On the other side.
Li Ruoxuan, whose proposal was unsuccessful, chose not to go anywhere that day—nor did he meditate to cultivate or even look at the memorials and small pile of secret letters that filled his table.
Instead, he sat beside the flower bed in the courtyard, staring despondently at the holly trees growing from there.
The leaves of the holly trees were green and full, resembling a field of vitality.
Li Ruoxuan watched them, bearing an expression as dark as the dead of night.
There were no servants in the courtyard other than Zhu Shen, who stood under the eaves not far away. He watched over his master in silence.
Neither of them had had lunch or dinner.
As evening approached, the skies changed—dark clouds surged and it soon began raining. Even then, Zhu Shen did not disturb Li Ruoxuan.
