Shen Zhenyu looked down at his cup of tea, now cold. "That's when I understood," he said, "why my father looked at me that way. And why people started avoiding me. That night, I walked out of my chamber and went to the palace gate. I didn't even sneak."
He gave a small, crooked smile that had no joy in it. "No one stopped me. They just… watched. Like I was dirt."
There was a long pause.
And then He Yuying, still chewing, quietly pushed the soy sauce closer to Shen Zhenyu's plate. Because sometimes, support came with extra condiments. And sometimes, it came with shrimp dumplings and complete silence from a king pretending not to listen.
Shen Zhenyu continued in that same steady voice. "That was how I understood… without a title or power, you're worth nothing. No crown, no value."
He looked straight ahead, like he was still seeing that long walk. "So I left. I walked through the city, then out of it. No shoes. No food. I slept under trees, in stables, wherever I could find. It wasn't that bad. Except when it rained. And when chickens chased me."
His voice didn't crack. It wasn't even sad. It sounded like someone reading from a book he had read a hundred times. "Then one day, I met Master Tian Mo. He gave me food. Didn't ask questions. Let me sleep in his donkey cart."
Song Meiyu's tearful sniff turned into a confused blink. "Donkey cart?"
Shen Zhenyu nodded. "The next day, he handed me the reins and told me to drive. That's how I became his disciple. We went to Xuanyi Pavilion together."
There was silence again. The good kind. The heavy-but-safe kind.
Song Meiyu wiped her eyes and sniffled loudly. "Brother Zhenyu…" she said, clutching her chest, "You poor thing. If I had met you back then, I would've given you three meat buns and half my candy stash."
Shen Zhenyu blinked slowly. "...Thank you?"
He Yuying pointed at Shen Zhenyu with his chopsticks. "That explains your brooding aura. Royal trauma. Makes sense."
Shen Zhenyu just sipped his tea quietly, not denying it.
Linyue looked at him with soft eyes. She hadn't known all the details before, just fragments. But hearing it now, she realized they all had stories like broken glass. Some sharp. Some hidden. And some still waiting to be told.
Shu Mingye stayed quiet, his face unreadable. But inside, things were clicking into place. From the timing, Shen Zhenyu wasn't the result of an affair. It was likely the younger brother who was. The current King of Shenlin. That would explain a lot. Why Fu Jingtao could use and control him so easily. Why Queen Shen had paid him more attention, showered him with affection while keeping her distance from Shen Zhenyu.
Shu Mingye narrowed his eyes. He wasn't going to say any of this out loud, of course. That wasn't his job or his problem. He wasn't here to solve royal family trees. He already had enough headaches. One of which was currently sipping tea like it hadn't caused a whole storm in his heart this morning. He glanced at Linyue very subtly. She didn't notice. Or she pretended not to. Either way, annoying.
Then—bam.
Song Meiyu slapped the table and straightened her back suddenly, eyes bright. "Then I guess… it's my turn, right?"
No one had a chance to answer. She was already talking.
"I also dreamed of thirteen years ago," she said, lifting her chin. "I was seven years old. Still short. Still loud. Still fabulous."
She cleared her throat. "I lived in Lingxu. My father was a travelling merchant. He always brought home strange things from his travels like weird-smelling spices and very questionable pickles. I had a little sister. She was two years old and looked like a dumpling with eyes. I loved her very much."
She smiled at the memory, then her voice softened. "We were happy. Until the wall broke."
"Everyone knows what happened next. The demons came. They roared, chasing people through the city. My father and mother… they didn't make it." Her hands fidgeted with her sleeves. "I was running. Hugging my baby sister close. She was crying in my arms, her cheeks red and chubby. I didn't know where to go… just that I had to keep running."
Linyue leaned forward slightly, heart clenching.
"Then someone pushed me from behind," Song Meiyu whispered. "I fell. And my sister slipped out of my arms. I tried to hold on, but I was small, and I couldn't."
Shen Zhenyu was watching her quietly.
"I reached out. I tried to grab her. But someone grabbed me instead from behind. A man. I never saw his face. He lifted me up and ran with me in his arms. I screamed and cried. I told him I left my sister behind. I saw demons coming closer and he didn't stop. He kept running."
Song Meiyu paused. Tears filled her eyes, but she blinked them away fast, like she was racing her sadness. Then she smiled faintly. "I cried so much, my face puffed up like a steamed bun," she said with a sniff and a little laugh. "After that… I don't remember much. Just that I never saw my sister again."
Her voice drifted off. No one said anything. Even the loud birds outside seemed to have taken a break for emotional reasons.
Then she continued, her tone light at first, but every word got a little heavier. "The man carried me all the way to Shenlin. I thought… I thought he was saving me. He put me in a carriage with a few other kids. We were all quiet. Just sat there like confused dumplings, bumping along the road. I don't know how long it was. Days? Hours? Could've been years. I was seven and terrible at time."
Shen Zhenyu leaned forward.
Linyue's fingers were curled tightly in her lap.
"Then we arrived," Song Meiyu said. "He took my hand and led me off the carriage. Still thought he was helping me." She let out a dry chuckle that didn't sound like a laugh at all. "But... he shoved me into a brothel instead."
Everyone in the room froze. Even He Yuying stopped chewing for once.
"That's when I understood," she said softly. "He didn't save me. He sold me."
Her voice stayed calm, but her fingers gripped the edge of her sleeve so hard the seams might've squeaked. "I was taken to a room and told to change clothes. Of course, I did what any smart, terrified, furious seven-year-old would do. I jumped out the window."
Shu Mingye raised an eyebrow. Shen Zhenyu blinked. Linyue looked like she wanted to hug her and punch the man from her dream at the same time.
"I ran. And ran. And ran some more. My feet hurt, my legs were shaking, and I was so hungry I almost considered eating the weeds on the roadside. I ended up sleeping in alleys, behind stalls, under carts… anywhere that didn't charge rent."
She shrugged, like it was all a strange bedtime story. "From then on, I begged for food, cleaned dishes, swept floors or whatever someone would let me do in exchange for leftover rice. Until…" Her face softened, with something like fondness. "Until I met Master Yin Xue. She saw me eating scraps behind a dumpling shop and said, That's no way for someone with that much attitude to live. Then she gave me food. Gave me a home. Gave me… hope."
She wiped her cheek and smiled. "That's all about my dream," she said. "The sad part's over. If anyone has something sweet, now's the time to pass it over. I need sugar."
Shu Mingye wordlessly pushed a small plate of red bean pancake toward her.
Song Meiyu wasted no time. She snatched it and took a big bite. "Thank you, future husband of Sister Linyue. Very gentlemanly of you," she said through a mouthful of flaky crust and red bean.
Linyue shot her a cold glare. Shu Mingye just smirked like he had won something.
"Sister Linyue," Song Meiyu sang, "your turn! You said it was a beautiful dream, right?"