[I tried to sleep yesterday, but all my weapons and equipment failed. I am very angry. Forget it, I am not going to sleep. I will finish this chapter first. My days are going to be wasted. You guys don't have to wait anymore. You guys can't last longer than me.]
At this critical moment, Lin Sanjiu opened her eyes from the thick and prickly haystack.
When the light first entered her eyes, before she could react to the situation, she suddenly took a deep breath and jumped up from the haystack. The hay immediately scattered all over the ground, giving Cinderella, who was digging for ashes, a fright.
"What's wrong?" Cinderella's face and hands were dark. Her voice was gentle, "Did you have a nightmare?"
"I … Ah, yes. That's right." Lin Sanjiu blinked her eyes. She felt as if her mind was still stuck in that rainy house with the deafening barking of the dogs. She took a few seconds to recover and looked out of the window.
It was still a dark night outside. Half of the moon was still hanging in the clouds, and there was no sign of rain at all.
"What time is it now?" Lin Sanjiu calmed her breath and looked at Cinderella, a little puzzled. "Why are you working at this time?"
Cinderella sighed. "I always wake up at this time to work … It will be dawn soon, and the kitchen will be busy preparing breakfast by then."
After she said that, she seemed to have thought of something. She paused and stared blankly at the stove in front of her. She was in a daze.
Lin Sanjiu could guess what was on Cinderella's mind.
From the bits and pieces she heard, the ball happened last month. Logically speaking, Cinderella should have lost one of her shoes long ago. However, almost a month had passed, and no prince had come to look for her …
To Cinderella, the jeweled dress, the bright lights, the prince, and the ball had all become a distant and unreal dream. Even after the dream ended, she still had to squat in the dirty kitchen and work with her hands covered in mud.
"Cinderella's story is about to reach a critical moment, just like Red Riding Hood, right?"
As Lin Sanjiu thought about it, she excused herself to wash up and went outside to organize her cards.
The things she gave to Cinderella's stepmother were just some scented candles and a flashlight. Although Cinderella accepted them without a second thought, she was disappointed that they were not gemstones or jewelry, so she only arranged a haystack for her.
After arranging the cards, Lin Sanjiu couldn't help thinking about the other two people in the small house that rainy night.
Neither Little Red Riding Hood nor Emma looked like a werewolf … There was nothing suspicious about their behavior. Thinking about it, what were werewolves like?
While Lin Sanjiu was immersed in her own thoughts, the sky gradually brightened. Cinderella rushed in and out to prepare the meal. She sent it to her stepmother and sisters. She cooked two bowls of potato and beans and shared them with Lin Sanjiu.
Even though it didn't taste good, Lin Sanjiu was already very happy to be able to eat a hot meal.
Seeing her wolfing down the food, Cinderella could not help but chuckle, "You must have suffered a lot along the way, right?"
Lin Sanjiu was taken aback by her words.
If the apocalyptic world was her journey, she really didn't know where the destination was.
Usually, Lin Sanjiu would try her best to control herself and not let herself think about the endless apocalyptic worlds. She would also try her best not to think about her dead friends and companions. However, her emotions were like the sand under the surface of the water, stirred up by Cinderella's words.
"Ah, yes. It's rare for me to have a meal," Lin Sanjiu replied with a smile after she regained her composure.
Cinderella scrutinized Lin Sanjiu's expression and hesitated for a moment. Just when she was about to speak, she was interrupted by a commotion not far away. A male servant's voice sounded especially loud in the midst of the commotion, "Madam! Madam! Where are you? Hurry up and come out to welcome the majordomo of the palace! "
"It's here!"
Lin Sanjiu's heart skipped a beat. She put down the bowl of rice and pulled Cinderella, who was still in a daze, into the house through the back door.
Cinderella's manor house had lost all of its usual reserved grandeur.
Her stepmother rushed out with her dress in hand. Her hair had just been smoothed and was still shiny. Behind her were Cinderella's two sisters. The three of them had obviously dressed up for the occasion. There were strings of shiny gemstones on their hands and bodies. "Why is the majordomo of the palace here?" the stepmother asked after she caught her breath.
The majordomo was a middle-aged man with silver hair. He had a cold expression on his face. It was so serious that it made people want to mimic his expression.
"I have been ordered by the prince to search the entire country for a girl who can wear this shoe," he explained in a business-like tone. He explained in a business-like tone, then waved his hand, and someone behind him took out a crystal shoe in a box. "The person who can wear this shoe will receive the highest honor. She will be able to stay by the prince's side forever."
The moment the crystal shoe appeared, Lin Sanjiu heard Cinderella gasp in surprise. Fortunately, everyone's attention was on the majordomo and the shoe, so no one noticed her.
What happened next was similar to a fairytale. Although the stepmother's two daughters did not cut their feet to fit their shoes like in the fairy tales, they still put in a lot of effort. They used cloth strips to wrap their feet round and round. Even their toes were rolled under the soles of their feet. It was like the European version of foot binding.
However, even though their faces turned green from the pain, they still couldn't squeeze their feet into the shoe.
The crystal shoe didn't have any room for expansion and contraction. It could only fit the shape of its owner's foot. The majordomo even wanted Lin Sanjiu to try it. However, when he saw Lin Sanjiu stretch out her foot, which was wrapped in a skywood orchid, he immediately dismissed the idea.
In the end, when Cinderella slid her small and delicate bare foot into the crystal shoe, Lin Sanjiu was almost deafened by the exclamations of the people around her.
"That's great," the majordomo said with a straight face. There wasn't a single trace of happiness on his face. "We finally found you. I'm sure the prince will be very happy."
Cinderella blushed as she allowed a few palace maids to pull her over. After they cleaned her up and dressed her up, she finally revealed some of the beauty she had shown during the ball.
It was a wonderful feeling to be able to experience everything together with the characters in the fairy tale. As the hall on the first floor was already full of people, Lin Sanjiu stood by the window on the second floor and watched as Cinderella was escorted out of the house by the manager. She was then escorted respectfully to a majestic carriage.
In Lin Sanjiu's memory, this part of the prince was there. He was also the one who ordered the punishment of the stepmother and the two daughters. The prince was probably sitting in this carriage.
The scene in front of her seemed to confirm her guess.
The majordomo said something to the people in the carriage. Then, he let Cinderella walk over to the carriage.
Cinderella glanced at the carriage. She turned around and said something to the majordomo. Then, she waved her hand anxiously...
"Huh?" Lin Sanjiu narrowed her eyes.
There seemed to be something wrong with Cinderella's expression.
Her face was a little pale and she kept shaking her head. As she was too far away, Lin Sanjiu couldn't hear what she was saying clearly. However, before she could say a few words and turn to leave, two tall soldiers suddenly walked over. They grabbed Cinderella and forced her into the carriage.
Cinderella's feet were still kicking outside, as if she were being held down by someone inside the carriage, and could not get out. The wheels of the carriage, however, had already begun to move impatiently, and soon turned away from the front of the house.
In the room, everyone who saw this scene was silent.
"Here comes the change!"
Lin Sanjiu gritted her teeth and jumped out of the window when no one was paying attention. When she landed on the ground, the weight of her body made her legs numb. However, before the dust settled, Lin Sanjiu had already run far away. She chased after the carriage and refused to let go.
As she wasn't sure what was going on, she didn't chase after the carriage at full speed. Instead, she stayed at a moderate distance to observe the situation.
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