latelenovela Chapter 296 No Way
Chapter 296 No Way
Nianyao nodded: "Uncle and Aunt, I'm going to explore Bianjing by myself today. I won't be back at noon."
Meng Dong immediately said, "I'll go with you. I know every corner of Bianjing well. Yesterday I was busy buying rouge and face powder, today I'll take you to buy some jewelry and clothes, and we'll also try some local snacks."
Meng Dong said that as the mistress of the manor, she sometimes had to pay attention to her image, so yesterday she bought a bunch of rouge and face powder to teach her how to use them. But she really had no interest in these things whatsoever.
Nianyao was still thinking about how to refuse when Steward Feng came over and said that Her Majesty the Empress invited Meng Dong to the palace to accompany her.
Meng Dong said, "Nianyao, let's go together. Her Majesty the Empress likes you very much. She will be very happy if you go to the palace to keep her company."
Nianyao said, "Women in the palace have rules even for walking. I feel really constrained, so I won't go."
Seeing Nianyao's insistence, Meng Dong didn't press the matter further: "Alright, if you encounter any trouble outside, just mention your uncle's name. In Bianjing, no matter who it is, they'll always have to give your uncle some face."
Nianyao thought that An Qile and Meng Dong truly cared about her.
When Nianyao went to the Duke's mansion, the doorman looked at her with disdain when he heard that she was looking for Qin Jiu: "As expected of a man from a bandit gang, he only goes after women who are not presentable."
As the doorman finished speaking and was about to close the door, Nianyao raised her leg to block the door and stuffed a silver ingot into the doorman's hand: "Young brother, I'm looking for Princess Qingcheng. Please be kind enough to inform her that Nianyao from Chongming Island has come to visit."
The doorman carefully put the silver away, his tone much gentler: "The princess is not here."
Nianyao suppressed her anger: "Where did she go?"
The doorman said, "Their family went back to their hometown to visit their grandmother."
Nianyao asked, "Did Qin Jiu, the ninth son-in-law, go too?"
The doorman glanced around and whispered, "The young master has committed a crime and is in jail. Miss, you should make plans as soon as possible and not look for him anymore, lest you get implicated."
Qin Jiu was imprisoned, yet Liang Qingcheng and her family left Bianjing? Could it really be that An Liangchen orchestrated this? She couldn't go to the palace to ask An Liangchen, so did she really have to go find Luo An?
I'm not going. I left on my own back then, and now I'm going back? I have no backbone at all.
Go ahead, how much is backbone worth per pound? Helping others and saving lives is the real business. You were in the wrong to begin with, and when you're in the wrong, you have to humble yourself, regardless of gender.
I won't go. Why can't she be unreasonable? In other families, it's the man who appeases the woman.
Go ahead, Luo An is essentially marrying into the family, so he's basically a woman. Besides, this isn't about bowing down, it's just about asking Qin Jiu what she told him.
She wouldn't go, and that was it. She simply wouldn't go. Since Luo An wasn't coming to find her, she refused to go to see him.
……
Nianyao paced back and forth in front of Xizhai, trying to convince herself.
Gu Yu opened the door and said, "Madam, the Heaven and Earth Palace has asked the young master to return, saying there is a seriously ill patient."
Nianyao breathed a sigh of relief for no apparent reason: "I'm on my way back to the Prince's Mansion, passing by here."
Gu Yu didn't expose her: "Madam, seriously ill patients are the most difficult to treat, requiring a great deal of effort. If you could go to Heaven and Earth at this time, the young master would be very happy, and even the biggest problems would not matter."
Is Gu Yu trying to persuade her? Gu Yu can even offer advice?
Although Nianyao was surprised, she still harbored resentment towards Guyu for stopping her earlier: "I don't know anything about medicine, so I won't cause him any trouble."
Offering words of comfort is difficult for Gu Yu, especially since Nian Yao's rejection was so abrupt. Gu Yu then fell silent and watched Nian Yao walk away.
Nianyao went to Chongyang Temple, which seemed to have been uninhabited for a long time, with weeds growing in the courtyard.
Nianyao called out, "Is anyone home?"
A girl wearing a floral headscarf came out carrying a basket filled with snacks and dried fruit: "Sister, are you here to offer incense too? My young master has been possessed since returning from Jingling Mountain. Wang Bamei from Wangjia Village at the foot of Jingling Mountain said this Taoist temple is very efficacious..."
The girl left as she spoke, and Nianyao searched inside and outside Chongyang Temple, but couldn't find Xu Sheng anywhere.
Xu Sheng is a big liar. Luo An went back to Heaven and Earth, Liang Qingcheng went back to her hometown, and even the Prince's Mansion couldn't help... Now they're at their wits' end?
Nianyao, seething with anger and nowhere to go, went to a teahouse to drink tea and listen to storytelling.
The storyteller was recounting the fight between Qin Jiu and the young master, as if he were right there in the middle of it all. They exchanged punches and kicks, and the story was so captivating that the audience cheered enthusiastically from time to time.
Nianyao went through the events that had happened since returning to Bianjing, and instinctively felt that something was wrong, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was.
With Bian Jing under An Liangchen's control, it's not impossible that An Liangchen, with his meticulousness, could arrange things flawlessly.
As someone outside An Liangchen's control, Xu Sheng seemed more trustworthy at this moment. Since he said he would go to Chongyang Temple to find him, then...
"My young master became possessed after returning from Jingling Mountain. Wang Bamei from Wangjia Village at the foot of Jingling Mountain said that this Taoist temple is very efficacious..."
Jingling Mountain? Wang Ba... Sister, Wang Ba... Sister, Sister Ba? Could it be that Xu Sheng's whereabouts were discovered, so he went to Jingling Mountain and sent someone to inform her?
Eighth Sister's surname is Wang? No wonder she always only says she's called Eighth Sister and never mentions her surname. Anyone would have to say that.
After leaving the teahouse, Nianyao bought a set of men's clothing. She changed her clothes at the clothing store and went out through the back door, wandering around to Jingling Mountain.
Xu Sheng stood in front of Yuan Feng and Nan Fei's graves, next to a handsome young man who looked very familiar.
When the young man saw Nianyao, he waved the bright red floral headscarf in his hand and said, "He said you would definitely come, but I didn't really believe it. I didn't expect you to actually come!"
Nianyao glanced at the young man before turning to Xu Sheng: "You got married?"
Xu Sheng: "...Yes, I got married. Call me 'sister-in-law' and let me hear it."
The young man quickly replied, "No, no. I'm his adopted younger brother, and he's my adopted older brother. I'm not a woman."
Nianyao said, "You believe he's not a woman?"
The young man said seriously, "Of course I'm not a woman. Brother, you tell her."
Xu Sheng simply said, "His name is Conch. Chief Xue, is someone following you?"
Nianyao said, "Yes, but I think I've already shaken them off."
Xu Sheng said, "I believe you. How's the investigation into Qin Jiu going?"
Nianyao shook her head: "No."
Xu Sheng said, "What do you mean by 'nothing'? You didn't ask? Or you just couldn't get the answer?"
Nianyao said, "I went to the Duke's Mansion and Xizhai. Liang Qingcheng's family went back to their hometown, and Luo An went back to the Heavenly Realm."
Xu Sheng seemed unsurprised: "So what do you plan to do?"
Nianyao said listlessly, "What else can I do? That's it. Ninth Brother is the son-in-law of the Duke's mansion. He hasn't done anything wrong, nor has he interfered in the mess between Dongyang and Nanyue. Even if he's locked up in jail, he won't suffer, and his life won't be in danger."
Xu Sheng was quite surprised. He looked her over carefully and said after a while, "Chief Xue, I know you are always intelligent, so you already understand?"
Nianyao corrected her, "You've always been a prince, and I'm no longer the gang leader. I don't understand, and I don't need to understand."
"I can go back to Heaven on Earth and be the mistress of the manor, or I can be the young lady of the Prince's mansion, or I can recognize Hong Hua as my godfather, or if all else fails, I can set up a stall or a shop... I won't be left with no way out."