"It was her health. She knew that she would die—she always said she wished she could see me grow up." He doesn't mind answering. His background is public knowledge; he only minds being seen in too emotional a state, and this is all so long past that he can speak of it calmly. He reaches under his robes to pull out the jade Guanyin pendant. In the dream, it is the one his mother gave him, although he has begun wearing it at his waist in waking life.

"This is all I have of her. Jade protects against evil spirits. She worked herself to the bone saving up to buy it for me, as a way to care for me after she was gone." Since it's unlikely that Magnus would know the difference between real and fake jade, Luo Binghe will not disgrace his mother's memory by telling him how she was swindled.