This kind of grief was so pure and heavy that it was like a silent tide, easily seeping into others' hearts and evoking the deep - seated regrets and sorrows hidden in the viewers' hearts!
Shen Cuiyu's spiritual sense explored in Jiaojiao's spiritual sea for a while. Apart from this boundless desolation, she couldn't detect any other clear thoughts or memories...
The next moment, Shen Cuiyu suddenly withdrew her spiritual sense. Fine cold sweat had oozed from her forehead, and her expression was extremely solemn.
Jiaojiao was just a six - year - old child. Why was there such deep and almost desperate sorrow accumulated in the depths of her spiritual sea?
In a daze, the strange words of the vengeful spirit echoed in Shen Cuiyu's ears again:
"Maybe the child just doesn't want to come back?"
"One comes, one must go..."
The hesitant and evasive look on Mrs. Xu's face. What crucial truth was she hiding?
The night was deep, the dew was heavy, and the cold seeped into the clothes.
Shen Cuiyu walked out of the room, and there was a rare look of weariness on her face.
All the disciples attached great importance to this task related to the selection for the grand sacrificial ceremony. They were on high alert from morning till night, and Shen Cuiyu was no exception. After running around all day, she came back and exhausted her mind to explore the spiritual sea. She hadn't eaten a single grain of rice, and now her stomach was empty. She actually felt a bit like eating something.
As soon as Shen Cuiyu stepped out of the threshold, she saw a familiar figure lazily leaning against the corridor pillar. The moonlight shone on his delicate side face. It was Pei Yu. He seemed to have been waiting here for a long time.
The two looked at each other. Without saying a word, they walked towards the small kitchen in tacit understanding.
The small kitchen in the Cui Mansion was well - equipped but quiet.
During the day, the cook in the Cui Mansion had greeted them and said that they could call at any time if they needed anything. But it was already late at night. Pei Yu didn't want to disturb the servants. In Shen Cuiyu's surprised gaze, he rolled up his sleeves, washed his hands skillfully, and it seemed that he was going to cook by himself!
Shen Cuiyu was really a bit surprised. She never expected that this seemingly pampered prince would do cooking.
"Are you... really sure you can do it?" Shen Cuiyu asked hesitantly. After all, they were here to deal with metaphysical matters. If Pei Yu accidentally set the kitchen on fire, it would be really hard to explain...
Pei Yu just gave a soft laugh and didn't say much. He actually started to cook attentively!
Before long, two bowls of steaming and fragrant plain noodles were served. The noodles were golden and smooth, the soup was clear, and there were a few green scallions floating on it. It looked very appetizing.
Besides being shocked, Shen Cuiyu didn't care about her image. The two found a clean stone step and sat side by side, quietly starting to eat the noodles. The hot soup went down, and a warm current dispelled the day's fatigue and cold.
Finally, Shen Cuiyu couldn't hold back her curiosity and asked softly, "How did you learn this cooking skill?"
Pei Yu looked up at her. Under the moonlight, his peach - blossom eyes looked especially deep. "Are you very surprised?" His tone was calm, but he revealed a surprising fact. "When I was young, I actually often went hungry."
Shen Cuiyu frowned, and the doubts in her heart grew stronger.
As a prince, Pei Yu should have been surrounded by fine clothes and delicious food. How could he have ended up in a situation of going hungry?
She thought for a long time. Finally, she put aside some scruples and asked a question that she, as a "minister's daughter", shouldn't have asked rashly:
"Is it... that the Queen doesn't treat you well?"
A very faint but ambiguous arc appeared on Pei Yu's lips. There were too many complex and hard - to - express emotions in that smile, but he didn't answer directly.
However, this brief tranquility in the night didn't last long. That very night, a heart - rending scream of terror suddenly came from the direction of the courtyard where Mrs. Xu lived!
Everyone rushed there quickly after hearing the sound. The moment they pushed open the door, they were all shocked and gasped in horror - the four walls, the floor, and even the beams of the room were densely covered with dark red blood handprints! The handprints were small and delicate, clearly the size of a five - or six - year - old child. They meandered from the door all the way to the front of the bed, as if an invisible child had been wandering and crying here! There was a faint smell of rust and a bone - chilling cold in the air...
Mrs. Xu and Cui Weiqi were tightly hugging each other, trembling like sifters. Their fear was mixed with a kind of despair that their secret had been completely exposed and they had nowhere to hide!
The servants rushed over after hearing the news. The moment they saw this scene, their faces turned pale!
An older maid even went limp in the knees and fell directly to the ground!
"Goodness... These handprints... Could it be... that the eldest young lady is back?!"
"Shut up!" Mrs. Xu's face suddenly changed, and she shouted sternly!
Shen Cuiyu's expression was solemn. She immediately dismissed the idle people around. When only a few core people were left in the room, her eyes were as sharp as a knife, directly staring at the almost - collapsed Mrs. Xu. Her voice carried an irresistible sense of oppression:
"Mrs. Cui, by now, Jiaojiao's life is hanging by a thread! If you still hide anything, even if the great immortals come down to earth, it will be hard to save her! Tell me, what exactly happened?"
Under Shen Cuiyu's gaze that seemed to be able to penetrate the soul, Mrs. Xu's last psychological defense completely collapsed. She slumped to the ground, crying loudly, and finally revealed the buried truth:
"I'll say... I'll tell you everything... Before Jiaojiao, I... I did give birth to a daughter named Shuoshuo... But she... she was born a fool..."
In the shocked gazes of everyone, Mrs. Xu tearfully told the truth that she had deliberately hidden.
It turned out that on the day of the temple fair that year, the experienced temple priest immediately saw that there was something strange about Mrs. Xu's face.
He observed the position of her children in the face - reading, which clearly showed that she only had a fateful bond with one son, and this fateful bond had already come to fruition - Mrs. Xu should have had a daughter under her knee. Now she came to pray for a son again. This was simply going against fate and seeking something that was fruitless!
The temple priest sighed in his heart. Out of compassion, he still pointed it out and dissuaded her: "Madam, your fateful bond with this current child is not over yet. Even if she has some deficiencies, she came specifically for you in this life. Why are you so persistent in a fateful bond that doesn't belong to you? Forcing it may lead to changes, which is not good."
But at that time, Mrs. Xu was already blinded by her desire.
Of course, she loved Shuoshuo. She was the flesh and blood that Mrs. Xu had carried in her womb for ten months. But every time she saw other smart and lovely children around their parents, and then compared them with her own stupid and innocent Shuoshuo who couldn't even call "mother" clearly, the deep - seated unwillingness and regret grew like wild grass. She also had a one - in - a - million chance of luck: what if... what if the temple priest was wrong? What if God took pity on her and was willing to give her another healthy child? Once this thought came up, it was hard to suppress.
So, in the most chaotic moment of the ceremony, the desperate Mrs. Xu gritted her teeth. While everyone was throwing red strings and the temple priest was overwhelmed, she suddenly reached out and snatched a clay doll from the offering table, hugged it tightly in her arms, and turned to run!
"Madam! No! Put it down quickly!" The temple priest was startled and quickly shouted to stop her, stepping forward to block her.
But Mrs. Xu was determined. She ignored the temple priest's shouts and outstretched hand. In order to create chaos and escape, she grabbed a handful of silver coins she had prepared in advance from her sleeve and randomly threw them behind her!
There was a jingling sound as the silver coins hit the ground. Suddenly, there was a small commotion among the devout and solemn temple - fair crowd. Many people subconsciously bent down to pick them up, and the scene was in a complete mess for a while. Taking advantage of this chaos, Mrs. Xu squeezed through the crowd without looking back, escaping from the Temple of the Goddess of Children in a狼狈 but determined way, leaving only a stunned look behind her and the helpless sigh of the temple priest. The temple fair that day also lost its original solemnity and tranquility because of her commotion...