Chapter 23 Chapter Twenty-Three

The next morning, I woke up feeling a little guilty, maybe even a little scared, because even if I didn't respond to Maxson's tug on his earlobe, it didn't mean he couldn't come to my room to find me.We could easily be caught if anyone knew what I did... This is the great crime of treason, and there is only one way for the royal family to punish the treasonous criminal. But another voice inside me said, I don't care at all.In my bleary-eyed moment, I relived every look, every touch and every kiss from Aspen.I really miss him. I wish we had had more time to talk, and would really like to know what Aspen thinks, though, what happened last night was obvious enough.It's just that, after trying so hard not to think about him for so long, suddenly knowing that he still wants to be with me, this is just too unbelievable.

It's a Saturday, and I was supposed to go to the women's space, but I knew I wouldn't be able to sit still.I needed to think, and in that space full of chatter, I knew I wouldn't be able to concentrate.When the maids came, I told them that I had a headache and that I was going to stay in bed today. They were so sweet, brought me food, and cleaned the room so quickly that I felt a little guilty about lying to them.But I can't help but lie, I can't face the Queen and the other girls, let alone Maxson, I have only Aspen in my whole head. I closed my eyes but stayed awake, trying to sort out my feelings, but it wasn't long before there was a knock on the door.I turned over and saw Anne's eyes silently asking me if she wanted to answer the door.I immediately sat up, combed my hair, and nodded to her.

I prayed that it wasn't Maxson outside the door, I was afraid that he would see my mistake from my expression, but I had no idea that it was Aspen who came in.I feel myself sitting up straighter instinctively, and I hope the maids don't notice my anomaly. "I'm sorry, ma'am," he said to Annie. "This is Constable Ledger. I'm here to talk to Ms. America about safety measures." "No problem." With a much warmer smile than usual, she beckoned Aspen to come in.I also saw Mary nudging Lucy in the corner, and she still couldn't help laughing.

Hearing voices from the corner, Aspen turned to them and took off his hat to greet them: "Hello, ladies." Lucy hung her head, Mary's face was redder than mine, and they didn't respond.Although Anne was also attracted by Aspen's handsome appearance, she could still control her emotions and speak. "Miss, do you need us to go out?" I thought about it, and although I didn't want to be too obvious, it's always good to have some privacy. "Let's go out for a while, I believe the police officer Ledger doesn't need to take up too much of my time." I made up my mind, and they went out briskly.

When they were all out, Aspen said, "I'm afraid you're wrong. I'll take you a long time." He winked at me. I shook my head, "I still can't believe you're here." Without hesitation, Aspen took off his hat, sat down on the edge of my bed, and put his hand close to mine, almost touching: "I never thought that conscription would be a lucky thing, but if it gives I have the opportunity to apologize to you, and I really appreciate it." I was shocked and didn't know what to say. Aspen looked into my eyes deeply: "Forgive me, Ami, I was so stupid. I started to regret that night as soon as I climbed down from the tree house. I was too stubborn, so I didn't say anything, Then, you were chosen... I don't know what else to do." He paused, tears appearing in his eyes.Will Aspen cry for each other like I do? "I still love you dearly."

I bit my lip, holding back tears.Before I think about getting back together, I have to ask one thing. "And what about Breonna?" He lowered his face: "What?" My breathing was a little uneven: "When I left, I saw the two of you appearing in the square together. Are you over?" Aspen narrowed his eyes to concentrate on thinking, then he laughed out loud, covered his mouth with his hands, lay back on the bed, and immediately jumped up and asked, "You think so? Oh, Ami, She fell! I just gave her a hand." "She tripped?" "Yeah, there were so many people in the square, people stepped on people, she fell on me and joked about being clumsy, and you know, that's what Breonna is." The ground falls on flat ground, why didn't I think of this before? "After I helped her up, I rushed to the podium immediately."

I remember that at that time, Aspen tried his best to get close to me, but it turned out that it was not a fake.I smiled: "Then what are you going to do in front of the podium?" He shrugged: "I didn't think so far, I just want to ask you to stay. If I can get you out of that car, I am ready to make a fool of myself, but, how angry you were at that time... and now I I know why you are angry." He sighed, "I really can't convince myself, and maybe you will be happy here." He looked around the room, all the beautiful things in it belong to me temporarily, I can Understand why he would think so.

"And then," he went on, "I thought I could win your heart again when you got home." His voice was suddenly full of worry, "I'm so sure you want to leave right away and go home as soon as possible , but...you didn't." He stopped to look at me, but didn't ask how close I was to Maxson, although of course he'd seen some of it with his own eyes.But he doesn't know that we've kissed, or that we've had secret code words.I don't want to explain this to him. "And then the conscription started, so I thought it wouldn't be fair if I wrote to you, after all I might die outside. I don't want you to love me again and then..."

"Love you again?" It's unbelievable that he would think so, "Espen, I never stopped loving you." Quickly but gently, Aspen leaned over and kissed me.He stroked my face with one hand and pulled me toward him.The bits and pieces of the past two years are coming alive again, and I'm so glad they're still there. "I'm really sorry." He whispered as he kissed me, "I'm really sorry, Ami." He stepped back and looked at me with a smile on his handsome face and the question I was thinking in his eyes: what do we do now? At this moment, the door of the room opened.I was terrified of what the maids would do when they saw Aspen so close.

"Fortunately, you're back!" He touched my face hard at the last second, then moved his hand to my forehead, "Miss, I don't think you have a fever." "What's the problem?" Annie rushed over with a worried face. Aspen stood up: "She just said that something is wrong, her head hurts." "Is your headache getting worse, Miss?" asked Mary. "You look so pale!" I'm sure I must have been very pale, the moment they saw us together, there must have been no blood on my face.But Espen remained calm under pressure and saved the field in a thousandth of a second.

"I'll get the medicine." Lucy interrupted, and went into the bathroom immediately. "I'm sorry, miss." As the maids had gone to work, Aspen said, "I won't bother you anymore. I'll come back when you feel better." From his eyes, I saw the face I had kissed thousands of times in the tree house.The world between us is new, but our connection has not changed at all. "Thank you, officer," I said weakly. He bowed and left. Then, the maids were busy around me, trying their best to cure a disease that didn't exist at all. My head doesn't hurt, but my heart does.How familiar it was to wait in Aspen's arms, as if it had never been gone. In the middle of the night, I was suddenly woken up by Annie shaking me. "Varied--?" "Miss, please get up!" Her voice was full of panic and fear. "We've been attacked and we need to send you to the basement as soon as possible." My mind was a little fuzzy and I wasn't sure if I heard correctly, but behind her I saw Lucy was already crying. "They broke in?" My voice was full of disbelief. Lucy's wailing of terror was the answer I needed. "What should we do?" The sudden surge of adrenaline made me fully awake, and I rolled over and got out of bed.Mary helped me put on my shoes at once, and Anne took a nightgown and helped me put it on.All I have in mind are the Southern Rebels or the Northern Rebels? "There is a secret door around the corner that will take you directly to the safe room in the basement, where the guards will be waiting for you. The royal family and most of the candidate girls should be there already, hurry up, miss." Anne told me Pull it into the corridor, press a certain area on the wall, the wall will move, and the same secret passage as in detective novels will appear.As I expected, a staircase awaited me behind the wall.When I stood in front of it, Ding Ni came out of the room and quickly went down the stairs. "Okay, let's go too," I said, and Anne and Mary stared at me dumbfounded, while Lucy was too trembling to stand. "Go," I repeated. "No, miss, we're going somewhere else. You go, or they're coming, please!" I knew that if they were found, they would at least be injured, and at worst, their lives might not be saved.I can't stand them being hurt.Maybe I'm a little arrogant, even if we are fighting, but thinking about what Maxson has done for me so far, if they are important to me, they may have weight to him.Maybe I'm asking too much, but I won't keep them here.Fear set me in motion, and I grabbed Anne's arm and pushed her in.She staggered and couldn't stop me from pulling Mary and Lucy. "Go!" I ordered them. They walked on, but Anne protested all the way: "They won't let us in, miss! This place is only for the royal family...they'll kick us out!" But I didn't care what she said.Wherever the hiding places for servants were, they could not be as safe as those of the royal family. The stairs are lit at short intervals, but I almost fell a few times because I was running in a hurry.My mind was full of worries: Where had these rebels attacked before?Do they know these secret passages of hiding?Lucy was already half paralyzed, and all I had to do was pull her tight, keeping everyone close together. Can't tell how long it took to get to the bottom.At the end of this secret passage was a man-made cave, and there were other girls at the other opening of the stairs. Everyone walked to a door that seemed to be two feet thick.This is our refuge. "Thank you for bringing her here, you can go," a guard told my maids. "No! They want to stay here with me." I said indisputably. "Miss, they have their own place to go." He retorted. "Well, if they can't come in, then I won't go in. I believe Prince Maxson will know that I didn't show up because of your actions. Ladies, let's go." I took Mary and Lucy's hands , Annie was too scared to move. "Wait! Wait! Well, go in. But if anyone has a problem with that, it's your problem." "That's not a problem," I said.I helped them turn around and walked into the safe room with our heads held high. There was already commotion inside, several girls hugged and cried bitterly, and some were praying.I saw the king and queen sitting on one side, surrounded by soldiers.Beside them, Maxson took Elena's hand.She looked a bit startled, but was visibly better under his reassurance.I look at where the royals are in the house...near the door.I wonder if this is the same as the captain when the ship sank, they will try their best to make the palace safe, but if there is any problem, they will be the first to die. They saw me coming in and the people I brought.Seeing everyone's confused expressions, I nodded and continued walking with my head held high.I thought, as long as I behave calmly, no one will bother. I'm wrong. I took three more steps, and Sylvia came over, she was very calm.Of course, she clearly knows all of this. "Okay, help is here. Go to the cistern at the back immediately, girls, and bring the water to the royals and ladies. Go now," she ordered. "No." I turned to Anne, giving her my first real command, "Anne, please get some water for the king, queen and prince, and come back to me." I turned back to Sylvia , "Others can get for themselves, they choose to keep their maids, and they get their own water. Mine will sit with me. Come, ladies." I know that, with us being so close to the royal family, they must hear me; and, because I want to be unquestionable, I do raise my voice a bit, but I don't care if they think I'm rude.Lucy is more frightened than most of the people in this room. She is shaking from head to toe, and in this state, I can't ask her to serve people who are not half as good as she is. Maybe it's because of the habits I've developed over the years as a sister, I just want to protect them. We find a small space deep in the room.The person who prepared this room must have not prepared for Faye Wong's candidate, there are almost no stools in it.But I see enough food and water stored there, enough for us to stay here for a few months, if it was really necessary. There are people from all walks of life hiding here, and there are a few who are obviously officials, working all night in suits and leather shoes.Maxson was also fully dressed, but almost all the girls wore thin nightgowns, the thickness only suitable for being in the warm room upstairs.Not everyone remembers to pack a dressing gown when in a hurry, and I feel a bit chilly in my dressing gown. Most of the girls were gathered at the front of the room, and it was obvious that if anyone came in they would be the first to fall.But if that doesn't happen, it can stay with Maxson for a long time!A few of us who were closer to us were in the same state as Lucy, trembling, crying, and a little dazed in panic. I held Lucy in one arm and Mary held her in the other.There was nothing to cheer everyone up under the circumstances, so we all kept silent.Listening to the noise in the room, the noisy environment reminded me of the first day I came here, the scene where they helped us makeover.I closed my eyes, recalled that day, and tried to calm myself down. "How are you?" I looked up and saw Aspen in a handsome uniform.His tone was professional, and he didn't seem in the least bit intimidated.I sigh. "Well, thank you." We all fell silent for a moment, watching the others settle in the room.Mary was visibly tired and had fallen asleep against Lucy.But considering the current situation, Lucy was relatively calm, she stopped crying, and sat there looking at Aspen with an inexplicable admiration in her eyes. "It's very kind of you to bring the maids here, not everyone can be so kind to the people below." He said. "Levels have never meant much to me," I said quietly.He gave me a smile back. Lucy took a deep breath and seemed about to ask Aspen something, but there was a loud yell from the room, and a guard at the other end ordered us to be quiet. Aspen walked away, which was good, I was afraid someone would see something was wrong. "This is the guard who came this morning, isn't it?" asked Lucy. "um, yes." "I've been seeing him guarding your room lately, he's so nice," she commented. I believe that if Aspen and my maids had the opportunity to speak, he would be as gentle as he spoke to me, after all, they are all sixth grade. "He's so handsome," she added. I smiled and wanted to say something, but the guard told us to keep quiet.After a few conversations faded away, an eerie silence filled the room. Silence was worse than noise, and without any senses to guide me, I couldn't help but imagine, my mind was filled with all kinds of horrible scenes: destroyed rooms, many corpses, ruthless enemies lurking not far from the door. military.I suddenly realized that I was grabbing the girl next to me, as if we could protect each other. The only one moving was Maxson, walking up and down making sure every girl was okay.When he came to my corner, only Lucy and I were awake, and we would whisper a word or two from time to time, almost lip-reading each other.Maxson came over and smiled at the group of people sleeping next to me.At that moment, although I really wanted to solve that problem, I was no longer angry because of the argument.I saw his grateful smile, simply happy for my safety, and a pang of guilt rushed into my head... What have I done? "Are you okay?" he asked. I nod.He looked at Lucy, then talked to her over me.I took a breath, and the McKesson didn't smell like anything that could be bottled and sealed, like cinnamon, or vanilla, or even homemade soap.He had his own peculiar smell, a mixture of burning chemicals. "What about you?" he asked Lucy. She nodded too. "Are you surprised you're here?" He smiled at Lucy, trying to look relaxed under the circumstances. "No, Your Highness, I'm not surprised to be with her." Lucy nodded at me. Maxson turned to look at me, his face was so close to mine, I felt a little uncomfortable, too many people could see us like this, including Aspen.But the moment was over, and he turned back to Lucy. "I understand what you mean." Maxson smiled again, as if he wanted to say something, but changed his mind and straightened up. I immediately grabbed his arm and whispered, "South or North?" "Do you remember that photoshoot?" He let out a breath. I was startled and nodded.The rebels pushed slowly northwest, burning crops and killing innocent people along the way, "stopping them," he said.These rebels, these murderers, have been coming our way all this time, and we can't stop them.They were killers, they were Southern rebels. "Don't tell anyone." He left to talk to Fiona.She was crying silently, still calm. I tried to catch my breath evenly, imagining that even if they came, I could still escape.Of course, this is just self-consolation. If the rebels come down, we are all finished.Right now, there's nothing to do but wait. Time passed bit by bit, I don't know the exact time.But most of the people who were asleep woke up, and those of us who insisted on not sleeping were almost overwhelmed. Finally, some guards went out to check, and the door opened a little.It took them a long time to inspect the palace, but they finally came back. "Ladies and gentlemen," said one of the guards, "the rebels have been repulsed. We ask everyone to go back to their rooms by the stairs at the back. It's chaotic up there, and quite a few guards have been injured, so everyone Best to bypass the main rooms and corridors, these will be cleared later. Candidates of Faye Wong, please return to the room and wait for further notice. I have spoken to the kitchen, and the food will be delivered within an hour Go to your rooms. I need all medical staff to report to the medical area." Just like that, people stood up and walked out, as if nothing had happened, some people also showed bored emotions.Except for a few who reacted like Lucy, the others didn't take the attack seriously, as if they had expected it to happen. My room was turned upside down, the mattress was on the floor, all the dresses in the closet were thrown out, and family photos were torn up and thrown on the floor.I looked around for my little jar, it was still intact with the penny inside, it just rolled under the bed.I tried not to cry, but the tears kept coming up.Although I am afraid, I want to cry not because of fear, but because I don't like the enemy touching my things and staining them all. We were so tired, but still took a moment to put things together.Annie found some tape and asked me to stick the pictures up.After I got the tape, I told the maids to rest. Anne objected, but I didn't care what she said.Now that I've tapped the ability to command, I'm not afraid to use it. After being alone, I started to cry.Those fears, while mostly in the past, still affect me. I took out the jeans that Maxon had given me and put on the only top I brought from home, which made me feel more normal.My hair was a complete mess after a night and morning of tossing, so I rolled it up on top of my head with just a little bit of it falling out. I put the pieces of the photo on the bed, trying to figure out which piece should go with which.It's like finding four different copies of a puzzle in one box.I managed to piece together only one photo before someone knocked on the door. I think it's McKesson.It has to be McKesson.I opened the door hopefully. "Hello, honey." It was Sylvia, she pouted, probably to comfort me.She rushed into my room, then turned to look at my clothes. "Oh, don't tell me you're leaving too," she cries, "Really, that's nothing." With a wave of her hand she's about to erase the whole thing from last night. I wouldn't say it's nothing.Can't she see that I've been crying? "I'm not leaving," I said, pinning a lock of hair behind my ear. "Anyone else going home?" She sighed: "Yeah, there are three going now, and good Maxon told me to let everyone who wants to go home, and now the arrangements are being made. It's ironic, like he knows some It looks like the girl will definitely leave. But if I were you, I really have to think twice about leaving for such nonsense." Sylvia walked around my room, looking at the decorations.mess around?What's wrong with this woman? "Did they take anything?" she asked casually. "No, ma'am. They've made a mess, but they haven't found anything missing yet." "Very good." She walked up to me and handed me a small wireless phone. "This is the safest line in the palace. Call home and tell them you're safe. But don't talk too long, I'm going to see some other girls." Looking at this tiny phone, I was amazed, the first time I've seen a cordless phone in my age.I have seen the second and third grades in my hands before, but I never thought that I would have the opportunity to use them one day, and my hands were shaking with excitement.I can finally hear my family's voices! I pressed the phone button eagerly.After something so horrific, a phone call is all it takes to cheer me up.After two rings, my mother answered the phone. "hello?" "mom?" "America! Is that you? Are you okay? A guard called and told us that we might not be able to contact you for a few days, so we know that those nasty rebels must have attacked the palace again, but Scared us to death." She began to cry. "Oh, don't cry, Mom, I'm safe." I glanced at Sylvia, who looked bored. "Wait." There was a tumbling voice on the phone. "America?" Xiaomei's voice was obviously nasal from crying, she must be very upset. "Xiaomei! Oh, Xiaomei, I miss you so much!" I felt like I was about to lose control of my tears. "America! I thought you were dead! I love you. Promise me you can't die," she wailed. "I promise you." I couldn't help smiling for such an oath. "Can you go home? Can't you? I don't want you to be there anymore." Little Meiji almost begged me. "Go home?" I asked. I felt a lot of emotions at the same time, homesick and tired of always avoiding rebels.Also, I'm getting more and more uncertain about Aspen and Maxson, and I don't know how to deal with it.The easiest way is to leave. "No, Xiaomei, I can't go home, I want to stay here." "Why?" Xiaomei wailed. "Because..." I said simply. "Because of what?" "just because of." Xiaomei was silent for a moment, probably thinking: "Are you in love with Maxson?" At this moment, what I heard was what Xiaomei, who was crazy about boys, would say.So she's fine. "Well, I don't know, but..." "America! You're in love with Maxson! Oh my gosh!" I heard Dad yelling behind me, "What?" and Mom kept saying, "Great, great, great!" "Xiaomei, I didn't say that..." "I knew it!" Xiaomei just laughed and laughed, and just like that, her fear of losing me disappeared immediately. "Xiaomei, I'm going to hang up. Others need to use this phone. I just want you to know that I'm fine. I promise you that I will write to you as soon as possible." "Yeah, yeah, tell me about Maxson! Bring back some sweets too! I love you!" she yelled. "I love you too, bye." I hung up the phone before she asked for anything else.But the moment her voice cut off, I missed her more than before. Sylvia quickly took the phone from me, and walked to the door of the room in a blink of an eye. "This is a good boy." She left such a sentence and disappeared into the corridor. I sure don't feel better right now, but I also know that as long as I figure out what to do with Aspen and Maxson, everything will be fine.