Ren Ye sat cross-legged beneath the Blazing Sun Tiangong Fire, his eyes fixed on the woman charging upward against the flow, using her broken body to shield him from the swarming burning corpses. Something stirred inexplicably in his heart, bringing a little sorrow and regret.
That woman was his wife within this building. Before the mission began, he had prepared a Birthday Ceremony for this stranger, too.
But Ren Ye had mainly done it for his own mission, while this wife knew nothing of that. She was happy. She seemed to still be "living" in a reflection of the past.
Before they parted, Ren Ye had been moved to tell her softly that sunlight would eventually reach this place and sweep away all its dust and gloom.
But his wife had said, "I'll wait for you to come home."
The years turned, and the river of time seemed to flow backward. Everything returned to the day the Tiangong Building was consumed by flames.
That day, a young man had left work early and gone home to prepare a thoughtful Birthday Banquet for his wife, with candles, a cake, and a table full of home-style dishes.
The two had shared a little wine, chatted, and made wishes. Perhaps they had even discussed whether they should have children someday...
The candles went out, and dinner came to an end.
Following Song Mingzhe's instructions, the young man went to investigate the missing Fire Talismans from the Inner Treasury.
His wife saw him to the door and said softly with a smile, "I won't go to sleep. I'll wait for you."
The young man turned and left, never to enter his home again. What the woman's wait brought her was an explosive fire that burned through every inch of the building.
Husband and wife