Shen San is also of the legitimate branch, the legitimate son of the Second Household. Because he was injured since childhood and couldn’t join the military, he excelled in social affairs and was skilled at handling household responsibilities. He was close to Sixth Master Shen and was loyal to him, so he stayed in the mansion, helping with household affairs alongside Grandma Shen San.

Nowadays, the couple resides in one of the rear adjoining courtyards in the west wing of the mansion.

Behind the Shen Mansion, across an alley, are two slightly smaller houses where the legitimate branches of the Second and Third Households reside. Surrounding these three houses are many connected dwellings of varying sizes, where many members of the Shen clan live. These are considered collateral lines, with varying degrees of familial closeness. Most of the Shen family members are either soldiers or scholars pursuing civil service examinations.

At the front of the east wing of the Shen Mansion is a very large training field, where martial arts teachers instruct the young men in horsemanship, archery, and martial skills. The Shen family also has a clan school, with all expenses borne by the legitimate branch of the First Household. All Shen family descendants, regardless of proximity, are allowed to attend. Of course, some families with excellent conditions prefer to have a teacher separately tutor their children. For example, Shen Jiu is like this.

Speaking of Shen Jiu, one inevitably thinks of Lady Shi.

Old Master Shen, Lady Shi, and Shen Jiu hold a special status within the Shen Family.

Old Master Shen is now over fifty years old. At this age, it is not quite middle-aged, but not yet time to retire. Normally, he should be the head of the Shen family, before it passes to Sixth Master Shen.

After learning of the existence of Old Master Shen and Lady Shi, this matter puzzled Lian Manman for a period of time. Only recently, from Grandma Shen San and others, did she learn the general reason.

The Shen family rose to prominence through military achievements. Thus, the ancestors set the family rules, requiring each head of the family to practice martial arts, join the military, and hold a military position. However, when it came to Old Master Shen, he developed a preference for literary pursuits and dislike for martial arts. Shen Liu’s grandfather, the father of Old Master Shen, initially held hope for him, thinking that even though he preferred literature and was less skilled in martial arts, as long as he could govern the military, the Shen family had competent generals to support him. But what disappointed Shen Liu’s grandfather was that Old Master Shen not only had no interest in governing the military, but also lacked talent.

The final outcome was that Shen Liu’s grandfather chose Shen Liu among Shen Liu’s brothers as the heir. Shen Liu was already the most outstanding among the brothers and the grandfather’s favorite, so this decision wasn’t too difficult for him.

Even so, at that time, Shen Liu’s grandfather hadn’t completely given up on Old Master Shen. But Old Master Shen again disobeyed Shen Liu’s grandfather’s wishes on another matter.

Shen Liu and Shen Jin were both born to the first wife of Old Master Shen. This original wife was chosen by Shen Liu’s grandfather for Old Master Shen and was naturally liked by the elder. Unfortunately, she fell ill and passed away when Shen Jin was very young. Following his father’s orders, Old Master Shen married a second wife.

This second wife soon contracted an illness and died, leaving behind no offspring.

After his second wife’s death, Old Master Shen observed the mourning period, then married his third wife, the current Lady Shi. This marriage was strongly opposed by Shen Liu’s grandfather, yet Old Master Shen was resolute. He knelt outside Shen Liu’s grandfather’s door for a day and night in the biting cold, vowing to marry Lady Shi.

There is no father who can watch his son die.

In the end, Old Master Shen fulfilled his wish to marry Lady Shi, but completely lost the right to succeed as the head of the family. However, he gained the freedom he had always longed for, departing the Shen family’s system and joining the court as a civil official. Lady Shi, being disliked by her father-in-law, although she was the first son’s wife, she had no authority to manage affairs.

Therefore, although Old Master Shen’s dwelling is in the middle wing of the Shen Mansion, he relinquished the proper main quarters for Sixth Master Shen to reside in.

Currently, Old Master Shen has served as a court official in the Capital City for several years, and now personally requested to take a position in a southwestern province. Naturally, Lady Shi followed him. Compared to Old Master Shen losing the right to succeed as head of the family, Lady Shi found it even harder to stand her ground in the Shen Residence. Only after she gave birth to Shen Jiu did she voluntarily hand Shen Jiu over for adoption to the Fourth Household, which had no offspring. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Shen Jiu, when very young, left Lady Shi’s side, and when he grew older, he followed Sixth Master Shen, who took responsibility for his upbringing.

Over the years, Lady Shi never contended for the authority of the butler, always cautious around Shen Liu and Shen Jin, never daring to show a stepmother’s demeanor. Additionally, her arrangement for her only biological son, Shen Jiu, gradually helped her to secure a foothold in the Shen family.

Lian Manman was able to understand these matters naturally due to indications from those in power within the Shen family. However, no one explained these past events to her in detail, leaving many questions unanswered.

For instance, why the Shen family opposed Lady Shi entering the family, why it was so difficult for her to establish herself within the Shen family. From the snippets of conversation she heard, Lian Manman could infer that the reasons behind this were more complex than Old Master Shen’s literary preference and disdain for martial arts that were openly mentioned or apparent.

Of course, despite the mysteries, Lian Manman gained a deeper understanding of the Shen family.

For example, she finally understood why Shen Liu had to bear heavy responsibilities at such a young age. She also understood why Shen Jiu was not close to Lady Shi, but instead closer to Shen Liu and Shen Jin, and why he held a special status within the Shen family.

This is the situation of the Prefecture City Shen Family. As for the other households of the legitimate branch, they are scattered across different areas of Liaodong Prefecture. Among them, two households are located in the Border Town, and the descendants are all in the military, with close ties to Shen Liu.

"Double Ninth Festival is almost here, your family is all here, and Sixth Master will return as well, it’s going to be lively!" Grandma Shen San said with a smile.

...

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