When Winter Begins

A bond formed through snow, yet fate denied them a future together. Born with a frail body, he met the love of his life just before he died. Perhaps fate was playing a cruel joke. Two wish plaques hung together on a great tree in a temple: one prayed for the young master of the Tang family to fulfill his wish and pass the imperial examinations as top scholar; the other wished to give up half a lifetime in exchange for meeting his beloved wife again. Their match seemed to have been arranged by Buddha himself, yet it was so incomplete. Perhaps Buddha was simply playing around, bringing the two together only to part them too soon. The young lady of the household, worn down by illness and pain, no longer wished for another life. She only hoped that in his next life, he would have a bright, lovely, healthy, and happy beloved.

Winter came and spring passed. There was no one left in the world to love.