Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 286 Substitute
At this moment, all the palace maids around her were still kneeling, but Yan Ciwan was the only one who stood up, making her stand out.

She could clearly feel many subtle gazes lingering on her.

The feeling of being observed made her very uncomfortable. After bowing to the Emperor and Consort Jin, she quickly left the place.

Back in the West Annex, Yan Ciwan took down her hair, letting the wet hair fall loose. Then she took a towel and sat in front of the dressing table, slowly wiping her hair while pondering what the emperor was trying to do.
The sudden concern and the unabashedly intimate gestures she had just witnessed sent chills down her spine.

She knew that she and her mother looked somewhat alike. When the emperor saw her, would he recall the past and treat her as a substitute for his mother?

The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she felt, and she frantically prayed that her guess wouldn't come true.

Autumn frost brought tonight's dinner.

Yan Ciwan dried her hair and sat down at the table, only to find that the dishes had finally changed: sesame pancakes, steamed duck, shrimp soup, crystal dragon and phoenix cake, and milk tofu.

These are all foods her mother loves to eat, especially milk tofu, which her mother used to make for her often.

She took a bite of the milk tofu; it was sweet, soft, and smooth, melting in her mouth with a rich milky aroma and an excellent taste, but it didn't taste the same as the milk tofu her mother used to make.

Seeing that she only took one bite before putting down her chopsticks, Qiu Shuang couldn't help but ask.

"Doesn't this milk tofu taste good?"

Yan Ciwan frowned and said, "It tastes a bit sour. Has this milk tofu gone bad?"

Qiu Shuang was surprised: "How could it be sour? I just saw the imperial chef pack the milk tofu into the food box with my own eyes. This milk tofu was made fresh by the imperial chef, it couldn't possibly be spoiled."

Yan Ciwan pushed the plate in front of her over: "I don't know if there's something wrong with my tongue, can you taste it for me and see if this milk tofu really tastes sour?"

Qiu Shuang hesitated for a moment, but finally followed Yan Ciwan's suggestion, picked up a piece of milk tofu and put it in her mouth, savoring it carefully.

She said, "This milk tofu is sweet, not sour at all."

Yan Ciwan sighed: "It might really be a problem with my tongue. Luckily, I asked you to taste it for me, otherwise I would have wrongly accused the imperial chef."

Qiu Shuang put down her chopsticks and asked, "Should we ask the imperial physician to take a look at you?"

"It's so late, don't bother the imperial physician to run around. I may have caught a cold from the night wind, which is why my tongue is temporarily malfunctioning. I'll get a good night's sleep tonight, and I might be fine by tomorrow morning."

"Alright then, if you feel unwell anywhere else, please be sure to tell me, and I will go and fetch the imperial physician for you."

Yan Ciwan nodded to indicate that she understood, then picked up her chopsticks and slowly continued eating.

She hadn't forgotten her status as a suspect. Logically, she should be locked up and eating prison food right now, but she was eating and sleeping well in this fairy palace, and even had people serving her. Apart from not having any freedom, it was practically a life of paradise.

This is so weird!

Yan Ciwan noticed that Qiu Shuang swayed twice and immediately asked, "What's wrong?"

Qiu Shuang shook her head vigorously: "This servant feels a little dizzy."

"You may have caught a cold from me. Colds can cause dizziness and drowsiness. You should lie down and rest."

"But...but I still need to serve you your meal..."

Yan Ciwan stood up: "I've finished eating, I don't need you to serve me anymore."

Qiu Shuang wanted to go over and clear the dishes, but her head was getting dizzier and her vision was getting blurrier. In the end, she couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed to the ground.

Yan Ciwan leaned over and poked her face.

"Wake up."

Qiu Shuang lay motionless with her eyes closed, her breathing long and shallow, clearly fast asleep. Yan Ciwan smiled; it seemed she hadn't guessed wrong—the incense pills Xiao Wang had provided had the effect of inducing a short-term drowsiness.

Earlier, she had scraped off some powder from the fragrant pills with her fingernails. Just now, when she pushed the milk tofu in front of Qiushuang, she secretly sprinkled the powder hidden under her fingernails into the milk tofu.

The milky white powder landed on the milk tofu, which was also milky white, and almost blended into it, making it difficult to distinguish with the naked eye.

Qiu Shuang ate the laced milk tofu without realizing it, and now that the medicine is taking effect, she can sleep for at least half an hour.

Yan Ciwan dragged her to the bed, exchanged clothes with her, covered her with a blanket, and turned her body over so that her face was facing the inner wall.

In this way, outsiders would not be able to see the face of the person sleeping in the bed and would naturally assume that this person is Yan Ciwan.

Yan Ciwan specially styled her hair in the same bun as Qiu Shuang. She put the bowls and plates on the table into a food box, then carried the food box in one hand, covered her mouth and nose with an embroidered handkerchief in the other, and walked out of the West Side Hall with her head down.

She walked toward the courtyard gate, but the guards stopped her and asked her a question.

"What are you going to do?"

Yan Ciwan coughed twice, then said in a hoarse voice, "Madam Ning has just finished her dinner, so I'm taking the dishes to be washed."

What's wrong with your voice?

"I caught a cold and my throat hurts a bit. I'll boil some loquat water to drink later and I should be fine."

After she finished speaking, she coughed softly twice.

It was already completely dark by then. Even though palace lanterns were hanging under the eaves, the light was still very dim. In addition, she kept her head down, so the two Imperial Guards could not see her face clearly.

They exchanged a glance, about to conduct a thorough investigation, when they suddenly heard a voice behind them.

"Is the Sage currently inside the Immortal Abode Palace?"

The two Imperial Guards turned their heads at the same time, looked in the direction of the sound, and saw Si Buping walking in their direction.

They first clasped their hands in a salute, and then said, "His Majesty is inside the hall. May I ask what business the Grand Secretary has with us?"

"I have found some clues about the Five Gods Sect. I need to report to the Sage. Please go in and inform him for me."

"Yes."

One of the Imperial Guards turned and ran into the Immortal Abode Palace, while the other Imperial Guard remained standing in place.

Si Buping glanced at Yan Ciwan, who was still standing there, and said coldly, "Which palace maid are you? What are you doing standing here all this time?"

Yan Ciwan immediately bowed and said, "This servant is acting on the orders of His Majesty to serve Ning Ci's Qiushuang. This servant greets the Grand Master."

"Since the Sage has ordered you to serve Ning Ci, you must stay by Ning Ci's side without leaving him for even a moment. How can you abandon your post?!"

Yan Ciwan knew that the other party must have recognized her. Si Buping had just helped her out of a predicament, but judging from Si Buping's attitude, he obviously didn't want her to leave Xianju Palace.

She explained in a hoarse voice, "I'm going to take these dishes to be washed. I'll be back soon."

"You can leave such trivial matters to other palace maids. Your job is to serve Ning Ci. You don't need to worry about anything else."

The Imperial Guard responsible for relaying the message returned quickly and said to Si Buping, "The Emperor summons you in."

Si Buping glanced at Yan Ciwan and said in a deep voice, "What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and go back to serve Ning Ci properly!"

Yan Ciwan was very unwilling, but with the Imperial Guards watching over her, if she insisted on going against Si Buping, it would definitely arouse their suspicion.

In the end, she could only reluctantly reply, "Yes."