Those who were to be taken had been taken. The crowd of officers withdrew with a great stir and clatter. Eunuch Lai Fu was the last to remain. “Old Madam, you have one hour to gather your belongings. This is already a special act of grace from the Emperor. Please make your preparations without delay.”

“Yes. This old woman gives thanks for His Majesty’s grace, and shall ensure the household departs within the hour.”

Once Lai Fu, too, had gone, the Hua matriarch could no longer hold herself upright. She collapsed, and those beside her scrambled to catch her. Nanny Su, who had served at her side for decades, pressed hard on the matriarch’s philtrum, and the Old Madam gradually came back to herself.

She looked around at the room full of women and children, expressions hollow with shock, and laughed a bitter laugh. Tears slipped from the corners of her eyes. Either they were children too young to understand anything, or they were short-sighted women who knew only how to bicker over petty daily gains. How was the Hua Family to survive this calamity?

Hua Zhi looked at her grandmother weeping without cease and felt a sharp ache in her heart. This was the first time she had ever seen her grandmother cry. No matter what had come before, her grandmother had always been composed — her very presence seemed to hold the promise that nothing could go truly wrong. But now even she had been shattered by this tremendous blow. There was no longer anyone left to shelter the Hua Family.

She looked around the room. Among the four branch madams, the First Madam was famously fragile and given to sentiment — the sort of woman who could be moved to weeping by fallen leaves scattered on the ground. She was of no use in a moment like this.

The second branch was a concubine line, and carried no authority in the household. Even if she had the will to step forward, the Old Madam would never consent to it, and the other branches would not allow a concubine-born woman to take precedence over them.

The Third Madam came from the humblest background of all the family’s wives-in-law, and her origins had limited her perspective accordingly — she could not possibly bear the weight of the Hua Family in such a storm. On top of that, her legitimate son had just been taken from her, and there was no telling how long it would be before she recovered.

The Fourth Madam was the one Hua Zhi truly regarded with confidence — both her background and her breadth of vision were sufficient. But…

Hua Zhi looked at the woman’s visibly swelling belly and smiled a rueful smile. In ordinary times, she might have been able to push through it, with Hua Zhi advising quietly from behind. But how could anyone allow a pregnant woman to bear this kind of pressure now?

For a great household a century in standing, there was not a single woman capable of holding things together when it truly mattered. It was plain to see that the Hua men had not disgraced their ancestors, but this generation’s female members had fallen far too short.

Hua Zhi could not quite name what she felt in her heart. Circumstances had once forced her to harden herself to the bone. She had thought that in this lifetime, she might live out her years in peace and quiet. And yet here she was, forced once again onto the path of a woman who must carry everything on her own shoulders — in an era and an environment that made that path extraordinarily harsh. She could only hope her end would not be too bitter.

She guided her younger brother back to their mother’s side and made sure he was supporting her, then released his hand and stepped forward. Hua Bailin’s heart lurched. “Elder sister,” he called softly.

Hua Zhi turned back and smiled at him — a smile filled with helpless resignation. “Look after Mother.”

Hua Bailin did not yet understand what lay within that look. He only felt a wrenching ache in his chest. It was only when he had grown considerably older that he would come to know his elder sister had stepped forward that day bracing herself to pay whatever price was necessary. And only then would he understand that the ache he had felt was, in truth, grief for her.

Hua Zhi pressed through the crowd, moved a few steps forward, and crouched down before her grandmother, meeting her gaze. She asked in a gentle voice, “Grandmother, do you trust me?”

Trust her? The Old Madam reached up and touched her eldest granddaughter’s face. “You are a child of the Hua Family.”

Because you are a child of the Hua Family — of course I trust you.

Hua Zhi nodded. “Then please give the household management into my hands for the time being.”

The Old Madam studied her quietly for a moment, and discovered with startled relief that her granddaughter’s eyes held none of the fear and panic so plainly written on everyone else’s faces. Of course — this was the granddaughter the Old Master himself had taken under his wing and personally shaped.

“Very well. This house full of elderly, women, and children — I place them all in your hands.”

Hua Zhi offered a small smile and rose to face the assembled household. “We have only one hour. I ask that everyone return now and bring with them whatever they believe is most essential. We leave this place first.”

The Second Madam hesitated and then asked, “Leave here and go — where?”

“Wherever we end up, we must leave first.” Hua Zhi answered her without a moment’s pause — answering everyone. “This is the official residence of a Senior Second Grade official. With Grandfather stripped of his post, we have no right to remain here.”

“To the house in the south of the city,” the Old Madam added. “That property will not be sealed.”

No one asked why it would not be sealed. With someone having taken charge, the women — frightened to their very cores — only wanted somewhere safe to land.

“Remember to bring the knee warmers and wrist guards that Grandfather and Father use in winter. Be quick.”

Not a single person dared to be muddleheaded about this. Even the First Madam took tight hold of the son who had nearly been taken from her and went back to pack.

Hua Zhi turned to say something, but the Old Madam spoke first. Her expression, remarkably, seemed to have eased somewhat. “Go quickly and pack as well. I will hold together — for the sake of the Hua Family, I will.”

“So long as we preserve the people, there is still a future to work toward. Grandmother, this is not the end. We still have a chance to turn things around.” Hua Zhi gave a respectful bow, then left with her maidservants at a brisk pace. One hour — it was truly not long.

The Old Madam covered her eyes and suddenly laughed. “All this time, I never understood why the Old Master, with so many other capable grandchildren to teach, gave none of them his attention yet doted so particularly on Zhi’er. She was obedient, yes — but there are plenty of girls like that in any family. Only now do I understand. The Old Master’s eye never failed. It was I who had failed to see.”

“Indeed — even this servant had not perceived that the eldest young miss possessed such resolve.”

“Come, help me up. There is no time.”

The moment Hua Zhi entered her own courtyard she began issuing instructions one after another. “Take everything out. Divide it into five portions — one for each of us to carry on our person. Pack as many sets of clothing for each season as you can manage. For anything else, use your judgment about what will be useful and bring it along.”

Back inside, everyone went about their tasks. Nian Qiu spoke as she packed: “When we leave, will we be searched?”

“Most likely not. They have already carried out one seizure — those men will assume that even if we have managed to conceal a few things, there won’t be much. No one will risk drawing the Empress Dowager’s displeasure over a handful of items.”

Bao Chun understood at once. “Of course — the female members of the Hua household were spared through the Empress Dowager’s protection. To search us would be to disrespect her.”

Hua Zhi moved to the interior of the grand bed frame. The cabinet doors were standing open, and the books inside had clearly been disturbed — likely checked for hidden banknotes. Two volumes lay on the floor.

She retrieved three of them and placed them in her bundle. Then she left the packing to the others, sat to one side, and turned her mind to what had to come next.

Grandfather and Father held posts in the same court. They would have been stripped of their official robes on the spot and placed on the road to exile immediately. At the same time, the Imperial Guards would have set out for the Hua residence to carry out the seizure. Adding up the timing of everything, Grandfather had been on his way for approximately two hours already. She needed to make preparations — Grandfather could not simply depart like this. The Northern Territories turned cold early; by the time they arrived, it would already be freezing, and Grandfather was still wearing only his thin summer garments…

She pressed her fingers to her temples. With eyes closed, Hua Zhi worked through her calculations one by one, and without her noticing, the time slipped by.