Xiao Niannian spent several months in fear, but things did not turn out as bad as she thought.
The second brother rose rapidly in the officialdom and was highly regarded. Everything went smoothly.
It has been almost a year since Shuanzi went to Kyoto.
During this year, Shuanzi came back once.
Returning home in fine clothes always attracts the envy of others, and people all over Qingzhou City come out to see the top pick of the Shen family.
The business of Shen's restaurant is even more crowded every day, and it is hard to find a restaurant.
There are also many people who are jealous of the Shen family, but they dare not make any mistakes.
Even though there were many guests in the restaurant, the order was very good and no one ever behaved or acted recklessly in the Shen Family Restaurant.
After all, the Shen family is protected by the county magistrate, not to mention that there is now a household doctor. Even if those people are jealous, they only dare to say a few words behind their backs.
After such a long time, the second brother must have stabilized his steps in Kyoto, so Shen Niannian let go of her worries and continued to live a carefree life.
A few months later, the third brother Huzi also married the girl of his choice.
Shen Niannian also knew that girl, she was Xiaohua from Taoli Village.
When Huzi was little, he loved to play with his little sister.
Even after the Shen family moved to the city, they did not lose contact with the people in Taoli Village. Huzi even had frequent contacts with sister Xiaohua.
Huzi and the hairpin queen, ladies from various famous families invited Huzi to go out to play, but Huzi rejected them all.
Whenever he was free, he would ride a tall horse to Taoli Village to find his little sister.
Even though the Shen family is now at its peak and their status is rising, no one in the Shen family cares about the difference in status.
Although Sister Xiaohua could not read a few words and came from the countryside, as long as Huzi said they liked her, Shen Zhengwen and Li Rulan went to Xiaohua's house to propose marriage without saying a word.
On the day when the third brother got married, the second brother did not come back.
Kyoto is not particularly far away from Qingzhou City. The distance is three hundred miles, and it only takes three or four days to get back by carriage.
The third brother wrote a letter to the second brother very early. If he arranges it in advance, he can come back.
But in the end, they only waited for a letter and two jade pendants, which were said to be wedding gifts for the third brother, but he was busy with business and had no time to come back.
Later, the intervals between the third brother's letters became longer and longer.
I used to write a letter home every half a month, but now I hardly write one letter every month.
Shen Niannian's heart, which had calmed down at first, was stirred up again.
The second brother has a tolerant character, is thoughtful in doing things, and always reports good news but not bad news when outside.
If he hadn't really been in big trouble, he would definitely not have forgotten to write a letter home.
When Shen Niannian was feeling anxious, an unsigned letter completely confirmed her suspicion.
The letter was written in a scrawl, and it seemed that it was written in a hurry.
There were only eight characters written in the letter: "Shen Yi is in trouble, come to rescue quickly."
Shen Yi is Shen Niannian's second brother Shuanzi.
The five brothers of the Shen family all have famous names. In order of eldest and youngest, they are named Shen Ren, Shen Yi, Shen Li, Shen Zhi and Shen Xin.
Their name was given by Li Rulan, which comes from the "Five Constants" of Confucianism: benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faith.
After seeing the letter, Shen Niannian's heart suddenly dropped.
Finally, what she feared most came.
Because they didn't know whether it was true or not, the Shen family didn't dare to make a decision easily. After all, every letter written by Shuanzi said that everything was fine with him.
But Shen Niannian couldn't rest assured no matter what, and decided to go to Kyoto alone to rescue her second brother.
She told her parents about this idea and expressed her determination to go.
Shen Zhengwen and Li Rulan thought about it all night and finally agreed to let her go to Kyoto.
They all know that Nian Nian has extraordinary abilities, and if Nian Nian takes action, it will definitely be more effective than if they go ahead.
But they have one condition, that is, let the fourth and fifth brothers follow her so that the three siblings can be taken care of.
The eldest brother Shen Ren has to take care of his wife and children at home, and the third brother's bride, Xiaohua, is also pregnant. Only the fourth brother and the fifth brother are the most suitable to accompany her.
Before going to Kyoto, Shen Niannian went to Xu Mansion and told Dahei the news.
After Dahei found out, he insisted on going with him no matter what.
Shen Niannian thought for a while, Dahei knew the plot, and it would be beneficial and harmless to let him go, so he agreed.
That afternoon, Shen Niannian packed her bags and set off on the road to Kyoto.
She was sitting alone in a light carriage and did not need a driver, because the carriage was pulled by the big black mule in its original form.
The fourth brother, Shen Zhi, and the fifth brother, Shen Xin, rode behind her on a fine high-headed horse.
A few people were hurrying along, rarely stopping on the road.
In this way, they arrived in Kyoto in two days after a journey that originally took three or four days.
After arriving in Kyoto, Shen Niannian came to a mansion according to the address mentioned by her second brother.
But before they could get closer, they saw heavy troops guarding the entrance to the mansion.
Shen Niannian got off the carriage and inquired around, only to find out that his second brother had been arrested by the Ministry of Punishment on charges of embezzling disaster relief funds allocated by the court.
But when Shen Niannian heard this, she knew that the second brother must have been framed.
The second brother is a simple man and never cares about money. How could he embezzle disaster relief funds?
The Shen family has been operating the restaurant for so many years, and the Shen family is not short of money.
When the second brother left home, his father also gave him a lot of money. Together with his salary, it was enough for him to live in Kyoto. How could he be corrupt?
Shen Niannian felt that there must be something fishy, so she put on her veil, turned around and walked back quickly.
But after taking only a few steps, she bumped into someone.
"You can bump into people while walking. Do you have eyes?"
Shen Niannian was in a bad mood, rubbed her sore forehead and cursed at the person.
A young man who looked like a guard next to him yelled at Shen Niannian unconvinced: "How can you, girl, talk? You were obviously the one who bumped into my husband without looking at the road!"
"Nonsense, you obviously don't have eyes!"
Shen Niannian wanted to have a good argument with that person, but when she raised her head, she ran into a pair of eyes that seemed familiar to her.
A man who exuded an aura of indifference was standing in front of her, looking down at her with indifference in his eyes.
The man wore a blue robe with dark patterns and a black brocade belt around his waist.
He has a smooth and white face, with sharp edges and coldness.
But within that coldness, there is also a beauty that is difficult to ignore.
Even Shen Niannian, who was used to seeing beautiful men, couldn't help but feel amazed.
Especially the man's eyes, which are slightly tilted upward, seem to attract other people's attention like magic, but the coldness in his eyes is unknowingly chilling.
"Have you seen enough?"
The man's voice was low, with a hint of contempt in his tone.
Shen Niannian quickly put back the surprise in her eyes, put her hands on her hips and said angrily: "No!"
"You hurt my nose by bumping it, please pay me!"
When she first came to Kyoto, she learned that her second brother was being held in a cell. She felt very unhappy and needed a place to vent.
If someone bumps into her without her eyesight, she won't be polite.