The Devious First-Daughter (Web Novel)

Everyone saw Mother Qin walking in, and then they heard the sound of a teacup breaking. It was obvious that Madam Dowager was still angry. After a while, they saw Mother Qin coming out with a smile.

“Good news, First Madam. Madam Dowager says that you can go back now, and you do not have to kneel in the courtyard anymore.” Mother Qin said to Madam Ling and then turned to Ning Yuling and the others. “Well, Second Young Lady, Third Young Lady, and Fifth Young Lady, you are all filial. Madam Dowager is aware of that. Go back and have a good rest now. The ground is still wet; hopefully, it will not do you any harm. We do not want Madam Dowager to feel distressed again later.”

Mother Qin was indeed Madam Dowager’s trusted subordinate. She had a smooth tongue, and no one could find fault with her. She even flattered the three young ladies by saying that Madam Dowager did not punish Madam Ling due to their filial piety. Meanwhile, she even showed her concern for them on behalf of Madam Dowager.

If she had not held on with one more breath, Madam Ling would have fainted. When she heard, she released a long sigh and fell back. Her eyes rolled up as she fell into a dead faint. Mother Chen, who was kneeling behind her, hurriedly caught her and shouted hysterically. Ning Xueyan got up and had a brief discussion with the older female servant. After that, they dismantled a door plank and asked someone to carry Madam Ling back to the Auspicious Clouds Courtyard.

The three of them followed her. However, when they arrived at the entrance of the Auspicious Clouds Courtyard, Ning Xueyan and Ning Qingshan said that they were going to change, and went back to their own rooms.

Ning Yuling stood at the gate of Auspicious Clouds Courtyard and looked at them as they walked away. Then, she returned to her room.

“Fifth Sister, please wait!” Hearing some anxious cries coming from behind. Ning Xueyan stopped and turned to look at the elegant man who came over. He was as handsome as before. From his eyes, she felt that he seemed to be the same Xia Yuhang, who was as affectionate as before.

However, Ling Ziying had been dead for a long time already.

“Brother-in-law, why are you here? Have you not heard that this place is haunted?” Ning Xueyan looked at him coldly, being neither sad nor happy. She harbored an ingrained and bloodthirsty grudge against him. She only felt hate and ridicule for this man.

How ridiculous! This man walked into the Cloud Reflection Courtyard and even stood by the lotus pond, with a look of deep affection and sorrow. If she did not know better, she would think that he was an obsessed lover, who was mourning the death of his lover. How fantastic the world was!

Her fingers clutched her handkerchief tightly. She looked at the slightly opened door and the wild grass on the ground. A silent sneer appeared on her lips, which was cold and mocking.

“Why are you putting on an act when she is already dead?”

She had wandered over to this place on her own, saw that the door was slightly ajar, and entered casually. She did not expect that someone would be there before her. When she saw Xia Yuhang, she turned around to leave, but he stopped her. She did not know what he was going to do. Was it not enough for one person to recall Ning Ziying? Did he want to force her to think of Ning Ziying too?

“Haunted? Is it still haunted?” Xia Yuhang frowned and looked at the desolate courtyard. There was a trace of bitterness at the corners of his mouth. “Did she come back?”

“Back? Eldest Brother-in-law, are you talking about Sister Ziying? How is it possible? Sister Ziying has been dead for so long that her bones should have turned into ashes already!” Ning Xueyan looked at a blooming flower, and said this with a faint smile.

“No, she’s so beautiful. She could not just have disappeared without a trace. Perhaps she’s watching us right now.” Xia Yuhang whispered, and his voice was full of inconceivable sadness. His eyes fell on the flower that Ning Xueyan was looking at. “This is her favorite Chinese rose. It’s said that there are many Chinese roses in the regions south of the Yangtze River. It’s not rare, but she likes it, as it is beautiful and easy to cultivate.”

“Beautiful and easy to be cultivated?” She had said those words in her previous life. She had been so gentle when she had spoken then, but now she harbored a profound hatred. During the days when her parents had died, she had thought that the man in front of her would be someone she could depend on. However, she never thought that he would witness her drowning in the lotus pond one day.

A blood-thirsty chill emanated from her heart and penetrated through her limbs and bones, her blood thickening in her anger.

Ning Xueyan raised her head and looked at Xia Yuhang, with a sarcastic look in her dark, jade-like eyes. She did not avoid Xia Yuhang’s gaze and said, “Brother-in-law, what’s the point of talking about this? Between the skeleton and the beauty, I believe that you can distinguish which one is better!”

“No, you must not say that. Ziying is beautiful. She is so beautiful. How can she become a skeleton? Perhaps she has already reincarnated into a human. If I find her again, I won’t let her down in this life.” Xia Yuhang said this sincerely, with a trace of pain and excitement in his eyes, as well as some sort of complicated struggle.

“Reincarnate into a human? Eldest Brother-in-law, you’re ridiculous. If a person is dead, how can she reincarnate into a human? If you’re unwilling to let it go, you can get someone to dredge the lotus pond to see if her white bones are still there. Maybe sister Ziying’s white bones have not rotted yet. She’s still waiting for you.” Ning Xueyan smiled gently, but her words were cruel.

Such a delicate smile and elegant beauty made people feel scared.

Xia Yuhang opened his eyes wide and felt a heavy blow in his heart. He trembled and gritted his teeth, saying, “Fifth Sister, I was fooled by Ning Ziyan that day, so I misunderstood, and thought that she had an affair with another man. Otherwise… I would not have simply watched her die.”

Xia Yuhang trembled when he said that. He could not hide the sadness in his eyes.

“Eldest Brother-in-law, are you blaming Eldest Sister?” Ning Xueyan sneered. She took a step back and looked at Xia Yuhang from head to toe. The smile on her face became more and more disdainful. “Others may not know what happened to Eldest Sister Ziying. Don’t we know what happened in the Lord Protector’s Manor? Sister Ziying is dead. Eldest Brother-in-law, why are you still putting on an act? I came here because I miss Sister Ziying, who came to a bad end, because she was not able to discern between good and evil people.”

“She brought trouble to herself. If she had known about it earlier, how could this happen? Since Eldest Sister and Eldest Brother-in-law were in love with each other, Sister Ziying should give what is not hers. In that case, she could have saved her own life. Anyway, Eldest Brother-in-law, you should know which one will benefit you more, between a Young Lady of the Lord Protector’s Manor and an orphan.”

“Since you’re clear, what’s the use of putting the blame on Eldest Sister now? Eldest Brother-in-law, you’re so smart, how can you not understand?”

He wanted to marry Ning Ziyan and gain the support of the Lord Protector’s Manor. For this, he did not hesitate to abandon his fiancée and did not even give her a chance to live. She died so tragically. But now, he pretended to be affectionate and that everything that happened was all Ning Ziyan’s fault.

With Xia Yuhang’s intelligence, it was impossible for Madam Ling and her daughter to deceive him. The reason why he pretended to be angry was that he wanted to push the boat along with the current.

Ning Xueyan spoke out boldly to uphold justice, as a sister who had always been unfriendly toward Ning Ziyan. When Xia Yuhang stopped her, she had been vigilant. She had seen Xia Yuhang only a few times before and had spoken only a few words to him. In such a lonely courtyard, Xia Yuhang should not have stopped her and told her such things.

Although he looked sad and cut a solitary figure, Ning Xueyan noticed him observing her from time to time.

He said that he was heartbroken, and he missed Ning Ziying. Why then did he stop her and say those words?

Xia Yuhang’s behavior today was strange. If not for the fact that only she knew the secret of her rebirth, Ning Xueyan almost thought that Xia Yuhang had guessed that. Why did he say that perhaps Ning Ziying had reincarnated to be a human, and he would not let her go? It was not as simple as it sounded.

Ning Xueyan had sarcastically told Xia Yuhang about the incident that happened that day, in order to let Xia Yuhang understand that it was not a secret in the Lord Protector’s Manor, and to eliminate his suspicion. She felt a sense of danger. If Xia Yuhang continued to be suspicious, it would not be a good thing.

Xia Yuhang had not expected Ning Xueyan to be so ruthless. He looked at the young girl in a snow-white dress in surprise, sneered, turned around, and left. He restrained the sadness on his face. Was he wrong? It could not be her. No, it could not be her. How could it be her? That was impossible.

But previously, he thought it might be true. Zi Ying was so gentle and always smiled at everyone. She never spoke ill of anyone. How could she show such a mocking look now? It was not her, and it should not be her. There was a bitter smile at the corners of his mouth. He was thinking too much.

He stepped forward and stood in front of a stone by the pool. At that time, this was her favorite spot. Her beautiful face would be reflected, together with a flower, but it was more beautiful than the flower. Initially, he thought that she was merely a passer-by in his life and a part that could be abandoned. However, when he woke up the next day, he only felt a deep emptiness.

Did he do something right? Had he known this would happen, he should have spared her life. At that time, as long as he stretched out his hand, he could have saved her life, right? An intense pain rose in his heart, which made him stumble and almost fall. He reached out to hold the stone, and his eyes darkened immensely.

Was it not her? Or maybe it was her! Although this kind of thing was almost impossible, he felt that it might be true. There was always a glimmer of hope.

If he looked at her eyes, she was almost the same as Ning Ziying, as well as the way she held her cup. He also had a sense of familiarity. Maybe, maybe there was hope.

There was a trace of blood-red fierceness in the depths of her dark eyes. Anyway, this was just a little obsession in his mind. Since it was an obsession, he should give himself a chance, even though the possibility was small. No matter right or wrong, he would never let go of this chance…