Li Yao preferred standing beneath the window after lessons, waiting for the girl to take him running wild everywhere. Following that figure, the unfamiliar world no longer frightened him, and gradually grew interesting.
What made him gradually hold his head higher still was the once-unfamiliar General's Residence. He grew familiar with that tall, upright man, listening to him explain past battles and the military strategies in books; whenever he stood beside him, he always felt a powerful sense of security. He grew close to the calm, gentle lady, who always wore clothes in subdued colors and seemed never to get angry. Only around Master Zhu did he feel somewhat uncomfortable, although the girl seemed closest to him.
The days passed one by one. By the time the boy's head was level with the girl's, nearly two years had gone by. Li Yao had never felt anything was wrong, except that the man had been teaching him military strategy less and less often in recent months, and sometimes the lady was nowhere to be found either.
But the world did not stop changing simply because the boy failed to notice. Beyond the children's field of vision, those dark clouds finally brewed a sudden downpour.
On the twelfth day of the first month, Li Yao once again rode back from the Imperial College, passing along the long street before the Imperial City. His feet could now rest firmly in the stirrups. The young girl had only taught him to ride last month, ordering him to learn quickly so that he could take her to play beside the Feng River when the spring flowers bloomed.
Li Yao was still somewhat afraid of the great beast beneath him. He often had this feeling-it was not he who controlled its steps, but it that controlled