The next day, before dawn, the maids began to pull the mugwort and pine branches away.
Songtang was forced to apply powder and makeup, and then put on several layers of ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress); Aicao was also forced to change into a Hu-style outfit worn by the princess's guards. Apart from not having to wear makeup, she was just as tired as Songtang.
They sat at opposite ends of the bed, one at the head and the other at the foot. They wore different clothes, but both had sleepy eyes.
Artemisia argyi yawned.
They exchanged a knowing glance and said to each other, "See you tonight."
They all knew that today would be a busy day.
One needs to arrive at the palace early to meet the emperor.
Song Tang had barely eaten a few bites of the breakfast that was brought to her when the Crown Princess pulled her onto a horse. She had roughly learned how to ride a horse last night, but even with the Crown Princess protecting her, her face was still somewhat pale as she sat on the tall horse.
The Crown Princess gave a few simple instructions to her maidservants, then rode out of the Crown Princess's residence.
Ai Cao, who had fallen asleep again by the bedside, was also dragged to the side of the stable by the eldest princess.
The eldest princess handed the veiled hat to Ai Cao and asked, "Can you ride a horse?"
She had changed into a ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) today, but she looked no different from when she wore a round-necked robe; she still looked dashing. Ai Cao took the veiled hat, put it on her head, and said lazily, "Yes."
The maid then led out two horses and handed the reins to the princess and Ai Cao in turn.
The princess gripped the reins, stepped into the stirrups, and mounted the white horse; Ai Cao also slowly mounted another brown horse, sat on it, and yawned.
The eldest princess asked, "Can you protect me by yourself?"
Ai Cao nodded. Her newly acquired short sword was neatly sheathed and placed where it was most convenient for her. She touched the pattern exclusive to the Crown Princess on the scabbard and calmly looked directly at the Eldest Princess.
The eldest princess raised the corners of her mouth and said with a smile, "Then let's go to the Astronomical Observatory now! You better stay close!"
She picked up the riding whip hanging by the saddle and flicked it lightly. Ai Cao watched the white horse gallop away, then gently squeezed its flanks and followed closely behind the princess.
The surrounding area is becoming increasingly deserted.
The eldest princess's cheerful voice drifted on the wind: "The Astronomical Observatory is just ahead."
Ai Cao looked ahead. In the distance, a square platform stood upright; as they drew closer, they could see the thick walls and houses surrounding the platform.
They arrived at the entrance of the Astronomical Observatory.
When the guards at the gate saw the princess arrive, they quickly pushed aside the woman blocking the entrance and hurriedly bowed to the princess.
The princess asked impatiently, "I've come to see the registrar. Is he in?"
The guard nodded with a smile.
Their smiles vanished upon seeing the woman who hadn't yet left, replaced by disgust. One of them, seeing the woman standing still, shouted and raised his foot to kick her.
The woman took two steps back, just in time to avoid the guard's foot.
The guard frowned, cursed, and went forward to pull the woman again.
The princess frowned and called out to him, asking the woman, "What are you doing?"
The woman looked up at her. Her face was expressionless, so calm that it didn't seem like she had just gone through all that commotion. She calmly raised her hand, pointed to her mouth, and then to the door of the Astronomical Observatory.
The princess frowned even more: "You have a speech impediment?"
The woman nodded. Her round, almond-shaped eyes stared at the princess, then her gaze fell on Ai Cao, who was standing behind the princess.
Her gaze was so direct that even the eldest princess couldn't help but turn to Ai Cao and ask, "Do you know her?"
Artemisia shook her head and said, "I didn't recognize it before, but I do now."
"This is the number one female supporting character who's helping the female lead become the head of the harem!" the system exclaimed in her mind. It was almost moved to tears: "This is the first time I've encountered a confirmed female supporting character... my code..."
Before Ai Cao could ask, the system rattled off the entire life story of this female supporting character.
This female supporting character was born into humble circumstances and was born mute, but she was born with a pair of yin-yang eyes, which allowed her to see all things in the yin and yang realms.
The female supporting character also saw the so-called "destiny" surrounding the female lead.
Therefore, she helped the female protagonist ascend to a high position—when the female protagonist died as the head of the harem, she also committed suicide in the Imperial Observatory.
The male protagonist is left with an empty harem and a court completely under his control.
He lost love, but gained the world.
A cliché story, thought Ai Cao. But now she needed an assistant who could see souls.
Ai Cao said, "She's the one."
The princess looked at her with a complicated expression, then at the mute girl. She took a deep breath, gently patted the horse's mane, and tried to calm herself down.
The eldest princess asked, "Is there no need to ask any more questions?"
The mugwort nodded.
The princess lowered her eyes to look at the guards, having already calmed down: "Take her with you. Go back to the manor."
The guard hurriedly asked, "Your Highness?"
Ai Cao dismounted and strode over to the mute girl. She looked down at the girl, who was slightly shorter than her, grasped her wrist, and then helped her onto the horse.
The mute girl sat quietly on her side on the horse with her eyes closed. Ai Cao mounted the horse and held the mute girl protectively in her arms.
The guard wanted to say something more, but all he got from his open mouth was the dust kicked up by the horse's hooves.
The return trip was much quieter than the outward trip.
The person who went to meet the emperor has not yet returned, and only the silent maids come and go in the Crown Princess's residence.
The eldest princess, with a sour face, led Ai Cao and the mute girl into the side room and said, "You'd better be able to explain."
Ai Cao nodded: "Of course."
She looked at the mute girl whose expression remained unchanged and asked, "Can you see ghosts?"
A flicker of emotion finally appeared in the mute girl's eyes—but only a flicker. She nodded calmly.
Artemisia continued, "Can you communicate with them?"
The mute girl nodded again, then raised her hand and made a writing motion.
The eldest princess narrowed her eyes. She leaned back in her chair and gestured for a maid to bring her writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone.
The mute girl ground the ink herself, picked up her brush, and wrote: "There is a ghost beside you."
The eldest princess was the first to see the contents of the paper.
She rubbed her arms and hurriedly looked at Ai Cao. Seeing that Ai Cao's expression remained unchanged, she felt slightly relieved and asked in a dry voice, "Is there a ghost around you?"
Ai Cao laughed and said, "I don't know. I can't see ghosts, so naturally I don't know if there are ghosts or if there are any ghosts around me."
She asked the mute girl, "Since you say there are ghosts, what do they look like?"
The mute girl replaced the old paper and looked at the mugwort as she began to write again.
She first sketched a tall human figure in the center of the new paper.
He then put pen to paper, and the ink at the tip of the pen condensed into several ink dots—they surrounded the human figure in the center.
The outer layer of ink dots was loose like snowflakes, while the inner layer gradually became denser, like layers of salt, densely covering the human figure.
Artemisia gazed silently at the picture.
The mute girl continued writing. The brush, laden with ink, fell onto the paper, until even the throat of the human figure was stained black with ink.
She wrote in the blank space on the page:
"To glimpse the secrets of heaven and inherit the destiny of heaven will lead to an early death."
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