Chapter 8 — The palace was happy, the Emperor went crazy.

9The cold rain was bone-chilling, and the ground underfoot was muddy and slippery. The darkness and wind and rain become the perfect screen. We followed the narrow path close to the palace wall that Ve Dan Y had scouted in advance, running to the west of the palace, near Ngu Ma Giam, an old wall that had not been repaired for a long time. Legend has it that there is a hole where dogs can crawl out. Heart pounding like a war drum. Every breath mixed with the smell of cold rain and enormous fear. Almost there. Just a little more left. As long as you get out of that hole, Ve Dan Y's cousin is already waiting outside to respond. Just as we were about to reach that wall, a mournful call suddenly rang out from behind, tearing through the night rain! "Nguyet Nguyet! Treasure!" It's Tham Nghien's voice. That call was filled with extreme fear, extreme despair, and a cry that tore at the heart, as if the most important thing in life had been lost. I was shocked and immediately turned around. Amidst the mist of wind and rain, a tall figure was staggering after him. He was only wearing a thin set of traditional clothes, his whole body was drenched by the pouring rain, his hair was messy and stuck close to his face. He stepped barefoot on the cold mud and water, each step wobbled, almost falling, but he still ran with all his might. It's Tham Nghien. I don't know when he woke up. It is also unclear how he broke the door that was locked by Thuy Vi before leaving. He chased after me. "Nguyet NguyetBao Don't go" He screamed in the middle of the wind and rain, his voice was torn to pieces by the wind, so hoarse that it was almost broken, but each word still penetrated straight into my ears. The moment lightning tore through the night sky, I saw his eyes clearly. No more confusion. No more foolishness. It was a completely alert look. It was Tham Nghien's eyes when he was still emperor. In those eyes, there was anger at being betrayed, pain at being abandoned, and an emotion that I had never seen in him. A near-collapse panic. He was awake. At the most dangerous moment, he completely regained consciousness. Terrifying fear instantly gripped my heart. I hugged Niem An tightly in my arms, turned around and ran, using all my remaining strength. "Stop him, stop him quickly." I ran and screamed at Thuy Vi and Ve Dan Y. Thuy Vi and Ve Dan Y also panicked, trying to rush up to stop Tham Nghien. But Tham Nghien was completely awake at this time, and his strength broke out in an amazing way. He waved his hand to knock Thuy Vi away, crashing through Ve Dan Y, clear target, rushing straight towards me. He's too fast. In just a few steps, he was close behind me. A cold hand, wet with rainwater, but carrying a weight of a thousand pounds, suddenly squeezed my arm tightly. "Lam The Nguyet." He roared, his voice hoarse, carrying thunder and anger. "Where do you want to take my son?" That familiar pressure, the coldness that belonged to that emperor, nearly two years ago, once again enveloped me. The blood in my body instantly turned cold. Done. Despair immediately descended, engulfing everything. Just when I thought everything had failed, that Niem An and I would both fall into a thousand lifetimes of unrepentance, "Wow" Niem An was hugged tightly in my arms, jolted and frightened, and woke up, bursting into tears. The cry echoed through the wind and rain, like thunder. That cry was like a heavy hammer, fiercely hitting straight into Tham Nghien's heart, who had just woken up and was at the peak of his rage. His hand that was squeezing me tightly suddenly stopped. Instinctively, he lowered his head and looked down at the crying child in my arms. Torrential rain poured down on Niem An's pale face. Her long eyelashes were soaked with rainwater, trembling like a wounded young animal, helplessly crying. The same big eyes

I was now filled with fear, pure and unadulterated, towards the man who was violently grasping its mother. The angry and tearful expression on Tham Nghien's face, when he met that fearful look, was like being poured straight into a basin of cold water, freezing instantly. The strength of the hand holding me, unconsciously loosened. Right at that moment he lost his mind, "Master, go quickly." Thuy Vi didn't know where she got the courage, suddenly rushed up from behind, using all her strength to hug Tham Nghien's waist tightly. Ve Dan Y also reacted in time, using his strength to push me, "Hurry up. Don't worry about us. Niem An is the most important." I hugged Niem An tightly, was pushed, staggered and rushed forward a few steps, then couldn't help but turn my head and look back. Tham Nghien was desperately hugged by Thuy Vi and was struggling. His eyes became fierce again, looking straight at me. But right at the moment that look touched Niem An's pale, frightened little face, that cruelty faded away, turning into a bottomless pain and confusion. "Nguyet Nguyet... precious..." He muttered, his voice filled with confusion and panic. I gritted my teeth, no longer hesitant. Hugging the crying Niem An tightly, he used up all his remaining strength and rushed straight towards the foot of the wall, where the black hole was covered with weeds. Cold, muddy water splashed. I knelt down on the ground, first carefully and tremblingly pushed Niem An out. A low voice rang out from outside: "Over here! Hurry!" It was Ve Dan Y's cousin. I turned my head and took one last look in the dark wind and rain. Tham Nghien was hugged tightly from behind by Thuy Vi, struggling in pain, reaching out towards me. His eyes were extremely complicated, both angry, panicked, and desperate as if he was about to lose the most important thing in his life. "Tham Nghien!" I used all my last strength, screaming in the wind and rain, my voice carrying determination, resentment, and even a trace of trembling that I didn't even recognize. "Our mother and son, with you, from now on, we will break all friendship!" Having finished speaking, I did not turn back. I bowed low, gritted my teeth, crawled straight through that narrow, dirty dog hole, risking my life to crawl out. The cold rain and the air of freedom, in an instant, enveloped us. Behind him, Tham Nghien's scream of ultimate pain rang out, like a wild animal cornered: "The Nguyet——!!!" That scream penetrated the rain, carrying despair and regret as if it wanted to destroy the world, and was finally drowned out in the sound of torrential rain. Three years later. Giang Nam, a small riverside town. I held the basin of laundry that I had just finished washing by the stream, pushed open the bamboo gate in the courtyard, making a familiar creaking sound. "Mother! Mother!" A boy wearing a blue short shirt, with a chubby and strong appearance, rushed straight towards me like a small firecracker, diving into my arms. In his hand he held up a grasshopper woven from grass, clumsily crooked. "Look! Dad knitted it for me!" Under the grape arbor in the yard, on a bamboo chair, was a man wearing a coarse cloth shirt. His appearance is handsome, but his eyes carry a clarity that doesn't match his age, and a trace of innocence that's hard to erase. He was clumsily weaving something out of wick grass. Hearing Niem An call "father", he raised his head, looked towards us, smiled strangely and warmly. "Nguyet Nguyet... An... baby..." He muttered our names, then held up the unfinished grass bracelet in his hand. He is Chu Nghien Thu, the cousin of Ve Dan Medicine. A kind-hearted scholar who failed to pass the exam many times, opened a medicine shop in this small town. That year, he was the one who saved us in our panic. The first time Niem An met him, she babbled and called him "father". Zhou Yanshu

did not hate the "orphan and widow" mother and son with obscure backgrounds, but on the contrary treated Niem An extremely well. Niem An also honestly considers him her father. Chu Nghien Thu knew that I had been under great stimulation and was not mentally stable (that was my made-up background), so he always treated me politely and took good care of me. As time passes, Niem An needs a complete home, and I also need a safe place to take refuge. Under the witness of Ve Dan Y, we simply became friends. Life is poor, but peaceful. No scheming, no oppression, just daily food, clothes and the gentle gurgling sound of stream water. "Father, you're so stupid. The baby grasshopper knitting is more beautiful than yours." Niem An escaped my arms, ran to Chu Nghien Thu's side, happily showing off her "work". Chu Nghien Thu smiled gently and patted Niem An's head: "Good job An Bao." The sunlight passed through the leaves of the grape arbor and fell on the father and son, strangely warm. I hugged the wooden pot, stood in the doorway, looking at that warm scene, the corners of my lips suddenly curled up. Hate? Maybe there's still a little left, hidden in the deepest corner of my heart. But most importantly, it's about being calm, about letting go, about appreciating the rare peace in front of you. As for that man in the Forbidden City, alive or dead, sober or stupid, extremely miserable or married... no longer has anything to do with me, Lam The Nguyet. My Niem An, only Chu Nghien Thu is the father. The wind swept through the honeysuckle trellis in the corner of the yard, carrying with it the vague sound of the market in the distance. (COMPLETE)