Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 360 Hidden secrets
"But unfortunately, we lost those two wooden bowls during our escape." Nie Xiayun sighed as she placed the sachet in Yan Ciwan's hand. "My wooden bowls are gone forever, but thankfully your sachet was intact. You must cherish it."

Yan Ciwan lowered her eyes to look at the sachet in her palm and nodded in response, "I will."

"Xiao Liulang is of superior appearance and family background. Most importantly, he is gentle and considerate towards you. He is a good husband candidate. But Aci, don't forget that you are engaged to Crown Prince Li Cunxing. It was a marriage decreed by the Emperor."

Speaking of this, Yan Ciwan's smile faded a little. She said, "Yan Tingyu has taken my place as a princess. She has officially married the Crown Prince. Now Yan Tingyu is the Crown Princess."

Nie Xiayun was shocked: "Yan Tingyu actually dared to impersonate you! Has she lost her mind? Isn't she afraid of being killed if her identity is exposed?!"

Yan Ciwan recounted in detail how she had been plotted against and murdered by Yan Tingyu, and concluded by saying...

“I survived only because I was lucky enough to escape death. If I hadn’t survived, then no one could expose her, and she could live forever as Princess Leyou without worrying about getting herself killed.”

Nie Xiayun was furious: "That girl is too wicked! When I first saw her at the Xizhou Prince's Mansion, I thought she was quite honest, but I never expected her to be so wicked! You can never judge a book by its cover. This matter must be reported to your father. He loves you so much, he will not let you suffer this injustice for nothing!"

Yan Ciwan shook her head: "It's no use."

"How could it be useless? Your father is the King of Xizhou. With just one word from him, he can bring that girl Yan Tingyu back to reality!"

Yan Ciwan calmly said, "The wedding procession that escorted me to Chang'an was personally selected by the King of Xizhou, and the entire procession was made up of his confidants. Without his permission, how could Yan Tingyu have assassinated me so easily?"

Nie Xiayun was stunned: "You...you mean, the King of Xizhou and Yan Tingyu are in cahoots?"

Yan Ciwan nodded slightly.

Nie Xiayun never expected the truth to be like this.

She sat on the edge of the bed, staring straight at the ground, as if trying to process what Yan Ciwan had just said.

After a long pause, she finally spoke: "Why would the King of Xizhou do this? He has always been very good to you. Apart from your mother, you are the person he cares about most in this world. How could he... how could he..."

Yan Ciwan chuckled self-deprecatingly, "Even Grandma thinks he's very good to me, which means he's a really good actor."

Although Nie Xiayun hadn't read many books and didn't understand those conspiracies and tricks, she had a very keen intuition. Her intuition told her that the King of Xizhou's fatherly love for Yan Ciwan seemed genuine.

Are you sure this matter really has something to do with the King of Xizhou?

Do you still remember Lu Jinshu?

Nie Xiayun nodded: "Of course I remember. He was the adopted son of the King of Xizhou. The King of Xizhou even planned to take him as his son-in-law."

“Lu Jinshu is now the Ulan Cavalry Commandant. He is on the orders of the King of Xizhou and is leading the Ulan Cavalry to chase me all the way, just to prevent me from reaching Chang'an alive.”

Nie Xiayun was stunned again.

Although Lu Jinshu in her memory was taciturn, he listened to Yan Ciwan very much. From childhood to adulthood, he had always been Yan Ciwan's most loyal protector. How could he suddenly transform into an assassin who wanted to take Yan Ciwan's life?
She felt the world was changing too fast, and she couldn't keep up with their pace. "Give me a moment. Now it's not just Yan Tingyu who wants to kill you; the King of Xizhou and Lu Jinshu also want to kill you. They're in cahoots..."

As Nie Xiayun spoke, her eyes filled with heartache as she looked at Yan Ciwan.

Those bad people conspired to harm her, but she was all alone. From Xiangzhou to Chang'an, she must have suffered a lot on her journey.

No wonder she has become more sensible than before, because she knows that she is no longer Princess Leyou, she no longer has the right to be willful, and can only force herself to grow up quickly.

Nie Xiayun felt increasingly heartbroken as she thought about it, and she reached out to touch Yan Ciwan's head.

“My poor Aci, don’t be discouraged. Even if you’re no longer a princess, you’re still my most precious granddaughter. At worst, I’ll go back to my old ways and continue to slaughter pigs to earn money to support you.”

Yan Ciwan was both amused and exasperated: "You're already so old, it's time for you to enjoy your retirement. Leave the burden of supporting the family to me. I have excellent martial arts skills, I'm sure I can make money."

Nie Xiayun waved her hand: "We can talk about these things later. The most important thing right now is how to expose Yan Tingyu's true identity. She murdered her own sister. She is so heartless and depraved. She must be punished. Otherwise, I will not be able to swallow this anger!"

Yan Ciwan said, "In fact, the emperor already knows that Yan Tingyu is an imposter of Princess Leyou."

Nie Xiayun was greatly surprised: "How did the Emperor know?"

Yan Ciwan recounted her entire experience of entering the palace and meeting the emperor, including the possibility of an ambiguous relationship between the emperor and Ning Qingyang.

Nie Xiayun was furious after hearing this, and she denied it categorically.

“A-Yang is definitely not a promiscuous person; she would never have an affair with another man behind the back of the King of Xizhou!”

Yan Ciwan nodded: "I also have great faith in Mother's character. There must be some misunderstanding here."

Nie Xiayun ground her teeth, furious: "So, the King of Xizhou believed the rumors that you were A-Yang's daughter with the Emperor, and that he killed you out of love turned to hate? He's known A-Yang for over twenty years, and they lived together for over ten years after their marriage. Doesn't he know what kind of person A-Yang is? How could he believe everything others say? Has his brain been slammed in a door?!"

Yan Ciwan said calmly, "No matter what he thinks, in my heart now, he is no longer my father."

"He's going to kill you, so you don't need to acknowledge him anymore. From now on, I'll pretend I never had a son-in-law like him!"

Nie Xiayun was furious and wished she could rush back to Xizhou immediately to give that bastard Yan Hengyu a good beating, but given the current situation, it was impossible for her and Yan Ciwan to return to Xizhou.

Nie Xiayun paced back and forth in the room, so angry that steam was rising from her head, and she muttered to herself.

"What kind of world is this? You suffered a great injustice, yet those villains who plotted against you are living lives of immense glory, while you lie here covered in wounds. Doesn't the emperor already know Yan Tingyu's true identity? Yan Tingyu has committed the heinous crime of deceiving the emperor, why doesn't the emperor kill her now?!"

Yan Ciwan couldn't figure out what the emperor was thinking either. She said, "Grandma, don't get upset. There's plenty of time. Once I've recovered, I'll go and settle accounts with Yan Tingyu."

She didn't just want to settle accounts; she also wanted to find out why the King of Xizhou believed she was the emperor's illegitimate daughter. What other secrets were hidden behind this?