Ji Jianxue was well aware of the fates of those maids who had been driven out of Dream Garden.
Before being dismissed, many maids had knelt sobbingly at Ji Jianxue's feet, pleading, "Madam, please plead with Master on our behalf. He'll surely listen to you."
Hearing such words, Ji Jianxue could only manage a bitter smile.
Would Ji Shihuan ever listen to her?
At best, she was just his captive plaything.
The only difference between Ji Jianxue and these maids was that Ji Shihuan still lusted after her body.
Relying on this intimacy in bed, Ji Shihuan had ordered the servants to address her as "madam".
In fact, she was hardly any more noble than the maids.
No, she was even more debased.
The maids at least earned their living by their own skills and had nothing to hide.
But she...
She was no different from the women in Tianxiang Tower.
Thinking of this, Ji Jianxue let out a sigh, and her melancholy deepened.
The women in Tianxiang Tower at least had something to look forward to.
But she had nothing.
Even the servants in Dream Garden knew that if Ji Jianxue could truly become the legitimate fourth young mistress of the Ji family, Ji Shihuan wouldn't have to hide her secretly in Dream Garden like this.
"Morning dew and ephemeral flowers, the distance seems so far. People say the Yellow River winds and twists, yet it still flows eastward in the end. The jade has aged over eight thousand years, withering and blooming overnight. I ask the heavens, what's the point of this life? Last night, when the wind blew, who counted the fallen blossoms? Under the boundless sky, riding the wind and playing with shadows, who will share this with me? The eternal Big Dipper, the cold and lonely Yao Palace. It's better to be a loving couple roaming the world for a hundred years."
This little tune from *The Legend of Deification* was her mother's favorite to hum.
Ji Jianxue thought the melody was nice, so she silently memorized it.
She remembered the tune and could recite the lyrics backwards, but she could never fully understand the meaning within the words.
Brother Xu once said that no one could truly understand this poem unless they met their fated one.
A loving couple roaming the world for a hundred years was the hope of the predecessors and the sustenance of the present.
Who didn't hope to find someone to accompany them for a lifetime?
Her mother and father were like this, as were her uncle and aunt.
Ji Jianxue considered herself to have experienced a lot in the Ji Mansion.
Watching everyone being pushed by fate, people like Zhao Luoning and Ji Shisu, who could defy fate, were extremely rare.
Her master once said that when Nuwa created humans, she had written each person's fate. No matter how much people struggled, fate would, inadvertently, pull them back to the path she had written.
She and Ji Shihuan were the best examples.
Ji Jianxue was at the age of first love. How could she not long for someone to accompany her?
Even though she was cold - hearted, she still envied the love between her aunt and father.
They truly lived up to the last line of the poem.
It's better to be a loving couple roaming the world for a hundred years.
However, Ji Jianxue wasn't sure if Ji Shihuan was the right man for her.
At least, from the way Ji Shihuan "took care" of her, he didn't understand her.
If she were really obsessed with gold, silver, and wealth, she could have just stayed by her father's and mother's sides.
Although her mother now had four children of her own.
When Ji Jianxue left the Bai Mansion, she never worried that Zhao Luoning would ignore her because of her own children.
It was precisely because her mother was the kindest person in the world that Ji Jianxue didn't want to be a burden to her parents, so she resolutely left the Bai Mansion.
She just didn't expect that her once - most - trusted uncle, Ji Shihuan, would set a trap and wait for her to fall into it.
The night grew colder. The moonlight cast a cold glow on her skin.
Ji Jianxue shrugged and prepared to go back.
Suddenly, she heard a noise coming from the corner of the yard.
Could someone have broken into Dream Garden?
She had been living in Dream Garden for quite some time. Not only was it rare for someone to break in, but even for a stranger to pass by.
This was also the reason why she had been trapped here for so many days without a way out.
Could it be a thief?
Ji Jianxue was both scared and excited.
She was scared because she was a woman. If a thief came, she might be in danger.
She was excited because as long as it wasn't someone sent by Ji Shihuan and could help her spread the news so that she could get out of this gilded cage earlier, even if it was a thief, she was willing to give it a try.
With this nervous thought in mind, Ji Jianxue tugged at her cloak to prevent it from falling, and then walked towards the direction of the noise.
The moonlight was bright, casting patches of shadows. These shadows were the perfect places to hide.
Ji Jianxue tiptoed and hid behind a pillar, peeping at the intruder.
The person was obviously not skilled at sneaking around. He showed many flaws.
If it weren't for the fact that everyone in Dream Garden was so exhausted by Ji Shihuan tonight that they had no energy to pay attention to other things, this clumsy thief would probably have been caught long ago.
Calling him a thief was actually an over - compliment.
He looked around and, seeing no one guarding, actually exposed his whole body to the moonlight.
However, thanks to this, Ji Jianxue was able to see his face clearly.
To her great surprise, the person who dared to break into Dream Garden was none other than Brother Xu, Xu Chang, whose name alone could make Ji Shihuan furious.
Why was it him?
How did this scholar find this place and climb over the wall?
Was he here to rescue her?
Yes, he must be.
As for Xu Chang, he didn't dare to climb over the wall until he saw Ji Shihuan leave.
It took him a great deal of effort to sneak into Dream Garden.
Once inside, Xu Chang was completely lost.
He didn't know where Ji Jianxue lived, nor was he familiar with the layout of the rooms.
After breaking in, he didn't know where to look for her.
Actually, he didn't find Dream Garden on his own.
If it weren't for Ji Shisu's great abilities, he would never have found such a hidden place.
Since he heard that Ji Jianxue had left a letter saying she was going back to the nunnery and had left the Bai Mansion, Xu Chang had gone to the nunnery where she used to practice half a year ago, hoping to see her.
But the abbess of the nunnery told him that Ji Jianxue had never returned after being taken back to the Ji Mansion by the Ji family when she was a child.
Xu Chang brought the news back to the Bai Mansion.
Only then did everyone realize that Ji Jianxue hadn't left but had gone missing.
Zhao Luoning was naturally very worried and blamed herself for not caring more about Jianxue.
Ji Shisu also felt very guilty towards this daughter.
Although they had no blood relation, she still called him father.
Ji Shisu immediately sent his capable subordinate, Yu Chi, to find Ji Jianxue.
Even someone as capable as Ji Shisu had to spend a lot of time to find her.
It took more than half a year to trace her to Dream Garden and to Ji Shihuan.
But after jumping into Dream Garden, Xu Chang realized how stupid his decision was.
He should have listened to Ji Shisu and not acted rashly.
Dream Garden was just too big.