However, at this moment, Li Lin's attention was fixed on a girl beside the young lady, dressed like a maid. This girl, around seventeen or eighteen, had a slightly flushed face, like a newly blossomed peach flower, with long eyebrows framing a pair of pure blue eyes. Her fair and tender face was adorned with a straight, delicate nose, and her black hair was tied up in a high bun at the back of her head. Her understated long dress outlined her well-proportioned figure. Li Lin couldn't help but feel a bit regretful; this girl could have been a stunning beauty, yet a red birthmark the size of a baby's fist on the right side of her face marred her appearance.
Still, Li Lin couldn't help but keep looking at her. Though dressed as a maid, she exuded an intangible aura, and her eyes held a gaze not typical of a maid. Li Lin felt certain that this girl was no ordinary servant.
"Miss Du Gu, how do you like our back garden?" Li Shaohu, leading the group, asked the girl in the center with a slight smile.
"Not bad, these must be the Cold Willows, rare in these parts, originating from the extreme northern plains," the young lady identified as Miss Du Gu replied with a light smile, looking at the row of willow trees ahead.
"Miss Du Gu has a keen eye," Li Shaohu, Li Shaoxiong, and Zhou Haiming all praised immediately.
"Miss Du Gu, I've heard of your extraordinary literary talents. Now, in the depth of winter, let me humbly offer a poem for your guidance," Zhou Haiming seized the opportunity to show off in front of the young lady.
"Guidance is too much to ask for, but I would love to hear Mr. Zhou's composition," Miss Du Gu replied with a twinkling smile.
With that, Zhou Haiming straightened his clothes and took a deep breath, gazing at the garden before reciting, "The garden's beauty is meticulously crafted, where winter brings a spring-like charm. Beyond green trees and red flowers, high towers await the arrival of guests."
After finishing, Zhou Haiming smiled proudly, seemingly very satisfied with his own creation.
Li Lin, hiding in the tree, nearly burst out laughing at this, thinking to himself how ridiculous some people could be.
Among the group of young men and women, Li Wushuang's expression also subtly showed a hint of helplessness.
"Well done, Mr. Zhou. I didn't expect you to be so talented," praised Miss Du Gu, causing Zhou Haiming to puff up with pride.
The group continued walking, drawing nearer to Li Lin's hiding spot, chatting and laughing along the way.
Li Lin, observing from above, noticed the special-aura maid seemed preoccupied, her face expressionless and her eyes reflecting a faint sadness.
"In the depths of winter, beauty fades; as time sweeps by, the years grow old. In this chaotic world, tranquility runs deep; songs of life echo, destiny incomplete..."
At that moment, the maid walked softly, her gaze lost in the winter scene, and she began to recite quietly. Her voice was melodious, like a refreshing breeze. The boisterous young men and women suddenly turned their attention to her.
Continuing in her soft voice, she said, "In a life of ink and brush, amidst the fiery smoke of battlefields, I wish not to be a damsel of the past era, as the world crumbles, time drifts away..."
Green gauze gracefully sways, stirring the entire era's prosperity. Half a life adrift, embellishing a lifetime of incomplete sorrow, through countless lifetimes and autumns, reincarnating a bright, charming smile...
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Listening to the maid's soft chant, Li Lin realized that her words revealed a longing not to be born in a woman's body, yearning for the battlefield's fierce fires, unwilling to be a woman of the loom in a chaotic world, as time drifts away. Had she been a man, she would surely be a hero of her time.
Li Lin admired the maid's talent and ambition. If he ever had the chance, he too would aspire to stir the battlefield, unafraid of sacrifices – a true man's ambition.
The maid continued softly: "At the ferry's end, desolate battlefields, arrows raining in the sky, luxurious silks and satins, pouring affection to the world, dew and cream, butterflies longing for the horizon. Preferring to listen to the bustling tune, rather than being the master of it, quietly maintaining beauty in the mirror like fleeting dreams and illusions. Three thousand strands of hair, for whom do I dream and dote? Amidst the vast, bustling red dust, who chases after beauty and power?..."
Hearing her chant again, blending masculine ambition with feminine sentiment, Li Lin felt as if he entered a state of clarity. His past life was aimless, and having survived a great disaster, he was now in this different world. What he sought was exactly this – to stir the battlefield, unafraid of sacrificing everything for glory, and who would chase after power and beauty in the bustling world, drunk in love and awake to power. This was the voice hidden deep within his soul.
The maid went on to recite: "A tune on the zheng, entwining the world's grief, a lute enveloping eternal sentiments, holding a broken flute, deeply in love with the Qingming rain. The glamour all lost, who can promise me a love that endures through lifetimes? Who can plant an eternal, alluring love for me?"
At this moment, everyone was mesmerized by the maid, her talent and depth of sentiment unparalleled. Even the previously arrogant Zhou Haiming felt ashamed of himself.
But then, the maid's brows slightly furrowed as she recited about planting an eternal, alluring love, seemingly unable to continue, and sighed softly.
At this moment, a voice gently emerged: "An ethereal rainy night, penetrating a lifetime of reincarnations. The heart's strings stir the endless worldly dust. Memories burn past wounds, bearing a lifetime of grief, playing a song of fading life.
That era, with horses and swords, swallowing thousands of miles, smoke of war rising, lords contending for the world. Preparing horses and soldiers, banners fluttering, flying sand and rolling stones, golden bells ringing in the heavens, battles shaking the world. The city shrouded in smoke and sand, tears and blood falling, broken cavalry and armor, spreading red across the horizon, hoping for a reincarnation to return to the old nest, bringing you the flowers of February. I can only dance the weapons for a moment for you, for I need a lifetime to fight for the world for you.
That era, with a paradise of three thousand, petals scattering across the horizon. The endless zither, a beauty overturning nations and cities, an unparalleled grace. I can only play half a tune for you in a moment, for I need a lifetime to traverse the world with you.
That era, with pure white snow, illusionary innocence, cherry blossoms fluttering in all seasons, a beautiful dance by the sand, carrying several lifetimes of suffering, lightly touching a face, leaving behind a fragrance. I can only get drunk with you under the moon for a moment, for I need the time in an hourglass to accompany you through storms and snow.
That era, with a half-lit green lamp, Buddha by my side, moonlit jade, wind shielding the pavilion, a life of songs and dances, the first makeup by the warm smoke, three thousand strands of hair, crazily painted for you. Who can I entrust my lifetime of madness to?
How many heroes bathed in blood, many loyal souls buried in foreign lands, one's achievement leading to countless deaths, many white hairs sent off by black hair. It's said that once you enter the realm of jianghu, it hastens us, ruins and walls broken, soldiers at the pond, the city filled with sand and bitterness, who's waiting with a foolish heart! Not fearing the vicissitudes of beauty, only fearing that the flower's fall and broken strings go unheard..."
Li Lin, unable to restrain himself, thought of his past life wasted, loveless and achievement-less. Now in this different world, what he desired was just these two things. Unconsciously, he followed the maid's words, speaking out loud.
"Sir, such talent and ambition, would you come down and let this young lady see you?" Hearing this, the men and women below were astonished. This verse, no less brilliant than the maid's, even more so reflected pride and tender feelings. It's said that once you enter the realm of jianghu, it hastens us, ruins and walls broken, soldiers at the pond, the city filled with sand and bitterness, who's waiting with a foolish heart! Not fearing the vicissitudes of beauty, only fearing that the flower's fall and broken strings go unheard... These were truly timeless lines.