There had been plenty of snow before the New Year, and it had not let up after the holiday either.
It was just past ten in the morning when snowflakes began drifting down outside once more.
After learning that Second Master was pacing beneath the corridor in the Front Yard, several women set about digging out a wool cloak and sent Xing Xiuyan, who was on duty that night, to deliver it.
When Xing Xiuyan arrived at the Front Yard with her maid Zhuan'er, she found Sun Shaozong standing in the middle of the courtyard, shading his eyes with one hand as he gazed toward the northeastern sky.
Xing Xiuyan told Zhuan'er to wait beneath the corridor. Holding the cloak around herself with one hand and lifting her skirt with the other, she hurried to Sun Shaozong's side. Rising on tiptoe, she gently brushed the snow from his shoulders and asked curiously, "What are you looking at, Second Master? You've got so much snow on you, yet you haven't even shaken it off."
"Nothing."
Startled from his reverie, Sun Shaozong finally withdrew his gaze. He raised a hand and carelessly swept the snow from his head. Though he said it was nothing, the doubt on his face did not lessen in the slightest.
Xing Xiuyan did not press him. She silently draped the cloak over him, then said, "The sisters have had some hot soup prepared to ward off the cold. If you still don't wish to return to the inner residence, I'll have Zhuan'er bring it here to the Front Yard."
"No need."
Sun Shaozong waved his hand, then caught Xing Xiuyan's soft hand as they walked. "I'm not so frail that the wind could knock me over. Let them keep it warm. We'll use it at noon to