Reborn Princess

Shen Lilan held his head in his hands, his eyes widened in horror. Zhou Cechen was dead, he was dead.

Tears flowed unconsciously from her red eyes.

Memories intertwined, fragments flashed by, and finally stopped at the scene where she hugged Zhou Cechen and cried in the rain.

Shen Lilan huddled in the corner of the bed, her head aching.

The shouting woke up Birui who was on guard, and she hurried to check on Shen Lilan's condition.

"My Lady, what's wrong with you?"

As soon as Birui entered the room, she saw Shen Lilan huddled in the corner of the bed, his body trembling slightly.

"Go out and guard the door." Shen Yanlan ordered in a trembling voice.

"Empress, you..." Birui looked at Shen Lilan, at a loss as to what to do.

"I'm fine, I just had a nightmare, you can go down."

"Yes." Birui left with trepidation.

After Birui left, Shen Lilan hugged her knees and sat quietly on the bed, staring at the window with lifeless eyes.

The window faces the direction of the garden pavilion.

……

After Zhou Cechen returned to the courtyard, he went to the study to look through official documents.

But today, he suddenly felt annoyed when looking at the piles of documents on the table in front of him. It was a feeling he rarely had.

This made him frown.

I opened a document, which listed the disasters that the frost had brought to the people this year, including famine, displacement, frostbite...

Zhou Cechen closed the document irritably, put on a fox fur coat and went up to the attic.

This attic is the highest point of the Liyuan Pavilion, and Xiao Lanxuan can be seen from the attic.

Standing here, he could just see Xiao Lanxuan's master bedroom.

The lights in Xiao Lanxuan's master bedroom were off now, so she must have gone to bed.

Zhou Cechen's mind flashed with various scenes of her and Shen Lilan's interactions today. She didn't seem to reject him.

When Zhou Cechen thought about this, a little joy surged in his heart, but at the same time it was accompanied by uneasiness.

He was afraid that this joy would be fleeting.

The white snow came with the cold wind, and the bead curtains in the house rubbed against each other gently, making a rustling sound.

Zhou Cechen still stood there, staring in the direction of Xiao Lanxuan.

……

At noon the next day, Shen Xilan sat in front of the dressing table, holding his dizzy head with his hands, looking at himself in the bronze mirror, looking a little more haggard than yesterday.

Lu Nong stood aside and saw that her princess looked haggard, she couldn't help but worry.

"My lady, you didn't sleep well last night. I'll ask the imperial physician to come and see you."

Shen Lilan shook her head slightly, and she curled her lips slightly and said, "No need, it's just a dream, it hurts a little, it's nothing serious."

"Liuchun, put on more makeup for me today."

Liu Chun, who was holding Shen Lilan's hair, nodded and said, "Yes."

Outside the screen, a maid came over and reported, "Someone from the Garden Pavilion just now reported that the prince had to attend court today, so he would not be accompanying the princess for dinner."

Shen Xilan's eyes trembled. Today was the first day of the twelfth lunar month. According to the rules, he had to attend court at the beginning and middle of each month.

This is specially granted by the present Holy Lord.

However, after last night's dream, she missed him very much.

Thinking of this, Shen Lilan's eyelashes drooped slightly.

But then the maid said, "The prince specially picked out a few boxes of bracelets and earrings and sent them to the courtyard, saying that you can choose the ones you like."

After hearing these words, Shen Lilan felt a sour feeling in his heart.

Zhou Cechen is always so nice to her.

Liuchun and Lunong followed Shen Silan's instructions and tied up Shen Silan's thick black hair into a bun, and specially pinned a set of kingfisher butterfly and flower headdresses in the bun.

As if to hide the haggard look on her face, Shen Xilan wore a Lu silk jacket and skirt with a front opening and wide sleeves in the color of a concubine's silk.

After leaving the house, Lu Nong put a cloak on Shen Lilan.

Looking at the four large boxes in front of me, there are some small things to entertain people, but the majority are jewelry.

In her previous life, Zhou Cechen had also sent various jewelry to her courtyard. She was actually happy in her heart, but she didn't choose anything and put them all in the warehouse.

At that time, she completely regarded this marriage as an exchange of interests. She didn't know how to deal with the feelings between them. She thought that putting the things in the warehouse was the best way to deal with the things he gave her.

Later, as she spent time with Zhou Cechen every day, she also fell in love with him, but at that time she didn't know that it was love, and she didn't dare to admit her feelings.

It was not until she knew that Zhou Cechen had volunteered to go to the war that she came to her senses with reluctance and worry.

So the two of them missed each other's lives like this.

Thinking of this, Shen Lilan smiled bitterly in his heart.

The two missed each other in their previous life.

She walked to the wooden box and started to select items carefully in front of all the maids and servants in the yard.

In fact, all four boxes of things were bought according to her preferences. Shen Silan picked out the Luban lock to relieve boredom, and she picked out some of the other jewelry.

"Send the rest to the warehouse." Shen Lilan said.

"Yes."

……

After breakfast, Shen Lilan told Chaohua to place the account book on the rosewood table.

Looking at the accounts in front of her, Shen Xilan had an indifferent expression. In the past, what she hated most was looking at the account books.

Mathematics is the subject she hates most.

When she was at home, her nanny taught her how to read account books, but she found it very difficult to learn.

It becomes even more difficult when used in practical situations.

She had been married to the palace for three months. In the past, Chaohua handled the accounts and she only needed to take a few glances at them.

So in her previous life, she suffered because she was not familiar with the accounts, which led to when Chaohua got into trouble later. Because Zhou Cechen was not around, Zhou Jingmo resorted to trickery and actually linked the shops in the mansion with the sale of illegal salt.

In the end, the emperor suppressed the matter, gave himself a light punishment and a severe warning, and confined himself to his home for two months. At the same time, this also gave Zhou Jingmo an invisible handle to frame Zhou Cechen for rebellion.

After Zhou Cechen left her, she was left alone in charge of the palace.

After learning from her mistakes, she never let anyone else take charge of the main accounts of the mansion again.

……

After Zhou Cechen returned home from court, he went straight to the direction of Xiao Lanxuan. As soon as he took a step, he turned back to Liyuan Pavilion and changed out of his official uniform before going to Xiao Lanxuan.

Entering the courtyard, the maids and servants were working in an orderly manner. When they saw Zhou Cechen, they bowed. When they arrived at the main courtyard, Zhou Cechen asked a maid, "Where is the princess?"

"My Lord, the princess is in the warm room."

This warm room is actually Shen Lilan's master bedroom. The bed is separated from the table outside by a screen.

There is also an antique display shelf on the left side of the wall outside the screen, on which are placed potted plants, glazed vessels and various small items. The Lu Ban lock I picked today is also placed on it.

When Zhou Cechen entered the warm room, he saw Shen Xilan supporting her head with one hand, while the other hand was still on the account book, but her head was moving no matter how fast it moved, like a chick pecking at rice.

At this moment, he fell onto the table. Seeing this, Zhou Cechen reached out and supported Shen Lilan's head, and Shen Lilan was suddenly awakened.

She raised her head and her watery eyes met Zhou Cechen's gaze. At this moment, she was annoyed that she fell asleep while looking at the account book, but when she saw Zhou Cechen, she was very happy.

"Your Highness." Shen Lilan was still sitting on the nanmu chair. Because he dozed off while looking at the account book just now, there were still some miscellaneous accounts in his mind.

"Yeah." Zhou Cechen replied in a low voice.

Zhou Cechen glanced at the account book on the rosewood table and laughed hushedly. He had always known that Shen Lilan was not good at math.

He also didn't expect that Shen Lilan would actually look at the account book himself today.

Shen Xilan also followed Zhou Cechen's gaze and looked at the account book, but did not notice Zhou Cechen's expression.

"If you are tired, take a rest. Let the servants take care of these accounts. Don't overwork your body." Zhou Cechen whispered.

Shen Lilan shook his head and said, "These accounts cannot be delegated to others."

After saying this, Shen Xilan realized that she was still sitting on the chair. She hurriedly stood up and prepared to salute, but a big hand supported her.

"I have said that the princess does not need to greet me."

Shen Lilan stared into Zhou Cechen's eyes for a long time.

"Okay." Shen Yanlan replied.

Zhou Cechen's hand was still holding Shen Lilan's arm. Shen Lilan could feel his strength through his clothes. Just this action made the tips of Shen Lilan's ears turn red.

Zhou Cechen had never thought that Shen Lilan would be so obedient today. He exerted a little force with his hands and brought Shen Lilan in front of him.

Shen Lilan looked at the man in front of him, not knowing what he meant.

For a moment, the house was silent.

Zhou Cechen was very tall. Shen Lilan was not the tallest among the girls, but she was still average.

At this moment, as the two of them stood, Shen Xilan was only at Zhou Cechen's shoulder.

Zhou Cechen looked down and saw the little girl's watery eyes staring at him, which made him feel even more abnormal.

He was quite majestic throughout the country. Because of the power in his hands, he made plans in the government and the country, and the lives he had in his hands were countless, even if he counted them himself.

Therefore, the young men and women from the powerful families in the capital were always afraid to look him in the eye.

Shen Lilan was different. She was different when I first met her. The look in her eyes when she looked at me was fearless.

But after marriage, she always looked at herself with cold eyes.

Now, she always looked at herself with affection.

"Have you encountered any difficulties recently?" Zhou Cechen's voice came to Shen Lilan's ears.

"Difficulties?" Shen Xilan shook her head. She had never encountered any difficulties.

Seeing Shen Xilan shaking her head, Zhou Cechen thought she was unwilling to say it.

He raised his hand and touched the magnolia hairpin in Shen Yanlan's hair, his eyes deep as he said, "You didn't wear these jewels before, you didn't like them."

In fact, since Shen Xilan married into the royal palace as a princess, she has been wearing plain clothes with dark colors.

The headwear in the hair is the simplest.

However, Shen Lilan is beautiful and has the best temperament. Even if she is dressed simply, she looks generous and has a more stable temperament than girls of this age.

But now her dressing is eye-catching compared to before, and it seems that Shen Lilan has become more cheerful.

According to Lu Nong, even if she were dressed like this now, she would not only look elegant and virtuous, but also exude a kind of moon-like charm. She is truly a beauty like a lotus.

However, Zhou Cechen naturally didn't know these words.

He knew that Shen Xilan didn't like him, so she usually wouldn't touch the things he gave her.

But the hairpin was pinned in her hair at this moment, so there was only one possibility, that she was short of money.

Shen Lilan saw that Zhou Cechen frowned slightly. Somehow, Shen Lilan reached out his hand and tried to smooth Zhou Cechen's brow.

When they touched Zhou Cechen's forehead, they were both stunned.

Shen Xilan retracted her hand, and Zhou Cechen grabbed her slender wrist in mid-air.

Shen Lilan sighed in his heart. Zhou Cechen seemed to think that his changes in the past two days were to please him.

"Your Highness, do you think I'm short of money?" Shen Lilan guessed what Zhou Cechen wanted to ask.

Princess Ding'an is short of money, and if this news gets out, she would probably be laughed at.

But Zhou Cechen couldn't guess any other possibility. Shen Lilan's thoughts were always beyond his comprehension.