The Devious First-Daughter

Outside the door stood a woman, a woman Ning Xueyan had never seen before. She was about 20 years old, wore a piece of white clothing, and was an elegant beauty. Upon seeing someone in the room, she still walked in with ease, although she was surprised.

She had a basket in her hand that was covered with a veil. Ning Xueyan could vaguely see that there was some fresh fruit in the basket.

But Ning Xueyan had not seen her before.

"Who are you?" Ning Xueyan frowned and asked vigilantly. Then she retreated, keeping a sharp lookout.

"I’m a worshipper." The woman put the basket on the table with an indifferent expression, put aside the veil, and replaced the fruit on the table with the fruit in the basket.

"You do not live here! How did you get in?"

"Why can’t I come in? You also came in without permission. Fifth Young Lady, how much do you know about Ning Ziying?" the woman said with ridicule as she gave a look to Ning Xueyan. Then she took her basket, silently passed by Ning Xueyan, and disappeared from the sight of Ning Xueyan.

Ning Xueyan was shocked that this woman knew her.

However, Ning Xueyan had never seen her in her last life or this one!

How much did Ning Xueyan know about Ning Ziying? If she did not know, who else in the world knew?

This woman put fresh fruit in front of Ning Ziying’s memorial tablet to worship her, showing that she bore Ning Ziying no malice. However, she was indifferent when she talked about Ning Ziying’s death. Why did she come here to worship Ning Ziying?

Maybe there were some things that Ning Xueyan did not know in her last life, such as this woman and some strange things that she had neglected...

This time, she came here to take the relics left by her mother.

In fact, Ning Xueyan had never carefully looked at these relics in her previous life. In her previous life, her father died first, and then her mother got seriously ill. Before she died, she asked Ning Xueyan to go to Lord Protector’s Manor. So, after her mother died, Ning Xueyan immediately packed up her luggage and went to the capital. And her mother’s relics were kept by Mother Wang because she was afraid that she would greatly miss her mother if she were to see these things.

When they arrived at Lord Protector’s Manor, those things were also carefully hidden in a certain place.

Ning Xueyan had come here today to take those things.

But now, she decided not to take them.

The woman appeared in silence. Anyway, it was unsafe to take the relics at this time.

Ning Xueyan had an intuition that the appearance of this woman had to be related to Ning Ziying.

Ning Xueyan pretended to be curious as she walked around the room, casually looking around. She did not enter the room where the relics were hidden. Then she closed the door and returned by the way she came.

When she returned to Bright Frost Garden, Lanning and Qingyu, who had not seen her for a long time, were about to go out to look for her.

"Young Lady, where have you been? The First Madam called you over," Qingyu approached her and said.

"What’s the matter?" Ning Xueyan kept walking and went inside.

"I don’t know. But it seems to be related to the Second Young Lady’s marriage." Qingyu frowned. "Lanning and I thought it would not be good that the First Madam called you over. So we said you were uncomfortable and already asleep."

"Good. As a sister, how can I comment on Ning Yuling’s marriage? Moreover, others don’t know the truth, but I do." Ning Xueyan nodded and sat down. Then, Lanning came over to loosen her hair. Ning Xueyan prepared to have a bath.

Madam Ling was not satisfied with Ning Yuling’s marriage and was unhappy now. So it was possible that Madam Ling called her over with bad intentions at this time.

Today it was Lanning’s turn to keep watch at night, so Qingyu retreated first. Lanning helped cover Ning Xueyan in a quilt and was about to blow out the candle before leaving.

"Lanning, can you tell me what kind of person Sister Ziying was?" Ning Xueyan, who had closed her eyes, suddenly opened her eyes and asked. Under the light, her dark, jade-like eyes were full of coldness.

Hearing that, Lanning suddenly retracted her hands quickly and knocked a cup to the ground, making a crisp cracking sound in the silent room.

"Lanning, can’t you say?" Ning Xueyan coldly said, looking at the flustered Lanning.

"Young Lady..." Lanning, who always was calm, said with hesitancy. She squatted down and tried to pick up the debris from the porcelain cup.

"I just went to Cloud Reflection Courtyard and saw a woman, a very beautiful woman. She went into Cloud Reflection Courtyard from the wall. And I’ve never seen her before."

Ning Xueyan smiled insincerely.

When Lanning heard Ning Xueyan’s words, her hands trembled and the porcelain fragments cut her finger and blood rushed out immediately. Lanning subconsciously looked up into Ning Xueyan’s cold eyes. Next to the quilt, Ning Xueyan’s delicate, pale face was only as small as one’s palm. But because of the dim lights, her face made Lanning feel familiar.

"Young Lady!" Lanning subconsciously screamed and felt pain in her heart and had tears in her eyes.

"Ning Ziying lost her father at the age of 10 and mother at the age of 13. Then she went to Lord Protector’s Manor for shelter with Mother Wang and Xiang’er. After that, she lived in the back yard of Lord Protector’s Manor the entire time. Madam Ling gave you to her when you were 16. However, she threw herself into the lake with Xiang’er on the eve of Ning Ziyan’s marriage." Ning Xueyan looked at Lanning and spoke softly, but her gaze was cold.

This mood of Ning Xueyan made Lanning dare not look, and Lanning came to her senses immediately.

She realized that Ning Xueyan was not her former gentle master, but her new wise and scheming master.

But what made Lanning nervous most was that Ning Xueyan knew so much about Ning Ziying’s life. The Fifth Young Lady used to live in Bright Frost Garden and had never seen Ning Ziying before. How could she know her so clearly? Lanning’s face turned pale in an instant and she could not help trembling.

"Lanning, others said that Ning Ziying died by throwing herself into the lake." Seeing that Lanning’s mood fluctuated, Ning Xueyan continued to ask.

"Young... Young Lady..." Lanning opened her mouth, as if she could only say those two words.

"Others say that Ning Ziying died by throwing herself into the river. I think nobody knows that she was murdered. My eldest brother-in-law, Xia Yuhang, was Ning Ziying’s fiance. Ning Ziyan not only stole her fiance, but also killed her."

Ning Xueyan looked down and smiled lightly. No one knew this better than she did. After she was reborn, she had nightmares and dreamed about the scene of her death every night. Now, this hatred was deeply rooted in her heart.

If she had not been reborn, who would avenge her?

"Young... Young Lady... stop, stop talking, I... I... I..." Ning Xueyan pressed step by step. And Lanning finally could not bear it anymore, as she hid her face and cried.

These things also were painful to Lanning, who subconsciously believed Ning Xueyan. Looking at those familiar dark, jade-like eyes and thinking that her new master knew the truth, Lanning got the idea that Young Lady Ziying had told the Fifth Young Lady those things in the Fifth Young Lady’s dream and wanted the Fifth Young Lady to avenge her, so Lanning was unwilling to hide anything.

"When did Xia Yuhang and Ning Ziyan start dating?" In her previous life, Lanning told Ning Ziying that Xia Yuhang had an affair with Ning Ziyan. But Ning Ziying did not believe that her best sister and affectionate fiance would betray her. So she refused to listen to Lanning’s explanation.

"Sister Ziying and Childe Xia were betrothed when they were children. Mother Wang said they had been betrothed for at least 10 years. When Young Lady Ziying arrived at Lord Protector’s Manor, she decided to observe a mourning period for her mother for three years here and then marry Childe Xia. Before Young Lady Ziying arrived here, the Eldest Young Lady and Childe Xia were not familiar with each other. But when Young Lady Ziying had been here for about one year, Eldest Young Lady and Childe Xia were familiar with each other without ceremony. I once saw they hugged behind the rockery."

Lanning wiped her tears with her handkerchief. She thought about it for a while before answering.

Lanning had mentioned that matter to Ning Ziying, but Ning Ziying had blamed her for misreading it.

One year ago, Ning Ziying was 14 years old and Ning Ziyan was 15. At that time, Xia Yuhang was still very affectionate to Ning Ziying. It turned out that he had already changed his mind.

A strange sadness hit Ning Xueyan’s heart. No one would think that the affectionate man had already ceased to be faithful. But she was still kept in the dark. So, finally she came to such an end.

"Was there anything strange when Ning Ziying was alive?" asked Ning Xueyan.

At that time, Ning Ziying devoted herself to Xia Yuhang and thus neglected many things.

"It’s not very clear to me. But I had seen the woman you mentioned a few days before Young Lady Ziying’s death, and I don’t know whether or not it’s the same person," Lanning frowned and said.

"Who is she?"

"I don’t know. Childe Xia also was there when I saw that women. On that day, Young Lady Ziying went out with him. Then they met Eldest Young Lady on the way. So the three of them went to the garden together. I saw off Young Lady Ziying in front of the courtyard gate and saw the women when I got back to the room. She seemed to be looking for something. When she saw me, she wasn’t panicked at all, but just opened the window and then disappeared quickly. I ran after her, but she already had gone."

Lanning answered while recalling it.

She was shocked and worried at that time because Zing Ziying and Xia Yuhang would be holding their wedding ceremony a few days later. Who was this woman that appeared inexplicably?

Lanning was very upset and had a bad feeling. But when she saw Ning Ziying’s happy face, she did not want to tell Ning Ziying this matter that would destroy her happy mood.

The next few days were very calm. So calm that Lanning felt that she had misread it.

"Did Mother Wang and Xiang’er ever talk about Ning Ziying? Or was there anything unusual about Ning Ziying’s childhood?" There was no mistake in Lanning’s words, so Ning Xueyan could not continue to interrogate Lanning at the moment. The woman who appeared inexplicably had to be related to Ning Ziying, but Lanning did not know anything.

"Mother Wang and Xiang’er came here with Young Lady Ziying. I didn’t think there was anything wrong with them, but there was one thing..." Lanning hesitated for a moment and equivocated, "there was one thing I think..."

"Say it!" Ning Xueyan coldly said.