Lin Yu Ning almost screamed, "What do you mean by this?"
Ye Ning Yuan put a finger to her lips and made a "shushing" gesture. "Does the Princess of Lian want everyone to know where you just went?"
"If that's the case, I think you can call out a little louder. But if you don't want to, you'd better shut your mouth."
Ju Xiang trembled with fear, lowering her voice. "Your Highness, what should we do? The County Princess knows everything now."
"Useless! Did you forget what I just said?" Lin Yu Ning slapped her.
Ju Xiang was knocked to the ground but quickly realized she had said too much. She covered her face, lowered her head, and dared not speak again.
Ye Ning Yuan crossed her arms and smiled at her. "Princess of Lian, hitting your maidservant is useless at this point. Don't you know the saying, 'If you don't want anyone to know, don't do it'?"
Lin Yu Ning clenched her fists, her face looking grim. "What do you want?"
"Me~" Ye Ning Yuan rubbed her chin with one hand, then changed the subject, a smile playing on her lips. "I want to help you through this difficult time."
Lin Yu Ning was stunned. "You help me?"
"Of course, I'll help you. Aren't you surprised?" Ye Ning Yuan shrugged. "Actually, you don't need to be so surprised. I don't help people for free, and you'll have to pay a price."
As she said the last sentence, a cold glint flashed in her eyes, and a chilling aura, unbefitting her age, rose around her.
At that moment, Lin Yu Ning's heart skipped a beat. For some reason, she suddenly felt as if the person before her was a 'wolf in sheep's clothing.'
Her intuition told her that cooperating with Ye Ning Yuan would lead to no good end.
However...
Lin Yu Ning took a deep breath. "Alright, tell me your plan."
She had no other way out now.
Ye Ning Yuan already knew that she had almost killed Consort Liang and even implicated His Majesty.
If she didn't cooperate with Ye Ning Yuan, she feared that before Ye Jing Yu could investigate her, Ye Ning Yuan would quickly expose the matter.
Then she would have no chance at all!
Ye Ning Yuan snapped her fingers and beckoned. "Then, Princess of Lian, please lean in."
Lin Yu Ning calmed herself, stepped forward, and leaned down to listen to what she said. Her expression gradually became complicated.
Finally, she straightened up, gave Ye Ning Yuan a deep look, a determined glint in her eyes. "I understand."
"Ju Xiang, let's go." Lin Yu Ning took a deep breath and walked away.
Ye Ning Yuan watched her retreating figure, the smile in her eyes gradually fading, a mocking curve on her lips. "She's ruthless enough, just not smart enough."
"Wu Ze, I still can't understand what Ye Jing Cheng sees in this woman. Mo Mo is so much better in comparison."
Mo Mo was intelligent and calm, brave and decisive, and very capable. How was she not better than Lin Yu Ning?
The fact that Ye Jing Cheng chose to burn Mo Mo to death was the most foolish thing he had ever done.
A black figure flashed in the shadows. Wu Ze knelt on one knee, his head bowed, remaining silent.
Ye Ning Yuan glanced at him, pouting with disdain. "If I didn't know you could speak, I'd think you were mute. So boring."
"Alright, Mo Mo should be waking up soon. I'll go check on her."
As for the rest, she would let Lin Yu Ning handle it.
The Plum Garden was closest to the Cold Palace.
Both were carried back to the Cold Palace and treated in adjacent rooms.
Emperor Ye Yao stayed by Liu Lan Xue's bedside, his gaze fixed on her, a hint of anxiety in his eyes.
Eunuch Chang whispered, "Your Majesty, your injuries are not healed yet. Please let the imperial physicians tend to them first."
"No need," Emperor Ye Yao waved his hand and turned to the imperial physician. "How is she?"
The imperial physician knelt. "Reporting to Your Majesty, the Consort fainted due to cold entering her body and inhaling water. This humble servant has prescribed medicine. Once the Consort takes it, she will recover tomorrow."
Emperor Ye Yao breathed a sigh of relief and reached out to stroke Liu Lan Xue's hair.
It was good that she was alright. It was good.
Seeing him like this, Eunuch Chang could only sigh inwardly and retreat to the side.
A servant entered from outside. "Your Majesty, His Highness Prince Yu requests an audience."
"Let him in. All of you, leave." Emperor Ye Yao placed Liu Lan Xue's hand back under the covers and tucked in the quilt.
Eunuch Chang led the servants away.
A moment later, Ye Jing Yu entered and knelt on the ground.
Emperor Ye Yao continued to look at the person on the bed without turning to him, his tone carrying a hint of coldness. "How is that girl?"
Ye Jing Yu lowered his gaze and replied calmly, "Her condition is similar to Mother Consort's. However, she went in later and only suffered some frostbite. She will wake up soon."
A dark glint flashed in Emperor Ye Yao's eyes as he turned to look at him.
"You don't need me to tell you what to do. Once she wakes up, send her out of the palace. From now on, she is not to enter the palace without my command, nor is she to come to the Cold Palace."
Although that girl had made a great contribution by diving into the water to save them, this crisis was caused by her taking Xue'er out of the Cold Palace without permission.
Even if he didn't hold her accountable, the palace rules would not tolerate it.
Ye Jing Yu glanced at the person on the bed and said, "Yes."
Emperor Ye Yao then turned back and stroked Liu Lan Xue's hair repeatedly. "You may go."
Ye Jing Yu's eyes flickered slightly as he got up and left.
Meanwhile, Su Yun Mo vaguely felt someone blowing warm air on her face, which felt a little ticklish.
Almost instinctively, she reached out and slapped, then heard a cry of "Ouch!" from the side.
Su Yun Mo struggled to lift her heavy eyelids. When she opened her eyes, she saw Ye Ning Yuan squatting by the bed, covering her nose and wailing.
As she rubbed her nose, she complained resentfully, "I was worried about you and stayed here. Even if you dislike me, you don't have to slap me the moment you open your eyes, do you?"
Su Yun Mo frowned and struggled to sit up, only to gasp as she did so.
She looked down and saw that she was bandaged.
"It seems you scraped your hands while holding onto the rope tightly when you pulled His Majesty and the Consort up. But the imperial physicians have already applied medicine. I think this minor injury shouldn't be a big deal for you," Ye Ning Yuan said, shrugging.
Su Yun Mo's memory gradually returned. "How is the Consort?"
Ye Ning Yuan replied, "Her condition is a bit worse than yours. After all, she was submerged in the water for so long in this cold winter. Even if she wakes up, catching a cold is inevitable. But fortunately, her life is not in danger."
Su Yun Mo felt relieved and rubbed her temples with a headache.
After a while, she narrowed her eyes and looked at Ye Ning Yuan. "When I left, I told you to watch the Consort carefully. Where were you when we were saving them?"
Ye Ning Yuan waved her hand, her eyes wide with feigned nervousness. "Don't misunderstand me. Consort falling into the water has nothing to do with me."
"Not long after you left, a little palace maid ran to tell me my father was coming to catch me. In my haste, I didn't think of anything else and burrowed into a snowdrift."
"I originally planned to come out after my father left, but I waited for a long time and didn't see him. By the time I crawled out of the snowdrift, the Consort was already gone."