A cold room. Winter. A low table covered in maps, a single candle burning. Two figures seated across from each other.

The cold room. The grandmother gestures at the map, explaining. Young Zhaoyue watches.

Winter. A different night. The room is darker, the candle burned to a stub.

Spring. The cold room is still cold, but the light through the window is softer. A new lesson.

The grandmother's teaching. The lesson of shame.

The lesson deepens. Zhaoyue is beginning to understand.

A practice session. Zhaoyue, now twelve, speaks with a household servant.

A teahouse. Zhaoyue, now fourteen, sits across from a merchant.

The same teahouse. The conversation has shifted.

A government office. Zhaoyue, now sixteen, waits. A minor official approaches.

The same office. The conversation has progressed.

Season change. Autumn. Leaves caught in doorways.

The grandfather's study. A brief, cold encounter.

The Shen household. Warmth and light. A contrast.

The cold room. The grandmother asks the question.

Zhaoyue answers.

Zhaoxia writes another letter.

The cold room. Winter again. Zhaoyue is seventeen now.

The grandmother speaks. The moment of readiness.

The announcement.

The final declaration. The chapter ends.