Liu Ruyi was leading Ning Yuqin away when suddenly she stopped in her tracks. She hesitated and looked back. "Qin'er, did you hear something?"
The surroundings were silent and dark. Ning Yuqin felt a bit scared, and gradually the terrifying scene in the graveyard came back to her mind.
It was equally pitch - black and silent, like the calm before a storm.
A strange sense of suspicion welled up in her heart. She felt that she shouldn't have agreed to Liu Ruyi's plan tonight.
Vaguely, she even thought that this plan was doomed to fail.
She had secretly fought with Ning Yuwan several times. Except for a minor setback in words when Ning Yuwan first returned to the Yongning Marquis Mansion, she had always been at a disadvantage.
She not only lost face but also the most important thing for a young girl - her innocence.
Yet, Ning Yuwan remained unscathed and married a man of her choice. Their marital life was harmonious.
This made her jealous and helpless. It was obvious who would win in a fight with Ning Yuwan.
Therefore, what she worried about most was that Ning Yuwan would discover tonight's plan.
However, Liu Ruyi had planned for a long time and promised that Ning Yuwan would surely meet her doom.
The plan was indeed well - thought - out, and Ning Yuqin was really tempted.
In the end, she joined Liu Ruyi's scheme.
The night was dim, and there was not even the chirping of birds.
Ning Yuqin frowned slightly and tightened her grip on Liu Ruyi's sleeve. "There's no sound. You must be mistaken."
Liu Ruyi looked back suspiciously again. There was really no sign of anyone behind them, so she lowered her voice a bit. "Maybe I was really mistaken."
She was a shrewd and resourceful woman. In just a short time in the Yongning Marquis Mansion, she had managed to find out the time when the guards changed shifts from the servants at the gate.
Taking advantage of the right moment, she led Ning Yuqin out of the mansion.
All the way, they were quiet. After passing through two alleys, they arrived at a small house.
This was the very house where Liu Ruyi had "loitered" with Ning Fengchen during the day.
It was Ning Yuqin's first time here. Before she could look around, Liu Ruyi pulled her into the inner room.
Soon, candles were lit in the inner room. Wispy blue smoke drifted up through the window paper.
But the figures of Liu Ruyi and Ning Yuqin only appeared for a moment and then disappeared.
It was eerie and made people curious.
Ning Yuwan and Lianzi were hiding in a big tree in the courtyard, closely watching the movements inside the room.
But Liu Ruyi and Ning Yuqin really seemed to have vanished into thin air. There was no more movement.
"Princess Consort, shall I go in and take a look?" Lianzi asked in a low voice. She had seen clearly that this was the very room where Ning Fengchen and Liu Ruyi had stayed during the day.
But at that time, her attention had been entirely on the brocade box and the scroll, and she hadn't observed the inside of the room at all.
Now that she thought about it, there must be a secret passage or a hidden door.
Liu Ruyi and Ning Yuqin might be hiding in it.
Ning Yuwan's eyes were deep. "I'll go with you."
Lianzi had never really seen Ning Yuwan's skills.
But A Er had privately envied Ning Yuwan's lightness kung - fu. Coupled with Ning Yuwan's self - confident and proud demeanor, she believed that Ning Yuwan must have a plan.
If she wanted to go with her, there must be a reason.
"Yes." Lianzi nodded and answered in a low voice. She quietly followed behind Ning Yuwan.
They gently pushed open the door. The room was brightly lit by the candles, and everything was in full view.
However, the smell of the candles was a bit strong.
Ning Yuwan looked around expressionlessly. Sure enough, Liu Ruyi and Ning Yuqin had disappeared.
As a secret guard, Lianzi had been on many missions and naturally knew where secret doors and passages were usually hidden.
She volunteered to tap gently on the bed board. Sure enough, a dull sound came from the bed board.
"Princess Consort, there's a..."
Before she could say the words "secret passage", Lianzi's face changed. She wanted to lift the bed board, but it seemed that someone had deliberately blocked the passage below.
Even when she used her inner strength, the secret passage didn't move at all.
Ning Yuwan's sharp eyes swept over and clearly saw a huge boulder hidden below the secret passage.
In such a short time, Liu Ruyi had managed to quickly block the exit of the secret passage.
It was as if...
She had prepared for someone to follow!
She didn't say anything about the boulder, but Lianzi guessed it.
The two looked at each other and immediately turned around to leave the room.
But unexpectedly, they heard the footsteps of many people. The steps were heavy and fast, and they quickly sealed the doors and windows.
It seemed that they knew someone inside was skilled in martial arts, so the outsiders deliberately used iron plates to seal them.
It was all done in a short time!
But they were well - prepared!
Ning Yuwan knew very well that she had fallen into the trap set by Liu Ruyi and Ning Yuqin.
There seemed to be a fierce look in her eyes, as if she was angry but helpless.
Liu Ruyi was standing outside the door, holding a torch and laughing loudly. "I didn't expect to catch two birds with one stone!"
When she and Ning Yuqin had planned to act tonight, they had known that Hong Qiao was eavesdropping outside.
They had deliberately revealed part of the plan on purpose, intending to lead Lianzi to follow and monitor them, and then trap her.
Then they would use Lianzi to lure Ning Yuwan to come and rescue her, and then catch them all at once.
She had also secretly sent a message to Ning Fengchen and found some highly skilled fighters, aiming to capture Lianzi.
Unexpectedly, they didn't need their martial arts skills, but only their strength to seal the windows.
Liu Ruyi was very satisfied. She had only wanted to trap Lianzi at first, but unexpectedly, Ning Yuwan had also come.
Ning Yuqin was standing behind her. Through the crack in the door, she saw Ning Yuwan and Lianzi with her own eyes, and then boldly stepped forward.
"Sister, now that you're a prisoner, do you have anything to say?"
Ning Yuwan lifted her skirt and sat down on a chair. "Do you want to trap me or kill me?"
Ning Yuqin didn't expect her to be so direct. She opened her mouth but didn't say anything.
It was Liu Ruyi beside her who was bolder. "Both, of course!"
She hummed and laughed excitedly. "Did the eldest miss ever think of this situation when she was ordering me around so haughtily?"
Ning Yuwan raised her eyebrows. "A servant is not willing to be driven by the master, so she wants to burn the master to death?"
No wonder she had felt that the smell of the candles in the room was strong just now. When she saw the torch in Liu Ruyi's hand through the window paper, she realized that it might be kerosene.
The smell inside the room was not strong. Presumably, Liu Ruyi was worried that she would smell it at the beginning, so she only spilled it outside the room.
The air outside the room was circulating, so she hadn't noticed it at first.
Liu Ruyi's face showed resentment when she heard Ning Yuwan's unkind words demeaning her as a servant. "The eldest miss is about to die and still doesn't want to plead for mercy?"
Ning Yuwan sneered. "If I plead for mercy, will you spare my life?"
Liu Ruyi shook her head. "Impossible."
"You're really a fool. No wonder you can only be a servant." Ning Yuwan propped her chin slightly with her finger. "Pleading for mercy is of no benefit to me. Why should I do it?"
Liu Ruyi clenched her fists. "If you plead for mercy, I'll let you die more easily."
"The only thing that can make me feel at ease is to see you burned to death with my own eyes. Are you willing to do that?"
Liu Ruyi and Ning Yuqin were outside the door and couldn't see Ning Yuwan clearly, but in their minds, they both involuntarily thought of her gorgeous and dazzling eyes, with a look of casualness and sneer.
Compared with her calmness, it seemed that the two of them outside the door should be the impatient ones.
"You don't appreciate my kindness! Since you want to die, I'll grant your wish!"
Liu Ruyi angrily threw the torch. The torch hit the ground and collided with the shallow kerosene on the ground. Soon, huge sparks splashed!
The burning tongues of fire quickly climbed up the doors and windows and tried to get into the room!