Chapter 324: The Festival of Prosperity
The winter festival arrived with laughter, music, and bright colors.
For the first time in years, the villages surrounding the capital were overflowing with happiness.
The harvest had been good.
The plague had ended.
Trade had increased.
And thanks to the policies introduced by the Empress and the support of the imperial treasury, many villagers were living better than before.
Throughout the village streets, people smiled proudly.
Men wore new cotton-padded robes.
Women displayed colorful dresses embroidered with flowers.
Children ran around with wooden toys and sweet cakes in their hands.
Old villagers sat outside tea stalls smiling as they watched the younger generation enjoy themselves.
One elderly man laughed loudly.
"Look at us now."
A friend nodded.
"Four years."
"We have enough grain stored for four years."
The old man patted his thick winter coat proudly.
"And for the first time, I don’t fear winter."
Nearby, a woman smiled while holding her daughter’s hand.
"My husband bought this coat for me."
Her daughter twirled happily.
"And Mother bought me new shoes!"
Laughter spread through the crowd.
The village felt alive.
Hopeful.
Prosperous.
The festival grounds were decorated with red lanterns hanging from every building.
Colorful banners fluttered in the cold breeze.
The smell of roasted meat, sweet pastries, and warm tea filled the air.
Musicians played lively songs while performers entertained crowds.
Among the thousands of people enjoying the celebration—
Two women moved quietly through the crowd.
Dressed as commoners.
Their faces partially hidden beneath simple cloaks.
The Empress.
And Princess Zhi.
Princess Zhi’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
"This is wonderful!"
She looked around eagerly.
"I haven’t visited a festival like this in years."
The Empress smiled.
"Then today you can enjoy everything."
Princess Zhi immediately grabbed her hand.
"Let’s go!"
The Empress laughed.
"Slow down."
But Princess Zhi had already disappeared toward a game stall.
The stall owner grinned.
"Young ladies, would you like to try your luck?"
The game involved throwing rings onto wooden pegs.
Princess Zhi’s eyes lit up.
"Yes!"
The Empress sighed.
"You are more excited than the children."
Princess Zhi pointed dramatically.
"That giant rabbit doll will be mine."
The stall owner laughed.
"Then win it."
Princess Zhi confidently threw the first ring.
It missed completely.
The second missed.
The third bounced off the table.
The Empress covered her mouth, trying not to laugh.
Princess Zhi looked offended.
"That doesn’t count."
"It absolutely counts," the Empress replied.
Princess Zhi pouted.
Then thrust a ring into the Empress’s hand.
"Your turn."
The Empress rolled her eyes.
But she threw casually.
The ring landed perfectly.
The crowd cheered.
Princess Zhi stared.
The stall owner blinked.
The Empress threw another.
Perfect.
Another.
Perfect.
Princess Zhi gasped.
"Are you secretly cheating?"
The Empress laughed.
The stall owner handed over the giant rabbit doll.
"Congratulations."
Princess Zhi immediately hugged it.
"My rabbit!"
The Empress shook her head.
"You didn’t even win it."
"Details are unimportant."
They continued through the festival.
At another stall, children were trying to knock down wooden targets using small balls.
Princess Zhi pointed.
"This one."
Again.
She failed spectacularly.
The Empress succeeded immediately.
The stall owner handed them a small fox plush.
Princess Zhi narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"Have you played these before?"
"No."
"Then why are you good at everything?"
The Empress smiled.
"I’m just lucky."
Princess Zhi refused to believe her.
The two women wandered deeper into the festival.
They sampled sweet cakes.
Drank warm honey tea.
Watched dancers perform.
Enjoyed puppet shows.
Everywhere they went, people were smiling.
The Empress quietly observed.
This—
More than wealth.
More than power.
Was what she wanted.
People living peacefully.
Children laughing.
Families together.
Princess Zhi noticed her thoughtful expression.
"What are you thinking about?"
The Empress looked around.
At the lanterns.
The music.
The laughter.
Then she smiled.
"I’m happy."
Princess Zhi smiled too.
"Me too."
Neither woman noticed—
From the rooftop of a distant building—
A shadowy figure was watching.
Motionless.
Patient.
Eyes fixed upon the Empress.
And far away inside the capital—
Another pair of eyes slowly opened.
Filled with cold intent.
The festival continued.
The villagers laughed.
The lanterns glowed.
But hidden beneath the joy—
The darkness was beginning to move once more.
The festival was at its peak.
Music echoed through the village square.
Children chased each other beneath glowing lanterns.
Merchants shouted happily while selling sweet cakes and roasted chestnuts.
The entire village seemed wrapped in warmth and joy.
The Empress and Princess Zhi were walking through the crowd carrying their prizes from the games.
Princess Zhi hugged her giant rabbit doll proudly.
The Empress was holding a paper lantern she had won earlier.
For once, neither of them thought about palace politics.
Neither thought about conspiracies.
They were simply enjoying themselves.
Then—
A scream shattered the atmosphere.
"Ghost!"
Another scream followed.
"There’s a ghost!"
"Run!"
The cheerful crowd suddenly erupted into chaos.
People began stumbling over each other.
Children started crying.
Vendors abandoned their stalls.
Within moments, panic spread like wildfire.
Princess Zhi nearly dropped her rabbit doll.
"What happened?"
The Empress frowned.
The crowd was moving rapidly away from something.
People were pale with fear.
An old woman was clutching prayer beads.
"Ghosts!"
"We’ve angered the heavens!"
The Empress exchanged a look with Princess Zhi.
Then both pushed through the crowd.
The villagers tried stopping them.
"Don’t go!"
"It’s dangerous!"
But the Empress continued forward.
Eventually they reached the source of the commotion.
Then—
Princess Zhi blinked.
The Empress stared.
For a few seconds there was complete silence.
Standing in the middle of the street were several figures.
White.
Bony.
Walking awkwardly.
The villagers were hiding behind carts and stalls while trembling in fear.
One man whispered.
"They came from the underworld."
Another nodded rapidly.
"I saw one move!"
The Empress looked at the figures.
Then looked again.
Then—
She laughed.
A loud laugh.
Princess Zhi stared.
The villagers stared.
The skeleton figures froze.
The Empress laughed harder.
Princess Zhi covered her face.
"Your Majesty..."
The Empress pointed toward the terrifying "ghosts."
"Those?"
"Those are ghosts?"
The crowd looked confused.
The Empress walked directly toward the figures.
The villagers gasped.
"Don’t go!"
"They’ll curse you!"
"They’ll eat your soul!"
The Empress ignored them.
She walked right up to one of the skeletons.
The figure tried making a scary noise.
"Whooooo..."
The Empress reached out.
Then grabbed its arm.
The entire crowd gasped.
Princess Zhi nearly laughed.
The Empress shook the arm.
The skeleton immediately squeaked.
A very human squeak.
The Empress smiled.
Then she pulled hard.
A piece of white cloth slipped loose.
Underneath—
Was a young man.
The crowd froze.
The young man froze.
The Empress raised an eyebrow.
"Interesting ghost."
The crowd stared.
The young man looked ready to faint.
The Empress folded her arms.
"Would a real ghost wear painted cloth over wooden frames?"
Complete silence.
Then realization slowly spread through the crowd.
One villager stepped closer.
Another followed.
Soon people were peeking from behind stalls.
The Empress pointed toward the skeleton costume.
"Look carefully."
"It’s not a ghost."
"It’s simply painted bones on cloth."
Princess Zhi walked forward.
She poked one of the skeletons.
The figure yelped.
The villagers blinked.
Princess Zhi smiled.
"Ghosts don’t yelp."
The crowd began murmuring.
"That’s true..."
"He sounds human..."
One brave child stepped forward.
Then another.
Soon the fear started disappearing.
The Empress grabbed the skeleton’s head.
Then lifted it off.
A young man appeared underneath.
The entire square went silent.
Then—
A little girl burst out laughing.
Soon another child laughed.
Then another.
Within moments the entire atmosphere changed.
The terrifying ghosts no longer looked terrifying.
They looked ridiculous.
The villagers started laughing.
The disguised men looked horrified.
An elderly grandfather pointed at them.
"So you’re the ghosts?"
One of the disguised men muttered.
"...Maybe."
The grandfather smacked him lightly with his cane.
"I nearly had a heart attack!"
The crowd burst into laughter.
Princess Zhi was laughing so hard tears appeared in her eyes.
The Empress shook her head.
"Why are you doing this?"
One young man scratched his head awkwardly.
"We wanted to make the festival memorable."
The Empress stared.
"You almost caused a stampede."
The young man looked embarrassed.
"...Sorry."
A village woman crossed her arms.
"My husband climbed onto a roof."
Everyone turned.
Indeed—
A middle-aged man was still sitting on top of a nearby roof.
The crowd exploded into laughter again.
The man turned red.
"I was scouting!"
"No," his wife shouted.
"You were terrified!"
More laughter.
Even the Empress couldn’t stop smiling.
The panic had completely disappeared.
Children were now running around wearing the skeleton masks.
The same costumes that caused terror minutes ago were now amusing everyone.
Princess Zhi pointed at one child.
"Look."
The little boy was pretending to be a ghost.
"Whoooo..."
Then he tripped.
The crowd laughed again.
The atmosphere became even more cheerful than before.
The villagers gathered around the Empress.
"Thank you, Miss."
Since she was disguised as a commoner, nobody recognized her.
"If you hadn’t checked, we’d still be hiding."
The Empress smiled.
"You don’t need to fear every strange thing you see."
The elderly grandfather nodded thoughtfully.
"You’re right."
Then he looked at the fake skeletons.
"And these fools deserve punishment."
The young men immediately protested.
The Empress laughed.
The festival resumed shortly afterward.
Music returned.
Merchants reopened their stalls.
Children continued playing.
Princess Zhi wiped tears from her eyes.
"I’ve never seen anything so funny."
The Empress shook her head.
"I thought they were real ghosts at first."
Princess Zhi looked shocked.
"You did?"
"For one second."
Princess Zhi immediately started laughing again.
The two women continued through the festival.
But neither noticed—
On a rooftop overlooking the square—
A hidden figure was watching.
Unlike the fake skeletons.
Unlike the pranksters.
This figure wasn’t laughing.
Its cold gaze remained fixed on the Empress.
And when the Empress disappeared into the crowd—
The shadow quietly vanished into the night.
Watching.
Waiting.
Preparing.
