Chapter 213

One was a frail and sickly young lady destined to be used as a pawn for marriage alliances, and the other was a courtesan who makes a living by selling her smile, uncertain of what the future held.

Both of them were disregarded by others, trapped in a certain place all their lives, yet they both longed for freedom, yearning to break free like a mythical phoenix bird. Until one day, they met and became each other’s best and only friends.

Perhaps Song Xianning once taught Luan Niang calligraphy, poetry, and the arts of cultivation. Perhaps they had often gone out disguised as men, talking about their futures and hopes by the Longyin River. Later, the Song family discovered this, hastily marrying Song Xianning off to Luo Yuanming, forcing the friends to communicate only through carrier pigeons.

However, Song Xianning inexplicably died in the city lord’s mansion.

Thus, the once vulgar and carefree girl changed her appearance and transformed herself into a completely different person, gradually getting closer to Luo Yuanming and slowly uncovering the truth.

All the suspicions began to make sense.

The reason Song Xianning’s relationship with Luo Yuanming deteriorated was that she discovered he was secretly involved in unspeakable deeds. The cause of her sudden death was likely also related to the city lord.

But she told no one.

Ning Ning couldn’t help but frown. Now, Luan Niang must have figured everything out, but why, like Song Xianning back then, would she not reveal the truth?

The shopkeeper once said that evil arts often involve curses, restraints, and souls. Coincidentally, Luo Yuanming is known as a “genius talisman cultivator”…

Could he have placed some sort of restriction on them, forbidding them from mentioning the soul refining to outsiders?

If this is true, then Luan Niang’s current situation is tantamount to torture worse than death.

She came to uncover the truth but is trapped within it. She knew all the dirty, bloody realities and was about to avenge Song Xianning, but she couldn’t say a word to anyone else. She could only stand aside and watch, allowing the murderer to do whatever he wanted.

And now Ning Ning is in a similar position.

All the deductions are based on assumptions, lacking useful evidence and clues. Reporting to the elders or the judicial court might yield no results and only alert the perpetrator, putting the missing girls in greater danger.

But maybe… besides Luo Yuanming, Luan Niang is also secretly setting a trap.

Everything that happened today was too coincidental, like the drugged Jiuzhou Spring Return, Meng Jue collapsing right in front of the painting grandma’s door, and He Zhizhou’s accidental encounter with a passerby who “unintentionally” mentioned Luan Niang’s original name by the river.

What if she is intentionally guiding them to discover the truth—

What is Luan Niang’s next move?