Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 381 Crying
The Tianyuan Pagoda was surrounded by the inner guards, and the doctor was trying to save Yan Tingyu.

Yan Ciwan had been helped back into her wheelchair by Si Buping. She looked down at her hands, which were stained with blood when she fell to the ground.

The bright red blood stung her eyes.

A handkerchief was handed to her.

"Wipe it."

Yan Ciwan slowly raised her head and looked at Si Buping, who was holding a handkerchief. She murmured almost absentmindedly, "Why?"

She clearly hated Yan Tingyu. The reason she found Yan Tingyu was to avenge the stab wound she suffered back then. But now, seeing her hands stained with Yan Tingyu's blood, why couldn't she feel happy at all?
Si Buping asked, puzzled, "What?"

Yan Ciwan lowered her head in disappointment. If Xiao Wang were here, he would definitely understand what she was thinking, but unfortunately, the person in front of her was not Xiao Wang.

She didn't say anything more, silently took the handkerchief, and wiped the blood off her hands little by little.

The doctor stood up and said to Si Buping, "The Crown Princess is too badly injured. I arrived too late."

"How is she?"

The doctor shook his head: "She's already dead."

Si Buping walked to Yan Tingyu's side, bent down and reached out to check her breath, and indeed there was no breath at all.

He turned to look at Yan Ciwan and saw that she was staring intently at Yan Tingyu on the ground. After thinking for a moment, he pushed her away from Tianyuan Tower.

Once they were outside and made sure no one was around, Si Buping asked in a low voice, "How did Yan Tingyu fall from such a height?"

Yan Ciwan was still lost in thought when she heard this, and it took her a while to speak.

"She jumped down herself."

"reason?"

Si Buping and Ning Qingyang were old acquaintances, and he was one of the people who knew about Ning Qingyang's past. Therefore, Yan Ciwan had no need to hide it from him. She said softly, "Before marrying the Prince of Xizhou, Consort Ji had already lost her virginity to the Emperor. Yan Tingyu is actually the Emperor's daughter. She couldn't bear this blow."

Even the well-informed Si Buping was stunned by this astonishing truth and stood frozen in place.

It took him a long time to come to his senses, and he pressed on, "Then why did the emperor just stand by and watch her marry the crown prince?"

"The emperor didn't know that the person he slept with that night was Consort Ji; he mistook Consort Ji for my mother."

Si Buping had met Ji Songluo before. He knew that Ji Songluo looked somewhat similar to Ning Qingyang. The emperor had even shown interest in Ji Songluo. He understood that the emperor might be using Ji Songluo as a substitute for Ning Qingyang. He thought the emperor would keep Ji Songluo by his side as a concubine, but he never expected that the emperor would eventually bestow Ji Songluo upon the King of Xizhou.

He asked in a low voice, "Is this true?"

Yan Ciwan said, "This is what Yan Tingyu told me before he died, so it should be true."

"Now that Yan Tingyu has passed away, besides you and me, is there anyone else who knows about this?"

Yan Ciwan wanted to mention Qinglan, but she quickly realized what she meant and asked warily, "Why are you asking about that?"

Si Buping bent down and leaned closer to her, saying in a deep voice, "The emperor thinks you are his daughter now, which is why he is being so lenient with you. But if he finds out that the person he had relations with that night wasn't your mother, he will definitely not let you go. Do you want to spend the rest of your life trapped in the palace?"

Yan Ciwan lowered her eyes and said, "Only you and I know about this. There is no one else."

Si Buping braced his hands on the armrests of his wheelchair, staring intently into her eyes, and pressed, "Really not?"

"No." Si Buping stared at her for a while before straightening up. His tone was extremely stern: "This matter concerns the rest of your life. You must know the seriousness of it yourself. I think you are telling the truth. Lying to me will not do you any good."

Yan Ciwan looked up and stared directly into his eyes, saying without flinching, "I'm just telling the truth. If you don't believe me, that's fine too."

Seeing that she was a little angry, Si Buping softened his tone slightly: "Of course I believe you, but this matter is of great importance, and I must be extremely careful. Now that Yan Tingyu is dead, as long as you and I keep the secret, no one will know the truth of what happened back then, and you can continue to live as the emperor's illegitimate daughter. Right now, our most important task is to find a suitable reason for Yan Tingyu's suicide."

Whenever Yan Ciwan thought of Yan Tingyu, especially her unseeing eyes in death, her mood would become heavy.

Si Buping put his hands behind his back, paced back and forth a couple of times, and quickly came up with an explanation.

"Just say that she committed suicide because her identity was exposed and she knew she was going to die soon. In order not to become a bargaining chip for the emperor to control the King of Xizhou, she chose to end her own life. If the emperor asks about it later, you can say that Yan Tingyu is now deeply desperate about her situation. She doesn't know what to do in the future and has no choice but to take her own life. You thought about stopping her, but unfortunately you didn't succeed."

Yan Ciwan's expression was complicated: "Are you trying to deceive the emperor with me?"

Si Buping stepped forward and lowered his voice, saying, "You are Ning Qingyang's only daughter, and I must protect you for her."

"Thank you."

"You don't need to thank me. If you want to thank someone, thank God. It was God who made you reincarnated as Ning Qingyang's daughter in this life."

When news of the Crown Princess's death reached the palace, Yan Ciwan, as the only witness present, was summoned to the palace by the Emperor.

When she arrived at the Sizheng Hall, she saw that Crown Prince Li Cunxing was also there.

Li Cunxing was crying and pleading with the emperor.

"Father, Aci's death was too sudden. There must be something fishy going on. I beg you, Father, to allow me to investigate thoroughly and bring justice to Aci!"

Yan Ciwan seemed not to hear Li Cunxing's words, and bowed to the emperor with her hands clasped after entering the room.

"This humble subject humbly declines, but pays homage to the Sage."

The emperor raised his hand, indicating that she should dispense with the formalities.

Li Cunxing suddenly turned around, his red-rimmed eyes fixed on Yan Ciwan. He gritted his teeth and asked, "When Aci died, you were the only one there, right?"

Yan Ciwan nodded.

Li Cunxing walked towards her step by step, continuing to press her: "How exactly did Aci die? Why did you happen to be there by chance? Why didn't you save Aci?"

Si Buping, who was pushing Yan Ciwan in, heard this and tried to explain for Yan Ciwan.

"Ning Ci tried to save him, but failed..."

Li Cunxing interrupted him, "I didn't ask you, so don't interrupt! I want to hear her answer!"

Yan Ciwan said, "She committed suicide by jumping from a high place."

Li Cunxing clearly didn't believe it: "Why would Aci commit suicide for no reason?"

Yan Ciwan did not answer, but looked at the emperor sitting at the head of the table.

The emperor spoke up at the opportune moment: "Speak plainly about what you know; there's no need to hide it anymore."

After receiving the emperor's approval, Yan Ciwan no longer hesitated and recounted the whole story of Yan Tingyu impersonating her.