Chapter 384

Chapter 384: Is It Or Isn’t It?

“Would you like to take a walk together?” Ming asked Cici Zhu.

Cici Zhu’s expression froze for a moment, not expecting Ming to invite her.

After a brief hesitation, Cici Zhu nodded: “Then let’s take a walk.”

“Please.” Ming extended his hand.

Cici Zhu stepped down from the front steps and followed by Ming’s side.

The bright moonlight was cast upon the Dragon Palace. When they looked up, they could indeed see a full moon in the sky.

The two walked along the outer roads of the Dragon Palace without any particular destination, just aimlessly wandering.

But in Cici Zhu’s heart, her heartbeat involuntarily quickened. Her gaze would uncontrollably glance towards Ming.

“You know how the deep sea is just like day and night, even with a sun during the day and a moon at night,” Ming curiously asked, casually picking a topic to avoid an awkward atmosphere between them, “Could it be that the sun and moon here in the underwater palace were created themselves?”

“It’s not that. The sun and moon we see now are all illusions; they merely reflect what’s above the sky,” Cici Zhu explained.

“Moreover, not all the deep seas are the same. Only in the underwater cities do we have this clearly defined day and night.

Legend has it that ten thousand years ago, the Dragon Empress wanted her beloved to live under the sea as if living on land, so she created such a magic array.

At first, the cost of constructing this array was extremely expensive, using countless rare treasures.

But this array proved very effective, significantly improving the daily routines of the sea folk, ensuring they wouldn’t feel disoriented when traveling to the surface.

So after thousands of years of refinement, the cost of the array has decreased, and it’s now widely used. Basically, in the underwater realms, whether it’s the Eastern Sea, Western Sea, or Southern Sea, every underwater city employs such an array.”

“I see, I’ve learned something new,” Ming nodded, “Speaking of which, that Dragon Empress really spared no expense. Everything was considered for her beloved.”

As Cici Zhu gazed at Ming’s profile, she slowly spoke, “That’s what love is like. You don’t calculate the cost.”

Hearing Cici Zhu’s words, Ming turned his head toward her, but Cici Zhu quickly diverted her gaze.

Ming looked at Cici Zhu’s delicate profile, unsure of what to say.

Ming felt that Cici Zhu’s previous words weren’t just about the Dragon Empress.

Ming continued walking forward, and Cici Zhu walked alongside him. They fell silent again without speaking.

Cici Zhu glanced at Ming beside her, realizing that the little boy from before had grown so tall. When Cici Zhu first met Ming, she was surprised at how much the little boy had grown, but standing side by side, it became even more apparent.

“I once heard a story,” Ming slowly began.

Cici Zhu looked up at Ming, “What story?”

Ming continued, “The story goes like this: There was once a little girl who had a tough childhood. One time, her mother took her to the street, and the little girl saw a flower hairpin.

But the hairpin was quite expensive, and the little girl’s mother didn’t buy it for her. So the little girl kept yearning for that hairpin, always wanting it.

When the little girl grew up and had some money, the young lady happily went to buy an identical hairpin to the one from her childhood.

But in the end, when the little girl finally obtained the flower hairpin from her childhood, she discovered that the object of her longing wasn’t anything special after all.

Afterward, that flower hairpin was left in a drawer, untouched for a long, long time.”

After Ming finished telling the story, Cici Zhu lowered her head.

Cici Zhu didn’t know if the story was something Ming had heard or something he made up, but none of that mattered.

Cici Zhu was a smart girl, and given how straightforward Ming was, she naturally understood what he meant.

“I don’t see it that way,” Cici Zhu said, clenching her small hands tightly.

“Hmm?” Ming looked at Cici Zhu.

In the young woman’s eyes, there was determination.

Cici Zhu: “The reason the little girl didn’t wear the hairpin might not be because she didn’t cherish it, but perhaps because it was too precious, so she wanted to store it carefully.

Maybe, at times unknown to others, the grown-up little girl would take out the hairpin to look at it carefully.

And after that, no matter how many valuable jewels the young woman might own, that single flower hairpin would forever remain the most important in her heart.”

Ming: “…”

“Cici…” Ming sighed, “Even so, people are different from objects. An object stays the same no matter how long it’s been stored, but people change.”

“Then has Scholar Xu changed?” Cici Zhu stopped in her tracks.

Ming also slowly turned around, looking straight into Cici Zhu’s eyes.

“I suppose I have,” Ming thought for a moment before speaking, “I’m glad that Cici still remembers me. That you remember me is my honor, but your fondness for me might be due to the child I once was, the beauty of our childhood, and not the me of today.”

Ming decided not to beat around the bush anymore. Many things should be clarified. Hesitating only makes things more complicated: “When Cici saw me again, she simply projected the old me onto the present me.

In reality, the more Cici gets to know me, the worse her impression of me will become, and the more disappointed she’ll be with me.

Perhaps one day, Cici will think—oh, he’s become this kind of person, completely different from before.”

Cici Zhu looked into Ming’s eyes, her tone carrying a hint of resentment: “So, this is why Scholar Xu keeps his distance from me?”

Ming thought about it, “You could say that…”

Cici Zhu tightly pressed her lips, clenching her small fists. After three breaths, Cici Zhu took a step forward, approaching Ming, and looked up: “Is it or isn’t it? Is it because Scholar Xu doesn’t want to tarnish the beauty of my childhood memories that you keep your distance?

Or is it because Scholar Xu already has someone else in his heart, leaving no room for Cici?”