Unnamed

Jin Yue sat in her room, the shadows of the evening stretching across the walls, with nothing but her thoughts to keep her company. As her mind wandered, a memory surfaced...the map she had tucked away. With curiosity piquing her boredom, she carefully took it out. She had stared at it countless times before, but now something about it seemed different, more alluring. She studied it, her heart racing as she imagined what secrets it held.

Just as she was deep in thought, the door creaked open. Her mother stepped inside, her face soft with a smile.

Her mother's gaze fell on the map. "What's that?" she asked, tilting her head slightly, feigning curiosity.

Jin Yue hesitated for a moment but then decided to answer truthfully. "It's an old map I bought … it leads to a hidden treasure, or so the old man said. But there are dangers, and the old man who gave it to me mentioned something about heaven meeting …"

Her mother's eyes gleamed, though her expression remained soft. "A treasure, you say? And you believe him?"

"I don't know," Jin Yue replied quietly, staring at the map again. Maybe its not true..."

Her mother smiled, stepping closer, placing a hand gently on Jin Yue's shoulder. " But what if?...If the treasure is real, then we should seek it. Think about it. If you find the treasure, we can leave this place, just you and me. We could finally escape this house and live peacefully, far away from all this chaos. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Jin Yue's heart stirred at the thought. "yeah,But even if it's true then there is definitely dangers too."

Her mother waved her hand dismissively, her tone becoming almost playful. "Oh, that old man probably exaggerated. Besides, haven't you always been talented? You can easily avoid a few traps. You've faced worse dangers before." She paused, leaning in slightly, her voice a whisper. "What's a small risk if it means a lifetime of peace for the both of us? A mother and daughter, finally free."

Jin Yue blinked, doubt flickering in her eyes, but her mother's words seeped into her heart. She could picture it...a life of freedom, no more oppressive gazes, no more games of survival within the manor,she could roam the world. It was tempting.

Seeing the shift in Jin Yue's expression, her mother pressed on. "Besides, when that old man mentioned traps and nails, he was probably just trying to scare you. You are strong, Jin Yue. If anyone can succeed, it's you."

Jin Yue stared at the map, her heartbeat quickening as her mother's vision of their future filled her mind. "Maybe you're right…"

A triumphant glint flickered in her mother's eyes as she leaned back, satisfied. A secret smirk curled on her lips, but she quickly masked it with a smile of motherly affection. "Of course I am, my dear. Now, set your heart on that treasure. Once you have it, we'll leave this place behind, and I promise you, we'll be happy."

Jin Yue nodded slowly, her determination growing as she folded the map again, placing it carefully into her robe. Her mother patted her arm before leaving the room.

As her mother stepped outside, her smile vanished. The truth behind her words twisted her heart with bitterness. She hated Jin Yue.

She remembered that day so vividly. Her home had been ablaze, the flames consuming everything in their path. She had a daughter then, her little girl barely four years old. But Jin Yue was the one killed her. When the mysterious man had appeared amidst the smoke and chaos, she had begged him...why hadn't he come sooner? Why hadn't he saved her child?

His answer had been as cold as the air that night. "You should be thankful I saved your life. Besides," he had said casually, "you would never have cared for Jin Yue properly if you still had your other child with you."

His words had burned deeper than the flames. She had taken them to heart, and in that moment, her grief had twisted into hatred. If it weren't for Jin Yue, her real daughter might still be alive.

But what she hadn't thought about is...without jinyue the man would not have spared her a glance, let alone save her.

As jinyue's mother made her way back to her own courtyard, her heart heavy with old wounds, she passed by a secluded grove near the outer walls of the manor. Suddenly, a figure appeared in her path. The shadows clung to him as though he commanded them, and the air around him crackled with silent power.

The mysterious man.

Her breath caught in her throat as his cold gaze settled on her, and for the first time that evening, fear washed over her.

" lady Li, I heard everything," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "You're playing a dangerous game."

She tried to speak, to deny it, but the words caught in her throat.

"If you value your life, woman," he continued, stepping closer, "this will be the last time you try to push Jin Yue toward something so dangerous."

Her eyes widened in terror. "I—"

"Silence." His tone was final, the weight of his words crushing. "You forgot your place. You were entrusted to raise her, not to manipulate her for your own selfish reasons."

Her mouth went dry as she realized how close to death she truly was at that moment.

"If I hear of this again," the mysterious man whispered, "you will not live to see the next sunrise. Remember that."

With those parting words, he disappeared into the shadows as quickly as he had appeared, leaving her trembling in the cold night

____

After the discussion with her mother, Jin Yue stretched languidly in her room, relishing the rare moment of peace. With all the chaos from her sisters' affairs and her father's constant scheming, she had not had a chance to truly rest since her transmigration into this ancient world. The walls of the Lin Manor seemed quieter today, as though the very air had settled into a strange calm, giving her a brief respite from the endless drama.

She glanced around her room, a room that now felt like hers but also belonged to someone else, someone she didn't know all that well...the original Jin Yue of this world. With idle curiosity, she began rummaging through her belongings. Despite having been here for a while, she hadn't explored everything yet. As her fingers brushed past folded robes and old trinkets, something caught her eye.

It was a delicate chain, glistening faintly in the sunlight that streamed through the open window. Jin Yue held it up, letting the light bounce off the thin links of the waist chain. It was silver, with small azure-blue gems embedded in the links that sparkled like captured starlight. The soft blue contrasted beautifully against her pale skin, and she couldn't help but admire how elegantly it shimmered, as if it were alive. The craftsmanship was exquisite, almost too modern for this world.

"How did this end up here?" Jin Yue muttered, bewildered. It seemed too perfect, too contemporary for something from ancient times, yet here it was, nestled among the belongings of her past self.

She wasn't one to wear waist chains, not even back in her modern life. But she couldn't resist something so beautiful. Without thinking too much about it, she took off her clothes and fastened the chain around her waist. It rested against her skin like a soft, cooling touch, and she felt a strange sense of comfort, almost as if the chain had always been hers.

She went about her day, arranging this and that, practicing her acrobatics ,without worrying about being seen as she did not have any personal maid,but someone would come and clean her place daily. She does not need a maid so it didn't bother her much but her father, for appearance sake, gave her a few... only a fool will trust them. By evening, fatigue from the mental strain of everything she had been through caught up to her, and she fell asleep quickly,The chain forgotten.

What Jin Yue didn't realize as she slept was that the waist chain was no ordinary trinket. As the moon rose high into the night sky, small, nearly invisible tendrils of spiritual energy seeped out of the chain and quietly entered her body, as gentle as a breeze. The strands were so thin and delicate that Jin Yue remained oblivious. She slept soundly through the night, as the energy slowly but steadily infused her.

The next morning, Jin Yue awoke feeling unusually refreshed. Her body felt lighter, more energized than it had in days. She stretched, marveling at how good she felt, though she didn't give it too much thought.

Just as she began preparing for the day, her father's sharp voice on the door broke the morning calm. "Jin Yue, come quickly!" His voice sounded urgent, and she could sense the tension even through the closed door.

She hurriedly dressed and stepped outside to meet her father. Lin Zhao was already dressed in his court attire, his expression stern.

"We are going to the palace," he announced brusquely.

Jin Yue blinked in confusion. "The palace? Why?"

Her father's face darkened. "It's your sister's matter... Lin Hua's disgrace has been known throughout the capital,some ministers are targeting me and I must beg His Majesty for mercy. But he may not listen to me alone. Your identity as the Saint may sway him." He didn't bother hiding his calculation, and Jin Yue could see how he was using her title to his advantage.

She frowned, but she wasn't in a position to refuse. With a quiet nod,he waited for her to change before she followed him as they prepared to leave for the imperial palace. Jinyue looked at advisor Lin and noticed that he changed, he looked almost...humble, must be the recent setbacks.

----

Once they arrived at the palace, Jin Yue found herself left in a waiting room. Her father had been called to speak with the emperor directly and had instructed her to wait until summoned. The palace was grand, much more so than any modern palace she had ever seen. The walls glittered with gold, and the high ceilings made her feel small in comparison.

As she sat there, she overheard hushed whispers from a group of courtiers passing by. They were speaking in hurried tones about someone.

"The fourth princess will be ruined if this gets out. Her enemies have truly set a trap for her this time," one man muttered under his breath.

Another replied, "She should've been more careful. Even a single misstep can be fatal in the palace…"

Jin Yue's ears perked up. She didn't know there is a fourth princess in the palace, speaking of which, she has never seen a prince except the third prince.

Jin Yue frowned. The words were cryptic, but it sounded serious. She didn't know anything anyway and she wouldn't meddle.

___

Meanwhile, in another part of the palace, the third prince, Murong Yezi, sat at his desk, supposedly reading through a letter. His expression was cold, but there was a faint trace of distraction in his dark eyes.

It had been days since the encounter at the pond, and yet, he couldn't stop thinking about Jin Yue. Her flirtatious words, the way she had looked at him with such defiance, her soft, thin waist,the way she blushed...

His ears turned a slight shade of red, He wasn't someone who showed emotions, much less ones of fluster, but every time his mind wandered back to that scene, the memory of her clear eyes looking up at him, the softness of her voice, his heart raced just a little faster. He glared at the letter in front of him, realizing he had been staring at it for over twenty minutes without reading a single word.

Murong Yezi clenched his jaw. Why do I keep thinking about her? It made no sense. was it magic?.

He glanced up as a cool breeze drifted in from the window. His ears felt strangely warm, and he wondered, if the palace was suddenly hot, though that didn't seem likely.

Xiao Yi, stood nearby, He hadn't missed the prince's subtle reactions, and internally, he wondered to himself. What's on his master's mind, ever since that day, his mind kept wondering...it can't be he is captivated by miss jinyue right? If so,then fairy Qin....

Still, Xiao Yi wisely kept his thoughts to himself, knowing that if he spoke them aloud, he would probably losea layer of skin.