The road stretched quietly ahead as Lu Tian drove away from the mountain where Yue Ling's paternal grandparents and parents had been laid to rest.
The sun had begun its descent, casting a warm golden glow over the snow-covered landscape. The mountains stood beneath the fading winter sky, their distant peaks disappearing into a thin veil of mist.
Inside the car, neither spoke for a while.
Yue Ling sat with her head turned toward the window, watching the familiar scenery pass by.
Her heart felt lighter after visiting her family, yet another emotion had slowly begun settling within her.
A sadness she had carried for three years.
She knew where they were going.
And she knew who was waiting for her there.
Lu Tian occasionally glanced at his wife, noticing the subtle changes in her expression. Her face remained calm, but her eyes held a distant look.
He understood.
The person they were about to visit had once occupied a place in her life that no one else could have filled.
