RWWAI 31

Chapter 31: The Look of Mortal Fireworks

The hunting expedition took place in the suburbs not far from the capital.

As the Commandant of Yangshan, "Qi Lu" technically wasn't supposed to leave Yangshan without official clearance.

Then again, as mentioned before, the Middle General held a fairly hefty position in the central administration, and his wife was an actual princess.

When a guy like that wants to host a hunting trip, you tell me—who's going to dare deny his approval?

As for whether Luo Fan's hunting expedition went smoothly or not, I am terribly sorry to report that I had zero clue.

Because I was far too busy down at the foot of the mountain, mingling and gossiping with the noble ladies!

Noticing the atmosphere was at its absolute peak and having successfully warmed up to Princess Yong'an, I dove straight into my main objective:

"This concubine has heard that Your Highness once had the absolute privilege of laying eyes on the most beautiful dancer in the entire realm, and I've been green with envy ever since. It's just a pity this one lacks the good fortune to witness such a sight—I can't even begin to imagine what kind of breathtaking appearance could possibly earn a reputation like that?" I kicked things off with a polished, polite opening.

Princess Yong'an seemed quite tickled by the topic, offering a light, amused chuckle as she replied:

"Commandant's Lady, that's where you don't understand. People always say smooth, jade-like skin is the peak of beauty, but Madam, have you ever actually seen someone whose complexion is so radiant, clear, and translucent that they look like they were carved entirely out of white jade?"

Hearing that, gasps of awe rippled through the surrounding group of ladies.

Looking thoroughly pleased with herself, Princess Yong'an went on:

"Not only were that dancer's brows and eyes exquisitely proportioned, but his gaze carried an almost magnetic allure. Even the faintest glance from him felt as though it held some deep, hidden secret... drawing you in until once your eyes met his... you could never bear to look away again."

That description actually started making me sweat a little.

Because listening to her talk, didn't that sound like Doctor Zhou playing the role of the cold, aloof white rose compared to some fiery red rose?

They're completely different archetypes—how on earth was I supposed to compare them?

Still, since I'd already come this far, if I didn't haul Doctor Zhou out onto the table and force everyone to bow down in admiration, I wouldn't be able to rest in peace even in my grave!

Fishing the portrait of Doctor Zhou straight out from the folds of my tunic, I declared:

"Since Her Highness is so refreshingly straightforward, this concubine won't beat around the bush either. A young man of peerless, extraordinary looks has recently emerged in Yangshan as well. Given my shallow knowledge, I wouldn't dare make an arrogant judgment on my own, so I was hoping Her Highness would grace us with a master's appraisal—to see how he stacks up against your famed dancer, and whether they each hold their own unique charm."

To save face, I had admittedly asked the portrait artist to apply a light touch of digital-age beauty filtering. But that was mainly because Doctor Zhou hadn't been very cooperative during the sitting, maintaining a stiff, frozen expression while having zero clue what I was even trying to do, leaving me no choice but to let the artist spruce him up just a tiny bit.

Regardless, it was roughly eighty to ninety percent accurate; my goal was to faithfully recapture Doctor Zhou's peak aesthetic prime, not manufacture a fake persona out of thin air.

Naturally, the moment that scroll was unrolled and laid flat, an absolute uproar broke out among the crowd.

A few moments later, Princess Yong'an delivered her official verdict:

"That dancer wins by a narrow margin, though not because his facial features are superior." She pointed directly at the portrait and noted: "The young man depicted here has completely upright, well-proportioned brows and a facial structure with zero flaws; purely in terms of raw features, he's certainly no slouch compared to the dancer. It's simply that this man possesses an air of biting, untouchable coldness—enough to make anyone feel compelled to keep their distance and show three parts respect right off the bat."

Turning her gaze toward me, Princess Yong'an analyzed further:

"The dancer's true strength, however, lay in his youth and his transcendent charm. His eyes were brimming with life—knowing full well he's actively trying to seduce you, yet you still lack the willpower to tear your eyes away. So, you see: one fills you with fearful reverence, while the other makes you endlessly yearn to close the distance. That tiny gap is all it takes."

I couldn't help clapping my hands in enthusiastic applause—brilliant! Absolutely spot-on!

Taking advantage of the moment, Lady Lin leaned in close to whisper and ask who the mystery man in the portrait actually was.

And the second I dropped the reveal that he was the live-in physician I kept locked up inside the commandant's estate purely to supervise my pregnancy, even Princess Yong'an's eyes flashed with a distinct trace of profound respect.

After all, no matter how much she adored that dancer's looks, she'd never dared to brazenly kidnap the man and keep him locked up in her private residence.

It seemed I was inching dangerously close to unlocking the ultimate achievement of founding my own devoted cult.

The hunting trip wrapped up amidst this delightfully cheerful, buoyant atmosphere.

Because the journey back to Yangshan was too long and arduous to complete in one go, Luo Fan and I decided to crash at a local roadside inn for the night, planning to hit the road bright and early the next morning.

No sooner had we stepped inside our rented room to settle in than Luo Fan flashed a mysterious, scheming grin and said:

"Hey! If you aren't feeling sleepy yet, how about I take you out to see something amazing?"

Curiosity piqued, I asked:

"What kind of thing?"

"Just come along and you'll find out!" he replied, putting on an irritatingly cryptic act.

Before I knew what was happening, he scooped me up, hoisted me straight onto the back of a horse, vaulted up right behind me, locked me securely in his arms, squeezed his heels against the horse's flanks, and sent the spirited steed galloping wildly straight toward the dark mountain trails.

My soul momentarily evacuated my body in stark terror. Desperately clutching the fabric of his trousers for dear life, I shrieked at the top of my lungs:

"Slow down! I'm going to fall off!"

Hearing that, Luo Fan chuckled softly right beside my ear:

"I'm a full-grown man locking you in right here, there's zero chance you're falling off."

Left with no other choice, I pressed my entire body tightly against his chest, refusing to loosen my death-grip on his trousers even for a microsecond.

"If you dragged me out into the middle of the night just to scare me half to death," I threatened, trembling like a leaf, "I'm demanding a divorce the second we get back tomorrow!"

Luckily, he wasn't sadistic enough to pull a prank that cruel.

Because not long after, we reined to a halt in front of a towering, multi-story ancient pagoda of unknown purpose.

He nimbly hopped down from the saddle, then reached up to swing me down into his arms.

"We passed right by this place during the hunt today, but didn't get a chance to climb up." he said with a grin.

"So?"

With a mischievous glint in his eye, he trotted toward the entrance of the pagoda and declared:

"I'm betting that if we climb to the very top, we'll be able to see the entire capital spread out below us."

Hearing him say that, I broke into a frantic little jog to catch right up with him.

In this accursed historical era, elevators hadn't been invented yet.

Lacking the physical body modifications of a seasoned military commander, I was already wheezing and panting heavily after climbing just a couple of flights of stairs.

That murderous jerk Luo Fan actually had the nerve to stand a few steps ahead and mock me:

"Come on, put your back into it! To see a thousand miles away, ascend another flight of stairs."

"Ascend your mother's flight of stairs!" I wheezed out, gasping for air as I yelled back at the top of my lungs.

When I finally dragged my broken body all the way up to the uppermost observation deck, my legs had turned into absolute jelly.

Collapsing entirely, I draped my entire weight over Luo Fan's frame like a wet sack of flour, letting him drag me across the open-air platform.

Yet the second I actually lifted my head to look out, my breath caught in my throat.

Sweeping across my field of vision, the ten thousand glowing lights of the capital spread out in every direction like a sea of burning, unyielding fireworks frozen suspended in time right before my eyes.

Countless torches and lanterns flickered in a dazzling mosaic of shimmering gold and deep crimson.

All around the perimeter of the sprawling metropolis lay the ink-black abyss of the surrounding countryside, making the glowing city look as though it were floating untethered straight up in the middle of the night sky.

"Pretty amazing, right?" Luo Fan's voice whispered softly beside my ear.

I nodded slowly.

"Yeah..."

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