A young eunuch outside was laughing the loudest, tears and snot almost streaming down his face. Yun Duoduo gave him a fierce look.
Why are you laughing so exaggeratedly?
Anyone who didn't know better would think you'd struck it rich!
What are you laughing at? Doesn't she have any pride?
Yun Duoduo pouted, looking aggrieved, and rolled her eyes.
“Giraffe.” Jin Jinzhi walked up to her and gently taught her to speak in her ear. He had seen this giraffe in “Travels in Four Countries” and he thought the little one would definitely like this kind of animal.
He found that whenever he was with this little guy, his heart would feel very warm, he had an indescribable feeling, and the corners of his mouth would unconsciously turn up.
Seeing her assassinated, he felt inexplicably heartbroken and nervous. This nervousness was not just the fear and trepidation one feels as a guard or protector carrying the emperor's orders, but an emotion that burst forth from the depths of his heart.
Seeing her happy or angry makes his mood fluctuate like a rollercoaster.
His composure, calmness, and restraint would vanish completely in Yun Duoduo's presence.
Could it be that he likes her?
I can't say whether I like her or not; she's still so young, so it probably isn't.
Aside from being cute and clever, this little guy doesn't seem to have anything particularly endearing about him.
“Long.” Jin Jinzhi said one word, and Yun Duoduo repeated it, each of her tones rising, making it sound comical.
"neck."
"neck."
"deer."
"deer."
"giraffe."
"Wearing something that makes a rumbling sound."
The giraffe turned into a rumbling figure, and after listening to Yun Duoduo's explanation, Jin Jinzhi couldn't help but laugh.
He rubbed his forehead, laughing until his stomach hurt. "This girl is so cute!"
Yun Beiye held Yun Duoduo in his arms, laughing so hard his body trembled, showing no trace of imperial demeanor.
Zhao Zhongquan also lowered his head, covering his mouth and chuckling to himself.
Seeing everyone's reactions, Yun Duoduo felt even more embarrassed.
[Waaaaah, this is so hard! She's still just a little kid, I can't say anything!]
"Waaaaah!" Yun Duoduo got anxious, pouted, and howled loudly.
So many people are laughing at her, she's giving up, she's quitting!
"Oh dear, don't cry, don't cry, let's go back inside." Yun Beiye shook Yun Duoduo, comforting her not to cry.
"Go do what you're supposed to be doing. What are you all doing staring at the little princess like this?" Zhao Zhongquan followed behind Yun Beiye and called out in a low voice to the eunuchs and maids who were standing there in a daze.
The crowd gathered in the courtyard of Fu Shuang Palace immediately dispersed.
...
The round moon hangs high in the sky, and the evening breeze blows, swaying the willow branches and spreading a faint fragrance throughout the palace.
Inside the Xin Zhe Ku (a place for palace maids and eunuchs), the palace maids and eunuchs, exhausted, kept busy.
This year, there has been very little rain or snow in Nanyang. Ah Xiang wanted to fetch water to wash clothes, but after putting the wooden buckets into the two wells in the backyard of the palace, she didn't see a single drop of water despite all her efforts.
She couldn't understand whether the well was dry because of the dry weather in Nanyang, or because the water had frozen in the cold and, even as the weather gradually warmed up, the well remained frozen because it never got any sunshine.
She lowered the sleeves rolled up on her wrists and rubbed her hands, which were red from the cold.
These clothes need to be washed and dried as soon as possible; the ladies in the palace are in a hurry for them.
After resting on the ground for a while, Ah Xiang sighed, stood up, and decided to walk deeper into the inner palace.
Deep within the inner palace lies an abandoned grove of trees. Located in the northernmost corner of the palace, it is largely unused, unguarded, and neglected, so few people venture there.
Ah Xiang knew that there was a well in there. Before, when they were in the Hibiscus Palace, because their master was not favored, the two of them often wandered around the harem out of boredom and had been to that abandoned forest.
This well is in the woods; maybe you can get water from it.
By the moonlight, Ah Xiang followed the path to the northernmost part of the inner palace.
The woods deep within the palace were dilapidated, with branches lying haphazardly blocking the path, old bamboo baskets scattered all over the ground, and fallen, withered branches crunching underfoot in the corners.
"Caw caw caw!" The crows circled in the treetops, cawing in hoarse voices.
Faced with this scene, Ah Xiang felt a little scared. The moonlight was cold and made the woods look somewhat eerie and terrifying.
She couldn't help but regret that she should have called a few more palace maids to come and do the laundry.
After the clouds and mist dissipated, Ah Xiang, taking advantage of the moonlight, mustered her courage and carefully avoided the thorny branches as she carried the wooden bucket inside, forcing herself not to talk about demons and monsters.
When they reached the well, Ah Xiang picked up the wooden bucket and was about to put it in when she saw a pale-faced man's face staring straight at her from the well.
His face was already swollen from being soaked in water.
"Ah!" Startled, Ah Xiang dropped the wooden bucket. She took two steps back, leaned against the thick tree behind her, covered her mouth with her hands, and slumped to the ground, trembling uncontrollably. She turned her head away, not daring to look at the well again.
Is it just her imagination? Did she see it wrong?
But she no longer had the courage to go closer and take another look.
There must be someone in the well.
How could there be a dead body in the well?
Ah Xiang forced herself to calm down, and gently patted her chest while supporting her rapidly beating heart.
Don't panic, don't panic.
This person is a stranger; I've never seen them before.
[Being thrown silently into the well, this person is probably an unknown eunuch or someone who has committed a crime.]
But who pushed the eunuch into the well?
Considering the recent events in the palace, Ah Xiang was startled.
Could it be related to the fire in the Buddhist temple? The biggest thing that has happened in the palace lately is that the little princess has been murdered several times. And the person in the well hasn't turned into a skeleton yet, so he must have been thrown in recently.
We must inform Her Majesty the Empress about this.
For the sake of the little princess, she had to leave here quickly.
We must hurry to Zhaoyang Palace.
She forced herself to stay calm, looked around to make sure no one was watching, picked up the wooden bucket, and quickly left the woods towards Zhaoyang Palace.
...
Inside Zhaoyang Palace, Cuiling, the head maid of Empress Zhaoyuan, was helping the Empress remove her hair ornaments and wash off the rouge and powder from her face, preparing to serve her mistress to rest.
"Your Majesty, a palace maid named A Xiang is requesting an audience outside the palace," the gatekeeper announced.
"It's so late, Her Majesty is already getting ready to sleep." Cuiling called out to the door as she placed the hairpins and earrings on the dressing table and used a horn comb to style the Empress's hair.
"It's late and the dew is heavy. Her Highness has already changed her clothes. If there's anything, tell her to come again tomorrow, and we'll talk about it then!"
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