Wei Ji walked slowly beside her as they returned to the small wooden bench under the old peach tree. The night breeze carried the faint smell of flowers, and the garden felt quiet, wrapped in a warm veil of moonlight. Lu Shaohua hopped onto the bench, her feet dangling, her eyes shining with curiosity.
She leaned forward. "Another story. Tell me another story. You promised a princess story tomorrow, but today you can tell me something else. Tell me something big. Something amazing."
Wei Ji settled beside her, letting out a long breath. He rested one arm along the back of the bench and looked up at the moon. For a few heartbeats, he said nothing. His eyes looked calm, but inside he felt something far more complicated.
There was a story he had never intended to speak aloud again. A tale he once hated. A tale that haunted him even now. Yet as he looked at the young girl in front of him, bright and innocent, it struck him that maybe telling it would help him breathe a little today.
