The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

Baiyujing.

The carriage rumbled along, and the curtains hung low.

Tang Xixue lifted a corner of the curtain and looked outside.

The previously overwhelming crimson dust is now becoming transparent at a speed visible to the naked eye.

It dissipated into the sunlight, disappearing without a trace, as if it had never existed.

"The crimson dust has vanished..."

She lowered the curtain, her voice as clear as shattered jade.

"It seems Young Master Pei was right, they are alive."

Yan Ci sat opposite her and glanced through the gap in the curtain she had just lifted.

That area has been restored to its former clarity, clean and tidy, without leaving a trace.

"As fine as dust, impossible to guard against."

He withdrew his gaze, but a deep frown remained between his brows.

Red dust, at the very least, serves as a warning.

Now that they have disappeared completely, they have left people with no way to guard against them.

Tang Xixue leaned against the car wall, listening to the gradually increasing noise of people outside.

"People just said it was a strange phenomenon from heaven. Once the phenomenon disappeared, they went back to their own lives."

She looked up at Yan Ci.

"But those who know the truth can no longer pretend not to know."

Yan Ci met her gaze.

"Yes. They only see the clouds disperse and the rain stop, a time of peace and prosperity."

His gaze fell on the carriage curtain, as if he could see further through the thin fabric.

At the border camp, beacon fires raged across the sky.

The soldiers guarding the frontier in the wind and snow had their armor covered in frost.

"But who sees how many bones are buried beneath that peace, how much blood is flowing?"

His voice trailed off.

"It is countless people who have used their backs to support this world."

After listening, Tang Xixue suddenly chuckled.

That smile was like the first bloom of a night-blooming cereus, fleeting yet warming to the heart.

"But this clear sky is exactly what they wanted."

She listened intently to what was happening outside.

The peddler selling candied hawthorns called out his wares through the streets and alleys.

Children played and chased after the rolling coins.

The woman leaned against the door, laughing and haggling over the price.

The city was bustling with noise, and the smoke from the fireworks filled the air.

Outside the curtain, the world is bustling and noisy, but all is ordinary.

"What they sought was never peace in the world."

"That little home under the Taiping Bridge is still there."

"Burning oneself as fuel to illuminate the sky is simply so that one's family behind one can always live in the light."

Tangxi Snow, every word is clear and pure like a spring.

Yan Ci looked at her and suddenly remembered many years ago.

The young Tangxi Xue, in the prime of her youth, stood atop the Wenhua Hall, her voice resounding, shaking the snow off the eaves.

she says:

"If one person stands firm, his family will be at peace. If ten thousand families stand firm, the world will prosper."

"What I want is that day when there is no more hunger or cold in the world."

"Thousands of lights shine, and smoke rises from every chimney."

Later, the young woman assisted in governing with wise strategies and helped the world with her medical prescriptions.

The name of Mr. Fuxue stands between heaven and earth.

Her words have become the most common sight in this world.

What she sought was never to be remembered in history or to be admired by thousands.

This prosperous era is just as she wished.

It is in this world that the smoke of fireworks burns eternally.

"Your Highness," Yan Ci called softly.

"Um?"

"The home they sought... is also the home I wish to protect."

Let us not speak of the world, nor of the common people.

I only mentioned that home.

Tang Xixue turned her head and met his gaze.

The sunlight filtering through the curtains reflected in Yan Ci's eyes, as did her shadow, like autumn water reflecting a crabapple blossom.

It was a gaze as gentle as a breeze, yet it burned so hard it made one's heart soften.

Tang Xixue suddenly leaned closer, her voice tinged with a smile:

"The home that A-Ce wants to protect... whose home is it?"

Yan Ci nervously unfolded his dark folding fan, blocking her view.

The black and white yin-yang orchids on the fan seem to come alive, with the orchid leaves divided into yin and yang, and each petal in half.

"Your Highness, this is too close, it's inappropriate."

The two characters "Guan Yun" on the back of the folding fan trembled slightly.

Yan Ci lowered his eyes, and a blush of rosy light quietly appeared on the tips of his ears, like the subtle blush that inadvertently spreads on the petals of a Taiji orchid when it first blooms.

"The young prince's home."

The sound was like a low string.

"This is the home I wish to protect."

Tang Xixue blinked and smiled sweetly.

"Then A-Ce must keep his word."

Yan Ci's fingers tightened slightly as he held the folding fan, gently stroking the patterns on the fan ribs between his fingertips.

"……Um."

Even in times of prosperity, some bear heavy burdens.

Under a clear blue sky, someone is holding up the sky.

The carriage from the Yan residence continued to travel discreetly through the streets, attracting no attention.

"Your Highness, it seems we won't be able to go to the West Market today."

Yan Ci closed his folding fan, turned to her, and looked at her with a hint of apology in his eyes.

"Most of the water sources in the capital are contaminated by the Crimson Dust Gu, so it's best to be cautious about what you put in your mouth."

He took out a piece of chestnut cake wrapped in oil paper from his sleeve and handed it to her.

There were still some crumbs stuck to the oil paper, indicating that it had been carried with it all the way.

"Have a piece of chestnut cake to fill your stomach first."

"Did A-Ce make it himself?"

Tang Xixue took the chestnut cake, her fingertips still slightly warm when they touched the oil paper.

She glanced down and saw that the chestnut cake was small and exquisite.

A small flower pattern, shaped like a begonia, is pressed onto the golden-yellow cake.

"Ah Ce's preferences haven't changed after all these years."

"Yes. I'm often on the go and don't have time to eat, so I made some to keep on hand."

Yan Ci nodded.

I was in a hurry when I left home this morning, so I just grabbed it with me.

He felt something in his sleeve and, without thinking, handed it to her.

He didn't even have time to glance at it when he handed it out.

It turns out that even if there was only one piece, he would still give it to her without hesitation.

People are often trapped by the fleeting glimpse of their youth.

A single glance can last a lifetime; it's hard to forget.

A fleeting dream of life.

The dream is over, but the person is still in the same place.

Suddenly, a rain of crabapple blossoms fell.

A flower falls on your shoulder, and you'll remember it for a lifetime.

I tasted the sweetness of my youth.

Later, I tasted all the delicacies in the world, but none could compare to the taste of that time.

"Here, give half to our chestnut spirit."

Tang Xixue broke open the chestnut cake and handed half of it to him.

Yan Ci paused for a moment, then reached out and took it.

When his fingertips touched the warmth of her palm, a glint of light flickered in his eyes, like ink spreading silently into a clear pool.

He lowered his head and took a bite.

"Is it delicious?" Tang Xixue asked.

"Mmm," Yan Ci responded, his voice a little strained. "It's delicious."

Even though he made the pastries himself, they tasted extra sweet after she touched them.

It turns out that the sweetest thing in the world is never sugar.

Someone is willing to share half with you.

Tang Xixue took a bite of chestnut cake, her eyes sparkling like a galaxy.

"It really is delicious."

It's so sweet.

Someone is willing to give her everything they like without hesitation.

She lowered her head and took another bite, unaware that a little crumb of cake had gotten on the corner of her lips.

Yan Ci looked at her, his fingers twitched, but he ultimately did not reach out to brush her away.

He simply squeezed the half-piece of chestnut cake into his palm again.

The chestnut cake had long since cooled, yet it was still hotter than any hot food.

"Our Grand Strategist Yan need not worry too much."

Tang Xixue's voice was soft and sweet, yet it carried a reassuring certainty.

"Everything in the universe is interconnected and mutually restraining. No matter how powerful the Crimson Dust Gu is, there will always be a way to deal with it."

Her words were like a spring breeze, dispelling some of the heavy clouds in Yan Ci's heart.

Yan Ci nodded.

"Yes. His Majesty has ordered officials from the Imperial Medical Academy and the Wenhua Hall to conduct a thorough investigation. This is not the responsibility of one person; it is a problem shared by all of the Nine Provinces."

His gaze fell on her face, and his voice softened.

"Our most urgent task now is to find His Highness's soul."

"One must first protect oneself before one has the capacity to protect others."

"So, is A-Ce able to protect me now?"

Tang Xixue looked at Yan Ci and asked softly.

Yan Ci spoke, his voice solemn, as if he were making a vow.

"I will do everything in my power to protect His Highness."

Under his arrangement, the carriage quietly entered the palace along the unnoticed palace road.

The strategist frequently entered and exited the palace, and his carriage was inconspicuous and unassuming. The guards were used to it and let him pass without even asking any questions.