The day I came of age, my engagement was called off. I thought I'd spend the rest of my life scraping by in poverty. Who could have imagined that Lin Xun's arrival would be like a warm, gentle breeze, comforting me in an instant? He pulled me out of that pit of misery and showed me there was hope for a new beginning. His cool fingers slipped between mine, clasping our hands together.
“This year, next year, and every year after that.”
“Things have to stay just like this.”
“A Ru, you can't go back on your word, all right?”
I laid my other hand over his fingers too.
“I won't.”
