A Dream in Jinling: Fu Dai

Tom Riddle once promised Daiyu that he would take her back to Jinling. He didn't even know whether that ancient city in the East existed at the time. As Daiyu described it, Jinling was a place "with snow" and "with trees," where "flowers bloom in every season": In spring, fresh willow branches droop like flowing gold, and peach blossoms bloom like rosy clouds. In summer, the sun blazes overhead, and the young ladies in the gardens refuse to come out for a stroll. The grounds are deserted and silent, with only the tree shadows falling on the earth and cicadas singing in the thickets. Autumn skies are changeable, and rain falls often. But when the weather clears, moonlight drapes the flagstones like a thin veil of pale yellow, while performers in the distance practice new melodies, their strings and flutes lingering in the air. In winter, everyone wears brocade cloaks and gathers in snowy pavilions to warm themselves by the fire and recite poetry, returning home only when they've had their fill. Years later, when he finally arrived in that place, the story of the Demon King and the girl had already reached its final chapter.