Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 292 The Supreme Ruler
A satisfied smile appeared on the sage's face.

He likes well-behaved children the most.

“You are not some wild child, you are the child of me and A-Yang.”

Yan Ciwan respectfully admitted his mistake: "It was my fault for speaking incorrectly. I hope Father will forgive me."

The word "Aye" gave the sage a special feeling. He had three sons and two daughters, and all of them called him Father Emperor. No one had ever called him "Aye" as affectionately as Ning Ci.

His expression softened involuntarily: "I cannot give you the title of princess for the time being, but you can continue to live in the palace, and your food, clothing and daily necessities will all be in accordance with the standards of a princess."

Yan Ciwan immediately said, "Thank you for your kindness, Father, but I have very important matters to attend to and cannot stay in the palace to serve you."

"What is this matter of great importance? Tell me."

Yan Ciwan knew that the Sage and the Five Gods Sect were enemies. She might be able to use the Sage's power to deal with the Five Gods Sect. When they fought each other, she could take advantage of the chaos to rescue the old woman.

She pretended to be hesitant, biting her lower lip tightly, with an expression that suggested she wanted to say something but couldn't.

The sage said, "There are only you and me, father and daughter, here. If you have any unspeakable difficulties, please speak freely."

Yan Ciwan took a deep breath, as if she were going all out, and suddenly knelt down: "My grandmother has been kidnapped by the Five Gods Sect. I promised my mother that I would take good care of her. I must rescue her. I beg my father to let me leave the palace."

In the end, she kowtowed deeply to the saint.

The sage hadn't expected this. He told Yan Ciwan to get up and then asked, "Why did the Five Gods Sect kidnap your grandmother?"

Yan Ciwan wiped away her tears and said, her voice choked with sobs.

“Originally, I didn’t understand the Five Gods Sect’s intentions. But last night, when my father told me about my mother, I finally had a guess. Perhaps the Five Gods Sect already knew about my relationship with my father. They wanted to use my grandmother to lure me into their trap, and then manipulate me to plot against my father.”

After pondering for a moment, the sage concluded that such a possibility did indeed exist.

He asked Yan Ciwan to recount the entire story of how the old woman was kidnapped.

Yan Ciwan obediently did as she was told. She recounted her experiences in Yizhou, skipping over the parts about the Soul Separation Syndrome and the Longevity Formula.

The Sage already knew about the black market in Yizhou from Si Buping, but at this moment he still listened quietly to Yan Ciwan finish speaking.

Finally, he said, "Give me the token, and I will order someone to go to the West Market to find that foreign merchant named An Tong, and start by investigating the black market in Chang'an from his perspective."

Yan Ciwan was unwilling. She said, "The Five Gods Sect deliberately leaked Grandma's information to me in order to lure me into their trap. If I don't show myself, I'm afraid they will harm Grandma. So let me go to the West Market myself."

"This is too dangerous."

"I'll do anything to ensure Grandma's safety!"

The emperor saw the determination in her eyes and sighed helplessly: "I have instructed Si Buping to cooperate with you. You must remember not to act impulsively, and inform me immediately if there are any problems."

Yan Ciwan's face lit up with joy: "Thank you so much, Father!"

The emperor suddenly changed the subject and asked, "The crown prince was originally your fiancé, but now he has become your elder brother. You certainly cannot marry him. However, Yan Tingyu has indeed committed the crime of deceiving the emperor. In your opinion, how should I deal with this matter?"

Yan Ciwan's expression turned extremely distressed. "I don't know what to do about this either."

The sage scrutinized her expression and asked meaningfully, "Yan Tingyu first took your life, and then impersonated you. Don't you hate her at all?"

"Of course I hate her, but my top priority right now is to rescue the old woman. I care more about the safety of my family than revenge."

The sage was satisfied with her answer.

He praised her, saying, "You are very filial, which is good. Don't worry, although Yan Tingyu has taken your place as a princess, you are now a princess and your status is still above hers. Let her live for a few more days. Once you rescue your grandmother, you can take your revenge however you want, and I will help you."

Yan Ciwan hesitated for a moment: "Yan Tingyu is, after all, the daughter of the King of Xizhou. If I really kill her, the King of Xizhou might cause trouble..."

"The reason why Yan Tingyu was able to impersonate you and come to Chang'an so smoothly must have been due to the secret assistance of the King of Xizhou. He is also guilty of deceiving the emperor. Even if Yan Tingyu does not die, I will not let him off easily."

Yan Ciwan thought to himself, "Just as I thought. The Sage doesn't care about Yan Tingyu's life or death at all. All he wants is a reason to get rid of the King of Xizhou and take back his military power."

She asked cautiously, "Does the Crown Prince know about these things?"

"He doesn't know yet." The Emperor chuckled softly, seeing her worried expression. "Are you worried that the Crown Prince won't be able to accept the truth when he finds out?"

Yan Ciwan nodded.

"You really know how to care for him. Don't worry, as the future master of the Great Cause, if he can't even understand this little thing, he doesn't deserve to be the crown prince."

The sage appeared relaxed and at ease, yet his words were like icy blades, chilling one to the bone.

Yan Ciwan lowered her eyes, thinking to herself that this was the emperor. In his eyes, everyone except herself was a pawn that could be discarded at will.

If her mother were still alive, what would she think if she saw the person she once loved become so cold and heartless?
The sage looked her up and down, and then casually uttered a sigh.

"It's a pity you're a daughter."

Yan Ciwan seemed frightened and said in a trembling voice, "Father, please don't say that. I think being a daughter is good enough. If there is an afterlife, I hope I can still be your loving daughter."

The emperor was amused by her words and said with a smile, "I was just joking. You don't need to be so nervous. You can stay in the palace and have lunch with me today. In the afternoon, I will have Si Buping take you to Anxingfang. I have a house there. You can stay there for now. If you have any needs, you can tell Si Buping."

"Thank you, Father."

Yan Ciwan knew that Anxingfang was right next to Yongxingfang, which would make it very convenient for her to go to the Xiao family to find Xiao Wang.

At the same time, Xiao Wang followed his grandfather out of the palace through Yanxi Gate.

The two returned to the Xiao family home by carriage.

Seeing Xiao Wang's furrowed brows, Xiao Wen knew he was still worried about Ning Ci's safety, so he took the initiative to speak.

"The Emperor must have other plans for Ning Ci. His questioning of the Crown Prince's opinion earlier was merely an attempt to test the Crown Prince."

Xiao Wang asked, puzzled, "How did Grandfather know?"

“I’ve watched this sage grow up, so I know him fairly well. He likes to ask for other people’s opinions, but in the end, he always makes decisions based on his own ideas. The fact that he didn’t deal with Ning Ci today means that he had already decided where Ning Ci would go. That’s why I didn’t let you speak earlier, because it would be useless if you did. The sage won’t listen to you.”