Chapter 166: Stick it out to the end
Translator: 549690339
Nian Jincheng wiped his face and saw Su Liang appear beside Ning Jing, looking at him with a smile, “Congratulations, General Nian, on regaining your freedom.”
“Thank you.” Nian Jincheng managed a pale smile, handed the towel to Ning
Jing, and sighed softly, “Freedom… I can never see the light of day again.”
He was alive, but he was labeled a rebel, becoming the biggest wanted criminal in Qian Country together with Gu Ling. In the future, he could only hide his identity and live in hiding.
There was no future in sight.
Su Liang bumped Ning Jing with her elbow, “Look at how you’ve made him suffer.”
Nian Jincheng was startled upon hearing this and quickly shook his head, “I didn’t mean it like that… Don’t overthink it, Su Liang. It has nothing to do with him.”
“I know, he’s your best brother, I can’t blame him.” Su Liang smiled lightly, “You’re feeling lost now?”
Nian Jincheng sighed deeply, “Yeah, suddenly I have nothing left. I don’t know where I can go or what I can do in the future.”
Su Liang’s lips curled up slightly, “Your brother suggested you sell tea leaves.” Nian Jincheng frowned, “Sell tea leaves? Run a business? I don’t understand…”
“Not understanding isn’t a problem. As long as you’re interested, you can learn.” Su Liang said, “You just need to think about whether you want to.” Nian Jincheng shook his head, “To be honest, I don’t.”
Ning Jing’s expression was indifferent, “If you don’t like selling tea leaves, how about running a fabric store?” Su Liang held her forehead.
Nian Jincheng: .
“Selling fabric suits you.” Ning Jing said, “Don’t believe me? Give it a try.”
Ning Jing went out with the basin of water following his words. Seeing Nian Jincheng bewildered, Su Liang didn’t leave immediately.
“Su Liang, what’s wrong with him? Why does he insist on me selling fabric? Where to? What kind of fabric?” Nian Jincheng found it inexplicable. He could understand selling tea leaves since Ning Jing did sell them…
Su Liang coughed lightly, “I have a friend who is a silk merchant from the Yang
Family, named Yang Yu. Ning Jing wants to send you to her.”
Nian Jincheng frowned, “Send me to her… What does he think of me?”
“Right now, it’s very dangerous for you to stay in the capital city, and we are being watched by many people, so we can’t suddenly have an extra person by our side.” Su Liang explained, “Ning Jing just wants to arrange a safe place for you. Once you’ve recovered, you can decide where to go and what to do.”
“I see.” Nian Jincheng nodded his head, “But it seems like he really wants me to sell fabric. Actually, I can stay and be a secret guard for you. I’d be happy to.”
Su Liang said something that hurt Nian Jincheng’s feelings, “Our martial arts skills are fine, we probably don’t need you to suffer like that.”
Nian Jincheng: … I feel like I’m useless…
“Take it easy, take your time to heal, and think about it later.” Su Liang checked Nian Jincheng’s pulse. Apart from the lack of blood and energy due to his injury, there were no major problems.
Ning Jing came back. Su Liang told him the prescription and asked him to prepare and cook the medicine for Nian Jincheng, “Take care of your brother.”
Ning Jing nodded, “Does he need acupuncture?”
Su Liang thought about it, “It can be done, but it’s not necessary.”
“Then let’s do it.” Ning Jing said.
Nian Jincheng didn’t realize what they were talking about for a moment. When Su Liang left, Ning Jing lifted the blanket, peeled off his top, took out a needle pack and placed it on the bedside, and pulled out a thin, long gold needle.
“What are you doing?” Nian Jincheng’s eyes widened.
“Shut up and don’t move.” As soon as Ning Jing finished speaking, he inserted the needle and slapped Nian Jincheng on the forehead, “Relax.” Nian Jincheng’s expression was odd, “Aling, have I offended you?”
“What did you call me?” Ning Jing asked.
Nian Jincheng immediately changed his tune, “ANing.” “Don’t worry, he won’t die,” Ning Jing said.
Nian Jincheng fell silent. Oh well, he was tired, let it be.
When it was time for dinner, Nian Jincheng slowly got up and moved to sit at the table, sighing in relief, “Feeling so weak is unbearable.”
“You brought it on yourself,” Ning Jing said.
Nian Jincheng’s face stiffened.
When the Gu Family had met with disaster, Gu Ling had proposed to take Nian Jincheng with him, not for companionship, but for fear of Nian Jincheng being implicated.
Nian Jincheng had hesitated but ultimately stayed behind, fearing that the Nian Family would be harmed if he disappeared.
Gu Ling had said that Nian Jincheng would eventually be suspected by the royal family because of him, and even if he made great contributions, it would be useless.
Nian Jincheng naively believed that as long as he faithfully served the royal family with loyalty and dedication, such things wouldn’t happen as Gu Ling said.
In the end, it turned out that Nian Jincheng was wrong.
Gu Ling had also said that the Nian Family was not worth Nian Jincheng’s sincere efforts, but Nian Jincheng simply didn’t believe it. The affection and caring that he couldn’t get made him yearn for it even more.
In this matter, he was utterly wrong.
“By the way, how is Nian Ruting doing?” Su Liang changed the subject.
Nian Jincheng shook his head, “I don’t know, I haven’t seen her. The woman who saved me is the sister you knew from Su Village, right? Who is she? She was doing everything she could to find out Gu Ling’s whereabouts, weren’t you two in cahoots?”
“That’s Yan Shiba, the owner of Yanyun Building. She owes me a life-saving favor and wants to give Gu Ling as a gift for me to warm the bed,” Su Liang calmly said.
Nian Jincheng looked at Su Liang, then at Ning Jing, his face strange, “Isn’t it possible now?”
Su Liang smiled, “The point is not that. Although she saved you this time, we are not on the same side.”
“I understand.” Nian Jincheng nodded. “It’s just a transaction.”
Half-jokingly, Su Liang asked Nian Jincheng, “Won’t you really blame Ning Jing for your current situation? After all, he is the one who caused your trouble.”
Nian Jincheng became serious and shook his head, “No, I won’t. It’s not his fault. If it weren’t for him saving me, I would have died long ago. He secretly taught me martial arts. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have achieved anything growing up in the Nian Family. I wanted to become a military commander, originally hoping that my family would take notice of me and value me, but now it seems ridiculous and foolish. Besides, I didn’t know how to do anything else, so I wanted to join the army.”
“I see,” Su Liang nodded. “Then you can try doing other things in the future, maybe you are more suitable for that.”
Nian Jincheng twitched the corner of his mouth, “Actually, I’m not very smart. He taught me martial arts, and I learned very slowly.”
Ning Jing nodded, “Self-awareness.”
Su Liang laughed lightly, “No wonder, I thought Ning Jing was hiding his true skills. It turns out it’s a talent issue that you are so far behind him in martial arts.”
Nian Jincheng felt a sting in his heart, “Yes.”
“But you’re not only far behind him, I’m also far behind him. He’s not human, he’s a monster,” Su Liang said. “You’re a martial arts champion, much better than most martial artists in the world.”
Ning Jing looked at Su Liang, “Are you praising yourself?”
Su Liang raised his eyebrows, “Is there a problem?” Nian Jincheng laughed, “I think it’s fine.”
His confusion was only temporary. At this moment, sitting and eating with Ning Jing and Su Liang, and listening to their conversation, he felt comfortable, relaxed, and at ease.
After the meal, Ning Jing concocted medicine for Nian Jincheng. After drinking it, he fell into a deep sleep.
Su Liang asked Ning Jing how he was going to sleep since Nian Jincheng had taken his bed.
“That one.” Ning Jing pointed to the large soft couch in Su Liang’s room. It was custom-made for Su Liang by Wan Hui and was very comfortable. Su Liang would occasionally take a nap on it when he was tired from reading.
“Let’s move that one out,” Su Liang agreed without hesitation. “But it’s also fine for you two brothers to sleep in the same bed.”
Ning Jing glanced at Su Liang coldly, “No matter what you’re thinking, stop it.”
Duanmu Che was ordered by Duanmu Yi to move into the Imperial Palace to live, and the old Imperial Physician Gao would come in to treat him daily.
When the old Imperial Physician Gao met Su Liang again, he mentioned
Duanmu Che, saying that he had become much quieter and had not mentioned Su Liang again.
The new message sent by Duanmu Chen is about Yin Country’s female general
Man Ya, who started discussing ceasefire agreements with the Qian Country’s Royal Family after resting for three days in the post house due to acclimatization.
No one from the Yin Country’s Royal Family came, and although Man Ya was a prospective crown princess, she was not yet the crown princess, so she was not qualified to talk directly with Duanmu Yi. Duanmu Cheng and Duanmu Chen were responsible for this matter.
Man Ya proposed that Yin Country wanted to form a matrimonial alliance with
Qian Country.
But there is no definite plan for the marriage alliance.
The arrangement of official positions for the scholars who passed the Imperial examination had not been decided yet.
In fact, the purpose of Ning Jing taking the Imperial examination had been fulfilled at the moment when he became the Top Scholar. He was just satisfying the unfulfilled wish of the real Ning Jing.
And Su Liang’s goal was to have the opportunity to investigate the true cause of the death of the Su Family members and bring justice for them.
Originally, she wanted to start from Duanmu Che to obtain clues, but she never expected the situation to turn so ugly in the end, so she no longer planned to deal with Duanmu Che.
How to investigate the Su Family matter is now an urgent problem for Su Liang.
But to her surprise, trouble came before she even had any clues…
On an ordinary day, Su Liang was practicing martial arts, Ning Jing was reading, and Nian Jincheng was disguising himself as a corpse. Suddenly, some government soldiers came to the door, bearing a fierce attitude, saying they wanted to see Su Liang.
The leader was Vice-minister of the Ministry of Justice named Gou Yu.
Su Liang was confused as she heard Gou Yu ask, “Miss Su, where were you last night, and can anyone testify?”
Su Liang answered, “I was at home last night, and I didn’t go out. My sworn brother Ning Jing can testify.”
“Is it that you are already sleeping together even though you haven’t married yet?” Gou Yu asked.
Su Liang sensed that the visitor was up to no good and shook her head in denial, “No.”
“Then how can he testify for you?” Gou Yu sneered.
Su Liang remained calm, “Well, let’s just say there is no witness. May I ask why are you looking for me?”
Gou Yu looked at Su Liang coldly, “A murder case occurred in the capital city last night, and all the evidence points to Miss Su as the murderer!”
Su Liang’s expression turned inexplicable, “Who died?”
Gou Yu answered, “The second young master of the Xiao Family, Xiao Muyun!
Miss Su should not be unfamiliar with this person, right? Arrest her!”
Su Liang was astonished, as she had almost forgotten about Xiao Muyun. Ever since Duanmu Chen did something, Xiao Muyun had stopped pestering Su Liang, and she thought there would be no more entanglements in the future.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Muyun suddenly died?
Su Liang remained calm, and as two government soldiers walked towards her, she said, “I’m not a criminal until I’m proven guilty. I will cooperate with the investigation. Let’s go.”
Seeing that Su Liang’s attitude was acceptable and considering her accomplishments, Gou Yu ordered the government soldiers to retreat, “In that case, please come with us to the Xiao Family Mansion for a visit, Miss Su!” Su Liang nodded, “Alright. Please wait for a moment, I’ll change my clothes.”
After changing her clothes, Su Liang, still carrying her medicine box, went into Ning Jing’s room first.
“I don’t know who killed Xiao Muyun, I’ll go take a look.” Su Liang said.
Nian Jincheng whispered, “Ning Jing, you should go with Su Liang. Someone must have deliberately framed her,”
Ning Jing shook his head, “I’m not going.”
“I didn’t ask you.” Su Liang snorted lightly and turned around to leave.
When it quieted down outside, Nian Jincheng frowned at Ning Jing, “What’s the matter with you? She might be in big trouble, and you’re not going to help
Ning Jing’s expression was indifferent, “You’re the one in big trouble if someone finds out.”
Nian Jincheng paused, “Is it because I’m here that you didn’t go with Su Liang? Do you think I’m more important than her?”
Ning Jing frowned at Nian Jincheng, “What are you talking about?”
Nian Jincheng realized that his previous question was inappropriate and he shook his head awkwardly, “Nothing.”
It was not about which person was more important, but which matter was more serious.
Ning Jing believed that Su Liang could handle the trouble she was facing, so he chose to stay home, considering that the consequences of Nian Jincheng being discovered were worse.
Su Liang rode a horse and followed a group of government soldiers to the Prime Minister Mansion of Xiao Family.
The passers-by she met on the road, seeing Su Liang, were all whispering and pointing, talking about something.
Su Liang listened carefully and found that Xiao Muyun’s death had already been widely spread in a short time.
“I really didn’t expect that Su Liang, the Martial Arts Champion, had secretly engaged in a relationship with the second young master of the Xiao Family before her adulthood!”
“I heard that she also gave the second young master Xiao a lot of tokens as a sign of their love!”
“Second young master Xiao thought she was dead and never remarried out of grief. When she came back, she turned her back on him!”
“Now she has soared high and found a better man, of course, she would look down on the second young master Xiao who is a widower!”
“I heard that the second young master Xiao met her privately at the Wan Family Restaurant a few days ago.”
“Yes, my brother’s wife’s cousin works as a waiter in the Wan Family
Restaurant, and he saw it with his own eyes!”
“I heard that she had already done that with the second young master Xiao… She feared that second young master Xiao would persist and let people know, affecting her future and marriage, so she killed second young master Xiao and silenced him!”
“My goodness! I really didn’t expect that this woman would be so cruel!”
The more Su Liang listened, the colder her heart became.
This was a premeditated frame-up targeting her.
Although Su Liang didn’t like Xiao Muyun, he was the lover that the Original Master had been thinking about until her death. Therefore, she didn’t take back the items that the Original Master had given Xiao Muyun, nor did she do anything to him.
In the end, she was still targeted and her actions were exaggerated.
In Su Liang’s mind, a few faces emerged, the first being Duanmu Ao, the second being the missing Nian Ruxue, and the third being Duanmu Che, who knew very well the relationship between the Original Master and Xiao Muyun.
Duanmu Che was last on the list because, even though they had a falling out by now, Su Liang did not see him as an enemy.
But for now, she couldn’t rule out Duanmu Che’s suspicion in this matter.
When they arrived at the gate of the Prime Minister Mansion of the Xiao Family, they saw a carriage coming and Chang’an was driving it.
Chang’an saw Su Liang getting off the horse and whispered something to the person in the carriage.
Duanmu Chen got out of the carriage, just as Su Liang got off her horse.
Gou Yu hurriedly bowed to Duanmu Chen.
With a cold face, Duanmu Chen said, “We must find out the real murderer, no matter who the person is, and punish them severely!”
Su Liang sensed that Duanmu Chen’s words were actually hinting that the person framing her was not a small figure.
Suddenly, Su Liang felt that this incident might have the same mastermind behind the death of the Su Family members.
Since the other party has taken the initiative to make a move, she would definitely play along with them!
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