si-mexico Chapter 201 The Unexpected Woman
Chapter 201 The Unexpected Woman
Xu Ning's fingers traced the curves of the mountain peaks.
The thin layer of sweat on her slightly flushed skin, when rubbed between her fingertips, felt like blending honey and oil, releasing a fragrance that made one want to lick it.
Ningguang stretched lazily, the movement a little too much, and she frowned imperceptibly.
However, she quickly broke into a smile and asked Xu Ning beside her in a sweet, nasal voice, "Why didn't you tell me you were coming back beforehand? You just barged in?"
Xu Ning brushed aside a damp strand of hair from the corner of her mouth and smiled, "Of course..."
Xu Ning originally intended to tell Ningguang in detail about the possible grand conspiracies he had discovered in the Dragon Ridge Snow Mountain and Shimen.
But in that instant, he suddenly realized that if he dared to utter any inappropriate word at this moment, it would be enough to make him regret it for the rest of his life. In the end, he simply said firmly, "...I miss you."
The momentary smile that bloomed on Ningguang's face made Xu Ning feel that he would be willing to die for that smile.
After that, Xu Ning didn't mention anything that would upset him. He simply held the beautiful woman in his arms and whispered about the sorrow of their separation.
It wasn't until noon, when Bai Shi was outside the door clenching her teeth and announcing that lunch was ready, that Ning Guang called her in to help her wash up.
Bai Shi looked at Ning Guang with pity as she helped her wipe her body, wash and dress. However, the occasional glances she gave Xu Ning were like daggers, as if she wanted to pierce a hole through his heart.
After tidying himself up, Xu Ning took out the Dust Concealment Gourd, which he had deliberately hidden under the bed after wrapping it in a quilt. He then gently took Ning Guang, who was still somewhat weak and powerless, to the dining room for dinner, and told her in detail about what had happened to her recently.
"Hua Chu, the daughter of the Duke of De'an, is still alive?"
Hearing Xu Ning's account, Ning Guang couldn't help but be taken aback.
"She's being held captive in the Hidden Dust Cave, along with her employee Jianqiu, who eloped with her."
Ningguang pondered for a moment, then instructed Baixiao beside him, "Have Zhenhai go to Minghua Trading Company to invite Lord De'an to Yuehai Pavilion for a talk. Do not reveal a single thing about Xu Ning."
Upon hearing Ningguang's arrangement, Xu Ning knew that with her meticulous nature, she must have also sensed the potential danger hidden behind this matter.
"Regardless of whether the relationship between this couple is genuine or not, it seems that Hua Chu has been manipulated by Jian Qiu from beginning to end."
Xu Ning tapped the table with his finger and said to Ning Guang, "If there is a mastermind behind this, the breakthrough must be with Jian Qiu."
Ningguang waved her hand, and Baiwen, who was standing to the side, stepped forward and said, "When the body was pulled out of the well the other day, the General Affairs Department had already found out that Jianqiu was poor since childhood. He worked as an arithmetic teacher at Chihu Rock for several years, teaching children from poor families. Later, he entered Minghua Money Shop to manage accounts and had feelings for the second young lady, Huachu."
Ningguang shook her head slightly and asked, "There's no need to go into the details of what's public. Just take 'Hua Chu's' suicide by jumping into the well as an example. What impact will that have on Liyue Harbor?"
Bai Wen was stunned for a moment before he understood Ning Guang's meaning. After thinking for a moment, he said, "When Hua Chu's incident occurred, the Northern Bank had just adjusted a series of financial policies, which took away a large number of depositors from Minghua Money House. The money house, which was already severely impacted, suffered a cascading collapse after De'an Gong lost his beloved daughter and fell ill in bed. Even though De'an Gong filled a large part of Minghua Trading Company's cash flow, he was unable to reverse the decline and could only hand over the money house to the Northern Bank for acquisition."
Ningguang smiled and said leisurely, "What kind of coincidence is this? Let's leave this to Yelan. I believe she will give us a very interesting answer."
"Moreover, the information Yelan gave me also shows that in the past year or so, the Fools have become active in various parts of the Teyvat continent. I didn't expect them to have become so arrogant as to covet the authority of the gods."
Ningguang took a sip of soup and said, "Although we don't know what they want to do yet, your sudden appearance and taking the Heart of the Anemo Archon has completely ruined their plans in Mondstadt. Whether it's targeting you or our Geo Archon's Heart of the Geo Archon, I'm afraid they will turn their attention to Liyue."
"However, the only good thing is that with the Emperor overseeing Liyue, they don't dare to cause trouble here for the time being."
Xu Ning took a sip of wine, shook his head, and chuckled, "Those fools of Zhidong are incredibly bold; there's really nothing they wouldn't dare to do. We need to prepare for many things in advance, otherwise, if the Emperor suddenly passes away..."
Ningguang paused, put down her chopsticks, and laughed, "What you just said is exactly the same as what our newly promoted Yuheng Star said! Of course, we will not rely entirely on the Emperor's divine power to deter villains, although I don't believe anyone can take the Emperor's divine heart from his hands."
Xu Ning smiled wryly and said, "It's impossible to take it away, but what if the Emperor also intends to hand over the Heart of God?"
Ningguang asked in surprise, "Why would the Emperor hand it over for no reason?"
"The key point is that the Anemo Archon of Mondstadt did just that. So I don't know if this will happen again, so it's necessary to find out from the Emperor what price they paid."
Ningguang nodded solemnly, "And you must also pay close attention to your own safety..."
Hearing Ningguang's concern for her safety, Xu Ning reassured her, "You really don't need to worry too much about safety. Besides that eloping couple, there's someone else in Chenyin Cave Heaven who you would never expect. I'll take you to meet them after you've eaten your fill."
Seeing that he was deliberately keeping her in suspense, Ningguang rolled her eyes at Xu Ning and laughed, "I want to see which great deity you've invited."
After Ningguang finished her meal, several maids came over to clean the table. Xu Ning then put away the Dust Concealment Gourd and led Ningguang into the Dust Concealment Cave.
As soon as Xu Ning entered, he saw Qingyi standing in the middle of the grass, staring at him with a strange expression, her lips twitching as if she was trying to suppress a laugh.
"What kind of weird face is that?"
Xu Ning glanced at Qingyi in surprise. "I just knocked on the gourd and asked you to come out and eat with me. Don't blame me if you don't come out yourself."
Qingyi didn't seem to mind not having eaten at all, and chuckled, "Right, right, it's not your fault. I knocked on the gourd in here to tell you not to come in, but you insisted on coming in anyway. Don't blame me later, hahaha!"
Xu Ning reached out and shoved the little girl's head aside, saying, "What are you doing here that's making you so happy? I..."
Xu Ning was about to introduce Ningguang to Mondstadt's supreme god, the Anemo Archon.
Suddenly, he felt an extremely strong elemental fluctuation coming from his side, and the ground of the cave seemed to tremble slightly.
Xu Ning turned around in surprise.
Ningguang's face, which had always been smiling, was now covered in frost. A cluster of pure rock elemental energy, as bright as amber, swirled around her body, radiating supreme power.
Ningguang pointed at a naked white-haired girl by the Ganlin Spring and said coldly, "Is she someone I would never expect?"