bookbashuk Chapter 23 A Glowing "Magic Artifact"?
Chapter 23 A Glowing "Magic Artifact"?
Li Lizhi personally took out three small Yue kiln celadon bowls from the food box held by the palace maid.
The bowl contains a translucent, agar-agar-like broth. The broth is clear and slightly yellow, with soft, cooked pear chunks and lily petals floating in it, garnished with a few bright red goji berries, and exuding a sweet honey aroma and a faint fruity fragrance.
"This is chilled rock sugar pear and lily soup, which is very good for moisturizing the lungs and promoting saliva production. You've been playing for a while, have some," Li Lizhi said softly. The palace servants had already placed a small table in front of the children.
Sizi was frail and couldn't tolerate too much cold; her bowl was only slightly chilled. Li Lizhi tested the temperature first before carefully handing it to her. Sizi held the lukewarm porcelain bowl with both hands, sipping it slowly, her brows relaxed: "Thank you, elder sister."
Li Zhi, on the other hand, ate with a refined manner, using a porcelain spoon to scoop the food.
Xiao Qingyi, however, was at a loss when faced with the exquisite bowl and soup—she lacked the confidence to drink the soup steadily without spilling it using such a small spoon.
She looked at the bowl, then looked at Li Lizhi for help.
Li Lizhi understood and smiled, gesturing to the palace maids behind her. An older palace maid stepped forward, knelt beside Xiao Qingyi, and patiently prepared to feed her with a silver spoon.
"I'll do it myself!" Xiao Qingyi shook her head; she had her own way. She put down the porcelain spoon, picked up the porcelain bowl—which was a bit too big for her—with her two chubby little hands, and, just like when she drank soup at home, lowered her head, brought the bowl to the rim, and gulped down a big mouthful.
"Mmm..." The cool and sweet soup slid down her throat, carrying the refreshing taste of pear and the sweetness of rock sugar, more natural and gentle than any juice she had ever drunk.
Her eyes lit up, and she couldn't resist taking another big gulp, leaving a glistening mark on the rim of the bowl on the tip of her nose.
"Drink slowly, be careful not to choke." Li Lizhi smiled and took out her silk handkerchief to gently wipe the traces from the tip of her nose.
Li Zhi and Si Zi were amused by her bold (and somewhat improper) drinking style, and the atmosphere in the hall became relaxed.
The bowl of sweet soup was quickly emptied. Xiao Qingyi licked her lips, still wanting more, when suddenly she remembered something and reached into her seemingly all-encompassing pink backpack again.
"I have some goodies too! I'll share them with you all!" She rummaged around and pulled out several small bags of individually wrapped snacks—cheese biscuits with cartoon rabbit patterns printed on them, and two colorful jelly sticks.
"What is this?" Li Zhi's attention was immediately drawn to it. The packaging material was smooth and vibrant, and the pictures on it were lifelike, unlike anything he had ever seen before.
"It's cookies and jelly! It's so delicious!" Xiao Qingyi skillfully tore open the packaging of the cheese cookies, and a fragrant aroma of milk and a hint of salt wafted out. She took out one first and handed it to Sizi beside her: "Sizi-jie, you have to try it, it's milky!"
Sizi curiously took the golden cookie with the little rabbit indentation on it; it felt hard in her hand. She carefully took a small bite, mimicking how she ate pastries before.
The crispy texture, accompanied by the rich, savory aroma of cheese, melted in her mouth, a stark contrast to the sweet and sticky desserts she usually ate. "Such a rich milky flavor...it's delicious." She savored it carefully and took another bite.
Li Zhi also received a piece. He paid more attention to observation, first looking at the packaging, then carefully examining the structure and color of the biscuit before putting it in his mouth. Salty, fragrant, and crispy, it certainly had a unique flavor. "This 'biscuit'... is easy to store and convenient to carry, and it seems it could be used as dry rations on military campaigns." He subconsciously analyzed it from a practical perspective.
"And this!" Xiao Qingyi tore open another orange strip of jelly, the soft, bouncy jelly trembling slightly. Feeling a little embarrassed to take it directly with her hands, she held up the packaging, indicating that Li Zhi and Si Zi could just bite into it. This way of sharing was very normal for her.
Li Lizhi watched from the side, intending to remind the palace servants to bring out small dishes and silver tags, but seeing that her younger siblings were already attracted by the novelty and Xiao Qingyi was very enthusiastic, she smiled and shook her head, letting them do as they pleased.
The jelly was cool and smooth, with a rich, artificially sweet orange flavor. This texture was a completely new experience for Li Zhi and Si Zi. Si Zi especially loved the slippery, trembling feel, and her eyes curved into crescent moons.
After sharing snacks, the children were clearly closer. Li Zhi's gaze, however, involuntarily drifted back to Xiao Qingyi's wrist—where she wore an even stranger object.
It was a wide, flat "bracelet," made of neither gold nor jade, with a matte pale pink color. Most strangely, on the front of the "bracelet" was a black "mirror," which was now dim, but when Xiao Qingyi took something out just now, there seemed to be a flash of light on that "mirror."
"Sister Yiyi," Li Zhi finally couldn't resist his curiosity and pointed to her phone watch, asking in as calm a tone as possible, "What is that on your wrist? It seems... not an ordinary ornament."
Xiao Qingyi raised her wrist and shook it: "This? It's a phone watch!"
"Telephone...? Watch?" Li Zhi and Si Zi repeated the strange combination of syllables together, their faces full of confusion. Even Li Lizhi cast a curious glance at them.
"It's...it's for telling time! And you can make phone calls too!" Xiao Qingyi said, habitually pressing a button on the side with her other hand.
A soft "beep" sounded.
In an instant, the black "mirror" suddenly lit up! Under the soft light, a clear colorful pattern emerged: a cute cartoon smiley face, with the constantly changing number below it—14:27.
"Ah!" Si Zi exclaimed softly, instinctively shrinking back, but then she was drawn to the glowing face and the moving numbers, looking over timidly and curiously.
Li Zhi instantly straightened his back, his eyes fixed on the glowing dial, his face filled with shock and disbelief. It glowed on its own?! Displayed characters (Arabic numerals) he'd never seen before?! And it could change shape?!
This...this is completely beyond his understanding of "objects"! The water clocks and sundials in the palace all rely on water, sunlight, or human observation. And this thing, it just lights up on its own, displaying numbers that seem to represent the time?
Li Lizhi also covered her mouth slightly, her eyes sparkling with wonder. She was more knowledgeable than her younger siblings, but she had never imagined that such a strange thing existed in the world.
"Why...why does it emit light on its own? Are the symbols on it indicating the time? 'The third quarter of the hour of Wei'?" Li Zhi's voice was a little tight as he pointed to the numbers and asked, trying his best to use his knowledge to understand.
"Yes! It's... 2:27 now!" Xiao Qingyi read the number, then frowned in distress. "The time at our grandparents' house seems to be different from the time at home..."
2:27? This is yet another completely new way of saying time.
Li Zhi's mind raced. Self-illuminating, automatically displaying, peculiar timing symbols… this was beyond mere "exquisite." A vague, slightly awe-inspiring thought flashed through his mind: Could it be… that this truly was some kind of… "magical artifact"? A celestial object?
His gaze towards Xiao Qingyi became incredibly complex. Where did this little sister come from? Everything she brought was so inexplicable.
"Yiyi," Li Zhi's tone became unusually solemn, even carrying a hint of caution that he himself was unaware of, "This thing... is it permissible to touch it?" He wanted to examine it more closely, but dared not be presumptuous.
"Sure!" Xiao Qingyi generously stretched out her little arm. Li Zhi held his breath and very carefully touched the watch case with his fingertips. It was cool, hard, and felt like jade but not quite. He then looked at the glowing screen; the light was steady and definitely not candlelight.
Just as he was engrossed in his research, Xiao Qingyi accidentally touched another button.
"Hey? Baby, do you miss Mommy?" A gentle, smiling, and crystal-clear female voice suddenly came from the watch! — This was a voice message that Ye Yier had recorded beforehand, which would play when a specific button was pressed.
"Whoa!" Si Zi was really startled this time, almost knocking over the bowl of sweet soup, and tightly grabbed the sleeve of her older sister next to her.
Li Zhi was struck as if by lightning. He abruptly withdrew his hand, took two steps back, and bumped into the Duobao Pavilion behind him. His face drained of color, and his eyes were filled with horror!
There's a sound! A clear human voice is coming from this tiny "bracelet"! It's not an illusion!
Li Lizhi was also startled and stood up, shielding Sizi behind her. Her beautiful eyes widened as she stared in disbelief at the "watch" that was still emitting a gentle human voice.
The hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, except for Ye Yier's gentle greeting playing on repeat on the watch, which seemed particularly abrupt and mysterious.
Xiao Qingyi looked at her older brother and sister who suddenly panicked and the beautiful Jie Jie who looked shocked. She blinked in confusion, then pressed the button again, and the sound stopped.
"That's my mom's voice," she said, shaking her watch in confusion. "What's wrong with you? Are you scared? This isn't scary."
Li Zhi's heart pounded violently for a long time. He looked at Xiao Qingyi's innocent face, and then at the "magical artifact" that had now returned to silence but still emitted a faint light. An unprecedented realization struck his heart.
This Li Qingyi... her and everything she brought...
I'm afraid they really aren't from this place.
The atmosphere in the side hall seemed to freeze, filled with an incredulous astonishment and an almost awe-inspiring silence.
The look in Li Zhi's eyes when he looked at Xiao Qingyi contained not only affection and curiosity, but also a deep-seated sense of solemnity as he was dealing with an "extraordinary matter."