Chapter 122:
[November 17, 2019] ... Xiao Lan blushed. Even if she didn"t want to get up she would still be pulled up.
"Xiao Lan take your time and talk to these honorable adventurers. Mother will get everyone something to drink." Her mother was relieved to see her daughter better. It put her in an excellent mood. She realized she still had not offered her guests anything to drink, so she quickly walked away to get some refreshments.
Everyone was focused on Xiao Lan so no one minded the older woman leaving.
"Miss Xiao Lan, what do you know?" Wind knew she had a story to tell and he couldn"t wait to hear it.
Xiao Lan blushed. "Please don"t call me Miss Xiao Lan. I"m not a young miss anymore. Honorable adventurers can call me Xiao Lan."
Jier was also eager to learn more, so when he spoke he also considerably softened his voice. "OK, Xiao Lan, can you tell us what you know? We overheard the conversation between you and your mother. Is there something wrong with Princess Nai Nai? Is something big going to happen?" He was the epitome of a warm, patient person.
"Honorable adventurers, please have a seat," Xiao Lan said.
Xiao Lan"s mother returned with a tray of cups and a pot of flower tea. She poured everyone a cup before sitting down to join the conversation.
Xiao Lan began. "I was born and raised in this tiny town. Back then we could barely survive because my family was so poor. Things became even more strained when my brother was born. There was no way we could feed an additional mouth. I decided to sell myself into indentured servitude to lighten our burden.
I was six and very tiny for my age. Not many rich people wanted such a scrawny girl for a servant. But I had really good luck because the palace was recruiting new maids at the time. I and a bunch of other girls my age were picked to go and serve in the imperial palace.
Living in the palace was heavenly. We had to learn a lot of rules, but we got to eat our fill every day, so we were all really happy.
I and another girl named Xiao Na became Princess Nai Nai"s maids a year later.
The princess cared about our well-being and was good to us. She would give us small rewards from time to time. The rewards improved my family"s condition greatly. Over time my family and I saved enough to buy a nice house and open a shop. My younger brother was able to go school and learn whatever he wanted.
If my brother hadn"t been bitten by a poisonous viper six months ago, maybe none of this would have happened. You see, it was when I returned home to give him the antidote that all the bad things started."
Xiao Lan began crying as she talked. And like a domino effect, her mother began crying as well. The atmosphere suddenly turned gloomy.
"Six months ago a poisonous snake bit my brother. The doctor here could barely control the venom, never mind heal him. At her wits end, my mother sent me a letter. After reading it I asked the princess for an antidote. The princess was very good to me. Not only did she give me the antidote, she also gave me a leave of absence so I could deliver it to my brother.
My brother healed quickly after getting the antidote. I don"t see my brother much but we have a good relationship nonetheless. He wanted me to stay a little longer so I did.
On the third day of my visit a mercenary group returned from the realm battlegrounds. They had a lot of merchandise to sell. One of the things they had was a dagger. I wanted to buy it for my brother so he could protect himself. The dagger was depleted of energy but it was welded from fine material. I spent thirty gold coins and bought it for him.
It was after I bought the dagger that my dreams of that man started. He was a beautiful man; I"ve never met anyone more beautiful. He was the prince of an ancient kingdom. He said he fell in love with me when he saw me and he wanted to make me his queen.
I"d grown up in the palace and met all three princes. So I knew how princes behaved. This one was far too casual to be a prince, so I took it as a joke.
A few days later I dreamt about him again. In the dream, he accompanied me in conversation then we played chess. Later he showed me how to use a sword. He was knowledgeable in so many things. My attraction to him grew over time. One night he said he wanted to us to… to..." Xiao Lan bit her lip unable to continue.
"I didn"t agree at first. I"m not a loose girl. How could I do that with a man I"m not married to? But he became more forceful each night. One night after another of my refusals, he completely disappeared. I didn"t see him for a full month.
I was afraid he would never come back. When he did show up again, I gave in and we... Afterwards he never showed up again. I thought it was just a fantasy dream - until I became pregnant!
It came out of the blue! It was only a fanciful dream, so how did I end up pregnant?! It was unbelievable." Xiao Lan cried even harder. It was clear remembering it was hard for her.
"The rules in the palace are very strict. I was pregnant, so I knew I wouldn"t be allowed to wait on the princess. My unwed pregnancy would stain the princess"s reputation.
I returned to the palace and told the princess my mother found a good match for me. I asked her to release me from her service so I could get married.
She was always good to me so of course she said yes. On top of that she even presented me with a box of jewels as a wedding present. She really believed I was leaving to get married!
I didn"t want the princess to be involved in the scandal so I left as soon as I could.
I went to so many doctors hoping to find out what was wrong with my body. Every one of them said I was pregnant. But how was that possible?! I didn"t do anything! The only thing I did was in a dream.
I returned home in a daze. Soon news of several other girls in town being pregnant broke out. My own situation became public knowledge as well. People a.s.sumed we were promiscuous and having babies out of wedlock.
There were so many scandals! We were shut in our rooms. The mayor demanded we tell him the name of the father, but how could we tell him when there wasn"t one?!"