Farewell Flower Festival

Rumor has it that the cold palace is haunted. It seems gloomy and deserted during the day, and no one dares to go there after the sun sets. On weekdays, only breakfast and lunch are delivered, and no one is willing to deliver dinner. Aunt Li doesn't care about Mu Tianling, the unpopular prince. It doesn't matter if he misses a meal, as long as he doesn't starve to death.

But today Yunxiang asked her to deliver dinner, and kindly reminded her to be careful on the road and beware of running into ghosts.

When Chao Yan went out, the sun had already set and it was almost dark.

After walking for a while, Chaoyan stopped and prepared to rest here, planning to wait until Yunxiang fell asleep before going back. She also took this opportunity to sort out the memories inherited from the original owner.

In the original owner's memory, at first there was a fire, and behind the fire there was a face, which appeared and disappeared from time to time, and it was unclear. It was distorted by the flickering firelight like a ghost. Then there was the original owner's childish cry, covering the right face that was burned by the fire, with fear and helplessness in her eyes...

Chao Yan couldn't see the face behind the firelight, but it felt like a woman's face. She could vaguely see the style of the bun and the sparkling pearl hairpin on it.

The scene changed, and there was another little girl crying. The other party called the original owner ugly and wanted to drive her away. The original owner called the other party sister and told the little girl not to cry. The little girl pushed her to the ground and ran into the house. After a while, a woman led the little girl out of the house and called the original owner ugly girl, asking her if she had bullied her sister again. She lowered her head to admit her mistake and called the other party mother.

Later, the little girl fell ill. The old people in the village said that it was because the original owner and the little girl's horoscopes were incompatible that the little girl became ill. The original owner's father took her out and abandoned her on the road. She was picked up by a human trafficker, who changed her name to Xiao Lian, because he felt that it was pitiful that the little girl had her face disfigured at such a young age.

Because her face was burned, no one was willing to buy her, so the human trafficker transferred the original owner to another human trafficker. After being transferred several times, the last human trafficker had some connections in the palace, so he sold her into the palace and she became a fire-making maid in the imperial kitchen.

Chaoyan felt that the original owner was also a little cannon fodder with a rough fate. She raised her hand and touched the scar on her face. The face that first appeared behind the firelight was a suspicious point. In the original owner's memory, her parents were ordinary people, and her mother didn't even have a decent hairpin, let alone a glittering pearl hairpin. The identity of that woman must be extraordinary. What does it have to do with the original owner?

After pondering for a while, she decided to put this question aside for the time being, and her thoughts flew to the other side of time and space. She wondered if time was also passing there. Perhaps she could go back after completing her mission here. It would be great if she could go back to the original time, so that it wouldn't cause any trouble.

Just as she was thinking this, suddenly a black shadow flashed in her peripheral vision. Chaoyan trembled all over and was startled. She thought, could it be a ghost? She plucked up the courage to look in the direction where the black shadow flashed. She immediately breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out to be the shadow of the tree shaking. It was a false alarm.

After it got dark, the cold air seemed to come out from the ground. Chaoyan tried her best to curl up to keep warm, but she still couldn't resist the invasion of the cold. She simply stood up and jogged. After running back and forth a few times, she felt a little warmer. When she stopped to look at the sky, she was attracted by the starry sky. Such a clear starry sky is rarely seen in modern times. The brilliant starlight is brighter than diamonds. The air quality in ancient times was good, without any haze. It was worth the trip to see such a beautiful starry sky...

She was so immersed in the incomparable starlight that her neck was numb when she came to her senses. When she lowered her head, she felt an unexpected pain. Chaoyan couldn't help but scream out, "Ah!" and a black shadow was attracted over.

"Is it Miss Xiao Lian?"

The sudden voice behind her startled her again. Chao Yan immediately jumped two steps away. After calming down, she felt that the voice sounded familiar. She bravely looked back and asked, "Is it Eunuch Wu?" The other party nodded, and she immediately breathed a sigh of relief. She couldn't help but feel curious about what the other party was doing out so late at night?

"Why is Miss Xiao Lian here?" Eunuch Wu asked kindly.

Chao Yan replied: "Sister Yunxiang asked me to bring dinner to His Highness. It's getting dark now and I'm afraid to be alone..."

Eunuch Wu said, "Then I will take the girl there."

Chaoyan originally didn't plan to go over, but when she saw that the other party seemed to be holding a chicken in his hand, she was a little shaken. When she heard Eunuch Wu say that he was going back to make a midnight snack for Mu Tianling, and asked her if she wanted to eat together, she thought it was better than staying here and freezing, so she followed Eunuch Wu.

After arriving at Xueyin Palace, Eunuch Wu asked Chaoyan to wait in the courtyard. He went to the kitchen first, and when he came back, the chicken in his hand was gone. A faint yellow light was faintly visible in the side hall on the right. When Eunuch Wu led Chaoyan there, he said that Mu Tianling was inside, but she was more interested in the chicken than the person, and she was already looking forward to the midnight snack.

When the two of them reached the door, Eunuch Wu knocked on it first and said, "Your Highness, I am back."

There was no response from the people inside.

Eunuch Wu pushed open the door and led Chaoyan in, then gently closed the door.

A ghostly oil lamp flickered in the hall, making the person behind the lamp look like a ghost.

Chaoyan felt that it was even colder inside than outside, as if she had entered a haunted house. She regretted following in such a desperate manner, but when she thought of the chicken, she still mustered up the courage to follow Eunuch Wu.

Mu Tianling sat behind the oil lamp, reading a book in his hand.

Chao Yan was a little surprised. She didn't expect that the other party was such a hard-working student. But what the hell was that emotionless look? Uh, it looked darker than during the day.

"Your Highness, Miss Xiao Lian is here." said Eunuch Wu.

Mu Tianling didn't even raise his eyelids.

Do you think I'm air? Chaoyan complained in her heart.

"Please take a seat, young lady." Eunuch Wu made a gesture of invitation. The amiable smile on his face added a bit of horror in the ghost-like light. Chaoyan moved to the stool a little nervously and sat down. Then Eunuch Wu left.

The atmosphere in the room was so quiet that it was a little awkward. Chao Yan focused his attention on the table and studied its texture. After a while, he secretly glanced across, a little curious about what book this kid was reading.

As if he had noticed her peek, Mu Tianling glanced in her direction, then shifted his gaze back to the book. He had no intention of speaking, and the atmosphere in the hall became even colder.

Chaoyan wanted to speak to break the ice, but then she changed her mind and thought there was nothing much for them to talk about. Besides, she was drooling on their first meeting, which was such a shame. So she decided not to break the ice and just ignore her.