"Yuyan," Shuyin said gently, touching her shoulder. "Time to get up. We're going to the academy."
Yuyan opened her eyes at once, bright and focused. "The registration is today?"
"Yes."
That single word was enough. Yuyan sat up immediately, pushing the blanket aside with quiet determination. "I'll get ready."
Shuyin smiled and moved next door.
Lu Xiao was still deeply asleep, curled small beneath the covers like a question mark. In sleep he looked even younger, more vulnerable—the boy who had once been Chen Xiao from a shelter, now safe and wanted. Shuyin sat on the edge of the bed and smoothed his dark hair with careful fingers.
"Xiao Xiao," she whispered. "Wake up, darling."
He stirred slowly, blinking up at her in silence for several heartbeats before recognition settled. No complaints. No chatter. Just quiet acceptance. That was Lu Xiao—reserved, observant, a child who had learned far too early to hold things inside.
"It's school registration today," she told him.
