The Notebook of a Lover

This is a thoroughly melodramatic story.

A story of court intrigue, tangled fates, and feelings that are impossible to unravel.

Excerpt:

“Shi Li once scoffed at gods and Buddhas. She put her faith in the cards in her hand, the schemes in her mind, and the stubborn determination to carve out a sliver of hope for herself, even in the direst of circumstances.

But now, this woman who believed in neither gods nor Buddhas stood before a ruined statue of Guanyin and quietly made the first, and only, earnest wish of her life that had nothing to do with herself. She prayed for a man.

Eyes tightly shut, she gathered every thought, every tender hope that had quietly taken root beyond the bounds of reason, feelings she herself did not yet fully understand. She poured them into the simplest of prayers, whispering it to the ravaged statue, to the vast snowstorm, to the merciless world:

May the road he walks be smooth.

May all his wishes come true.

May this snowstorm never touch his brow again.

May the road ahead never betray his sincerity.

If there are truly gods in this world who show mercy, then grant him every blessing and all your protection.”