I traveled through the Cretaceous period and farmed with the ever-changing dog egg.

The autumn breeze carries the fragrance of osmanthus blossoms. This scent reminds you that August is a month to pay attention to.

The Mid-Autumn Festival arrived in the blink of an eye, but unfortunately, this dynasty did not have one, so Lin Chaoyan could only spend it at home alone.

Early in the morning, under Lin Chaoyan's direction, Du Ming took a rolling pin and crushed all the lumps of rice flour in the yard into a uniform powder.

"Master, these rice noodles will be ready in another afternoon."

"Okay! Let's go shake the osmanthus flowers..." The fragrant aroma made Lin Chaoyan feel happy.

"We dry them to make osmanthus cake, and we can also brew osmanthus wine..." Lin Chaoyan is quite unfamiliar with food, osmanthus cake, pea flour cake, mung bean cake, rice cake, donkey roll...

I heard it tastes good and is suitable for both the elderly and children. It's a pity I can't drink alcohol, but others can!

"Chaochao, let's go together!"

Lin Chaoyan turned to her two nephews and readily agreed to let them join in. "Alright! But be gentle, don't destroy the tree..."

Han Dong went to check on the crops in the fields, while Qiu Shenji, having recently found some free time, started tinkering with his eating skills again. For two months now, he's even been eating in his room.

There are several osmanthus trees on the back hill, and the fragrance can be smelled throughout most of the mountain when a breeze blows.

To save time, Lin Chaoyan simply laid a clean cloth under the tree. Then she started shaking it, thinking about steamed osmanthus rice, and shook it even more vigorously.

The osmanthus tree rustled as she shook it, and the osmanthus blossoms fell one after another. For the ones that didn't fall, Bai Xia used a stick to knock them down, and soon the cloth was covered in a golden hue.

The other two followed suit and enjoyed themselves. The two, who used to only focus on cultivating immortality, now liked their current life and fell in love with the quirky and sentimental woman in front of them.

The three gathered all the osmanthus flowers in one place, and Nie Lianzhou slung the large package over her shoulder and headed back.

"Chaochao, let's go back!"

He thought that Chaochao was his benefactor and the person he loved, and he absolutely couldn't let her do it herself. The other person was an elder who seemed blind; there was no one else but him.

"First, we'll pick out all the rotten branches and leaves, then wash them with water and dry them on the bamboo mats." As soon as she spoke, the workers arrived and spread out three bamboo mats.

I took out the prepared mooncake fillings, which included red bean paste, mung bean paste, and fruit filling. This time, I'll only make some traditional mooncakes and snow skin mooncakes; Lin Chaoyan doesn't like other flavors, so I didn't make any.

The chocolate is nice, but there's no cocoa fruit. Maybe we can go out to sea to look for it next time.

Add camellia seed oil and sugar to the boiled milk and stir until the sugar dissolves. Then, add glutinous rice flour, rice flour, and wheat starch in that order, stirring until a smooth paste forms. (Wheat starch is made from wheat flour and water and can be homemade. The water used to wash your face can also be used to make cold noodles.)

Let it sit for 15 minutes, then steam it in a pot for 15 minutes, and the snow skin mooncake skin is ready.

After steaming, stir the dough in one direction, let it cool, and then knead it into dough balls of the same size.

Roll out the dough into dumpling wrappers, fill them with the filling, shape them into ovals, roll them in cooked glutinous rice, and place them in a mold to shape them. That's how you make a beautiful snow skin mooncake.

"Xiao Du, come on, have a bite and see how it tastes." Lin Chaoyan handed the first snow skin mooncake she made to Chef Du Ming. He held it in his hands, his eyes red, and stared at it for a long time, reluctant to eat it.

"What are you looking at? Hurry up and try it..." Why is he getting all emotional over eating a mooncake? Lin Chaoyan was really afraid he would kneel down and kowtow.

"So beautiful, so white and soft..."

Although Han Dong was a modern person, he had never seen these modern things before, let alone eaten them.

Nie Lianzhou held the mooncake in her hands, examining it again and again, unable to put it down: "The mooncakes Chaochao made are as white as jade; I've never seen anything like them in the cultivation world. I'm really curious about what Chaochao's original world was like..."

"Huh? Making mooncakes? Mid-Autumn Festival is here so soon?" Qiu Shenji came downstairs, took a mooncake from the table, and stuffed it into his mouth.

"Red bean paste, soft and glutinous, sweet but not greasy. Aren't mooncakes all five-nut? Why are there other kinds..." Qiu Shenji has always eaten five-nut mooncakes since he was a child, because his father always bought the classic, crumbly kind.

"Have you figured it out?"

After his secluded cultivation in the room, Lin Chaoyan finally emerged from his seclusion, hoping he would have gained something from it.

"Make do! Lend me your jade pendant later so I can calculate it. The karma on it is too heavy. If I don't understand it, my heart feels blocked and I'm very anxious..." In his eyes, Lin Chaoyan's own karma was very heavy, but the karma on the jade pendant was even more extreme and unsettling.

"I'll get it for you after dinner!" Isn't karma a Buddhist concept? Do Taoists also pay attention to this? I'll look it up when I have time.

While they were making mooncakes, Chen Lian and the others were already inside the Qilin Palace.

The emperor, dressed in a dark black court robe, wearing a tasseled crown and dragon boots, sat on the dragon throne, a symbol of supreme power and majesty, exuding an aura of dominance that made it impossible for anyone to look him directly in the eye.

"Is this the monster that's been causing so much panic lately?"

"Your Majesty, this creature is not a demon, but a strange aquatic beast that dwells in the deep mud and sand where few people live. The young lady surnamed Lin calls it a water monkey."

He hadn't planned to say anything, but Chen Lian insisted, so he had no choice but to confess. Otherwise, it would be too embarrassing if Chen Lian revealed it.

Several people in the imperial court were shocked to hear that the girl's surname was Lin.

At the same time, that familiar face flashed through my mind—the extraordinary woman who had disappeared for six years.

Miss Lin… These three people also made Ying Zheng’s heart tremble uncontrollably, followed by waves of soreness.

"Water monkey...that's quite fitting...Wang Xin, let me ask you, how did you catch this water monkey?..." Both share the surname Lin, is it a coincidence? Could the person I've been searching for for six years have been right under my mother's nose all this time?

The creature's appearance terrified everyone present; it had a blue face, fangs, and even arms growing from its tail.

"Your Majesty, this creature wasn't captured by us. General Chen, under Miss Lin's instructions, lured the enemy into the water, and it was Miss Lin who captured it alive. She simply used a white silk ribbon to knock the water monkey and General Chen out of the water, and then whipped him unconscious. The move was so fast and precise that we didn't even see it before it was over..." Wang Xin felt ashamed that he had brought a group of people but they had all just watched the show.

“Is there really such a remarkable woman in this world? Lord Wang, please don’t make fun of us…” Lü Buwei was the first to attack. He didn’t have a deep memory of Lin Chaoyan, but simply felt that their words were not very credible.

"Your Excellency is right. They've caused havoc in the region, costing the lives of many soldiers, yet they haven't captured him. Now they're relying on a woman... it's truly unbelievable..."

Seeing the disbelieving looks on everyone's faces, Chen Lian quickly knelt down. "Your Majesty, capturing this creature is a great achievement. How could I possibly bully Your Majesty for a woman I've only met twice?" He then revealed his ankle, which bore a handprint. "Your Majesty, please look. This was caught by that water monkey. If you don't believe me, you can compare the sizes."

Everyone present gasped at the sight of the dark blue handprint, including King Ying Zheng, who was also alarmed by the water monkey's eerie power.

"Alright! All of you ministers have rendered meritorious service, so reward yourselves..." In addition to Wang Xin being promoted directly by a rank, Chen Lian also joined the army to truly serve the country.

"Where is that woman now? Having rendered meritorious service to the Qin Dynasty, I will certainly reward her..."

Ying Zheng was certain that it wouldn't be so easy for her to appear in Xianyang; he felt that given her personality, it was impossible for her to take the initiative to see him. He didn't know why he was so certain…

Chen Lian and Wang Xin both remained silent for a moment.

"Your Majesty, this humble general is unaware. After her capture that night, she flew away with two other men. Before coming to Xianyang, this humble general specifically went to the bamboo forest where she fought to search for her, but unfortunately, he couldn't find her. Currently, we know nothing about her except her name..."

Such a capable person must be a reclusive master living in the mountains, as the other two did not make a move from beginning to end. Chen Lian didn't even know if he would ever have the chance to see that stunningly beautiful face again.

"Oh! Such a talented and extraordinary person truly intrigues me. What is her name?" Is it her? And what about those two men? Ying Zheng felt a strange unease, his hands unconsciously clenching into fists. He was actually worried that those two men were more handsome than him.

"Your Majesty, I am Lin Chaoyan, Lin as in forest, and Chaoyan as in sunrise..." This was how she introduced herself to Chen Lian that day.

Li Si, Zhao Gao, Meng Wu, and Wang Ben all felt a jolt of surprise upon hearing this name…

Ying Zheng, high above, could not see his face or know what he was thinking. After a moment, he left the court, rose, and departed from the Qilin Hall.