Hongdou pulled up He Yunqin’s sleeve and lowered her head to look at his wristwatch. Eleven o’clock. Mrs. He staying up was one thing, but He Zhuyun was frail in health and rarely stayed up this late.

It seemed there must be some urgent matter to discuss with them.

When they reached Fourth Sister’s room, He Yunqin knocked out of habit first, and only after hearing someone inside respond did he push the door open and enter.

It was only November, yet a fire had already been lit in the small fireplace in the corner of the room; the moment they entered, a warmth carrying a fragrant scent brushed over them.

He Zhuyun was still wearing the Western-style dress from during the day, though she had changed into a pair of soft satin slippers in a powder-pink shade. She lay sprawled across the bed, talking to her mother in a desultory way, and did not turn around when she heard her brother and sister-in-law arrive.

Mrs. He reclined against the lotus-colored velvet sofa, still fully adorned — an otter fur stole, a dark green honey-velvet qipao — with a bowl of untouched bird’s nest porridge beside her, her expression calm and gentle.

He Yunqin turned to close the door, surprised. “Mother, it’s so late — why are you still not asleep?”

Mrs. He ignored her son, only asking Hongdou with concern, “I heard Auntie was stabbed at the school?”

Hongdou sat down beside her mother-in-law and nodded. “She was just sent to the clinic. Auntie was quite badly frightened, but the wound has been stitched up. Fortunately nothing vital was hit — she’ll be fine after a few days’ rest.”

Mrs. He patted her chest, still shaken. “As long as she’s alright. Have they found out who did it?”

“Inspector Wang and the others are investigating, but there’s no clear lead yet.”

Mrs. He said, “Tomorrow morning I’ll have Steward Yu prepare a gift to send to Auntie. After this happened, I’m afraid the play can’t go on — which is just as well. Things outside aren’t peaceful right now; you and Zhuyun should go out less at night.”

Hongdou smiled but didn’t respond. The situation was worsening by the day. The students, filled with patriotic feeling, were nonetheless constrained by their status as students, and there was truly limited they could openly do. Aside from traditional productions, the drama society often wrote new plays, the purpose being nothing more than to bitterly denounce the invaders and mock the traitors who sold out the country. The lines were carefully polished beforehand, arranged with great care. Gradually, their reputation had spread among several universities in Shanghai, and whenever the school staged a new production, there was no shortage of attendees, including quite a few figures from various circles of society.

Whenever tensions ran high, there were inevitably people who came to cause trouble. After a year or two of this tempering, the students had long since learned not to be alarmed. Tonight’s incident, though rare, wasn’t enough to frighten them into shutting down the society.

She didn’t want to argue with her mother-in-law, so she only smiled and said, “Mother is right. It happens that this run has just finished — we’re planning to rest properly for a while now.”

Seeing that his sister just kept lying there without speaking, He Yunqin had already walked to the bedside. “Second Brother and Second Sister-in-law are here — why haven’t you greeted us?”

Only then did He Zhuyun slowly sit up. Her cheeks, originally somewhat pale, had turned rosy from being pressed against the bedding. Sitting up, she looked at He Yunqin and murmured, “Second Brother.”

He Yunqin frowned. “What happened?”

A servant came in to bring tea, and no one spoke for a while. After the servant withdrew, it was Mrs. He who finally spoke. “Tonight, right after you brought your sister home, Mrs. Duan came by.”

Mrs. Duan? Hongdou thought for a moment before realizing her mother-in-law meant Duan Mingyi’s mother.

“Mrs. Duan first held your fourth sister’s hands and looked her over for a good while, then chatted with me about family matters for a bit. After that she brought up her maternal nephew who’d just returned from studying abroad — the young master of Shenglei Shipping Company. She said he was in his twenties this year, good-looking and well-educated, and from the way she talked, she wanted to arrange a match between Young Master Sheng and your sister.”

“The Sheng family?” The smile faded from He Yunqin’s expression.

Mrs. He said, “The Sheng family has been in decline for years now. In earlier years Mrs. Duan spent a great deal to help support her natal family, but the business was mismanaged, and the Duan family suffered losses too as a result. The Duan sons are only good for book-learning — when it comes to actually managing affairs, they’re utterly hopeless. These past years, both the Sheng family and the Duan family have been left as mere empty shells. Mrs. Duan is afraid the situation will only get worse, and having married her daughter into the He family isn’t enough — now she’s set her sights on your sister as well. And I suspect this also carries your Uncle Duan’s intentions behind it. Your eldest brother most likely won’t concern himself with this, though I don’t know whether your eldest sister-in-law knew about it beforehand.”

Hongdou looked at her mother-in-law. The clasp on her stole was no ordinary leather or cloth button, but a single large piece of jade — matched by jade pendants at her ears, the gemstones a rich, deep green, glowing brilliantly under the lamplight.

She had once read a newspaper article about Shanghai’s prosperity and path toward industrial modernization, which mentioned several enterprises in Shanghai built up over generations, singling out the He family for particular praise. Born into wartime, businesses with weak foundations inevitably suffered — overnight bankruptcies or forced restructurings were everywhere. Yet no matter how the winds outside shifted, the He family remained as solid as a rock. It was no surprise that such wealth drew envious eyes.

He Yunqin gave a cold laugh. “Since when does the Duan family get a say in my sister’s marriage? Why should Mother even bother discussing it with her — a flat refusal on the spot would have sufficed.”

“I refused her on the spot. Your father is still out overseeing the Shanghai Factory Relocation Committee, otherwise I’d have told him this as a joke directly. To think, the Duan family was once a household of considerable standing, yet for the sake of marrying off her natal nephew, even the lady of the house came in person to play matchmaker. Well, that’s one matter. After I saw Mrs. Duan out, I went back to find your sister and caught her on the phone. She said the caller’s surname was Yu, also a student, and that you and Hongdou both know him, and that I should ask you myself — so that’s why I sent for you, to ask who this person is.”

He Yunqin looked at He Zhuyun and said flatly, “Yu Rui?”

He Zhuyun’s face turned red at once, and she flopped back down onto the bed. “It was just a phone call. Mother’s making too much of it.”

Hongdou was startled for a moment. Yu Rui was a man of outstanding looks and bearing — many female classmates had been smitten with him from the moment he arrived at St. John’s. It was no surprise at all that He Zhuyun had taken a liking to him.

“Right,” Mrs. He said with a smile. “You didn’t do anything at all — just hid in your room to take a phone call from him. Good child, you saw what happened tonight — plenty of families want to marry into ours right now. Your father and I don’t object to you young people choosing your own matches, but you’ve never had any experience with romance before, and you’re still young. As your mother, it’s only right that I ask a few more questions. Second Son, since you know this Yu Rui, tell your mother whose child he is.”

He Yunqin sat down beside Hongdou, took the tea she had already drunk from, and took a sip before saying, “This man is the eldest grandson of Yu Shisheng of Shanghai University. His father is chief editor at the Hong Bao, and his mother is the eldest daughter of Xu Ke, the former Deputy Minister of the Beiping Cabinet. So he does come from a scholarly family, but as for how this Yu Rui actually conducts himself at school, I haven’t looked into it at all.”

His tone was neither warm nor cold — he seemed not to approve of the match.

“Xu Ke’s eldest daughter?” Mrs. He was surprised. “I’ve met Mrs. Yu several times before — so Yu Rui is her son.”

Her tone had softened somewhat compared to before, clearly because she now had more information, and her wariness and defensiveness had eased.

He Yunqin asked He Zhuyun, “Fourth Sister, I didn’t even know you had the phone number to his residence. You’ve only met this Yu Rui a few times — you know nothing at all about his character —”

“I found out tonight while we were talking.” He Zhuyun simply sat up and moved to sit beside Hongdou, murmuring, “Besides, I only made one phone call. Second Brother, I think your attitude tonight is very strange.”

He Yunqin looked at He Zhuyun, his expression for a moment unreadable.

Hongdou smiled. “Did Yu Rui call you, or did you call him?”

“He called me first, I called him back afterward,” He Zhuyun said, glancing at He Yunqin, her voice soft. “Second Brother, don’t you like Yu Rui? I keep feeling like you’re prejudiced against him.”

He Yunqin raised his eyebrows, about to respond, when Mrs. He quickly said, “Your second brother only has you as a sister — he’s always doted on you. How could he not concern himself with your romance?”

He Zhuyun pouted. “But I’ve already told you everything about him and me. Mother, what else is there to ask? It’s too late — I’m tired.”

Mrs. He glanced at the Western-style clock — it was well past twelve, and her daughter’s complexion had grown worse. She could only say, “Alright then, rest up. Your father should be back soon anyway — I should have someone prepare a late-night meal.”

He Yunqin looked at his sister once more, said nothing further, and took Hongdou back to their room.

Once inside, Hongdou took off her coat and smiled. “Fourth Sister was right — I think you don’t like that Yu Rui either.”

He Yunqin took Hongdou’s coat and casually tossed it onto the sofa in the outer room, pausing before following her into the inner room. “I keep feeling like Yu Rui looks familiar.”

Hongdou turned back to look at him in surprise. “Familiar?” He Yunqin’s tone was different from usual — this “familiar” probably didn’t mean familiar in the social sense.