Time passed quietly in the little courtyard.
Ever since Li Hao and Bian Ruxue had returned from the temple fair, neither had gone out again. Both quietly awaited the coming of that day.
On ordinary days, Bian Ruxue practiced her swordsmanship in the courtyard, working only on sword intent, not sword moves.
Otherwise, the sheer force of her sword moves would have cut away the courtyard's last trace of autumn.
When her sword dance ended, the girl glanced back toward the pavilion.
But the pavilion stood empty. The boy who had once sat there was nowhere to be seen.
A little gloom and dejection crept unbidden into her eyes, clear as the first snowfall. But after only a moment, she suppressed it and immersed herself in cultivating sword intent again.
Meanwhile, Li Hao could sometimes be seen in the Li Family Ancestral Hall. He sought out Fifth Master to play chess, or went to the Listening Rain Pavilion, where he would open a book at random and sit reading for an entire day.
The two-month deadline drew ever closer, until only ten days remained.
That day, in an open space beside a pond in the courtyard, Li Hao brought out the drawing board he had left untouched in his room for half a month, intending to paint the last fallen leaf of late autumn.
A figure came running into the courtyard. It was Li Yuanzhao.
He found Li Hao and said breathlessly, "Hao Ge, Qian Qian is looking for you."
"Qian Qian?"
"Ren Qianqian-the girl who went to Cangyu City with us," Li Yuanzhao hurriedly explained.
Li Hao remembered her. "What does she want?"
"She said her father agreed. She wants to learn swordsmanship from you," Li Yuanzhao said at once.
Li Hao recalled the matter, feeling a little surprised.