The shield disappeared after I read the message. What good does that do me. That rules out the easy option of being forthright about telling my mother the truth of what we saw.
Discreetly.. as in no one can know what we saw or no one can know the tea is poisonous? But what good would that be.. it doesn't make sense not to tell anyone because what if they try again.
I think about it as I walk towards my mother and Aunt Fei. The tray with tea was still untouched on its mobile cart. I glance at both cups, which one has the poison? What if it's in my Aunt and not my Mothers and the other is still poisoned. I guess I have to get rid of it all.
I place both my hands on the tray pulling it closer to me. "Mother, Auntie let Lan'er and I take you tea. Lan'er showed me how to serve tea today. Isn't she amazing." Yun Lan throws me a confused look which I roll my eyes too motioning her to grab the tray.
"She did? That's good Lan's been taking etiquette lessons lately trying to knock out her more ...unladylike qualities." my aunt explains to my mom and I bite my lip to keep from laughing.
Poor Lan'er she made the mistake a year ago telling her family she wanted to start training to be a General like her father, when her mother has more ladylike goals for her.
About halfway to our mothers I turn around to grab their cups, I turn back around flashing an award winning smile. "Here you go Auntie Fei, Mother" Before placing the cups on the table I sway backwards, and trip forward tossing the cups under the table scraping my palm in the process.
"Baby! Are you okay? It must have been too heavy for you, Let me see! You need to be careful okay." My mother picks me up placing me on her chair. She looks at my bleeding wrist, blowing on it softly.
"Shin'er be more careful Love and Lan'er come over here be careful not to step on any of the broken glass. Auntie Yue please go get the doctor tell him the Princess got hurt." Aunt Fei orders swiftly.
"Baby don't cry every things going to be okay." My mother and aunt take turns clinging to me. Feelings swell up inside me. My mothers concerned face pushes me over the edge and I start to cry.
"I don't know what happened, I smelled something weird and felt dizzy in my head. I'm sorry Auntie I broke your pretty tea cups. You can punish Shin'er." I cry harder. My mother looks at the tea spilled all over the floor wanting to murder it.
"Emel, take that tray the girls just held investigate. Little Shin said something made her feel dizzy check all the tea especially the one spilt on the floor and all the deserts. Sorry Sister Fei but you should check with your servants and see who has reason to attempt this attack. We don't know if it was for us or the girls so let's corporate together."
Within all the excitement, I fall asleep in my mothers arms probably from all the crying. At least nobody drank the tea.
*Ping! New Notifications*
This again?!
The translucent shield popped up again. There were four new columns.
*System Update View New Mindscape*
*Review Downloaded Memory Content*
*Task Reward And Task Punishment*
*Input Modification Request*
Mindscape? Memory content? Aren't I in the memory wheel projection now? Reward.. Punishment... Mmm sounds risky. Input modification... Mmm that seems less complicated let's go with that.
I click on the shield option for settings.
[Mother!! Why did you ignore me]
"You again?"
[Shouldn't you be coming up with a plan to help me out of here?]
"!!!"
"Who are you calling Mother you psychotic Memory Wheel."
[No I'm not! Wait!! I'm not him, I kicked his butt out for you Mommy]
"Who are you calling Mommy can't you see I'm a child myself?"
[(cries) Mommy doesn't remember me Wahh]
"Ugh stop it with the Mommy stuff!"
[But you are my Mommy when you died last time. I was helping you and got pulled in here, and it made me the new master.. see]
*Ping!! New Memory Wheel Master Wants You View New Mindescape Space*
"Alright let's see it then"..
My mind gets pulled into a room about half the size of a training ground field. There's a peach tree with a little pond near it. And a little bird bath made of stone near the edge of the water.
What the hell..where am I?
"Mother!" A little dragon the size of my hand flies towards my face. I catch the little guy.
"Your a snake, how can I possibly be your mother stop calling me that." I sit down on the grass and let the little guy coil around my wrist.
"I'm not a snake I'm a dragon!" He slithers his tongue across my pinky finger.
"Hehe fine a little dragon snake, but how does that make me your mother. What did you mean by when I died before you got stuck here how?"
He rubs his head against my thumb hugging it to himself. "Well that's easy I was born a dragon from you and when you died I used my dragon call to give you some healing spirit energy but your crazy wheel guy sucked me in here! Then I saw him bullying Mother so I kicked him out." He says with a puffed up body. "Didn't I do well mother now I'm the Master here and nobody can bully you anymore!" He looks at me with eyes begging for praise.
I rub his little head. "G-good job little one." He seems to genuinely believe he's my child maybe he saw what happened and this is how he's dealing with it. No matter how I look at it, his explanation doesn't make sense how could I give birth to a dragon. Maybe it's all apart of the system he's like a service animal or something. Is this real? Am I reliving the past or is it possible that I was reborn?
"The only thing is I can't get out no matter how hard I try, but I can see you now and we can play in here or train when you cultivate this place doubles the spirit energy intake while cultivating here!" He goes on to explain. "Also you can plant stuff and it grows really fast here, like my peach tree I was starving so I planted a seed it and it only took a few hours to grow and now I have lots of food!" I look at the peach tree amazed wait…are those spirit fruits? Where did he even get the seed to plant?
I look at the little dragon who's dancing between my fingers. No matter how much I think of it nothing makes sense. This little guys cute but definitely suspicious or he's not telling me the whole truth.
"So why are you a dragon?"
He stops dancing and looks up at me nervously.
"I dunno that's how I was born."
"Really now? Then how did you get the seed for the spirit fruit or were you born with that as well?"
"..."