Lacquered tiles awakened white walls; stone bridges gazed upon flowing water.
Cooking smoke washed the fine rain; a weathered boat swayed in Jiangnan.
Dressed in white, Su Jingyan drank alone in the loft, his eyes gradually taking on a flush of red.
A household next door celebrated a wedding with clanging gongs and beating drums. The faint glow of red candles in the night shone upon Su Jingyan's white robes, setting off his seldom-seen air of loneliness.
The fragrance of wine spilled from his cup and drifted far away...
At some point, a faint fragrance began to linger beside Su Jingyan.
Su Jingyan turned his head blankly and saw Ning Baixue standing quietly there in a white dress. She made no sound, simply standing in silence...
Her long hair, black as ink, cascaded like a waterfall over her shoulders, and her peerless face was unadorned and serene.
Her swanlike neck was slender, her skin like congealed cream, and her lovely, moonlike phoenix eyes rippled like a river of spring water.
"Fairy Ning..." Su Jingyan greeted her.
Ning Baixue gave a faint nod, moved lightly to sit opposite Su Jingyan, and joined him for a drink.
Su Jingyan smiled and shook his head, raising his hand to pour Ning Baixue a cup before gently setting it before her.
Ning Baixue nodded, lifted her graceful arm with simple elegance, and slowly drank the wine in her cup.
Su Jingyan remained silent and did not ask why Ning Baixue had come again.
Over the past several months, Ning Baixue had occasionally come to visit, and her aloof serenity, set above all else, had gradually been tinged with a trace of mortal life.
Little by little, she seemed no longer quite so untouched by the smoke and fire of everyday life.
Moonlight rose, carrying