"Look Xiao Xin!" Huo Linghun said once he reached the top of the hill. Xiao Xin continued to trudge slowly up the hill, still panting about how it was too tall even after he arrived at the top too. "Isn't it pretty?" Huo Linghun continued.
Xiao Xin perked back up when he saw the beautiful blue lake centered in the dip between all the surrounding hills. "That's Mirror Lake," Huo Linghun explained....
"I used to visit this town back when people still lived here," Huo Linghun explained as they walked the roads between empty buildings and abandoned carts. Not much was falling apart yet but there was debris of all kinds littering the streets. Birds hopped here and there, picking through everything.
Xiao Xin peered with interest at a fallen, cracked statue of a bird much like the ones scampering a...
Cloud gazing was like the daytime version of stargazing. They had stopped in a big grassy field to look at the clouds, the sky unobstructed by trees or bamboo. The grass was soft under their backs and their heads were pressed together where they were sprawled in the field.
Huo Linghun pointed up and said, "That one looks like a frog. And that one is like two cherries."
She was an archaeologist. He was her assistant. They were husband and wife, and had a small child. Once the child was old enough they took him along on their expeditions, journeying far and wide, uncovering ancient curiosities. It was all they ever wanted.
They planned to teach their son one day. He was still too little now, so they let him play around the sites. One such site was some unidentifi...
Fingers intertwined, laughing, running, stumbling and laughing harder- this is how they returned to their bamboo clearing one joyous afternoon. It was so easy to be happy when you were with the one you loved, Huo Linghun thought. He turned to Xiao Xin, moving to spin them around together, reaching for his other hand.
It was only when he felt his stiff hand and unmoving arm that he realized what ...
Yinyue Pond was farther than Huo Linghun had been made to believe. They had been traveling by foot for a very long time now, and as the days passed he noticed that Xiao Xin was slowing down. Today he looked very tired and a little flushed. When Huo Linghun felt his forehead it was hot. Perhaps this long journey had been a bit too much for him.
"You're sick," he said. "We should stop here until yo...
Xiao Xin jogged a little to catch up to Huo Linghun but was slowly left behind again. It was partly because he didn't walk as fast, and partly because there were lots of things to stop and look at on the way. He also liked to look at Huo Linghun. His gait was steady and his posture was upright. He carried his tail at medium height and it swayed back and forth with his steps in a ...
It was very late at night and there was only one inn that had an open room. It was a very tiny inn with a very tiny room. The room was so tiny that the two tiny beds were stacked on top of each other against one wall. Neither Huo Linghun nor Xiao Xin liked the looks of it but it was better than being out in the cold and stormy night.
Huo Linghun was the better climber so he climbed to the top bed...
