Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 330 Exposed
Yan Ciwan was taken aback.

Only then did she realize that the reason why the statue looked familiar was because her facial features were somewhat similar to those of the statue!

She smiled calmly: "It's probably just a coincidence. There are too many people in this world who look alike."

Sparrow Girl nodded, accepting her explanation.

Ayou suddenly spoke up to remind them: "Don't be distracted in front of the Moon Goddess."

Yan Ciwan and Que Niang both fell silent and stood obediently.

"Next, I will teach you how to bow when facing the moon goddess. I will demonstrate it once, and then you can do it. After you have learned how to bow, I will take you to have breakfast."

Upon hearing that there was food, Sparrow Girl immediately perked up and stared intently at Ayou.

Ayou first bowed to the statue, raised her hands above her head, and bowed respectfully. Then she straightened up, knelt on the prayer mat, bowed again, placed her hands on the ground, and bowed once more. Then she stood up and bowed again...

This process was repeated three times before the grand ceremony of meeting the moon goddess was finally completed.

Next, it was Yan Ciwan's and Ayou's turn to bow. Yan Ciwan almost perfectly copied Ayou's movements. Ayou was very satisfied with her excellent learning ability. In contrast, Que Niang's movements were not so standard. Although Ayou did not criticize her, she asked her to redo it until her movements were basically in line with the requirements.

Sparrow Girl originally thought it was just a simple matter of bowing, but after this rehearsal, she realized that she had underestimated the situation.

She and Yan Ciwan followed Ayou out of the main hall and went to the dining hall in the backyard for breakfast.

There were seven or eight young women sitting in the dining hall, all dressed in the same red dress and white skirt, and they seemed to be priestesses as well.

Ayou led Yan Ciwan and Que Niang to the kitchen. They took the trays of food from the cook and walked toward the table. But after only two steps, Ayou told them to stop.

"Don't take big steps, walk lightly and slowly, keep your body steady, don't let the soup on the tray shake, tuck your chin slightly, and don't let your eyes wander..."

Yan Ciwan did it again as she was told, and immediately met all of Ayou's requirements. So Ayou told her to sit down at the table first, while she stayed behind to continue correcting Que Niang's posture.

Yan Ciwan went to look at the divine servants sitting at another table. They were all eating quietly, their movements were uniform, and their eyes were always fixed on what was in front of them. They did not look anywhere else. It was clear that they had undergone very strict training.

In fact, the requests that Ayou just made were the same as those made by high-ranking families for their maids.

Yan Ciwan grew up in the Prince's mansion and knew these things very well, so she learned them very quickly.

She pondered to herself. It was known that Da'an Village and Xiao'an Village held at least one prayer meeting every month, and each prayer meeting selected at least one or two villagers to become divine servants. Over such a long period of time, the number of divine servants should have been quite large, but there were only eight divine servants sitting at the table next door.

Where did the other divine servants go besides them?

By the time Ayou finally relented and said that Que Niang could rest for a while, the food on the table had already gone cold.

Ayou gently comforted you, "You're just starting to learn, so it's normal to be a little slow. Once you've all learned it, you won't have to waste so much time, and you'll be able to eat hot meals every day."

She then picked up her bowl and chopsticks, letting Yan Ciwan and Que Niang make themselves at home.

Sparrow Girl was really starving. Even though the food had gone cold, she still couldn't wait to eat it with gusto.

Yan Ciwan didn't rush to pick up her chopsticks. She waited until Ayou and Que Niang had finished eating each dish and made sure there was nothing wrong with the food before she picked up her bowl and chopsticks and began to eat calmly.

Ayou suddenly spoke up: "Sparrow Girl, don't smack your lips when you eat, don't let your chopsticks touch the bowl, and don't roll up your sleeves so high, it looks bad."

Sparrow Girl had no choice but to put down her half-eaten bowl of rice and whispered, "If you don't roll up your sleeves, you'll sweep the food off the table."

"As long as you don't stretch your hand out too far, your sleeve won't touch the food." "But then wouldn't I only be able to eat these two dishes in front of me?"

Ayou said seriously, "Greed is a big no-no. Don't make a fool of yourself just because you're greedy for a bite of food. Eat whatever is in front of you."

Sparrow Girl lowered her head dejectedly: "Oh."

"I'm full." Yan Ciwan gently put down her chopsticks, picked up her teacup to rinse her mouth, and then wiped her lips with a handkerchief. "May I go out for a bit now?"

Ayou asked, "Where are you going?"

"De Gong."

Ayou said she would go with her.

Yan Ciwan politely declined: "Que Niang still needs Sister Ayou's guidance, and you haven't finished your meal yet. I'm really embarrassed to ask you to come with me. Don't worry, I'll be right back. It won't take much time."

"But do you know where the outhouse is?"

Yan Ciwan then asked, "I hope Sister Ayou can teach me how to get there."

Ayou didn't answer, but turned to the servants at another table and said, "Can any of you help Miss Xiao go to the outhouse?"

One of the women, who was slightly plump, stood up and said, "I also need to go to the restroom. I'll go with her."

"Ahe, then I'll leave it to you." Ayou then looked at Yan Ciwan and instructed her. "Although Ahe is a year younger than you, she has been here for almost a year and is very familiar with this place. You must stay close to her and not wander off. Come back as soon as you're done."

"Yes."

Yan Ciwan stood up and followed Ahe outside.

The two left the dining hall through the side door and walked along the left-hand corridor until they reached the end, where the outhouse was located.

The outhouse had several stalls. Ahe and Yan Ciwan each went into a stall. Before going in, Ahe specifically told her, "My stomach hurts a little, so I might have to squat for a while. Please wait for me outside for a bit."

Yan Ciwan readily agreed: "Okay."

After entering the outhouse, she closed the door, strained her ears to listen to the sounds from next door, and once she was sure Ahe had squatted down, she quietly opened the door and silently walked out of the outhouse.

The place was remote and deserted, which made it convenient for Yan Ciwan to carry out her plans.

She climbed over the wall behind the outhouse, went around the dining hall and the main hall, and returned to the vicinity of the small courtyard where she had stayed the previous night.

The courtyard gate was open at this time. Yan Ciwan did not go directly through the main gate. Instead, she deliberately went around to the back of the courtyard, used her lightness skill to jump onto the courtyard wall, and then flew to the nearest tree.

She hid among the dense foliage, peering through the gaps to make sure no one was in the yard, then silently jumped to the ground and crept to the window.

The windows were nailed shut with layers of wooden planks, completely sealing them off, making it impossible to see inside.

Yan Ciwan could only press himself against the window and strain his ears to listen.

Danxiazi's shouts came from inside the house.

“This person is a man dressed as a woman. He can’t possibly be Lady Xiao’s mother. That woman has deceived us. You should go and inform Ayou to lock Lady Xiao up. I will report this to the shaman right away.”

Yan Ciwan's heart sank; she had indeed been exposed!