As the sound of red smoke fading into the distance, Huang Ningmeng quietly rose, took out a roll of black gauze, and wrapped it around herself. Her hair was tied up and covered with a black headscarf as well.

As for the bed, she wrapped a small part of the pillow with black gauze, then stuffed the pillow into the quilt, leaving the black gauze part exposed.

To avoid giving herself away, Huang Ningmeng covered her embroidered shoes with a layer of black gauze.

She bolted the door shut before sneaking out through the window.

The night was quiet, and the wind was a bit chilly.

The guards patrolled in shifts, just like in the Prime Minister's residence, but they stayed in the courtyard and didn't get too close to the rooms of the ladies.

Huang Ningmeng went to Hongyan's room first, but found that she was not there.

After thinking for a moment, she secretly slipped out of the east wing.

In the east wing, only one lamp was lit, making the light dim and unclear, but the faint sound of voices could be heard coming from inside.

Huang Ningmeng listened carefully, but couldn't quite make out what she heard.

"Xiao Jie, what are they saying?"

Xiao Jie is a spirit, so hearing sounds without any problems is no issue for it. After listening for a while, it didn't quite understand, so it relayed the information to Huang Ningmeng.

“Master, from what I’ve been listening, it seems that it’s that lady who’s concerned about you.”

Huang Ningmeng sneered, "Didn't you realize that she wasn't concerned about me at all? She was concerned about Hongyan. When she asked me if I had lost my temper, she actually wanted to know if I had done anything to Hongyan."

"So that's how it is." Xiao Jie suddenly realized.

"Their relationship is very unusual."

"Master...Master."

Hearing Xiao Jie's voice, which sounded like he'd seen a ghost, he asked, "What's wrong?"

“That red smoke, she called that lady, Mother.”

Prime Minister Huang lost his wife when Huang Ningmeng was one year old, and then married a stepmother to take care of her. Hongyan was also bought into the household by her stepmother when she was ten years old.

Hongyan is thirteen years old this year, which means that she got together with Prime Minister Huang a year after their marriage.

Huang Ningmeng looked at him with sympathy, "So my dad was cheated on."

“Master, your father is very good to you, do you want to help him?” Xiao Jie asked.

“Help.” Huang Ningmeng stroked her chin. Since this woman had the audacity to give birth to Hongyan, then when Huang Ningmeng was young, the maids, servants, and other servants in the mansion must have been replaced many times.

If you investigate this matter thoroughly, you'll find out.

Now that we know the important news, there's no point in listening any further.

Huang Ningmeng turned and disappeared into the night, using the flowers, plants and trees inside Yuanjue Temple as cover to secretly slip out of the courtyard.

In the afternoon, she explored about half of Yuanjue Temple, and a young novice monk gave her a general overview of the temple's layout.

Behind the entire Yuanjue Temple, to the east are the monks' meditation rooms, and to the west are guest rooms.

Only families with many members will have a separate small courtyard to live in.

Following the instructions given to her by the young novice monk, Huang Ningmeng quietly went to the west wing.

To enter the west wing, you need to pass through an arched doorway.

As Huang Ningmeng arrived here, a faint spiritual pull suddenly appeared.

He was indeed here.

Huang Ningmeng moved with lightning speed, slipping into the west wing. She pressed herself against the wall and, following the guiding thread, quickly found the exact room, located at the very back and innermost part of the west wing.

Seeing this location, Huang Ningmeng was both amused and exasperated. How badly had she been bullied to live in such a place?

Huang Ningmeng felt both sorry for him and amused. She quietly approached the window and heard the sound of reading coming from below.

read?

Huang Ningmeng narrowed her eyes slightly.

A bad feeling crept into my mind.

"Master, what's wrong?"

"It's okay, let's go out for barbecue."

"Waaah, Master, Little Jie wants some too~"

"You don't even have a human form, how can you eat?"

"..." The ring was so hurt by the blow. It will take human form, it definitely will, and then it will eat it up!

Huang Ningmeng realized she had gone too far and couldn't help but touch her nose. "Well, Xiao Jie, once you can transform into human form, I'll definitely roast you."

"Okay, thank you, Master!" Little Jie said expectantly.

Seeing that it was alright, Huang Ningmeng breathed a slight sigh of relief, walked to the very edge of Yuanjue Temple, jumped up and did a somersault, and flipped over.

...

The next day, Huang Ningmeng was idly flipping through Buddhist scriptures when Hongyan walked in.

Huang Ningmeng suddenly thought of something and said to Hongyan, "Come out for a walk with me."

"Yes, Miss." Hongyan didn't ask anything; it had always been her temperament as a young lady who couldn't stay in one place for long.

Huang Ningmeng walked around the yard. The bookworm's room was the farthest from here. How could she make him see her?

“Miss, the peach blossoms on the back mountain of Yuanjue Temple are in full bloom today. Would you like to go and take a look?” Hongyan suggested with a smile.

To see the peach blossoms?

If she goes, it won't just be about seeing peach blossoms; it'll be about being surrounded by onlookers.

She had no interest in being a monkey.

"I'm not going."

"yes."

Hongyan retreated unhappily.

Huang Ningmeng glanced at her and saw that she was still a child, her emotions written all over her face.

Thinking of this, she glanced again at the red-smoke-like bean sprout-like figure.

How exactly did Du Chenyan fall for this girl?

Is it a limp eye? Or is it blind?

Huang Ning's dream is unrealistic.

Du Chenyan was able to guard a region in his early twenties, which shows that he must have been quite intelligent and resourceful.

So what should we do?

How can I get him to see me?

Huang Ningmeng gazed at the sky, somewhat lost. The jade flute in her hand gently tapped against her shoulder, one tap at a time.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!