What does it mean when a wishing lantern goes out on a river?
Are all her hopes going to be dashed?
She hoped that in her lifetime, the world would be free from war, natural disasters, and man-made calamities, and that the Emperor and his friends would all be healthy...
Are we not even going to let her have this wish fulfilled?
Yuan Yao squatted by the river, staring blankly at the extinguished lanterns.
My whole body feels a little cold.
Suddenly, I felt a slight heaviness on my head.
The voice of the Ninth Prince came from above: "The riverbank is slippery, why are you squatting here?"
Yuan Yao blinked.
A drop of icy liquid fell onto the river surface, creating shallow ripples.
She looked up again, her eyelashes slightly damp, her eyes a little red: "Father..."
Looking at his little dumpling's red eyes, the Ninth Prince was stunned for a moment, feeling heartbroken.
He bent down, lifted her up, and held her in his arms: "Who bullied you? I'll go and teach him a lesson for you."
Yuan Yao opened her arms and rushed into the large, warm embrace: "Father, no one bullied Yao'er. Yao'er just missed Father."
Missing him?
The Ninth Prince teased her softly, "Father has only been gone for a short while, and you already miss Father?"
Could it be that my dumpling is the reincarnation of a little rice cake spirit?
Rice cake essence?
The image of a soft, chubby rice cake spirit appeared in Yuan Yao's mind.
She's not that chubby!
Yuan Yao snuggled closer to him: "Yao'er is not a rice cake spirit!"
The Ninth Prince chuckled softly: "Hmm, then, you're a little fairy, alright? A little fairy who didn't drink enough Meng Po soup."
Does he still remember this incident?
Yuan Yao's mood suddenly improved a lot.
She sniffed and asked, "Father, shall we go back to the restaurant?"
"Let's go."
The Ninth Prince carried her and slowly walked back along the path they had come from.
The number of pedestrians on the street gradually decreased.
As they walked, the Ninth Prince asked, "What happened by the river just now?"
Yuan Yao pursed her lips: "The river lanterns are out..."
The river lanterns have gone out?
The Ninth Prince raised an eyebrow: "You made a wish?"
“Yes!” Yuan Yao nodded emphatically.
The Ninth Prince asked, "What wishes did Xiao Yao'er make?"
Speaking of this, Yuan Yao felt a chill in her heart again.
She nestled close to the Ninth Prince's chest and whispered, "May the seas be calm and the rivers peaceful, may people live long and have bountiful years, and may relatives and friends be healthy."
"You made three wishes? That's so many!" The Ninth Prince looked at her, feigning surprise.
Are there many?
Yuan Yao looked up: "I noticed that other people's river lanterns are also covered with writing on them. Compared to them, Yao'er's are not many."
She only wrote so few words!
Moreover, she only made three wishes!
Her wish was so grand...
Looking at the eyes of the dumpling reflected in the firelight, the Ninth Prince chuckled: "Your wish is quite grand. How can such a small river lantern bear such a wish?"
The wishes that the river lanterns cannot bear will scatter in the water and in the wind...
Water and wind, clouds and moon, will all convey this wish to you.
Little Yao'er's wish will surely be seen by Heaven sooner than others', and will be fulfilled sooner than others'.
Yuan Yao opened her eyes wide and stared at the Ninth Prince.
The vibrant colors of the lanterns dispelled his coldness, making him appear soft and radiant...
The chill in Yuan Yao's heart dissipated completely.
She used her chubby little hands to climb up the neck of the Ninth Prince: "What Father said makes perfect sense!"
The world will be at peace, the people will have plenty of food and clothing, and my father and my friends will be healthy and happy!
"Isn't that right?"
The Ninth Prince gently pinched her cheek: "I'm a little hungry. Let's go see where there's something good to eat."
"Yao'er seems hungry too..."
At this time, the street vendors gradually pack up and close.
The shops along the street have also started to close.
The Nine Thousand Years Old was not the type to eat at street stalls. In the end, Yuan Yao spotted a shop selling fresh fish hot pot on a signboard by the riverbank.
The fresh aroma wafted from afar.
Ancient fish hot pot!
Yuan Yao pointed to the shop: "Daddy, shall we go eat fish?"
The Ninth Prince looked up and glanced at it.
It was summer, and there were still quite a few people eating hot pot...
It must taste good.
He smiled and said, "Okay, whatever you say."
The group requested a private room and went upstairs to the second floor.
The private room was filled with the delicious aroma of fish hot pot.
"Gurgle..."
I don't know whose stomach growled.
Yuan Yao blinked: "Daddy, tell someone to add a table and a pot, and order some for Sister Danqing and the others too?"
It was quite embarrassing for everyone else to watch as just the father and daughter ate.
Anyway, we're not in the capital, so there's no need for so many formalities.
Upon hearing this, the Ninth Prince said to Danqing, "Go and add another pot."
After an incense stick had burned for a while, the waiter brought out tables and chairs, and placed another table and a stove in the private room.
Soon, the waiters carried the stone pot into the private room.
Inside a stone pot larger than a basin, the fish soup was bubbling and boiling.
Tender fish, green bamboo shoots, cucumber slices, scallion knots, and perilla leaves, all simmering in the broth, release an enticing aroma that whets the appetite.
Danqing washed his hands, took a silver needle, and tested the pot for poison.
After a moment, she looked at the brand-new silver needle tip: "Thousand years old, non-toxic."
The Ninth Prince nodded.
He rolled up his sleeves, picked up a soup ladle, and personally ladled a bowl of milky white fish soup for Yuan Yao: "Have a sip of soup first."
"Thank you, Father!" Yuan Yao said sweetly.
The Ninth Prince smiled, picked up his silver chopsticks, took a piece of tender fish, removed the bones, and put it into Yuan Yao's bowl: "Be careful, it's hot."
Yuan Yao clumsily held the chopsticks in her small hands, picked up a piece of fish, and blew on it.
Under everyone's gaze, she picked up a piece of fish and brought it to the Ninth Prince's lips: "Father, try it first."
"You little dumpling..." The Ninth Prince chuckled.
Looking into the little boy's eager eyes, he parted his thin lips slightly and ate the fish.
Yuan Yao asked eagerly, "Daddy, is it delicious?"
"Yes, you should try some too."
The Ninth Prince picked up his chopsticks again, took another piece of fish, and carefully removed the bones...
Beside her, Danqing said gently, "Your Highness, shall I take care of the Princess's meal?"
"No need," the Ninth Prince said calmly. "You can eat your own food."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone in the room rushed to the other pot: "Thank you, Your Highness! We won't stand on ceremony!"
He was saying that, but his chopsticks had already reached into the pot...
Danqing sat to the side, unsure of how to start eating.
At this moment, the indoor temperature dropped slightly.
Four or five bodyguards, their faces veiled in black mist, stood inside the room.
The guards looked at each other in bewilderment, and the food fell back into the pot.
Po Yue said, "Chopsticks."
"Oh!"
Several guards quickly stood up and offered the chopsticks and seats to the guards.
Although they were quite skilled in combat, their aptitude was far inferior to that of the Dark Guards of the Dark Guard Camp.
Being a bodyguard is a level they've always longed for but can never reach...
Po Yue moved a chair and said indifferently, "Master, sit down."
With a long stride, Ying sat down beside the pot.
The other guards also took their seats, picked up their chopsticks, and began to eat from the hot pot.
During the meal, the black mist on the surface didn't dissipate despite external forces; it was like a black hole, obscuring the tips of the chopsticks and the food...
That's amazing!
Yuan Yao asked curiously, "Father, how exactly did they manage to create the black mist on the faces of the secret guards?"
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