After saying that, she lingered no longer. She turned and headed back the way she had come, her footsteps gradually fading along the stone-paved path. Shen Fei stood where he was and watched for a couple of seconds, then pushed open the courtyard gate.
The courtyard was very quiet. The lanterns were still lit, and the light from the lighting ore fell evenly across the bluestone paving.
He crossed the courtyard to his room. The instant he pushed open the door, he saw Xiao Ning'er sitting at the table.
Several Inscription Diagrams lay spread out before her, with a fine brush beside them. Its tip had already dried, and there were no fresh strokes on the paper. At the sound of the door, she lifted her head, her gaze meeting Shen Fei's.
Shen Fei stepped over the threshold and closed the door behind him.
He looked at her sitting beneath the lamplight. The wick of the oil lamp on the table had grown rather long, and its flickering flame cast shifting shadows across her face.
He did not know how long she had been sitting there. The cup of tea on the table had gone completely cold, without even a wisp of steam left.
He walked over to the table and sat in the other chair. The paper-covered tabletop lay between them. Only after a long silence did he speak. "I'm back."
Xiao Ning'er looked at him and nodded. "I know."
Shen Fei looked at her, knowing what she wanted to ask and why she had waited for him inside his room rather than in the courtyard.
She did not ask what Sikong Hongyue had said to him or whether she had done anything that crossed the line. But her gaze remained fixed on him, as though she were trying