The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

Pei Yanchuan had witnessed the family's magnificent splendor, like oil being poured over a raging fire, with gold and jade filling the hall.

He once practiced calligraphy amidst carved beams and painted rafters, and listened to the elders of his clan discuss the political intrigues of the court, believing that such prosperity was an everlasting epic.

He had also witnessed the great fire that consumed everything.

Buildings crumbled, vermilion gates were stained with blood, and glory was shattered into dust.

He led his pregnant mother away as they fled through the glint of swords and the darkness of night, with towering flames behind them and an endless night before them.

"Brother, do we... really have a home?"

Pei Ningran, the younger sister, looked up at her thin face, her big eyes filled with confusion and fear.

She was born in a leaky shack in the slums. Her memories are filled with spoiled leftovers, biting cold winds, her drunken stepfather's beatings, and her sickly mother with a heart condition, her thin figure weeping.

To her, the Pei clan was like a sigh from her brother when he looked out at the waning moon late at night.

She had never seen the towering skyscrapers, only the most humble insects and ants struggling to survive in the dust.

And she was that speck of dust.

Wherever the wind blows, that's where she is.

Pei Yanchuan felt sour in his heart.

He gently stroked his sister's dry, yellow hair with his calloused fingertips.

"some."

His voice was a little hoarse, but he tried to force a gentle smile.

"Home is where family is."

He said this to his sister, and also to himself who, in the long, snowy night, had almost lost all hope.

Pei Ningran blinked, then suddenly nodded vigorously, a clean and heartbreaking smile blooming on her haggard face.

"Yes! Wherever my brother and mother are, that's Ranran's home!"

Her voice was youthful yet firm.

That smile was like a daisy struggling to bloom in a crack in the rock, faint, yet carrying an undeniable light that pierced through the gloom.

"Ah Liang, here's your mask back."

Tang Xixue raised her hand, her fingertips hooking the edge of the silver-threaded mask, and gently removed it.

It was as if a layer of hazy veil had been lifted.

The lamplight suddenly streamed onto her face, like moonlight breaking through the clouds, its clear radiance suddenly spilling out.

When those eyes, as bright as the Milky Way, turned towards him, Mu Liang's breath hitched.

He bowed his head and accepted the mask.

The metal edge felt cool, but because it was warmed by her skin, it felt as if tiny electric currents were running through her fingertips when she touched it.

This is the face His Highness covered, the breath that touched her.

"Your Highness, tomorrow... I will get you a new one."

His voice sounded a little strained.

Under the cover of night, my ears quickly burned.

"New?"

"But I remember Ah Liang never wore a mask before. Why is she covering her face so completely now?"

Tang Xixue smiled faintly, her gaze like a butterfly resting on his evasive brows and eyes.

"Could it be... that there's something I can't bear to see?"

"Your Highness, I wouldn't dare!" Mu Liang shook his head hastily, his ears burning hot. "There's nothing Your Highness can't see."

He was just afraid she would see him burning up and looking disheveled.

His Highness in the past would never have teased him like this.

Now, every word and phrase is like a soft hook, catching his deepest secrets and burning passion.

He couldn't handle it.

And those maids in the Hall of Longevity, who were indiscriminate in their love of meat and vegetables, would tease the brothers and the prince.

He was so ashamed that he couldn't face anyone.

"Oh—" Tang Xixue's voice trailed off, her gaze sweeping over his tense jaw and trembling Adam's apple as if it were tangible. "So, you're allowed to look at anything."

"..."

Mu Liang's face flushed instantly. She turned around abruptly, brandishing her whip, and dared not look back.

He suspected that His Highness was implying something, but he had no evidence.

The night was thick, and only the wind could hear his out-of-control heartbeat, each beat a pounding sound on his bumpy journey home.

The carriage sped away, crunching through the snow, its wheels rumbling.

Amidst the chaos and pounding of his heart, he hastily hid a burning passion he dared not speak of.

"Oh."

"This is embarrassing... What if it gets even worse...?"

Mu Liang heard her whispers clearly, and he froze.

What...what even more outrageous thing is she going to do...?

What the hell is that damn expectation in my heart?

"Go to Zanxue Residence."

The snow-white cloak enveloped her completely, making her small, delicate face appear even more radiant, like the cold moon covered in frost, as if the softest clouds were carefully wrapping a handful of first snow that might melt at any moment.

The carriage slowly traveled along the bluestone path of the accommodation area behind Lintai Mountain. Plum branches on both sides were covered with snow, their sparse shadows cast obliquely, and a faint, cold fragrance floated and swirled in the snowy night, like mist and haze.

Finally, we stopped in front of a moon gate with a wooden plaque that read "Plum Garden." The characters on the plaque were clear and sharp, and a thin layer of snow had already fallen on it.

"Zanxueju is inside."

Tang Xixue led them through several clusters of plum branches bent under the weight of snow and stopped in front of a secluded courtyard.

The courtyard gate was ajar, and she reached out and gently pushed it open.

With a creak, the door swung open.

At the same time, several warm yellow silk lanterns under the eaves lit up one after another, their soft light cascading down like water, illuminating the courtyard in a warm and clear light, clearly indicating that someone had already taken good care of it.

The courtyard is not large, but it exudes elegance in every corner.

Three houses with blue tiles and white walls are arranged in a triangular shape, with slender icicles hanging from the eaves, shimmering under the lamplight.

In the center of the courtyard stands an old plum tree with intertwined roots and gnarled branches sparsely adorned with red buds that are about to open.

Stone tables and benches were set up under the trees, covered with unswept snow, like a soft, white felt blanket.

The window of the east wing faces the soaring eaves of the Lintai Library, and one can vaguely see the sparse lights inside, quiet and solemn.

"This place is only a hundred steps away from the library, which will make it convenient for Yan Chuan to study and consult classics in the future."

Tang Xixue turned around and looked at Pei Yanchuan, who was dressed in a disheveled blue robe, behind her.

She paused, her voice gentle:

"The well water in the courtyard is clear and cool, and the kitchen in the west wing is fully equipped. Please feel free to settle in."

Pei Yanchuan stood frozen outside the threshold.

A faded blue robe wrapped around his slender, bamboo-like figure, and the wind and snow left damp marks on his shoulders and hair. He exuded a cold and broken aura, as if he had been repeatedly tormented by fate.

He originally thought that the so-called "arrangement" would at most mean dormitory-style rooms for students to live together.

Even such a dormitory-style room was far beyond the reach of ordinary poor families.

Lintai was a royal private school, frequented by princes, nobles, and the most outstanding talents from all over the country.

This secluded residence, with its sparse plum blossoms, is clearly a quiet place reserved only for teachers.

Even the princes of various countries lived in multi-person rooms and were not allowed to bring their families inside.

"Your Highness, this... is against the rules."

"The Plum Blossom Courtyard and Snow-Clad Residence is the residence of teachers. As a student, I would need the personal approval of the Director of Studies before I could move in."

"Okay, then I'll go and tell the supervisor."

Upon hearing this, Tang Xixue smiled slightly.

She should have downplayed it, as if she were talking about something extremely ordinary.

His tone was so casual, as if he were merely asking for a cup of tea or a book, rather than seeking an exceptional privilege from He Lichen, the Imperial Preceptor of Chenyao, who was known in the capital for his aloofness and strictness.

She turned to the maidservant Fuyi, who was standing quietly to the side:

"You stay here and take care of things. First, go and fetch a physician to carefully examine Madam Pei's pulse. There should be clean bedding in the cabinet, and the charcoal fire needs to be kept warm, lest anyone get cold."

"Yes, Your Highness," Fuyi replied solemnly.

Tang Xixue glanced at the carriage again. The haggard, pear-shaped woman was still unconscious, being held tightly by her youngest daughter.

The girl clung tightly to her brother's clothes, her clear, doe-like eyes looking at him timidly, filled with unease, reflecting the warm light of the eaves lamp.

Her eyes softened.

"You can settle in comfortably."

She lowered her voice even further, as if afraid of disturbing something.

"Get a good rest tonight. There's no need to worry about anything else."

Having said that, she didn't linger any longer and turned to step into the deeper night.

As she turned, the hem of her snow-white cloak billowed in an arc of flowing clouds. She walked step by step along the snow-covered stone steps toward the Moon-Viewing Pavilion perched high in the clouds atop the mountain.

The eaves lamp cast a long shadow of her slender back, which gradually blended into the swirling snow and the boundless fragrance of plum blossoms until it could no longer be clearly seen.

"Brother, that fairy sister... is so kind to us."

The little girl, Pei Ningran, looked up and whispered.

Pei Yanchuan looked away and down at his younger sister's face, which was red from the cold.

"Yes." His voice was a little hoarse. "Ranran, remember, she saved our lives. People should know how to repay kindness."

"Ranran has remembered."

The little girl nodded vigorously, her eyes shining.

Pei Yanchuan stopped talking and just stood quietly in front of the door.

The two old wooden boxes in his arms were very light; they contained all the meager belongings he, his mother, and his sister had.

But on this stormy, snowy night, in his life, which was as barren as an icy wasteland, someone carefully placed something very, very heavy inside.

For example, a courtyard with plum blossoms and snow, lights and windows.

For example, a quiet yet profound protection.

For example, in this long, dark night, someone finally lit a warm lamp for him, a lamp that belonged only to them.