When the ship reached the coordinates, the hatch opened.
Ruan Mei stood at the top of the ramp and looked down at the snowy landscape.
She froze.
Returning after multiple Amber Eras, she had assumed her home would no longer exist.
Uninhabited. Unmaintained.
A normal building couldn't endure time's erosion.
Yet it was still here.
Standing quietly in wind and snow—clearly visible from above.
Not far away: a bamboo house.
She checked the coordinates on the shipping label again.
The bamboo house—not her home—was Qi Zhimu's current residence.
He hadn't moved into her house…
Then what was—
Through drifting snow, Ruan Mei's eyes locked onto a moving figure in the courtyard.
Even after six hundred years, even from this distance where the person was only a speck—
She recognized him instantly.
Her student.
The ship descended.
The lower it went, the clearer the details became.
The mountain path extending from the Mooncross Riverbank to her door remained visible even under ice and snow.
Along the way, the broken branch ends of tall trees showed obvious pruning marks.
Had Ah Mu trimmed them?
The ship finally settled on open ground not far from her door.
When her feet touched the soil again, a ripple finally crossed Ruan Mei's always-calm, exquisite face.
Amber Eras had slipped by like breath.
And still, she had not achieved her original goal: bringing back the family who loved her—and whom she loved.
She stopped at the threshold.
"An energy lock?"
She sensed a specialized barrier covering the entire residence—currently inactive.
No need to guess: it had to be her student's work.
She stepped inside.
The familiar layout, the old structure—memories blurred by time sharpened little by little.
She heard snow being swept in the backyard.
Ruan Mei didn't call out.
She walked naturally down the hardwood corridor, and saw that familiar back.
"Ah—"
Before she could finish the word, she frowned.
That wasn't her student.
It felt familiar only because, for nearly six hundred years, a similar figure had lived at her side—replacing the student who'd left, attending to her daily life.
At the same moment, as she spoke, the mechanical doll turned.
Their eyes met—but the meanings were entirely different.
"Ms. Ruan Mei. Hello. After centuries, you've finally returned."
Ruan Mei saw no scanning trace in its eyes.
The instant it saw her, it confirmed her identity?
"I am Qi Zhimu's creation: a mechanical doll powered by his memories and bound to prime directives."
"…Mm."
Ruan Mei wasn't surprised.
She hadn't taught Qi Zhimu how to build a doll like this, but he had seen the design schematics. Making one wasn't strange.
Having a doll around saved time.
"Where is Ah Mu?"
Like Yu Qingtu before her, Ruan Mei still hadn't realized anything.
She asked calmly—never imagining—
That the next sentence would shatter six centuries of composure into dust.
"Ms. Ruan Mei… Qi Zhimu has passed away. He would have been approaching his 489th year."
"..."
What… did it just say?
Ruan Mei stood rigid in the courtyard. Emotions she had never experienced began to rise in her eyes.
It said… Ah Mu was dead?
Impossible!
"Approaching 489…"
A possibility struck her. Ruan Mei abruptly lost control.
Qi Zhimu had graduated at sixty-four. She had verified his lifespan. He could live to 175.
His limit day was exactly 111 years after graduation.
175 minus 64 equals 111.
489 plus 111 equals 600.
Meaning—
He had not used any method to extend his life.
"Why… why must even you betray me…"
Ruan Mei whispered. Shadow fell across her face.
"I told you we would meet again after my research was done. Why didn't you listen…?"
Her mind scrambled for reasons—anything—to explain it.
Maybe… it had been an accident?
Her heart, already close to chaos, clung to a thin strand of hope.
"Ah Mu died in an accident, didn't he? Tell me. Who did it?"
Ruan Mei stared at the doll, eyes locked.
The doll had no emotion-simulation system. She asked, it answered—cold, flat.
"Qi Zhimu did not die in an accident. He waited for his lifespan to end and passed naturally."
"Based on emotional readings: he left peacefully, calmly."
"..."
Ruan Mei stumbled back, her steps unsteady.
Then the doll stepped forward, repeating the same motion it once used before Yu Qingtu.
It opened its chest cavity and pulled out a preservation box.
"This is the only item Qi Zhimu left for you in life. Unfortunately, its shelf life is only 150 years."
Ruan Mei's eyes fell to the opened box.
Inside: a plate of familiar-looking cakes.
From appearance alone, there was no obvious spoilage.
She took the box, lifted one piece to her nose.
The clean plum scent was still strong—nothing like decay.
But she had no heart to taste, no mind to test further.
"Did Ah Mu… leave any other words?"
"None."
Ruan Mei pressed her lips together. A flash of loss crossed her face—one she didn't even notice herself.
She wanted to ask why he left without a word for his teacher.
Then she remembered: she was the one who told him not to disturb her again.
After graduation, other than the annual plum wine, he had never written a single letter.
Even the remark field on the shipping label was always blank.
From what angle could she accuse him?
…Wait—
The plum wine!
It had arrived on time even this year. The flavor had never changed.
If Ah Mu had been dead for years, where had the wine come from?
Possibilities rushed up.
The first—Ah Mu wasn't dead.
The truth she most feared—to even imagine—was tied to the doll before her.
"Tell me. What prime directives did Ah Mu set inside your core?"
The doll answered:
"1. Periodically mound the plum grove, harvest blossoms, brew wine according to preset procedures, and ship you a three-year vintage."
"2. Periodically maintain your house and the bamboo house; clean daily."
"3. Periodically prune the plants on both sides of the mountain path from Mooncross Riverbank to your doorstep."
"4. Outside these scheduled tasks, I will remain before your door in guard mode, preventing any possibility of damage to the residence."
Each emotionless line made Ruan Mei's heart taste bitter and strange.
The truth she most refused to believe had still become reality.
"Why did Ah Mu do this?"
"No relevant memory in database. Unable to answer."
....
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