Bai saw Hanlo sell three hand-copied sheets at the market stall after the noon bell. The buyers were Jin Rui, Fenna and Pera, a farmhand who hoped to impress a local guard captain. Each paid the same small fee. Hanlo wrote “study paper” on their receipts and pointed them toward the east lane, where the first lesson would be held.
The paper showed a red circulation pattern and a sequence of breaths. The bottom edge had been cut off in a straight line. Bai stepped closer while Hanlo counted the coins.
“Is that missing corner damage?” he asked.
“It contains a recovery step the students can learn after the first lesson,” Hanlo said. “The first part is complete.”
Jin Rui looked at his sheet. “If I follow the breaths, will I know when to stop?”
Hanlo smiled. “You’ll feel the right point. The body knows.”
Bai wrote down the price, the stall location and the description of the cropped edge. He did not take the sheets from the buyers. He asked if one of them would consent to let Qinghe examine a copy.
“I already paid,” Jin Rui said. “I want to know if it can help my father. His cultivation stopped advancing after an injury. He thinks a stronger method might start it again.”
