Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 429 Harmful spirit

Yan Ciwan channeled her inner strength and struck him hard in the chest with her palm.

Li Baizhou was forced to let go, staggered back two steps, felt a sharp pain in his chest, and a metallic taste rose in his throat. He opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood.

Yan Ciwan's condition wasn't much better than his at this moment.

She forced herself to circulate her internal energy before her serious injuries had healed, which aggravated her internal injuries. Her internal organs felt as if they were being crushed, and she was in excruciating pain. The wound on her back also reopened, and she could feel blood seeping out.

Her body trembled slightly, and she was covered in sweat from the pain.

Li Baizhou sat down, holding onto the edge of the table. He clutched his chest, his eyes fixed on Yan Ciwan on the bed.

“When Pei Yan attacked me, you risked your life to protect me. I thought you were different from them. They all wanted to kill me and take my place, but you were the only one on my side. I never expected that even you would want to kill me now.”

Yan Ciwan took a breath and, enduring the pain, said, "Have you lost your memory? You were the one who attacked me first."

"That's because you angered me by talking nonsense first. If you had been more obedient, I would have been too busy doting on you to bear hurting you."

Yan Ciwan mocked, "You always have so many reasons. In your heart, it's always someone else who's wrong."

Li Baizhou warned in a cold voice: "Don't forget your current situation. Your life is in my hands. If I give the word now, the Imperial Guards will rush in and take you away, and you will be beheaded for the crime of assassination."

Yan Ciwan sneered and said indifferently, "Then shout away. You've already killed so many people, what's one more like me?"

Li Baizhou propped himself up on the edge of the table and walked step by step to the bedside.

He looked down at Yan Ciwan, who met his gaze with composure and dignity.

After a long silence, Li Baizhou finally spoke: "You not only look like her, but you also have the same temper. You're both so stubborn."

"Then you should know that I, like my mother, would rather die than submit."

Li Baizhou suddenly laughed: "Do you want to see your grandmother?"

Yan Ciwan's heart sank suddenly: "Don't involve others in our feud!"

"Don't be nervous. As long as you are obedient, I will have people take good care of your grandmother and ensure that she lives a long and healthy life."

Yan Ciwan desperately wanted to slap that bastard again, but her body was already exhausted, and even if she tried her best, she couldn't circulate her inner energy anymore. She shakily got up, her eyes filled with undisguised hatred.

"You've not only ruined my mother's life, but you're also trying to kill me and my grandmother. My mother must have had the worst luck in eight lifetimes to have met such a wicked person like you."

The smile on Li Baizhou's face faded: "I never intended to kill A Yang."

“If you didn’t want to harm her, why did you send her a letter? Didn’t you ever think that if that letter fell into someone else’s hands, my mother would never be able to clear her name, no matter what?”

Li Baizhou said without changing his expression, "If she can't stay in Xizhou, she can come to Chang'an. I will take good care of her."

"You ruined her reputation, and then you pretended to be a benefactor, offering to protect her." Yan Ciwan's eyes were filled with disgust, and her tone grew increasingly angry. "How could there be such a shameless person as you in this world?!"

Li Baizhou was silent for a moment, and then slowly spoke.

"Yes, I do have selfish motives. I have wronged A-Yang, so I want to keep you by my side and take good care of you."

Yan Ciwan said coldly, "Your so-called care is just imprisoning me here. If my mother knew what you had done in the afterlife, do you think she would be grateful to you or hate you even more?"

Her words were like knives, piercing precisely into Li Baizhou's Achilles' heel.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and after a moment opened them, as if he had made up his mind, and said.

“Back then, I let A-Yang marry someone else, and A-Yang died young in Xizhou. I will not let that tragedy repeat itself. No matter what you think in your heart, I will keep you by my side.” Yan Ciwan said again, “I am not your A-Yang!”

Li Baizhou said, enunciating each word clearly: "If I say you are, then you are."

"You're crazy!"

Li Baizhou noticed the bloodstains on the bed and knew that the wound on her back had reopened. He said slowly, "You just escaped death and need to rest. I will have the imperial physician treat your wounds later. You'd better behave and not cause any more trouble, otherwise you may never see your grandmother again."

After Li Baizhou left, Physician Liu quickly came in. Because Yan Ciwan was injured on her back, he couldn't bandage her wound, so he had to leave the task to the female physician who accompanied him.

The wound was re-bandaged, but Yan Ciwan still felt a lot of pain in her back. She couldn't lie down and could only lie face down on the bed.

She turned to look at Physician Liu and asked, "How has Qingping Residence been since I left?"

Physician Liu walked up to her, bent down, and whispered.

"A fire broke out at Qingping Residence, and the house you lived in was burned to the ground."

Yan Ciwan frowned. Could it be that Qiu Shuang, hidden under the bed, and that crumpled paper had also been burned?
She tried asking, "Were there any casualties?"

"I heard that more than ten corpses were carried out of Qingping Residence, all of them were assassins who intended to kill the emperor."

Yan Ciwan pressed further, "Were all the dead men?"

"It seems so. I don't know the specifics, since I only heard it secondhand. The Inner Guard is in charge of investigating this matter, so they should know the details best."

Yan Ciwan seemed to be deep in thought. Si Buping had already been persuaded by her. He had secretly let the Ninth Uncle and others rescue Jiang Qiuyu. Logically speaking, Si Buping was now on her side. If Qiushuang fell into his hands, she should still have a chance to live.

She then asked, "What time is it now?"

"It's just past the hour of Yin (3-5 AM), there's still some time before dawn, Madam Ning, you can get some more sleep."

Yan Ciwan was wide awake at the moment. She noticed the dark circles under Physician Liu's eyes and knew that he must be very tired after working all night. So she said, "I'm fine now. You can go back now."

"The Emperor has instructed that I cannot leave Zichen Palace until Lady Ning's injuries have fully healed."

Yan Ciwan could only say, "Then find a place to rest for a while."

"Thank you, Madam Ning."

Physician Liu slept fully clothed on the couch in the side room.

Yan Ciwan lay on the bed, secretly pondering how to get her grandmother away with her.
Time passed slowly, and suddenly the sound of hurried footsteps came from outside, mixed with some shouts.

Yan Ciwan came to her senses and struggled to get out of bed despite the pain.

She had only taken two steps when she lost her balance and fell to the ground, startling Physician Liu, who was sleeping in the side room. Physician Liu rushed over and helped her up.

"Madam Ning, why did you get out of bed?"

Yan Ciwan asked, "It seems something has happened outside. Could you go check it out for me?"

"Alright, sit down first." Doctor Liu helped her sit down in the chair, then ran out the door.

He returned shortly afterward, looking very anxious and uneasy.

Something really did happen!