Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 401 Loyalty
As the sun sets in the west, the evening drums sound one after another, and the gates of each neighborhood close one after another.

Night gradually enveloped the entire city of Chang'an, and people who had finished a long day of work drifted off to sleep. However, there was one person who was completely unable to sleep. This person was Fu Zheng.

His trusted lieutenant sneaked into his residence late at night and brought him some startling news.

"The Dali Temple sent people to your hometown, saying that they have found a witness to identify you. The witness will arrive in Chang'an by tomorrow night at the latest."

Fu Zheng's heart sank to the bottom.

He knew that his secret would soon be exposed.

What was the sage's reaction?

The deputy general was furious when the matter was brought up: "The Emperor appointed Qiao Yi to replace you in command of the Left Golden Guard. If it were anyone else, it would be one thing, but that Qiao Yi is all talk and no action. He has never been on the battlefield and has never achieved anything. Why should we submit to him? Is it just because he has an empress as his sister?!"

Fu Zheng frowned deeply.

He had long known that the emperor was very fond of Qiao Yi. Qiao Yi was skilled in riding, archery, and martial arts, and was said to be quite good at military strategy. He was a promising talent. What he did not expect was that the emperor actually intended to have Qiao Yi replace him.

At this moment, Fu Zheng felt his heart turn completely cold.

He had served the emperor for over twenty years, willing to do any dirty work for him, and had never harbored any disloyalty, yet the emperor showed no regard for their past relationship whatsoever.

Fu Zheng picked up the longbow hanging on the wall, plucked the bowstring with his fingertips, and smiled self-deprecatingly: "When all the birds are gone, the good bow is put away; now even my old bow will be discarded."

The lieutenant came late at night not only to deliver a message, but also to take a gamble.

Fu Zheng had once saved his life, and he owed his current success entirely to Fu Zheng's promotion. He was grateful to Fu Zheng from the bottom of his heart, and he couldn't bear to see such a great hero as Fu Zheng end up in such a miserable state.

The lieutenant's eyes gleamed, and he said, enunciating each word clearly, "General, we cannot sit idly by and wait to die!"

Fu Zheng was not the kind of soft-hearted or cowardly person; otherwise, he would not have done the thing of taking his brother's place back then.

He made his decision after only a moment's thought.

"Go and prepare the men. Come with me to a place tonight."

"Yes!"

……

Inside Qingping Residence, Yan Ciwan was fast asleep when he suddenly sensed someone outside.

She initially thought it was Dongli or Qiushuang, but the person pushed open the door without saying hello, which alerted Yan Ciwan.

She threw off the covers, sat up, and started shouting.

"Dongli!"

The person who came in probably didn't expect Yan Ciwan to wake up suddenly. His steps paused noticeably, and then a cold light flashed as a horizontal blade rushed out into the night, heading straight for Yan Ciwan's face!

Yan Ciwan grabbed the blanket and threw it away. The blanket blocked the blade, and she took the opportunity to shout again.

"If you don't want her to die, then go ahead and shout."

After saying this, the intruder pushed open the window, and a man in black stood outside holding Nie Xiayun hostage.

Nie Xiayun's hands were tied behind her back, her mouth was gagged with a rag, and a gleaming knife was pressed tightly against her neck.

She wanted Yan Ciwan to run away quickly and not worry about her, but she couldn't make a sound and could only shake her head desperately.

Yan Ciwan gave up the idea of ​​calling for help, and said through gritted teeth.

"If you have any problems, come at me! Let my grandma go!" Two people broke into the house, both dressed in black and with their faces covered.

One of them stepped forward, holding a knife to Yan Ciwan's neck, and slowly said, "Don't worry, you're not our target. As long as you cooperate obediently, we'll release you after it's done."

Yan Ciwan felt that his voice was familiar, as if she had heard it somewhere before.

She stared into the other person's eyes, then suddenly remembered and said in a deep voice, "You are Fu Zheng!"

The other person chuckled softly, raised his hand to pull down the mask covering his face, revealing a familiar face—it was indeed Fu Zheng.

He raised his hand, and the men in black outside the window immediately knocked Nie Xiayun unconscious and carried her away.

Yan Ciwan was extremely anxious: "Where are you taking my grandmother?"

“It’s so late, and your grandmother is old. It’s really inhumane to make an elderly person stay up all night. Let her get some sleep first. Don’t worry, as long as you are willing to cooperate with us, I guarantee your grandmother will be safe and sound.”

Yan Ciwan didn't even glance at the knife pressed against her neck. Although she was still seriously injured, if she really risked her life, the other party might not be able to escape unscathed. But her grandmother was still in their hands, and she had to consider her grandmother's safety.

"what do you want to do?"

"It's very simple. Just send a message to the palace to ask the Emperor to come and see you."

Yan Ciwan frowned: "How can I invite a sage so easily?"

"Don't play dumb. I've known about your relationship with the Sage for a long time. You are Ning Qingyang's daughter, and the Sage is deeply in love with Ning Qingyang. If you invite him over, he will definitely come."

Yan Ciwan's heart stirred: "I can help you accomplish this, but there's something I'd like to ask you."

"tell me the story."

"Eighteen years ago, the day after the King of Xizhou and my mother got married, they went to the palace together to thank the Emperor and bid him farewell. The Emperor invited them to stay in the palace overnight. Did you see anything that night?"

Fu Zheng smiled meaningfully: "Are you saying that a dancer ran away from the Zichen Palace in a panic?"

Yan Ciwan stared at him: "Do you know who that dancer is?"

"I didn't know at first. It wasn't until the next day, when the emperor issued an edict to bestow a dancer named Songluo upon the King of Xizhou, that I learned who she was."

"Since you know the truth, why don't you tell the sage?"

Fu Zheng slowly retorted, "Since the Sage believes that the woman he slept with that night was Ning Qingyang, why should I shatter his dream? If he gets angry and embarrassed, won't I be the one who suffers? Anyway, these things have nothing to do with me, so why should I make a fool of myself?"

Yan Ciwan mocked, "I thought you had always been loyal to the Sage."

"Loyal?" Fu Zheng smiled again. "To be honest, I treat him like my own child. I will do my best to get him whatever he wants. I take care of him more than I am loyal to him."

Yan Ciwan seemed to be deep in thought. The Fu Zheng in front of her was actually Pei Yan. After he became Fu Zheng, he neither married nor had any children. His only son, Fu Hui, was actually not related to him.

Why did he live a life of asceticism and detachment for more than 20 years?
Based on what he said, Yan Ciwan suddenly had a guess.

She tried asking, "Are you an old acquaintance of the saint's birth mother?"

A hint of surprise flashed in Fu Zheng's eyes.

"How did you know?"

"Guess."

Fu Zheng looked her over again: "You are truly a promising young woman; your guess was spot on."

Yan Ciwan gave a dry laugh and replied perfunctorily, "Thank you for the compliment."