Chapter Content
The morning after the breakthrough arrived without alarm.
Lin Xuan opened his eyes to a ceiling that seemed to have one or two more grains of texture than it had the day before, and a body that asked nothing of him for once. The exhaustion of yesterday had not vanished. It had folded itself into something that felt earned. He let himself lie there with the back of one wrist over his forehead and the cup at his ribs sitting full and quiet for the first time in weeks.
Lian came in a few minutes later with the breakfast tray balanced on the flat of one hand and a small linen bundle tucked under the other arm. She crossed the room with the light steps of a woman who had done this routine for years, set the tray on the low table, and pulled the curtains apart with two short tugs. The morning light fell across the bed in a long pale band.
...
Unlock the full book
This chapter requires a one-time full-book purchase to unlock.