"What are you going to do with this fish?" The Fourth Prince asked: "Are you going to kill it and eat its flesh, or do you want to raise it and observe it?"

  Tidal birth sweat...... Did this fish kill to eat meat? First of all, it's not that I'm raising ornamental fish for viewing, even if it's edible, such a small fish, is it enough to stuff the gaps between teeth?

  What does the fourth prince take her for? Is she that hungry? Starving to the point of not being picky about food? Not even letting go of this small fish fry?

  Raising it to see - she didn't have the confidence to keep it alive. In the past, when the tide was born, it was raised and died, and the goldfish bought back home never lived for more than a week.

  "Just... put it back."

  The fourth prince nodded and said: "You caught it, you deal with it - just don't be so soft-hearted in the future when doing things."

  The tide brought the fish down and put them back into the pool.

  Is she softhearted?

  Chao Sheng didn't think so. She was always careful, just wanting to keep a low profile and protect herself. Sometimes she thought that many things that her elders couldn't have imagined were now being done. Many things that she couldn't stand were also forcing her to get used to them.

  "That day, Gui Zhi was beaten, and your face looked like it hurt for her." The Fourth Prince said this, and after a while, he added: "Remember one thing, people who are pitied must have something hateful about them. What she did, she has to take responsibility for herself."

  The fourth prince is... comforting her?

  Tides are uncertain.

  But thinking back to the tone and expression of the Fourth Prince's words that night, it can only be explained as consolation.

  She's not that narcissistic, thinking she's universally loved and admired, with an aura of a transmigrated heroine surrounding her, effortlessly winning over emperors, princes, generals, and chancellors as if it's nothing.

  The emperor has seen her, but does the emperor know which onion she is?

  She had also seen the prince, but he was a prince and she was a palace maid, so Chao Sheng didn't have any unrealistic dreams.

  The prince is quite good, but he will definitely marry more than one wife, and both the difficulty and danger are too high.

  In comparison, the life she had planned for herself at the end of the year was more suitable for her ——

  Save as much money as possible, master a skill, and wait for the day to leave the palace. Whether it's finding a reliable man to marry or relying on your own skills to make a living, both are viable paths. Alternatively, serve the fourth prince wholeheartedly, and when he gets married and is about to leave the palace, you can follow him out as well.

  Chao Sheng thought carefully, whether to continue practicing embroidery or take the opportunity to learn cooking skills from Li Auntie.

  The girl is quite skilled, and she has become proficient in her craft. However, this work is too taxing on the eyes, and I don't want to end up like those people in the alley who ruined their eyesight at a young age. Moreover, it's difficult to do exquisite needlework without a good teacher to guide you, especially when it comes to complex patterns and techniques.

  Learning cooking skills should be a good choice...

  Looking at Aunt Li's rosy face and loud voice, her physical condition is not bad. Guarding the stove is a worry-free job that won't leave you hungry, being a cook is a lucrative profession...

  The more I think about it, the more beautiful it is. I want to go and worship Li Gu Gu as my master immediately. Even if I can't learn her entire set of skills, being able to learn one hand-made dim sum would be fine too. With just one trick, I can eat all over the world!

  Although cooking can't avoid risks either - Auntie Li had also encountered some incidents before.

  But is there anything risk-free in the palace? Even being an emperor has risks. Can't just do nothing because of the risks.

  Chao Sheng made up his mind and turned over.

  Although I've washed my hands several times, there's still a faint sweet scent of osmanthus cake around me.

  Her little thoughts, of course, couldn't escape the sharp-eyed Auntie Li.

  Auntie Li is very casual, and has a lot in common with Auntie Wu from the Washing Clothes Alley. Auntie Wu loves to sneak a few sips of wine, while Auntie Li enjoys cooking up two small dishes for herself and drinking alone.

  She finished a cup and Chao Sheng hurriedly refilled it for her with great enthusiasm.

  Auntie Li smacked her lips and chuckled: "No news is good news, you must be after something from me. Alright, just say it."

  Auntie Li had always taken good care of Chao Sheng, so he smiled and said: "What do I have to gain from being close to you? You think too little of me."

  "You were never a big shot anyway." Aunt Li poked her forehead: "I don't have anything else that's worth coveting, just this bit of skill left. You and I are different, when I was young I didn't look good either, so I learned this trade, at least there's a way to make a living. But you're born with a good face... Aunt Li narrowed her eyes looking at her: "In a few more years, your face and body will develop even further, becoming even prettier than now."

  "But the face will age, while skills will become more proficient with practice." Chao Sheng scratched his head: "The money you save may be lost, and the person you marry may run away, but the skills you learn are forever and won't run away."

  "Wow, I really underestimated you! Although everyone knows the truth, it's rare for someone as young as you to understand it so deeply. When I was your age, I didn't like doing household chores at all - every day was just smoke and fire. Back then, if someone mentioned a certain person, they wouldn't even need to say their name, just 'that girl who cooks' and everyone would know who they were talking about. One of my aunts told me the same thing back then: once you learn a skill, it's yours for life, but I didn't listen at the time... Now that I think about it, I was really foolish back then. I envied those easy and carefree jobs, thinking maybe one day I could become a noblewoman too. But things in life are actually very fair - if you envy someone else's ease, they might be envying your peace of mind instead. Whatever you gain, you'll lose something else in return." Li Aunt seemed to have fallen into her own memories, and Cao Sheng picked up the wine jug - it was empty.

  She didn't dare give Auntie Li more wine and went to fetch a pot of hot tea instead.

  "You'd better think it over." Li Aunt let out a belch, picked up the tea and took a big gulp, seemingly unable to tell the difference between this and wine: "If you've made up your mind, I'll talk to Qiu Shan and have you do less of the work in front, and come help with the work in back instead..."

  "Alright, alright, Auntie will go talk about it tomorrow?"

  "Uh-huh, I've been busy these past few days, just got through the holiday... Let me tell you, if you want to learn, you'd better learn well from me, or else don't come crying to me later."

  "Don't worry! I won't!"

  Auntie Li touched the door and went into the inner room, lay down on the bed and started snoring. Chao Sheng cleaned up the cups, plates, bowls and chopsticks, and happily washed himself before going to rest.

  The Mid-Autumn Festival has arrived, but nobody saw the moon because it rained for three consecutive days. On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the rain fell even more heavily, and the fine raindrops hit the roof, bringing in waves of cool air through the window screens.

  The red leaves with raindrops are even more charming. Although it's a bleak autumn, the Yiqiu Palace makes these continuous red leaves reflect a prosperous and beautiful scene, living up to its name, and it's indeed the most beautiful in autumn.