Tonight was no different. The room was warm. She sat up wrapped in the quilt and looked down to see charcoal braziers scattered all over the floor. The smokeless silver charcoal was burning red-hot, occasionally sparking.

She was still a little groggy from sleep, and leaned against the headboard for a while in a daze.

The two newly transferred maids outside the door thought she was sleeping. The two young and lively girls stood together, whispering and gossiping.

Occasionally, fragmented snippets of information reached Shu Yun's ears, but she didn't pay attention at first. Only after she came to her senses did she listen more carefully.

"Is Yanran from the Dancing Sleeves Pavilion still outside?"

“Yes, I just brought some new silver charcoal from over there, and that’s when I heard them talking about it.”

The young maidservant sighed, feigning maturity, "She really won't give up. Why bother? She's clearly a glamorous courtesan, and many young men from Xiliang are fond of her."

"She likes our young master. I've heard the old women in the manor say that love makes people blind, and she probably is. She's even dancing outside now."

"Dancing? In the dead of winter, they've been dancing for so long..."

"Um……"

The atmosphere between the two was a bit heavy.

One of the maids asked cautiously, "Does the young master know about this?"

Her friend replied, "I know."

"I know you didn't go. In this cold weather, won't that Miss Yanran freeze to death at the gate of our Xie residence?"

"..."

"Who knows..."

Shu Yun leaned against the soft pillows, her long, black hair cascading down the bed, the ends of which dangled over the edge. She stared at the tips of her hair, lost in thought.

After a long while, she got up from under the covers, casually put on two pieces of clothing, draped a cloak over her shoulders, and then reached out to smooth her hair, tying it up with a plain-colored ribbon.

When the two maids who were chatting happily outside heard the noise and rushed in, she was already dressed.

The two young maids kept their heads down, almost to their chests, terrified that the young master would find out about this and blame them for not taking good care of the young master.

They knew that although this Miss Shuyun had only stayed in their Xie family for a short time, she was someone the young master truly doted on.

Shu Yun glanced at them, looking timid and afraid of being punished, and reached out to pat their heads. "I don't like people staying by my side all the time. Xie Fu knows that, so he won't punish you."

“If he wants to punish you,” Shu Yun paused, “you should come and tell me, and I will talk to him.”

The two maids who had been patted on the head looked at her gratefully upon hearing this.

Shu Yun smiled, turned and walked towards the door, "Let's go."

Two maids quickly followed, asking softly, "Miss Shu, where are we going?"

"I slept for too long and my whole body is sore," Shu Yun explained casually. "I just came out for a stroll."

The two girls nodded in turn, "Oh."

The two young and naive maids followed Shu Yun obliviously until they reached the gate of the Xie residence. They didn't realize that Shu Yun wasn't just "strolling around."

The guards spotted Shu Yun from afar, who was completely shrouded in a cloak.

She was so eye-catching that as she walked towards us from afar, the moonlight bathed her gently, and snowflakes fell around her. It was hard to tell whether her skin was as white as snow or the snow was as white as her.

Her eyes and brows were cool and beautiful, her eyebrows were dark and her lips were red. Every curve of her face was just right, as if she had been favored by heaven and earth and carefully sculpted by the Creator.

The guards forcibly suppressed their amazement; she was the young master's beloved. They did not bow, but stood straight and called out, "Miss Shuyun."

At the end of the month, Miss Shuyun and the Crown Prince will be married. At that time, she will be the universally acknowledged Crown Princess of Xiliang, the future Queen.

Shu Yun nodded to them and gestured with his chin toward the gate of the Xie residence, "Please open the door for me."

The head guard came out and asked, "Miss Shuyun, are you going out? Would you like us to prepare a carriage for you?"

They naturally couldn't agree to Shu Yun's request directly. If she went out at this time, no one would be following her, and what if something happened?

Shu Yun knew what they were thinking. She shook her head and said, "I'll stay right at the door and not go out."

The guards were taken aback for a moment, then they understood what she meant: right at the door, what was at the door?

At the entrance, only Yanran from the Wuxiufang dance troupe was still stubbornly dancing, clearly freezing cold, her movements stiff and distorted.

The head guard secretly made a subtle gesture to his subordinate, implying that he should quickly inform the young master. On the surface, he asked Shu Yundao to agree to the request and had his men open the door.

The two silly maids then realized that this Miss Shu Yun's route was very clear from the beginning; she was heading straight for the Xie residence's gate, and there was no such thing as her just taking a casual stroll.

The vermilion-sealed gate was opened, and Yanran, who was already shivering from the cold outside, as if the blood in her body was about to freeze, looked up with hope.

When his gaze fell upon Shu Yun's stunningly beautiful face, the hope that had been raised in his heart suddenly plummeted.

It wasn't him.

She silently withdrew her gaze and continued her dance.

Shu Yun stepped over the high threshold of the Xie residence and did not go any further. Instead, she stood at the entrance of the Xie residence and quietly watched the red dress dancing in the snow.

Even someone who doesn't understand dance can clearly see the stiffness in Yanran's movements. This is no longer a problem of dance technique, but rather a result of human physiology.

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