Midnight, moonlight bathed the earth.
The torn hole in the window paper had been carefully patched up, keeping the wind out, but the added layer of paper with writing on it further reduced light transmission.
Two mice were squeaking and fighting, thankfully only briefly before falling silent. It was unclear whether the fight was over or if they had reached a consensus: even if they won, there was no food to steal, so why bother?
When Zhou Ang awoke, all was quiet.
Moonlight filtered through the window paper, casting a faint, hazy glow.
He took a deep breath and opened his eyes.
His first instinct was to determine his location and whether he was still alive. After a while, his vision cleared, indicating he was fully awake.
As usual, he didn't know the time, but he had s
