"Stop, stop, stop!" she protested. "You've seen it, but I haven't!"
Just as the family was happily bickering, the television screen suddenly went dark.
Sun Xiaoxiao's attention was naturally drawn to it.
The next second, a dim, ambiguous light slowly condensed into a dot on the screen. As the dot grew larger, Sun Xiaoxiao finally saw clearly that it was a person's fingertip.
A slender, beautiful woman leaned wearily against the window, holding a long jade pipe in her hand. The setting sun cast its orange glow, making the scene resemble an oil painting.
The camera zoomed in, slowly gliding from the beauty's fingertips across her silk dress, over her slender neck, and finally resting on half of her face.
She is beautiful.
Her appearance wasn't exactly exquisite or flawless. But her aura was like the spring moon in a pear blossom courtyard, making people involuntarily hold their breath, afraid of disturbing her.
When those half-open, half-closed eyes moved, they were like the bright moonlight shining on pear blossoms on the ground.
The camera stared at her, from her forehead and cheeks, to her eyebrows and eyes, and finally to her crimson lips. Half of her deep red lipstick was gone, and her lips looked like a broken flower petal.
Half of her face was hidden in the dim shadows, making it impossible to discern her emotions. The snowflake-silver pipe gently tapped against the windowsill, bathed in the cold, dazzling light of the setting sun.
She is like a jade sculpture.
Sun Xiaoxiao's television is 55 inches. The camera focused on the woman's face with several close-up shots, showcasing her charm from all angles on the huge screen. In an instant, the entire living room seemed to brighten up!
"Oh dear!" Sun Xiaoxiao couldn't help but exclaim.
"What's wrong?" Mom quickly turned around.
"No. It's nothing." Sun Xiaoxiao held her breath, staring intently at the television screen.
Just then, the maid's voice came: "Madam, Young Master Zhu and the others have arrived."
The courtesan closed her eyes and casually tossed her jade pipe onto the couch.
The scene shifts to an incomparably magnificent hall. The courtesan who was just moments before, cold and aloof, is now barefoot, dancing gracefully on cloud-like brocade.
She had changed into a light red dress, her neck was as white and smooth as snow, her cheeks were as beautiful as peach blossoms, and her eyes were as sparkling as spring water.
Between her slender, bamboo-like fingers, she held a small silk fan. The luster of the silk and the pearl ring on her finger complemented each other, making her appear even more lustrous and captivating.
A bright and charming smile graced her face as she twirled on the embroidered platform, her skirt billowing like waves and her ribbons dancing like flowing clouds.
Peach blossom eyes, lotus-like face, pomegranate-red skirt. Intoxicatingly beautiful.
The guests in the hall stared in a daze at her dance, completely mesmerized.
The hall is filled with flowers, intoxicating three thousand guests.
The dance music was coming to an end, just like a brilliant and glorious sunrise suddenly turning into a poignant sunset.
As the dance ended, the courtesan casually tossed her silk fan aside, and the guests in the hall surged forward as if bewitched, scrambling for the fan in a chaotic frenzy.
"mine!"
"Miss Mianmian! Miss Mianmian!"
"I'll offer three thousand—three thousand!"
Countless red silks, pearls, gems, and small gold coins rained down on Mianmian. The courtesan knelt silently on the ground. Gems and gold coins weighed down her skirt, and pearls grazed her forehead, leaving a faint red mark.
The madam grinned from ear to ear, but still had to come out to maintain order: "Ladies and gentlemen! Ladies and gentlemen! Mianmian is only dancing today, she will not be entertaining guests!"
The maids rushed forward and helped Mianmian upstairs.
Although she had been spoiled to know that the madam was the mastermind, Sun Xiaoxiao was completely oblivious to her presence. She was even unaware that the madam had appeared, her gaze following the courtesan, not even missing the graceful figure of her ascending the stairs.
For some reason, looking at that thin figure, Sun Xiaoxiao felt a surge of sadness and loneliness.
Sun Xiaoxiao didn't understand dance, but she was heartbroken watching it. She felt for the courtesan, as beautiful as the morning sun, and for all the guests in the room.
The story of the courtesan had ended, and Sun Xiaoxiao reluctantly pulled her eyes off the television.
"Mom, who is she?"
"Who is it?" Mom put down her chopsticks. "The one who dances? I don't know her."
The father murmured, "Is she Yu Feixian?"
"No!" Mom glared at Dad. "Didn't you see? Her name is Mianmian!"
"Who is Yu Feixian?" Sun Xiaoxiao asked curiously.
"The most beautiful woman in the martial arts world in the book. She doesn't appear until the journey to the northern desert. Your dad got it wrong." Mom said casually. "Oh dear! Your soup is cold. Don't drink it. I'll get you a hot bowl."
Mom went to get the soup, and Dad and Sun Xiaoxiao continued watching the movie together. But for some reason, Sun Xiaoxiao couldn't concentrate as well as before.
After Mianmian left, for some reason, Sun Xiaoxiao suddenly found the movie rather dull.
To be fair, this movie is very good. The plot, pacing, and storytelling are all well-designed. It's definitely a decent movie to watch while eating. However, after seeing Mianmian's breathtaking dance, the shoddy set design, mediocre acting, and bland costumes all seem rather tasteless and even hard to stomach.
Good actors can elevate the quality of a scene dramatically. The scenes featuring the courtesan Mianmian were approaching the standard of theatrical releases in terms of both lighting and visual quality.
It is easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality.
The more stunning it is when a film leaps from the level of a TV movie to that of a theatrical release, the more shocking it becomes when it falls back to the cheap feel of a TV movie.
Just like someone who has just eaten a delicious and spicy hot pot, seeing a simple bowl of congee and side dishes might make them want to eat a couple of bites to cleanse their mouth and stomach, but they would never be tempted to eat it.
Sun Xiaoxiao couldn't help but ask, "Dad, will Mianmian make another appearance?"
"I don't know, ask your mom," Dad said honestly. After thinking for a moment, he guessed, "Probably not? He looks like a big star making a cameo appearance; it's probably just this one scene."
Sun Xiaoxiao gave a disappointed "Oh," and suddenly felt it was pointless, losing even her appetite for food.
Just then, Mom returned to the table with the soup. "Don't listen to your dad's nonsense. This courtesan is a suspect; she'll appear again later."
"Really?" Sun Xiaoxiao exclaimed in surprise. "Then I'll take another look."
The courtesan is clearly not a main character. Although my mother said she would have more scenes later, it seems she won't be appearing anytime soon.
Sun Xiaoxiao didn't want to leave the TV, but she was too lazy to watch those bland and uninteresting videos anymore, so she took out her phone and started playing around with it.
After fiddling with it a couple of times, Sun Xiaoxiao suddenly had a whim and typed the following line into her browser:
Who played the courtesan in "Tianji Tower"?
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