1 A New Beginning

After placing the final item into his suitcase, Yuliang took a good look around the room that had been his for the last seventeen years of his life.

Boxes filled with old journals and texts were neatly pushed up against a side wall to be picked up and stored later by his grandmother, who was currently too busy working at the clinic to bother seeing her two grandchildren off. The reminder deepened the frown on his face, but being disappointed had become something he had come to expect from her.

His old bed's wooden frame looked decrepit without its usual beddings to distract from its age and disrepair. Although it looked like it was one strong gust away from collapsing, except for occasional creaks, it had never had any issue supporting Yuliang's weight in the past, and it probably would continue to do so even in the future.

Pushing down the slight twinge of melancholy he felt, Yuliang inhaled deeply and let the steady feeling of determination fill him.

This was the closing of one chapter of his life and moving forth to the next.

There was no room for sadness or hesitation here.

"Ready to go?"

Yuliang glanced back at his twin, who was leaning against the frame of his door, with a bright grin that barely concealed excitement.

Yuliang's own lips twitched up in response. He took one last look around his room before nodding, "Yeah, I'm ready," he said, "let's go."