Only then did everyone realize that the young woman before them was not the Princess. They could not help but feel secretly delighted. Even a mere maid was so slender and beautiful—just how stunning must the real Princess be?
But they immediately recalled the Princess's question, thinking that the test had likely already begun. They furrowed their brows and pondered deeply. Though Western Xia could not compare to powers such as the Mongol Empire, Jin Dynasty, or Southern Song, it was still a regional power. As a Princess of a nation, what had she not seen? For something to strike her as extraordinarily wondrous, it had to be no ordinary thing.
Song Qingshu nearly burst out laughing. Women really are all cut from the same cloth, even across a thousand years. Wasn't this question deliberately digging a pit for everyone to jump into?
At that moment, the maid brought out tea and pastries, serving them one by one to everyone in the room. The tea was fine, and the pastries exquisite, but no one was in the mood to eat or drink. All of them were busy contemplating the Princess's question.
"I think it was a beautiful bird—no, it should have been a phoenix. Only a phoenix would suit a Princess's status." Gusiluo was the first to speak. In his view, the palace was heavily guarded, and the Princess's chambers were an especially vital area. No outsider could possibly enter, so only birds could have approached her chambers. For a Princess accustomed to rare birds and exotic beasts to find it surprising, it had to be an extraordinary bird.
He was quite pleased with his answer, and even more pleased that he had voiced it before anyone else. As the saying went, the first step ahead meant every step ahead;