It was in the Ninth Prince's Mansion.

A long and melodious tune slowly occurred from the hazy windows, breaking in the quiet night.

In the room, a drunk man with white hair sat in front of the swaying flames. He had already taken off his scarlet garment, and he wore a green robe embroidered with clouds and bats, ceaselessly swallowing those cups of liquor one after another.

Two girls, who came from the royal academy in the Palace, sat beside him.

One of them held one pipa in her arms, playing the instrument and singing songs while the other served Leng Qingtang, pouring liquor into cups and adding meals to the bowl. Both of them looked obedient, but they were also somewhat scared and nervous.

There had been five girls being sent into the Ninth Prince's Mansion. Since then, they had always been abused by Huanan He and Commandery Princess Jingle. As a result, two of them died and one girl became lunatic.

The two girls remaining there lived in nervousness all day and were not good at all.

In the dark shadows, Huanan He had drunk out of several flagons of liquor, being blank and drunk in his eyes.

When he was drowsy, the person's figure occurred in his mind again.

Yesterday, he came across the woman in Jingyang Palace, who was said to be greatly adored by Huanan Xin.

He disliked her luxurious diets and felt indignant that she should behave so hypocritically. Hence in the president of people, he insulted her.

In that evening, Huanan He came into the familiar dream again.

There he walked across the thick clouds, being guided by the sad fluting to the lush Osmanthus tree. As the yellow petals fell and whirled in the air, he heard the woman in blue garment calling, "Darling..."

At that time, the white mist disappeared. Then the woman's face occurred in front of him.

She should be Lady Yun!

He turned over and became awake, sweating and breathing.

Then Huanan He was blank and drowsy all day, being scared and confused mentally and physically.

He couldn't understand, it had just been no more than two years since he came back to the capital. But during the period, he frequently had the same dream.

Besides, why the woman in the dream who made him confused and heart-broken, should be Lady Yun mostly adored by Huanan Xin?

Could it be that, he met Lady Yun in the daytime so he thought of her in the night?

Huanan He felt he seemed to be trapped in a chaotic mind.

As the woman in his dream clearly appeared in the mist, plenty of fragments of his memory seemed to flood in his mind. Those fragments were scenes not connected with each other, being jumping and dim in his brain, which made his blank mind be stuffed and ceaselessly expanding. That made him almost to be crazy.

Confronted with those chaotic scenes, he could somewhat not distinguish which was in his dream, and which existed in reality. He couldn't judge the scenes came from his imagination or really once happened.

Only one scene where one woman stared at him in her delicate, clear and somewhat sad eyes seemed to be so peaceful and happy, which touched his mind all the time.

Then a girl held one cup with delicate hands, slowly breaking in his vision.

Huanan He tried to open his drowsy eyes and looked at the girl.

At that time, her face was gradually transformed into another appearance, which belonged to Lady Yun!

Huanan He was astonished, then he moved his hands and slowly raised the girl's chin. He said in a deep and hoarse voice being influenced by the liquor.

"Who are you? Tell me, who are you?"

As the door was suddenly opened, a black figure occurred in front of drunk Hunan He.

"Ah—"

The two girls were scared and couldn't help screaming. The instant they fell down from the chair, the bare and fair necks were struck.

Immediately, scarlet and hot blood flooded. Before clearly seeing the man's appearance, they were killed and fell down on the blood.

Huanan He blankly saw the person taking off the cloth covering in his face and seeing the overturned jade flagons and leftovers in sharp eyes.

The man in black garment turned to be strict, reaching his hands and grasping the collar of Huanan He. Being stung by his white hair, the man sadly blamed, "My ninth brother, what are you doing! You should drink and enjoy yourself all day! Do you act worthily of Yunxi?"

"You... Are you myself?"

Huanan He looked blank in his eyes. After being drowsy for a while, he became scared and sad again, "It's a dream, it's a dream! It must be so; I must have a dream again..."

Such soliloquy relaxed himself indeed. Then he smiled and grasped Gu Di's arms, ceaselessly muttering, "It is so strange! Why do you run out of the copper mirror? Stop! Be quick to go back, go back..."

"My ninth brother, you just be sober! I am your twin brother! I am Huanan Xian!"

Gu Di was angry and slapped Huanan He with his fist. Indignantly but sadly, he saw Huanan He leaning on the table and looking around in drowsy eyes, "Copper mirror, where is the copper mirror? I... I want to send you back... Ha-ha..."

Gu Di looked astonished and stared at the man who was lying as a worm, muttering in a low voice, "Could it be that, he has forgot everything indeed?"

...

It was in April, a season of the mid-summer. In the Palace, the green branches were as delicate as strings, and the fragrance of flowers spread all around.

It was not so hot in the morning, when the rising sun shed golden lights through the mist in the sky, which was like thick waves and charmed people.

In the morning, Meiren Jia dispatched people to invite her good friends including Gu Yunxi, Lady-in-waiting Zhang, Lady Ying, Lady Shu, Jieyu Zhao to go to her Pear Hall.

Yesterday Meiren Jia met her family, so she gained 1.5 kilograms of barnacles and some fresh roe.

When Gu Yunxi reached the Pear Hall, other concubines were chatting with Meiren Jia.

Those barnacles were drenched in the water in the kitchen. Evidently, they hadn't been cooked.

Meiren Jia liked delicious meals and drinks best, and she also knew Gu Yunxi was good at making gourmet foods.

Therefore, she directly left those food materials to Gu Yunxi.

Gu Yunxi didn't mind her behavior.

Anyhow, as long as she came across the thing concerning meals, Gu Yunxi would be vivid. Although she was weak, she would also be immediately energetic.

The barnacle was not a member of "eight kinds of precious seafood", but it was also called the host of seafood because it is delicious and tasty. It was indeed a kind of valuable food.

Gu Yunxi immediately chopped those barnacles. She cleaned those barnacles up and mingled them with minced cheese, chopped scallions and shredded gingers. Then those things were divided into several parts and wrapped by lotus leaves, being roasted by the Charcoal fire grate.

After a while, the barnacles were done. The fragrance of seafood mingled with cheese and scallions, was trapped by the clear lotus leaves during the roast.

During the time, it was not necessary to add other ingredients except cheese, scallions and some shredded gingers.

While eating the barnacle, people could feel the salty fragrance of seafood, which was a wonderful gift presented by the nature.

This kind of "Cheese and Barnacles" was just recorded in The Exquisite Collection of Delicacies.

While roasting the barnacles, Gu Yunxi also added such ingredients as chopped scallions, pieces of gingers, garlics, green peppers and capsicum frutescens into the roe and fried them until they were half-cooked. Then she added some rice wine and ten spicy flavors into them and fried them again. Then a delicious and spicy meal, Dried Roe was finished.

Meiren Jia chose three meat dishes, three vegetable dishes and one soup from the kitchen and put them on the table. She also opened a flagon of apricot wine. They enjoyed drinking and eating at ease, so the meal was also a good banquet for them.

When Gu Yunxi went out of Pear Hall, it was just in the noon. The sunshine fiercely shed light on the ground, roasting the green earth and making the flowers and trees on the side of the path lower their heads.

To prevent the sunshine, Dong Zhu let maids hold baldachins on the side of the sedan. But the temperature was so high and ceaselessly flooded to them, which couldn't be prevented by the baldachin.

Therefore, Dong Zhu chose to walk on a quick track, leading them to go through a trail surrounded by bamboo to avoid the high temperature.

Gu Yunxi lazily leaned on the sedan, with no intention of moving. As the sedan trembled, her body was influenced so she was a little drunk.

With her fingertips holding her forehead, she was drowsy. Suddenly, Gu Yunxi felt the sedan stop and then a scarlet figure broke into her vision.

Gu Yunxi was immediately half-awake. She straightened up and slightly leaned forward, looking at the man in white hair in front of the sedan.

"Your Highness?"

The man raised his head and saw her delicate and beautiful face, as a wisp of fright suddenly occurred in his eyes. But confront with Gu Yunxi's attentive eyes, he didn't try to avoid.

Huanan He raised his mouth and sneered, directly saying, "Lady Yun, we opponents come across each other again."

Gu Yunxi felt a little sad, but she didn't give up.

The fact that he said to her in such a strange tone, could be forceful evidence of the fact that Huanan He had not recognized her or pretended to do so.

Gu Yunxi lazily smiled, "Your Highness, you should go into the Palace and walk in the trail. What do you want to do?"

Huanan He had no expression and shrugged, "I think it is none of your business."

This morning, Huanan He was awakened by the servants in his mansion.

As soon as he opened his eyes, Huanan He frowned because of the fierce smell of blood.

As he rubbed her ached temple, he blankly looked around. Immediately, he was astonished by the two corpses and the blood sprayed in the wall.

At that time, two servants looked at each other, not daring to say words.

Huanan He was odd and weird and liked to feed fierce animals. He liked to drink among beautiful girls, but he was also ascetic and never made love with girls.

He confined himself and beautiful girls in the yard, drinking and singing. But he never let servants leave there and serve him.

If one bold servant was not lucky enough and didn't obey his order, the person would be thrown into the cage as the food of Heifeng, or be peeled and dismantled, and made into lantern, fan or screen. Such examples happened so frequently.

Evidently, because of previous things, while confronting with the two girls' corpses and the blood, even Huanan He could believe that the two girls were killed by him when he was drunk.

Huanan He was held by servants and sat on the chair. He thought and sighed, ordering them to carefully bury the two girls with good coffins.

Later one servant told him, Eunuch Xi in the Palace had been here and delivered a message of Commandery Princess Jingle. She said she missed Huanan He and hoped that he could go to the Shuofeng Hall and meet her.

Huanan He went into Yonglu Temple first and heard Master Huichan illustrating the disciplines.

When he was upset by some trouble things and couldn't escape from the sadness, he would do such a task.

Then he went into a famous restaurant in the business street, buying some pastes Jingle liked best, and some girl's toys as puppets, Ruyi and nine chain of rings which could help kill time. Later he went into the Palace and wanted to visit her.

Shuofeng Hall was located in a distant place and was far away from the fourteen institutions of the imperial harem. In order to meet her earlier, Huanan He chose to walk into the trail surrounded by bamboo.

Unexpectedly, when he just walked in halfway, he came across the troubled character who had argued with him.

At that time, Gu Yunxi stared at the cold and indifferent man. It seemed that her heart was stabbed by several pins.

She tried to be calm and looked around, leaning her head and smiling.

"If you continue to go ahead, you will walk into the territory of Shuofeng Hall. Could it be that you want to secretly meet Commandery Princess Jingle?"

On the day, in Jingyang Palace, Gu Yunxi saw him safeguarding the capricious girl. Hence, a bad mind occurred in Gu Yunxi's heart.

She hustled to know the relationship between Leng Qingtang and Commandery Princess Jingle.

Huanan He looked neither humble nor pushy, then he coldly raised fist salute. With disdainful eyes, he glanced at Gu Yunxi on the sedan, "You don't need to say such bad words. It is because of you that Jingle moves into Shuofeng Hall. As a prince of the royal family, it is reasonable for me to visit her. Your Grace, please let your servants make way for me so that I can pass the path."

So, he went to see the capricious girl indeed.

Gu Yunxi looked pale in her face, as her heart suddenly fell on the abyss. She felt both anxious and bitter, which seemed that a sour plum was choked in her throat. She couldn't spit or swallow it, being smothered and hot in her inner body.

Darling, what happened to you? Could it be that, you forgot the past things indeed?

Huanan He couldn't hear the sad and deep voice in Gu Yunxi's mind, but he noticed she was grasping the red wood of the sedan with a hand. Her fingers were trembling, and it seemed that Gu Yunxi was sulky and sullen.

In the sunshine, the half arm naked in the blue gauze seemed to be made of ice, being so pale and white.

From the perspective of a man, Lady Yun was an enchanting woman.

Waited, the blue garment she wore today...

Something occurred to him, Huanan He hustled to stop his impolite thought. Then he turned around and appeared calm in his handsome face, "So, are you not willing to make way? Okay, I give way, you can quickly pass the way."

After a while, Gu Yunxi appeared sad on her face. She seriously said, "On the day, His Majesty made an oral decree. The aim of letting Commandery Princess Jingle move to Shuofeng Hall, was just to make her study etiquette and regulations. You are a masculine prince and shouldn't casually go into the imperial harem. The old, the young, the woman and the man should avoid touching each other. Now you should privately meet her, which is unreasonable!"

With hands in his sleeves, Huanan He glanced at Gu Yunxi on the sedan. There was a flicker of satire in his eyes, "I can't understand, the fact that what you eat and wear is so luxurious could make sense. But now you even meddle in other's thing, being so free..."

"Your Highness, please be elegant."

Dong Zhu sat on one side of the sedan, reminding him a little anxiously.

Huanan He didn't take her words in mind, but raised his mouth and sneered, "What's the fact? Should I be elegant? Or the woman is shameless and directly stop me regardless of a concubine's elegance?"

Dong Zhu was immediately speechless.

Gu Yunxi turned to be anxious, with her fists striking the wood.

"Now that you insult me, today I will neither make way nor pass the path first. I want to see, how you step on me and cross the sedan!"

Huanan He was mad and blushed. As he raised his white eyebrows, he waved his sleeves and shouted, "You are mad! But I will never stay here and argue with you! Bye!"

Being so sad, Gu Yunxi said in a trembling and anxious voice, "Huanan He, stop here! I haven't allowed you to leave here, you should dare to leave..."

"What are you arguing about?"

When Huanan He raised his eyes, he looked at the opposite. As a golden gown swayed, the young emperor Huanan He led the honor guards and quickly walked to them.

He raised his eyes and looked at sad and anxious Gu Yunxi, then he turned around and shifted his eyes to unruly Huanan He, "I haven't called you up. On such a hot day, why do you walk into the Palace? What happens? Why do you argue with Lady Yun?"

Gu Yunxi's body slightly swayed. When the paranoid emperor suddenly came here, she immediately appeared to be somewhat panic.

Such subtle expression was just seen by Huanan He in his deep eyes.

Huanan He looked calm and casually saluted Huanan Xin. Smiling and scratching his nose, he seemed to be so unruly, "Your Majesty, it is not a large thing. Jingle has been living in Shuofeng Hall for a long time, and I miss her so much. Today, I intend to go into the Palace and meet her. But I happened to come across Lady Yun there."

"It's my blame, because I am playing a game with her. The game's called 'We are wood people, so we can't speak or move'."