meet each other in the Thousand Gold Pavilion, and at the same counter. There was no way to hide now.

Shen Yian mused that he had only been to Thousand Gold Pavilion twice since returning to Tianwu City.

The first time, he ran into Shen Jingyu and Gu Ruoyi.

The second time, he ran into Shen Muchen.

“Big Brother,” Shen Yian’s voice caused Shen Muchen, who was carefully selecting earrings nearby, to slightly startle.

“Sixth Brother?” Shen Muchen turned his head in surprise. Shen Yian’s aura was so well-concealed that he seemed to blend in with his surroundings. If not seen with the naked eye, one might not have noticed another person standing nearby.

Shen Yian removed his mask and smiled, “I didn’t expect to run into Big Brother here. What a coincidence.”

Shen Muchen smiled gently, “Indeed, what a coincidence.”

“Liyan pays her respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince,” Ye Liyan said, removing her mask and bowing.

“There’s no need for formalities, sister-in-law.”

Shen Yian looked at the woman with a veil covering her face beside Shen Muchen and asked knowingly, “Brother, who is this?”

“Qing Chan pays her respects to His Highness the King of Chu and the Princess Consort,” Qing Chan bowed her head in greeting.

Shen Yian feigned realization. He had seen Qing Chan a few times in the palace and already knew her identity. He gave a thumbs up and said in a low voice, “Big Brother, you’re quite the ladies’ man.”

“Sixth Brother is joking,” Shen Muchen shook his head with a smile, but his eyes examined Ye Liyan.

Sky-blue eyes, just like the rumors said. Is this the Heavenly Eye that the Master spoke of?

Apart from the unusual color, there didn’t seem to be anything particularly special about them.

After exchanging pleasantries, Shen Muchen explained why he had left the palace.

The reason was straightforward: he was bored of staying in the Eastern Palace and wanted to go out for a stroll.

“Does Father Emperor know?” Shen Yian raised an eyebrow. Given his brother’s condition, forget about leaving Tianwu City, even leaving the palace required the old man’s approval.

“Father Emperor probably knows.”

“I see.”

So he didn’t tell the old man, but the old man knows he’s out.

“Big Brother, here,” Shen Yian took out a new mask and handed it over.

Shen Muchen looked slightly confused.

“Many people in Tianwu City have seen Big Brother. It’s safer to wear this, especially to be wary of those inspectors.”

“Thank you,” Shen Muchen took the mask and paused for a second before speaking.

“We’re brothers, no need for thanks.” After saying this, Shen Yian leaned in closer and asked mysteriously, “Actually, Sixth Brother has always had something he wanted to ask Big Brother.”

“What is it?” Shen Muchen and Qing Chan both showed curious expressions.

“When are you going to hold your wedding ceremony?”