The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

At the end of Fragrant Snow Path, that figure came gracefully, stepping on shattered jade fragments.

The plum branches, unable to withstand the accumulated snow, resembled a shower of blossoms, fluttering like butterflies, lingering around the flowing blue and white fairy dress.

Si Xingxuan unconsciously held his breath.

Si Xingzhou's hand holding the spoon froze in mid-air—this was his first time seeing the legendary Princess Jing, who had knelt before the pride of the Nine Provinces and whose dignity had been shattered.

But the person before me...

A veil of snow-white gauze lightly shrouded her dark hair, the ends of which were adorned with tiny ice crystals that swayed with each step, shimmering with a cool light.

The long blue and white silk dress trailed on the ground, with intricate ice and snow patterns embroidered on the hem and sleeves, flowing like clouds as she moved.

A sapphire moon necklace draped down to her heart, while a sapphire chain on her forehead reflected the snow's color, refracting a deep, starlight-like glow.

A few strands of hair were braided into silver tassels, while the rest of her black hair cascaded down her shoulders.

Beneath my feet lay a snow-covered ground studded with plum blossom petals.

She walked out from the depths of the plum blossom sea, with a bright world of thousands of trees in full bloom behind her.

Red calyxes and white snow become mere background; only her blue dress, like a flame tempered by ice, blazes brightly, illuminating this crystal-clear world.

The veil, like mist, lightly veils her face, yet adds a touch of mystery and allure to her shimmering eyes.

When the wind rises, the gauze curtains and shawls flutter together, and plum blossoms fall softly into her hair and on her shoulders.

She seemed to be a celestial being born from the soul of a thousand-year-old plum blossom and the spirit of snow, stepping gracefully into this mortal world gathering amidst fragrant snow.

A beautiful woman can be a source of trouble, just like that.

A beauty of unparalleled charm should be like this.

The laughter and conversation inside the Floating Fragrance Pavilion came to an abrupt halt.

The medicinal fragrance in Juyue Pavilion seemed to freeze suddenly.

Countless gazes were fixed on that figure. Someone accidentally knocked over a teacup with a lotus pattern, and the brown tea soup seeped deep into the snow.

Some people subconsciously held their breath, as if even a slightly heavier breath would disturb this magnificent walking painting.

"May I ask who this fairy is?"

A foreign envoy, amazed, inquired.

"Our Mirror Princess of Chenyao!"

"She—she is the world-famous Mirror Princess?"

"Are all those prodigies this picky?"

"Are they really that ungrateful for such a beautiful princess?"

"If they're blind, then I'll take their place!"

"..."

The mockery and coldness in Si Xingzhou's eyes melted away without a trace, like the lingering snow in spring when it meets the blazing sun.

That handsome face, which always exuded calculation and authority, was now filled with only unexpected amazement and deep astonishment.

"Ah Zhe—" He heard his own voice was a little dry, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, "This... is that troublesome simp you can't shake off?"

He suddenly felt that those absurd rumors about the Nine Provinces were so ridiculous that they made him shudder.

No wonder.

Even the Imperial Preceptor He Lichen, who transcended the mortal world and looked down upon all living beings, seemed to be captivated and bewitched.

He actually had an intimate encounter with Princess Jing inside the carriage.

I originally thought the Grand Preceptor had lost his mind.

In retrospect—it was simply an inability to control one's emotions.

Si Xingxuan stared blankly at the approaching figure, his fingertips unconsciously tightening around the "Record of Heavenly Weaving Veins" in his hand, fine wrinkles appearing on the edges of the pages.

His throat tightened, but he forced himself to remain calm, even deliberately averting his gaze to the falling plum blossoms outside the pavilion:

"Sigh... She's so obsessed with me, what can I do?"

The voice lowered, as if trying to convince itself:

"However... there is only Junior Martial Aunt in my heart. She... is destined to never have me."

"Ah Zhe? Are you sure? Have you seen it—"

Si Xingzhou glanced at his younger brother's head, feeling that his words were far too exaggerated.

Why would Princess Jing bother with her younger brother?

His brother is so weak now, he might faint even if he goes to bed.

Across a pool of unfrozen lake water, inside the Fuyun Pavilion.

"Cousin! Cousin, can you see that—"

Hua Rongshi clutched Bei Chenji's crimson sleeve tightly, so excited she was incoherent. Her usually affectionate peach blossom eyes were now filled with an almost dizzying light:

"Is Little Snowflake determined to kill with her beauty today?"

"She succeeded! I am now utterly destroyed, my soul scattered and my body torn to pieces. She must—she must take responsibility for my loneliness for the rest of my life!"

Beichen remained silent after the rain.

With just a cold glare, the dark aura surging deep within his purple eyes almost solidified.

The thought of killing her noisy cousin kept teetering on the edge of reason.

He shifted his gaze back, his deep, silent purple eyes like an ancient, cold pool, clearly reflecting the blue and white figure on the opposite bank—it truly made one want to pluck all the plum branches in the garden to make a fence, to build a jade cage, and to forever keep this snow-white figure from the heavens who had strayed into the mortal world.

The wind rises, scattering the snow accumulated on the plum blossoms.

Tang Xixue looked up at that moment.

His gaze swept lightly over the dazed crowd in the garden, seemingly passing over the pavilion in the middle of the lake, like a startled swan reflecting its image, creating ripples on the water's surface and in countless other lakes of the heart.

In that fleeting glance—

It shattered the innocent hearts of so many young people.

And how many secret schemes were disrupted?

She suddenly turned around, the snow-white gauze fluttering slightly with the movement, revealing a faint smile on her lips.

That smile was like a flower suddenly blooming on crackled porcelain.

"Ah Lin," Tang Xixue looked at the blue and white-robed boy following closely behind her, her voice soft and gentle like fine snowflakes, "Let's go to Jin Yue Xuan."

Pei Yanchuan was wearing clothes in the same color scheme as her today, a moon-white brocade robe with sparse snowflake patterns embroidered with silver thread, its brilliance understated as he moved.

The silver crown he wore was a gift from Tang Xixue; its exquisite design made his face appear even more handsome and otherworldly.

"it is good."

He responded softly, standing tall and elegant beside her, as clear as the wind beneath the pines, as graceful as the willows in the spring moonlight.

As the two walked side by side, their blue and white robes fluttered in the wind, and fallen plum blossoms brushed against their shoulders, creating a scene resembling a walking painting.

The painting with white plum blossoms is so clean that it is untouched by any worldly dust or turbidity.

A perfect couple, nothing more.

Inside the Shuying Pavilion at the highest point of Meixuewu, someone is looking down through the window.

"Your Majesty, look—"

Chen Yao's strategist, Yan Ci, dressed in a white robe with black patterns and wide sleeves, leaned casually against the vermilion railing, pointing with his folding fan at the two figures below, a playful smile on his lips:

"That is Pei Yinglin, the most talented scholar in Beichuan in his prime. Was he handsome and refined, a man of exceptional talent? It is truly a case of a pearl being tarnished."

On the rosewood couch by the window, Emperor Tang Xiye, dressed in a black and gold imperial robe, slowly raised his eyes.

His gaze, sharp as a tangible blade, pierced through the carved window frame and the falling plum blossoms and snow, landing precisely on Pei Yanchuan.

His gaze held the sternness and scrutiny of an emperor surveying his territory, meticulously scanning the boy's slender figure, gentle features, and even the inconspicuous crease on his sleeve.

It was as if they wanted to dismantle him from skin to bone into flying snow and dust, and then blow him away in a gust of wind, leaving no trace.

The air inside the pavilion suddenly froze.

After a long while, Tang Xiye withdrew her gaze and stroked the celadon teacup in her hand with her fingertips.

"I'm watching—"

The emperor's voice was calm, as calm as a lake frozen before a blizzard:

"That's all there is to it."

He lowered his eyes, a faint yet chilling smile curving his lips:

"A penniless, weak scholar is utterly unworthy of my Zhizhi."

"Does Your Majesty feel that none of the men in the four seas and eight wastelands are worthy of her?"

Yan Ci's eyes held a smile, and his tone was calm and breezy.

"Since Princess Jing is so wonderful in His Majesty's heart, as bright as the moon in the sky and as pure as a plum blossom in the snow... you see everyone else as filthy and muddy, and fear that they might disrespect this precious treasure."

He paused slightly, then gently tapped his cup, the sound like jade striking jade.

"Then why not—His Majesty himself arrange the match?"

"You hold the reins of power over mountains and rivers, the sun and moon, and the authority over the world. In terms of talent, magnanimity, and the heart to protect her..."

Yan Ci leaned forward slightly and lowered his voice.

"Is there anyone in this world more perfectly matched than yourself?"