After transmigrating into the book, I helped my mother reconcile with her divorced husband.

Huguo Temple, bathed in the cool moonlight.

Lu Zhiyuan came out of her second uncle's meditation room and walked to the door. She saw Xiao Yebai standing there alone, carrying a lantern. She walked over and stood next to him, following his gaze to look up at the sky.

The sky is very clear tonight, but unfortunately, there are not many stars.

Lu Zhiyuan tilted her head back and pointed to the sky, saying, "When we were little, I often watched the stars with Ye Bai. He would tell me which one was the Big Dipper, which one was Orion, and which one was Andromeda. When we saw a shooting star, he would drag me to make a wish with him. I didn't believe in making wishes, but seeing his bright eyes, I couldn't refuse, so I pretended to make a wish with him. His wishes were always the same: that we would both live, and that I would be safe and happy."

"Ye Bai, is that the person whose name is similar to mine, and who also looks very similar?"

Lu Zhiyuan turned her head to look at him, and his dark eyes were also looking straight at her.

"The names are similar, the eyebrows and eyes are similar, but the personalities are different. He is the kind of person who is very sunny, seems carefree and easygoing, but is actually very gentle and thoughtful. He never asks me to do anything, but he will silently help me do what I want to do, and give me a very respectable reason."

Xiao Yebai stared at her intently for a long while before lowering his eyes: "You're only nice to me because of him?"

Lu Zhiyuan shook her head: "I would still be good to you even without him! I've said it before, I like good-looking people. You're just good-looking and happen to look similar to him. You're not him, you're Xiao Yebai, the prince of Southern Chu. I can tell the difference and I won't confuse you two."

Xiao Yebai gave a soft "hmm," tinged with disappointment.

It was a bit chilly at night, so Lu Zhiyuan rubbed her arms and looked behind them. She muttered under her breath, "Where did that bastard Lu Yun go? He said he'd pick me up at this hour. I'll teach him a lesson when we get back."

“Young Master Lu probably won’t be coming.” Xiao Yebai patted his shoulder and said softly, “Just now… I saw him go in that direction.”

Lu Yun wasn't directionally challenged; on the contrary, he had an exceptionally good sense of direction. He could remember the layout of the Pingnan Marquis's residence after just one walk. With his hands behind his back, he walked up to Xiao Yebai, smiling broadly, "Your Highness gave me directions, didn't you? Your Highness wanted to come pick me up, but fearing Lu Yun wouldn't agree, you simply sent him away."

Feeling guilty, Xiao Yebai turned his back and said, "Let's go back, it's getting late!"

Lu Zhiyuan smiled and followed behind him. "Lu Yun is a good person. He's afraid you'll bully me, that's why he's always on guard against you. Your Highness Xiao is very magnanimous, please don't take it to heart. We'll be living in the same courtyard from now on."

Xiao Yebai nodded, but the feeling of being treated like an outsider and needing special explanations was unpleasant. He wondered if he weren't the hostage prince of Southern Chu, would he become the "my Xiao Yebai" she spoke of?

He's so concerned about what she thinks of him when she's just a greenhorn; is he crazy?

Seeing him slow down, she thought his wound had been aggravated. She naturally took the lantern from his hand and skipped forward. The lantern swayed, casting her shadow, and Lu Zhiyuan suddenly realized how truly joyful it was to be a child.

Infected by her joy, Xiao Yebai imitated her and jumped up. His shoulder was pulled, and he winced in pain.

As they approached the Zen temple, Lu Yun rushed over, sword in hand, shouting, "Xiao Yebai, what exactly do you intend to do? I warn you, don't even think about making a move on my young lady!"

Xiao Yebai stopped, his expression calm, and pointed to the lantern in Lu Zhiyuan's hand: "I'm just going to pick up Miss Lu."

Hearing the noise, A'luo and Liuying ran out of their respective meditation rooms, followed by the princess, who seemed half-asleep and groggy. The princess rubbed her eyes and muttered, "You two have quite the energy. After a whole day of work, you can still make a racket here. Go to sleep, all of you. If you dare wake me up again, I'll chop off your heads."

Lu Zhiyuan stuck out her tongue and shoved the lantern into Xiao Yebai's hand: "We can talk about it tomorrow. Go to sleep."

Xiao Yebai's face suddenly flushed.

She turned away, but then realized she didn't know why she was blushing.

In the dimly lit meditation room, two figures sat side by side, silent for a long time. Suddenly, a flash of light appeared, followed by the sound of footsteps echoing through the courtyard. The abbot looked out, but the courtyard was pitch black, and the footsteps had disappeared.

"You're still as timid as ever."

The person sitting next to the abbot spoke up: "Don't worry, I had someone tamper with the well. Except for you and me, everyone else will sleep soundly."

"what do you want to do?"

"What else can I do? I just want to get through these next few days peacefully and get everything back on track."

Inside the meditation room, the candlelight flickered, casting two shadowy figures on the snow-white wall like grotesque ghosts.

The abbot looked up at the man's face. His features bore a resemblance to the deceased elder. Indeed, they were cousins; it was normal for them to look alike. Even the child, before seeing this man, would have assumed he was that elder.

The abbot sighed: "You helped Wen Liangyu steal that jade Guanyin statue. What exactly are you trying to do? It's been so many years, it should have ended long ago. Why did you have to bring it up again?"

The man suddenly leaned closer to the abbot, staring into his eyes, and said, "Do you think I wanted to? If that old man hadn't found some clues and insisted on finding that child's whereabouts, would I be in such a hurry to get rid of her? With the supreme Empress Dowager around, I can save myself a lot of trouble."

The man chuckled dryly, sat back down, and said, "In a few days, it will all be over. You and I can both get rid of these identities and start anew. I'll be my Master Zhang, and you'll be your Rich Merchant Cheng. Don't worry, I won't reveal your secret, just as you won't reveal mine."

The abbot softly murmured "Amitabha" and lowered his head.

The man stood up, his huge shadow looming over the abbot, and said with a mocking look in his eyes, "You don't really want to be a monk in this Huguo Temple, do you? Your Mei Niang is still waiting for you outside."

The abbot chanted Amitabha Buddha's name again, a hint of pain showing in his eyes. If not for a moment of foolishness in his youth, how could he have made so many mistakes today? Even if he devoted his life to serving the Buddha, he could not atone for his past errors.

After the man left, a head peeked out from the southeast wall. "Sir, just as you said, he came to see the abbot. The two of them have known each other for a long time."

“They’ve all gone far!” Xiao Yubai stood under the wall, fanning himself. “Hurry up and catch up, don’t lose them.”

The young man pulled his head back, grabbed the eaves, and leaped down, landing steadily in front of Xie Yubai. He helped him close the fan, saying, "Grandpa, it's cool in the mountains, don't fan yourself."

"Get lost!" Xie Yubai kicked him. "Go with them!"

The young man chuckled, flicked his leg as if to indicate he was going to fall into the darkness.