Both worlds are like dreams

After surviving the Second Prince's wedding, it was finally Gu Qinglan's day off, but it started raining again. Although it wasn't heavy, Gu Qinglan refused to take her out no matter what.

It happened that Mo Ruilin also had a day off today, so he invited everyone to his house for tea.

Wei Yunzhou was not interested in these things, and as expected, he did not come over to the mansion for a reunion.

Mo Xingyue ran out of the palace, and when she saw Xue Huang, she pulled her away, "What's so good about tea? I'll take you to visit my brother's library, which has countless interesting books."

Mo Ruilin shouted from behind, "Don't you dare move!"

"I know, I know!" Mo Xingyue responded, then left with Xue Huang with a smile.

Mo Ruilin sighed, feeling pained, "My library, Xingyue suffers every time she comes."

Gu Qinglan smiled and said, "Princess Xingyue knows her limits, Your Highness, don't worry."

Mo Ruilin took a sip of tea and said, "The night before yesterday, my father summoned me, my second brother, and my third brother."

Gu Qinglan saw that he looked a little worried, "What did His Majesty say?"

"It's related to the stars and the moon." Mo Ruilin sighed.

"Could it be Princess Xingyue's marriage?"

"After all, the emperor still values Xingyue very much and doesn't want to let her down, so he asked for our opinions. Second brother's idea was very grand, to form an alliance with other countries to promote diplomatic relations, and to give her important officials to win over power. But he didn't propose a suitable candidate, only saying that he would listen to the emperor's considerations. As for third brother, he agreed with second brother's second choice, to give her to important officials in the court. But it was obvious that the candidates in his mind were Shen Congfeng and Mo Yunchen."

Gu Qinglan frowned slightly, "How can this be possible?"

Mo Ruilin was also very upset. Shen Congfeng was not only widowed, but he was already over 40 years old. Mo Xingyue was only 18 years old. How could his most beloved sister, the most noble princess of Beiling, suffer such an injustice? And Mo Yunchen, with a cold and ruthless personality, had killed countless innocent girls. He was definitely not a good match for Mo Xingyue.

"Father is naturally unwilling to give Xingyue to any of them, but even if he proposes other candidates, it will probably be a difficult matter."

"The relationship between Shen Congfeng and Mo Yunchen seems very subtle now. Perhaps this is a turning point for us." Gu Qinglan said.

Mo Ruilin nodded, "Let's not talk about this for now, let's talk about you."

"Me?" Gu Qinglan looked puzzled.

"I did want to entrust Xingyue to you, but I know that you only have a brotherly and sisterly relationship with her, and the one you really care about is Xuehuang. Since you care about her, don't let go." Mo Ruilin said with a smile.

"Why did your highness suddenly mention this?"

"Xue Huang's current identity is different from before. She is a descendant of Guigu, and now she has the identity of Princess Dongchu. Father seems to want her to marry into the royal family."

Gu Qinglan understood what he meant. If Xue Huang married the Beiling royal family, it would be like getting help from Guigu. This was also the plan of the second prince's biological mother and the third prince. But after all, Xue Huang also had the identity of the Princess of Dongchu. Who she would marry was a question that the emperor needed to consider carefully.

Mo Ruilin looked at Gu Qinglan and quickly explained: "Qinglan, don't worry about one thing. I only treat Xuehuang as a younger sister. Even if the emperor issues an order, I will definitely not agree to it."

Gu Qinglan smiled. He knew exactly what kind of person Mo Ruilin was. "I understand."

"What do you understand?" Mo Ruilin felt that he had endless worries. "I want to remind you that there are so many people who care about Xue Huang now. You have to hurry up!"

Gu Qinglan's ears began to turn red unconsciously, "Your Highness, can you be serious?"

"As your elder brother, I am reminding you in a very serious manner, hold on tight!"

Gu Qinglan held the teacup and nodded seriously.

Here, Mo Xingyue brought Xue Huang to Mo Ruilin's library.

This is a hollow two-story library, filled with all kinds of books, neatly arranged on the fine mahogany shelves according to different years and categories. The whole building is antique and spotlessly clean.

Xue Huang looked around in surprise, "Everyone says Qinglan is the most knowledgeable person in Shangyang City, but I didn't expect that Fifth Brother is actually the bookworm!"

"What do you mean by bookworm?" Mo Xingyue rolled her eyes. "He only has the lowest level of serious books here. The ones above are all unofficial histories, ancient books, and authentic vernacular novels that he collected from everywhere, as well as music scores, chess manuals, and some royal secrets from the previous dynasty. So in terms of knowledge, he can't compare to your brother Qinglan."

"If you dislike me so much, why did you bring me here?"

Mo Xingyue pulled her towards the second floor and said, "I have to say, the strange stories and story books my brother collected are quite interesting."

"It's been raining these days, and I've been stuck at home. Apart from reading storybooks, there's really nothing to do. I finally got the chance to go out, and you actually came to take me to read." Xue Huang found a place to sit down out of boredom, with little interest in the books.

"It's raining outside, what else can I do?"

Xue Huang thought for a moment, "When I was in Guigu before, every time it rained, my uncles and I would set up a copper pot, put chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns in it, then cut the mutton into thin slices, prepare a variety of green vegetables, put them in the pot to cook, and then eat them with sesame sauce and other seasonings. It was especially delicious."

"What's the way to eat this?"

"This is called hot pot!" Xue Huang said with a smile. "Winter in Guigu is very cold. Whenever it snows, we will gather around the stove to cook wine and then set up the hot pot. When it is spicy enough to make us sweat, we don't feel cold anymore."

Mo Xingyue's eyes lit up, "Why don't we try it at Fifth Brother's house? I've never eaten it before."

"Great!" Xue Huang immediately regained her energy. "I haven't eaten for a long time. I haven't been able to get together with my uncle and the others in the past few years, so I forgot about it."

"Come on, come on!" Mo Xingyue excitedly pulled her downstairs, "I'll take you to the kitchen!"

The two of them came to the kitchen, and after listening to Xuehuang's requirements, the chefs began to prepare according to her instructions.

In a short while, a table full of dishes was prepared.

Xue Huang chose a well-ventilated room and had someone set up the charcoal basin and pot. When Mo Ruilin and Gu Qinglan arrived, the fire in the pot was just right, the soup was white, and the chili peppers had produced red oil floating on the surface, which was choking to the touch.

"How do you eat this?" Gu Qinglan asked curiously.

"It was Xuehuang who came up with this idea!" Mo Xingyue said with a smile.

Mo Ruilin poked her head and said, "Of course only Snow Phoenix can come up with something so bizarre. Is eating the only thing you have left in your brain?"

"Brother," Mo Xingyue punched him unceremoniously, "If you say that to me again, I'll beat you up!"

"Come sit down now." Xue Huang said with a smile. "This is a small tradition of our Guigu. It is the most suitable to eat it on snowy and rainy days."