The Lantern Festival had arrived, and with it, the thaw. Yet this was the coldest time of year, even colder than when snow was falling.
However, the two people standing at the main gate of Qingzhu Hall both felt a warmth in their hearts, oblivious to the surrounding chill.
The lovely woman pulled back her gaze as if shocked, her cheeks flushing red. She shyly lowered her head to stare at the ground.
'She inwardly cursed herself for her lack of manners.'
As the Prime Minister's daughter and a descendant of a Confucian Saint, the education she'd received since childhood had never taught her to stare so brazenly at someone.
She wasn't the only one. The shared gaze had left Lu Mingyuan at a loss as well. He averted his eyes and gave a light cough.
The atmosphere was painfully awkward. So awkward, in fact, that he could feel his toes curling helplessly inside his shoes.
'My old heart... how did it start fluttering like this?'
'In my past life, I was a dyed-in-the-wool stoic, just a corporate drone, an emotionless work machine. I never knew what it was like to have my heart skip a beat.'
'I never had time for romance.'
'The general consensus was: "No dating in middle school." "No dating in high school." "Don't let dating affect your studies in college." "So, you've graduated and started working... why aren't you married yet?"'
'That was pretty much my life.'
'I'd been on a few blind dates, but they were all just women who saw it as a transaction, with a clear price tag for the bride price.'
'So, does love at first sight really exist?'
'If it does, how could anyone handle it?'
Lu Mingyuan took a deep breath, trying hard to calm himself down.
'This Peach Blossom Luck is way too powerful. I almost fell for it.'
'Lust is a blade hanging over one's head. This is one of the Harem's Consorts; the less I interact with her, the better.'
"Uhm... here's your lantern."
Lu Mingyuan broke the silence, handing the lantern to the woman before him.
Qi Muxue tucked a few stray strands of hair, tousled by the wind, back into place. She accepted the Jade Rabbit Paper-cutting with both hands, her eyes glistening. "Thank you, sir."
"May I ask your name, sir?"
Lu Mingyuan just smiled and shook his head. Without a word, he returned the lantern and slowly closed the door.
Qi Muxue stood stunned for a moment. Her lips parted as if to speak, but no words came out. Instead, she took the lantern and returned to the high pavilion of the hall.
The princesses and commandery princesses around her, clad in ornate, beautiful palace gowns, were having a wonderful time. The air was filled with their cheerful chatter and laughter, like a flock of songbirds.
But her thoughts were no longer on the festival. All she could think about was the strange man she'd just met in the Deep Palace.
"What's wrong, Mu Xue? Did you get the lantern back?"
"I told you not to let it float in that direction, but you just wouldn't listen to me."
Princess Ning Le, a sweet-faced girl in a daffodil-yellow pleated skirt, pouted beside her.
Qi Muxue snapped out of her daze and turned her head. "Princess, may I ask you something?"
"Go ahead. What is it?"
Qi Muxue asked with curious eyes, "Who lives over there, in that part of the Deep Palace?"
"Oh, *him*..."
An expression of disgust appeared on Princess Ning Le's face. She clearly didn't care for the person in question.
"You've surely heard of him. The number one wastrel in the Capital City, the Sixth Prince, Lu Mingyuan. You've just never seen him in person before."
"Why? Did you run into him?" Princess Ning Le asked.
Qi Muxue gave a slight nod. "Yes."
Princess Ning Le snorted. "That man is rotten to the core. You've heard the stories about him. Being locked up in the Cold Palace is exactly what he deserves. Pay him no mind. You are the most talented woman in the Imperial Capital, a descendant of a Saint. That man isn't even worthy of carrying your shoes."
"I know."
A smile returned to Qi Muxue's face.
But as she gazed toward Qingzhu Hall, a thoughtful look lingered in her eyes.
.....
「On the other side.」
Lu Mingyuan shut the main gate again and plopped down onto a chair, finally letting out a sigh of relief.
'I can't get involved in this mess. I absolutely cannot covet my Father Emperor's women. If someone with ulterior motives used that against me, I'd be a dead man.'
'No matter how much of a lecher I might be, I can't go after Father Emperor's Consorts.'
'Getting involved with a Harem Consort is a guaranteed death sentence.'
He had barely sat down when he looked up and saw the Daoist Nun, Yun Qinghe, climbing down from a tree.
She stood with her head tilted back, gazing entranced at the hundreds, even thousands, of lanterns floating across the night sky.
Countless lanterns filled the air, and fireworks fell like a rain of stars.
'You could never see a sight like this on the Mountain.'
"One night's east wind adorns a thousand trees with flowers, / And blows down still more, a shower of stars."
Just then, Lu Mingyuan walked up and recited the lines slowly.
Yun Qinghe turned to him. "Those lines flow nicely. Did you write them?"
"No, a Martial Artist-poet wrote them. I just thought they fit the scene well, so I felt like reciting them."
Lu Mingyuan shook his head.
Yun Qinghe mused for a moment. "A Martial Artist-poet... Cultivating both the Martial Dao and the Confucian Dao. He must have been a prodigy of incredible talent."
Lu Mingyuan couldn't help but smile at her words. "I thought you weren't interested in the affairs of Mortals?" he asked.
A paper crane had appeared in Yun Qinghe's palm at some point. "I was just thinking that the way these lanterns are made is somewhat similar to the techniques of our Taoist Sect."
As she infused it with Mana, the paper crane came to life and actually took flight!
It flapped its wings and flew up toward the heavens.
Lu Mingyuan's jaw fell slightly. He clearly hadn't expected her to have such an ability.
Seeing his reaction, Yun Qinghe smiled faintly. "I'll show you another trick."
With that, she waved her wide sleeve, and a stack of yellow paper appeared at her fingertips.
She brought two fingers together in the Sword Pointing gesture and began to draw on the paper. A ball of translucent, cyan Taoist Qi—the pure Mana of a Daoist Cultivator—flowed from her fingertips.
Soon, the rough figure of a small person took shape on the paper.
"Qi coalesces into essence; essence transforms into a myriad of spirits."
Yun Qinghe recited the words of the Taoist Technique while shaking the yellow paper.
In no time, one after another, eerily lifelike Papermen jumped off the sheet. They formed a circle and began running around Lu Mingyuan.
A few even scrambled onto his head, while another tugged at his ear.
Lu Mingyuan flicked the yellow Paperman off his ear, his expression shifting from surprise to curiosity as he asked:
"What kind of trick is this?"
Yun Qinghe was clearly a little proud of herself. She smiled faintly. "This is no mere trick. It's one of the Taoist Divine Techniques, Paper-cutting Adult. And this is only its most basic application."
"So it's a Daoist Technique."
Lu Mingyuan nodded slowly. He felt that this Taoist Sect Technique, Paper-cutting Adult, was remarkably similar in principle to his Blood Glutton Little People.
However, Paper-cutting Adult wasn't limited to making people. It could create all sorts of things. Dragon Transformation or creating flood dragons was no issue. It could even be used to set up Arrays, refine Elixirs, or guard a gateway.
'If these two techniques could be combined, what new sparks might fly?'
"Can I learn it?"
Lu Mingyuan asked, looking up.
Yun Qinghe glanced at him and mused, "You could, but you don't have any Mana. How would you power the Papermen?"
"I want to try."
For once, Lu Mingyuan was insistent, his tone resolute.
"Fine. Consider this payment for my stay here."
Yun Qinghe was surprisingly agreeable and didn't refuse. With a light tap of her slender finger, she touched the spot between Lu Mingyuan's eyebrows.
A faint white light bloomed from the point of contact.
In a single instant, Lu Mingyuan found his mind flooded with new memories: the origins of the Paper-cutting Adult Divine Technique, the secrets to its creation, and the methods for its use.
The knowledge was etched into his mind as if carved by knife and chisel.
But he realized one thing immediately.
It was a watered-down version. She hadn't taught him the truly profound aspects of the Divine Technique, but had only given him the basic Paperman version.
The more advanced versions were likely secrets of the Taoist Sect, not to be shared with outsiders.
Still, for his purposes, it was more than enough.
...