"Don't mistake this for some kind of reunion, Ling Yu. I didn't come here to hold your hand."
"I know."
"Then stop looking at me like that."
"Like what?"
"Like you still think I can be saved."
Her lips parted, but no words came.
Ji Xiulan turned away first, running a hand through his hair, the tension in his shoulders barely visible. "Get some rest. You'll need it for what's coming."
"Wait—"
But he was already at the door, his figure half-shadowed by moonlight.
Ling Yu's heart ached with words unsaid. "Ji Xiulan," she called softly.
He paused.
"…Did you really end the tree's sorrow?"
He looked over his shoulder, eyes glinting faintly, colder than moonlight, sharper than steel. "Would you rather I hadn't?"
She shook her head slowly. "No. I just… wish I understood you."
He smiled faintly, for the first time, but the kind of smile that didn't reach his eyes. "No one does. That's the point."
