The Changchun Palace team travels back in time to Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace

Upon hearing this, Wei Yingluo was stunned. Rongyin and Mingyu were also taken aback. They had only learned about the origin of their world from the director and knew that there was a mission that required the three of them to work together, but they had no idea that it concerned the survival of other worlds.

Yingluo: "??? Wait a minute, why are we the ones going? Director, couldn't you send some ghost messengers?"

Director: "The strangeness of the corrupting Heavenly Dao can often be sensed from the outside. We are outside the small world, so it is easy to be exposed. Once exposed, it will trigger more disasters and cause the small world to collapse faster. But you are different time-space counterparts. If you go there, you can completely hide yourselves, which will make it easier to act."

Yingluo asked in confusion, "Wait, what is an alternate dimension?"

Director: "How should I explain this... never mind, I'll just give you the specifics. I hope the small world you're going to is based on the Qianlong era of the Qing Dynasty, and that Empress Fucha and Consort Ling also exist in that small world."

Yingluo: "So there's another Empress and me in that world? Doesn't that mean there's also an Emperor, an Empress Dowager, and a successor Empress?"

Director: "Yes, there are also Consort Gao, Consort Shu, Consort Jia, Consort Yu, and others, but... you still treat these people as another group with the same title... No, perhaps they have become dehumanized due to the corruption of the Heavenly Dao... If we enter that world, it will be difficult to hide ourselves because we do not have the identity and corresponding cause and effect of that world. However, if we have counterparts in another time and space and the corresponding cause and effect are similar, we can still switch the people who originally existed in that small world with you."

Mingyu couldn't help but interject, "Wouldn't we be like painted skins, walking and acting in someone else's skin? Won't we be discovered?"

Rongyin also asked, "What about the people we replaced? What will happen to them?"

The director replied, “Those who are in the same time and space are not only similar in identity, but also in their life stories and causal relationships. For example, the story of Yang Guifei, which you mentioned, is similar in terms of cause and effect, although the background is slightly different in the Tang Dynasty legend 'The Song of Everlasting Regret' and the drama 'The Palace of Eternal Life,' as well as the key events such as gaining Emperor Xuanzong's favor, the rise of the Yang family, and the Mawei Post Station Mutiny. Similarly, although your life stories are different from those in the world of Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace, the major key events are similar. As long as your causal relationships are correspondingly hidden in the causal relationships of the other time and space counterparts, the Heavenly Dao and the indescribable things will not discover that you do not belong to this world, but will regard you as the original inhabitants of the Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace world. As for the souls that you replaced, they will not be destroyed, but only temporarily covered by you. As long as the Heavenly Dao of the Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace world is restored, they will reclaim their original bodies after you leave.”

Yingluo asked, "We were just mortals in our previous lives, without any divine power. How could we find this evil spirit?"

Rong Yin pondered, "When writers create plays, what they value most is the lyrics and the characters. Since the Director says that the Way of Heaven is the will of writers, then it must be reflected in the lyrics and the characters. If the Way of Heaven is damaged... could the clues to this evil be found in the characters, that is, in the people of the small world?"

The director agreed, “That’s right. I strongly suspect that the indescribable thing resides within the people of that world, or even might be a specific individual. What you need to do is pay attention to everyone you come into contact with and everything you encounter, examining whether they conform to the laws of your original small world and your own experiences. Report any discrepancies to the ghost messengers sent by the Transfer Office. We will combine this information with information from the main world to conduct a comprehensive analysis and judgment. At the same time, you also need to change the course of some small worlds through your own actions and re-establish the connection between the Heavenly Dao and the Great Dao.”

Yingluo considered the matter: if the evil spirit was indeed a person, then the three of them could very well face the evil spirit called "the indescribable thing" directly. This would be too dangerous for the Empress and Mingyu.

So he asked, "What will happen if we don't agree to accept the mission?" The director replied, "Nothing much will happen, since it wasn't your responsibility to begin with. You will go through the usual process of reincarnation, perhaps returning to your original small world, or perhaps entering another world. You might become a human, a demon, or an anteater, a sea cockroach, or other birds and beasts. But one thing is certain: because there are so many small worlds, and each small world contains many creatures, there is only a very small probability that you will meet again in the mortal world. Even if you do meet again, you will basically become strangers. Just like the Venerable Jayata in the Buddhist scriptures, who married and had children ninety-one kalpas ago, but only saw his son, who was reincarnated as a crow, ninety-one kalpas later."

The director took a sip of tea and continued, "Although this matter may be difficult for the three of you, if you save a world, it will be an immeasurable act of merit. Whether you go to the living souls' dwelling area, take the exam to become a ghost messenger, or wander to different worlds, we will give you corresponding high-level preferential treatment. We can make an exception and allow you to live in one place permanently, so that you won't forget your past lives after reincarnation and not recognize each other. You can say that a few decades of hard work will bring you ten lifetimes of happiness! Moreover, we will also have ghost messengers outside the small world to meet and protect you!"

Upon hearing this, Yingluo abruptly stood up and resolutely said, "I do not agree to Her Majesty the Empress and Mingyu going! We are wearing the skin of another version of ourselves, yet we are still different from that other version of ourselves. Over time, others will easily notice our true nature! That evil spirit might be among the people we come into contact with every day. Even if there are ghost messengers to help us, we might not have time to escape if something really happens! Moreover, Her Majesty the Empress was trapped and died under the phoenix crown in her lifetime. How can she return to a cage like the Forbidden City!" With that, Yingluo solemnly bowed to the director and said, "Yingluo dares to ask for permission to go herself. I only ask that the director record the merits for Her Majesty and Mingyu!"

Upon hearing this, Empress Fucha Rongyin felt a surge of anxiety. She stood up, her usual gentle demeanor replaced by a stern expression, and said, "Wei Yingluo! I will not allow you to shoulder all the burdens again! In the last life, I already caused you half a lifetime of stagnation. This time, no matter what lies ahead, I cannot and will not run away! Moreover," her voice was soft yet carried immense weight, "I cherish a life of freedom, but before my death, I was the Empress of the Qing Dynasty, the mother of the nation, and I had a responsibility to protect the people of the harem and the entire nation. Now, though I am dead and all has vanished, I cannot bear to see the people suffer. If my remaining soul can save even a fraction of the world, what is there to fear! Furthermore, Yingluo, Mingyu, and I still have too many regrets. This opportunity is a sign that our fate is not yet over. I beg you, Master, to grant my request!"

Mingyu stood up and shouted, "Wei Yingluo! Don't try to be a hero at a time like this! What you can do, I, Mingyu, can do too!"

The director waved his hand and said, “Calm down, everyone! Miss Wei, our Transfer Office has regulations. For any action entering a world, whether it's a solo action or a team of three, the merits will only be recorded on the action itself. This is to ensure cooperation and mutual support, reducing the risk of the action. In my opinion, Miss Fucha, because she is also the original body of Empress Xiaoxian, still the Prince's Consort and the Empress Dowager, holds a high position and can restrain other concubines, thus protecting the safety of the three of you to the greatest extent. Moreover, the three of you each have your strengths, are of one mind, and have a close relationship. If you act together, you will definitely complement each other's strengths and weaknesses, achieving twice the result with half the effort, and greatly reducing the chance of encountering risks! If anything really happens, our ghost personnel will prioritize your safety and allow you to be teleported back here through the emergency passage.”

Hearing the Empress and Mingyu's heartfelt words, Yingluo was both delighted by their deep and sincere affection and worried about the difficult and dangerous road ahead. Tears welled up in her eyes, and after taking a deep breath to calm herself, she thought for a moment and finally agreed: "Alright then. But I have one more request. You must protect Her Majesty the Empress and Mingyu!"

The director was overjoyed: "Absolutely! Since that's the case, it's settled then. Let's discuss the details. I'll sign contracts with you, and the security terms can all be agreed upon! The remuneration will also be specified in the contract! I'll allocate funds to you for the annual Top Ten Ghost Messengers support mission, guaranteeing you all come out unscathed! We'll also discuss the details of the personnel changes and the specific content of the missions..."