Jinghe Year Fifteen, the twenty-third day of the first month, morning.
Before dawn, the snow had stopped.
The courtyard lay silent, save for a few faint traces of winter sparrows upon the stone steps.
The distant mountains had lost their green; everywhere the eye reached was white.
The small courtyard of the Wei Residence.
"Young master, it's time to rise," Qu Niang called softly from outside the door.
Inside, Wei Nisheng was already neatly dressed.
The imperial-gifted Scarlet Robe lay folded beside his pillow. He wore a stone-blue Zhiduō Robe beneath a Crane Cloak, a Plain Sash cinched at his waist, and a hairpin securing his hair.
His official robes lay nearby, not because he was unwilling to wear them, but because there was no need.
The Imperial Commissioner's Tally rested in a chest, and the imperial decree was tucked into his luggage. Whatever he wore, he remained the imperial envoy.
Besides, the person he would see today needed no official robe to impress her.
Wei Nisheng pushed open the door and stepped out. Cold air rushed into his face, bearing the clear, biting freshness left by the snow.
Just then, Qu Niang approached from beneath the covered walkway with a Bronze Basin. White steam rose from the hot water, veiling her brows and eyes.
"Young master, wash your face first."
Wei Nisheng pressed a cloth to his face. Its warmth seeped through his skin and into the crevices of his bones, dispelling the lingering chill of waking.
By the time he had finished washing and rinsing his mouth, Qu Niang had brought Jujube Porridge from the kitchen.
"Have a little to line your stomach, young master. You can eat a proper meal aboard the boat."
"That makes sense."
Wei Nisheng nodded, took the bowl, and drank a generous