Jinhsi leaned gently against the ancient trunk of the peach tree, looking up at him. The moonlight cascaded over her flushed cheeks and the shimmering dragon scales on her skin, her gaze misty yet filled with newfound courage.
Parting her red lips, she transformed an even more direct confession of her heart into a poem, softly chanting it aloud:
"Once, the jade light pierced the winter's frost,
If not for my lord, the flow of time would be lost.
As spring returns and years slip by, who will walk by my side?
These radiant peach blossoms tug at the strings where my heart resides."
This was almost the absolute limit of what the deeply reserved Jinhsi could bring herself to express.
Hearing this poem, Rover's eyes grew complex, brimming with a gentle, pitying tenderness and a trace of heavy solemnity.
He didn't directly respond to the profound meaning hidden within her verse. Instead, he gave a warm smile. Reaching out, he naturally and incredibly gently brushed away a stray peach petal that had fallen into her hair.
"The dance was beautiful, and the song was lovely as well," he praised sincerely, his gaze soft. "Thank you, Jinhsi."
This intimate address and gesture caused Jinhsi's heart to stop for a fraction of a second, before it immediately began to pound wildly like a war drum. She was so incredibly shy she felt as though she might melt into a puff of smoke and blow away.
She hastily lowered her head, not daring to look at him any longer.
When the two returned to the group, Jinhsi's emotions were still hovering in a highly elevated and bashful state.
Back at the Grand Library, perhaps to mask the surging emotions in her heart, or perhaps simply because she was too agitated, the usually light-weight Magistrate unknowingly drank several extra cups of Taoyuan Vale's specialty peach wine. The intoxication quickly rushed to her head.
Her eyes grew misty and unfocused, her cheeks burning a bright red. The steady, composed demeanor of the Magistrate she usually worked so hard to maintain vanished entirely, revealing the endearing, clingy innocence appropriate for a girl her age. From time to time, she would flash Rover a completely unguarded, silly smile.
When the banquet finally concluded, everyone returned to their arranged guest rooms to rest.
Jinhsi was already quite tipsy. Her footsteps were unsteady, and she could barely stand straight.
Seeing this, Changli shot Rover a deeply meaningful look and spoke softly. "Jinhsi is heavily intoxicated; I'm afraid she won't be able to walk back on her own. Rover, could I trouble you to escort her back to her room to rest?"
Rover looked at the silver-haired girl who was practically leaning all her weight against his arm and nodded, reaching out to support her.
Cartethyia stood a short distance away, silently watching the scene. A complex storm of emotions swirled in her icy blue eyes, and her fingers unconsciously curled into tight fists. But ultimately, she said nothing, simply lowering her head in silence.
Changli's gaze swept past Cartethyia, a flash of complex emotion passing through her eyes—there was concern, but also a faint trace of helplessness.
Rover supported the stumbling Jinhsi, walking slowly toward her room.
The moonlight stretched their shadows long across the ground. The air was permeated with the sweet fragrance of peach blossoms and the lingering, intoxicating scent of sweet wine.
The corridors of the Grand Library were dead silent, save for the moonlight filtering through the carved window lattices, casting mottled patterns of light and shadow onto the floor.
Rover held onto Jinhsi, whose footsteps were floaty and who was practically hanging half off his body, as they slowly approached her quarters.
The young girl's crisp, natural scent mixed with the faint sweetness of the peach wine, drifting into his nose.
She seemed to have completely dismantled all the walls around her heart, constantly mumbling broken, slurred sentences under her breath:
"...I'm so glad... everyone is safe."
"The Fractsidus... is so annoying..."
"Master... was my dance... pretty... Did Rover... like it..."
Rover patiently and gently supported her, replying in a low voice, "Mm. It was very pretty. I liked it a lot."
Finally arriving at her door, Rover took the keycard from Jinhsi's waist, swiped it open, and helped her inside.
The Magistrate's room was decorated simply yet elegantly. A few stacks of unfinished paperwork still sat on the desk, but there were also several small, delicate decorations that clearly belonged to a young girl.
He carefully helped Jinhsi sit down on the edge of the bed. Just as he was about to turn and pour her a glass of water, a slightly cool hand gently grabbed the hem of his shirt.
"Don't... don't go..."
Jinhsi tilted her head up, looking at him with drunken, hazy eyes. Under the moonlight, her silver-gray eyes looked as though they held damp, teary stars. Her usual calmness and restraint were entirely gone, leaving nothing but absolute vulnerability and insecurity.
"Rover... will you stay in Jinzhou forever? I... I'm a little scared by myself..."
This was a weakness she would absolutely never voice on an ordinary day, yet in this moment, she poured out the deepest insecurities of her heart to him without reservation.
Rover's footsteps halted. He turned around and crouched down in front of her until his eyes were perfectly level with hers.
He didn't brush her off, nor did he offer empty, easily broken promises. Instead, he looked earnestly into her eyes. "Jinhsi, listen to me. I won't stay in any one place forever."
Seeing the sheer disappointment instantly well up in Jinhsi's misty eyes, he immediately shifted his tone. His voice was gentle, yet incomparably firm, carrying a deeply convincing power. "But I promise you—as long as Jinzhou needs me, as long as you need me, no matter where I am, I will do everything in my power to rush over, just like I did this time."
He gently patted the back of her hand, which was still gripping his sleeve tightly, his movements carrying a soothing comfort. "You are not alone. You have Master Changli, you have Sanhua, you have General Jiyan and the loyal Midnight Rangers, and you have tens of thousands of citizens who place their absolute trust in you."
"You are much stronger than you think you are. You need to trust them, and more importantly, you need to trust yourself... just as I trust you."
These sincere words held no trace of fake, hollow comfort. Instead, they were brimming with trust and encouragement, pouring into the young girl's lost and wandering heart like a warm current.
The alcohol amplified her emotions. Her eyes quickly turned red, and the tears that had been welling up finally rolled down her cheeks.
In the next second, as if mustering every last ounce of her courage, she suddenly leaned forward and gave him a quick, light hug.
The embrace was as brief as a bird's wing brushing past—parting the very instant they touched.
Immediately after, she violently pulled back like a startled little animal, shrinking entirely into herself. Her cheeks and even her neck turned so red they looked ready to bleed, and the frantic pounding of her heart was clearly audible in the silent room.
She buried her face deeply into her chest, her voice as tiny as a mosquito's hum, carrying intense, overwhelming shyness:
"Th-This... is a thank-you gift! Thank you for... your help..."
She was speaking incoherently, completely too terrified to lift her head and look at him again.
This hug was incredibly brief, yet it was a clumsy, utterly genuine release of the emotions she had suppressed for so long.
Rover froze for a moment before a genuine, warm smile rippled through his eyes.
Afraid that saying too much would only embarrass her further, he didn't offer any teasing words. He simply smiled gently and reached out to smooth her slightly messy silver hair, his movements completely natural. "Mm. A very precious thank-you gift. I have received it."
"It's getting late. Rest well, Lady Magistrate."
He poured a glass of warm water and placed it on the nightstand within easy reach. Only then did he turn around, gently closing the door behind him as he left.
Outside the door, Changli stood quietly to the side. It was unclear when she had arrived, looking as though she were merely passing by coincidentally.
She looked at Rover, a faint, all-knowing smile playing at the corners of her lips, and spoke softly. "It seems the knot in Jinhsi's heart has been loosened a bit tonight. Thank you..."
Rover smiled and shook his head. "Jinhsi... she just needs a little time and confidence."
"Mm. Since that is the case, Jinhsi's matters can be considered settled for the time being. In that case..." Changli took a step forward, stopping right in front of Rover. Her hands rested seemingly casually against her chest. Her eyes were alluring and seductive, her breath fragrant like orchids. "The rest of the time tonight... are you willing to give it to me... Husband"
Those final two words, however, were whispered at an incredibly low volume right next to his ear.
As a gentleman who thoroughly respected women, Rover naturally wouldn't refuse an invitation from a beauty. He similarly leaned close to her ear, lowering his voice. The hot breath he exhaled instantly dyed the tips of her ears red:
"Of course I can. The time we have tonight..."
"Is still very long..."
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