Wang Dashi left Yang Ge's house and vaulted over the courtyard wall into the yard next door.
Only a wall separated them.
Yang Ge's home was filled with the festive New Year bustle of slaughtering chickens and ducks, stewing meat and frying it.
But this courtyard was filled instead with the scent of paper ingots, candles, and incense...
A delicate, beautiful woman dressed in plain white and wrapped in a Snow Marten Fur Coat sat alone in the snow before the house, holding a hand warmer. The pure winter sunlight fell on her, reflecting a deathly pale halo.
With eyes devoid of light, she gazed indifferently at Wang Dashi as he came over the wall.
"Satisfied?"
She asked softly, with neither joy nor anger.
"Not particularly!"
Wang Dashi answered a question she had not asked. He strode over and sat beside her. "The fellow has some ability, but no ambition. He muddles through his days. He'll never amount to anything."
The woman turned her face toward him, mockery in her eyes. "You've known him for barely half an hour, and you can already declare he'll never amount to anything?"
Wang Dashi answered succinctly, "His courtyard is too comfortable..."
The woman said nothing.
Wang Dashi continued, "In the past, if anyone had dared bring a man like that to propose marriage to you, I'd have broken all five of his legs without hesitation. But now... he's just right for you!"
The woman gave a faint scoff and asked mockingly, "Why don't you consider whether I'm good enough for him?"
Wang Dashi scoffed too, but his tone carried an indescribable arrogance. "A daughter of my Xie Family marries beneath her, no matter whom she marries!"
The woman turned to look at him and slowly smiled, though a dark current of hysteria surged