Ning Qingshan watched Ning Lingyun lead Ning Xueyan away. Then she let down the curtain in her hand, and there was a complacent smile on her face. She was smart. The matter of Ning Lingyun framing Ning Xueyan had been instigated by her, secretly. She had already known that Ning Lingyun wanted to frame Ning Xueyan from the many clues, and to break off the engagement with Princely Heir of Commandery Prince Li too.
The best way was to let Ao Xian ruin Ning Xueyan's innocence, and at the same time let others discover it.
Then Ning Xueyan, whose reputation would be ruined, could only be a concubine of Princely Heir of Commandery Prince Li. At the same time, what Princely Heir of Commandery Prince Li did, would also make Ning Zu'an angry and his engagement with Ning Lingyun would be called off, and Ning Lingyun would be free again.
It was a perfect plan, but Ning Qinshan did not believe Ning Lingyun, so she made another backup plan. If Ning Lingyu
When they arrived at the courtyard where they had rested previously, before they entered, they saw Ning Lingyun's maid and the older female servant who was in charge of guarding the door, standing at the door, as if in a trance. They were staring with horror at whatever was inside the room, and shouting loudly. The shrill cries even could be heard clearly in the courtyards nearby, not to mention the courtyard here. "What's the matter?" Ning Lingyun forced herself to ask. "Princely Heir... there... the Third Young Lady, they... " The maid reached out and pointed inside. She was so frightened that she trembled and stammered. Before she finished speaking, a sharper and even more frightening scream rang out, then the sound of something falling to the ground could be heard. The screen that blocked the view was knocked to the ground, making a loud noise. Under the surprised eyes of everyone, Ao Xian fell out together wi
But it was too late when Ning Huaiyuan and Ao Mingyu thought of looking for Ning Lingyun and Ning Xueyan. They rushed to the gate and the doorman reported to them that the two young ladies had left. Ning Lingyun cried a lot while walking out, and she could not stop crying even after getting in the carriage with the help of her maid. The others by her side persuaded her and the passers-by faintly heard that she was talking about something related to her third sister and Princely Heir of Commandery Prince Li. It seemed that the scandal could no longer be hidden. As expected, Ning Lingyun's crying on her way aroused many people's attention. Some snoops even followed behind the carriage to the Lord Protector's Manor, and they heard the conversation clearly when the maid was persuading Ning Lingyun in the carriage. Therefore, before Ning Lingyun could step into the Lord Protector's Manor, the rumors had spread, saying that Third Young Lady of the
Ning Lingyun's personal maid, Caiyun, had witnessed the dramatic change of the matter and she was scared. "Miss, what shall we do?" she asked, trembling. She had seen that her master had to change her mind under Fifth Young Lady's threat. According to Fifth Young Lady's instruction, her master had to ask her to go to Third Young Lady's room on the pretext of finding earrings. Then she had seen Princely Heir of Commandery Prince Li in Third Young Lady's room. Things had not been undergoing as Ning Qingshan had plotted and Ning Lingyun had been on the back foot. Ning Xueyan had not only figured out Ning Lingyun's plot, but also hinted her that Third Prince had never had a crush on her. It had made Ning Lingyun lose her mind. She had subconsciously agreed to follow Ning Xueyan's words because she was so scared of her. She had never thought that Caiyun would have found out something so shocking in Ning Qingshan's room. However, to
After getting into the carriage, Ning Xueyan found a comfortable place to rest with her eyes closed. She would mainly go to one cloth shop to tailor clothes for the servants of the manor. That shop had been brought to the Lord Protector's Manor as Madam Ming's dowry and Madam Ming used to be its owner. Now it had been taken by the Lord Protector's Manor, to be exactly, by Madam Ling. The shopkeeper, Mr. Yu, was a special person. Ning Xueyan had come out today mainly to meet him. She hoped that she could figure out if Mr. Yu was still on her mother's side or he had really already taken Madam Ling as his master. All the shopkeepers would submit the account books of their shops tomorrow. She would choose some people who were still grateful to Madam Ming from these shopkeepers. The shops were Madam Ming's dowry, so she would not allow Madam Ling to take them! Although not the busiest, the street in which the shop was situated was c
A luxurious and bright-colored carriage crossed the street slowly. Seeing the big blood-red manjusaka pattern on the extremely spacious carriage, everyone lowered their heads and moved aside, without making any noise. Even those little kids who had no sense of danger sensed the tension in the air. They snuggled up to their parents and looked at the carriage in fear, closing their little mouths tightly. All the people in the capital knew that the carriage belonged to Prince Yi, so nobody dared to stand in his way. Ao Chenyi leaned against the soft couch lazily, his long legs dangling aside casually. The robe he wore was in the same color as the carriage, making his handsome face a little enchanting. When he raised his head, people did not dare to look at him, because the look in his eyes was too icy. Two beautiful palace maids knelt on the two sides of the carriage, each holding a food box above their heads. Obviously, Ao Chenyi had no intere
Realizing that things were getting worse, the middle-aged woman rushed out the crowd and disappeared into the distance soon, leaving the dress on the floor. Everyone had just realized that she had tried to blackmail this shop. They were angry and began to curse her. However, as soon as they saw the black robe on the tall, straight and handsome man behind them, they all stopped cursing and went dumb. Covering their mouths, they rushed out the shop in the blink of an eye. "Is he Prince Yi, the terrible killer of the capital? I have never thought that he is so handsome!" some people thought while running away. Ning Xueyan saw Ao Chenyi now, wondering why he had come here. She blinked her jet-black eyes and walked toward him. "Greetings, Prince Yi." She bowed to him. "Fifth Young Lady, you are so eloquent! I watched a wonderful show just now." A trace of idle smile appeared on Ao Chenyi's charming face. He walked inside and sat dow
Ao Chenyi was in a good mood when he returned to his manor. Instead of heading for the study, he walked to the backyard, looking relaxed. Yu Jian was reporting to him something, a step away behind him. He was Ao Chenyi's henchman, and they had grown up together. "Prince Yi, what shall we do next?" Yu Jian asked after reporting the latest news to Ao Chenyi. He had learned from the imperial palace that the emperor was determined to choose a consort for Prince Yi. Those candidates were all from noble, but not powerful families. Every three years, the imperial palace would hold the Beauty Contest to choose concubines for the imperial male members. The emperor wanted to take this opportunity to choose a woman for Prince Yi so that Prince Yi could not refuse again. So obviously, he had been provoked and was determined to meddle in the affairs of Prince Yi's backyard. "Three years on. The Beauty Contest is coming again!" Ao Chenyi stopped and looke
In fact, it was not too difficult for her to accept the fact. She had been hurt to the core by love in her last life and she had been reborn for revenge, so she did not care who she would marry. If she could survive after revenge, she wished that she would marry an ordinary man, instead of an extremely moody and dangerous person, like Prince Yi, Ao Chenyi. "Prince Yi, I'm so flattered. I dare not expect to marry you." Seeing a trace of bloodthirsty flashing in his eyes, Ning Xueyan sighed secretly. She shifted the topic and continued, "Prince Yi, I'm very happy that I have you as my back." She knew that she could not change Prince Yi's mind. She had thought that the Lord Protector's Manor would consider about her marriage in two or three years at least. By that point, she would be strong enough and even Ning Zu'an and Madam Dowager could not push her around at will. But now she was still too weak, and without any mental preparation, Prince Y
"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