Chapter 46: Passed Down Through Ages, Your Eyes Carry Smiles

Realizing that Ouyang Jing had walked right into her trap, Luo Yunyao let her mischievous intentions show clearly at the corners of her eyes. Without a shred of feminine bashfulness, she remarked instead, "Listening to Ouyang's words, it seems you are looking for someone who shares your profession. That is truly... a bit difficult. However, Ouyang can rest assured; extraordinary women in this world are countless. This Luo truly believes that Ouyang will inevitably find a satisfactory and cherished beauty." Smiling slightly and speaking slowly, she abruptly shifted her tone, "Even if she is not a peerless beauty of stunning appearance, she will surely be a uniquely extraordinary woman." The word "uniquely" clearly carried another connotation, much like an extraordinary woman who happened to look quite peculiar.

A subtle, nearly imperceptible shadow darkened Ouyang Jingxu's complexion.

Qin Jinghao calmly allowed Luo Yunyao to make such remarks, looking at her with doting indulgence. In his heart, he thought that Luo Yunyao indeed still cared for him and liked him, as she had deliberately pulled her punches when speaking to him.

In truth, Qin Jinghao did not know that whenever Luo Yunyao intended to tease him or say something sharp, she would be completely rebuffed by his jade-like appearance, his refined and noble disposition, and by his very person. She could say nothing; she simply could not bear to say anything. Her heart and mind had long cast aside all previous thoughts into the furthest reaches of the cosmos, leaving behind only an overwhelming tide of deep affection.

This was how hopelessly fond of him Luo Yunyao was.

Having no intention of showing restraint toward Ouyang Jingxu this time, the hopelessly smitten Luo Yunyao continued to tease him: "However, this Luo feels that... even a clever girl in official circles cannot possibly be cleverer than you, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. Therefore, this Luo humbly thinks that Ouyang could, um... become a rather extraordinary... man in the eyes of others."

The meaning behind these words was abundantly clear. Although Luo Yunyao used a few hesitation noises to cover up and veil her choice of phrasing, the more she did so, the more transparent her intentions became.

Watching with utter satisfaction as Ouyang Jingxu's face turned completely dark, Luo Yunyao did not let him off the hook and continued to drive the knife in: "Of course, this is merely this Luo's wishful thinking and blessing. After all, such matters are always decided by the orders of one's parents and the words of a matchmaker."

Luo Yunyao's expression conveyed the sentiment: *Even if you, Ouyang Jingxu, fancy peculiar women or fiercely intelligent men, it is not something you can decide yourself. I, this Luo, shall mourn for you for one second. Still, you might as well resign yourself to fate.*

Qin Jinghao suppressed the smile curling at the corners of his lips and slowly spoke after Luo Yunyao's flurry of sharp verbal sparring: "You are."

He spoke in a tone of praise, appreciation, and doting fondness, his voice as clear and resonant as a chime of jade.

Luo Yunyao knew this man was cooperating with her to tease Ouyang Jingxu, but for a moment she was merely struck with a mix of disbelief and pleasant surprise that Qin Jinghao had so quickly abandoned friendship for the sake of his beloved.

The two people present quickly figured out the meaning behind Qin Jinghao's seemingly disjointed and abrupt remark:

— *To find an extraordinary woman also serving in official circles is truly difficult.*

— *You are.*

Before Luo Yunyao had the chance to be utterly and hopelessly moved all over again, she was interrupted by Ouyang Jingxu, that towering eight-hundred-watt lightbulb. Fully dedicated to performing his duties as a nuisance, he declared, "Since Brother Jinghao and Worthy Brother Yunyao both disregard the orders of parents and the words of a matchmaker, then although I am unworthy and cannot compare to the two of you, I am still capable of acting upon such convictions. I only wish to capture one steadfast heart and grow old together, never to be parted."

*Only to capture one steadfast heart and grow old together, never to be parted.*

Luo Yunyao's impending rush of touched emotion was derailed by his words, and she narrowed her eyes, looking at Ouyang Jingxu with amused interest.

She had not expected that her own words would liberate someone else from traditional marital concepts. Now, under her tutelage—cough—Ouyang Jingxu had actually proposed a clear manifesto rejecting feudalism and stale conventions, opposing "the orders of parents and the words of a matchmaker," and pursuing freedom in marriage and the liberation of individuality!

For the first time, Luo Yunyao felt herself to be so remarkably great, possessed of profound historical significance and the potential to have her name recorded in the annals of history.

Yet deep in her heart, she vaguely felt that something was amiss.

Putting her wandering thoughts aside for the moment, Luo Yunyao opened her sparkling eyes and asked, "Oh? Does Ouyang mean that as long as you take a fancy to someone, you will remain steadfastly devoted to them and never let go?"

Luo Yunyao wanted to put extra emphasis on the pronoun "him" to make her point. However, catching sight of the pensive expression on Qin Jinghao's jade-like face out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly checked herself.

Tilting her head with an expression brimming with gossip, she asked with utmost interest, "Bound by oath in life and death, we pledged to one another?"

Ouyang Jingxu recited without a moment's hesitation: "Holding your hand, growing old together with you."

The narrowed eyes of Luo Yunyao held an even deeper hue, but outwardly she remained unperturbed. Continuing as though they were merely exchanging poetry among friends, she picked up: "Inscribed in Han clerical script on the base of the vase, imitating the ethereal style of past dynasties, as if laying the foreshadowing for our meeting."

Naturally, as she spoke these lines, Luo Yunyao looked at Qin Jinghao with eyes full of lingering tenderness and brimming emotion. That boundless wave of affection seemed on the verge of overflowing, unable to be contained any longer.

"The azure blue awaits the misty rain, and I am waiting for you." Ouyang Jingxu also reacted, seemingly having no intention of concealing his origins as he began to softly sing.

His rugged voice imbued the song with a deep, halting cadence, carrying the ancient, desolate sorrow of someone who had waited for a millennium yet truly failed to meet the person destined for him.

Ouyang Jingxu's gaze was not fixed on Luo Yunyao or Qin Jinghao. Although he had always known he was a third wheel, he had previously deliberately and maliciously maximized his illumination. Now, finally, he grew quiet, choosing not to disturb this pair of young mandarin ducks.

Or rather, Ouyang Jingxu no longer had the heart to illuminate the couple. His distant gaze fell upon the green mountains behind the majestic halls of the Court of Judicial Review, carrying a lingering and melancholy depth.

"The moonlight is fished up, blurring the ending. And you, like an heirloom celadon, remain beautiful in your own right, your eyes carrying a smiling warmth."

The rugged, deep male voice concealed a bewildered sorrow, a persistent waiting, a bitter searching, and the timeless grief of wandering in circles only to miss out on the love one sought.

Yet within this song, the clear and resonant feminine voice carried a free and melodious tone—a sense of fulfillment upon gazing at a pristine celadon porcelain that belonged solely to her. Within that overflowing happiness was a sweetness as rich as honey, scooped up in handfuls for the one held dear.

A barely perceptible trace of anxiety and reluctance lingered, tinged with confusion and an urge to escape.

These negative emotions seemed clearly separated by the female voice and cast toward the male voice, stretching the sorrowful sentiment within those deep tones longer and farther into distant time, deeply engraving it upon the heart.

Qin Jinghao and Luo Yunyao exchanged a glance. At such a confession from Luo Yunyao, his brows—which swept upward like the wings of a swallow—frowned deeply, entirely losing the unruffled, tranquil composure of the jade-like young noble he had worn before.

His gaze was profound and fixed straight upon Luo Yunyao. The once calm look had transformed, carrying scrutiny and doubt, a hint of sudden understanding, and an ungraspable, pensive stillness.

It was the first time Luo Yunyao had ever sung in front of Qin Jinghao. While she naturally possessed absolute confidence—or perhaps even narcissism—regarding her vocal range, technique, and timbre, Qin Jinghao's uncharacteristic gaze left her feeling entirely out of her depth. Inwardly, Luo Yunyao vaguely guessed what he was thinking, yet she could not explain this matter to him, nor could she comfort him—if comforting her beloved meant making promises she could not guarantee, it was better left unsaid.

Without hope or promises, there would be no disappointment, or at least the disappointment would not be so agonizingly painful.

Luo Yunyao hurriedly lowered her eyelashes, breaking the eye contact with Qin Jinghao. Moments later, overcome with a guilty conscience, she buried her head completely, not daring to look into his searing gaze any longer. Yet, much to her dismay, she possessed a teammate comparable to a pig.

Ouyang Jingxu finally realized that something was amiss. After a moment of thought, he tried to break the deadlock: "Um... I never expected Minister Luo to also be from our..." Ouyang Jingxu had not yet figured out which place-name from this world to use. After all, he understood Qin Jinghao well; given Qin Jinghao's vast well of knowledge, which he had long witnessed, it was obviously impossible to fool him by casually tossing out or fabricating some random location.

While Ouyang Jingxu was racking his brains, Qin Jinghao shifted his gaze away from Luo Yunyao and directed it toward the innocently bumbling Ouyang Jingxu. In a voice as cool and low as jade, he asked, "Oh? So the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review turns out to be from a small village in Biluo Jiannan?"

It was also Ouyang Jingxu's first time seeing Qin Jinghao like this. This noble youth, who had always been as refined as jade and as detached from worldly dust as a drifting cloud—a transcendent figure who supposedly found no interest in anything—was now wearing such a gloomy expression that even someone as familiar with him as Luo Yunyao could not handle it, let alone Ouyang Jingxu.

Under Qin Jinghao's penetrating gaze, Ouyang Jingxu nodded guiltily, completely forgetting to consult Luo Yunyao or check her expression. The brilliant and infallible Minister of the Court of Judicial Review was utterly unaware that he had walked right into the trap of the famously power-averse and taciturn General Qin. Believing his slip had not been exposed enough, he continued, "Brother Jinghao is indeed remarkably well-traveled to know even such a small place. When shall we arrange to go back and visit together?"

Luo Yunyao closed her eyes in despair, feeling utterly helpless against this IQ-deficient Ouyang Jingxu.

Fortunately, Qin Jinghao was a formidable general accustomed to the battlefield, decisive and resolute. He was not like Luo Yunyao, who harbored a mischievous urge to peel back someone's layers one by one, nor was he like Ouyang Jingxu, who enjoyed gently and slowly luring his prey into a cage before toying with them and delivering a cruel, fatal stroke.

Qin Jinghao had always been the sort of upright gentleman who, once certain of something, gave people a clean and swift resolution.

He glanced sidelong at Luo Yunyao, returned his gaze to the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, and stated mercilessly, "The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review need not conceal it any longer. I more or less understand what is going on. You two might as well explain this matter clearly right here in front of me."