Perhaps because there was someone who shared the same suffering, Lin Yuen no longer felt afraid at this moment. She lifted her sleeve to wipe clean the little girl's face, she wanted to see her clearly.

  But the little girl resisted and turned her head away, saying: "I want to see you first... how do I know you're not going to kill me?"

  Lin Wan inexplicably felt like laughing, a seven or eight-year-old child was also as dignified as a little adult, she must be the noble daughter of some big family, or even a princess.

  Lin Wan nodded in agreement, but before wiping her face clean, she first pulled out the girl's dagger from the tree trunk and threw it three meters away. A half-big child also needs to be guarded against.

  When Lin Wan was halfway through wiping, the other person also started wiping with their sleeves. Lin Wan looked at it and wanted to laugh even more. Is this a sincere gesture? Wanting to show her face at the same time? This child is obviously also in a dilemma, wanting to get out of the dense forest requires Lin Wan's help as an adult, so she showed sincerity?

  When both of their faces were clean at the same time, the little girl was the first to exclaim: "It's you! I know you, you..."

  Lin Wan looked at this child and didn't recognize her immediately, staring blankly for three seconds before slapping her forehead: "Oh! You're Shan Yu..."

  Shan Yu, the girl who had only met once in Chang Le Palace. Lin Wan was very surprised, but had a few premonitions. To meet in this place on the verge of death, it turned out that this child and herself were both people who had caused a lot of trouble.

  She wanted to carefully investigate the details of this little girl called Shan Yu. Why did she get involved with her in the first place, and what did she want from her? But now that things have come to this point, they are both fellow outcasts, so she might as well let it go for now.

  "I know your surname is Lin, you're definitely not here to kill me, you're absolutely not the Queen's person..." The little girl was desperately patting her chest, panting and saying: "Great, at least you'll be with me. We must cooperate, you see, you're also close to death now, if we want to get out, the two of us together still have a glimmer of hope..."

  "Queen Xiao? You must be the one she threw here?" Lin Yuen seemed to have grasped something.

  "It must be her. I shouldn't have been able to come to Beisi, it was only because of Master Hui Ci's plea that I could come, and no one would have known about me anyway. And I'm dressed as a man, making it even more impossible for me to be recognized. The only person who would think I'm dead and still care about me is the Empress, she has the ability to turn this entire forest into a trap and a lifeline of ferocious beasts..."

  "Oh, Imperial Princess, you're really pitiful." Lin Yu expressed her sympathy politely: "How did you get into the dense forest? Were you forced or..."

  Lin Wan hadn't finished speaking when Fan Yu's eyes revealed a chilly vigilance, clearly resistant to this kind of rhetoric.

  "Don't look at me like that." Lin Yuyan's words were cold and detached: "I'm asking you this only because I want to know if the person who harmed you is the same one who harmed me. I was forced to take a detour into the dense forest because of the sudden rockfall on the road, but now I'm lost. Imperial Princess, your reason for being trapped isn't something that's worth hiding, but your attitude... it only raises suspicions... Don't worry, I won't ask you again, but from your reaction, I already know this matter isn't simple. Imperial Princess, you're still too young; hopefully in the future when you want to hide something, you won't be so obvious."

  Senbonzakura's eyes were filled with terror.

  Lin Wan smiled and let the little girl relax: "Alright, save the nonsense for when we get out, before that I absolutely won't do anything to harm you."

  Lin Wei still wanted to know Fan Yu's secret. What made her rush into this dense forest?

  nb***

  Although there is one more person, the probability of escaping seems to have not increased much. Lin Yu sadly discovered that she and Shan Yu were both blank parties in the field of wilderness survival knowledge.

  Two people have been obsessed with intrigue and strategy all their lives, with insight into words and thoughts far beyond ordinary people. However, at this time, the palace fighting skills that filled the book bag were not even comparable to those who could climb trees. They didn't understand which fruits could be eaten, didn't know how to filter out unclean water, and even rubbed their hands raw trying to drill wood for fire without success.

  After another day of supporting each other, both women were exhausted. There was no shortage of water, but they didn't dare eat anything, and if this continued, starvation would be inevitable. On the second night, these two weak and pitiful women could only huddle together in a rotten tree hole to rest, embracing each other for warmth, with their eyes taking turns to stare around, afraid that a big bear might suddenly appear from somewhere. This was deep autumn in northern Shaanxi, Lin Yu's lips were purple from the cold, while Fan Yuxuan was afraid of the dark and her teeth chattered with fear.

  In the depths of this mountain forest, the darkness was truly terrifying. The two were so scared that they hugged each other and couldn't even cry, nor could they sleep. They could only keep talking to drive away their fear. "Lin Niangniang, let's talk about something... Ah, tell me some stories about the palace..."

  "What good story can there be in the palace!" Lin Wan's mood had already turned sour, and this child still kept saying things she didn't want to hear: "You see, you're just thinking about entering the palace with all your heart, right? Alas, you child, you've been going to beg Empress Dowager year after year in order to enter the palace, and now you're risking your life to come north. Now you're acting recklessly again, and it's gotten you into such a predicament. I'm telling you, the palace isn't as good as you imagine. Although the days at Da Jue Temple are simple and bitter, at least there's no fear for one's life. You don't know that many of the nobles in the palace would rather live as commoners outside."

  "No, I must return to the palace, I am the emperor's daughter!" Fan Yu tightly hugged her own arm and wiped the dirty mud on her face: "Do you know, our royal children have blood flowing through their bodies that is different from others. Let me spend a lifetime in the temple, being beaten and humiliated every day, kneeling on the ground to beg for food with the nuns, such a life is not even as good as a lowly person... What kind of life is this? I would rather die..."

  "But look at you now, it's as if you're better off dead. You shouldn't have done this, even if you entered the palace, your lifespan will likely be shorter than in the temple." Lin Wan said these words, but her heart was somewhat empty. She thought about her past life and present life, these two tumultuous lifetimes, she would forever live under the shadow of swords and knives, how many times had she narrowly escaped death? She didn't have to go through this kind of day, she could choose a mediocre life, she could not enter the palace, and definitely wouldn't be able to escape with the help of people like Sheng Fei and the Empress. But she chose the most difficult path instead.

  She wants to live a good life, but is also dissatisfied with her current situation. She's an ambitious person, what right does she have to criticize Fan Yu?

  "Lin Niang... no matter what, I've been holding on just to return to the palace." Shan Yu glanced at Lin Wan carefully: "If we can make it out alive, you'll help me, right? From the moment I saw you, I knew you were someone who could help me. Now that our lives are tied together, we might as well be fated..."

  The cold wind outside was howling, and occasionally there were roars of fierce beasts. Lin Yuan was amused by the child at this time: "You really... are you still thinking about flattering me now? Whether we can survive or not is a problem. Is your dream of entering the palace more important than your life?"

  The fan jade lowered his head and stopped speaking.

  Lin Wan also didn't have the heart to teach her to live a good life rather than taking risks for wealth and glory. She understood that many people were not fighting for wealth and glory, but for dignity and faith.

  "Shan Yu, I know you want to win me over. From the moment we first met, you've been trying to get close to me." Now that they were on the brink of life and death, there was no need for polite conversation. Lin Wan directly dug out Shan Yu's thoughts: "But I really don't understand, why did you choose me? There are many masters in the palace who have power." As she spoke, she laughed at herself: "You're so sure that a small palace maid like me can help you?"

  She thought for a moment, and then swallowed the words "Lin Niangniang is virtuous and gentle, with a kind heart and beautiful appearance". She lowered her head and said in a soft but serious tone: "Because on that day, you paid your respects to me..."

  "Ha? You're really naive!" Lin Wan sneered, curling her lip: "Others all look down on you and bully you, only I treat you with the courtesy due to an imperial princess. You think I'm kind-hearted just because of that? Do you still think there are kind-hearted people in this palace?"

  "No!" Fan Yu shook her head repeatedly: "It's just that your posture when you pay respects is different from others."

  Lin Wan looked puzzled and widened her eyes.

  Fan Yu let out a sigh and explained to her: "When I was in the temple, we were all under the control of the abbot and the nun. I was very afraid of the abbot, she was too fierce, and I often got beaten by her, with a big stick in front of the Buddha, each time I was beaten until I fell to the ground and couldn't get up. One day when she beat me, I suddenly became very stubborn, kneeling down and refusing to bend my waist, stiffening my back and taking the beating one by one."

  "She never hit me again after that. She said a person with a straight back has an innate noble air and will eventually become a noble, so she didn't want to offend me anymore."

  "When Lin Niangniang bowed, she bent her knees, but her back remained straight. Others, when bowing, would naturally hunch their backs after bending their knees, but you didn't; it gave me the feeling that you have an air of nobility."

  Lin Wan was somewhat unaccustomed to being praised by Shan Yu. She snorted: "Shan Yu, becoming a noble is not as simple as you think. Just like now, the noble in front of you is about to freeze to death."

  The problem has come back to the immediate concern in front of us.

  Shan Yu really wanted to cry, and she didn't know if it was from the cold or fear, or lamenting her own tragic fate. She was unwilling to die in a place like this, she still had so many grand ambitions that hadn't been realized, now that she was dead, she would be nothing.

  Alas, can I really get out of here alive...

  Lin Wan and Shan Yu chatted drowsily for half the night, originally wanting to give each other some confidence in living, but as they chatted, they all talked about their tragic pasts. In the end, neither of them knew when they fell asleep.

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