by Jeannie Lin
Mingyu hoped Kaifeng hadn’t met with any danger. He was tough and more intelligent than the rest of them, she was certain of it. She also prayed from the deepest part of her soul that she hadn’t dragged him into ruin with her.
There was only one place left for her to go, but she wouldn’t be able to stay there long. She would have to leave Changan quickly and throw her fate to the open road.
Curling herself up tight, Mingyu closed her eyes and willed herself to sleep.
So this was freedom.
* * *
THE NEXT MORNING, Mingyu was up before the sun. Before the inhabitants of the shrine had even risen. She found a basin of water in the kitchen to wash her face and attempted to straighten her appearance. She could do nothing about the tear in the back of her robe.
She left a tael of silver upon the altar as a sign of gratitude before slipping out onto the streets. Perhaps she should have left more, but she didn’t know how much she would need while in hiding.
In bright daylight, the streets appeared completely different from the tangled maze she’d stumbled through last night. Mingyu easily found her way to the main gate that led out of the ward. Laborers and merchants were already assembled with their carts as they waited for the passage to open. Keeping her head low, Mingyu lost herself among the crowd.
The gates opened at the prescribed hour and the guards paid no particular attention as the masses shuffled by. Mingyu was able to pass through unmolested. The city would hide her. Outside of the Three Lanes, she was no one. There was no Lady Mingyu.
Out on the main road, she was able to hire a carriage to take her the rest of the way to the northern part of the city. She wondered if Madame Sun would dare to search her out among the elite of the scholar-gentry. This was scandal of the worst sort: The Lotus Palace’s most famous courtesan had run away.
As the carriage approached the vicinity of the Bai mansion, Mingyu paid the driver and continued on foot. She knew Yue-ying would take her in, but how could she approach her sister’s new family in a way that wouldn’t cause Yue-ying trouble? Especially looking as she did now, like a vagabond from the streets.
The old maidservant who answered the front gate looked her up and down.
“What are you doing here so early, Miss?”
“I am looking for my sister. Please, Auntie, there is something I need to tell her.”
The woman frowned, but said nothing as she ducked back into the house. At least the servant recognized her. And at least the woman addressed her with some respect. Mingyu had only visited her sister a few times since the wedding. Though Yue-ying was now part of the Bai family, this certainly didn’t mean Mingyu was welcome to come by unannounced.
It was a long time before the gate opened again, but once it did, a familiar face appeared. Bai Huang’s sister Wei-wei greeted her in a plain house robe with her hair tied back in a simple knot.
“How rude of us to keep you in the street like that. Forgive us, Miss Mingyu.” Wei-wei took hold of Mingyu by the arm and drew her into the courtyard. “Our servants should know that you’re always welcome.”
The old maidservant remained in the doorway of the main building, watching Mingyu warily.
“What brings you here so early in the morning?” Wei-wei’s gaze swept over her. The young noblewoman didn’t remark on her torn clothing or disheveled appearance until they entered a more private section of the garden where there were no servants present.
Wei-wei dropped her voice even though they were alone. “What happened to you?”
“Is Yue-ying awake?”
“She’s coming. Are you in danger?”
Wei-wei was staring at her with wide eyes filled with as much excitement as concern.
Mingyu brushed a stray hair away from her face. “It’s nothing. Nothing serious.”
It was going to be impossible to convince Wei-wei that this was just a routine visit looking the way she did. She was relieved of having to answer when Yue-ying emerged from the inner chambers. There was a worried look on her face.
Mingyu hurried to Yue-ying and took hold of her hands, squeezing them tight. “I’ve left the Lotus Palace, Little Sister.”
“Like we always said we would,” Yue-ying murmured softly.
“Madame Sun is looking for me. I can’t stay here long.”
“Aiya, don’t either of you know how to whisper?” Wei-wei admonished. She ushered them both into the house and shut them inside a room that Mingyu assumed was her bedchamber. “I’ll have to go and convince the servants that there is nothing amiss. But first tell me—” She looked from one to the other of the two of them, her eyes bright. “What scandal is this here?”
“No scandal,” Mingyu said, wearily. “But it would be wise to make sure the servants know this is nothing but a visit from one sister to another.”
Wei-wei hurried off to do exactly that. When Mingyu turned back to Yue-ying, there was a look of concern on her sister’s face, as if she’d suddenly become the older sibling.
“Where will you go, Sister?”
Mingyu took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “I don’t know.”
It was true they had spoken often of leaving and starting a new life somewhere else, but it had been nothing but talk. Dreams. They had been brought to the capital when they were little more than children and knew of nothing outside the walls of the city.
“You can’t go. Not like this,” Yue-ying insisted. “I’ll speak to Huang. We’ll make an offer to Madame Sun. She can’t keep you if you don’t want to stay.”
“She can and she will. Madame owns me by law. And even if she is pressured to settle, she can extort a cutthroat price. Two thousand, three thousand, ten thousand in silver. What am I to the Bai family? I can’t owe them that, even if they were willing to pay.”
“But, Mingyu, to just run away like this! How will we ever find one another again?” Yue-ying pressed the back of her hand to her mouth, trapping a sob inside.
The rush of emotion caught Mingyu off guard. She rarely saw her sister in tears. Of the two of them, Yue-ying had endured so much more hardship and heartache. She deserved her happiness, unburdened by an older sister who always attracted attention and scandal.
“I will be fine,” Mingyu soothed. “Remember all the money we hid away? I have it with me. Once I find a safe place, I’ll write to you.”
It wasn’t all lies. She would try her best to make it true, even though she didn’t know what would happen once she left the capital. Especially now that Kaifeng wouldn’t be with her. She had hoped he would change his mind, but the decision was out of her hands.
Mingyu straightened her shoulders, lifted her chin. All the things she needed to do to show Yue-ying that there was nothing to worry about.
“Before I go, there are a few matters I must see to. Forgive me, but I will need to ask a favor from your husband.”
Mingyu had innocently, ignorantly hoped she wouldn’t have to manipulate her own sister’s marriage to her advantage.
Yue-ying looked confused. “Huang left for the records office this morning. He won’t be back until this evening, but we might be able to summon him if this is important. He’s always complaining how menial his position is.”
“This is important,” Mingyu confirmed.
Bai Huang’s appointment might be a minor one, but his family name was still respected. The young Lord Bai would be able to inquire at the magistrate’s office about Kaifeng. He might even be able to arrange for her to leave Changan.
“We’ll send Zhou Dan for him,” Yue-ying said.
“I’ll go with him.” Wei-wei returned and inserted herself seamlessly back into the conversation. “The bureaucrats might ignore a servant like Zhou Dan, but surely they won’t deny Huang’s own sister. I’ll explain this is a family matter.”
They
all agreed it was the best course of action and Wei-wei set out to arrange the carriage.
“One final thing,” Wei-wei piped up at the door. “Mother is still asleep. She usually wakes up around the Snake Hour. You should not be wearing—” she made a circling motion that encompassed Mingyu “—that outfit when you greet her.”
Once Wei-wei was gone, there was silence between them.
“She is your sister now,” Mingyu said quietly, her heart squeezing painfully.
Yue-ying bit down on her bottom lip. “No. No, she’s not.”
“You’ll be fine, Yue-ying. I know you will.”
“But will you be?”
“Of course I will,” Mingyu said, with a reassuring smile.
Lies. More lies.
For as long as they could remember, they only had each other. Every month, Mingyu looked forward to seeing her sister and would be sad for days once the visit was over. She had hoped that within the next year, she would hold Yue-ying’s first child in her arms, a niece or a nephew.
The lure of returning to the Lotus Palace was so strong it frightened her. Everything she knew was in Changan.
It wasn’t too late. Mingyu could turn back that very moment. She could apologize sweetly to Madame Sun and suffer little more than a few harsh words. Her life in the Pingkang li was comfortable, glamorous even.
But how long would it be before Mingyu found herself sold off to Xi Lun? And if not him, then some other master? Her sun was setting. Better to decide her own fate.
The prospect of leaving had been less frightening when Wu Kaifeng was by her side. There was something between them, something more than the stolen glances and chance meetings that had nothing to do with chance.
If she left now without him, would he look for her? Or would he forget?
They were more than lovers, her heart insisted. She could feel it in her soul. Kaifeng knew her better than anyone else. In some ways, he saw her more clearly than even Yue-ying. So maybe he was right about her. Mingyu was merely afraid of taking that first step alone.
* * *
BY THE TIME Wei-wei returned with her brother, Mingyu had had a chance to wash and make herself more presentable. Yue-ying lent her a silk robe and helped style her hair. There was no denying that being dressed and powdered and pinned made Mingyu feel powerful. The softest of silks served as the thickest of armors.
The two sisters stood as soon as Bai Huang entered the sitting room. His sense of style had become much more understated since his marriage. Along with his state robe, he wore a serious expression.
Yue-ying hurried over to her husband and began speaking rapidly. A heated discussion ensued, though in hushed tones. Mingyu didn’t need to hear the words to guess what was being said.
“Don’t let my sister convince you, Lord Bai.”
Bai Huang looked up from the conversation.
“A collator from the imperial records office can neither afford the gossip, nor the monetary debt of redeeming me. And he has his new wife to think of.”
His lips twitched. “Assistant collator,” he corrected.
Yue-ying scowled.
Bai Huang stepped toward Mingyu, all trace of humor gone. “I knew immediately what must have happened when Wei-wei came to find me. Do you know there’s already talk of you throughout the quarter? Wu Kaifeng has been arrested.”
“Arrested? Why would the magistrate go to such lengths for a broken bond?”
Mingyu knew there was something very wrong even before Bai Huang shook his head.
“The warrant for you isn’t for running away, Mingyu. It’s for murder.”
The air rushed out of her. “Impossible.”
“And conspiracy in the death of General Deng Zhi. The fact that you fled the Lotus Palace makes it look even worse for you. The Censorate has taken over the investigation. Constable Wu is being held for interrogation.”
She staggered back as if someone had stricken her. How had it come to this?
Yue-ying was immediately at her side. “But we’ll help you, Mingyu. We’ll find some way, won’t we?” She looked to Bai Huang for reassurance, but he had none to give. Distraught, she turned back to Mingyu. “You can’t leave now.”
A strange calm came over her. “You’re right. I can’t.” Mingyu straightened and placed her hand over her sister’s. “If I may speak to your husband privately?”
Yue-ying exchanged a glance with Bai Huang. He gave her a nod and something unspoken passed between husband and wife.
Mingyu waited until her sister left before speaking. “You said the Censorate had taken over the investigation. Is the man in charge Inspector Xi Lun?”
“The name sounds familiar. It could be him.”
“Xi Lun has been visiting me at the Lotus. He’s obsessed with me, Lord Bai. This is not about the investigation. Xi Lun has his own personal schemes.”
“That’s impossible to prove, whereas your actions appear very suspicious. You were intimately associated with the general. You were found with the body.”
“That doesn’t matter right now. Xi Lun has wrongly imprisoned Wu Kaifeng. You have to get him released before the inspector takes his revenge out on him.”
Bai Huang frowned at her. “Constable Wu? Why are you worried about him? I thought you hated Wu after all he did to you.”
Xi Lun’s interest in Kaifeng had disturbed her. He had assumed that she and Kaifeng were enemies, but what if the inspector had discovered the truth? She had no doubt Xi was a jealous man. He claimed to have hated General Deng.
Her heart raced. There were all manner of brutal acts that fell under the realm of “interrogation” and Kaifeng would be completely at the inspector’s mercy. The thought sickened her.
“You must free Constable Wu,” she pleaded. “He’s been dragged into this wrongfully. He tried to help me.”
“Unfortunately Xi Lun is one of the Emperor’s favorites. He’s a valued member of the Palace Bureau and he has the Emperor’s ear.” Bai Huang scrubbed a hand over his chin, his look as serious as she’d ever seen it. “You have to surrender yourself to the magistrate. I know this is difficult,” he quickly added when she started to protest. “And I know it’s a risk, but Li Yen is an upstanding official. He follows code to the very line and character. Wu’s interrogation under torture will stop once you’ve surrendered. I’ll petition that you’re kept under house arrest with me. It will take time after that to secure the constable’s release, but there’s a good chance we can get it done.”
As Mingyu listened to Bai Huang’s plan and the confident manner with which he laid it out, something occurred to her. Something she had never considered until this moment.
“I think you underestimate your capabilities, Lord Bai.”
“This is the best I can offer.”
“I won’t fall into Xi Lun’s hands. That’s what he wants. You’re going to get Wu Kaifeng released. I don’t know how, but I know you can find a way.”
Mingyu hesitated. Her idea was so far-fetched, so inconceivable.
Bai Huang waited expectantly for her to continue. He was handsome, beautiful even. Well-educated and of aristocratic birth. He had a way with words and with people, yet he’d managed to trick everyone into thinking the opposite—that he was a worthless fool.
“I believe you have more authority than anyone knows,” she ventured.
“I don’t understand what you mean.”
Oh, but she could see by the flicker in his eyes that he did understand.
“Yue-ying doesn’t even know, does she? Your own wife.”
“Now, Elder Sister...”
“There is a popular tale circulating through the tearooms right now. One about Emperor Xuānzong. Rather than being godlike, as an Emperor should be, he was never much to look at. When he was prince, he was in
credibly shy and had difficulty speaking. Why, it’s said that the palace eunuchs only propped him up as Emperor because they thought he would be easy to control.”
Mingyu watched Bai Huang carefully as she wove her tale. He was actually quite good at masking his thoughts behind a blank and confused expression, but she knew Yue-ying. Her sister would never fall for a fool.
“Amazingly, once Xuānzong was on the throne, he surprised everyone in court with his thoughtful manner. Especially when it came to promoting and appointing officials. He seemed to know everyone’s strengths and weaknesses in great detail. It was rumored the Emperor had spent some time in the scholars’ quarter in disguise among the candidates. And when the palace exams were administered, he scored and selected the top rank himself.”
“That’s a good story,” Bai Huang remarked, clearing his throat.
“You ranked in the top third of that exam.”
“Such good fortune—”
“You know details that should be privileged—Xi Lun’s name and position and how the Emperor favors him.”
He shrugged. “One hears things.”
“You’re not an assistant collator in the records office.” Mingyu wanted to stab her finger into his chest, he was such an impostor. “You were recruited into the Censorate, weren’t you? You’re spying for the Emperor.”
“Now, Mingyu.” He made a motion with his hand, urging her to lower her voice. “That’s a fascinating story and one that I feel would be quite amusing when told over wine.”
She would not be stopped. “You were always interested in General Deng. You suspected for a long time that he might be a traitor and a threat to the state. Perhaps you were right all along. Help me, Lord Bai, and I’ll help you.”
Now he turned serious. “How can you help me?”
“With exactly what you need—information.
“General Deng is not dead. He faked his own assassination.” She took a deep breath. There was so much at stake here; a question of broken confidences and where her loyalties truly lie. “Release Wu Kaifeng and I will do everything in my power to help hunt Deng Zhi down. I swear to it.”
