Rebirth of the Princess Pearl

The morning sun shines through the mottled leaves and onto the stone pavement of the imperial palace, creating patches of light and shadow. In the imperial garden, dewdrops roll on the petals, like crystal pearls. The breeze blows, and the flowers sway gently, sending bursts of fragrance. Xiaoyanzi, Ziwei, Erkang, Qing'er and Xiaojian meet at the pavilion in the center of the lake in the imperial garden.

Xiaoyanzi was skipping in front, holding a small basket with some snacks in it. She stopped from time to time to wait for the people behind. Ziwei and Qing'er were arm in arm, talking softly with gentle smiles on their faces. Erkang and Xiaojian were walking slowly behind, talking about some interesting things in the palace recently.

After arriving at the pavilion in the middle of the lake, Xiaoyanzi placed her basket on the stone table, sat down on the stone bench, and said loudly, "Today's snacks are all selected by me personally. Come and have a taste."

Ziwei and Qing'er walked into the pavilion. Ziwei smiled and said, "Xiaoyanzi, you are really active today."

Xiaoyanzi patted the stone bench beside her and said, "Ziwei, Qing'er, please sit here."

After Qing'er sat down, she looked at the snacks in the basket and said, "These snacks look delicious."

At this time, Erkang and Xiao Jian also arrived. Erkang looked at Xiaoyanzi and joked, "Xiaoyanzi, did you go to the imperial kitchen to search for delicacies early in the morning?"

Xiaoyanzi put her hands on her hips and retorted, "What do you mean by plundering? I took it very politely." Her eyes were wide open and there was a hint of stubbornness on her face.

Xiao Jian smiled and said, "What Xiaoyanzi meant is that the people in the imperial kitchen are happy to give her the snacks."

Everyone was amused by Xiao Jian's words.

Xiaoyanzi picked up a piece of dessert, handed it to Qing'er, and said, "Qing'er, eat this first. This is my favorite rose cake."

Qing'er took the dessert, took a bite, her eyes lit up, and said, "Well, this rose cake is really delicious, the fragrance of roses is very strong."

Xiaoyanzi picked up another piece and handed it to Ziwei, saying, "Ziwei, you try it too."

Ziwei took the snack and said, "Xiaoyanzi, you can always find such delicious snacks."

Xiaoyanzi said proudly: "Of course, I know a lot about food."

Just as everyone was eating snacks, a little palace maid ran over in a hurry. After bowing, the little palace maid said breathlessly: "Princess Huanzhu, Princess Ziwei, the emperor asked you to go to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, saying that there is something important to announce."

Xiaoyanzi frowned and muttered, "Why did the Emperor call us so early in the morning?"

Ziwei stood up and said, "Whatever it is, let's go quickly."

So everyone followed the little palace maid towards the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

The atmosphere in the Hall of Supreme Harmony was somewhat solemn. The emperor sat on the dragon throne, and some ministers stood below him. Seeing Xiaoyanzi and the others coming, the emperor said, "I called you here today because a neighboring country sent envoys, and they brought a challenge."

Xiaoyanzi asked curiously, "Father Emperor, what's the challenge?"

The emperor frowned and said, "The neighboring countries have heard that our dynasty is full of talented people, especially in literature and martial arts. Their envoys brought three difficult questions and asked us to answer them within three days. If we cannot answer them, we will pay them a large amount of gold and silver as tribute."

Erkang stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, this is a provocation from a neighboring country. What are the three difficult questions?"

The emperor glanced at the eunuch beside him. The eunuch picked up a scroll, unfolded it and read: "The first question is about literature. It requires us to write an acrostic poem. The theme of the poem is the friendship between the two countries, and the poem must include the famous places and historical sites of the two countries. The second question is about martial arts. They brought a warrior and asked us to send one person to fight with him. If we lose, we will fail. The third question is about wisdom. They took out a complicated box and asked us to open it within an hour. If we can't open it, we will fail."

Ziwei pondered for a while and said, "Your Majesty, these three questions are indeed difficult, but we can try our best."

Little Swallow waved her arms and said, "Father Emperor, we are not afraid. We will definitely let those envoys from neighboring countries know how powerful we are."

The emperor nodded and said, "I trust you. You should prepare well in these three days."

After coming out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, Xiaoyanzi, Ziwei, Erkang, Qing'er and Xiao Jian gathered together to discuss countermeasures.

Xiaoyanzi scratched her head and said, "I don't know how to write this acrostic poem, Ziwei, you have to help me."

Ziwei nodded and said, "Don't worry, Xiaoyanzi, we can think about it together. As for the places of interest and historical sites, we can list them first, and then think of the poems."

Qing Er also said, "What about martial arts? Who will go to compete with that warrior?"

Xiao Jian stood up and said, "I'll go. I've been in the martial arts world for many years and I'm confident in my martial arts."

Erkang patted Xiao Jian on the shoulder and said, "Xiao Jian, you should prepare well in the next few days."

Xiao Jian said, "Don't worry, Erkang. I will."

Xiaoyanzi said again: "That secret box looks difficult, how can we open it?"

Ziwei thought for a moment and said, "We can find some people who are good at mechanical engineering to take a look. There should be such talents in the palace."

So, they started to divide the work. Ziwei and Xiaoyanzi went to look for information about the scenic spots and historical sites of the two countries in order to compose acrostic poems; Xiaojian went to the martial arts training ground to practice martial arts; Erkang went to find someone who was good at mechanical engineering. Qing'er was responsible for passing messages between them and coordinating all parties.

Ziwei and Xiaoyanzi came to the imperial study and began to search for information. The imperial study was full of bookshelves filled with all kinds of books. Xiaoyanzi looked at the books in the room and her eyes were dazzled.

Xiaoyanzi muttered, "Ziwei, there are so many books, how are we going to find them?"

Ziwei said as she searched for books on the bookshelf: "Xiaoyanzi, let's start with history books. Those books should have records of places of interest and historical sites."

Little Swallow reluctantly walked to a bookshelf and began to flip through the books. She flipped quickly, muttering, "Why is it gone? Why is it gone?"

Ziwei saw Xiaoyanzi's look and said with a smile: "Xiaoyanzi, you can't find it like this. You have to look carefully."

Xiaoyanzi stopped, looked at Ziwei, and said, "Ziwei, you are right. I should be more serious."

After a while, Ziwei said excitedly: "Xiaoyanzi, I found a book about the scenic spots and historical sites in neighboring countries."

Xiaoyanzi ran over, looked at the book in Ziwei's hand, and said, "Ziwei, you are amazing. Let's take a look."

They sat at the desk and read the records in the book carefully. Ziwei wrote down the important contents while reading.

Xiaoyanzi came over to look at what Ziwei had written and said, "Ziwei, your writing is so neat. I wish I could write as well as her."

Ziwei smiled and said, "Xiaoyanzi, you can do it too. You just need to practice more."

In the martial arts training ground, Xiao Jian was practicing martial arts diligently. He held a precious sword in his hand and moved nimbly between the wooden stakes. His eyes were focused and determined, and every move was full of power.

Erkang brought an old craftsman who was good at mechanical engineering to a side hall, where a mechanical box brought by the envoys from the neighboring country was placed. The old craftsman carefully observed the mechanical box and touched the lines on the mechanical box with his hands from time to time.

Erkang asked: "Master, are you sure you can open this trap box?"

The old craftsman frowned and said, "This mechanism box is very complicated. I need some time to study it. However, I will try my best."

Three days passed quickly. In the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the envoys from the neighboring countries stood on one side with a hint of arrogance on their faces.

The emperor sat on the dragon throne and said, "Today is the day to answer your three difficult questions."

The messenger said, “Then let’s get started.”

First, the acrostic poem in literature. Ziwei and Xiaoyanzi came forward, and Ziwei bowed and said, "Your Excellency the Envoy, we have prepared the acrostic poem."

Ziwei cleared her throat and began to recite: "Neighbors from afar have a long-lasting friendship, and the splendor of our country is included in poetry. Good friends invite each other to enjoy together, and the friendship is longer than the years of the sea. The poem contains the majestic Mount Tai of your country standing in the east, and the Great Wall of our country stretching thousands of miles to show its majestic splendor."

The messenger was slightly stunned after hearing this, and then said: "This poem is not bad."

Next was the martial arts competition. Xiao Jian stepped forward, saluted the emperor and the envoy, and stood in the middle of the competition field. The warrior from the neighboring country also came out. He was tall and strong, with well-developed muscles and a fierce look in his eyes.

Xiao Jian clasped his fists and saluted, saying, "Brother Wushi, please teach me."

The warrior didn't answer, but swung his sword towards Xiao Jian. Xiao Jian dodged the blow easily. Then he quickly counterattacked, stabbing the warrior's abdomen with the sword in his hand. The warrior dodged sideways and launched another round of attack.

The two fought back and forth in the arena, and the fight was hard to decide. The people around watched intently, cheering for Xiao Jian's wonderful moves from time to time.

After a fierce battle, Xiao Jian finally found the warrior's weakness and stabbed the warrior's shoulder with his sword. The warrior dropped the sword in his hand and knelt on one knee.

Xiao Jian took back his sword, clasped his fists and said, "Thank you for letting me."

The messenger's expression turned a little ugly, but he still said: "You win this battle."

Finally, it was the challenge of the trap box. The old craftsman stepped forward, saluted the emperor and the envoy, and began to crack the trap box. His hands carefully operated on the trap box, and his eyes were closely watching the changes on the trap box.

Time passed by minute by minute, and everyone looked at the old craftsman nervously. Just when the hour was about to expire, there was a "click" and the box opened.

The old craftsman wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "Your Majesty, the box has been opened."

The emperor smiled with satisfaction and said, "Well, well done."

When the messenger saw that all three difficult questions were answered, his face turned very ugly. He said, "You are really powerful. We lost."

The emperor said: "There should be peace and friendship between the two countries. I hope you can convey this message when you return."

After paying his respects, the messenger left with his men in disgrace.

The little swallow jumped up excitedly and said, "We won, we won."

Ziwei also smiled and said: "Yes, this is the result of everyone's joint efforts."

The emperor said happily: "You have done a great job. I will reward you well."

After coming out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiaoyanzi took Qing'er's hand and said, "Qing'er, let's go to the Imperial Garden to play. We are so happy today."

Qing Er nodded and said, "Okay, Xiaoyanzi."

Ziwei and Erkang followed.

In the imperial garden, the flowers blossomed more beautifully, as if cheering for their victory. The little swallows ran around among the flowers like happy butterflies.

Ziwei sat in the pavilion, looking at Xiaoyanzi, and said, "Xiaoyanzi, look at how beautiful the scenery of this imperial garden is. I'm in a good mood today, and everything I see seems especially beautiful."

Xiaoyanzi ran over, sat next to Ziwei, and said, "Ziwei, you are right. However, the best thing today is that we won the challenge from our neighboring country."

Erkang smiled and said, "Yes, this also shows us the power of unity."

Xiao Jian also came over and said, "No matter what difficulties we encounter in the future, as long as we work together, we will be able to overcome them."

Qing'er said, "I hope the palace will always be this peaceful and beautiful in the future."

At this moment, a kitten jumped out from the flowers and ran to the little swallow's feet. The little swallow cried out in surprise, squatted down and picked up the kitten, saying: "Look, this kitten is so cute."

Ziwei also came over, looked at the kitten, and said, "Its eyes are so round."

The little swallow held the kitten in her arms, kissed it on the head, and said, "Kitten, where are you from?"

The kitten meowed, as if answering Little Swallow's question.

Little Swallow said to everyone, "Let's take it home and raise it."

Qing'er said with some concern: "Xiaoyanzi, can we keep cats in the palace?"

Xiaoyanzi thought for a moment and said, "We can go ask the Emperor."

So, Xiaoyanzi took the kitten to find the emperor.

The emperor was reading memorials in the imperial study when he saw Xiaoyanzi coming in with a kitten in her arms. He asked, "Xiaoyanzi, what's going on?"

Xiaoyanzi lifted the kitten up and said, "Father Emperor, we found this kitten in the imperial garden. It's very cute. We want to keep it in the palace. Is that ok?"

The emperor looked at the kitten and said with a smile: "Since you like it so much, keep it. But you must take good care of it."

Xiaoyanzi said happily: "Thank you, Father Huang, we will take good care of it."

Xiaoyanzi returned to the Imperial Garden with the kitten in her arms and said excitedly to everyone, "The Emperor has agreed to let us keep a cat."

Everyone was very happy and started to play with the kitten.

As time went by, the kitten grew up under the care of Xiaoyanzi and the others. It became a little star in the palace and everyone loved it very much.

One day, Little Swallow found that the kitten was missing. She anxiously searched everywhere in the palace, shouting, "Kitten, kitten, where are you?"

Ziwei, Qing'er, Erkang and Xiao Jian also came to help with the search.

Little Swallow searched the whole Imperial Garden but couldn't find the kitten. She was so anxious that tears were about to flow. She said, "Could something have happened to the kitten?"

Ziwei comforted her, "Don't worry, Xiaoyanzi, we'll look for it carefully."

Just when everyone was getting anxious, a little eunuch ran over and said, "Princess Huanzhu, we found a kitten in a corner, but it seems to be injured."

When Xiaoyanzi heard this, she quickly followed the eunuch.

In a corner, the kitten was lying on the ground with a wound on its leg, bleeding. Little Swallow picked up the kitten distressedly and said, "Kitten, how did you get hurt?"

Ziwei checked the kitten's wound and said, "Xiaoyanzi, let's take it back to the room and bandage its wound first."

So, everyone took the kitten back to Xiaoyanzi's room. Ziwei found some herbs and gauze and bandaged the kitten's wound carefully.

Xiaoyanzi sat beside her, watching Ziwei bandage the kitten without blinking, and kept saying, "Kitten, you have to get better soon."

With everyone's careful care, the kitten's wounds slowly healed.

After this incident, Xiaoyanzi cherished the kitten even more. She would prepare delicious food for the kitten every day and play with it.

One day, the little swallow was walking with the kitten in the imperial garden. She saw a small pond in front of her, with lotus flowers blooming in the pond and water drops rolling on the lotus leaves.

The little swallow said to the kitten, "Kitten, look at how beautiful the lotus flowers are."

The kitten seemed to understand what the little swallow said. It meowed and stared at the lotus.

Just then, Erkang and Ziwei came over.

Erkang smiled and said, "Little Swallow, you and Kitty are enjoying the beautiful scenery here."

Ziwei also said: "The scenery of this imperial garden is really something you never get tired of looking at."

Xiaoyanzi nodded and said, "Yes, I have a different feeling every time I come here."

They sat on the stone bench by the pond, looking at the lotus flowers in the pond and talking about some interesting things in the palace.

The kitten ran around the little swallow's feet, and from time to time it used its claws to grab the petals that fell on the ground.

Qing'er and Xiao Jian also came over, Qing'er holding a kite in her hand.

Qing'er smiled and said, "Little Swallow, let's go fly a kite."

Xiaoyanzi's eyes lit up and she said, "Okay, okay."

So everyone came to the open space in the palace to fly kites.

Qing Er handed the kite to Xiao Yan Zi and said, "Xiao Yan Zi, you fly it first."

The little swallow took the kite and ran. As she ran, she let out the string, and the kite slowly flew up.

The little swallow shouted excitedly: "Look, the kite is flying."

Everyone looked up at the kite flying in the sky, with happy smiles on their faces.

The kites flew higher and higher in the sky, as if carrying their dreams and hopes.

Life in the palace continues, full of joy, warmth and endless stories. Every new day is a new beginning, and they write their own beautiful lives in this place full of love.