The floating world is but a grand dream.
Fu Zhen opened her eyes, momentarily disoriented about the time.
"Zhenzhen, you're awake?" Chen Tingfeng held her hand. Fu Zhen turned her head and met his worried eyes.
Fu Zhen moved slightly, trying to sit up. Chen Tingfeng carefully supported her and sat on the edge of the bed, letting her lean against him. "Slow down. You had a high fever just now, and it's only been a short while since it subsided. Your body is still weak."
Fu Zhen opened her mouth but didn't know what to say. Looking up, it was already pitch - black outside.
"... I dreamed of Mother," she said hoarsely.
Chen Tingfeng was taken aback. He hugged her tightly, his voice barely maintaining calm. "Was Mother okay?"
Fu Zhen smiled faintly. "She was as beautiful as ever, not a day older. I told her not to be so frugal, to spend more money on good food and drinks. I'd send her money in the future."
Chen Tingfeng said, "We'll send it. I'll go with you. We'll even build a golden mansion for Mother."
Fu Zhen reached out and touched his face, looking wistful. "Mother told me everything."
She couldn't tell whether what she saw in the dream was real or not, just like the things she dreamed about from her past life.
However, she preferred to believe it was real.
She had nothing to hide from Chen Tingfeng, so she told him everything.
After listening, Chen Tingfeng was silent for a long time. Suddenly, he hugged her tightly. The pain in his heart was like the stinging of needles, hitting him wave after wave.
He wanted to say something but didn't know what to say.
All his words were condensed into one sentence: "You've suffered."
Chen Peizhu never told her who her biological father was until her death.
Maybe she wanted to protect her, or maybe she wanted to bury all the affairs of the previous dynasty with her.
Xie Qi'an had already died on the day of the palace coup. She didn't want the affairs of the previous dynasty to be passed on to her daughter.
Let her bury this secret deep in the ground. Maybe it was for the best for everyone.
She was loving her daughter in her own way.
But she left too early.
There were too many variables in a person's life. When Xie Qi'an entrusted her to Fu Mingde, he didn't know that Fu Mingde would torture Chen Peizhu in return. And when she arranged a different path for Fu Zhen, she didn't expect Fu Zhen to suffer so much on this path.
After all the twists and turns, they were back in the capital.
"That jade pendant," Fu Zhen laughed bitterly. "It was Mother's relic. She never told me there was another one."
Chen Peizhu never intended for Fu Zhen to know about Xie Qi'an.
Maybe Xie Qi'an knew that he would never see Chen Peizhu again before he died, so he gave the jade pendant to the Grand Princess.
He hoped that one day, the two jade pendants would meet again.
Actually, when Chen Tingfeng saw the jade pendant, he knew that the Grand Princess wasn't lying about this.
Because this jade pendant was personally given to Chen Peizhu by Lady Bai.
Back then, when Fu Zhen waited for the people from the Marquis Mansion with this jade pendant, Lady Bai thought that the other jade pendant had been buried with Chen Peizhu.
She never thought that there were so many twists and turns and such a story behind it.
Fu Zhen seemed to have shed all her tears in the dream. She took a deep breath, suppressing the tears in her red - rimmed eyes, and said in a low voice, "I want to go to the ancestral shrine to see her."
She had just recovered from the fever, and her body was still weak. Chen Tingfeng should have advised her to rest well and go tomorrow.
But he opened his mouth and only said, "Okay."
He dressed her himself. Even though the evening breeze was not cold approaching summer, he still carefully put a cloak on her. Then he bent down to put on her shoes and picked her up.
"Yuanbao, light the lamps."
The candles in the ancestral shrine never went out. Yuanbao specifically ordered people to add many more. Although it wasn't as bright as daytime, it wasn't dim either.
Fu Zhen knelt on the cushion and kowtowed three times. Then Chen Tingfeng helped her up.
She took down Chen Peizhu's memorial tablet and carefully wiped it with a wet handkerchief.
This memorial tablet was newly made in February. There was no dirt on it, only a little unavoidable dust.
But she still wiped it bit by bit, including the name written in gold powder on the tablet.
She gently stroked the name. After a while, she called out softly, "Mother."
Chen Tingfeng's heart ached suddenly.
The passing of a loved one was a scar on the heart that would never heal. Every time he thought about it, it would ache faintly on a damp day.
He squatted down and accompanied Fu Zhen. He also called out softly, "Aunt."
The night wind blew the paper money in the brazier. Fu Zhen reached out to hold it down. The flames devoured the paper, as if slowly devouring her yearning and taking it to an unknown realm.
She put the memorial tablet back in place and kowtowed three more times in the flickering firelight. This time, Chen Tingfeng knelt beside her and kowtowed with her.
With the ancestors watching over, may Chen Peizhu's soul rest in peace.
*
The Grand Princess didn't try to hide her visit to the Marquis Mansion. Since she was already under people's attention, her visit almost announced to everyone that she had completely sided with Xie Yan.
Xie Guang's face contorted, and he flew into a rage in the palace hall. "Bitch, bitch!"
If it weren't for him, Xie Lingyun would have frozen to death in winter. Where would she get all her glory now? Where would she get the courage to oppose him!
The Queen came in from outside, frowned, and avoided the mess on the ground. "Guang'er, calm down."
"How can I calm down!" Xie Guang looked crazy. "Why do these people all help Xie Yan? Why does everyone oppose me!"
"I'm not convinced, I'm not convinced!"
He held up the vase high and was about to smash it down, but the Queen suddenly grabbed his wrist. The vase fell and shattered on the ground. The fragments flew up and cut the Queen's face.
She felt a pain on her face. When she reached out to touch it, she felt blood.
His sanity finally returned when he saw the blood. Xie Guang swallowed hard and looked helpless. "Mother..."
The Queen frowned and indifferently covered the wound with a handkerchief. She looked at Xie Guang and asked in a deep voice, "Are you calm now?"
Xie Guang slumped down on the chair. "Mother, what should we do?"
The Queen walked to his side and hugged him. "I understand your anger, Guang'er. But the more difficult the situation, the less you should lose your composure. When your maternal grandfather's family was massacred, I knew who the mastermind was, but I could only swallow my blood and tears."
"How difficult and bitter it was is no less than what you're feeling now." Her voice was low and gentle. Xie Guang gradually calmed down in her voice. She said, "What's the use of Xie Lingyun's defection? She's a married princess. We wouldn't even look down on the little power she has in her hands."
"Moreover, she has a son and a daughter." The Queen stroked Xie Guang's hair, her eyes gloomy. "This is her weakness."
"Guang'er, no matter what time or situation it is, you must remember that once a person has a weakness, there's a handle to manipulate. As long as you grasp that handle, it's enough to throw them into disarray."
Just like Xie Lingyun, and just like... Chen Tingfeng.