Chapter 32: The Sound of Embroidery (XI) These things are really getting more and more…

After returning from the County Magistrate's Mansion, Chu Mozhi looked troubled. Fearing that the embroiderers might be worried, she volunteered to go to the kitchen and take charge of tonight's meal.

When the meal was ready, Madam Yun, accompanied by Sun Shanlan, the head of Huajinlou, sat down. She smiled and said, "Madam Sun has been helping the young ladies improve their embroidery skills lately. She will be returning to the capital tomorrow. This meal is a farewell gift for Madam Sun. After dinner, bring out the gifts of thanks you have prepared. If you have any questions, feel free to ask."

Ye Qingzhan, trapped in a box, listened to the bustle outside, her stomach growling. Fortunately, those in the illusion couldn't sense her presence or hear any of her sounds.

Wen Gu heard everything clearly, but was helpless; he couldn't feed her. He took out the ginkgo tree to offer her some words of comfort, but the moment he did, a sharp pain pierced his heart.

He clutched his chest, lowering his head and sneering—these things were really getting more and more "advisory" from him.

Ye Qingzhan had instructed Mo Zhi to hand Wen Gu a handkerchief if he saw him clutching his chest. Mo Zhi dutifully followed his instructions. Wen

Gu waved his hand, saying, "Thank you, but no thanks."

Chu Mozhi, standing nearby, glanced at him, dismissing it as a sore spot, not dwelling on it, her attention quickly drawn to the others at the table.

Perhaps intoxicated by the wine, Yun Ying blushed and asked Sun Shanlan, "Auntie Sun, could you tell me about the palace? What kind of person is the Empress, who loves needlework?" Sun Shanlan

smiled, but her tone took on a more bleak tone. "The Empress is naturally extremely beautiful, and her embroidery skills are unrivaled. As for the nine-story palace with its red walls and green tiles, some desperately try to get in, while others desperately try to escape. There's nothing much to say."

The young embroiderers looked at each other in bewilderment, not daring to ask further questions. Aunt Yun changed the subject at the right time.

Chu Mozhi looked at Yun Ying, and then at Yun Tianpiao. Their eyes flickered.

She was very familiar with this look.

It was envy and a desire to be there.

A meal that became tasteless at the end. Chu Mozhi picked up the bowl and chopsticks and left, and Yun Tianpiao caught up with her with the box on the cabinet.

Ye Qingzhan was so hungry that he was about to fall asleep, but he was suddenly woken up, and his sleepiness was immediately gone. With his eyes open, Yun Tianpiao handed the handkerchief to Chu Mozhi.

The two were in the kitchen. Chu Mozhi put the bowl and chopsticks away, washed her hands, and then took it and said, "Thank you, sister, for your trouble."

Yun Tianpiao smiled and waved his hand: "If you hadn't picked it up, this handkerchief would have been lost long ago. The fact that you picked it up means that it is destined to be with you, and it is right to give it to you."

Chu Mozhi looked down.

Three bluebirds soared side by side, their feathers growing by the stitches, wandering happily in the green river and white clouds.

She stroked the embroidered words and murmured, "It's so beautiful, I like it very much."

"That's good that you like it," Yun Tianpiao pointed at the embroidered handkerchief and said, "The bluebird was embroidered by Yingying, and the mountains, rivers, clouds and words were embroidered by me. This is a common wish between the two of us. We are orphans, and we were fortunate to meet Aunt Yun. Under her care, we grew up happily, and under her teachings, we learned the art of embroidery. Since you came to the manor, I have felt that we are unexpectedly like-minded, and we all treat you as a sister. This embroidered handkerchief is a small gift to welcome you to Jinxiu Mountain Manor."

Before she finished speaking, Ye Qingzhan felt a little wet on her forehead. She looked up and saw Chu Mozhi with tears in her eyes.

That night, she placed the embroidered handkerchief next to her pillow and smiled in her dreams.

Another day, Chu Mozhi got up before dawn, hung the embroidered handkerchief around her waist, and wanted to go to the morning market to buy some fresh vegetables. As soon as she closed the door and turned around, she saw a person standing under the tree opposite. Judging from his figure, it was the person she least wanted to see.

The man walked out of the dark, and the sky was slightly bright.

Ye Qingzhan's heart sank.

Wen Gu, who was standing on the green branch, also saw the person clearly -

Chu Letian.

With a gloomy face, Chu Mozhi closed the door of the villa, walked up to Chu Letian and asked, "What are you doing here?"

Chu Letian, who looked very sick, smiled and stretched out his hand, saying, "Money."

"I want money."

Chu Mozhi was immediately furious, but still restrained herself and said, "Didn't Aunt Yun give it to you?" She stared at him straight in the eyes, gritted her teeth and said word by word, "The money I paid for selling my body."

His cheeks were sunken, his eye sockets were dark blue, and his lips were chapped. Such a person looked like a ghost asking for life when he smiled. Chu Letian's fake smile made him look even more hateful. He said, "That little money, are you going to give to beggars?" Glancing at the tall gate behind him, he continued, "You found a good place for yourself, but you don't want to recognize your father..."

"Enough!"

Chu Mozhi didn't want to listen. Tears welled up in her eyes, but her expression was desolate: "The relationship between you and me has long been severed. The relationship between father and daughter has been bought out by you a long time ago!"

As if he didn't hear it, Chu Letian became more aggressive and said, "You say it's over, and it's over," with a vicious look on his face, "You have to give me this money today even if you don't want to. If you don't give it to me, I will, I will-"

"What can you do?" Chu Mozhi looked at him.

Chu Letian smiled and said dimly, "I will tell the young master of the Jin family that you are hiding here!"

With a chill in her heart, Chu Mozhi felt that the person in front of her was like an evil ghost, who would not give in.

"You know the temper of the young master of the Jin family best. There are all the beautiful girls here. I'll tell him when the time comes. Guess, will he come to see you? Will he..."

Before Chu Letian finished speaking, Chu Mozhi was already in a panic, remembering the sticky and greedy look that Jin Guan had given Mozhi.

Without thinking too much, she handed him the purse from her sleeve and said coldly, "Take the money..."

Chu Letian snatched the purse from her and said with a grin, "Don't worry, if you take the money, I'll keep my mouth shut." Before turning around and leaving, he turned around and threw a package to her, "This is my medicine. Give me a few more according to this prescription." He added, "Come back to ask for it when you run out of money."

He left leisurely with a hunched back.

The sky was getting brighter, but Chu Mozhi could no longer see the "father" she had called for more than ten years. Exhausted and with a broken heart, she turned back to the villa.

Those involved are often confused, but those who are watching can see things clearly. Ye Qingzhan sighed: "Yesterday you had a heated argument with that fox and didn't believe what he said. Today, when you face Chu Letian, why do you just accept it and do whatever he says?"

- It seems that he still can't let go, or he cares too much. Wen Gu

, who was leaning against a tall tree, hugged his arms and watched Chu Letian's back as he walked away. Although his steps were slow, they were steady. He followed quietly.

Sure enough, as soon as they reached the end of the alley, someone tore off their disguise.

***

Chu Mozhi walked into the wing room. Yunying and Yuntianpiao were still asleep. Mozhi, who was resting on the small couch, rubbed his eyes and smiled at her.

She whispered: "Sorry, I disturbed you."

Mozhi shook his head. Chu Mozhi took off the embroidered handkerchief, put it beside the pillow, crawled into the quilt, turned sideways, and curled up.

Ye Qingzhan, who was in the handkerchief, watched her bit her knuckles and shed tears.

After a long while, perhaps tired of crying, Chu Mozhi slowly closed her eyes, her expression looking painful.

Mo Zhi sat at the head of the bed, gently wiping away the tears from her face.

Ye Qingzhan took out the ginkgo and read the letter. She said: What should I do? I still have no idea. Mo Zhi still couldn't remember anything except that the fox Taoist owed her something, let alone the knot in her heart.

Wen Gu replied: "I just saw 'Chu Letian is a fox."

Ye Qingzhan looked at the words on the leaf, thought for a moment, and replied, "Is this fox Taoist pretending to be Chu Letian to force Chu Mozhi to leave the villa and enter the palace?"

Wen Gu replied: "There is no other reason."

Why?

Ye Qingzhan was puzzled, and suddenly remembered Yun Ying's drunken question: "How is it in the palace?"

As the saying goes: Truth comes out after drinking.

Since she asked, she must be interested. If Yun Ying and Yun Tianpiao also wanted to enter the palace, become capable people in the eyes of the empress, and become famous throughout the country, then Chu Mozhi, who had to enter the palace to seek protection to leave Chu Letian and avoid Jin Guan, would be in competition with the two. After all, as luck would have it, when Yun Tianpiao saw Sun Shanlan off that day and went to call them to dinner with her box, he overheard Sun Shanlan and Yun Yan's conversation.

There were only two spots for embroiderers to enter the palace.

Her head was spinning as she wrote on the ginkgo tree: "Wen Gu, do you think Mo Zhi's obsession could be the reason for her entry into the palace?"

She felt something was amiss, but couldn't put her finger on it. Before Wen Gu could respond, she heard Chu Mozhi muttering in her sleep: "I want to enter the palace."

"No one can compete with me!"

She suddenly opened her eyes, got out of bed, picked up the medicine bag on the table, and left the room.

Ye Qingzhan watched her disappear around the corner, then looked at the girl standing beside the bed, who was just as bewildered as she was. Mo Zhi, who had been left alone by the bed, understood what she meant, picked her up, and chased after her all the way to the kitchen.

Chu Mozhi was busy at the stove, as usual.

The water in the pot was boiling, and Ye Qingzhan's right eyelid twitched slightly, a feeling that something was amiss.

Wen Gu had also stood outside the kitchen at some point, a vague understanding forming in his mind, but he didn't dare to stop her and could only let her continue.

After waking up, the embroiderers washed and had breakfast as usual, and then...

all died.

Before all this happened, Wen Gu, under the pretext of having something to do with the sect, took Mo Zhi and hid Ye Qingzhan, left the villa, and then turned back, hiding behind the wall, watching Chu Mozhi.

She piled the firewood in one place, poured oil on it, raised the torch and threw it casually.

The fire gradually spread and intensified.

The flames jumped on the side of Chu Mozhi's face, sometimes bright and sometimes dim. She chuckled, turned around and left without any reluctance.

The sun rose and the sky was bright.

Black smoke billowed, and the villa was destroyed.

Like a madman, Chu Mozhi walked and chanted: "I want to enter the palace, no one can stop me, no, no, no!"

"Why are you competing with me, why! You are good sisters, then what am I?"

Wen Gu followed her, with Ye Qingzhan in her arms jumping anxiously. Wen Gu simply took her out. In the clear sky, he caught a glimpse of the words on the embroidered handkerchief and suddenly understood, saying: "Yun Ying and Yun Tian Piao do not want to enter the palace."

Ye Qingzhan paused when she heard this, looked at him and asked: "What is written on this handkerchief?" She had always wanted to see it clearly before, but because she was too close, she never saw it clearly, and later she even forgot it.

Wen Gu read it out.

Mo Zhi, who was beside her, immediately burst into tears.

She took it with trembling hands and looked at herself who had gone crazy in the distance.

The illusion changed again.