Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 298 Insomnia
After seeing Si Buping off, Yan Ciwan found Xiao Wang and Du Lingzhou in the courtyard.

As soon as Du Lingzhou saw her, he shouted, "It's already dark, why haven't you made us dinner yet?"

Yan Ciwan was also a little hungry, so she asked Qiushuang to tell the kitchen to prepare a meal.

Inside the dining hall, the food was served. There were no outsiders present, so there was no need for formalities. They simply picked up their bowls and chopsticks and began to eat.

While eating, Yan Ciwan told them about An Tong's situation.

When Yan Ciwan started talking, Xiao Wang's eating speed slowed down considerably. After learning that she was going to the West Market to find Ansong the next day, Xiao Wang completely lost his appetite.

He put down his chopsticks and said seriously, "It's too dangerous for you to go alone. I'll go with you."

Du Lingzhou quickly swallowed the food in his mouth, picked up his chopsticks, and shouted, "Me too! I want to go too!"

Yan Ciwan shook her head to indicate that it was unnecessary: ​​"Tomorrow, Fu Bai and Yue Jin will be following me in secret. If anything unusual happens, they will notify you immediately."

"What if by the time we get there you've already been kidnapped by the Five Gods Cult? Where are we supposed to find you then?"

Yan Ciwan stretched out her hand to him: "Lend me one of your chimneys. If I encounter danger tomorrow, I will light the chimney, and you can find me by looking at the smoke."

Xiao Wang frowned, still very worried.

Yan Ciwan twitched her fingers, teasing him in a joking tone, "What's wrong? You can't even lend me a chimney?"

Looking at the fair hand extended in front of him, Xiao Wang longed to grasp it tightly and never let go.

But in the end, this impulse was suppressed by reason.

He said, "I didn't bring a chimney with me. I'll find the materials and make one for you later."

Yan Ciwan smiled, her eyes crinkling: "Then I'll leave it to you!"

Du Lingzhou asked, "Where are we staying tonight?"

The gates of the ward were already closed, so they could only stay in Xingqing Ward tonight. Fortunately, there were many guest rooms in Qingping Residence. Yan Ciwan told them to stay at Qingping Residence tonight and asked Qiushuang to arrange for servants to prepare two guest rooms as soon as possible.

Qiu Shuang mistakenly believed that Xiao Wang stayed tonight so that he could meet Yan Ciwan in secret, so she specially cleaned up the two guest rooms closest to the main courtyard and arranged for Xiao Wang and Du Lingzhou to stay temporarily.

When night fell, Yan Ciwan opened the window of her second-floor bedroom and was taken aback when she could see Xiao Wang's guest room.

She hadn't expected that the two of them lived so close to each other.

The two houses are separated by a stream, with a small bridge spanning the stream. There are rocks and flowers nearby, and with the bright moon in the night sky, it has a beautiful and pleasant atmosphere, like a perfect night with flowers in full bloom and a full moon.

"My lady, the hot water is ready."

Qiu Shuang's voice brought Yan Ciwan back to her senses. She closed the window and said to Qiu Shuang, "You can go out now."

"Yes."

After Qiu Shuang left, Yan Ciwan took off her clothes and immersed her body in the hot water.

She took a relaxing bath and then sat by the window drying her hair.

She pushed the window open halfway and saw that the window of the guest room below was also half open. At this moment, Xiao Wang was sitting at his desk, engrossed in making a chimney.

He was so focused that he didn't notice someone on the second floor across the street was spying on him.

Footsteps sounded behind her, and Yan Ciwan knew that Qiu Shuang had come in, so she closed the window and continued to dry her hair.

Qiu Shuang walked over and asked, "Do you need my help?"

"No need, I can manage on my own. You don't need to serve me here. Go and rest."

"Yes." Qiu Shuang glanced at the closed window, then lowered her head and silently left the room.

She returned to her residence, wrote down the events of the day in a secret letter, folded the letter neatly, and stuffed it into the purse she always carried with her.

Inside the bedroom, Yan Ciwan finally managed to dry her hair until it was half dry.

She put down the handkerchief, opened the window, and let the cool night breeze blow in, drying the remaining moisture in her hair.

It was already very late, and almost everyone in Qingping Residence had gone to sleep, but the lights were still on in Xiao Wang's guest room.

He closed the window, so Yan Ciwan couldn't see what was happening inside the guest room, only his silhouette against the window. He mostly sat behind his desk, occasionally getting up to get something.

Yan Ciwan sat by the window for a long time, until her hair was completely dried by the night breeze, while Xiao Wang was still busy.

She couldn't help but wonder, does it really take this much time to make a chimney?
If she had known it would be this troublesome, she wouldn't have mentioned the chimney.

It was past midnight when the sound of a clapper rang out outside the mansion, but the lights in Xiao Wang's room were still on. Yan Ciwan could no longer resist, so she picked up a sachet from the dressing table and threw it down to the guest room.

The sachet hit the guest room window with perfect accuracy, making a loud thud.

On the window, Xiao Wang's figure stood up and became clearer until he pushed the window open from the inside, and Yan Ciwan finally saw him.

Xiao Wang peeked out and looked around, only to find no one there, except for a lake-blue sachet lying quietly on the grass outside the window.

The sachet looked very familiar; it was the very sachet he had asked Consort Jin to give to Yan Ciwan a couple of days ago.

"Xiao Liu!"

Xiao Wang raised his head and looked in the direction of the sound, only to find Yan Ciwan standing by the second-floor window.

Under the moonlight, she wore a loose white nightgown, her long black hair cascading down her back, her face free of makeup, yet she was still so beautiful that it was impossible to look away.

Yan Ciwan leaned against the windowsill, peering at him, and asked, "It's so late, why aren't you asleep yet?"

Xiao Wang looked up at her without blinking and asked, "Weren't you awake too?"

Yan Ciwan was too embarrassed to admit that she hadn't slept because she was so engrossed in watching others. She cleared her throat and said seriously, "Staying up late is bad for your health. You should go to sleep."

"I don't want to sleep yet."

"Are you having trouble sleeping?"

Xiao Wang nodded and then said, "Go to sleep, don't worry about me. I'll go to sleep when I'm sleepy."

Yan Ciwan asked, "Why are you having trouble sleeping? Is something on your mind?"

Xiao Wang remained silent for a moment before speaking.

"I can't sleep at all just thinking about how you're going to risk your life tomorrow."

Yan Ciwan blinked gently. So he was worried about her.

"Don't worry, I'm very strong. That An Tong is no match for me."

“But An Tong has the Five Gods Sect behind him, with so many followers, while you, no matter how high your martial arts are, are only one person.”

Yan Ciwan deliberately put on a stern face: "I haven't even started yet, why are you boosting the morale of others and belittling our own?"

Xiao Wang whispered an apology.

The night breeze rustled the leaves, and the stream flowed swiftly. He was expressing his worries for her. The scene was so beautiful that Yan Ciwan almost impulsively asked, "Do you like me?"
In the end, she refrained from asking the question.

Because she still had many things to do, and every step she took in the future could potentially bring her utter destruction, she didn't want to give him hope only to disappoint him in the end.