Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 420 Insider
Li Baizhou soon met the seventh prince of the Turks, and the two hit it off immediately and had a very pleasant conversation.

After that, they often met up with Chao Yuanzhi in Pingkangfang to drink and make merry.

This continued for more than three months.

The three of them drank a lot of wine again today. Chao Yuanzhi, unable to hold his liquor, fell asleep on the table. Suddenly, the seventh prince of the Turks said, "I will be returning to the Turks in two days. After this parting, I am afraid we will never see each other again."

Li Baizhou seemed to have expected this, and was not surprised at all.

He waved his hand, signaling all the servants in the room to leave.

"From our first meeting, I could tell that you have great ambitions and will surely achieve great things after returning to the Turkic Khaganate. I have a parting gift for you that may be of help in the future. I hope you will accept it with a smile."

After he finished speaking, he took out a sheepskin scroll and placed it in front of the seventh prince of the Turks.

The seventh prince of the Turks picked up the sheepskin scroll, slowly unfurled it, and a look of astonishment appeared on his face.

Yan Ciwan leaned closer to take a look, and her expression immediately changed.

The parchment scroll actually depicts a map of the border defenses of Xizhou!
She had seen this picture in the study of the King of Xizhou when she lived in the Xizhou Palace, so she could not possibly be mistaken.

She looked at Li Baizhou in disbelief. Had this guy gone mad? He actually gave the border defense map of Xizhou to the Turks!

The seventh prince of the Turks never expected to get such a great deal for free. He gripped the sheepskin scroll tightly and asked, "What do you want?"

Li Baizhou said slowly and deliberately, "I know that you Turks have always coveted the border of Daye. Even without this border map, you would definitely not be able to hold back your troops against Daye in the future. Since we are bound to fight sooner or later, why don't we make a deal? I will give you this border map. With this map, you will definitely make a great contribution to the Turkic king, which will greatly help you in your struggle for the Turkic throne. What you need to do is persuade the Turkic king to wait three years before sending troops to Xizhou."

The seventh prince of the Turks asked in bewilderment, "Why three years from now?"

"Because Xie Zhan is ill, the imperial physician said he has at most three years to live. After Xie Zhan dies in three years, the emperor will definitely take action against the Xie family. At that time, the court will definitely be in chaos. If you then send troops to Xizhou, your chances of winning will be much higher."

The seventh prince of the Turks still didn't understand: "What benefit do you get from this?"

"There's no need to explain this to you in detail. You'll understand everything once things are settled."

The seventh prince of the Turks stuffed the sheepskin scroll into his robes, raised his wine cup, and said to Li Baizhou, "Whatever your purpose is, I will make this deal with you. Let's have a pleasant cooperation!"

Li Baizhou also raised his glass: "It's a pleasure to cooperate with you."

Yan Ciwan watched them enjoying their drinks and conversation with a chill in her heart.

She had found it strange from the start. The previous King of Xizhou had often dealt with the Turkic army and was very experienced in dealing with them. How could he have been ambushed by the Turkic army as soon as the battle began, not only suffering serious injuries himself, but also allowing the Turkic army to advance unimpeded and almost causing the entire Xizhou to fall?

She had suspected that there might be a traitor within the Xizhou army. Only now did she realize that there was indeed a traitor, but that traitor was not in Xizhou, but in Chang'an.

Although Yan Ciwan disliked Yan Hengyu, she had a deep affection for Xizhou, her hometown, where she was born and raised. The people there seemed tough, but they were actually very simple and honest, and Yan Ciwan liked them very much.

However, due to Li Baizhou's selfish desires, war broke out on the land of Xizhou.

Yan Ciwan wished she could rush up and slap Li Baizhou right now.

He can fight for his own future, but he shouldn't sacrifice hundreds of thousands of innocent people in Xizhou.

After the Turkic delegation left Chang'an, Li Baizhou and Chao Yuanzhi continued to keep in touch privately. Every time he left the palace, Li Baizhou would buy some small gifts to take back to Ning Qingyang. Today was no exception. Li Baizhou bought a set of rare medical books. He knew that Ning Qingyang liked to study medicine and would definitely like these books.

When he returned to the palace with his bundle, he couldn't find Ning Qingyang in the Imperial Kitchen. Upon inquiring, he learned that she had been taken away by Consort Xie's men.

It turned out that Consort Xie had learned that Ning Qingyang had secretly helped treat Consort Jiang. Consort Xie was furious that a mere female official dared to go against her. She accused Ning Qingyang of stealing medicine from the palace and wanted to punish and kill her!

Li Baizhou did not go to see Consort Xie.

Because he knew in his heart that the reason why Consort Xie made things difficult for Ning Qingyang was to show him that even if he had the Crown Prince as his backer, he was still a good-for-nothing. She could kill his close friends and family at will. Consort Jiang did the same, and so did Ning Qingyang!

Li Baizhou went to the Crown Prince's residence and asked Li Xuanhe for help in rescuing Ning Qingyang.

Since it was inconvenient for Li Xuanhe to interfere in the affairs of the women in the harem, he asked the Crown Princess to handle the matter.

The Crown Princess entered the palace and found Consort Xie. After some maneuvering, the Crown Princess successfully brought Ning Qingyang out of the palace. At this time, Ning Qingyang had been beaten to the point of near death. If the Crown Princess had been any later, she might have lost her life.

Ning Qingyang stayed in the Crown Prince's residence to recover from her injuries. The Crown Princess admired her greatly and wanted to keep her in the residence as a lady-in-waiting.

She hesitated.

The Crown Princess advised, "You have already offended Consort Xie. If you return to the palace, she will definitely make things difficult for you again. Although my Crown Prince's residence is not as grand as the palace, it is quiet and comfortable."

Ning Qingyang said, "I know I can't go back, but there's someone I can't let go of in my heart."

The Crown Princess suddenly realized and smiled, saying, "No wonder you've been looking at the door these past few days. So you've been waiting for someone. Could you tell me quietly who you're waiting for? Perhaps I can help you make the connection."

Ning Qingyang was very embarrassed, her cheeks flushed, and she said shyly, "It's the Fifth Prince."

But the Crown Princess's expression turned very strange.

"How could it be him?"

Ning Qingyang sensed something was wrong and quickly asked, "What's wrong with him?"

"I heard that he has been getting very close to the daughter of the Minister of Rites recently, and I estimate that they will be engaged soon."

Ning Qingyang was stunned.

The Crown Princess thought she would be sad and disappointed, but she didn't expect her to plead.

"Could you please pass on a message to him? I'd like to see him."

The Crown Princess asked in bewilderment, "He's about to marry another woman, why do you want to see him? Aren't you afraid of getting hurt again?"

Ning Qingyang's expression was extremely firm: "I don't believe the rumors, I only believe him. I want to ask him face to face and find out the truth. If he really has no feelings for me, then I will give up."

The Crown Princess felt both helpless and impressed.

"Few women are as bold as you. Alright, I'll help you with this. I hope you get a satisfactory answer."

"Thank you for your kindness, Crown Princess."