Qingfengju is not too far from the Prince's Mansion. After passing a restaurant, two pastry shops, a rouge shop, and two silk shops, you will arrive at the Prince's Mansion.
Song Ting carried a roast goose in one hand and placed the other hand on his chest, where he had hidden the jade hairpin he had just bought.
He thought the old woman was right; the young master would certainly look handsome in a jade hairpin. But someone like the young master would look good in any kind of hairpin.
"Candied hawthorns! Crispy and sweet candied hawthorns!" A vendor carrying a load walked towards him. Song Ting had his head down and didn't notice the vendor. He hurriedly dodged when they were about to bump into each other, but the vendor also dodged in the same direction.
Song Ting immediately became alert.
An ordinary person might not be able to tell, but Song Ting was certain that this vendor was no ordinary person. Those few steps he took just now seemed chaotic, but in fact they were all made with moves, leaving Song Ting with no choice but to follow the vendor's intentions and run into him.
"Ouch!" The vendor was indeed knocked to the ground, spilling the snacks from his two baskets all over the ground. Song Ting glanced at him, then squatted down to help him pick up his things.
The vendor lowered his voice and said in a tone only the two of them could hear, "The old emperor's health is deteriorating. News from the Imperial Hospital says he probably won't live past next winter. Shadow Three, the operation must begin."
Song Ting's heart skipped a beat, and she was momentarily stunned.
The vendor noticed his change and his gaze turned cold: "Shadow Three, you haven't been pretending for so long that you actually think you're some kind of kind house dog, have you?"
Song Ting had indeed almost forgotten. If it weren't for the pain of the Gu poison attacking once a month reminding him, he would have almost forgotten those dark and gloomy days, almost forgotten his true identity, and almost forgotten where he came from.
He almost thought he was just an ordinary servant in the Prince Duan's mansion, Chu Huaixu's dog.
He thought he could stay by Huaixu's side for a long, long time, until Huaixu no longer needed him.
But it turns out that wasn't the case.
At this moment, everything he possesses is nothing but a mirage, a fleeting dream.
"It's snowing! It's snowing!"
"What heavy snow!"
Not far away, several children were carrying rabbit-shaped lanterns, jumping and shouting.
Song Ting suddenly felt a bone-chilling cold. He subconsciously looked up and saw the heavy snow falling in abundance.
Last winter, he and Chu Huaixu built a snowman and had a snowball fight in the courtyard of the Prince's Mansion. The eldest son and his deputy were also there. The four of them split into two camps and almost blew the roof off the Prince's Mansion.
Later, Song Ting accidentally threw a snowball at the old prince's face, startling him so much that his face turned almost whiter than snow. Fortunately, the prince didn't blame him, but he did punish his two sons.
The eldest son's deputy general was inseparable from him all day long, and the two of them had to do everything together. When the eldest son was punished by kneeling, the deputy general naturally followed suit.
Song Ting silently knelt down beside them. The four of them knelt properly in the long corridor, which was exposed to the wind and snow. Meanwhile, the second young master, Chu Huaiyun, was leisurely reading a book in the room with heated floor and burning charcoal, while also keeping an eye on them for the old prince.
The second young master's personality is completely different from Huaixu and the eldest young master's, but he is quite similar to the old prince. He is the most well-behaved of the three brothers. Huaixu always secretly calls the old prince an old-fashioned old man and his second brother a little old-fashioned old man...
These amusing events seem to have happened just yesterday, but it turns out that a year has already passed.
Song Ting was still carrying the steaming roast goose in his hand and the jade hairpin he had bought with all his savings was tucked into his chest, but his mood was completely different from what it had been half a cup of tea before.
It was as if he had been immersed in a beautiful dream, and now someone cruelly woke him up from that dream.
The surrounding scene was still the same: lanterns, fireworks, street vendors, children chasing and playing in their new clothes... nothing had changed.
Only Song Ting was stripped from this beautiful dream, standing out from the bustling crowds and exquisite, dazzling lanterns.
“Shadow Three, don’t forget your place. You’re just a dog of the master. The master is your master. You can’t act like a human being.”
"You should know best what happens to a dog that betrays its master, Shadow Three. Stop dreaming."
Song Ting closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled. The biting cold seeped into his aching lungs with each breath, completely freezing him awake.
Even through the colorful mask, Song recognized the vendor's voice.
Those were the people who came out of the Dark Guard Camp with him.
They were once comrades-in-arms, but their friendship was destroyed in a fight over another shadow guard's nameplate.
It's Shadow Nine.
"I know without you reminding me," Song Ting said through gritted teeth.
Ying Jiu smiled cruelly: "That's for the best."
That would be best.
Of course that's true.
Song Ting brushed past him; one headed towards the Prince's Mansion, while the other, carrying a shoulder pole, went in two completely opposite directions.
...
Only one candle was lit in the room, dimly lit, barely illuminating a person's shadow. A gust of cold wind blew in through the crack in the window, and the candle, unable to withstand the wind, swayed violently a few times, almost going out.
Song Ting then regained her senses, took out a small white porcelain bottle from her sleeve, and looked at it with lowered eyes.
"Little Qingxiang!"
The voice arrived before the person.
Song Ting's heart tightened, and she quickly hid the porcelain vase under her pillow. She then picked up a picture book from the bed and pretended to look at it. Almost at the same moment, the door was pushed open—
"Song Ting!" Chu Huaixu appeared at the door with a smile, and the strong smell of alcohol immediately filled the entire room.
Song Ting closed the book, got up and went to help him: "Young master, why did you drink so much?"
His calm voice desperately concealed the turmoil within him. Fortunately, Chu Huaixu had drunk too much and failed to notice the hint of panic in his voice.
"Why didn't you turn on more lights? You're hurting your eyes."
Chu Huaixu waved his hand, refusing his help, and while scolding him, picked up a candle from the table and lit the rest of the candles in the room one by one.
"Today is the Lantern Festival. Why don't you go out for a walk? It's not good to stay cooped up in the house all day. Look at Xiao Bao and the others. They almost burned down the entire palace. Now the steward is pulling their ears and giving them a lesson."
Song Ting lowered her head: "It's nice to be alone..."
Chu Huaixu said with some annoyance: "You are just too quiet. The older you get, the quieter you become. When we first took you in, you were willing to join in the fun with everyone. But in the past few years, you have become a silent gourd, cold and ignoring everyone. Who did you learn to be like this from?"
Song Ting remained silent.
Chu Huaixu was both angry and amused, but mainly he couldn't do anything about it. He pinched his cheek and said, "Is this Second Brother? You look exactly like Second Brother."
"But it's also my fault. I should have taken you with me when I went to the palace to accompany my grandfather. Although the songs and dances in the palace are boring, they could at least help you relieve your boredom."
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