Birdsong rang crisply in my ears.
As I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was the antique window lattice filtering the fragmented sunlight.
Outside the window, verdant branches stretched out, their bright sunlight shining through the overlapping leaves onto the lattice.
Beneath me was a particularly ancient and exquisite Step-Out Bed, and the surrounding furnishings were also very elegant and classic.
I inexplicably felt chills inside, a sense of unreality flooding my heart. I pinched my own face hard, "Oh my God, I...haven't time-traveled, have I? This is just too unscientific..."
The thought of not being able to return to Yu Longting's side brought an indescribable discomfort to the bottom of my heart.
"You want to time-travel, but I don't have that technology yet. Don't all girls fantasize about becoming a princess consort in ancient times?" The nightmare-like, sinister voice of Zhang Shuying reached my ears.
I shrank on the spot from fright, then looked up to see him holding a tray in his hand, with a bowl of white porridge steaming on it.
I couldn't care less, leaped out of bed, took the porridge, and gulped it down.
"You...you...are you still a girl? No man eats...as rudely as you...aren't you afraid that I, Third Master, might have poisoned your porridge?"
Zhang Shuying showed an speechless expression and kicked something hard toward my feet.
I drained the bowl of white porridge in one breath, not even having the time to taste the side dishes he prepared, "A pregnant woman fears hunger the most. I'm so hungry my front stomach is sticking to my back. If you wanted to kill me, why would you bother with poisoning, which is so boring? Just throwing me into the river on the way would have drowned me."
Looking down at what had bumped against my feet, it was a pair of bluish-gray cloth shoes.
Only then did I feel the cold chill of the ground beneath my feet, and in a rush, I slipped my feet into the shoes, "Thanks, do you have any clean clothes...I'd like to change..."
"You're...not welcome at all. Yes, I have clothes, but only a Taoist robe, and it's one I've worn. There are only three men in my sect..." Zhang Shuying handed me a piece of napkin.
I took the napkin and wiped my mouth, "Thanks. Having clothes to change is good; these clothes rolled around on the attic floor and got quite dirty. Your name is Zhang Shuying, the two characters that are about winning and losing, right? No wonder your competitive spirit is so strong."
I have no idea what this ghostly place is, but I certainly don't want to stay here.
But since I couldn't beat Zhang Shuying, I could only figure out a way to deceive his trust first and make a break for it once I've got a clear view of the situation.
"Literature and etiquette for 'Shu', and strategic management for 'Ying'."
After Zhang Shuying corrected my misconceptions about his name, he placed a Yellow Pear Wood box on the table, "My damn dead father, probably thought his son could be like Zhuge Liang, well-read in poetry and skilled at strategic management. This thing, it was also a gift from him."
The moment the Yellow Pear Wood box touched the table surface,
it suddenly shook violently on its own. The thing could smell the scent on me, and from inside the box, an extremely excited woman's voice emerged, "I have finally...waited for you...my reincarnated body...hehehe...after a thousand years, you've finally...arrived."
"In broad daylight, you can...come out too? Oh my god, I'm really seeing a ghost..." I could feel the chill from the box creeping onto my body, penetrating every pore without resistance, frightening me into quickly dodging to avoid being possessed.
But in my clumsy haste, I tripped over the chair beneath my feet, almost falling face-first to the ground.
I could only protect my belly to prevent Dumpling from hitting the ground and getting injured, then Zhang Shuying's quick reflexes caught me.
He was also genuinely shocked, his eyes wide as he exclaimed, "Damn, Spiritual Eye Sister, you've been made into a Cauldron Furnace, specifically for...this ghostly thing to possess...that's just too miserable!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, the purple gold lock on the Dressing Case suddenly unlocked itself, and a stream of black mist flowed out, assaulting my body.