Winter Hibernation

After several months, she flew across continents and oceans, sealing Black Spring.

By the time she returned to City D, it was already winter, just after a snowfall. Ginkgo Tree stood bare beneath accumulated snow. De-icing agent had turned the roads muddy, and passing cars splashed blackish, half-melted slush. Schools were on break, while cram schools were bustling with activity.

Having just returned from the tropics, Bai Yujun was still wearing a short-sleeved shirt, casual cropped pants, and sandals that looked especially conspicuous in winter.

An old man passing by shook his head and sighed.

"Alas, young people these days really want style over warmth. When you get old and your legs ache from the cold, it'll be too late for regrets..."

Bai Yujun shrugged, yawned, and walked into a clothing store.

Half an hour later.

She was wrapped in a thick Down Jacket and cotton shoes. She had poked holes in a cotton cap, leaving only her dragon horns exposed, while her pointed ears lay flat against her head inside the cap for warmth. Taking out her phone, she called the Special Department and asked for a house with strong heating so she could hole up for the winter. Winter made her sleepy; she needed to hide beneath the blankets and sleep her days away. Heating was absolutely essential.

She walked through the commercial pedestrian street, her steps crunching through the snow. Christmas trees were hung with golden gift bells, and shop speakers played Jingle Bells and Happy New Year again and again.

If only the pollution were not so severe.

There were only crows in the sky, no other birds. As the snow melted, plastic trash and wrapping paper emerged, trembling in the wind. Trash bins were stuffed full of every kind of garbage...

A wedding photography studio