The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

Red candles weep, gauze curtains billow like smoke.

The crabapple blossoms in the Ziji Palace were kissed inch by inch by the night, from bud to full bloom, their beauty breathtaking.

"Zhizhi, they can all..."

Tang Xiye pinned Tang Xixue to the dragon bed, her usually dignified eyes now brimming with a hint of pleading and grievance.

I want to get closer, but I'm also afraid of being pushed away.

"May I...?"

Tang Xixue wanted to offer to administer acupuncture to detoxify him, but when she saw the thin mist in his eyes, she swallowed it all back.

Those eyes held the darkness of night that had churned for far too long.

She gazed at him, looking into that abyss, and suddenly a smile curved her lips.

"Brother Xuan Yin".

She called his name softly, her voice as gentle as melting honey.

"Are you asking Zhizhi for a reward?"

Tangxi Ye's Adam's apple bobbed slightly.

"Yes."

Tangxi Xue's smile deepened.

"Then let me tell you..."

She tilted her head slightly, her lips almost touching his.

"I gave my permission."

"Zhizhi, tonight belongs to you."

Tangxi's eyes were as deep and unfathomable as the sea.

"Then... Brother Xuan Yin, be gentle..."

Her voice was as soft as a petal falling on the water.

"it is good."

Tang Xiye's voice was so hoarse it was unrecognizable.

"Be gentle."

He looked down at her, his fingertips gently tracing her cheek.

His eyes brimmed with an unprecedented tenderness and solemnity.

"Weaving."

He called her name, his voice hoarse but earnest.

"After this night, I will no longer be your brother."

Tang Xixue looked at him.

"What is that?"

He chuckled softly and leaned down to kiss her forehead.

"He's yours."

The candlelight flickered gently.

Tangxi Ye suddenly froze.

He looked at her, his eyes swirling with astonishment, heartache, and a hint of panic at not knowing what to do.

"Zhizhi...I'm sorry...I didn't know..."

His voice was barely audible.

"Does it hurt?"

Tang Xixue shook her head.

She raised her hand and gently stroked his furrowed brow with her fingertips.

"It doesn't hurt."

Her voice was soft and gentle, just like how she comforted him whenever he was hurt when he was a child.

"It doesn't hurt if it's Brother Xuan Yin..."

Tangxi Ye's Adam's apple bobbed violently.

He lowered his head and placed a very light kiss on the corner of her eye.

Like snow falling on the branches of an unawakened crabapple tree.

"Zhizhi...my Zhizhi..."

His voice was hoarse and trembling.

"You've really gone to my death."

He pulled her into his arms, his movements as gentle as if he were holding a handful of fragile snowflakes.

"If you take me, you must be responsible for me for the rest of your life."

Tang Xixue nestled in his arms, and smiled when she heard his words.

"it is good."

She responded softly, her voice as gentle as melting honey.

"Zhizhi will take responsibility, for a lifetime."

Night fell through the window, seeping in inch by inch, staining the blooming crabapple tree.

First the branches, then the flower centers, until every petal melts into that thick, dark ink.

The snow had long since melted away silently.

I don't know if the wind was too warm or the night was too long.

The moon hides behind the clouds outside the window, and fallen flowers lie quietly in the frost.

The crabapple branch that was broken off was the most beautiful.

A night of wind and rain.

As night fades and dawn breaks, the morning light shines through the carved window frames, through layers of draped gauze curtains, and falls upon Tangxi Ye's thick, long eyelashes.

He finally awoke from his drunken dream.

The moment I opened my eyes, all I saw was an empty dragon bed.

My side was cold, with no trace of the snow in Tangxi.

Tang Xiye propped herself up and pressed her hand against her throbbing temples.

Memories flooded back—those images, those sensations, her soft, melting voice, the warmth of her fingertips brushing against his brow.

"I have truly gone mad..."

He murmured softly, his voice terribly hoarse.

"I actually had a dream like that."

He buried his face in his palms, a bitter smile curving his lips.

In my dream, I was like a man possessed, repeatedly taking from Tang Xixue.

From the tatami mat to the hot spring pool, they were never satisfied, never tired.

Like an old house catching fire.

"How dare you desecrate my Zhizhi?"

He closed his eyes, suppressing the guilt and embarrassment surging in his heart.

But that dream felt so real.

It felt so real that he could almost smell the cool fragrance of crabapple blossoms on her body and feel the warmth of her skin against his chest.

He shook his head, lifted the quilt, and prepared to get up.

Then, he froze.

On the bed sheet, that splash of crimson was so striking it made one's heart tremble.

Tang Xiye's pupils suddenly contracted.

He stared intently at the red figure, his aura instantly turning cold.

"Shen Wujiu!"

The sound, as cold as a blade tempered in ice, carried boundless rage and exploded in the empty hall.

Damn!

Who was it last night?

While he was under the influence of the Drunken Immortal drug and his mind was clouded, who dared to climb into his bed?!

She laid a hand on him!

The palace door creaked open, and Shen Cuo practically tumbled and crawled in.

He knelt on one knee, his forehead beaded with cold sweat.

"Your Majesty! I am here!"

He had followed Emperor Shengchen for so many years and had never heard him call him that way before.

The suppressed rage in that voice almost burned the entire Purple Palace to the ground.

Tang Xi sat on the couch at night, clutching the bed sheet tightly in one hand, her knuckles turning white and veins bulging.

He raised his head, and in his eyes, which were like the abyss of the night, a terrifying storm was churning.

"Who came by last night?"

He spoke each word as if it were being ground out from between his teeth.

"Who gave you permission to send me women?"

Shen Cuo knelt on the ground, not daring to lift his head.

"Your Majesty, I did not..."

"No?"

Tang Xiye gave a cold laugh, a laugh that was chilling to the bone.

"Then what is this?"

Shen Cuo secretly raised his eyes and followed his gaze.

That touch of crimson sent chills down his spine.

It’s over.

He had only one thought in his mind.

Tang Xiye slowly got up, her nightgown loosely draped over her body, revealing several ambiguous red marks on her chest.

He was completely oblivious, staring intently at that splash of red.

"check."

He spoke, his voice as cold as a deep, dark pool.

"Find out for me who entered the Purple Palace last night."

"If you can't find out, bring me your head."

"yes!"

Shen Cuo acknowledged and left the hall, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.

He glanced back at the tightly closed palace doors and felt a chill run down the back of his neck.

His Majesty was actually taken right under his nose.

How much longer can his head grow on his neck?

Hard to say.

It's really hard to say.

Meanwhile, inside the Qianqiu Hall of the Imperial Palace.

Empress Dowager Bai Yining was holding the white camellia hairpin that someone had secretly sent into the palace last night, examining it closely.

The hairpin is exquisitely carved, with petals unfolding layer by layer, as if it had just been plucked from a branch.

In his other hand, a white jade safety buckle rested quietly in his palm, its surface warm to the touch.

A gentle smile suddenly appeared on her face, which had lost its smile in the past few days.

"White tea brings simple pleasures, nothing else matters."

She murmured softly, tears welling in her eyes.

"The simple joy remains, just as it was year after year."

She gently held the safety buckle in her palm and pressed it against her chest.

"It's good that you're safe. It's good that you're safe."

She murmured softly.

This was a secret code between her and Tang Xixue, unknown to others.

Only the two of them knew.

She knew it was Zhizhi letting her know she was safe!

The Empress Dowager carefully put the hairpin into her dressing case, then suddenly remembered something and let out a soft hum.

"My beloved Zhizhi has a home but cannot return."

She shook her head, her tone carrying a hint of reproach.

"Xuan Yin is truly useless..."