Shuang Jiang [1], Cold Moon, late at night.

In the Palace of a Hundred Flowers, the twenty-four Flower Ladies knelt down on the brightly colored tiles of the Grand Hall, one after another. They held their breath, rapt with attention. A gust of night breeze passed over, the shadows of the trees outside the hall swayed, scattering the moonlight. In the middle of the hall, a gauze curtain the color of water swayed lightly, as the person behind the curtain breathed feebly.

That person was lying on her side, covered by the colorful cloud quilt on her bed. Her hairpin was a branch of black plum, her eyes moved slightly, half open and half closed. Her facial features were peerless, although she was pale and emaciated, her expression and bearing were refined, which made others unable to tear their eyes away. A white mist from the moonlight scattered over her slightly wrinkled brow.

Suddenly, her breath became hurried, the lingering scent in the Grand Hall gradually became stronger with her every breath, the collective scent of ten thousand flowers and a hundred fragrances. The scent became stronger and stronger, and the twenty-four Flower Ladies, who had prostrated themselves, ignored etiquette and raised their heads, one after another. They gazed towards the curtain, unable to hide the worry on their faces, but still did not dare to make a sound.

Magnolias, apricot blossoms, jasmine, cassia, cotton roses, Japanese camellias, lotuses and roses… Behind the gauze curtain was an assortment of open blooms, but they were quickly withering, the flower petals scattering like after a torrential rainstorm, an excess of fallen petals. Instantly, the colored tiles of the Grand Hall were covered in a sea of flowers, beautiful and vast, but hopelessly alone.

After the narcissus flower fell, signaling the last proud wintersweet blooming in the winter, an instant later, every flower floated downwards. After the last red plum regretfully landed amongst the sea of flowers, it thickened into a clear, purple water droplet. Her bright fingertips stroked past lightly to catch this falling water droplet, she held it against her chest, and in a flash, this water droplet flower turned into a fresh-faced baby.

“My Lady!” Mu Dan [2] parted the gauze curtain, crawled next to the bed and reached out to take that baby girl, who was sleeping deeply with her eyes closed. She gazed at the person lying on the bed, whose face was rapidly draining of all color, and could no longer hold back her tears.

“Follow my orders. After today, the birth story of my child will follow me to my grave. Anyone who discloses this will be completely destroyed!” The breath of the person on the bed was very weak, her voice was not loud, but still had a kind of forcefulness and dignity.

“We will obey! Your subordinates will closely follow My Lady’s decree! If we disobey the slightest, we will destroy ourselves completely!” The twenty-four Flower Ladies, including Mu Dan, who was still holding the baby girl, bowed down respectfully.

The person on the bed gazed at the people who had just sworn such an oath with tears shimmering underneath her eyelids, as if she was relieved: “I can rest easy now. Everyone can rise. Mu Dan, come here.” She lifted her hand and waved weakly, the flower petal swirling around with her movement.

“My Lady!” Mu Dan held the baby and moved closer to the bed.

“Make her swallow this.” The person on the bed passed a crimson pill into her hand. Mu Dan obeyed and placed it in the baby’s mouth, using dew to force the baby to swallow that pearl.

The emaciated face of the person on the bed revealed a relieved smile, so light that it was hard to distinguish: “That is the Unfeeling Pill. Anyone who eat that pill will be devoid of any affection or love.”

“My Lady, you did this….?” Mu Dan heard a choked breath.

“Without feelings, she will be strong, and without love, her life will be free and easy. This is the greatest blessing I can give her. My child cannot be like I was…” Thinking this, she patiently endured the enormous pain, but just as the person on the bed calmed down, her brow suddenly wrinkled again, her pale and weak hand covering her heart.

“My Lady!”

The person on the bed slowly exhaled: “I’m fine.” She opened her eyes again: “Is today ‘Shuang Jiang’?”

“Yes.” Ding Xiang [3] replied from the end of the bed.

The expression in the eyes of the person on the bed dimmed, as if she was submerged within a vast memory. After being silent for a moment, she stroked that baby’s flower petal-like cheeks and faintly opened her mouth: “Call her ‘Jin Mi’.”

“Yes! Your subordinates congratulate the young deity Jin Mi for being born to this world!” The twenty-four Flower Ladies bowed gracefully again.

“There no need. There isn’t any young deity, and after I am destroyed, do not create her as the new Flower Deity.” She waved her hand, the jade bracelets on her wrists tinkling, like the sound of the rain rustling, light and free. She smiled sorrowfully and said: “It is better to be an unencumbered immortal.”

“My Lady, please reconsider. How can out Flower World be without a master?” Below the dais, Xing Hua [4] worriedly raised her head.

“I have already decided. After I pass, you twenty-four people will take turns managing the flowers, and take turns directing the four seasons.” The breath of the person on the bed was thin and weak, but the resolution in her voice brooked no room for argument.  Hearing the word ‘go’ coming from her mouth, the people in the hall could no longer bear to look at her. Their response ‘yes!’ was full of sobs and forbearance.

“Contain Jin Mi within Shui Jing, and do not allow her to step outside of the Flower World for ten thousand years.” She calculated with such attention, fearing that a disaster would happen in these ten thousand years, even though she had eaten the Unfeeling Pill, she still did not let go of her uneasiness. Shui Jing had boundaries, if she was confined in there for ten thousand years, she could thoroughly prevent any disasters that would cause her to become heartbroken. Thinking to this, the edges of her lips split into a smile like a fresh lotus, and her pair of starry eyes contained a slight smile as they slowly closed…

Shuang Jiang [1], 208,612th year of Tian Yuan, the Flower Deity Zi Fen passed away, and hundred of flowers withered and scattered. That night, there was a joyous and happy event held in the Heavenly Court. All the deities attended a banquet to congratulate the Water Deity Luo Lin and the Wind Deity Lin Xiu on a hundred years of happy marriage.

The Flower World mourned for the Flower Deity and for ten years, hundreds of flowers grieved, unable to bloom. Within these ten years, there wasn’t a single blooming flower, and the heaven and earth lost all color. Ten years later, when the mourning period ended, everything then turned back to normal, fighting to bloom so beautifully again.

Every year, the fields were full of autumn grass, every day the stories awaited the rising sun. The clouds were vast and the water was expansive, and suddenly, four thousand years had already passed.

The blue sea turned into a mulberry field, the mulberry field turned into a blue sea, changing here and changing there, but nothing was new. Every day, a thousand deities arrived at the Heavenly Court at mao [5], to take care of some trifling, every-day business, and spent their leisure time arguing about poems, tasting wine and calling on friends. The days passed monotonously, without any complications, almost a bit dull.

Everyone was looking forward to the tragic but mighty waves that would shake the heavens. Longing for, longing for, and indeed, they were not disappointed as they managed to wait until the beloved son of the Heavenly Emperor disappeared. 212, 612th year of Tian Yuan, the Heavenly Emperor’s son, the Phoenix, was bathing in lava, when the branches of the parasol tree burned for forty-nine days. After the fire was extinguished, there was no trace of Phoenix Fire Deity and the Heavenly Emperor became furious.

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[1] The eighteenth solar term, from October 23rd to November 6th.

[2] Peony

[3] Lilac

[4] Apricot Blossom

[5] The time period from 5 to 7 AM.

When we first meet Jin Mi, she is a grape sprite - not even an immortal yet. Her nickname is Xiao Tao Tao (Little Grape). She is trying to get out of the Shui Jing (water boundary) to go out of the Flower World, but she is not powerful enough to. Lao Hu (a carrot immortal) warns her that flower and fruit immortals like them are very rare and will surely be eaten in the dangerous world outside. The previous Flower Goddess had set up the boundary to protect weak flower and fruit immortals - as normal deity and demons will not have the power to enter the Flower World as well due to the boundary.

Lian Qiao another flower immortal who likes to collect things, excitedly shows Jin Mi a black thing she has found. Jin Mi recognises it as a crow. The crow is almost dead and Jin Mi decides to use it as fertiliser - so she buries it in her garden. In the middle of the night, Jin Mi suddenly wakes up and thinks that the crow cannot be an ordinary crow as it managed to cross the Shui Jing to enter the Flower World. So, she digs the crow out of the garden again and decides to eat it! As she believes the crow has a special internal essence which will improve her own internal essence!

She decides to resuscitate it before she eats it - so she feeds the crow her specially refined 500 year old honey. The crow is amazingly revived - and turns into a human form. Jin Mi is bedazzled for a moment by the crow's beauty. She looks at the crow's human form and tries to find out where the crow is hiding its internal essence - she sees the lower abdomen has a part that is soft and hard, and takes out a razor to cut it off to eat...

The crow in human form wakes up at that moment and shouts at her! Jin Mi is shameless and says she is his benefactor and was only cutting off what she thought was a tumour. The crow is slightly astounded at how Jin Mi does not know the difference between males and females and decides to forgive her since she lives in the "barbaric land" outside the heaven kingdom. With a few words, the crow changes Jin Mi \(she was in a human form \- which is only ten years old due to her lack of cultivation\) into her real form, and he laughs that she is a grape sprite. The crow makes Jin Mi his servant \- but it kind of backfires on him, she gives him earthworms for his breakfast, and when he wants to drink water, she brings him to her pond. He was enjoying the spring water till he realises that the spring is used for washing clothes!

The crow is insulted when he realises that Jin Mi thinks he is a crow. He changes into his real form - a phoenix and she is regretful that she did not get to eat his internal essence, as he is such a high grade god! Phoenix is going to return to his kingdom and Jin Mi asks to follow him out of the Flower World. Phoenix decides to bring her along.

Phoenix returns to the heavenly palace and everyone welcomes the return on the second Heavenly Prince. In Phoenix's courtyard, Jin Mi sees a furry creature and pinches its stomach \- because she wants to eat it!

The furry creature turns out to be a red fox. He laughs and transforms into a fifteen-sixteen year old looking boy. He turns out to be Phoenix's uncle, the Moon God, the matchmaker in Heaven. He arranges marriage and love matches by tying two people's love fates together with a red thread. He asks Jin Mi why she is here - and she tells him that she is Phoenix's benefactor and how they met. The Moon God laughs and says it is a pity that Jin Mi is a boy (her current human form) because his nephew will have to become gay!

Since Jin Mi finds Phoenix annoying, she leaves his palace and stays at the Moon God's Palace. She stays there for about two months. She asks the Moon God why every time she tries to pluck a flower, it disappears - and the Moon God says it concerns love and hate... and flowers cannot exist in the heavenly palace. There was a huge quarrel between the Heavenly Emperor and the previous Flower Goddess and because of it the Flower Goddess made it so that no flower or plant can exist in the heavens. All the flowers and grass they see in the heavenly palace was an illusion by the Heavenly Emperor and will change back to a cloud when plucked.

There is a funny interlude between the Moon God who tries to teach Jin Mi about love (which she is not interested in) through love stories and pornographic books. But, Jin Mi cannot be bothered about love - all she is interested is in increasing her internal essence. In fact, she gains the misconception that the coupling in the books can help increase the internal essence by combining a male's yang energy with a female's yin energy.

During her stay in the Moon God's palace, Jin Mi discovers that she can make flowers grow (though she attributes it to the power of the Moon God's red thread instead of her own power). As these flowers are rare, people exchange the flowers from her with gifts. One of these gifts was eggs from a special bird, rosefinch (legendary vermillion bird), from Phoenix's palace. However, after Jin Mi ate it, she became very ill - as if something was burning inside of her. The Moon God asks for Phoenix's help in saving her.

Phoenix tells her that she is of yin constitution (water) and has hurt herself by eating the eggs from the rosefinch which was of fire composition. Phoenix tells Jin Mi she can stay in his palace till she recovers - as she has lost about half of her internal essence..

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