A piece of Japanese incense

"Hi!" I stretched out my hand and greeted Zhi Siqi.

After not seeing him for a few months, Zhi Siqi is still so thin and pale.

"He'er, since Xiao Qi is visiting us for the first time, why don't you take him on a tour around the house?" said Dog Dad.

Hearing this, I raised my eyebrows slightly and said nothing.

"I'll go to the kitchen to see if there's anything else to eat. Nian'er, come with mother!"

Watching Yu Nian and Aunt Hong leave, my mother, who always avoided Dog Dad, was still sitting on the stone bench motionless. I thought it was very strange and became suspicious.

(Could it be that Dog Dad came here to discuss some important matter with Grandfather and the others?)

I took a piece of lotus seed paste and egg yolk mooncake from the plate and handed it to Zhi Siqi. I took a sip of osmanthus tea and said in a slightly hazy voice: "Let's go!"

I pulled Zhi Siqi towards my garden, pouted and winked at Yutuan, who knowingly gave me an OK sign with her hand, then turned around and left quietly, eavesdropping secretly.

The narrow path was pitch black, with only the faint light from the stars and the bright moon illuminating the road ahead.

"Why don't you and my sister ask someone to light the lamp?" Zhi Siqi asked.

"Hey! Why did your father take you out of the palace?" I asked him back.

"Isn't he our common father?"

"Stop talking nonsense! Speak now!"

Zhi Siqi scratched his head and said, "Ever since Wanning... something happened in the Marquis' Mansion, Brother Zhiyu has fallen ill and hasn't been to the study for more than half a month. Brother Zhixu is also going to the border with his mother. Suddenly, more than half of the people in the palace are missing..."

I interrupted him, "No! What does this have to do with you leaving the palace?"

Zhi Siqi rubbed the jade pendant on his waist, hesitantly muttering to himself: "Daddy is right..."

"What are you mumbling about? I guess... you don't want me to go back to the palace, do you?"

Zhi Siqi instantly perked up: "Sister He is so smart!"

I squinted at him with an indifferent look: "You are allowed to play the emotional card?"

Zhi Siqi showed joy on his face and kept nodding in agreement.

"No! I am still weak and have not fully recovered yet."

"Dad said that he must bring you back to the palace this time, and asked me to persuade you."

Ignoring his nagging, she pulled the collar from his neck and walked back: "It's almost time, I'll take you back."

When we reached the moon-viewing area, the candlelight became brighter and brighter. Suddenly, Yutuan jumped out from somewhere and scared us.

Pretending that he needed to go to the clean room, he sent Zhi Siqi to go into the courtyard first. Then Yu Tuan and I hid in an ear room and talked in whispers.

"What did they say?"

"I vaguely heard something about the Crown Princess' past, and then the guards found me. I pretended to be a girl who wanted to eat some snacks, so I took some plums. They waited until I left before continuing the conversation."

(The Crown Princess back then? Could it be that Dog Daddy found out that I was kidnapped by the Crown Princess back then?)

"Oh! It's really mysterious, but I have to tell you a piece of news, that is, my father is thinking about sending me to the palace again..."

"Ah! What is the prince consort thinking? Why does he have to send the girl to such a horrible place as the Imperial Palace?"

I could only shrug helplessly and return to the yard with Yutuan.

Before I had a chance to refuse, my grandmother unexpectedly said hesitantly, "He Baoer, we...we have discussed it. You are older now. Grandma...Grandma thinks it is better for you to study in the palace!"

I couldn't believe it. It was my grandmother who brought it up first. It seemed like they had already reached a consensus and agreed to send me to the palace?!

"Grandma..."

"Be good, Bao'er. Just listen to your grandmother. Your father said that he will go to see the emperor in person. Then, maybe he can ask for grace from the emperor. Then you can come home every once in a while!"

I knew it was useless to refute, so I could only ask helplessly: "Then... when can I go home? According to your rest time in court? Five days on, two days off?"

The dog father responded calmly, as if it was a matter of course, "There are three ten-day periods in a month. When the ten-day period comes, we go down to work and have a day off."

"Mo? Three days off a month? Isn't this pure exploitation?!"

Life is like a dream, and a bottle of life is still lingering.

Pushing open the door with peeling paint, I stepped into the girls' school again.

Walking into the courtyard, time seems to have stopped:

On both sides of the bluestone-paved path, wild grass stubbornly poked its head out from the cracks;

The old vines in the corners cling to the mottled wall, their branches and leaves swaying gently in the wind;

The old locust tree in the courtyard has intertwined branches and sparse leaves, and the moss on the trunk records the traces of time;

A few butterflies occasionally flew by, dancing in the air, but could not find a flower to stay on;

The wind chimes under the eaves have lost their crisp sound, leaving only a rusty body, and the whole yard is filled with a faint sadness.

Suddenly, Yutuan's voice rang out: "Oh, our vegetables!" She threw the bag on the stone table and ran towards the vegetable field shouting.

The once neat and uniform ridges have been invaded by weeds. They spread wildly, like an unruly painter splashing green paint, painting the originally neat vegetable plots into a mottled state.

The soil has become compacted, losing its original softness and fertility, and feels hard when stepped on.

The vegetables, those lives that once thrived on this land, are now either withering or being buried by weeds, leaving only a few shriveled stems. The remnants of the vegetables are scattered everywhere, and the leaves are covered with traces of insects, which looks particularly desolate.

"Why don't you listen to your husband's arrangement and live in Changle Palace?" Yu Yi spoke slowly.

I replied with a grin, "We used to be so out of place in their family's residence, but now there are only three of us living in the Women's Academy, so we feel more comfortable!"

"That's true! When we first entered the palace, we took good care of this courtyard. Now we really have to move to a new place and adapt ourselves all over again. I don't know if we can get used to it!" Yu Yi responded.

"Miss Zhi, how are you?" Two women stood in front of the door, wearing elegant silk dresses, brocade belts embroidered with cloud patterns tied around their waists, simple jade and silver hairpins on their heads, and their faces were pretty but slightly pale.

"Who are you? What's the matter?" Yu Tuan stared at them warily and asked.

"Hello, Miss Zhi. We are sent by Her Royal Highness the Princess to serve you."

I looked at them, feeling a little bewildered.

"Girl, could this be someone sent by the princess to monitor us?" Yu Yi came close to me and whispered.

"We just finished talking about the three of us being at ease, and now someone comes..." Yu Tuan muttered in a low voice.

"Thank you for your hard work, sisters! But my courtyard is too small to have so many people. I will go to Changle Palace to express my gratitude tomorrow. I beg you to return home today!"