The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

"Guessing is useless; we'll know when we get there."

Jiu Fangzhi withdrew his gaze and took a step.

This wasn't meant to discourage her.

He was simply telling her: Go over there, walk to that tree, look with your eyes, touch with your hands, and the mystery will be revealed.

That's how he always does things: he doesn't make predictions or engage in empty talk; whatever he steps on is what he gets.

This time, however, he walked half a step ahead of her.

It's not that I don't trust her abilities.

His junior sister is now capable of handling things on her own, and he knows her abilities better than anyone else.

But his feet landed before hers, and his shoulders turned slightly to pull her to the edge of his silhouette.

It's just a habit.

I've gotten used to keeping all the unknown and uncontrollable things in front of me.

"Senior brother, hurry up!"

Tang Xixue's skirt spun on the bluestone slab, and she gracefully swept past him, running ahead.

She lightly touched the ground with her toes and sprang up, her skirt billowing behind her, her silhouette as nimble as a swallow skimming the water.

Jiu Fangzhi stared at that retreating figure, slightly taken aback.

"Junior sister, stay behind your brother, don't run so fast."

He spoke, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness and a faint trace of panic.

She ran so fast that before his outstretched hand could even touch the hem of her clothes, she had already drifted several steps away.

Just like the speed at which she has grown over the past decade.

He watched a seedling grow into a tree.

The tree no longer needed his wall to shelter it from the wind and rain, but he still stood there, making himself into a wall.

It wasn't because she needed to, but because he wanted to.

Tang Xixue turned around a few steps ahead and smiled back.

The morning light spread behind her, and her cascading hair was lifted by the wind, each strand glistening like silk threads just drawn from the sunlight.

She waved to him, like a flower opening to the morning sun.

"Senior brother, hurry up!"

Jiu Fangzhi strode forward, taking three steps at a time to catch up.

"Okay, coming right away."

The two walked side by side across the long street.

The towering, silvery-blue canopy of trees gradually rose from behind the eaves, like a giant umbrella unfurled on the earth.

Beneath the canopy of the Three Lives Tree, hung countless tiny, silvery-white wind chimes, hundreds upon thousands, densely packed together.

It makes a soft, crisp sound when the wind blows.

There were many figures under the tree.

The young man and woman clasped their hands together, closed their eyes in prayer, and their expressions were solemn.

Someone stood on tiptoe to reach the high branches and struggled to hang the wind chimes up.

Stepping back, I watched the tiny silver bell sway in the wind, and a smile warmer than the morning light appeared on my face.

Tang Xixue stood outside the shade of the trees, looking up at the vast expanse of silvery blue sky, her eyes reflecting the light of countless wind chimes.

"What a nice view."

Her voice was soft and gentle.

"This is the Three-Life Tree that Granny Bai spoke of; it truly possesses divine power!"

Jiu Fangzhi stood beside her, but his gaze was not on the tree, but on her where the shadows of the tree met the morning light.

"There's a stall under the tree, let's go check it out."

He looked away, his tone as usual.

The thick roots of the Three Lives Tree are intertwined like a dragon, and sitting among the roots is an old Taoist priest with white hair and beard.

He sat cross-legged on a futon, with an old wooden table in front of him. The corners of the table were worn smooth and shiny, weathered by countless years of wind and rain.

Rows of silver bells hang from the wooden frame, swaying gently in the wind and making a clear, melodious sound.

The old Taoist priest held a palm-leaf fan in his hand, fanning himself idly.

Seeing the two approach, he didn't get up, but simply raised his cloudy yet clear eyes and paused for a moment on each of their faces.

"You two are here to pray for blessings, right?"

When he spoke, his voice was like tea steeped by time, the astringency gone, leaving only a sweet aftertaste.

"Let's buy a pair of love bells. Money doesn't matter; barter is fine too."

Jiu Fangzhi lowered his eyes and looked at the row of silver bells on the stall.

Each one is engraved with fine lines, and when two are put together, the lines fit together perfectly.

He took out an exquisite nine-linked ring from his sleeve and placed it on the table.

The nine-linked rings were made in his spare time. They were intricately designed with each ring interlocking, and it took a lot of thought to disassemble them.

The old Taoist priest glanced down at it, but didn't reach out to take it. He simply tapped the table lightly with his palm-leaf fan.

"Nine interconnected links, each one linked to the next. There are too many things about this young master that cannot be disassembled."

He picked up a pair of love bells and handed them over, his gaze lingering on Jiu Fangzhi's mask for a moment.

"If this old Taoist priest may ask, young master, are you wearing this mask to cover your face, or your heart?"

Jiu Fangzhi paused slightly as he took the silver bell.

"What needs to be covered is covered, and what needs to be revealed is revealed."

His voice was faint, like the sound of a bell in the wind, fleeting and ephemeral.

The old Taoist priest chuckled and didn't press the matter further.

He turned to look at Tang Xixue, his gaze softening slightly.

"My dear, your husband is a man of few words."

Tang Xixue smiled, took the silver bell handed to her by Jiu Fangzhi, and held it in her palm.

"Master, my husband is quiet in front of outsiders, and even quieter in front of me. Do you know why?"

She turned her head to the side, a mischievous glint in the corner of her eye.

"Because I understand even if he doesn't say it, and he understands whether I say it or not. Some things between two people are said, and some are not."

Jiu Fangzhi's face, which wouldn't even falter if Mount Tai collapsed before her, finally blushed the moment she finished speaking, like clouds dyed by the sunset.

"lady."

He only said those two words.

His tone carried three parts helplessness, three parts indulgence, and four parts emotions that even he himself couldn't quite explain.

The old Taoist priest laughed heartily, his palm-leaf fan whirring loudly.

"Well said, 'not quite right'! Young lady, you're very perceptive, even better at predicting fate than this old Taoist priest. This old Taoist priest has been telling fortunes for half his life, but you can explain it as clearly as you do in a single sentence."

After he finished laughing, he pointed with his palm-leaf fan in the direction of the Three Lives Tree.

"Go ahead and hang the bells. Take advantage of the good wind. When the prayer bells ring, it means the Three Lives Tree has heard your prayers and is responding to you."

Jiu Fangzhi turned around almost immediately and strode towards the tree.

He walked so fast that Tang Xixue had to quicken her pace to keep up.

"Senior brother, why are you walking so fast? Are you afraid the wind will carry you away?"

Her voice came up from behind, tinged with laughter, like a feather falling into his deep pool.

Jiu Fangzhi did not answer, but his steps clearly slowed down.

The two walked to the Three Lives Tree.

The thick tree trunk was covered with a thin layer of silver moss.

The tree canopy blocked out the sky, filtering the entire sky into a gentle silver-blue hue.

Tang Xixue clasped her hands together and held the love bell in her palms.

Silver Bell was warmed by her body temperature.

She closed her eyes and prayed.

May our mountains and rivers be safe and sound, and may all people live in peace.

The few words were read softly yet solemnly.

She didn't seek her own marriage or her own future; she offered the small world in her palm to the mountains, rivers, and all living beings.

If the Tree of Three Lives truly possesses a spirit, then she is willing to pray for all living beings.

Jiu Fangzhi stood half a step behind her, looking down at her lowered eyes as she prayed.

Her wishes were always grand, grand enough to encompass millions of people.

His wishes have always been very small.

He pressed the silver bell to his chest and closed his eyes.

May my junior sister live a long and carefree life.

Each word seeps into my heart, like an inscription carved on a stone, each stroke powerful and penetrating.

The wind chimes of the Three Lives Tree rang once, as if they had heard it.

Tang Xixue opened her eyes, looked down at the silver bell in her hand, and then looked up at the drooping branch above her head.

She stood on tiptoe to try, but her fingertips were still a distance from the branch.

"Senior brother, I can't reach it."

She turned to look at him, her tone slightly embarrassed.

Jiu Fangzhi stepped forward.

He didn't reach out to take the silver bell from her hand, nor did he hang it for her. Instead, he slightly bent his knees in front of her and placed his hands on her waist.

"Come."

With a gentle lift, he steadily supported her.

The movement was very light and the force was very steady, like lifting a feather.

Tang Xixue was held in mid-air by him and was stunned for a moment.

His hand rested on her waist, its burning heat radiating through her clothes.

She reached out and carefully tied the silver bell to the branch.

With a few deft movements of her hands, she wound the silk thread around the branch, tied a delicate knot, and then gently pulled to tighten it.

The silver bell swayed in the wind, making a clear and crisp sound.

"alright."

Tang Xixue looked down at him.

He looked up at the silver bell, as if to make sure it was fastened securely.

"Senior brother, what is your wish?"

She suddenly asked.

Jiu Fangzhi gently placed her back on the ground, withdrew his hand, and took a half step back.

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do; there's no need for any prayers."

He looked at the densely packed wind chimes on the tree.

Tang Xixue tilted her head to look at him, and the corners of her lips slowly curved up.

The curve resembled a crescent moon rising above the eyebrows.

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do. So buying a love bell is doing as the Romans do, and hugging me is also doing as the Romans do?"

"I have been rude, brother."

Jiu Fangzhi noticed that the hand holding the silver bell tightened slightly.

He hung the silver bell on the branch with swift, decisive movements, without a moment's hesitation.

"Those who come to the Three Lives Tree all pray for three lifetimes. But just now, that young master placed a nine-linked ring on the table."

He asked himself the question and then shook his head with a smile.

"However, what is the most important thing about the nine-linked rings? It's not solving them, it's locking them."

The old Taoist priest covered his face with a palm-leaf fan, leaned back in his chair, and dozed off.

Above, the branches and leaves of the Three Lives Tree swayed silently.

Thousands of silver bells jingled softly, like a rain that had been falling for a thousand years, still pattering down.

At the same time, a woman's figure also arrived in Yaoguang City.

"I've found you."