Han Linfeng had no idea that Su Luoyun had recognized him. He assumed that a person suddenly appearing in the courtyard had simply given her a fright, and hastened to identify himself.

What he did not know was that the moment he spoke, every hair on Su Luoyun’s arms stood on end.

The sensation had been far too vivid, far too real.

She was now certain: the hoarse-voiced assailant on the boat that day… was none other than this Han Shizi, who to all outward appearances had been drowning himself in wine and pleasure.

Two people who had seemed to have no conceivable connection had suddenly collapsed into one. Her thoughts were in some disarray — simultaneously astonished at her own discovery and struggling to maintain her composure so as not to show it.

Because the stakes of this, if she was right, were far too grave.

It was said that the accomplices who had broken the rebel out of prison were cunning and ruthless — they had used a feint to draw away an entire battalion of soldiers, spiriting the fugitive Cao Sheng away without a trace.

The ringleader was also a martial arts master of formidable skill: even with an injured shoulder, he had fought off ten men on his own and broken through the encirclement.

Before this moment, even if one had beaten Su Luoyun senseless, she would never have connected this world-defying act with the Han Shizi whose greatest concern seemed to be getting enough wine and meat.

And yet — now that she cast her mind back to their first encounter at the consort’s household, she recalled smelling the faint odor of medicinal ointment on him. And there was the distinctive scent of camphor root from his study. And then the sensation of those arms just now, so unmistakably familiar…

These scattered, unrelated details had at this moment converged into a single unbroken line, leaving Su Luoyun with no room for doubt.

This dissolute young lord… was not nearly as reckless and foolish as he appeared.

And he was not blind — he must have recognized her long ago. So why had he continued to approach her as if nothing were amiss?

What scheme or stratagem lay hidden in this? Su Luoyun could not work it out, and found she did not want to. Whatever secret this concealed, tangling herself up in it was surely not something a person of her humble station could afford.

Thinking this, Su Luoyun forced down the pounding of her heart, was silent for a moment, then spoke with a slightly stiff formality: “This is a private residence, Shizi. For you to be alone here with me could easily invite misunderstanding. If there is nothing further, please take your cat and return to your household by way of the ladder.”

Han Linfeng raised an eyebrow. Su Luoyun’s reaction did not surprise him.

His reputation was wretched — in other people’s eyes, he was not much better than the likes of Guo Yan. Suddenly appearing in the courtyard of a young woman alone was certainly highly inappropriate.

Yet thinking of her reckless climb up the wall just now, Han Linfeng still felt it necessary to offer a word: “Though the young miss is clever and quick-witted, she must also know when to show her limitations. Climbing a wall for the sake of a cat shows little regard for herself. I hope I will not witness such a scene again in the future.”

This was the tone in which a young lord addresses a servant — and Su Luoyun slowly rose to her feet, considered a moment, and replied with deliberate courtesy: “I thank the Shizi for his reminder… If your household could see that the cat is well-fed so that it no longer needs to come foraging in my courtyard, there would perhaps be fewer such incidents…”

Su Luoyun had no desire whatsoever to maintain any connection with Han Linfeng, and naturally wished that the greedy cat would stop paying visits as well.

Han Linfeng caught the edge in her words, but only gave a light laugh: “Your household sets a very fine table. The fault is Arong’s.”

With that, he tucked the cat under his arm and slowly climbed the ladder. When he reached the top of the wall, he turned his head and said to Su Luoyun: “Since your household sets such a fine table, I hope the young miss will eat a little more herself. She seems to weigh almost nothing at all…”

All told, he had now carried her twice — once when the carriage collision had sent her stumbling into his household, and once just now when he caught her falling from the wall.

Neither time had she felt like much of anything. She was far too thin.

Su Luoyun stood there blinking in bewilderment, forcing herself to swallow the retort that rose to her lips. She returned his farewell with a composed bow, and inwardly thought: he has a point — she really did need to build up some strength. If he ever truly meant her harm and came to silence her, she should at least not go down without a fight. She ought to save enough energy for the moment of her death to scratch up that reportedly quite handsome face of his…

By the time she had gathered herself, the sound of the cat had already receded to the other side of the wall and faded into the distance.

Su Luoyun pressed her back against the wall and let out a long, slow breath — the master of this spider’s den was truly a creature of hidden fangs, capable of any deception.

Starting tomorrow, she would have to instruct Xiangcao to stop drying fish in the courtyard.

* * *

And so, though Arong the greedy cat continued to come prowling around over the following days, meowing beguilingly at the mistress of the house, there were no more dried fish to be had. After a few such disappointed visits, the cat took to sprawling across Su Luoyun’s lap and refusing to budge.

Su Luoyun had had enough. After repeatedly lifting the spoiled creature off her knees, she resolved to stop sitting out in the courtyard to take the sun entirely.

Beyond that, she began leaving for the shop at first light every morning and not returning until dusk.

Even Xiangcao noticed something was off and asked in puzzlement whether some unclean thing had come into the house — for why else would the young miss behave as though she had seen a ghost, slipping out before dawn and refusing to return until after dark?

Su Luoyun flicked her abacus beads with practiced ease and replied lightly: “Didn’t you say yourself the house felt a bit cramped? If I don’t work harder and earn enough to buy a bigger courtyard, how will we manage?”

Xiangcao nodded, finding this perfectly reasonable, and said: “Next time we look for a house, we must be sure to check out the neighbors on all sides — find somewhere quiet and harmonious, somewhere the young miss can truly settle down.”

Su Luoyun sighed softly: “A thousand taels of gold to buy a good neighbor… Words of wisdom…”

It was only when she sat quietly and thought it through that she realized how thoroughly intertwined her daily life had become with that of the Shizi next door.

For example, in the days before all this, whenever she left the house after breakfast, she would almost inevitably cross paths with Han Linfeng out for his morning constitutional. Being neighbors, one could not very well ignore the other at the mouth of the lane — there were greetings to be exchanged, remarks about how warm the sun was today, how much cooler the breeze had turned and that one ought to dress more warmly.

Then in the afternoon, when she returned from the shop, it would be just as the Shizi had finished dressing and was setting out for another evening banquet — and another unavoidable pause for pleasantries.

Even next-door neighbors did not encounter each other with such regularity. Let alone two households separated by an entire lane.

Su Luoyun gave herself an honest accounting and concluded that her own schedule had simply aligned itself perfectly with that of the master of the spider’s den.

She did not dare trouble that creature into changing his comings and goings, so she could only put herself to the inconvenience of leaving earlier and returning later, staggering her movements to avoid his.

With such careful avoidance, by rights she ought to have succeeded.

Yet after five or six days of peace, one morning she stepped out into the mist on her way to the shop — and there was Shizi Han.

Xiangcao’s low murmur of warning made Su Luoyun’s heart clench, but she could not let it show. She could only offer the Shizi a polite greeting first.

Today Han Linfeng carried rather less of the smell of wine about him, and seemed not to have applied any rouge either — his person bore only the clean, fresh scent of soapwort.

He looked down at the woman making her greeting — it had only been a few days since he last saw her, and she appeared even thinner than he remembered. He wondered where all those small meals of home-cooked rice and vegetables were going.

Perhaps because she could not see, Miss Su made little effort at adornment. Her dress was simple and unadorned — no flowers in her hair, no jade pins, only a fragrant wood hairpin holding her dark hair in place. Yet the clean, smooth expanse of her forehead only made her dark brows appear more delicately curved and finely drawn, with no need of jewels to set them off.

And without the embellishment of powder and jewels, her whole bearing appeared all the more pure and gracefully spare…

Su Luoyun felt a quiet sinking in her heart, though her face betrayed nothing. Having returned the greeting, she simply waited for the Shizi to exchange the usual pleasantries so they could each go their separate ways.

To her surprise, Han Linfeng seemed in a mood for conversation today. Not only did he show no inclination to leave, but he planted himself before her and asked in a measured voice: “I have not seen Miss Su these past few days. Where have you been?”

Su Luoyun lowered her head and replied softly: “Running a small business requires rising before dawn and working past dusk — I could hardly arrange my hours to conveniently coincide with those of an honored guest. I still need to get to the shop, Shizi — please, don’t let me keep you…”

Han Linfeng heard the coolness in her tone.

A young woman in the full bloom of her years was an unpredictable creature — the pleasant-faced neighbor of just a few days ago had, after only a brief absence, turned frosty as winter.

Han Linfeng watched her with her head lowered, able to see nothing but the top of her coiled hair. He shifted to one side and made a gesture of yielding the way: “In that case… I won’t delay you further…”

Su Luoyun kept her head down and walked quickly past.

She did not know that a gentle wind had stirred the loose strands of hair at her temple, carrying with it the faint fragrance of jasmine oil — and that it gave the Shizi’s clear, steady eyes a brief moment of abstraction.

Qingyang, standing at a respectful distance, watched his lord remain motionless at the mouth of the lane, his gaze following the blind young miss from the Su household as she disappeared with her maid into the morning mist. He ventured carefully: “My lord, it is nearly full daylight. Have you decided where you wish to go?”

The young lord had risen earlier than even he had today. Qingyang had hastened to make himself presentable and accompany his lord outside.

He had assumed his lord had been struck by some sudden whim to visit friends or seek amusement somewhere. Instead, the Shizi had risen deliberately at this hour and done nothing but wander aimlessly at the mouth of the lane with him in tow for half the morning.

In the end, the dew from the grass by the roadside had soaked through their trouser hems — all for the sake of a few exchanged words with the neighbor next door.

Qingyang truly could not make sense of it. What scheme was the young lord hatching?

In truth, Han Linfeng himself found his own behavior somewhat inexplicable.

Ever since the charming neighbor had moved in next door, Han Linfeng had developed certain habits he had not noticed accumulating — such as strolling through the north garden during breaks from reading, and lingering behind the flowering wall there to listen to the neighbor and her maid chat idly on the other side.

Sometimes he would catch that clear, lively voice solemnly lecturing Arong that he ought to spread his attentions more evenly, eat at many households rather than always stealing dried fish from hers alone.

It seemed that a young woman who was bold and sharp-witted in public was, in private, no different from any carefree, playful girl — mischievous and entirely endearing.

Han Linfeng did not feel he was making any deliberate effort, yet he had, without quite realizing it, adjusted his schedule slightly so as to cross paths with his neighbor more frequently at the lane’s entrance.

Though they exchanged nothing more than a few idle words each time, he always came away feeling somehow more at ease. The stifling opulence of the capital’s social world left one half-suffocated after a while.

To walk a few paces alongside a young woman who had nothing whatsoever to do with the world of fame and ambition, even in complete silence, was to taste something of the quiet sweetness of a life lived simply.

But ever since the day he had leapt over the wall to catch her, she seemed to have been frightened — or perhaps she was simply being cautious about appearances. She had stopped coming out into her own courtyard entirely. Han Linfeng had walked past several times and heard nothing of Su Luoyun’s soft laughter or quiet murmur.

This in itself was nothing. But in the days since, whenever he left or returned home, the prolonged absence of any sight of his neighbor began to feel somewhat pointed.

After enough time, Han Linfeng had grown quietly unsettled — like a man who has grown accustomed to his morning and evening cup of fragrant tea, only to find the cup inexplicably taken away. A vague, hollow feeling, with no real cause he could name.

Yesterday morning during his training, he had heard the gate of the house next door creak open, and realized that his neighbor had simply started leaving very early. The discovery had been entirely incidental — he had not given it any particular thought.

Yet this morning, Han Linfeng had simply found he had no desire to train. He had brought Qingyang along for an early walk through the lane, and sure enough, there was Su Luoyun.

It had been meant as nothing more than a few words in passing. Yet the young miss seemed impatient, disinclined to speak with him, as though she were an entirely different person from the one who had murmured “what a pity” in that wistful way.

Before more than a few sentences could pass between them, Su Luoyun excused herself with pressing business and hurried out of the lane.

Han Linfeng watched her retreating figure and turned it over in his mind: aside from arriving uninvited and leaping over her wall, he had done nothing to offend her. Had he truly frightened her that day, and caused her this displeasure? Or was it…

Qingyang had by now caught some faint glimmer of what was happening, yet could not quite believe that his lord — even in his role as a dissipated young noble — would stoop to trifling with a blind girl.

Qingyang thought well of Su Luoyun. A woman who had lost her sight and yet held herself with such dignity, caring so tenderly for her younger brother, always put him in mind of his own elder sister back home. But there was no natural ground for any connection between her and his lord.

If a woman like her were to develop feelings for the young lord and yet have no hope of entering the prince’s household — would that not only make her circumstances more desolate than they already were?

And so Qingyang chose his words with care and ventured a gentle remonstrance: “The Shizi was born of a princely house and is of striking appearance — even in taking a consort or a favored attendant, one would naturally seek a woman of exceptional talent and beauty, someone fit to be received in formal company… Miss Su’s blindness alone would make her unsuitable even as a concubine to the Shizi…”

Speaking thus, he reflected privately that even the Wang girl from the broken betrothal had fallen rather short. Only the Lu ducal house would have been a truly fitting match — but the Shizi had refused without hesitation, unwilling to have the Sixth Prince’s eyes and ears installed beside him, unwilling to invite the Emperor’s suspicion.

As for Su Luoyun — she simply did not measure up in any way. And he felt protective of the blind girl, which was precisely why he felt he ought to say a few words of caution, to spare her the heartache.

Han Linfeng heard him out, then turned a cold, level gaze on Qingyang — and strode back into Azure Fish Lane without a word.

That single glance sent a chill down Qingyang’s spine. He could not tell whether his lord found the remark unnecessary, or whether there was something else behind it entirely.

* * *

As for Su Luoyun — she hurried toward the shop with cold sweat on her back.

She knew that continuing to exchange the usual pleasantries with the Shizi as though nothing had changed was the only way not to arouse his suspicion. Yet the secret she had so suddenly uncovered left her heart perpetually unsettled.

When she thought it through calmly, she had to admit: this Han Shizi had once held a blade to her throat, yet he had also come to her aid repeatedly without drawing attention to it. She could not fathom what he was about.

This was the most tormenting kind of uncertainty — unable to read another person’s intentions, left with nothing but anxious conjecture.

These past several nights, Su Luoyun had been jolted awake repeatedly by dreams that all ran the same course.

She could not see, and yet the scenes her mind conjured in sleep were vivid and real as anything.

Though the face of the knife-wielding man in her dreams remained as blurred as a smear of fog, the rasp of his voice close to her ear as he spoke was enough to set her trembling even in sleep.

He pressed the sharp blade against her throat and whispered into her ear in that low, sinister tone: “Is the food at your household not to your liking, miss? With so little flesh on you, even a knife would barely scrape off anything worth keeping…”

The words were so absurd that when Su Luoyun startled awake from the nightmare, she found herself fuming at the empty air: “What business is it of yours whether I gain weight or not!”

But after the indignant outburst faded, Su Luoyun gave a self-deprecating laugh — in his presence, of course, she would never dare say any such thing.

This man who appeared so casual and unhurried had walked away unscathed through a hail of blades. A creature of such exceptional ability was not one she could afford to antagonize.

If he truly intended to use a knife on her, she would probably only be able to kneel on the ground and beg the Shizi for mercy.

* * *

As Slim Fragrance Studio’s business continued to flourish, the very first thing Su Luoyun did was seal up a generous packet of silver and have it delivered to the Shizi’s household.

Of course, she could not say outright that it was payment for the frankincense — that would touch the Shizi’s sore point. She instructed Xiangcao to say only that she had heard the Shizi’s birthday was approaching, and that the shop owed much of its good fortune to the Shizi’s patronage, for which she had no adequate way to express her gratitude — so she sent a little silver as a birthday gift, a small token of her sincerity.

Su Luoyun had calculated that over the course of a year there would be enough occasions — festival days and celebrations — to allow her to repay the value of the frankincense little by little.

As for the other half of the frankincense beads, she had not dared touch a single one. They remained sealed in the storage room, waiting for an appropriate moment to be returned to the Shizi without causing offense.

She had also begun inquiring about new premises. She intended to move out of Sweet Water Lane and its dragon’s den as soon as possible.

Han Linfeng, for his part, looked at the red paper-wrapped packet of silver from Slim Fragrance Studio with a slight raise of his brow.

If he recalled correctly, his birthday was still some time away. If Miss Su had not been so pointedly avoiding him, one might almost mistake this for a particularly devoted gesture of esteem and goodwill.

At that thought, Han Linfeng lowered his gaze, tapped the pages of his book idly with a fingertip, and turned his eyes away from the packet of silver.

Outside the window a light breeze came and went, setting the willow branches swaying their slender fronds — but there was no one there to admire their graceful, sinuous form.

* * *

In this manner another month passed. Azure Fish Lane and Sweet Water Lane maintained a peaceable distance, each household going its own way without disturbance.

The Shizi seemed to have lost interest in crossing paths with the young miss next door, and no further “chance encounters” with Su Luoyun materialized.

The weight that had been suspended in Su Luoyun’s heart gradually settled a little.

When summer gave way to autumn, it would be time for her brother to sit the children’s examination. In these critical weeks of preparation, Su Luoyun made every effort to stay home herself, keeping him company as he studied. She had lately stopped going to the shop at all, and simply remained at home to support him.

Had she not feared it would disturb her brother’s concentration during revision, she would have rented new lodgings and moved out that very day. But a hurried departure might arouse suspicion next door, so she had only quietly engaged someone to scout out suitable properties, intending to find the right place and move when the moment was opportune.

If the neighbor left her alone, that was, of course, the best outcome of all. They were two households with no natural connection, each living its own life — how agreeable that would be.

But peaceful days seemed always to be just out of her reach. That afternoon, the bookkeeper from the shop arrived in a great hurry and reported to Su Luoyun that for some unknown reason, two pages had been torn from the purchasing ledger.

Su Luoyun’s heart stirred the moment she heard this. A few days earlier she had taken on a new errand boy named Li Rong.

The boy had been reasonably quick-witted at first, tidying the fragrant materials more neatly than the other errand boys, and had been put to good use. But as the days went on, his true character had begun to show — Li Rong had lately become unreliable.

Just a few days prior, Master Li had come to tell her that Li Rong had been repeatedly ignoring Su Luoyun’s standing prohibition and loitering around the door of the fragrance storage room. On one occasion he had even slipped inside behind Master Li when the door was opened to retrieve materials — though nothing had gone missing, Master Li remembered Su Luoyun’s instructions and thought it better to mention it.

When Su Luoyun heard this, she had asked Li Rong directly what he was doing. He had only hemmed and hawed evasively.

She knew then that this person could no longer be trusted. Without further discussion, she handed Li Rong a tael of silver and dismissed him.

Li Rong had gone on weeping about his ailing parents who depended entirely on him, and refused to leave. Master Li had felt some sympathy and put in a word on his behalf.

But Su Luoyun had not softened.

This shop had been built up to its current standing through effort at every turn. The shop’s personnel were equally critical — a person who was dishonest in their work and had hidden motives could not be kept on, however capable, for she did not dare use them.

What she had not anticipated was that Li Rong had taken her measure well. He waited until Su Luoyun had left, then brought his mother to the shop to appeal to the bookkeeper on his behalf.

The bookkeeper had initially tried patiently to persuade and console them. When that became unbearable, he spoke coldly and drove them away. Li Rong’s mother, however, was not easily deterred — she sat in the shop hall and wept and made a scene without stopping. The bookkeeper was afraid she might try to make some false accusation, so he dared not lay a hand on her, and by the time he finally managed to send her on her way, he was utterly exhausted.

The following day, the bookkeeper discovered that the ledger pages were gone.

The accounts book sat right there on the counter — two pages had simply been torn clean out. The bookkeeper realized something was wrong and hurried to Sweet Water Lane to inform the proprietress.