She knew there was history in every look the other woman gave her. But the full shape of that history still remained beyond her reach, hidden behind fog.
Shen Mingyue never forced it.
That alone made Mo Yuxin respect her even more.
The founder of the Battle Maiden Sect was someone whose name alone could stir entire continents, but around Mo Lan she had none of that oppressive grandeur. She was attentive, patient, and heartbreakingly tender in the small things. She remembered how Mo Lan liked her tea. She adjusted her shawl when the wind rose. She lowered her voice when speaking to her, as if afraid any harshness at all might cause the fragile threads between them to snap.
One afternoon, Mo Yuxin and Su Yubing found them in a side garden.
Mo Feng was chasing spirit butterflies near the pond, laughing so loudly that even the koi seemed startled. Mo Lan sat beneath a tree, and Shen Mingyue was beside her, not too close, but close enough that the meaning was obvious.
