Xie Yu's words pierced Jing Ning's heart like a knife. Her eyes reddened, and she forced back her sorrow, angrily pointing to the door and saying to Xie Yu, "Get out..."
Xie Yu was somewhat taken aback, looking at Jing Ning in disbelief. He hadn't expected Jing Ning to send him away. "Princess..."
Jing Ning's attitude was firm, and her tone was very calm as she said, "Xie Yu, you go out first. I have something to say to Brother Yao..."
Xie Yu keenly sensed Jing Ning's unusual emotions, and in order not to anger her, he had no choice but to leave the house.
In this situation, Su Yan was merely an observer, and tactfully left, closing the door behind her.
After Su Yan left, only Shen Yao and Jing Ning remained in the room.
"What do you want to say..." Shen Yao resisted being in the same place as Jing Ning, and his mood became somewhat irritable.
Seeing Shen Yao's resistant expression, Jing Ning couldn't help but laugh at herself, "Does being in the same room with me make you that uncomfortable?"
"No……"
"Brother Yao, I'm going to Rouran for a political marriage..."
Upon hearing this, Shen Yao was taken aback, looking at Su Yan with a surprised expression, "What's going on?"
This was the first time Su Yan had seen such an expression on Shen Yao's face, and she couldn't help but smile.
"Half a month ago, the King of Rouran sent an envoy to the capital to ask for the princess's hand in marriage. The queen chose me, and I agreed..."
"How come I didn't know?"
Shen Yao had not heard of the marriage alliance in the capital, and was quite surprised when he learned about it from Jing Ning.
“Brother Yao is busy with official duties all day long, how could he possibly care about such things? I’m here today to tell you that from now on, I, Jing Ning, am severing all ties with you, Shen Yao, and we will have nothing to do with each other anymore…”
After saying that, Jing Ning suddenly felt a sense of relief.
Shen Yao looked at Jing Ning, remaining silent and not uttering a word; no one could guess what he was thinking at that moment.
Just as Shen Yao was in a daze, Jing Ning suddenly leaned closer, looking at him with tenderness in her eyes.
She realized for the first time that Shen Yao was not as good-looking as Xie Yu. He had strong features, sharp eyebrows and eyes, and always frowned. He was not only domineering but also unreasonable.
Jingning couldn't understand why she liked this kind of man. For three years, she had followed him time and time again, only to be disappointed time and time again.
Now, Jingning feels too tired; this relationship has made her feel like she's no longer herself.
So this time, she chose to let go.
Recalling the past, Jingning smiled with relief, "Shen Yao, you are indeed the first man I, Jingning, have ever loved in my life, but you will never be the last. Goodbye, Brother Yao..."
After saying that, Jing Ning turned and left with a very elegant air.
At this moment, Shen Yao suddenly called out to her, "Princess, Rouran has always been a bitter and cold land. I do not wish that you would agree to the marriage just out of a moment of anger. If that is the case, I deserve to die."
Upon hearing this, Jing Ning couldn't help but laugh. "Shen Yao, who do you think you are? I, Jing Ning, am the daughter of the Prince of Zhennan. How could I possibly demean myself for a man? My agreement to the marriage alliance has nothing to do with you from beginning to end. If you want to be presumptuous, don't blame me."
Upon hearing Jing Ning's words, Shen Yao was momentarily at a loss for words and silently watched Jing Ning leave.
Jing Ning, who had walked away, suddenly remembered something and turned back to Shen Yao, saying, "There's something you might want to know..."
"What's wrong?" Shen Yao asked curiously why Jing Ning had suddenly returned.
Jing Ning hesitated. She hadn't originally wanted to tell Shen Yao, even though she had chosen to let go, Shen Yao hadn't.
"I discovered Miss Ye among the Rouran envoys..."
"What!" Shen Yao's eyes widened in surprise, thinking he had misheard.
"Actually, I don't know if she is Miss Ye or not, but I have never seen anyone in the world who looks exactly the same."
That day, the palace hosted a banquet for the Rouran envoys. Jingning happened to be visiting the Empress at the palace and happened to run into the Rouran envoys.
Jingning hadn't paid much attention at first, but among the servants brought by the Rouran envoy, she saw a face that looked exactly like Ye Qingzhu's.
Curiosity led her to follow, and by chance, she was spotted at the banquet and caught the eye of the Rouran envoy, which led to the marriage alliance.
Because of his suspicions, Jingning sent people to investigate Ye Qingzhu's death. It would have been better if they hadn't investigated, because the investigation uncovered many suspicious points.
This made her increasingly convinced that the person who looked like Ye Qingzhu that day was herself.
So Jingning handed over what she had found to Shen Yao.
Shen Yao held the fish-shaped jade pendant that Jing Ning handed him, looking extremely flustered. "Impossible...you must have mistaken me for someone else."
Seeing that Shen Yao didn't believe her, Jing Ning got a little angry. "Brother Yao, I'm here today to tell you that Ye Qingzhu may not be dead."
"How could that be... I buried her myself, you must be lying to me again." Shen Yao said with absolute certainty.
Looking at Shen Yao's appearance, Jing Ning's anger subsided, and she even felt a little sorry for him.
Knowing he wouldn't believe her, she didn't press him further. "Brother Yao, I've done all I can. As for whether it's true or not, that's up to you to decide."
However, I must tell you that Ye Qingzhu's death has nothing to do with me from beginning to end. I never hurt her, and I don't know why she chose to commit suicide. But I, Jing Ning, cannot bear the blame for this murder.
Having said that, Jing Ning turned and left without even looking back.
Only Shen Yao was left standing there, bewildered in the wind.
As soon as Jing Ning stepped out the door, she saw Xie Yu and Su Yan standing outside. She wondered how much of her conversation with Shen Yao had been overheard by the two of them, but she didn't care about such trivial matters right now.
She walked straight up to Su Yan and said, "Go in and see Brother Yao. I'm afraid he won't be able to accept it right away..."
Su Yan nodded, "Princess, rest assured, I will definitely take good care of Lord Shen."
After Su Yan left, Jing Ning was about to leave when she saw Xie Yu looking at her with a complicated expression.
"Xie Yu...I..." Jing Ning was about to explain when Xie Yu stopped her.
"Princess, there's no need to say anything. All these years, I've been the one who's been deluding myself." Xie Yu couldn't understand what he had been in the princess's eyes all these years.
"Princess, why didn't you tell me about the marriage alliance with Rouran... just because I'm not Shen Yao?"
Xie Yu looked at Jing Ning with teary eyes, her gaze as lifeless as ashes, filled with despair and pain.
"Xie Yu, I don't want to be married off either, but what can I do? Being in the royal family, I'm just a pawn to be manipulated. His Majesty is already wary of my father and wants to use the Rouran to keep him in check. Tell me what I should do..."
The Rouran are the maternal family of the Imperial Noble Consort, and she is the current Rouran King's aunt. Everyone can see what the Emperor is planning.
This three-way power struggle was ingenious, creating a delicate balance between the Crown Prince and Empress factions and the Imperial Noble Consort's faction.
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