The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

The silver dragon in the snow stood quietly by.

Those dragon eyes, which should have looked down upon the heavens, were now filled with a pool of bright, moist light.

It was damp, like the first spring snow melting in the mountains.

"Master...please save him."

He just stared at the snow on the Tangxi River.

He didn't speak, but his eyes said it all.

"Please, Master!"

Please.

Tang Xixue's heart softened at his gaze.

She glanced down at her usually arrogant and haughty little silver dragon.

Seeing him now pleading for a former master, I couldn't help but sigh softly.

"Ugh."

Her voice was like a gentle breeze that brushed against the flowers and willows on a spring night.

"Fine... considering how adorable my little silver dragon is, I'll grant you your life."

She rolled up her sleeves, revealing a section of her fair, white wrist adorned with a beautiful pearl bracelet.

He picked up the silver needle with his fingertips, his gaze already calm as still water.

Outside the medicine hut, heaven and earth are unaware of human joys and sorrows.

However, undercurrents were already surging within the court of the Yun Chuan Empire.

News that was extremely detrimental to the new emperor began to spread from who-knows-where.

Like a silent plague, it quietly spread throughout the streets and alleys, teahouses and markets of Wangxue City.

"Have you heard? The new emperor didn't even spare the God of War, Qi."

The speaker lowered his voice, his expression revealing barely concealed anger and panic.

"They actually killed him."

"How much blood has our God of War shed for Yunchuan? Every scar on his body is a testament to his sacrifice for this land?"

"He led troops at fourteen and was crowned king at sixteen. So much hardship and adversity did it take to bring us peace..."

"Now look what's happened: the birds haven't all flown away, and the good bow has already been put away."

Someone sighed softly, as if a heavy stone had pressed down on the hearts of every listener.

Someone else leaned closer mysteriously and said:

"It is said that His Highness the God of War has also been favored by the national guardian dragon... That is a fortune that ordinary people cannot attain."

"He is the one destined for greatness."

These rumors, like the north wind sweeping across a winter night, spread throughout the streets and alleys of Forgotten Snow City overnight.

Compared to the unremarkable Qi Zhan, the war god Qi Wang, who had fought bloody battles on the border for many years, had a much higher prestige among the people and the army.

His name is a nightmare for enemy states that can stop children from crying at night, and also the most solid city wall in the hearts of the people of Yunchuan.

Now, this wall was torn down by our own people?

For a time, the court was in turmoil, and the army was in turmoil, as if a single spark was all it took to start a prairie fire.

Just then, a slender figure stepped forward.

Pei Zhao.

He stood in the imperial court, his posture elegant and upright, his integrity as pure as the bright moon in the sky.

His voice was like a stabilizing force: "Ying Lin is open and honest, and has always been a gentleman. Gentlemen, do not believe the rumors and throw yourselves into chaos."

Those civil officials who had once been taught by Pei Zhao, upon seeing their former mentor standing once more in the light, were instantly moved to tears, covering their faces with their sleeves and sobbing uncontrollably.

"Back then, the Pei clan was wronged."

On the dragon throne, Pei Yanchuan wore a magnificent imperial robe, the hem of which was not embroidered with dragon patterns, but with a pattern of silver-white flying snow.

The young emperor's brows and eyes already held the resolute composure that came with the stabilization of the nation.

His words, each one sharp and resonant, echoed throughout the Golden Palace.

"Now, I will clear Grand Secretary Pei's name!"

"The Pei clan are not traitors!"

This proclamation, like a sudden clap of thunder in spring, dispelled the gloom that had been hanging over the Pei clan.

Pei Zhaoguan was reinstated and returned openly to the Pei residence that had been sealed away for many years.

The moment the mansion gate was pushed open, sunlight finally shone into the newly renovated but long-uninhabited courtyard.

Regent Qi Si merely lifted his eyelids slightly.

"My eldest son, if he wants this throne, why would he need to eliminate the War King?"

His voice carried arrogance and domineering presence.

But this seemingly casual remark silenced all the military officers in the hall, and no one dared to utter another word.

"Is my order no longer valid, sir?"

That's absolutely right.

Everyone knows that even when His Highness the War King was in power, no one dared to disobey the Regent's military orders.

And War King Qi Wang himself is the Regent's most staunch protector.

Therefore, the new emperor has no reason to fear the War King.

"His Majesty and our Prince Zhan have always had a very good relationship."

Even the War King's trusted confidants stepped forward and spoke up to vindicate Pei Yanchuan.

His voice was steady, and his expression was calm and composed.

Although the rumors were suppressed, the fact remains that Qi Wang's whereabouts and fate are still unknown.

It remains like a sharp thorn stuck in the throat of everyone who truly cares about him.

Qi Zhan's remaining followers failed in their plan and were instead wiped out.

Meanwhile, in the Divine Medicine Valley, thousands of miles away, in the medicine hut of Zhiyun Xiaozhu, the candlelight burned all night.

Tang Xixue stayed inside all night without stepping out of the door.

The sound of pounding medicine was soft and dense, like spring rain tapping on the eaves, occasionally interspersed with her soft whispers instructing Fengxue Yinlong to help move Qiwang.

As dawn broke, the morning light filtered through the cracks in the window, like a handful of thin gold dust, falling on the face of the person beside the bed.

Qi Wang's eyelashes trembled.

The trembling was very subtle, like a butterfly tentatively touching the first warmth of spring.

Then, those eyes, which had been closed for a long time, finally opened slowly.

The first thing you see is a profile with extremely gentle lines.

Tang Xixue was exhausted and lay down beside his bed, falling into a deep sleep without realizing it.

The morning light fell on her jet-black hair, making her glow.

Qi Wang's consciousness gradually returned, and when he saw that face clearly, he was stunned.

It is Tangxi Snow.

It was his younger siblings who died young and caused him trouble.

He remembered clearly that Tang Xixue was killed by the Heavenly Punishment Hall. For this, he personally led troops to raze many of the Heavenly Punishment Hall's branch altars to avenge his younger siblings.

So now, they've reunited in the underworld?

"As expected, we've arrived in the underworld."

He murmured something in a hoarse voice, his gaze sweeping around the dimly lit medicine hut, a feeling he couldn't quite describe.

"So this is what the afterlife is like... It seems no different from life."

His mind raced with thoughts, finally settling on a notion that left him feeling rather helpless.

"Is this some kind of ill-fated destiny? How could I encounter such a troublemaker even in the underworld?"

He thought to himself silently, but his face remained expressionless.

After all, it was his first time dying, so he really had no experience and didn't know what the underworld should look like.

Are there ghost messengers? Is there a Bridge of Helplessness? Is there Meng Po (the goddess of forgetfulness) who brings a bowl of soup and asks if he wants to forget his past life?

He simply lowered his head with some difficulty and glanced at his current appearance.

It was wrapped in snow-white bandages, looking just like a rice dumpling wrapped up tightly.

"That way of dying...it's really not very dignified."

He frowned, instinctively trying to sit up.

He couldn't muster any strength at all; it felt as if his bones had been removed, leaving him limp and unable to move.

"How come they're all dead, yet they can't move?"

He muttered to himself, somewhat confused.

Just then, a rustling sound came from under the covers, and a small, silvery head poked out from the gap in the blankets, staring at him for a moment.

Fengxue Yinlong was half asleep in the quilt beside him when he was woken up by the noise he had just heard.

Qi Wang stared blankly at the familiar silver dragon.

The hoarse voice finally fell, tinged with disbelief.

"Xingmi, you... you're dead too?"