The Devious First-Daughter (Web Novel)
chapter-623-30041322

Ning Xueyan stayed dazed for a long time after waking up. It took her a while to recognize that she was in a familiar place, the third floor of the Moon-embracing Tower and Ao Chenyi’s room. Only then did the vigilance in her eyes fade.

“You’re up? How are you feeling?” Ao Chenyi’s voice reached her ears. It was a pleasant baritone voice that wasn’t gloomy. If anything, it made her feel all soft on the inside.

He had always been an introvert with great self-control. It was rare for him to show how he felt.

Ning Xueyan leaned her head against him and said softly, “I’m fine. I just didn’t expect Xia Yuhang and Ning Qingshan to be so crazy.”

She wasn’t lying. She did think that Xia Yuhang would be desperate enough to do something to save himself but didn’t anticipate how far he would go. Just to get Ao Mingwan to help him, he kidnapped her and tried to send her to Ao Mingwan’s bed.

The reason he colluded with Ning Qingshan was easy to understand, too. Others might not understand their relationship, but how could Xia Yuhang not? It was his best choice to get Ning Qingshan to deal with her while the Ministry of Justice was interrogating him. Whether Ning Qingshan would do anything to her wasn’t within his consideration.

“Crazy, aren’t they? Let them go crazy then!” Ao Chenyi placed his hand on Ning Xueyan’s forehead and gently caressed it. There was an unreadable coldness in his eyes. The moment he learned that Yan’er was kidnapped, no one knew how he nearly ruined everyone.

He found relief only after he saw how she, despite being frightened and tense, raised the blood bracelet in her hand and aimed it at her kidnappers. His Yan’er wasn’t an ordinary woman of the aristocracy. She remained calm even in such a dangerous situation, searching for a beneficial way out.

Still, that made him feel even more distressed. To think that the woman that he wanted to protect would end up in such a precarious situation.

Ning Xueyan wasn’t injured, but she was weak from using excessive strength before. Her body has always been frail, too. She was leaning against his chest in a daze at this moment, not noticing the sinister threat in Ao Chenyi’s words.

“Don’t sleep first. Get up and have some food before you sleep.” He reached out to pat her face.

“I don’t feel like eating,” she replied softly.

“Eat something even if you don’t feel like it. Come on, be a good girl and get up. Just have some porridge.” Knowing that she might not have an appetite, Ao Chenyi ordered the servants to prepare a bowl of light-tasting porridge.

Though Ning Xueyan wanted to sleep, she couldn’t win against the voice chattering beside her ear or the occasional patting and pinching. It was as if she was a cat or dog. His little actions chased away all of her drowsiness. She had no choice but to get up and sit on the bed. After washing up with the things that Xinmei prepared, she took a few mouthfuls of porridge. Suddenly, she noticed something odd.

“Why is it so noisy?” The sky outside the window indicated that it was nighttime and yet, the entire manor was lit up as brightly as daytime. She could even hear the sound of collisions, similar to the collisions of weapons. Her mind instantly became clear and she grabbed Ao Chenyi’s sleeve, asking in a panicked voice, “Did something happen?”

“It’s fine. It’s all over. Yu Jian and the others are tying up the loose ends. It’s just a few assassins,” he replied nonchalantly.

“Assassins? Why are there assassins? Did the Emperor not trust you and send assassins after you?” Ning Xueyan became anxious. Why did assassins come at this time? To think that assassins would come so shortly after she was kidnapped.

Ao Chenyi helped her get to her feet, allowing her head to rest against his chest, and look out the window. “It’s all right. It’s just some assassins, and they didn’t just come to my manor,” he said languidly, looking out the window.

Noticing something off, she calmed herself and asked, “Did anyone die?”

“Just a couple of people who deserved death anyway. No harm is done. You should go to bed and get some good rest. Nothing will happen,” he said leisurely. Giving her a devious look, he added, “Of course, if you’re bored and can’t sleep anymore, I can keep you company and watch this wonderful show.”

“You did it?” Her pink lips fell open and her glistening eyes blinked as she looked at him. He hugged her without a word, gently and tenderly embracing her.

“Since someone has harmed my princess repeatedly, I’ll have to at least fight back, don’t I?” Ao Chenyi smiled, as calm as ever. His long lashes, as light as butterfly wings, fell as he looked at her. His eyes seemed warmer this time.

“What if something happened to me this time… and I died?” Ning Xueyan gripped his sleeve even harder as if this was the only way she could break free from the shock and fear that she felt earlier. Truth to be told, she was afraid, very much so. But what use was fear in that kind of situation?

If Ning Qingshan knew she was afraid, she would torture her even more!

Even so, she could come clean about her fear now. Her clear, beautiful eyes seemed clouded over as she looked hopefully at his handsome face.

“If I lose the love of my life, I don’t see a need for this world to exist anymore. I think it’ll be better for everyone to lose their loved ones and have their blood flow for a thousand miles.” Ao Chenyi’s voice was even, sounding as if everything was within his plan, but the murderous desire in his words would make everyone who heard him think that he was as cold as a ghost from hell.

He seemed so cruel that he would drag everyone he saw to hell.

Ning Xueyan was stunned at first. This man was as bloodthirsty and ruthless as she expected. It was no wonder everyone called him a Demon King. If he lost his love, he would make everyone lose their loved ones as well and plunge them into hell. He had the kind of mentality where no one should be happy if he was upset.

But she was heartbroken at his way of thinking. She felt so bad for him that she instinctively reached out to hug him. The darkness in his eyes told her that he wasn’t joking. He was never one to shy away from such cruelty, and he would only ever do his worst.

The fact that he would overdo it was what made her sad. This was how he had lived since the late Emperor’s death. Now, he had given nearly all of his affection to her. Would he sink into pitch-black darkness if he died, never to see the sun again?

“I’ll be fine because you’re with me!” Ning Xueyan grabbed his hand, looking at him with a pair of misty eyes. Her gaze, however, was firm and warm.

She would be fine with him around. He would protect her!

Because of him, she wouldn’t let anything happen to herself. She still had to protect him!

That was what Ning Xueyan meant. Her words might seem to have come out of the left-field, but she knew that Ao Chenyi would understand her. He raised an eyebrow at her, but the tremendous coldness in his eyes gradually faded. He grabbed her hand and placed it lovingly on his lips before taking a bite, expelling the darkness within him.

He was Prince Yi, a Demon King in everyone’s eyes. Everyone thought that he was icy-cold and she was his weak princess. They thought that he was protecting her, but only he knew that she was the one guarding his heart ever since he fell for her.

He carefully wiped her hands with a towel before carrying her to bed. He climbed into bed too, patting her soft body. “Go to bed. Get a good night’s rest and it’ll be all over by the time you wake up tomorrow.”

It was indeed getting quieter outside. There would be a burst of noise from time to time, but it wasn’t as bad as before. She was exhausted today, so she gradually closed her eyes amid Ao Chenyi’s gentle soothing. She laid in his embrace, surrounded by his smell, and felt at peace.

She had always been tense since her rebirth. Yet, somehow, she began to relax completely and sleep sweetly around him.

Even though he was cold and sinister, he still made her feel warm.

Ao Chenyi lowered his head and looked at the woman in his arms without a word. She was holding onto his shirt with one hand, burying her head in his chest. Her fair and beautiful face, like that of jade, was still wearing a faint smile. Her curved pink lips seemed relaxed. This showed that she truly trusted in him, and his heart was filled with joy at this.

He leaned in and gently placed a kiss on her opened lips. He didn’t dare to use so much force for fear of disturbing her sleep.

Xinmei had left the room a long time ago, so the place was quiet. Only the candlelight was flickering.

Suddenly, there was a light knock on the door. Ao Chenyi put Ning Xueyan down gently and removed her soft little hand from his chest. He got up, sorted his clothes, and went out.

Yu Jian was waiting at the door outside. He was about to make his report after seeing Ao Chenyi, but the latter glared at him, making him shut up. He then followed Ao Chenyi to the window on the other side before Ao Chenyi started questioning him in a lazy voice.

“How did it go?”

“Everything has been dealt with. Since you’re still injured, the assassins entered the manor as if it was their backyard. They were only chased away by the guards after running into a few of them. It’s the same with Prince Xiang and Prince Fu. No one died. A few were injured, but made to retreat unscathed by the assassins.”

Yu Jian made his report in a low voice.

“What about that side?” Ao Chenyi looked coldly out of the window, his gaze without any trace of warmth.

Yu Jian paused for a moment before answering, “Consort Yun was worried about your injury. When she came out, she was also injured by the assassins.” It was inevitable for Commandery Princess Xianyun to be injured, lest this consort who was demoted from the princess position to cook up another scheme. In the face of such an inevitable matter, Ao Chenyi’s countermeasure was always to obliterate all possibilities.

Even if nothing had happened yet!

Ao Chenyi nodded, his gaze cold and gloomy as he stared out the window. “Is it going well in Grand Tutor Ya’s Manor?”

“Yes. The chaos happened mainly in the residences of the three princes. Some even said the princes had all died. The rumors are strife outside. The Emperor will likely send someone over to verify the news soon.”

The simultaneous attack of the three princes most likely to succeed the throne was a major incident. If the Emperor didn’t send someone to check on the princes’ condition, the spearhead of the rumors might very well aim at him. Not even an Emperor could stop the suspicion of his officials.

“That’s great!” Ao Chenyi nodded with a faint smile on his face. “Let them retreat and stay put until they get a new order.”

“Yes, I’m on it.” Yu Jian nodded, stepped back respectfully, and went downstairs.