This was a night that seemed no different from those of the past years. They would fall into a deep sleep under the starlight at the empire’s frontier. Yet in truth, neither of the two in the thatched hut slept tonight—perhaps because of the restless excitement of stepping into a brand new world, or perhaps because of the allure of the bustling, faintly visible wealth of the capital Chang’an, and those fragrant, enchanting cosmetics. The two breaths at the window and in the corner of the room remained unsettled for a long time.

No one knew how much time had passed before Adam Spencer opened his eyes, gazing at the faint silver glow on the window paper, and absentmindedly said, “I heard... the girls in Chang’an aren’t afraid of the cold. They wear very thin clothes, with wide collars, and their skin is very fair. I wonder if that’s true... I was too young back then, I don’t remember.”

He turned over, looked toward the dark corner of the room, and asked, “Lily Spencer, have you had any relapses lately? Are you cold?”

In the darkness, the little maid seemed to shake her head. One could vaguely see her clutching the edge of the quilt tightly, eyes shut, but with a rare smile at the corner of her lips. She murmured softly, “I heard the girls in Chang’an really are quite fair. They use such good cosmetics every day—how could they not be?”

Adam Spencer smiled at her and said, “Don’t worry, when I have money in the future, you can buy as much Chen Jinji’s cosmetics as you want.”

Lily Spencer suddenly opened her eyes, her slender, willow-leaf-shaped eyes reflecting the bright starlight. She said seriously, “Adam Spencer, you promised me that.”

“I just said, after we get to Chang’an, you must remember to call me ‘young master’—that’s the proper way to show respect.”

Back then, Adam Spencer had found the ice-cold little Lily Spencer in a pile of corpses by the roadside, and after many twists and turns, brought her to Weicheng. It had been seven or eight years since. Although Lily Spencer was registered as a maid and did maid’s work, she had never called him ‘young master’. This didn’t mean anything else—just a matter of habit.

Today, the little maid Lily Spencer was forced to abandon this habit.

“Adam Spencer... young master... you have to remember your promise to buy me Chen Jinji’s products.”

Adam Spencer agreed, his gaze falling on the starlight on the floor by the kang, white as frost. His heart tightened for no reason, and that hollow feeling from years ago swept over him again. He looked back at the deep blue night sky outside the window, glanced at the star-filled sky, then lowered his head, homesick, and murmured, “There’s still no moon tonight...”

On top of the elm cabinet in the pitch-black corner, Lily Spencer curled up like a little mouse in the slightly cool bedding. She reached behind her waist to tug at the covers, blocking out the chill from outside, and adjusted herself so the gap between the two cabinets wouldn’t poke her so much. Listening to the muttering by the window, she thought, Adam Spencer... young master is talking nonsense again.

Chapter Six: Off to Chang’an to Make Something of Ourselves

At dawn, the two woke up and began packing their luggage in the faint morning light. Occasionally they argued, but more often there was silence.

Adam Spencer dug for a long time in the earthen wall outside the house, finally pulling out a long bag. He took out the bow and arrows inside, carefully inspected them for a while, and, satisfied, handed them over. Lily Spencer took them and stuffed them into the large cotton bundle. Then she fetched three slightly rusty sheathed straight swords from under the fence. Adam Spencer took them, wiped them carefully, examined the blades in the morning sun, nodded, and tied them tightly to his back with a cord of harong grass.

He took a black umbrella from behind the door and used the last piece of harong grass cord to tie it securely to Lily Spencer’s back. No one knew what material this black umbrella was made of—it always seemed to be covered in a layer of black grease, not reflective, a bit heavy. The umbrella was clearly very large; even when folded and tied up, it nearly dragged on the ground when carried on the small, thin frame of Lily Spencer.

With preparations for the journey complete, Adam Spencer and Lily Spencer stepped one after the other over the broken fence. Both turned to look back at the tiny stone yard and the small, shabby thatched hut. Lily Spencer looked up at his chin and asked, “Young master, should we lock the door?”

“No need.” Adam Spencer paused for a moment and said, “After this... it might be hard for us to ever come back.”

The iron-rimmed wheels rolled over the wet, soft mud as the noble’s convoy slowly set off, heading out of Weicheng. Five soft-rope carriages in a row—an eye-catching sight on the frontier at any time of year. Today, many people had come to see them off by the roadside, but their attention was not on the noble’s convoy, but on the young man and the little maid sitting in the first carriage. From time to time, someone handed up a boiled egg; sometimes, a big aunt with a ruddy face wiped her eyes with a dirty handkerchief and cried as she spoke.

“Adam Spencer, you heartless little rascal! My distant nephew is such a good boy, but you just wouldn’t let Lily Spencer marry him. Now look, you’re taking this girl with you to those places where people eat you alive! I’m telling you, you’d better take good care of my Lily Spencer!”

Sitting on the carriage shaft, Adam Spencer looked extremely annoyed and replied, “Auntie, you started proposing marriage for Lily Spencer when she was only eight—there’s just no way that would work.”

After a few scolding words mixed with laughter, a fine drizzle suddenly began to fall from the sky, the raindrops thinner than thread, landing coolly on everyone. Yet none of the people seeing them off left. The families of Weicheng’s soldiers busied themselves bidding farewell to Adam Spencer, settling final debts with him, and the crowd was as lively as ever.