In the evening, Jinshi was sitting quietly in his sleeping chamber on a chair in front of the window and contemplating the still bright blue sky under which he had been running and fooling around with Maomao in the Imperial fruit orchard without a care in the world that very morning. Merely half a day ago, but, judging by his furrowed brows and pensive gaze, he was probably missing those moments already as if they had happened in another lifetime.

The apothecary, in the meantime, was standing behind him and carefully combing his long and still slightly damp hair, the way she did every evening now. She didn't say a word either.

They had taken a bath one after the other and were now wearing their sleeping clothes.