At Prince Yi's Manor...
On a spacious machilus chair carved with dragons and phoenixes, was a man who was incredibly handsome against the black garment with golden trim. His profile was as delicate as being carved, and his good looks were beyond description. And under the black crown decorated with a dragon design, his beautiful eyes were deep and as bottomless abyss and as dark as pure black ink, without a trace of light.
There was a gorgeous invitation card among his slender fingers, and several rubies on the invitation letter had crumbed by him.
With a strange smile on his thin lips, he asked coldly, "Was this invitation card sent from the imperial palace?"
"Yes. It was just sent here from the imperial palace. Prince Yi, they had sent the same invitation card to you before, but they worried that you might forget it, so they asked their people to send another one," Eunuch Wang answered carefully. His master did not seem to be
Several branches of plum blossom stretched out from the heavy and thick imperial palace wall. A girl stood beside the wall gracefully. On her fair face was a pair of gentle eyes that sparkled with wisdom, and they were watery, as if covered with a thin layer of fog. Although she had not well-developed yet, from her extremely delicate and beautiful features, everybody could tell that she would become an extremely beautiful lady in the future. The snow-white imperial chiffon she wore fluttered in the wind, accentuating her slender waist. She looked beautiful and smart, but a little bit cold. Under the plum blossom, it felt like this pretty girl was originally part of the beautiful scenery. It was unbelievable! It was said Fifth Young Lady of the Lord Protector's Manor was both ugly and unsociable. These rumors were all nonsense! The best things were always hidden before they were shown. Everyone felt that Ning Qingshan was extremely charming after leaving t
Xia Yuhang was frozen at sight of Ning Xueyan. He stood still at the gate of the garden, looking both excited and shocked. He clenched his slender fingers into a fist and pressed it on his chest, trying to keep a lid on his pounding heart. He didn't know how many times he had seen the familiar gentle, watery and jet-black eyes in his dream. When he saw them again, he was so surprised and overjoyed that he couldn't keep his calm anymore. He strode toward Ning Xueyan, and in his eyes, there was nothing but the bright and familiar eyes. She was still alive! It was true that she was still alive! Ning Xueyan and Heng Yuqing had chosen their seats. They entered the gate of the Plum Garden, with Heng Yuqing in front and Ning Xueyan behind, and was about to walk inside before a well-dressed girl suddenly appeared in front of them and deliberated gave a push of Ning Xueyan. Without any preparations, Ning Xueyan took severa
"Fifth Sister, what's wrong with you? Are you okay?" Ning Qingshan came over to them from aside and asked solicitously as soon as Ning Xueyan and Heng Yuqing sat down. From where she had sat just now, she could see what had happened inside the garden, but not outside. Seeing that Ning Xueyan had been knocked fly out the gate, she was excited, and when she saw that Ling Xue was dragged out by two guards and heard the screaming of a woman, she was surer that Ning Xueyan had gotten into big troubles. Even Ling Xue who had just given her a push suffered for it, so obviously, the consequence was serious. But she became confused when she saw what had happened next. Prince Yi, who was well-known for his ruthlessness, came in with a woman in a veil, and after a short while she saw Ning Xueyan! "So Ning Xueyan has bumped against the cold-blooded Prince Yi?" Ning Qingshan immediately disproved this assumption. If Ning Xueya
"Noble Young Ladies?" Ao Chenyi glanced at all the female guests, and suddenly pointed at a Young lady with a sneer. "Can the outstanding Third Young Lady from the Lord Protector's Manor be taken as a noble Young Lady?" he asked. Since Ning Qingshan returned to the manor, news about her had been widely spread. Besides, Third Prince had visited her in person at the Lord Protector's Manor, so everyone had thought that she was Ao Mingyu's woman. Now Ao Chenyi talked about her in such a cold and frivolous voice, having no more respect for her than for a prostitute. Ao Mingyu was the distinguished prince with pure royal blood, he had never been humiliated like this. When he heard that the woman he had a crush on had been despised like this, his smile froze, and a strong sense of killing appeared in the depth of his eyes. Ao Chenyi was so powerful that even Ao Mingyu's father, the emperor, dared not to be in conflict with him openly.
Ning Xueyan pulled Heng Yuqing's hand and stopped her. She nodded with a smile and removed a jade bracelet from her wrist. She passed it to the palace maid and said, "Thank you very much for telling me about this. Please accept it as my thanks." "Thank you so much, Fifth Young Lady!" From the precious gem set on the bracelet, she could tell the bracelet was very valuable. The palace maid hadn't expected that she would get this benefit by conveying a note for others. She took the bracelet joyfully and bowed to Ning Xueyan. Then she put the note into Ning Xueyan's hand and turned to leave. Ning Xueyan turned her head and said something to Lanning. Lanning nodded and then walked toward a palace maid who was standing behind the banquet table with a smile. She whispered in the palace maid's ear, looked a little embarrassed. Then the palace maid nodded and led Lanning out. Ning Xueyan spread the note in front of her and Heng Yuqing, and began to r
Following Lanning's finger, Ning Xueyan saw another man appeared in the Graceful Moon Pavilion after Xia Yuhang had just left. From behind, he looked quite similar like Xia Yuhang, and at first glance, they looked about the same height, the same size, and even the same standing posture! If she had not been too familiar with Xia Yuhang in her last life, Ning Xueyan must have mistaken that man for Xia Yuhang. A cold smile appeared on her pale lips. "Ning Qingshan is really a vicious woman! In order to get rid of me, she has tried every means!" she thought. "It must be because Xia Yuhang happened walked into the pavilion, that man did not show up just now. That man must be hiding somewhere nearby, so I would have been found out if I showed my face in the pavilion," Ning Xueyan thought. She was sure that there was something odd about that yard behind the wall. Xia Yuhang had just gotten down the artificial hill and gone to that yard.
Ao Mingyu turned the corner and strode toward the artificial hill with a dark face, without taking anyone with him. Suddenly, a person appeared in his way. He stopped and looked at this person coldly. To his surprise, it was Ning Xueyan, who had a graceful smile on her jade-like face. "Sorry, Third Prince. I was playing with my maid, and got in your way by accident," Ning Xueyan stood still and apologized, her beautiful eyes misting. After a little dressing up, she was softer and less cold than usual. She had come from the exit of the Plum Garden which was close to the female seats. Looking at the frightened maid who stood behind her, Ao Mingyu believed that they were in a panic. "Why didn't you rest there, but came here?" His face softened and a smile appeared on it. "It's my first time to the imperial palace, so I wanted to come out and have a look at the beautiful scenery around here. I was thinking about going
"Eee? Which manor is that Young Lady from? She is so unruly that she was even dating Li Zhiwen, the playboy! Does she have a crush on him?" "From her look, I can tell that she isn't a well-behaved woman. I wonder what she likes Li Zhiwen about." "They even dare to date secretly in the imperial palace. Maybe they've been having an affair for a long time!" "Definitely! From the happiness in her eyes, I can tell that they have an affair. It's a pity that such a beautiful lady likes a scum! It's said Li Zhiwen has already gotten married, and his wife is very aggressive. So this Young Lady can only be his concubine." "She is so beautiful, but she has no self-respect and has fallen to this degree. It's easy for her to marry a noble childe as his wife, but it seems she prefers to be a concubine. How shameless!" The noble childes behind the wall discussed, looking at Ning Xueyan with disdain and contempt. Th
"What will you do now?" Ning Xueyan had to take two quick steps to catch up with Ao Chenyi's pace. "Destroy the nine barbarian states alongside Wen Xueran?""No." Ao Chenyi raised an eyebrow and smiled mysteriously. "I'll negotiate with Wen Xueran."Confused, she repeated, "Negotiate?""The people of the nine barbarian states have always been different from those of the central plains. They're valiant and barbaric. For many years, they have wanted to invade us. If it weren't for the princes of Annan holding down the front, the nine barbarian states would have attacked us a long time ago. Annan troops have fought the nine barbarian states more than our troops did, and they have a better chance of winning too."Ao Chenyi said calmly. He didn't like the nine barbarian states in the slightest. If it weren't his father forbidding him from going to the faraway hinterland of the nine barbarian states, where death was almost certain, he wo
It didn't take long for Qingyu to return from the Lord Protector's Manor with a new piece of news. It was said that there had been a haunting in the prayer hall of the manor.Rumor had it that an older maid became ill from the fright of seeing a ghost.A long time ago, the Cloud Reflection Courtyard was said to be haunted too. No one dared to come close at that time, not even during the day. Even though the rumors died down later on, a few people who were deeply affected by the events said that the situation was still grave then.Therefore, even though only a maid had seen the ghost, the rumors spread like wildfire in the manor.The prayer hall used to be Madam Dowager's favorite spot. It was later used to imprison Madam Ling for some time. Now that Madam Ling was dead, everyone feared that she was the ghost. It was said that Madam Ling was an evil woman when she was alive. Even in death, she might become a malicious ghost. The sit
Ao Chenyi was so close that his handsome face was all that Ning Xueyan could see, and he didn't look all that happy. Then, she realized that she had been holding tightly onto a strand of his black hair.She flung her hand and hastily released the strand of hair in her hand. She even caressed the hair on his temples with a wide smile. "Why are you here? When did you come? Why didn't you wake me up?"Ning Xueyan looked truly confused as if she really didn't know that she had grabbed Ao Chenyi's hair until it hurt."Playing dumb, huh?" he said coldly, frowning at her. His slender fingers reached out and lightly pinched the wing of her nose."Ouch!" Ning Xueyan held her nose pitifully. Her limpid eyes seemed glazed over as if brewing tears."Now you know it hurts!" Ao Chenyi's thin lips were curved into a smile. He was satisfied to see her not daring to voice her frustration.Ning Xueyan nodded firmly without
"Can you remember it now?" Ao Chenyi narrowed his eyes and knocked on their table with his slender fingers. His voice sounded a tad threatening."I… I really can't remember." Ning Xueyan felt like she had thought of all the possible answers but she was still coming up empty. She had no choice but to admit her fault."You really can't remember?" His beautiful eyes curved into a charming arc and his expression was sinister. Sure enough, this was a bad situation to be in. She didn't even hesitate to grab his hand with a bright smile on her tender face."Even if I can't remember, you can still remind me, right?" She knew it would pay well to cajole this man.Ao Chenyi wasn't polite with her either. He turned his hand over and pinched her soft face. His expression had improved considerably. There was a faint smile on his face as he asked, "If I tell you, can you really understand and remember what it is?""Of course I can!"
It seemed that at this point of the letter, the Empress couldn't continue anymore. There were only tear stains on the paper, followed by wide empty spaces.Then, the Empress said how reassured she was that Madam Ming would be taking care of her newborn. Madam Ming would be a fine mother. She had also asked someone to watch over Madam Ming and the newborn. Their statuses in the previous dynasty had vanished like smoke. Time was always moving forward and the changing of imperial dynasties was inevitable.The only tragedy was the eternal separation of her from her husband, and of her from her daughters.The only reason she had written the letter was that she couldn't help herself. If she never said anything, her child would never know the truth. That would have been for the best. Yet, she couldn't accept this, so she would hand the letter to the person who would be looking after Madam Ming. If Ning Ziying's identity was revealed to the world one d
The news of Ning Zu'an's death shocked everyone in the Lord Protector's Manor. Even though the title had been passed onto Ning Huaijing, Ning Zu'an was the patriarch of the family. Even without the title, he was still the most authoritative figure in the manor.Madam Dowager collapsed as soon as she heard the news of his death. She became ill and bedridden, unable to get up.Ning Xueyan couldn't leave the palace freely due to her status as the Empress. She sent Qingyu and Mother Han to the manor and had them inquire about Madam Dowager's health in her place. Mother Han returned to Prince Yi's Manor afterward while Qingyu entered the palace to report to Ning Xueyan.It was inconvenient for Mother Han to live in the palace because she had a son to take care of. Instead of entering the palace with Ning Xueyan, she stayed in Prince Yi's Manor as the housekeeper. Ning Xueyan was prepared to release her from the manor when the situation stabilized in
"The Empress discovered a secret tunnel under Chenyuan Palace by accident. She never told anyone about it. She even killed the maid that discovered the tunnel with her and accompanied her in walking through the tunnel. In other words, she was the only one who knew about it," Ning Xueyan explained.This was the Empress' secret. To prove it, she used Yun Luoluo's incident as an example. When Ning Xueyan was drugged in Chenyuan Palace, the Empress wanted to take her to a room. There, a man would sneak into the palace through the secret tunnel.If Ning Xueyan woke up and discovered herself in disheveled clothes in the presence of another man, she would surely panic. To protect her secret, she would surely agree with whatever the Empress wanted. The Empress wanted to use Ning Xueyan to force Ao Chenyi into accepting his "affair" with Yun Luoluo.Unfortunately, Ao Chenyi had appeared all of a sudden. She didn't dare to do anything with him around, so
Ao Chenyi didn't try to persuade her this time. This had bothered her for so long that she would continue to suffer for it if she didn't cry it out now. He held her tighter and allowed her to wet the front of his robe. She didn't brawl. All she did was close her eyes and let her tears stream down her face. When her tears finally dried, she sat quietly in Ao Chenyi's embrace for a long time.It was so quiet inside the room that she could finally calm down.Her hands were being held so tightly in Ao Chenyi's hand that she could feel the callus in his palm. He was Prince Yi, the late Emperor's beloved prince who grew up to be the infamous Demon King. Those who mentioned his name would often be frightened and alarmed. Only she knew how difficult his life had been.Ao Chenyi was still young when he drew his elder brother's jealousy and suspicion. He was framed, imprisoned, and nearly died. His fiancee abandoned him at his lowest point, sought shelte
"It was and wasn't an accident. He could only blame himself. No matter what, he was the one who forced my hand and cornered me to this state. He ruined my everything. Him dying in my hands could be considered as his retribution."The Empress began to look calm again. She turned her head and stared at Ning Xueyan with a trace of sadness in her eyes. "I invited you here to ask you to let go of my family. It's all my fault and has nothing to do with my family. They're just a small and useless noble family. In exchange for their safety, I'll tell you a secret."Her voice had lost her previous agitation and anger, leaving only a sense of helplessness. She had never put any hope in her family. She thought that she would be able to help her people after gaining power but now that she was in trouble, she was worried that her family would be implicated and sentenced to death.She had resented her family countless times for marrying her off to the Empero