Chapter 29

As dusk deepened, the courtyard was filled with the fragrant smoke of burning mugwort used to repel mosquitoes. Xia Huai'an rested his head on Yufang's lap, gazing at the stars and listening to her hum an unfamiliar lullaby. When the Milky Way drifted across the roof of the west wing, his fingers brushed against the two calluses on her palms, and he suddenly thought of the dazzling myriad lights of the big city before he transmigrated. Yet now, these rough hands, smelling of earth and the warmth of kitchen smoke, were the true warmth of the mortal world. The night breeze swept past the drying straw mushrooms, blending the earthy fragrance of the haystacks piled high in the courtyard with the scent of locust-tree pods in Yufang's hair.