She thought she was going to die.
She did.
But the next time she opened her eyes , she found out that she was living a whole new life, as a little girl who was going to enter a noble household as a maid.
However, a true pearl can never hide its lus...
She opened the pouch with trembling fingers. Inside was a wooden comb, with a red tassel attached to the body. Although it was not intricately engraved - merely depicting some cloud pattern - the polished surface and every tooth of the comb had been crafted to the highest quality, smooth and neat.
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There was also a small paper scroll. The written characters on it were not soft and elegant like her own handwriting, but it brought nostalgic and bittersweet feeling to YuLan.
The penmanship was bold, crooked, and looked like wriggling worms. YuLan let out a giggle, but she also had to swallow a silent sob as she read the letter,
["Dear Bai YuLan,"]
["I bought this comb when Mother and I were choosing some hairpins designs, for my hairpin ceremony."]
["I know second Mother had given you a hairpin, and I am really not your elder, so it's probably inappropriate for me to give you a hairpin."]
["Regardless, as the ceremony came closer, and the day finally marked my coming of age, I could not help but to think of you."]
["A long time ago, which now does not seem that long, I thought that we would always be together. That you would be present for my hairpin ceremony, as I would be for yours."]
["I did not care, nor did I understand the importance of your lack of status in the society, that would cause all sorts of problems if I would have it my way."]
["Nevertheless, it is not important now."]
["I sincerely wish, you are happy and well."]
["I had hated you for a while, but now I am alright. I am happy. I have grown. With the hairpin ceremony symbolizing it, I am now an adult."]
["However, please know that sometimes I still think of you."]
["Please, also think of me sometimes."]
["I have always truly thought of you as my own sister"]
[--"Ji LanBai"]
She held onto the letter and the comb for a while, closing her eyes. The sound of a little girl's ringing laugh echoed in her mind, the smile of the bubbly china doll imprinted in her memory. She took a deep breath, settling the burst of reminiscence.
Then she opened her eyes, inspecting the hairpin with the green agate closely. It was not as elaborate as the one Hai FenChu had given, when she left Ji house years ago.
If YuLan thought Hai FenChu's chosen hairpin was beautiful and so valuable that she did not even dare to wear it often, with this green agate hairpin, she was instantly smitten. The hairpin was simple but beautiful, the agate emitted a deep green hue under low light, but bright lime color under the sun. If she found a hairpiece like that sold in a jewelry shop, she would have even bought it for herself.
