Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 387 Coincidence
"You've misunderstood. I have no romantic relationship with that person whatsoever," Yan Ciwan explained.

Xiao Wenyi was skeptical: "If you two aren't related, why would he give you a house?"

Yan Ciwan knew that if she didn't make things clear, Xiao Wenyi would never approve of her being with Xiao Wang, so in order to show her sincerity, she told the truth.

"Because he treated me like a daughter."

Xiao Wenyi was a smart person, and he immediately understood another layer of meaning from her words.

He tentatively asked, "Excuse me, but who is your mother?"

"Her name is Ning Qingyang, and she used to be a lady-in-waiting in the palace."

Xiao Wenyi looked surprised: "Your mother is the Princess Consort of Xizhou?!"

When the King of Xizhou got married, the wedding was very grand. Xiao Wenyi had attended the ceremony and offered his congratulations, so he naturally knew the identity and background of the Queen of Xizhou. He was very surprised, not expecting that the young lady in front of him was actually Ning Qingyang's daughter.

Yan Ciwan nodded to indicate that she was right.

Xiao Wenyi was puzzled: "Then what about your relationship with the King of Xizhou...?"

"I can't go into the specific reasons, but in short, I've severed ties with him and have no further contact with him."

Xiao Wenyi had many guesses in his mind, but since it involved other people's privacy, he didn't want to ask too much. Instead, he asked, "I already know pretty much about your background. How much do you know about Liu Lang's background?"

Yan Ciwan lowered her voice: "All I know is that Xiao Liu might be the last surviving son of Crown Prince Renxian."

"He even told you this, so it seems you know him very well. Since you know how sensitive his background is, you should know that he must live as discreetly as possible, while you have close ties with the Sage. If Liu Lang really marries you, the Sage will definitely take notice of him, which would be very dangerous for him."

Upon hearing this, Yan Ciwan suddenly retorted, "Why would Lord Xiao think that the Sage would be hostile to Xiao Liu? Logically speaking, the Sage and Crown Prince Renxian are brothers with a deep bond. In order to ensure that Crown Prince Renxian's lineage would not be without an heir, the Sage even adopted his own son under Crown Prince Renxian's name. If the Sage knew Xiao Liu's true identity, he should have taken good care of him, right?"

Xiao Wenyi calmly explained, "The sage may not actually do anything to Liu Lang, but emperors have always been suspicious. I am doing this just in case."

Yan Ciwan looked at him intently: "To be honest, Xiao Liu and I have been investigating the truth behind the murder of Crown Prince Renxian. We have found some clues and now we suspect that the mastermind behind the murder of Crown Prince Renxian is likely the current emperor."

Xiao Wenyi's eyebrows twitched violently.

His expression suddenly turned stern, and he asked in a deep voice, "This matter cannot be fabricated. Do you have any evidence?"

"This is just our speculation; we haven't found any evidence yet." Xiao Wenyi emphasized, "Don't mention this matter again, or you'll lose your lives."

Yan Ciwan nodded to indicate that she understood: "I have only mentioned this matter to you and Xiao Liu, and I will not tell anyone else. Lord Xiao has served three emperors and is very knowledgeable about court affairs. I would like to ask you how true our guess is?"

Xiao Wenyi did not answer her question directly, but slowly said, "After the death of Crown Prince Renxian, many rumors have emerged. Some people say that Crown Prince Renxian was killed by Xie Tanyu, some say that Crown Prince Renxian was killed by the King of Xizhou, and some say that the current emperor secretly poisoned him... There are many different opinions, but no one can provide conclusive evidence."

"Xie Tanyu is innocent!"

"I know."

Yan Ciwan then asked, "Why would the King of Xizhou harm Crown Prince Renxian?"

“Because of military power,” Xiao Wenyi said slowly, picking up his teacup. “Since the founding of the Daye Dynasty, the King of Xizhou has held considerable military power. When Emperor Wen was still alive, he wanted to take back the military power held by the King of Xizhou, but he could not find a suitable opportunity. This matter became a major worry for Emperor Wen. Emperor Wen issued an edict to send the King of Xizhou’s heir…that is, your father Yan Hengyu, to Chang’an to study. In fact, he wanted to detain Yan Hengyu in Chang’an and use him as a hostage to restrain the King of Xizhou. Emperor Wen was very wary of the King of Xizhou and his son, but Crown Prince Renxian advocated a policy of appeasement. He felt that the King of Xizhou had guarded the border for generations and had made great contributions, so he should be treated well.”

Yan Ciwan listened intently: "I've heard that Emperor Wen and Crown Prince Renxian have a very good relationship."

"The relationship between father and son was indeed very deep, but their views on handling state affairs were completely opposite. Emperor Wen liked to control everything himself, while Crown Prince Renxian preferred to listen to the advice of his ministers. As Crown Prince Renxian grew older, the differences between father and son on state affairs grew larger and larger, and conflicts were commonplace. It was precisely because of this that the Second Prince Li Mingguang harbored ulterior motives. Seeing that Crown Prince Renxian and Emperor Wen were not on good terms, he took this as his opportunity. He and Xie Chen secretly plotted to assassinate Emperor Wen and framed Crown Prince Renxian for it, thereby sowing discord between father and son."

Yan Ciwan knew he was referring to the Mengdie Temple Incident.

She said softly, "As far as I know, Li Mingguang and Xie Chen's plan succeeded, and Emperor Wen ultimately punished Crown Prince Renxian."

"That's just a facade. Although Emperor Wen is suspicious and domineering, he raised Crown Prince Renxian by his own hands. He knows Crown Prince Renxian's character better than anyone else. Crown Prince Renxian may argue with him over some ideological differences, but he would never kill his father and usurp the throne. The reason why Emperor Wen ordered Crown Prince Renxian to be placed under house arrest was to pretend to fall into a trap and lure the snake out of its hole. Who knew that the witchcraft case would be involved later."

Yan Ciwan said in a low voice, "I have heard of the witchcraft case. Back then, as many as a thousand officials were implicated and executed because of it, and their family and friends did not escape the same fate. In the end, the total number of deaths exceeded ten thousand."

"Yes, during that period, the court was in a state of panic, and everyone was on edge. Xie Chen suffered the most because almost all the officials who were executed were connected to the Xie family. Emperor Wen was ostensibly investigating the witchcraft case, but in reality, he wanted to use this opportunity to eliminate the Xie family's foundation in the court. Xie Chen did not want to sit idly by and wait for his death, so he joined forces with the Second Prince Li Mingguang to launch a palace coup. Crown Prince Renxian was unfortunately killed in that rebellion."

After listening, Yan Ciwan pondered for a moment and then asked, "It sounds like these things have little to do with the King of Xizhou."

"At the time, some people suspected that Yan Hengyu had been bribed by Li Mingguang, otherwise Yan Hengyu would not have left Chang'an just before the Crown Prince's incident."

Yan Ciwan frowned: "That's a far-fetched explanation. I remember that it was because the Turks invaded Xizhou and the King of Xizhou was injured on the battlefield and could no longer continue fighting that Yan Hengyu had to rush back to Xizhou."

"The main problem is that all of this happened too coincidentally. It just so happened that war broke out in Xizhou at that time, and it just so happened that shortly after Yan Hengyu left Chang'an, Crown Prince Renxian was persecuted. It seems as if Yan Hengyu knew everything in advance and deliberately chose to leave Chang'an at that crucial moment."