A few days later, Bai Qingxue was meditating under the old plum tree in the courtyard.
The afternoon sun filtered through the withered branches, falling on her shoulders and hair like crushed gold, making those few strands of white hair appear almost transparent.
Bai Qingxue’s eyes were closed, her breathing long and steady as spiritual power flowed slowly through her meridians.
The Cold Iron Stone lay by her knee, though its deep blue glow was much dimmer in the daylight, casting only a thin layer of cold radiance between her palm and her knee.
The courtyard was very quiet. The withered branches of the old plum tree swayed gently in the breeze. Occasionally, a small clump of residual snow fell from a branch, hitting the stone steps with a faint sound before shattering into powder and being swept away by the wind.
Suddenly, a surge of spiritual power came from nearby.
The air trembled slightly, causing the withered branches of the old plum tree to shake and drop a few more flakes of snow.
As if sensing something, Bai Qingxue suddenly opened her eyes and glanced in that direction.
It was Lu Xueqing’s courtyard.
‘Senior Sister Lu has broken through.’
Bai Qingxue felt the fluctuation and formed a vague judgment in her heart.
Lu Xueqing had stayed at the seventh level for a long time; this breakthrough was a natural progression.
Soon after, Bai Qingxue withdrew her gaze, closed her eyes again, and resumed her exercise.
It wasn't until her spiritual power had circulated through her meridians twice more that Bai Qingxue remembered: shouldn't she be happy for Senior Sister Lu?
Happy. Yes, she was happy.
...
The next morning, there was a knock at the courtyard gate.
Bai Qingxue rose from the stone bed, straightened her robes, walked to the gate, and pulled back the bolt.
Lu Xueqing stood outside.
Today she wore a black Daoist robe, different from her usual frost-white one. Her longsword hung at her waist, and her hair was tied up neatly, with a few stray strands fluttering in the morning breeze.
A smile graced her face, and her eyes were brighter than usual. She looked radiant, as if glowing from within. The aura from her breakthrough hadn't fully settled yet, and a faint fluctuation of spiritual power lingered around her, giving her a sharper edge than before.
“Junior Sister Bai,” she called out, her tone light and ending on a slight lilt, as if she were announcing something very important.
Bai Qingxue glanced at her; she had indeed broken through.
She could feel the spiritual power on Lu Xueqing, which was crisp yet mellow, significantly more robust than before.
“Congratulations, Senior Sister,” Bai Qingxue said. Though she offered her congratulations, her tone was as flat as her usual manner of speaking.
Lu Xueqing waited for a moment. She stood outside the threshold with a smile, a hint of expectation in her eyes.
She was waiting for Bai Qingxue to say something more. For example, “Senior Sister is amazing,” or “How did you break through?” Even a simple “How do you feel?” would have sufficed.
But there was no follow-up from Bai Qingxue. She simply stood inside the doorway, her expression as usual, looking at Lu Xueqing with a calm gaze, as if waiting for Lu Xueqing to say the next thing.
Lu Xueqing couldn't help herself.
“That’s it?” she asked. The smile remained on her lips, but her tone held a hint of teasing and a small amount of dissatisfaction.
Bai Qingxue thought for a moment and asked back seriously, “What else should there be?”
Bai Qingxue’s expression was very earnest, as if she truly didn't know what else needed to be said besides “congratulations.”
Perhaps in her view, congratulations already expressed everything that needed to be expressed.
She was happy for Lu Xueqing’s breakthrough. As for anything more, she didn't know how, nor did she want to force herself to learn.
Lu Xueqing was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing.
The laughter wasn't loud, but it sounded exceptionally clear in the morning courtyard.
Lu Xueqing shook her head. Her small expectation had fallen through, but she felt this was to be expected.
After all, she had long known what kind of person this junior sister was.
The fact that she could even get a “congratulations” out of her was already an achievement.
“Fine, that’s it then,” Lu Xueqing said, her tone carrying a helpless yet not unpleasant sense of doting.
She pulled a small cloth bag from her storage bag and handed it over.
“I brought this for you. Spirit tea, grown on the mountain. I’ve tried it; it’s not bad.”
Bai Qingxue took the cloth bag.
The bag was made of coarse hemp and felt rough to the touch, but the opening was tied with a red string in a beautiful butterfly knot—clearly Lu Xueqing’s handiwork.
Bai Qingxue untied the red string and peeked inside. It contained half a bag of tea leaves. The leaves were long and slender, pale green, and curled like needles. They had a crisp fragrance, like morning dew in the deep mountains mixed with the scent of pine needles.
“Thank you, Senior Sister,” Bai Qingxue said.
“You’re welcome.” Lu Xueqing had already walked into the courtyard, as natural as if she were returning to her own home.
She walked to the stone stool under the old plum tree, brushed off the fallen snow and withered leaves, and sat down.
Then she patted the stone stool beside her and looked up at Bai Qingxue.
“Brew a pot? I want to drink the tea you make,” Lu Xueqing said casually, though a flicker of barely perceptible expectation flashed in her eyes.
Bai Qingxue glanced at her but said nothing.
She then turned and entered the quiet room, taking a teapot and two teacups from the cabinet.
After setting the tea set on the stone table, Bai Qingxue took a pinch of tea leaves from the bag and placed them in the pot. The leaves hit the bottom with a faint rustling sound.
She poured in hot water.
The boiling water rushed into the pot, and the tea leaves slowly unfurled in the water, like curled flower buds slowly blooming in spring.
The tea soup gradually took on a pale greenish tint, and the crisp fragrance rose with the steam, diffusing through the morning air.
Bai Qingxue poured two cups.
She pushed the first cup to Lu Xueqing and held the second one herself. The tea was very hot, so she didn't rush to drink it, simply cupping it to feel the warmth spreading through her palms.
Lu Xueqing picked up her cup, blew on it gently, and took a sip.
The tea entered her mouth with a slight bitterness, followed by a sweet aftertaste. A crisp warmth slid down her throat into her stomach, and her whole body relaxed. She squinted her eyes in satisfaction, her gaze inadvertently falling on Bai Qingxue’s hair.
Morning light filtered through the withered branches of the old plum tree, falling on Bai Qingxue’s shoulders and forehead. Those few strands of white hair shimmered silver-white in the sunlight, and there were a few more than there had been days ago. The silver threads at her temples had joined into a small patch, and new white hairs had emerged at the roots on top of her head, standing out clearly among the black hair.
Lu Xueqing opened her mouth to speak, then lowered her eyes and took another sip of tea, swallowing the words she wanted to say.
The tea entered her mouth, still carrying that same crisp fragrance. She held the cup, her fingertips tracing the fine texture of the coarse ceramic wall, and suddenly felt that just sitting like this was quite nice.
Sunlight filtered through the withered branches, falling on the stone table between them and making the tea soup appear translucent.
Bai Qingxue sat opposite her, quiet and saying nothing.
After a while, she set down her cup and looked at Lu Xueqing.
“The tea is good,” Bai Qingxue suddenly commented.
Though her tone was still very flat.
But Lu Xueqing noticed that before Bai Qingxue said those words, she had looked at her, as if to confirm something.
Lu Xueqing’s hand holding the cup paused slightly.
By the time she looked up again, Bai Qingxue had already withdrawn her gaze and was looking at the tea in her cup, her expression as usual.
Yet Lu Xueqing suddenly felt that “the tea is good” didn't just refer to the tea.
She pursed her lips, and the corners of her mouth slowly curved up.
“Mhm,” she responded softly, her tone lilting slightly at the end.
Lu Xueqing didn't intend to press further. She simply raised her cup and gently clinked it against the rim of Bai Qingxue’s cup on the table, producing a faint 'ding'.
Bai Qingxue glanced at her, said nothing, and picked up her cup to take another sip.
The two continued to drink tea in silence for a while.
“If you like it, I’ll bring more next time,” Lu Xueqing said.
Bai Qingxue nodded without declining.
They drank their tea in silence. The only sounds in the courtyard were the wind passing through the withered branches and the occasional bird call from the distance.
The sunlight shifted bit by bit, lengthening and then shortening the shadow of the stone table.
The tea grew cold sip by sip, only to be topped with hot water and made warm again.
On the withered branches of the old plum tree, a few tiny buds shimmered in the sunlight, the size of rice grains, impossible to see unless one looked closely.
Later, Lu Xueqing left.
Bai Qingxue didn't remember what she said or how she turned to leave; she only remembered that the courtyard suddenly became much quieter after she was gone. Two empty cups remained on the stone table, with a tiny bit of unfinished tea at the bottom, already stone cold.
Bai Qingxue stood for a moment before closing the gate.
Returning to the quiet room, the bronze mirror still lay face down on the table, its cool patterns reflecting the light leaking in from the window.
Bai Qingxue still had no intention of flipping it over.
Rate on N.U.
