The Crown Off, the Hairpins Restored
In the little courtyard at the end of the western corridor, the moment the door swung shut, more than half the noise outside was cut away.
The "young man" who had only moments ago stood in white by the riverside inn, lightly waving a folding fan and calling himself "Bai Yuchuan," lifted a hand and tore off the hair-crown. At once a mass of glossy black hair came tumbling down to her shoulders, making that face of hers stand out all the more vividly. She raised two fingers to smooth apart the brows she had deliberately pressed lower, and the jaunty swagger of the young gallant vanished from the mirror along with the disguise. What remained was a beauty no one could forget after a single glance.
This girl was none other than Qin Xin, daughter of Qin Gang, leader of the Four Seas Gang.
Even in male clothing she had already looked strikingly handsome; only now, with crown and ornaments removed, did her true beauty fully show itself. Her skin was fine and pale, and under the lamplight it seemed to carry a faint luster of its own. Her brows were like spring hills, her eyes like autumn waters, her nose delicately straight, and upon her lips there rested a natural flush redder than rouge. Yet the most moving thing was not her features alone, but the vivid brightness that seemed to cling to her whole person as she stood beneath the lamp. It was as though the best spring wind, water light, and flower shadow of Jiangnan's third month had all taken a liking to her and settled upon her alone. She was still young, not yet wholly rid of girlishness, yet the beauty she had been born with was already impossible to conceal. One needed only a single look to know that the words peerless beauty were no empty praise.
If an ordinary beauty was a flower, or the moon, or a lady in a painting, then she was more like a spring breeze carrying the scent of water and blossoms—so near at hand, yet enough to make one hesitate before daring to look too long.
The blue-clad young attendant shot the bolt into place, turned around, and stamped her foot in anxiety. "Miss! And you still dared to make trouble!"
This "young attendant" was actually Xiaoluan, Qin Xin's personal maid, dressed as a boy and kept always at her side. She had long since grown used to being put through endless upheaval by her mistress, yet every time Qin Xin truly started making trouble, she still could not help breaking into a cold sweat on her behalf.
Qin Xin only leaned against the door, smiling at her, all the mischief of a moment before still lingering at the corners of her eyes and brows. "They were the ones who came looking for trouble first."
Xiaoluan said anxiously, "But whose name did you borrow today? First 'Young Master Bai,' and then you even dared say 'Bai Yuchuan' outright! If that one shot from outside hadn't suppressed the whole scene, and things had truly blown up, let's see how you would have cleaned it up then!"
At that, the trace of pride on Qin Xin's face only grew brighter. She walked to the window, pushed the carved lattice open by a crack, and cast a glance toward the Main Office courtyard outside.
"That is exactly why I said," she murmured, "that he really is somewhere nearby after all."
Xiaoluan stared, then grew even more anxious. "Miss, you're bringing up the young marquis again! If the young marquis truly wanted to see you, why has he avoided showing himself all the way here?"
"He has always been like this." Qin Xin turned back, and the smile at her lips simply would not stay down. "He wore that cold face when we were children, and he still wears it now that he's grown. Others may not know him, but do you think I don't? If he truly meant to ignore everything, then who fired that shot just now?"
As she spoke, the brightness in her eyes almost overflowed. Yet it lasted only a moment before she suppressed it again and lifted her chin.
"Even if Uncle Shangguan's men are guarding me, they cannot fire a Flying Snow Divine Pellet, nor can they drive out that layer of frost-cold energy. That move was clearly Cousin."
Hearing this, Xiaoluan could only sigh inwardly.
Since childhood, her young mistress had loved nothing so much as chasing after that young cousin of hers. Yet the young marquis had cultivated the Ice Soul Heavenly Art from an early age, and his nature was cool to begin with. He almost never wore his joys or angers upon his face. The brighter and livelier Qin Xin became, the colder and more taciturn Bai Yuchuan seemed by contrast. Before long, even outsiders could see the grievance hidden in the little hurt her heart had long been carrying.
Just then there came two soft knocks at the door.
Xiaoluan hurried to open it. Outside stood a minor steward from the Main Office, hands lowered respectfully.
"Miss," he said in a low voice, "the Gang Leader has already arrived in the rear hall. Master Shangguan and Master Zhuge from Flying Snow Manor have also taken their seats. The young master sent word that Miss is not to wander about again for the time being. Later, when it is time to pay respects, someone will come and fetch you."
Qin Xin gave a quiet hum. Then she suddenly asked, "And the people from Mount Hua?"
The steward blinked, then hurriedly answered, "They have arrived as well. Daoist Zheng and Young Master Xuanyuan have already entered the rear hall."
A slight ripple passed through Qin Xin's gaze.
The name Xuanyuan Xi had come to her ears several times of late. One day it was said that his appearance was outstanding; another, that his martial skill was remarkable; yet another, that though Mount Hua had not recovered its old strength, among the younger generation it had still produced such a youth—one quiet enough to remain composed and steady enough to stand firm. At first she had taken it for no more than the usual loose talk of the martial world, which always loved praising rising young talents. She had listened and forgotten it. But now here at the Main Office outside Changmen, with Flying Snow Manor arrived, Mount Hua arrived, and rumors of marriage proposals blowing from every direction, that little spark of curiosity in her heart was stirred despite herself.
She gathered her loose hair behind her and said softly, "Very well. Then tomorrow on Juyi Isle, I shall see for myself exactly who truly looks like a figure of consequence."
Reception at the Main Office
In the rear hall of the Four Seas Main Office, the lamps burned bright and the tea had only just come to a boil.
Qin Gang sat in the seat of honor. He was powerfully built, broad of shoulder and back. Though already fifty, his brows still carried the imposing force of a man who commanded without needing anger. He wore a dark robe patterned subtly upon black, the front of it perfectly straight, with only a deep blue silk sash at his waist. There was nothing particularly ostentatious about the clothing, yet the force of his mere presence seemed to press the entire hall lower by a degree.
This man was Qin Gang himself, Gang Leader of the Four Seas Gang, known throughout the martial world as Invincible Iron Courage.
To his left sat a man of perhaps twenty-five or twenty-six, with thick brows and tigerish eyes. He was somewhat leaner than Qin Gang, but one glance was enough to tell he too came of a great household and a powerful gang. Even seated, he carried his shoulders slightly rounded inward like a young leopard forcing down its temper; but the instant he raised his eyes, the arrogance and sharpness in his bearing were impossible to hide. This was Qin Gang's only son, Qin Yaozong, young master of the Four Seas Gang, known as the Young Overlord.
On Qin Gang's right sat a man in his early forties, broad of face, with neatly trimmed short whiskers. He wore a blue-brown robe with a black sash at the waist. Both arms rested naturally on his knees, and they looked unusually long and strong. At first glance, he seemed calm, upright, and steady of eye, the sort of man anyone would assume to be deeply loyal and punctiliously proper.
This was Jiang Datao, Deputy Gang Leader of the Four Seas Gang, the gang's second-in-command, known in the martial world as the Ape-Armed Divine Fist.
At this moment Shangguan Lü and Zhuge Hui sat below them in the seats of honored guests.
Shangguan Lü wore a snow-colored robe with a gray fur mantle. His features were restrained, and the cup of tea before him had hardly been touched since he sat down. His posture was extremely steady, neither constrained nor arrogant, but carrying the exact measure of a man long accustomed to great households and equally seasoned in the storms of the martial world. Zhuge Hui, by contrast, toyed with that long, slender brush in his hand, smiling at the lips, though from time to time a trace of assessment flashed through his eyes.
Qin Gang lifted his tea, took a sip, and set it down only then.
"Master Shangguan, Master Zhuge," he said slowly, "you have come from afar, and Qin takes the kindness to heart. The Bai family and the Qin family have old kinship to begin with. That Flying Snow Manor would send the two of you to celebrate this birthday of mine for Brother Bai's sake already counts as a proper show of face."
His tone was even, impossible to read for anger or pleasure. But before the latter half had fully left his mouth, it turned slightly.
"Only, whether enough face has been shown does not always depend on how heavy the gift chests are, nor on how many people have come. If you truly came on behalf of Nephew Yuchuan to discuss a marriage, then in the end it still depends on the person himself—whether he has come in person."
The rear hall fell silent for a moment.
Qin Yaozong twitched one corner of his mouth as though about to smile, then checked himself and merely lifted his eyes toward Shangguan Lü. Jiang Datao sat motionless at the side, as though he had long since expected the Gang Leader to raise exactly this question.
Shangguan Lü inclined his head very slightly, his voice so gentle there was hardly the least spark of temper in it.
"Gang Leader Qin's words are not too heavy. If Shangguan were in your position, I fear I would ask the very same question."
Qin Gang's brows moved faintly, but he did not answer at once.
Zhuge Hui smiled at the side. "Only the Bai family's circumstances are not quite the same as an ordinary marriage proposal. The Marquis has shown himself less and less in the martial world of late, and the burdens of great and small affairs in the manor have all come pressing down. The young marquis, too, has difficulties of his own. That is why the two of us came ahead first—partly to congratulate you on your birthday, and partly to bring the Bai family's words before you."
Qin Gang said blandly, "Brother Bai has seldom appeared in the martial world these past years, and I have no wish to listen to the idle talk outside. But if you truly came to ask for my daughter's hand on behalf of Nephew Yuchuan, then in the end it cannot be settled on the strength of the two of you speaking a few words for him."
At last Shangguan Lü lifted his tea cup and took a light sip before raising his eyes to Qin Gang.
"The Gang Leader is correct," he said. "A marriage is a serious matter. It cannot be settled on the word of outsiders alone. I came today for two reasons. First, to present the Marquis's and the young marquis's birthday gift to the Gang Leader. Second, to ask first what the Qin family's own intentions may be. If the Gang Leader feels that this marriage may still be discussed further, then naturally the person himself will come."
Qin Gang looked at him. The coldness in his eyes eased slightly, yet he still said, "That it may be discussed further does not mean I have already agreed."
Zhuge Hui smiled. "And precisely because of that, it is worth discussing further."
His words were rounded and supple, and his expression far livelier than Shangguan Lü's. At this, a very faint smile finally touched Qin Gang's face, though he still did not give way. Setting down his teacup, he said, "Qin has heard the Bai family's intentions. As for the Qin family's intentions, let us see today and tomorrow first. There will be time enough to speak further afterward."
At once Qin Yaozong said, "My father is right. There are no few people here at Taihu today. Some speak of seeking a marriage, yet in their hearts are not truly here for marriage. Others speak of celebrating a birthday, yet in their hearts are not here only for that either. We must first look at the person, and at his breadth of spirit, before we can know who is sincere and who has merely come for the sake of the Four Seas Gang's signboard."
Shangguan Lü's eyes swept very lightly over Qin Yaozong.
"The young master speaks plainly and quickly," he said. "That too is well enough."
Only then did Jiang Datao speak at last, slowly, his voice low and weighty.
"In truth, what lies in the Gang Leader's heart is not only whether or not the young marquis has come in person. Miss is still young, but the people coming to the door these past years have indeed grown more and more mixed. Some covet the girl, some covet power, and some want to borrow the Gang Leader's name to suppress others. If the Bai family wishes to speak, and Mount Hua wishes to speak, and still others wish to speak as well, then naturally we must see who can show more sincerity—and who can show more of the person himself."
Qin Gang answered only with a bland hum.
Just then a steward entered from outside with lowered hands and reported, "Gang Leader, the two honored guests from the Mount Hua Sect have arrived."
Mount Hua Presents Its Gifts
Before the steward had even finished speaking, Zheng Chong and Xuanyuan Xi had already entered the rear hall side by side.
Zheng Chong wore a plain gray Daoist robe, his expression steady and substantial, his manners proper. The moment he entered he first offered the courtesy due to elders.
"This disciple Zheng Chong of Mount Hua," he said with clasped fists, "comes under the Sect Leader's orders to offer birthday congratulations to Gang Leader Qin on behalf of Mount Hua."
At his side Xuanyuan Xi likewise bowed. "This junior Xuanyuan Xi greets Gang Leader Qin."
The moment the two of them entered, the tension that had been wound a little tight in the hall seemed to loosen as though brushed by a breath of spring wind.
Zheng Chong's bearing was steady—the steady bearing proper to a chief disciple of a great sect. Xuanyuan Xi, however, was different still. His blue robe was plain and clean, his looks bright and clear. Standing there, he showed neither deliberate edge nor the flightiness so common to boys his age. Rather, there was a calm firmness about him as though the pure air of the mountain gate had not yet fully left him. Everyone in that hall was long used to seeing gallant young men of the martial world and sons of great households, yet even so Xuanyuan Xi's mere stance made one look at him twice without meaning to.
Qin Gang, too, looked at him once.
And in that single glance, he saw more deeply than the others.
This youth did not exert himself to make a display, yet there was something in the bones of his face and the set of his features that was hard to suppress. It was not pride, nor coldness, but a hidden toughness within clarity, a hidden depth within calm. Give him a few more years, once the last of his youthful air had truly faded away, and this was a man who would not be summed up by the phrase "a junior of Mount Hua" alone.
At Zheng Chong's order, the birthday gifts were presented. Gift list, gift chests, and congratulatory card were all delivered in proper sequence. The accountants of the Four Seas Main Office received them on the spot, and one sweep of the eye was enough to show that though Mount Hua was no longer as prosperous as in former days, neither courtesy nor weight had been allowed to fail.
Qin Gang nodded. "Sect Leader Xi has shown great thoughtfulness. Daoist Zheng, you have had a hard journey."
Zheng Chong answered respectfully, "The Sect Leader instructed this disciple to say that in earlier years Mount Hua received no little care from the Gang Leader and the Four Seas Gang while abroad. Though we have not been able to maintain frequent ties, it has always remained in our hearts. Now that this is the Gang Leader's fiftieth birthday, Mount Hua ought naturally to come and offer its congratulations."
The last of the coldness in Qin Gang's face softened by another degree.
Mount Hua was still Mount Hua. Even wounded as it had been these past years, the people coming out of its gates still spoke and acted with the measure of a great sect, unlike certain petty households that seemed ready to stuff the words marriage proposal into a man's face before even finishing their greeting.
His gaze shifted and fell again upon Xuanyuan Xi.
"So this is Young Master Xuanyuan?" Qin Gang said slowly. "I heard the name mentioned several times in years past. They said that though Xuanyuan Qing of Mount Hua died early, he left behind an exceptionally fine son. Seeing you today, I find the praise was not misplaced."
Xuanyuan Xi lowered his head slightly. "The Gang Leader praises me too highly. This junior merely stands beneath the shade left by his late father and dares not accept such praise from others."
It was an answer given plainly, with neither display nor deliberate self-effacement. Yet because of that very simplicity, one felt even more strongly that this was a youth with roots beneath him.
Qin Yaozong, who had been sitting with a trace of laziness in him, could not help looking over twice more. Inwardly he weighed the matter: this boy from Mount Hua truly did not lose in appearance to that young marquis of the Bai family in the north. In age they seemed not far apart either. It remained only to be seen how much real skill he possessed under his hand.
Jiang Datao sat at the side taking in Xuanyuan Xi's stance, breathing, and eyes. After a moment he smiled slightly.
"Young Master Xuanyuan may be young," he said, "but his breath is settled very deep. He is indeed a man trained by Mount Hua."
Xuanyuan Xi inclined his hands slightly toward him. "The senior flatters me."
At the side Zhuge Hui toyed with his brush and smiled. "Deputy Gang Leader Jiang's eye has always been sharper than most. Since even he is willing to praise you first, it seems Young Master Xuanyuan's trip to Taihu is bound to bring honor to Mount Hua."
The moment those words left his mouth, a subtle change came over the atmosphere in the hall once again.
To bring honor was ordinarily no more than a graceful social phrase. But here and now in the Main Office outside Changmen, where all those who had come to celebrate the birthday and all those secretly seeking marriage had already gathered together, if anyone truly managed to stand out, establish himself, and dominate the scene before and after the feast, that would be something far beyond the words bring honor.
Qin Gang looked once at Zhuge Hui, but did not answer the remark. He said instead to Zheng Chong, "You two worthy nephews have had a hard journey. Go and rest in the guest courtyard first. Tomorrow the Main Office will assign boats to take everyone into Juyi Isle. Once we are upon the lake, then we shall properly drink a cup of birthday wine together."
Zheng Chong hurried to assent.
Xuanyuan Xi likewise offered a bow and withdrew from the rear hall together with Zheng Chong.
The moment the two of them had gone out, Qin Yaozong set down the cup in his hand and laughed once. "Father, that young gentleman from Mount Hua is rather interesting indeed."
Qin Gang did not answer at once. Only after watching that blue-clad back vanish at the end of the corridor did he say blandly, "The boy is not bad."
Having spoken those words, he said nothing further. Yet everyone in the hall could hear from those three simple words that the weight behind them was already no light one.
Watching the Guests from the Side Corridor
Deep in a side corridor of the Main Office, Feng Feiyun leaned against a lacquered pillar, half narrowing his eyes toward the direction of the rear hall.
They naturally could not see clearly the part where Zheng Chong and Xuanyuan Xi entered and met Qin Gang, Shangguan Lü, and the rest. But within the Main Office people were constantly coming and going—stewards, guards, attendants bearing tea, accountants carrying gift chests. A change in expression here, a brief slowing of footsteps there, was enough to show how far from ordinary the meeting inside truly was.
Xi Qian hid behind the corridor pillar, her eyes fixed on the eastern turn of the passage. Only after Xuanyuan Xi's figure had passed dimly in the distance did the breath in her chest seem to loosen slightly.
Feng Feiyun cut a glance sideways at her and deliberately lowered his voice with a grin. "Little Daoist girl, if you keep staring like that a while longer, I'm afraid you'll even be able to count how many threads are embroidered on his sleeve."
Heat rose instantly to Xi Qian's face. "Who was staring at him!"
Feng Feiyun gave a long, drawn-out "Oh." "So I was mistaken. Then when you stretched your neck so far just now, were you counting how many beams the Main Office roof has?"
Hearing this, Fang Yingjie looked up at the roof beams in all seriousness. At once Feng Feiyun snorted with laughter and lightly smacked the back of his head.
"Sickly one," he said, "you really do know how to cover for your senior sister."
Fang Yingjie rubbed his head. "I…I just didn't understand…"
Xi Qian was half embarrassed and half furious. She lifted a foot to kick Feng Feiyun, but he had long been prepared. With one shift of the body he had already moved aside, still not forgetting to laugh under his breath.
"See that? On the mountain you study swordplay. Below the mountain you study how to dodge a kick. Both of you are still far from good enough."
After this round between the two of them, much of the tightness in Fang Yingjie's heart had eased away. He edged closer to Feng Feiyun and lowered his voice.
"Those few in there just now—other than Shangguan Lü and Zhuge Hui, who were the others?"
Feng Feiyun jerked his chin toward the rear hall. "The one sitting in the seat of honor is naturally Qin Gang. Do not be fooled just because he didn't raise his voice. A man like that can crush half a hall the moment he opens his mouth. The younger one beside him, the one with the most overbearing eyes, is his son Qin Yaozong. And the square-faced, long-armed one sitting most upright is Jiang Datao."
Fang Yingjie hurriedly asked, "The deputy gang leader you mentioned on the road?"
"The very same," Feng Feiyun said. "In the martial world everyone says he is loyal and righteous, and everyone outside believes him loyal and righteous too. If you ran into trouble upon the water, one could not say of others—but this second master Jiang would most likely be the first to offer you a hand."
Fang Yingjie blinked. "Then isn't he a good man?"
Feng Feiyun laughed once, but did not answer at once.
"Sickly one," he said, "the easiest bad habit to learn on the mountain is how quickly to divide people into good and bad. You have seen him do nothing more than sit and drink a cup of tea, and already you ask whether he is a good man. One day, if you truly run into trouble on the road and he reaches out to help you—then sells you along with it—by the time you ask yourself 'is he good or not?' it will most likely be too late."
Xi Qian frowned. "The way you talk, why can't you ever just give a clear answer?"
"A clear answer?" Feng Feiyun raised his head to glance at the patch of waterlight showing in from beyond the corridor and said lazily, "If people's hearts were all that clear, there would not be so many matters in the martial world."
Even so, he did not truly leave the two of them hanging. He continued patiently enough.
"Qin Gang's name is big in the martial world, and his sense of loyalty is real enough too, not faked. Qin Yaozong is hot-blooded, but he can hold a scene down and is no useless thing. Jiang Datao, though—"
At that, he paused slightly, and some of the idle ease in his eyes suddenly faded.
"Jiang Datao looks the most like a proper gentleman, and he is also the one others are most willing to trust. The more a man looks like that, the more careful you have to be. I am not saying he must be bad. Only that if he is bad, he will usually be harder to guard against than a man who shows his badness openly."
Fang Yingjie listened, half understanding and half not, and in the end could only nod silently.
Xi Qian asked again, "And those two from Flying Snow Manor? I've only heard Father and Grand Martial Uncle Shenzang mention the Four Great Men of Changbai a few times before. I don't really know much else."
"Shangguan Lü is the sort who can keep matters under control. Zhuge Hui is the sort who can smooth matters over." Feng Feiyun said. "One is like a zither, with the strings drawn tight. The other is like a painting, color all over the surface. If you ask which is harder to deal with, I would say I cannot be certain. One gives nothing away. The other lets you relax first, then gathers you in. Neither is an easy lamp to burn."
As he spoke, however, his eyes had already drifted toward the end of the western corridor.
There the little courtyard showed only a fine wash of lamplight, the door shut tight. Upon the window paper floated two pale shadows, one more slender, one rounder, unlike the shadows of men. Feng Feiyun watched them twice, and once more that trace of a smile appeared at his lips.
Xi Qian followed his gaze. "What are you looking at now?"
Feng Feiyun folded his arms and smiled. "At people watching lively things."
"What?"
"Nothing." Feng Feiyun said lazily. "Only thinking that tonight in the Main Office there is probably one person who fears meeting Bai Yuchuan even more than the two of you do."
Fang Yingjie blinked. "Who?"
Feng Feiyun did not answer. Instead he pointed ahead. "There."
At the eastern turn of the corridor, Zheng Chong and Xuanyuan Xi had already appeared under the guidance of a young steward from the Main Office, walking slowly in the direction of the guest courtyard. Zheng Chong's expression remained more or less unchanged, but Xuanyuan Xi had grown quieter than before, as though something had been said in that rear hall just now which, though it had not moved him visibly, had still left a faint mark within his heart.
Xi Qian had still been asking about Feng Feiyun's cryptic words. But the moment Xuanyuan Xi came into view, her attention was pulled away again at once, and she did not even think to keep asking who it was that might fear seeing Bai Yuchuan even more than she did.
Feng Feiyun saw it all and laughed inwardly. Outwardly, however, he remained as though nothing were amiss, merely giving a low whistle.
"This time your Mount Hua lot," he said lazily, "are probably really going to make a name for yourselves by Taihu Lake."
Deep Lamplight Over the Waterside Pavilion
That night the Main Office shone with lights from every direction.
In the front court, banquets had not yet been fully spread out for the distant birthday guests, yet the food already set forth was rich enough. In the various rear courtyards, meanwhile, lights glowed here and there. In some places people were speaking and laughing in low voices; elsewhere invitations were being checked against gifts; in darker corners beneath the corridors accompanying guards quietly sharpened sabers and inspected swords. Everyone knew that this trip to Taihu might not end with a single cup of birthday wine.
In the little western courtyard, Xiaoluan straightened Qin Xin's outer male robe again and handed her a fresh cup of warm tea.
"Miss," she said softly, "the Gang Leader has already met with the two gentlemen from Flying Snow Manor, and he has also met those two young gentlemen from Mount Hua. Everyone outside is talking about that Young Master Xuanyuan from Mount Hua. They say he is most striking."
Qin Xin's hand paused slightly upon the teacup.
"Xuanyuan Xi?" she asked, lifting her eyes.
"Yes," said Xiaoluan. "They say even the Gang Leader praised him."
At once something like interest lightly stirred at Qin Xin's lips.
"Then tomorrow I shall have to take a look for myself." She held the teacup in both hands, thought for a moment, and then asked as though deliberately trying to sound casual, "And…Cousin?"
The moment Xiaoluan heard that, she lowered her voice further still. "The young marquis still has not entered the Main Office proper tonight. He is staying only in the outer western court. Master Shangguan went over there a while ago. When he came out, his expression still looked calm enough. But when Master Zhuge returned, he could only sigh and say, 'The young marquis's temper is becoming harder and harder to coax.'"
At that, Qin Xin's eyes first brightened, then seemed lightly pricked by something. She let out a cold little snort.
"If he is truly so hard to coax, then why did he bother helping me just now?"
Xiaoluan did not dare answer that. She merely went and pushed the window more closely shut.
Qin Xin sat beneath the lamp for a long while without speaking.
Outside, the wind off the water carried a trace of damp chill. The lights in the courtyards of the Main Office glimmered here and there, one after another, like a great net already spread wide. All at once she felt that the quick delight in her heart earlier—when she had only wanted to make people anxious by stirring up trouble outside Changmen—had begun to fade away bit by bit, replaced by something more complicated.
Flying Snow Manor had come. Mount Hua had come too. Her cousin was clearly somewhere nearby, yet still refused to show himself. Outside, people spoke again and again of how beautiful she was and how worthy she was of this marriage. Yet all those words felt to her like layer upon layer of paper pasted onto a person's body, so stifling that one could hardly breathe.
She stared at the dancing lamp flame and suddenly asked softly, "Xiaoluan, if things truly grow lively tomorrow…will he come out?"
Xiaoluan blinked, then answered quietly, "If Miss truly wishes to see the young marquis, then in the end you will surely see him."
Qin Xin said nothing. She only pressed the teacup into her palms and gazed out at the strip of waterlight beyond the window, wrinkled faintly by the night wind.
And at the other end of the Main Office, in Mount Hua's guest courtyard, Xuanyuan Xi stood by the window as well.
In the distance, the lights outside Changmen stretched together into one piece. The sounds of water, human voices, and oars all blended together, lively in a way wholly unlike Mount Hua. Behind him Zheng Chong was checking through the birthday gift list as he spoke.
"Tomorrow when we go up to Juyi Isle, things are likely to be more mixed than they were today. Remember this: on the surface, we are here to celebrate a birthday; beneath that, we are here to observe people. Do not lightly contend with others over strength."
Xuanyuan Xi nodded, yet his gaze remained fixed upon the river lanterns beyond.
Naturally he had understood the meaning behind Qin Gang's words earlier: "The boy is not bad." Nor had the eyes with which Shangguan Lü and Zhuge Hui looked people escaped him. The Four Seas Gang, Flying Snow Manor, and Mount Hua—though none of the three had yet truly set a stone down, the invisible force between them had already begun slowly to pull and tighten beneath the lamplight of the Main Office.
All at once he recalled the small disturbance outside Changmen by daylight, the whispered mention of "Young Master Bai," and the many figures within the Main Office itself, hurrying to and fro, each carrying their own stance and allegiance. A faint premonition rose in his heart.
This trip to Taihu would most likely not prove as simple as delivering a birthday gift and asking a few questions about the water routes.
When Zheng Chong saw that he did not speak, he smiled. "What are you thinking about?"
Xuanyuan Xi withdrew his gaze and said blandly, "Tomorrow is likely to be lively."
Zheng Chong laughed once as well. "Lively is good. The livelier it is, the more clearly one sees people."
With that, he closed the gift list and blew out half the lamps, leaving only a single bean-sized flame by the window.
Outside, the wind off the water rose again, and the night over Changmen seemed to deepen all the more beneath its touch.
That night, many people within the Main Office did not sleep easily.
Some were thinking of birthday gifts. Some were thinking of marriage. Some were thinking of the old case along the water routes. And some were thinking of this: once Juyi Isle rose before them tomorrow, who would be the first to act, who the first to stand out, and who—beneath the gaze of the entire gathering—would finally bring forth both their true name and their true skill into the light.
Poetic Coda
Changmen's lights stretched upward to the sky;
The night wind off the water deepened in the dark.
False faces lingered, while true intentions blurred;
Old dust would rise again where great houses met.
Deep in the Main Office, laughter masked sharp words;
Along the corridors, wind and thunder lay in wait.
Tomorrow, once they set foot on Juyi Isle,
Which among the gathered heroes would step forth first?
(End of Chapter Six)