The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

"Your Highness, the snow-covered path is chilly; please proceed with caution."

The cool sound of dusk blended into the rustling of falling snow, low and mellow like the sound of strings bathed in moonlight.

With a flick of his wrist, the plain oil-paper umbrella opened with a "thud".

The umbrella tilted gently towards her, perfectly blocking out all the falling snowflakes.

The gesture was as precious as unfolding a timeless silk painting.

"Your Highness, please step under the umbrella; there is no wind or snow here."

He paused, his voice carrying a barely perceptible sense of reverence, his words shrouded in the white mist of his breath.

"Even if we walk slowly, these icy steps are still slippery. What should we do, Liang?"

Tangxi Xue loosely tied up half of her black hair with a single frosty white ribbon, the rest of her hair cascading down her shoulders like an ink waterfall.

Mu Liang lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on her slightly furrowed brows before quickly looking away.

A thin layer of snow had accumulated on his shoulders, as if he were wearing a cloak made by the bright moon.

The umbrella in his hand steadily sheltered her, keeping her from getting the slightest bit cold.

"Your Highness, please forgive my rudeness."

Before he finished speaking, his palm was already lightly resting on her waist.

The force was like plucking a flower, yet it carried an unshakeable steadiness.

With a light touch of their toes on the snow-covered stone steps, the two of them rose up as if flying phoenixes stepping on clouds.

An oil-paper umbrella opens up a tranquil dome, while wind and snow howl outside the umbrella's edge, forming a distant curtain.

As they passed through the plum grove, they startled a few snow-covered petals from the branches. Those shimmering white petals swirled and drifted in the night, like stardust falling into a deep dream.

The outline of the Moon-Viewing Pavilion gradually emerged from the snow and mist.

A crescent moon hangs above the eaves, and sparse lamplight flickers behind the window paper.

The entire pavilion was half-hidden in the flowing snow and sleet, unlike a dwelling on earth, but rather like a celestial palace in the clouds that had mistakenly entered the mortal world.

"Your Highness, we have arrived at the Moon-Viewing Pavilion."

Mu Liang landed quickly, releasing his hand from her waist as if he had been burned.

He took a half step back, lowered his head slightly, and spoke in a very low voice. His earlobes were so red in the dim light that they looked like they were about to bleed.

"Ah Liang is so thoughtful."

Tang Xixue looked up at him, a faint smile curving her lips.

Her eyes reflected the snow and lamplight, shimmering like the first melting of spring water.

Even though half of his face was hidden under the black veil, his undisguised shyness still flowed quietly from his trembling eyelashes.

So cute that it makes you want to tease them a little more.

"Serving Your Highness is my duty."

Mu Liang's voice trembled slightly, though she tried to control it.

Her soft words touched his heart, spreading a warm feeling that made him feel as if he were walking on clouds.

The clouds were scalding hot, yet so soft that one could willingly drown in them.

Whatever His Highness desires, he is willing to give it to him, even his soul.

"Your Highness, I will go and knock on the door."

He focused his mind and gently knocked on the sandalwood door with his finger.

"Knock, knock."

The sound was clear as ice cracking in the snowy night, rippling through the silence.

A moment later, the door slid open a crack.

The book attendant Songyun peeked out half of his handsome face. When his gaze fell on the figure outside the door, a barely perceptible furrow appeared between his brows, and a hint of helplessness flashed in his eyes.

"What brings Your Highness here so late at night?"

His voice was as flat as if measured with a ruler, but his gaze passed over the twilight and fell on the snow-white cloak.

The night enveloped her in a pristine whiteness, like fresh snow covering her body; standing there, she was a poem formed from moonlight.

Princess Mirror's beauty is pure and exquisite, tempered by frost and snow and bathed in starlight.

Songjun thought, "The bright moon fairy is nothing more than this."

She is undeniably beautiful, but unfortunately, she's a bad woman.

"Our Highness wishes to see the Grand Preceptor."

Mu Liang turned to the side, fully revealing the figure, and her voice returned to its usual calm and steady tone.

"..."

Song Jun's Adam's apple twitched slightly.

His revered and aloof Grand Preceptor, who dwells high in the stars, is someone he least wants to associate with, and that is Princess Mirror, who acts unconventionally.

Besides... this prince had just drugged his master and tied him to a brocade bed not long ago.

That night, when the master returned to take a bath, he inadvertently caught a glimpse of a few faint blush marks on his neck, like plum petals falling in the snow.

His Imperial Advisor has been tainted by Princess Mirror's colors!

That wicked woman is absolutely terrifying.

Now she comes through the snow in the dead of night...

Are you sure this isn't harassment?

hiss!

Could it be that they're planning to force themselves on their master at the Moon Viewing Pavilion?

This is... this is insane.

Countless thoughts raced through Songjun's mind, as if he could already foresee his master's furrowed brows and the chill emanating from him that might be even three degrees colder.

"Please wait a moment, Your Excellency."

He maintained the most basic courtesy, and his voice remained flat.

The door closed gently, temporarily separating the two figures from the wind and snow.

"This princess is likely to be turned away, after all, she just did such a heinous thing to you."

"Even if she's as beautiful as an angel, can we adults really indulge her?"

Song Jun turned around, stepped onto the smooth, mirror-like wooden floor of the pavilion, and walked towards the high-hanging observatory, sighing silently in his heart.

"The tranquility of the observatory tonight will likely be shattered by this prince."

"My lord, a guest requests an audience."

Song Jun's voice rang out under the empty dome of the observatory.

"not see."

He Lichen did not turn around; her gaze remained fixed on a certain star in the sky, its light flickering. Her wide, moon-white sleeves fluttered gently in the breeze, like drifting clouds about to disappear.

"Yes," Songjun replied, turning around as if talking to herself, "Then please let Princess Jing return."

The air seemed to freeze for a moment.

"...Wait a minute."

He Lichen slowly turned around.

The moonlight outlined his elegant profile, his brows like distant snow-covered mountains, and his eyes, reflecting the flowing starlight, rippled with a faint ripple.

"Please let her in."

"...Yes, ma'am."

Songyun bowed his head and withdrew.

A short while later, the sandalwood door opened again, and he stepped aside to make way, his expression complex:

"The Grand Preceptor invites Your Highness to ascend the pavilion."

Tangxi Xue nodded and stepped over the threshold.

As dusk settled, he folded his umbrella and stood quietly outside the door, his figure disappearing into the shadows of the eaves, becoming a silent guardian.

The Moon-Viewing Pavilion is a high tower with carved windows on all four sides.

The wind and snow swept through the corridor, stirring the long scroll of star charts hanging from the beams, the pages rustling softly like whispers.

"Your Excellency, Imperial Preceptor."

"I apologize for disturbing you so late at night."

He Lichen stood alone by the window.

The moon-white crane cloak cascaded down like flowing clouds from the heavens, and the wide sleeves fluttered in the wind like crane wings outstretched.

Her ink-black hair was half-tied up with a silver crown, and a few strands of hair brushed against her face, which was sculpted by ice and snow. She was surrounded by an almost divine tranquility and remoteness.

A banished immortal descends to earth, amidst the frost and snow of the high mountains.

"What brings Your Highness here?"

When he spoke, his voice was like an ice string soaking in a spring, clear and cold, yet conveying an unreachable sense of detachment.

His gaze remained fixed on the starry sky, as if looking at her for even a moment longer would plunge him into the depths of the mortal world.

"I would like to ask the Imperial Preceptor for a favor—could my study companion stay temporarily at the Plum Blossom Courtyard's Snow-Covered Residence?"

Tang Xixue walked slowly to his side and stood with him in front of the domed window.

The wind lifted He Lichen's wide sleeves, brushing against the hem of her dress.

"Pei Yanchuan?"

He asked in a calm, unwavering tone.

He remembered that young man in a blue robe, the top scorer in the annual examination, whose words contained the grandeur of mountains and seas, and whose calm demeanor concealed a sharp edge.

It is a piece of jade that can be polished.

"Exactly."

She nodded slightly.

Just then, a night breeze blew in through the window, causing the end of the frosty white ribbon in her hair to flutter and brush lightly against his cheek like a butterfly's touch.

A slight chill, a faint, lingering fragrance of crabapple blossoms.

He Lichen's eyelashes trembled almost imperceptibly.

"Can."

He replied, his voice still as cold and clear as ever.

Tang Xixue's brows relaxed, but she continued softly:

"His mother and younger sister also need to live with him. They are homeless and have nowhere to stay. Your Excellency, could you possibly make an exception and allow them to stay?"

"Um."

He Lichen turned his head slightly and finally looked at her.

The moonlight shone on her upturned face, her skin as smooth as fresh snow, her eyes reflecting the stars and lights.

"Just have Songjun make a note of it tomorrow. As long as he doesn't enter the school district without permission, it will be fine."

"Thank you for your kindness, Grand Preceptor."

Upon hearing this, a soft smile curved her lips.

That smile was like a frozen begonia suddenly blooming on a snowy night, its eyes sparkling with light, seemingly capturing the myriad stars outside the window.

Despite being in this desolate and chilly stargazing pavilion, she exuded a vibrant and lively energy that pierced the eye, bringing a touch of human warmth to the ancient and desolate starry sky.

He Lichen gazed at her smiling face, momentarily lost in thought.

Deep within the frozen lake of the heart, in a very subtle place, a barely perceptible crack appears.

"The incident at the hunting grounds during the day was due to the dereliction of duty by the guards of Lintai."

He shifted his gaze back to the deep snowy night outside the window, his voice lower than before, as soft as snow falling on bamboo tips.

"From now on... there will never be another like this."

This was a promise he made in his capacity as Imperial Preceptor and Director of the Imperial Academy.

"Ugh."

Tang Xixue's gaze shifted slightly, and she suddenly sighed very softly, her voice instantly tinged with three parts grievance and seven parts softness, gentle as spring water:

"But I was really quite frightened today."

She reached out and gently pinched the corner of his pristine white sleeve with her fingertips.

The force was very light, like a butterfly perching on a flower branch, yet it carried a soft and irresistible binding power.

"Your Excellency, the Imperial Preceptor—"

"You are the Director of the Imperial Academy, shouldn't you take responsibility?"

She looked up at him, her eyes misty with tears, her voice soft and wet like the plum rains of Jiangnan.

He Lichen lowered his eyes.

Her fingers pinched his sleeve, her pale fingertips almost blending into the moon-white fabric, with only a slight warmth seeping through the thin material.

The eyes that were looking at him were surprisingly bright, filled with a subtle, cunning light, like a warm flame suddenly leaping up in a snowy night. It was clearly a cold scene, yet it made people's hearts tremble.

"How does Your Highness want me to take responsibility?"

He spoke slowly, his voice as still as a deep pool of ice, without the slightest ripple.