But Huo Siqing's ruthless words, like a thousand tiny needles, punctured the last of her hope, plunging her into a despair even deeper than what she’d felt years ago, when the collapsing bookshelf had crushed her shoulder as she carried him from the burning room.
Back then, though, even as she drifted towards unconsciousness, she'd had the young Huo Siqing, fighting to stay awake himself, whisperi
















