The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

Outside the window, the eaves bells tapped softly once more.

The clear, melodious sound spread in the winter wind, like shattered jade falling onto an ice plate, like a mountain spring rinsing over stones, gently dispersing into the snow-covered courtyard and the fragrance of camellias.

Sunlight streamed through the carved window frames, scattering dappled light and shadow across the floor.

The dappled light and shadow fell on the frost-covered blue bricks, on the hanging purple brocade curtains, and on the figure in the snow-white robe.

And those fingers, slightly curled up, hidden within the wide sleeves.

He stood there, like a lone pine tree on a snowy mountain.

Pure and austere, detached and cold, untouched by dust.

But the pine roots have already quietly stretched towards the direction of spring.

He Lichen handed the snow-white priest's robe to Granny Lan with extremely light and slow movements, as if she were entrusting not just a robe, but some unspeakable sentiment.

His gaze remained fixed on the soft couch—on the girl in the red dress.

They had only been apart for a few days.

It felt like three autumns had passed.

Outside the window, the courtyard was covered in a blanket of snow, the chill penetrating to the bone.

The enormous snow-capped camellia was in full bloom, its layers of white petals piled up like snow and jade, gleaming warmly in the winter sun.

Inside the window, the tea on the small stove was bubbling away, wisps of white smoke rising and filling the room with a warm fragrance.

Purple brocade curtains hung down from the carved beams, densely covered with slender tassels, swaying gently with the occasional breeze passing through the hall, like a purple dream.

"Huai Xian, thank you for coming here in person."

The Empress Dowager looked at him with a smile, her eyes revealing undisguised satisfaction and joy.

She pointed to the soft couch beside her:

"Please have a seat. We'll have breakfast together later."

She paused, then suddenly remembered something, and her smile deepened:

"Weren't you the closest to Zhizhi before? Why are you so distant now?"

She tilted her head slightly, looking at He Lichen, her tone carrying a hint of mischievous teasing:

"Back then, Zhizhi even told me that she would marry you when she grew up. She even asked me for a betrothal gift, insisting that I give you a proper dowry..."

The words fell.

The room fell silent for a moment.

He Lichen's ears turned a thin layer of red at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The red color spread from the tips of his ears, burning all the way down his neck, making it hard for him to breathe.

He lowered his eyes, trying to hide the inappropriate emotion, but the blush on his face was impossible to conceal.

Tang Xixue was drinking tea when she heard this and almost choked.

She tugged at the Empress Dowager's sleeve, a faint blush of embarrassment rising on her face:

"Mother Empress—keep your voice down..."

Is this... glorious?

She recalled the boastful and unrestrained words she had uttered in her youth, and suddenly wished she could disappear into a crack in the ground.

At that time, she was still young. Seeing that He Lichen was handsome, she followed him around every day, calling him "Brother Huaixian," and said every day that she wanted to marry him and take him home, so that he would belong to her alone.

Looking back now, it really is...

Foresight!

Yes, I had excellent judgment back then!

"Mother, children's words are innocent; how can you take them seriously?"

A deep voice suddenly rang out, carrying a hint of gritted teeth.

Tang Xiye sat to the side, and the atmosphere around her instantly became oppressive.

He spoke each word with clenched teeth, almost squeezing them out:

"Zhizhi is still young, we shouldn't talk about marriage."

The Empress Dowager glanced at him, her eyes filled with speechlessness.

"Zhizhi was already of marriageable age five years ago, so she's not exactly young anymore."

She spoke slowly, her tone carrying an undeniable certainty.

"Since our Zhizhi isn't getting married anyway, what's wrong with finding a few attentive servants for her?"

As she spoke, she instructed Granny Lan to prepare the meal.

Then, he picked up the silver scissors on the table, selected a few of the best-blooming camellia branches from the freshly broken ones, gently cut them off, and handed them to Tang Xixue.

Tang Xixue took the flower branch and sat on the soft couch to start arranging the flowers.

With her eyes lowered and her eyelashes fluttering gently, she deftly arranged camellias into a celadon vase with her nimble fingers, creating an elegant and graceful effect.

The Empress Dowager looked at her with eyes full of doting affection.

She suddenly spoke again:

"If Huai Xian is unwilling, then General Feng of the Zhenbei Marquis's Mansion has been Zhi Zhi's childhood sweetheart since childhood."

She paused, as if recalling something:

"That boy may have a fiery temper, but he's handsome and caring. When Zhizhi fell down as a child, he ran faster than anyone else, carrying her on his back to find the imperial physician, sweating profusely with worry."

The Empress Dowager had been paying attention to the young men around Tang Xixue since she was a child.

She had been looking for a suitable husband for her beloved daughter—not a husband, but a servant.

Her daughter, Zhizhi, is a princess, a golden branch and jade leaf, a jewel of the imperial family. Why should she marry into another family and suffer mistreatment?

Do they even deserve it?

Who is worthy?

Wouldn't it be wonderful to have several husbands who suit your taste and keep them by your side every day?

Upon hearing the Empress Dowager's words, Tang Xixue's hand holding the flower branch trembled slightly.

Her fair face flushed bright red instantly.

Her cheeks flushed red all the way to her earlobes, and even her fingertips were tinged with a thin layer of pink.

Burn it...

He is a caring person.

Last night's images suddenly flooded her mind—he knelt before her, bowing his head, devoutly and clumsily trying to neutralize the effects of the peach blossom love potion on her.

His hot breath, his trembling fingertips, his flushed ears, his low, hoarse voice calling her name again and again…

She was the one who took the Chinese medicine, but he cried more than anyone else.

When the young general cried, his big, wet eyes almost made her unable to resist staining them with her own color.

Tang Xixue lowered her eyes, her eyelashes trembling violently, as if she wanted to bury her face in the bunch of camellias.

"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."

A clear, cool voice suddenly rang out, interrupting her reverie.

He Lichen took half a step forward, his moon-white crane cloak fluttering gently with his movement.

He gazed at the Empress Dowager, his usually cold and aloof eyes now brimming with a rare urgency:

"minister--"

He paused, as if making a great decision.

"I didn't say I was unwilling."

The Empress Dowager raised an eyebrow.

He Lichen lowered her eyes, then raised them again, speaking each word clearly and solemnly:

"I, too, admire Oori."

The voice was still cold and clear, but within that coldness, there was a burning intensity that had been suppressed for a long time.

He turned his head and looked at Tang Xixue on the soft couch.

When those clear, cold eyes met hers, they suddenly softened, like millennia-old snow meeting the warm spring sun, melting away inch by inch.

"If Zhizhi is willing, Her Majesty agrees—"

He paused, his voice lowering to a murmur, yet each word was clear:

"Then Huai Xian is willing to stay with Zhi Zhi until the end of her life."

Frosty feathers and crane shadows perch on the cold snow, temporarily becoming a petal of white in the human world.

Using starlight as silk, weave a tapestry of ten thousand miles of misty waves into my embrace.

From now on, my body is a traveler in the mortal world, but my heart is a celestial being beyond the clouds.

Tang Xixue looked at him.

Looking at his reddened ear tips, his slightly trembling eyelashes, and his pursed, pale lips, as delicate as cherry blossoms.

She suddenly smiled.

When she smiled, her eyes sparkled like a spring breeze rippling across a pool of clear water.

That smile was full of sweetness.

Her beloved brother Huaixian would never let her lose face.

He was always protecting her dignity.

He hadn't originally planned to be so abrupt, but he didn't want the Empress Dowager to think that he didn't think much of her.

Looking at that smile, He Lichen couldn't help but raise a very faint curve to her lips.

The curve is shallow, but it is real.

As the Empress Dowager watched the two exchanging glances, the light in her eyes grew brighter and brighter.

She has been satisfied with He Lichen since she was a child.

This child has always been emotionally stable. No matter how much Zhizhi makes a fuss, he can always handle it steadily.

He took great care of Zhizhi, showing her concern and warmth in every way.

The key is to maintain a clean and upright character, never attract unwanted romantic attention, and remain a pure and innocent person.

She grew up, possessed good looks and status, and had extraordinary abilities, enabling her to protect Zhizhi.

However—

It barely matches her weaving.

The Empress Dowager's lips curved upwards and upwards, almost uncontrollably.

"I disagree."

A deep voice suddenly rang out, like a bucket of cold water being poured over someone's head.

Tang Xi sat there, the atmosphere around her was frighteningly low.

He didn't know why he disagreed.

Mingming—

Mingming He Lichen is indeed a good match.

But he just felt he didn't deserve it.

None of them deserve it!

At that moment, Yan Ci's words suddenly surfaced in his mind, catching him off guard and piercing his heart with pain:

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

Tang Xiye tightened her grip on the teacup.

All eyes in the room turned to him.