?
Night gradually settled into silence...
Although Chen Qiaoqian had been given a room aboard this luxurious, enormous "flying boat," where all sorts of things upended her understanding of the world, she had no intention of resting. Her mind was weighed down by too many worries, and she wasn't the least bit sleepy.
So!
After carefully bathing in the bright, lavish bathroom—lavish to the point of absurdity—she dressed in a gauzy robe, carrying the scent of fragrant bath oils with her. Then, barefoot, she carefully made her way across the spotless, mirror-smooth floor. It felt surprisingly warm beneath her feet as she quietly headed to the equally extravagant observation deck atop the "flying boat"—or perhaps it was better called a "spaceship."
"..."
She stood silently, gazing into the distance over the railing. Beneath the night sky, not far away, a peach tree stood beside the river, its branches shedding flecks of pink petals. Chen Qiaoqian was lost in thought for a long time, unable to say a word.
She thought of the wild chrysanthemums covering the valley near Yellow Maple Valley, where she had asked Junior Brother Han to meet her after they returned from Xujing. Then she looked at the peach tree nearby, its branches full of blossoms, at their vibrant beauty, at their petals drifting slowly down, and at the river flowing ceaselessly past. Before she knew it, a soft sigh escaped her.
"You said we'd meet again among the fallen blossoms next year..."
"But where will we meet, amid the vast, misty waters?"
"Alone, I pine for you, my heart an empty shell."
"Lost and lonely, I drift into dreams..."
"Only a heartbroken soul remains to watch the flowers fall..."
Just as she had seen, the fallen blossoms had feelings, but the flowing water did not. What