Raiders of the Duke and Duchess

Chapter 914: The Second Daughter Shangguan Ning, I Take Her Home
"Boom——" a loud thunder exploded.

I don't know when the sun disappeared.

Dark clouds gathered, lightning flashed and thunder roared. A silver chain cut through the sky and hit the window directly, illuminating the uniformly pale faces in the house.

The storm was about to come, and the atmosphere was as heavy as sticky ink. The shock brought by the word "deceiving the king" was more like the aftermath of thunder, hitting the heart that had already been like a frightened bird again and again, and it was like an invisible rope tightening around the neck little by little until it became difficult to breathe.

The crime of deceiving the emperor could result in death at the lightest and execution of all nine generations of the family at the worst.

This time, even Li Yiwei didn't dare to speak casually.

Ji Wuyan didn't know what the old man was going to do. Just as he was about to take a step forward, Ning Xiuyuan had already called out "Your Majesty", but the emperor raised his hand to stop him, "No one should speak, just listen to him." His voice was slightly hoarse, but his pronunciation was heavy. His cloudy eyes in his sunken eye sockets stared at Shangguan Shou without blinking. After a long moment of scrutiny, he said concisely, "Tell me."

Not angry.

Even though the emperor at this time was so thin that he looked unrecognizable, and even though his breathing was more rapid than that of ordinary people, the aura of having been in power for a long time was still there, and he was still the emperor who had the power of life and death in this country.

Ji Wuyan's heart suddenly twitched, and she was hanging high in the air. The silver needle hidden in her sleeve when she entered the palace had quietly fallen on her fingertips. Once the emperor really ordered to kill people... she would take her grandfather away safely even if she had to risk the crime of regicide. While thinking this, she quietly moved forward half a step. Just as she was about to move forward again, she saw her grandfather looking back, with a faint smile in his eyes, and a gentle voice, "You've lost weight."

Such gentleness is out of tune with the explosive atmosphere here.

He seemed to be completely unaware, and just smiled and shook his head, "You have the same personality as your sister, who only reports good news but not bad news. When there is no good news to report, she always says that everything is fine and don't worry... When your mother sees you saying 'don't worry', she becomes worried and loses her appetite. She is worried that you can't eat or sleep well here alone, that you have difficulty walking and are bullied. She even complains about me in her words, thinking that I am heartless and cold-hearted..."

Old Mrs. Ji was arrogant and unreasonable, but the daughter she raised was well-educated, gentle and well-mannered. This was the first time Shangguan Shou saw his daughter-in-law frowning while talking to him.

But at that time, he had a lot of grievances to say. The Shangguan clan was like an egg hitting a rock when it came to the royal family. He was not only the grandfather of Xiao Yuan and Xiao Ning, but also the patriarch of a family. He had no way to explain these words, and he knew that he didn't need to explain them. His daughter-in-law, who knew the overall situation, knew the responsibilities on his shoulders. Aren't those grievances just the self-complaints of a mother who was powerless?
While everyone was staring in astonishment, Shangguan Shou knelt there, raised his eyes and chuckled, and called out, "Xiao Ning, we haven't seen each other for so many months, and you can't even call me grandpa?" There was a heavy, real gaze on the back of his head, and he knew it came from the emperor.

Ji Wuyan had no idea what her grandfather meant by exposing himself at this time, but now that everyone was watching, any cover-up or explanation was useless. Her fingertips lightly touched the tip of the silver needle, she pursed her lips, sighed softly, and called, "Grandfather..." The old man was a rigid and polite person, and he followed the rules. After not seeing him for a few months, he seemed to have changed his mind, so erratic that it was a bit confusing.

The crime of deceiving the emperor... She finally understood it. The "granddaughter" he was talking about was probably not her sister... but herself.

As expected, Shangguan Shou nodded slowly, then turned to look at the emperor, and said in a righteous voice, "Your Majesty. I have deceived you... The Shangguan family has more than one legitimate daughter. Our daughter-in-law Ji gave birth to a pair of twin daughters. The eldest daughter, Shangguan Yuan, was married to the Eastern Palace and buried in a sea of ​​fire. The second daughter, Shangguan Ning... also known as Ji Ning'er, was raised in the Ji family since she was a child and is the young master of the Ji family. Today, I have the courage to enter the palace without being summoned, just to bring my granddaughter home." After saying that, he bowed his head slowly.

Shangguan Ning is Ji Ning'er, so who is Ji Ning'er? Shangguan Shou didn't need to explain this question again, everyone understood it.

Ji Ning'er is Ji Wuyan.

Who is Ji Wuyan?

Everyone had asked this question a few months ago, and then they got the answers they wanted - the zither player of Fengchenju, the boss behind the scenes, the sparrow that flew to the tree, the woman that Third Master Ning liked, the goddaughter adopted by the old lady of the Bai family, the little girl who didn't get along well with the prince and had some martial arts skills and had been in danger several times, and then it was heard that she was the young master of the Ji family, a descendant of the side branch who was raised by the old lady since childhood...

This was also the answer Ning Xiuyuan gave to the emperor. The emperor knew that she was from the Ji family, but... a side branch? Damn side branch! If this is a side branch, then what is the direct line? ! As the thunder roared, the emperor rubbed his back teeth and turned his head to look at Ning Xiuyuan little by little. His movements were so slow that one could even hear the creaking sound coming from the junction of bones.

"Good...very good..." He looked at Ning Xiuyuan and smiled coldly, "Very good...Is this what you told me, the descendant of the Ji family's side branch? Good...the son of the Ning family is really good!"

The emperor sneered with his skinny face, and the smile gave off a terrifying feeling from the underworld. His smile suddenly disappeared, and he stared at Ning Xiuyuan's every word, "Ning, Xiu, Yuan! Don't tell me you never knew!"

Ning Xiuyuan knelt down calmly and did not hide anything. "Yes. I found out not long after that. However, I felt that this matter was not important and did not need to bother Your Majesty, so I did not report it... Your Majesty, please forgive me."

"Nothing serious?"

"Yes." Ning Xiuyuan knelt straight and answered calmly, "It doesn't matter whether she is Shangguan's daughter or the young master of the Ji family. To me, she is the third young lady of my Ningguo Mansion..."

Before the emperor finished speaking, Shangguan Shou suddenly tilted his head and flew into a rage, "Bullshit! I haven't agreed yet! How can it be the young lady of the Ningguo Mansion? Boy, I'm telling you today, it's impossible! I only have two granddaughters, one got married here and died, and the other can't come to this broken place again no matter what! There are so many good men in Jiangnan, who wouldn't rush to marry my daughter?"

Ning Xiuyuan nodded slightly as a greeting, and said in a gentle voice, "Father told me that Shangguan and the Ning family have been engaged since birth. Although it was just a verbal engagement, a gentleman's promise must be kept. And don't worry, I have already promised my grandmother that after the wedding, I will accompany Ningning to settle down in Yunzhou."

……

In the tense, repressive, and tense atmosphere, the topic suddenly changed and they suddenly started talking about marriage...