A Love Triangle.

The fading sun cast long shadows across the garden stones as Fang Yuan made his way down the winding path that led beyond the inner walls.

The hush of evening had settled in, broken only by the chirping of crickets and the occasional soft flutter of a lantern ribbon caught in the breeze.

He had done all he could for the girl, for now.

What remained… was in the hands of someone far humbler, but no less vital.

Past the arched gate, nestled beside a grove of jade bamboo, stood a small tiled building, a modest structure surrounded by flowering herbs and drying medicinal roots strung neatly along a wooden rack.

The scent of crushed leaves and spirit bark lingered thick in the air.

Fang Yuan approached the front step and lifted a hand to knock but the door opened before his fingers touched the wood.

An old man with a snow-white beard and slightly hunched back stood in the doorway, eyes sharp beneath his bushy brows.