Chapter 96: No Need to Buy Tickets Anymore
Seeing Young Master Lin deep in thought, Jing Ke, who had just downed his wine, couldn’t help but chuckle softly.
“It’s uncanny! If you were ten years older, you’d be indistinguishable from His Majesty himself!”
Lin Shu laughed along, unable to suppress her mirth. The two beauties beside her also covered their faces, stifling their giggles.
Heehee! Such a fool!
After the laughter died down, Xiaoyan murmured, “Hmph! They say Jing Ke is the ever-wise ambassador, so clever and perceptive! Yet—”
Her voice was quiet, but even Gao Jianli caught every word.
This spirited little girl was proud, as if her big eyes could see through everything.
“Young Master, who is this little princess?” Jing Ke’s curiosity was piqued; he even wondered if she might be the eldest princess of the king.
“Hee~ Don’t tell him, Father. It’s a secret,” Xiaoyan teased, reminding them to keep it under wraps.
Jing Ke was now trustworthy. Gao Jianli, despite his penchant for scheming, was not without loyalty.
Lin Shu shook her head with a smile, deciding not to hide it any longer.
“Jing Ke! We drank together not long ago, yet you now forget an old friend!”
“His Majesty!” Gao Jianli suddenly understood.
“Your Majesty!” Jing Ke bowed with a wry smile. “Indeed, it is you! But—”
Thinking of the mysterious carriage, Jing Ke refrained from further questions. He knew the carriage was one of the empire’s most guarded secrets.
...
As Yan Prime Minister Ju Xin left the embassy, he headed directly to the royal palace.
“Your Majesty, the visitor is the Northern Prince, whose chariot is even guarded by General Xuan Jian’s drivers!”
Ju Xin suspected that Young Master Lin might be the next Northern Prince.
“Truly a royal noble! Does Young Master Lin wish to meet me?”
The Northern Kingdom was like a sword over their heads, yet also a life-saving vessel. The Yan King had no other thoughts now.
Ju Xin shook his head. “Young Master Lin’s mission concerns an alliance with the Wei and Han states to journey east; a letter to the kings of Wei and Han from our Zhao state will suffice.”
The Yan King sighed. “No meeting is fine. Since the prime minister intends to write, so be it. Pity the Eastern Ocean lands must be divided into six parts.”
“Rest assured, Your Majesty, once the Yan State grows stronger, it will build a navy to venture into the Southern Seas.” Ju Xin now regarded the Eastern Ocean duchy as a fallback. Neither Qin nor the Yan-Huang Empire suited the ambitions of their noble ministers.
Gazing at the vast continental map, the Yan King nodded faintly; perhaps it was time to accelerate overseas migration.
...
Though Ji City was not a city that never slept, Fengyue Street was ablaze with lights, bustling with pedestrians.
While Jing Ke slumbered drunkenly, Lin Shu strolled the night market with her family.
The carriage moved slowly, even lagging behind the hurried pedestrians.
As they moved forward, the number of carriages and pedestrians increased.
“Speed up! Tonight, the Fairy of the Feixue Pavilion performs!” a wealthy merchant called from the carriage.
Even the pedestrians hurried, unwilling to fall behind.
“Move faster; we need a good spot.”
The closer they got to the street’s center, the denser the crowds became.
Familiar street scenes stirred a vague melancholy within Jing Ni, but she quickly suppressed it.
Once, she too was like the young maiden upstairs.
The passersby eagerly anticipated a glimpse of the beauties above, while the women upstairs longed to escape their gilded cages.
“Feixue Pavilion! The little fairy!” memories flooded her mind.
She was a proud girl, wounded and sworn never to marry again, a tragic beauty who understood men’s true nature.
Her proud smile seemed to dismiss all men as mere dirt.
Snow-white hair, jade-like skin, but her proud, dazzling eyes concealed boundless sorrow.
“Hmph, husband! What’s this? Do you want to go see too?” The king had not been so pensive in a long time, even swallowing nervously.
Awakening, Lin Shu quickly shook her head. “Nothing. Let’s see what’s different about Feixue Pavilion.”
“Hmm, baby wants to go too,” Xiaoyan said, curious upon overhearing the crowd.
Men loved to watch beautiful women dance; Jing Ni was not surprised. But since that man’s death, she refused to dance for others—though her skills rivaled those dancers.
“Then let’s go! Husband, you’ve been busy these years,” Jing Ni suddenly sighed.
The Moon Goddess nodded sympathetically.
“The king teaches by day and still has to—build ships by night!”
Blushing, the Moon Goddess almost slipped.
“Yes, you’ve worked hard, husband!” Jing Ni gently clasped his hand. He worked by day and never rested at night. At least the three of them could rest and savor the nights.
“Hehe, not hard at all! These legs can dance for ten years, let alone just a few!”
Not understanding her father’s sly grin, Xiaoyan felt pity. “Daddy, you’ve worked hard! From now on, baby will take care of you like Fourth Sister does.”
“No! No need, little treasure! Just your mother and sisters are enough!” Jing Ni shot her husband a reproachful look. That scoundrel—why did he make the baby watch when with Shaoshao?
Ignoring their warm family moment, the carriage followed the traffic toward Feixue Pavilion’s entrance.
The wide street resembled a small plaza. Carriages were haphazardly parked, occupying at least half the space.
[Commander, there’s no room, and carriages can’t enter.]
“Xin Ying sister, can’t we go in?” Xiaoyan protested; who dared to stop them?
“Maybe another day,” the Moon Goddess smiled quietly, glancing at her husband.
Lin Shu did not want to stay long in Yan State.
“Yan’er, why not let Xin Ying send them away with a jolt?”
Lin Shu didn’t want to be whispered about behind her back and could only let Xin Ying take the initiative.
“Enough! Husband, don’t take my Yan’er!” Jing Ni was exasperated—her husband was just like a hypocrite.
Even Xiaoyan hesitated, torn between listening to her father or mother.
[Commander, let’s watch from the rooftop skylight; this way, no tickets are needed.] Xin Ying, mindful of the Heavenly Dao, did not want to attract resentment. Her nature, derived from Lin Shu’s, retained both good and evil, inseparable.
“Good, we’ll watch from the top. Xin Ying, please activate the virtual projection.”
This was Lin Shu’s first time using it.
“What’s that?” Jing Ni stared at her husband. “Xin Ying, what’s this virtual projection?”
[Queen Jing, please watch.]
A spiritual hologram appeared, a glowing orb suddenly taking shape, then transforming into a bed.
Three figures appeared on the bed, prompting Lin Shu to hurriedly cover Xiaoyan’s eyes.
“Hey! Daddy, what are you doing?” Xiaoyan feigned anger.
“Alright! Xin Ying, I get it!”
The Moon Goddess was then enveloped by the glowing orb, turning translucent.
“This is optical illusion, nothing serious,” Lin Shu quickly explained.
Xin Ying almost revealed his treasured recordings—this was a secret Jing Ni must not know.
[Commander, rest assured.] Xin Ying silently promised.
The carriage ceased moving forward, then reversed, disappearing into the night.
“Ah~ Ah~ Flying again~ Flying again~”
Watching the wooden building below, Xiaoyan joyfully floated up.
Though she couldn’t yet fly on her own, she had been floating inside the carriage for years.
The hovering Xiaoyan seemed weightless, like in space.
Thousands of guests had entered, and faint sounds of zithers and flutes began.
The carriage gently landed atop the roof; the stage beneath the skylight was clearly visible.
“Snowflakes drifting under moonlight, atop the pale blue jade platform! Truly deserving of its name!”
On the pale blue jade stage, moonlight and snowflakes fell like delicate petals, making even the Moon Goddess yearn to experience it.
Beneath the tiled roof was the backstage control area, where Snow Girl and many crew members gathered under the wooden beams.
“Snow Girl, don’t be nervous! You’ll get used to it soon,” a young woman said calmly.
The girl, barely fourteen, still wore traces of nervousness on her face.
“Master, I’m fine!”
Snow Girl couldn’t help but glance upward, as if something had just fallen.